Ch.216211 – Daniel

“Hmm…”

Dr. Fuller was wracking his brain while spinning his chair around with his foot on the lecture platform.

Emily entered his field of vision once every second as he turned.

“Dr. Fuller. How was it? Does it seem like a legitimate proof?”

Even after the shocking realization that “MCGJL” was actually “WLOG,” Robert Fuller had asked additional questions he’d prepared in advance.

NoName had answered each one without hesitation, making Dr. Fuller struggle to interpret her explanations.

Only after she left did he realize that what she had been explaining as “Proxima Theorem” was actually about “zeros of Dirichlet L-functions.”

Other unknown terms like “Acephite Alpha Group” and “Kaizen K Function” didn’t appear anywhere on the internet.

Judging by their form and structure, there were too many theories that shouldn’t even exist.

“If Fermat truly proved his last theorem using only 17th century mathematics, it might have looked something like this.”

Fermat’s Last Theorem was only solved after modern mathematics established elliptic curves and the modularity theorem.

But what if it could have been solved by other methods?

There must be groundbreaking theories hidden beneath that no one could have imagined.

Dr. Robert Fuller snapped his fingers briskly.

After much deliberation, he’d finally figured it out.

Whether this proof was true or false didn’t matter.

The content within NoName’s proof alone was enough to envision a future that would shake the mathematical world.

He wasn’t one to kill the goose that laid golden eggs. In other words, he had patience.

“We need someone who knows more diverse fields.”

After the development of artificial intelligence, society began demanding specialists again.

There’s a saying that in undergraduate studies, you learn about elephants; in master’s studies, you learn about elephant feet; and in doctoral studies, you research the dirt under elephant toenails.

Human time is finite, and as specialized knowledge is endless, fields inevitably narrow down.

This created the problem where even elephant experts might know nothing about what others in their field are researching.

“It would be great if we had someone like John von Neumann or Terence Tao.”

“They’re both dead. And von Neumann wasn’t even a mathematician, he was a theoretical magician from 100 years ago. Why are you looking for him here?”

They needed a deus ex machina figure who could encompass the entire field of “mathematics.”

Only then could they cross-verify whether NoName’s theory already existed or was completely new.

Eventually, Dr. Fuller sought another approach.

“Collective intelligence is all we have left.”

If 100 experts gather, they should be able to roughly construct an elephant’s form, right?

“It was a good call to rent a large lecture hall as you suggested, Doctor.”

“Indeed. Next time we should bring some food.”

The bald professor began searching for snacks that NoName might like.

Emily, glancing at this, muttered without realizing:

“Takoyaki?”

“?”

“Oh, sorry. I just smell takoyaki somewhere. Definitely not because of your head, Doctor…”

“I’ve told you repeatedly, I’m not balding—I shaved my head!”

“Yes, I know… sorry…”

He heaved a deep sigh.

Despite solving such difficult problems, there was no sign of hair loss medication even by 2051.

Smelling the faint aroma of takoyaki from somewhere, Dr. Fuller absently stroked his smooth head.

Perhaps from spinning too long, he felt dizzy.

* * *

[NoName! Have you forgotten everything we had? The career fair, and we even met recently at your professor’s lab. We were so good together! Please come back!]

I deliberately ignored Woo Da-yeon’s desperate plea.

Six cheese-flavored takoyaki.

I chose present happiness over past friendship.

After all, I tend to be drawn to people who show sincerity.

We moved to the studio where the “Bark” channel was first created.

Naturally, Da-yeon, who had followed us all the way, was cut off at the entrance.

“Do you know Dayeon unnie?”

“Huh?”

“You were having a somewhat harsh conversation before I left the lecture hall.”

“You heard that too? NoName, you really have sharp ears! Here, have another bite, aah—”

“Aamm. Mm. Thank you, Daniel unnie.”

‘Daniel,’ a first-year music student at Korea University.

“But it’s embarrassing, so could you call me Niel or Daniel in front of the seniors later?”

“Hmm, I don’t want to.”

“O-okay, I understand.”

“The takoyaki is delicious. I like the creative touch of cheese powder on top.”

“Really? I’m glad you like it!”

She didn’t particularly like the name her parents gave her. But why? It’s just pretty.

“That unnie is in the same group as me for this elective course.”

Ah, so that’s how they know each other. I thought they had nothing in common, but being connected through an elective course makes sense.

The course was called “Psychology of Human Relationships.”

My ears perked up instantly, and I asked what they learned in class and what kind of practical exercises they did.

Do they teach what psychological mechanisms occur when human relationships fall apart?

If they taught methods to manage emotions when you develop hatred for someone, I’d be willing to attend and listen myself.

“It’s not that kind of class at all! Honestly, I’m not sure what we’re learning… we just meet with team members and hang out…?”

“Hang out? In a class?”

