“That is correct. Until graduation or program expulsion, you cannot leave academy grounds. Though Yenagree’s school district hosts several amenities, so it wouldn’t be like you're being kept hostage.” Nicole said.

Some students murmured in worry and angst. A girl behind me stood up and raised her hand. She was a lot younger than the rest of us, brown hair wrapped into two buns with braids, and chestnut eyes. She wore a long black trench coat that concealed her school uniform, comprising a gray sweater vest and blue skirt.

“Will I be able to say bye to my mommy and daddy?” She asked with big beady eyes.

“We’ve already contacted your parents or guardians to bring your belongings on campus,” Nicole said bluntly, not caring for her little girl theatrics.

“That’s the gist of the situation, but I’m sure you all still have questions. I’ll conclude today’s class with an open forum. All I ask is that you present your name and a random fact about yourself if you ask a question. This will help you get to know your classmates better.”

A chair rattled from behind me. One of the girls who began arguing amongst themselves stood while throwing back her auburn curled locks.

“My name’s Anika, and I’m a talented singer. So much so, if you heard my melodic voice, you’d probably fall for me, regardless of gender.”

Some students looked back to see who dared to say such a thing in public. I almost wanted to also, but continued looking forward.

"You said we didn't have to worry about class tracks, but if there's an S1 and an A1, wouldn't it be reasonable to assume that more will be added?" Anika asked.

Despite her question seeming more like a demanding statement, she raised a good point. The A and S are most likely identifiers for class types while the 1 is the year, assuming we’re all first-years. With the current categorization, it's likely more "class tracks" will be included.

“You don’t have to worry about that right now. No other class tracks will be added this semester, not until you’re all acclimated to the metaverse.” Nicole said.

Anika, satisfied with her answer, sat down with a content “hmph.”

The younger girl from before rose from her chair while playing with her braids.

“H-hello everyone… my name’s Priya and I’m 14 years old! I like to read fantasy books, so if you have any good ones, please let me know!” Priya said with an endearing smile.

Nicole nodded. “Thank you, Priya. What is your question?”

“You said something about us only having a week’s worth of provisions in our dorm room. Aren’t Seya students given an allowance to buy stuff? Why can’t we just use that?” Priya asked.

“Good question. The simple answer is that you won’t be able to. If you don’t know, Callixtus has a monetary-exchange system that allows for in-game currency to be traded for credits. Once the week's provisions are depleted, you will buy things using your currency through Callixtus' monetary system. Your Proatrixes will be set to use this system and won’t accept any other type of credit.”

“Oh, okay... Thank you.” Priya said, then sat down.

Interesting. They decided to force participation in the game no matter what. Depending on the curriculum, you could have a split opinion with some students focused on academics and the others in-game. I supposed they’re taking measures so that we’re not allowed to choose.

Most districts weren’t as well-off as Yenagree, and looking at the uniforms, none of them were from recognizable sovereigns that had decent benefits, so I heard little complaining about the circumstances. I wondered if that's why they allowed students from multiple districts to apply to the test and if they truly picked us based on those six curricula.

A rotund boy with olive skin, chubby cheeks, and a head full of curly head stood up a few desks down my row.

“Greetings. My name is Ahmed, and I enjoy Greek mythology and philosophical texts.” He said with a nervous smile.

“Too bad you don’t have the body of a Greek god. Might need to lose some lard, Hercules.” Another boy with a brownish-black faux hawk taunted behind him.

Some students giggled and laughed, though Nicole didn’t care to supervise in the slightest.

Ahmed shook his head and sat back down. “N-nevermind… I’ll save it for later.”

The boy behind him rose from his chair, grinning at Ahmed, then looked back with sharp beige-colored eyes. Unlike the other students, he didn’t wear a school uniform, only black jeans, a leather jacket, and a neutral shirt that hung loosely from his neck.

“The name’s Mateo. I have a few hobbies, though none that I want to share. Question about this game, Callixtus, or whatever. It would be pretty rude to just throw us in and expect us to learn it all by ourselves when someone of us has already been playing. I’m talkin’ about the Gamers Club that’s headed by that Tiger guy.”

A few of the students glanced over at Tiger sitting centered in the first row. He stood up from his seat and dug his hand in his pockets with a sly glance.

“Don’t worry about it. If anyone needs advice to get adjusted, just let me know. I’ll help any way I can,” Tiger said with a smile, his countenance exuding an affable and ebullient charm.

A few of the other girls started fawning over them both. The bad boy and the cool friendly face. How generic could you get with these two?

Mateo clicked his teeth and kicked Ahmed’s seat as he sat back down. Nicole bowed her head toward Tiger as he sat as well.

“Thank you, Tiger. Though you have the Gamer’s Club as a resource, you also have your class representative that you’ll come to for other needs you need to present and general inquiries. Reina, would you mind giving a brief introduction?” Nicole asked.

Most of the class looked at me from all angles. What is she trying to pull? I was never told I was going to be the class representative. Or… is that what the Chairman wanted?

I stood up and bowed, establishing eye contact with several of the students. The back door to the class slid open, and a girl with dark-brown skin, taupe eyes, and an elaborate hairstyle consisting of brown wavey-top hair, quadrupole buns, and two long thick braids going down her shoulder walked inside. She wore a black parka, revealing a black uniform underneath.

She sat down in the vacant seat beside me, and I turned back to the class.

“You're that council girl they humiliated on live video, right?” Mateo said, slumped back in his chair.

