Chapter 8: Meditation, or Just Sleep?

I gazed at the words that had abruptly appeared before my eyes. This time, I hadn’t intentionally focused my attention, so it wasn’t my doing.

Had I achieved another accomplishment? The reduction in presence seemed like a decent reward, though I had no idea what its maximum effect might be.

Pondering this achievement, I wondered if I would have triggered it had I run for a position back then and succeeded. Or perhaps, would it have simply transformed into a different achievement?

It was highly probable that this was the case.

It seemed I needed to undertake something of special significance. Yet, I was someone who disliked trouble and shied away from the spotlight, which truly presented a dilemma for me.

‘If it’s truly too difficult, then don’t do it!’ I thought, almost wanting to flip a table.

But that wouldn’t do. I was so ordinary; I couldn’t simply abandon my only potential advantage. If all else failed, I would test the waters, seeing if I could achieve something by doing inconspicuous things.

If that proved possible, it would be wonderful.

However, a problem now arose: I had no specific objective. With no knowledge of the criteria for these achievements, I could only proceed with slow, deliberate experimentation.

This endeavor seemed deceptively simple, yet also incredibly difficult. To achieve something, perhaps running naked around the sports field might trigger some bizarre accomplishment, but I clearly wouldn’t resort to such an act.

Compared to these elusive achievements, it was better to be pragmatic and first review the introductory meditation techniques.

After all, the meditation class was scheduled for the afternoon. If I didn’t prepare and they then checked our preliminary work, I would surely be doomed, wouldn’t I?

With that in mind, I opened the textbook on introductory meditation.

The book featured a blend of text and illustrations. However, after a quick flip through, the images appeared quite abstract, seemingly designed to guide one into specific mental states through visual cues.

I patiently settled down and began reading from the preface. While I wasn’t particularly fond of reading in general, anything related to extraordinary powers always piqued my interest.

As the saying went, ‘Interest is the best teacher.’

Yet, even the best teacher couldn’t instruct a truly inept student.

After finishing the prologue, I quickly grew impatient. This wasn’t a novel, after all, and I had clearly overestimated my interest in supernatural knowledge.

‘What in the world is this?’ I mused. ‘I understand every single word, yet why can’t I grasp their meaning when put together?’

‘Is this truly meditation?’

‘This is supposed to be *introductory* meditation!’

Instinctively, I glanced at Kereiya Akareiya beside me, only to find her eyes closed. Had she already begun meditating?

A surge of surprise, even urgency, washed over me. Was this the formidable presence of the meditation class representative?

She was utterly crushing a mere mortal like me!

I rubbed my temples, willing myself to calm down. There was still ample time before noon, so I decided to get a general understanding of what meditation entailed. It would be even better if I could try my hand at it first.

After a while, I vaguely, perhaps, possibly, grasped the essence of meditation. Introductory meditation held no inherent difficulty; it possessed only a single threshold: entering a meditative state.

Once one entered this state, the subsequent steps of cultivating spiritual power could proceed systematically.

Therefore, entering a meditative state was my greatest hurdle. It required a mind utterly devoid of thoughts, a heart as still as calm water—a feat utterly impossible for me!

As someone constantly bombarded by the era of big data, my mind was perpetually absorbing novel information. How could I possibly stop my thoughts from wandering?

The book also provided visualization diagrams to aid meditation, along with recommendations for supplementary music.

However, these were of little use to me.

The most fundamental problem remained unsolved: I simply couldn’t quiet my mind.

I fixed my gaze on the first visualization diagram, then slowly closed my eyes, directing my consciousness to focus on it.

Yet, the more I tried to envision the diagram, the more my mind drifted elsewhere. The image in my head grew distorted, and despite my attempts to control it, it only twisted more thoroughly.

I opened my eyes. It was still no use.

I then looked at Kereiya Akareiya, who remained motionless in the same posture. Was I simply too impatient?

As a modern person, I felt a distinct anxiety if my mind wasn’t constantly receiving new information, as if I would quickly become disconnected from society. It was a fear of solitude.

But didn’t I enjoy solitude?

No, I merely preferred being alone, which wasn’t the same as loving solitude. My fondness for finding comfort amidst bustling, noisy environments clearly indicated that I was a contradictory being: one who conformed readily yet resisted merging with the crowd.

It was akin to a droplet of water, yearning to merge with the ocean yet terrified of losing its identity within the vast expanse.

This perspective left me in a difficult predicament.

I tried to reassure myself.

‘The person I am now is no longer the person I once was,’ I thought.

‘This is a different world. There’s no work, no endless tasks to ponder, no heavy burdens to bear. There are no familial ties, no relationships with loved ones…’

‘I don’t even understand this world, so how could I possibly be disconnected from it?’

This was the process of self-conviction.

With my eyes closed, I reflected on all that had passed. The urgency in my heart gradually receded, and the heavy burdens I carried slowly lifted. From this moment onward, this was a fresh beginning!

And in the days to come, I would forge a wonderful future!

I comforted myself with these thoughts.

Memories of my past life, or rather, my former experiences, replayed like a series of photographs. Older recollections had blurred, with only significant events appearing as fleeting images—nodes in my memory, anchors allowing me to recall the associated processes.

Throughout my growth, I had continuously shouldered one heavy burden after another. The pressure, like the shadow of those burdens, stretched longer and longer behind me, as if threatening to engulf me.

Yet, I had persevered to this very point. A shadow was, after all, merely a shadow; it could not consume me. And now, I had cast off my burdens.

I was ready to embark on this new life.

The darkness of the past continued to twist and distort, though I couldn’t comprehend its meaning.

Gradually, however, the dark shadows began to coalesce into a somewhat familiar image: the very visualization diagram I had previously distorted!

Now, it was slowly, steadily, reverting to the form I had seen in the book.

Did this hold any significance?

As I gazed at the diagram, it felt as though many things had slipped from my memory.

Regardless, I felt profoundly relaxed, so much so that I harbored a greedy desire to linger here just a little longer.

Just for a moment…

Lost in these thoughts, I slowly drifted off to sleep.

****

It wasn’t until I was gently roused by a light tap that I awoke.

I slowly opened my eyes, a hint of disorientation in my gaze. Before me stood a beautiful blonde girl, looking somewhat familiar…

“Did you sleep well? Your breathing was so even; I really envy your quality of sleep.”

“I fell asleep?” I instantly realized.

“Yeah, you didn’t think you were meditating, did you? Anyway, I’m heading to the cafeteria now.” Kereiya Akareiya said, then quickly dashed off, as if someone was waiting for her. “Oh, coming, coming! Wait for me!”

I gazed at the somewhat empty classroom, an indescribable feeling bubbling within me, akin to a profound sense of loss.

Reaching for my phone, I saw that it was already past eleven o’clock. Class had indeed ended.

As for the meditation earlier… I hadn’t gained a single clue, and what’s more, I had fallen asleep!

‘Am I truly that useless?’

[Achievement Unlocked: Meditation is just sleeping, isn’t it?

Effect: Synchronizes the authority of lucid dreaming while in a meditative state.]