“Yeah! We go bowling, play VR games, drink alcohol.”

“That’s it? No way.”

“That’s really it. Why?”

This isn’t the university class I had in mind!

How is this any different from the garbage academy in my past life?

Classes were just a facade, transformed into social gatherings for nobles at Kaizen Central Academy.

Commoners would trample the weak by any means necessary to forge connections with nobles, while noble children brought wine to class for drinking parties—a place that had completely lost its meaning as an educational institution.

“Hehe, as long as we have fun and get good grades, that’s all that matters, right?”

“Ah… that’s not right…”

“Want to come to class with me sometime? The professor would definitely like you!”

I felt dizzy as past trauma resurfaced.

If I had known Daniel was this type of person, I would have gone with Da-yeon earlier.

But it’s too late now.

At the Bark studio, as she had mentioned, there were several college students and a much older woman.

Judging by her aura similar to Professor Cheon’s, she was clearly a university professor.

“Hello.”

“Oh NoName, you’re so cute! Yes, hello, it’s so nice to meet you!”

The professor’s voice rose an octave at the end.

They say people unconsciously raise their voice when talking to babies, but being on the receiving end is quite burdensome.

I greeted each Bark member one by one.

They were all uniquely individual people, difficult to find commonalities between.

If I had to pick one thing, maybe their long, delicate fingers?

“NoName, do you know about our Bark, bark?”

“Yes, I’ve seen your recommended videos before.”

“Woooah!”

“See? NoName said she knows us!”

“This is for real?”

Even back then, it was impossible not to have seen a major VTube channel with a million subscribers.

Especially for someone like me who frequently searched for classical music, it was a channel that often appeared in my feed.

The students were all excited and cheering. I’m not sure why my having seen their videos was such a big deal.

“When did you see it? Can you tell us which video?”

“I saw quite a few videos. Mostly about two years ago, I think.”

“Ah, I see! Wow, two years ago when NoName was tiny! At six years old, you were really young… wait… just a moment… oh…”

The female senior quickly covered her mouth with both hands.

“Ah… um… sorry…”

Her eyebrows curved downward while her pupils trembled uncontrollably.

Her legs seemed to give out as she collapsed onto the cold marble floor.

Why? What did I say now?

“I didn’t just watch when I was trapped in the capsule. I occasionally looked you up after I was rescued too.”

She must have misunderstood that I only watched them because I had nothing else to enjoy while trapped in virtual reality.

That wasn’t the case. I noticed they even had videos with ten million views, so they were quite popular.

I patted her shoulder a couple of times to encourage her.

Then Daniel, who was standing behind me, showed the whites of her eyes and collapsed sideways.

What’s wrong with these people? Is this some kind of hidden camera prank?

* * *

Daniel thought there couldn’t be two such adorable creatures in the world.

Photos of the child with her face carefully cropped out kept appearing on Korea University’s Everytime app. Everyone seemed to be self-restraining due to privacy concerns.

That’s why, even after NoName finished her performance and they parted ways, Niel planned to meet her again.

Niel went down to the school gate to buy takoyaki.

Her effort of running back to the Science building under the blazing sun was worth it.

Thanks to that, she got to hold hands with the cute child and, more importantly, defeat their competitor, Hicks Studio.

The seniors must all be excited too.

Contrary to appearances, “Bark” was a gloomy, depressing group constantly conflicted between the PDs’ real-life problems and content production obligations.

The energy NoName brought was on a different level.

Everyone was so excited that one senior made a slip of the tongue.

Daniel, who had been smiling the whole time, became serious.

[I didn’t just watch when I was trapped in the capsule. I occasionally looked you up after I was rescued too.]

The poor child seemed to be trying to smile to prevent them from feeling awkward.

Hidden behind her distinct features and cute appearance, everyone had completely forgotten.

That NoName was someone who had been trapped in a capsule for a whole seven years.

The senior immediately realized her mistake.

But once words are spoken, they can’t be taken back.

Daniel suddenly felt her breath catch.

How much pain must NoName have endured during those seven years trapped in a capsule?

And how could she remain so detached when confronted with her “trauma”?

Daniel felt apologetic for bringing her here.

As various complex emotions made her dizzy, Daniel eventually lost consciousness and collapsed.

After some time passed, Daniel woke up on the studio mattress.

“Niel, are you okay?”

“NoName… where’s NoName?”

Niel was more worried about NoName’s well-being than her own.

“She’s doing ‘Maestro’ with the professor right now.”

“What? That virtual reality thing? NoName is in a capsule?”

“Yeah. That’s right.”

“I need to see for myself.”

“Hey, don’t push yourself, Niel!”

Niel ran to the next room.

Her legs grew heavier, but she couldn’t stop.

Daniel, who had lived almost trapped in capsules since childhood like NoName.

Even if confronting her trauma might make her lose consciousness again, checking if NoName was okay was the priority.