Chapter 205 Katherine or Kajal - the system's voice
'System'
[...]
'Please say that I'm wrong, and it's not what I think it is?'
[I'm sorry host. But it seems we just found another anomaly.] System spoke in a mechanical tone, dropping its previous personality of the girl it chose from his mind.
Seeing that Rio didn't respond to her request, Katherine asked again "Can you help me with that or _?"
"Ohh sorry, I was thinking of something else. Yeah I'll help you tomorrow. Is that okay?" Rio said, as he tried to smile.
"That's fine. I'll meet you tomorrow then." Katherine said and left without turning back or showing any expression of smile or gratitude.
''She's really icy huh." Amelia said, as she came near her brother.
"Don't joke around. I'm leaving. I have something to do. I'll see you girls at dinner." Rio said and left for his dorms, without waiting for their response.
Takashi didn't come with him, and he didn't speak to him again after that talk he had in the morning. Rio didn't care about that and started walking towards his room. He had too many things to think about again.
"She sounds just like you, System. Wanna tell me why?" Rio asked, once he was alone and back in his room.
[I told you, I just copied a personality from your mind, I don't know anything.] System said in defense.
"Then who is she? What is she doing here? And most importantly, why don't I remember her?" Rio asked the questions he had, ever since he talked with Katherine.
[How would I know if you forgot some of your memories? She was in your head before.]
'What do you mean before?'
[Rio, I didn't know.] System said apologetically, as it realized it spoke out without thinking.
Hearing the system's answer, the bad premonition in Rio's head rose high. "Just shut up and tell me, what did you mean she was in my head before?"
Knowing there was no other option, the system started explaining. [When you took the healing potion to heal your brain after awakening, your brain was healed but some of your memories were gone. Even when I tried to look for the memories of this girl in your mind again, I couldn't find anything.]
After choosing the personality of a random girl from his mind after the merging, the system wanted to know all about this girl and checked his memories, but surprisingly all of the memories related to that girl were sealed and it couldn't find anything.
'So you're telling me, that stupid fucking potion given by your stupid fucking being erased my memories. Is that what it means to heal my brain?'
[It didn't erase them.Your mind was already hiding those memories subconsciously, trying to bury them so you won't remember anything.] System said and continued explaining [Even before you took the potion you couldn't remember anything about this girl and asked me about it, remember. It's just after drinking the potion the seal your brain subconsciously placed on these memories became stronger and they were totally locked. Even from me.]
'What bullshit are you spouting? Why would I hide my memories subconsciously? I even remembered all about Ria and Shweta, and these two were painful enough for me to hold on, so why would I forget her.' Rio said, not believing anything the system said.
He remembered that the system first chose the personality of Ria, then Shweta's, and then when he finally gave it a last chance, it just picked a random girl from his mind. At that time, he thought it was someone he saw somewhere, or from some tv or movie show, as there was no lack of girls with cheerful personalities in those things.
But hearing the system's words now and meeting Katherine who was speaking in the same voice as the system in front of him, albeit lacking in emotion. He was sure it wasn't just a random girl or any character from a movie or a tv show.
It was someone important to him. He could feel it, a familiar feeling in his head, yet he couldn't remember exactly what it was? According to the system, She was someone whom he remembered even after he came to this new world albeit barely. Yet he couldn't understand why he would try to forget her in the first place.
What did the system mean when it said I subconsciously buried her memories, and the potion completely sealed them. And why didn't that 'bastard of a being' say anything about side effects like these.
"Can I get those memories back?" Rio asked, as he needed to know this answer the most. Someone from his past was standing in front of him, and yet he had no idea who it was, or what his relationship with her was?
"Use whatever method or potion you have, buy it and give it to me." Rio said, urging the system. He didn't care about points anymore, if he learned anything from Amelia and Saisha's case, and the gifts from 'the being' - he was sure this girl was important to him, important enough for 'That Being' to reincarnate her in Arcadia.
'So who was she? A friend, family, or some enemy' Rio thought, as he tried hard to remember, yet got nothing.
