Classes had finally come to an end. And the one most excited about it was Lyan.
He, who dashed out of the academy without wasting a single second.
He just wanted to get home as fast as possible, so he could enjoy the new virtual reality game.
His apartment was barely about four by four meters. It was small and somewhat messy despite its size.
But he lived alone, which could be a bit lonely, yet it was the only place where he could be at peace without having to worry about the looks or the "joking" comments from his classmates.
'Finally, today is the day.' He thought as his legs moved at full speed.
After months of saving every coin from his part-time job as a café employee, the day had finally arrived. The package he had been waiting for so long.
A new VRMMO called: "Building My Student Life Alongside the Academy Beauties."
A virtual reality game that promised exactly what its name said. A normal student life, without problems and without bullying… without people looking at him as if he were trash.
For any other young person, a school life simulator would sound boring.
Because, why would you want to play at being a student when you already are one?
But for Lyan, that was the best thing that could have ever happened to him. He was not like the others.
He finally had the chance to live a peaceful life. Make friends and maybe… a romance.
'Even if it's just a game… I want to know what it feels like.'
When he arrived at the apartment building, his body was completely drenched in sweat from the afternoon heat.
The manager was an older man with gray hair, who was sitting at the reception as always. When he saw Lyan enter, he raised a hand and smiled at him.
"Oh, you got here early today," the man said in a kind tone. "How was school?"
Lyan stopped in front of the old man, saying nothing.
His expression had slightly changed to one of discomfort as he remembered school.
The "accidental" shoves in the hallways and the constant whispers directed at him.
But he quickly shook his head from side to side and forced a smile.
"Fine," he replied. "Same as always."
The manager simply nodded without noticing anything strange.
"I'm glad. By the way, a package arrived for you a few hours ago. It's around here…" he said as he crouched behind the counter, pulling out a medium-sized rectangular box.
Lyan's eyes lit up instantly when he saw it. Clearly excited.
"Thanks," he said as he took the package with both hands.
Without waiting for any response, he hurried up the stairs until he reached the third floor. Taking out the keys to his room, he prepared to go inside.
His room was as always.
Clothes thrown over a chair, books stacked on the desk, and the bed unmade.
But that was the least of his concerns at that moment.
Lyan tossed his backpack into a corner without looking where it landed and sat on the floor with the box in front of him.
His hands trembled slightly as he cut the tape with a pair of scissors.
When he opened it, the first thing he saw was a black headset with silver details. It was sleek and clearly modern. On one of its sides was the game's logo engraved.
'I finally have it… I waited so long for this day.'
He hadn't spent a single cent during these past months, he had even skipped some meals to avoid spending extra.
And now, finally, that long-awaited game was in his hands.
He carefully took out the headset and examined it. It was lighter than he expected.
Inside the box there was also an instruction manual and a charging cable.
"I don't need this." He muttered as he tossed the instruction paper aside.
He stood up from the floor and walked over to his bed, lying down on his back.
He took off his glasses and placed them on the nightstand, then ran a hand through his hair, pushing it slightly away from his forehead.
It had grown too long, and it had been quite a while since he had cared about cutting it.
'Alright… here we go.' He thought as he put on the headset.
For a moment everything was darkness, then a bright light appeared in front of his eyes.
[Welcome to: Building a Student Life Alongside the Academy Beauties.]
A pleasant female voice sounded in his head.
For some strange reason, it felt familiar, but he couldn't remember from where… but that was the last thing he paid attention to.
[Please remain still while we calibrate the system.]
Lyan felt a slight tingling run through his body. It wasn't unpleasant, but it felt… strange.
[Calibration complete.]
[Do you wish to create a new save file?]
"Yes." He replied without hesitation.
[Understood. Generating world…]
Darkness appeared once again, only for different things to begin materializing before his eyes a few seconds later.
When it finally ended, he was no longer in his small room.
He was sitting at a desk.
Around him were several desks, arranged in perfect rows. And the windows to his left let in sunlight.
In front of him was a whiteboard that took up a large portion of the wall.
It was clearly a classroom.
Lyan blinked several times, only to feel that everything felt… real. Very real.
'This is…'
He thought, looking at his hands. He could feel them. He could truly feel them, as if they were his real ones.
Slowly, he stood up. His legs responded normally, there was no lag nor any sensation of being in a game.
'It was clearly worth every cent…'
[Tutorial started.]
The system's voice sounded again.
[You are in a classroom at the academy. From now on, you will live as a student of Seiren Academy.]
[Your objective is simple: conquer the hearts of the four most popular beauties in the academy.]
[Good luck, player.]
After that mini tutorial, which gave him some context, Lyan remained silent for a moment.
Then a small smile appeared on his face.
'A normal life, huh?'
For the first time in a long while, he felt like attending classes. Without any fear of being bullied.
Here, there was no one who knew him, much less judged him.
He could start from zero and maybe he would feel what a normal student life was like.
"Alright…" he muttered, looking at the empty classroom. "Time to play."