I, Su Mo, will never become a effeminate woman!

【Disappearance does not mean annihilation. Please understand that. When I said “natural disappearance,” I meant that my power was running out at that time. It didn’t mean I was going to die.】

“I see… No, wait! Why didn’t you tell me earlier that the mask has a time limit?

And why does Feng Aotian know the name Edenia? Just how many secrets are you still hiding from me?!”

Su Mo was about to apologize to the little assistant, but then he suddenly remembered—wasn’t he the real victim here?

Clearly, it was the other party who didn’t finish explaining things properly, leaving him confused until now. So why should he be the one to apologize?

【I am sorry for not explaining everything before, but as I mentioned earlier, I didn’t have enough power, so I had to keep the explanation brief.】

“So, this time, your power is sufficient?”

Su Mo asked curiously.

【No, I can only maintain communication with you for a short while.】

“Then why are you wasting time talking nonsense?! Hurry and tell me what you didn’t finish saying last time!”

Su Mo said excitedly.

【Alright. First, Edenia is indeed your name, but as for where it came from, you will find out in the future.

Second, why does Feng Aotian know the name Edenia? Because, as I told you before, this world is not the same as the original game plot you knew.

So it’s normal for him to know the name. As for how he found out, you will understand later.

Third, I have already given you the reward I promised. As for what it is, you will know in due time.

Fourth, the Fool’s Mask you are wearing can hide your aura, suppress your strength, and change your appearance. However, changing your appearance does not mean changing your gender.

So, even after you become like this, you won’t grow that male organ.

Because your power is extremely strong, the Fool’s Mask cannot be worn for too long. Excessive energy will overload the mask, causing it to break into fragments.

Therefore, I recommend you remove the mask from time to time, let it release some absorbed energy, and then put it back on.

This time, to prevent you from not knowing when the mask will reach its limit, I have added an early warning feature.

Fifth, you may wonder why Edenia’s personality seems so different from your current one—are you two actually different people?

But please rest assured, you are one and the same—past and future. That is an unchangeable fact.

Edenia’s personality is your true nature. There will never be a situation where one destroys the other. I can guarantee that.

Finally, your Patch 12 has been successfully activated.

My energy is running out again. Here, I will successfully activate Patch 63 for you.】

After saying that, the little assistant’s voice disappeared again.

At the same time, Su Mo saw a handgun appear in front of him.

“Patch 12… I remember that was the one where the lower part could be dismantled into a weapon, right? Wait! Does that mean this gun is—”

Recalling what Patch 12 was from the assistant’s previous explanation, Su Mo widened his eyes and stared at the handgun quietly lying before him.

Then, he excitedly picked it up with both hands. The handgun turned into a beam of white light and merged into Su Mo’s body.

“My brother is back. Even though it didn’t return to where it belonged, at least I feel complete again.”

Su Mo clenched his fist, a look of joy spreading across his face.

But after the excitement faded, Su Mo thought back to what the assistant had just said—and realized it was as good as saying nothing.

“What do you mean I’ll find out later?! You’re still speaking in riddles! That explanation was completely useless!”

Su Mo cursed the assistant’s infuriating behavior.

As for the assurance that he wasn’t suffering from split personality and that Su Mo and Edenia were the same person—

Su Mo felt that was complete nonsense. Wouldn’t he know if he was one person or not? It’s not like he had some dissociative disorder.

It’s just that every time he became Edenia, at first he could maintain his original personality. But gradually, he would start unconsciously doing extremely girlish things that didn’t match his current character.

Although it seemed like two different people, it was still him.

Moreover, the assistant said Edenia’s personality was his true self. Did that mean his current personality was just a façade?

Thinking about this made Su Mo feel like his head was about to explode.

“Forget it! I won’t think about it anymore! Just assume that when I turn into Edenia, I gradually become more feminine. As long as I work hard to overcome that feeling, it’ll be fine!

Next time, I definitely won’t become as girly as before!

Even if I die, die out there, jump off a mountain—I will absolutely never fall into femininity!

Come on, Su Mo! You can do it!”

Su Mo waved his arms with all his strength, trying to cheer himself up.

The little bird quietly perched on his head didn’t even budge, despite his vigorous movements.

After a while, feeling a bit tired, Su Mo lay back down on the bed. Yesterday, he had planned to go to the library to gather some intel, but everything got ruined by that damned Feng Aotian.

Then at night, because he couldn’t bear to leave the stray animals out in the cold, he impulsively brought them all back.

Now he was so broke he could hear the jingling of emptiness, barely scraping by with Alice’s pocket money.

But now, with all these animals, how was he going to afford to take care of them?

“Guess I’ll have to get a job to make some money?”

Su Mo had no intention of driving them away.

Even though, as Edenia, his personality was better suited to dealing with them—

His fondness for these little creatures never changed.

“For now, let’s just get through tonight’s banquet first. Sigh…”

Life was hard. Su Mo sighed.

He placed his hand on his face, touching the mask that only he could feel, and muttered,

“The future looks so bleak…”

After lying there for a while, Su Mo got up from the bed and walked out of the house, only to see a group of small animals playing in the courtyard.

When they saw Su Mo come out, they all stopped what they were doing, turned their eyes toward him, and let out adorable, comforting sounds.

Even if he couldn’t understand them, Su Mo could tell they were greeting him.

“Ah, don’t worry. Just stay here as long as you like. I’m still a noble, after all! Even if I’ve fallen on hard times, it’s not like I can’t afford to take care of you.”

Wearing a smile, Su Mo patted his chest and assured them.

Just like that, Su Mo played with the little animals in the courtyard for an entire afternoon. As the sky darkened—

Su Mo was already dressed in the formal attire Alice had prepared for him and arrived at the venue for the banquet.

It was a place built specifically for hosting royal banquets, located closest to the palace.

Gazing at the magnificent golden building before him, Su Mo couldn’t help but curse in his heart: “Damn rich people…”

Just as he was about to step inside, two guards stationed at the entrance blocked his way.

“No entry without an invitation!”