When he tried to use his blessings to clear his mind and try again, a fucking headache started to pain him and stopping all his efforts.
Giving up on trying to search for answers himself, he then glanced at the gift section, to see if some new memory crystal popped up, which could give him some kind of hint about his relationship with her, yet there was nothing.
He needed to know about her, not just for himself, but also because she was now living as Katherine Winston, the 2nd main heroine of the beginning stages. Even if she doesn't have her memories of earth, as system said she had now become another anomaly in the plotline.
Since she isn't the pure character of novel anymore, could he be sure that her personality is the same as Katherine described in the novel?
What if she has the knowledge of the novel too? What if she knows the plot and is trying to follow it or ruin it for her own gains? What if she's the one who popped up in arcadia 8 years ago, when system had to shut off as a response.
It would be too troublesome in any of the above cases.
"Can you help me or not?" Rio said, as he noticed, system was being silent.
[I don't know, host. The memories were locked by your own subconscious, so it's only upto you to get them back. No outside potion or pill can help you.]
"What do you mean upto me? If it was up to me, I wouldn't even forget them, or remember them now when clearly I'm trying very hard to do so?" Rio said in annoyance, as the more he tried to remember her, the worse his headache became.
[It just means some part of your subconscious thinks you aren't ready for it, host. There's no need to force it, maybe you'll remember it in some dream one day, or when any similar event happens again…]
"Or when I hit my head on a wall, or fall down the stairs, it isn't amnesia, you stupid AI. And nor is it a bollywood drama." Rio cursed the system as it gave a useless suggestion.
"What else did I forget? Is there anything else you're not telling me? Or something that your 'the great being' said to you. But you're too busy sitting on your ass and watching drama to speak up." Rio said, feeling a little annoyed at the constant new changes that were happening around him.
'First Amelia, then Saisha, and now Katherine - three important characters and supporters of the protagonist. And now they're swapped with my sister, my ex-girlfriend, and God knows who this new girl is.
What the fuck is wrong with this 'Being' and this plot. Why're all important characters getting swapped out? What next Ali getting here as Leon and Nashi as Ditail?
[There's nothing else that you forgot, host. You remember everything else besides her.]
"Any idea what makes her so special? You must have seen something in her to choose her personality right." Rio asked, looking to get at least a hint.
Hearing his question, system thought for a second, thinking if it should answer him or not. But then it decided to speak truly.
[She was your friend. Best friend kinda friend.]
"Wha _ "
[I've seen memories in which you, Shweta and her, had all been together. You seemed happy and relaxed. And _]
"And what?" Rio asked, as he couldn't understand why he would ever try to forget who was once his best friend. He even remembered that bastard Nashi, and Ali and everyone else. Then why her? Why did he forget her?
[I think she loved you, host.]
"Say WHATTT?" Rio said as he stood up from his bed with a shocked expression. "Are you sure she loved me, cause I'm pretty sure that's something I'd remember."
[It's the truth host. She used to call you SK.]
'Those are just the initials of my name. what's special about that.'
[SK didn't mean Shiva Kumar. It meant Shiva and Kajal.]
[That was her name by the way - Kajal Malhotra.]
'Fucking hell'
The more he learned about this mysterious girl from the system, the more confused he became. He clearly remembered everything after Shweta left him, and nobody, no one ever came to meet him once when he left the city and moved out. When he was in prison?
If she loved him, where did she go? Where was she when he needed her at his lowest? When Ria was gone, when Shweta left him, where was she?
'Did something happen to her. Did she die like Ria? Is that why I chose to forget her?
But that shouldn't be possible. I remember Ria and Nashi, and both of them were dead too.'
All these constant new variables in his plans started to anger him, as it reminded him of the last time things started to get out of his control like this - that damned dungeon incident.
His headache started to reach his peak, as the system took out a potion from the inventory for him, but before he could drink it, it got crushed as he clenched his hands unconsciously.
"WHO THE HELL is she?"
Rio screamed as the pain in his head reached his limit, and he lost his control. A blast of dark mana, like one he released in the dungeon, the day the top guilds found him, was let out.
—KABOOM–
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