“Yeah, I saw you crying like a baby on the floor when that girl slapped you. Did you piss yourself too?” Anika said with a chuckle.

A few of the children snickered and giggled. I glared straight at each of them until it ceased, then waited a few seconds more for silence to overtake the room.

“My name is Yūga Reina, though, for this western district’s sake, you can skip calling me by my surname and call me Reina. As you all saw, I was dismissed from the student council, so the ‘council girl’ nickname can stop. If you continue to make jokes, I’ll see that I get you expelled from this school swiftly. Looking at your uniforms, not a single one of you comes from districts with any reputation or status. It’s repugnant having to share a class with you, but don’t think for a second we’re anything alike or I’ll show you what status and power an elite student can possess.” I said, then sat down in my seat.

“Oh, right. An interesting fact about me is that I enjoy eating sweets.”

The class went silent as if they were busy processing what was just said to them. A few glares here, and a few scoffs there, but for the most part, I got the reaction I wanted.

Isabella leaned over and tapped my shoulder. “You’re… kinda a bitch. Jus’ sayin.”

Any other normal instructor would’ve tried to settle the tension, or maybe even asked to delegate the class rep title to someone more suitable. However, Nicole shrugged and swiped a white screen away from her face.

“Please read over your rulebooks for regulations and rules to follow, both on campus and in the metaverse. Direct your questions to Reina, as she’ll have direct contact with me and other school officials. Tomorrow we’ll begin acclimating you to your dive gear. Take the rest of the day to get comfortable in your living quarters. We will assign a room to anyone without a roommate before this evening. Class dismissed.” Nicole said, then walked out of the room.

A few of the students began whispering with their neighbors, then rose from their seats. Isabella glanced back at me before joining Isabella and Priya as they exited the class.

“You didn’t… you didn’t mean all of that, did you?” Yejin said, stopping a few feet away from my desk.

I stood and looked back at a group of girls, either anxiously waiting for an answer or worried about Yejin’s safety.

“Like I said, I don’t remember you,” I said and stood from my chair.

“Uh, come on, Yejin. She doesn’t seem that friendly…” a girl in her group said.

She stepped back with a concerned glance, then ran over to the group of girls.

“Guess all Seya girls are the same. Stuck up rich kids with no filter.” Another girl chimed in.

They all laughed while walking outside the door, besides Yejin, who stood in the doorway before running after them.

Two girls giggled with their hands behind their backs, waving bye to Tiger as he strode over to my desk. Kimberly and Paige were with Yejin’s group, and I even saw Chase walk out with a few other boys earlier.

Good. They were doing my job for me.

“I know you can be aloof at times, but you should probably start being nicer in a program like this,” Tiger said.

“And why would I do that?”

“Well, she used the term ‘program expulsion’, which I’m assuming means if you die in-game you lose your spot in the class, amongst other things. You should make allies so you’ll have a better chance of staying alive. It’s simple politics.”

“You should be more concerned with yourself. Try to find someone in the council who will begin advising your club. You’ll need someone ASAP if you don’t want Toshiaki to forward your disbandment.”

Tiger sighed. “Guess I do need to start sucking up to one of them, eh? Well, it was fun having you advise us while it lasted. Guess we have no reason to hang around each other anymore.”

“I suppose. I took another look at your contracts, and they seem in order. Chairman Homura will contact you soon to discuss signing them.”

I extended my hand and nodded. “Good luck, Club President.”

Tiger inched his hand close, hesitated, then shook with a smile. “Y-yeah, good luck to you, too. Though maybe now we can start acting more like frien—”

“Yo, Tiger! Let’s check out that campus arcade!” A boy exclaimed from the door.

“You should go. Looks like you’ll be too busy with your friends already.” I said.

Tiger smiled and opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but pursed his lips closed. He then backed away and ran into the hallway, closing the door behind him.

Maybe we could’ve been friends, maybe we could’ve had fun together, but I don’t think that’s for me right now. You’re all better off without me, anyway. I worked better alone.

The empty classroom and the tranquil silence made a peaceful atmosphere that I didn’t know I longed for. I placed my head on my desk and closed my eyes, drifting to sleep.

“You made yourself a repulsive target to seclude yourself from the class, but why?”

Startled, I looked over to the elaborate hairstyle girl who walked in late in the middle of class. Was she here the whole time? I didn’t even notice after she’d walked in.

“Was it because you have an introverted nature? Not likely since you were a part of two clubs before joining the program. Maybe you’re just bad at communication. Still no, your Effective Communication score is pretty high, according to the data.” She said while tapping her chin.

“Or maaybe, you just want to be left alone so you can continue with whatever elaborate scheme you're plotting. Mmm hm. That has to be it.”

She then stood up from her chair and extended her hand.

“I’m Fatima. You’re interesting so I’d like to get acquainted. I’m a loner too and find friends tedious, and I think you and I are alike. Maybe we can be loners together.”

Who does she think she is? First, she sneaks up on me, and next, she blabbered on about us “being alike” and wanted to be “loners together.” What a weirdo.

“No thanks. I’d rather not be associated with someone with such unsavory qualities. I’m sure someone else in class can be friends with you. Just don’t talk to me about it.” I said and stood from my chair.

Fatima giggled and steeped her palm onto her chin. “You are truly fascinating. I can’t wait to see what you’re capable of.”

God, what is with this girl? I need to stay as far away from her as possible…

I exited the room, still feeling her ardent gaze as I closed the door.