Stepping out of the bathroom, I took a deep breath. Next time, I vowed, I would wait until they had all finished before I dared to clean myself.
This really would lead to moral decay. I was a future pillar of the nation, one who held the tenets of Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, and Deng Xiaoping Theory deeply ingrained in my heart. I was a good, civilized youth of the twenty-first century, and I absolutely could not engage in such morally questionable behavior.
Right, Lavishly Karafar had mentioned that my personal terminal contained tomorrow’s class schedule. I should take a look. I picked up the personal terminal, freshly issued by the school, from my bed.
Tomorrow’s classes, hmm…
Location: Sixth Campus, Third Academic Building.
My schedule, hmm… The morning content was listed as ‘Goddess’s Self-Cultivation.’ What in the world was that? Goddess’s Self-Cultivation? What kind of course could that possibly be? And why did I need to take it? What self-cultivation could a stalwart man like myself possibly need? Yet, there was a ‘(Required)’ next to it… I sighed in resignation.
The afternoon content was ‘Basic Application of Holy Light.’ Now, that seemed perfectly normal. But what exactly was that ‘Goddess’s Self-Cultivation’ course, and why was it mandatory? Even more perplexing, the ‘Basic Application of Holy Light,’ which appeared to be a core subject, was marked as an elective?
Then, for the second afternoon session, it was ‘Goddess’s Self-Cultivation’ again… Seriously, what *is* this thing? How could such an obscure course be a main subject?
I scrolled through the schedules for the next few days, at least the first fifteen. A staggering fifty percent of my classes were this mysterious ‘Goddess’s Self-Cultivation,’ a course of completely unknown nature.
I turned off the terminal, then pushed aside the gauze curtain in front of me and stood up. To be honest, this Divine Realm had far too many meaningless designs. ‘What’s the point of having a mosquito net in a Divine Realm where mosquitoes don’t even exist?’ I wondered. ‘It can’t just be for decoration, can it?’
I walked over to the computer in the corner of the room. At some point, my futuristic, silver-gray and blue computer desk and chair had been replaced with dainty peach-pink ones. The entire aesthetic felt utterly wrong.
Skillfully, I executed a [Divine Art: Transport] and pressed the power button. As the computer booted up, I clicked open Liu Han’s chat window.
–Big Dream Lord: Are you there?
A reply came back instantly.
–Cute Little Fanboy: Mhmm, what’s up?
I found myself momentarily speechless; I had only initiated the conversation for the sake of chatting. After a moment of thought, I typed back.
–Big Dream Lord: So, is your progress going smoothly?
–Cute Little Fanboy: You wouldn’t believe it if I told you I could get someone to bomb the Pentagon right now. *chuckles* But you’re not even concerned about me.
I offered a sheepish smile before replying.
–Big Dream Lord: I was going to say, if you’re pretty much settled, I could bring you to the Divine Realm to play around. You haven’t forgotten, have you? We promised each other.
–Cute Little Fanboy: I’ve always remembered. I’ll be done in a few days, and even if you didn’t say anything, I would’ve come looking for you once I’m finished. Mhmm, that’s all. I need to hurry and deal with the matters at hand; the longer I drag it out, the more troublesome it gets. Talk later.
I closed the computer. My mood had been tense all day, so I no longer felt like playing games.
And so, I turned off the lights, placed my clothes at the head of the bed, and lay down to sleep.
Just as I was drifting into a hazy sleep, I felt the mattress beside me sink. Yet, when one is half-asleep, their thoughts tend to be muddled and incoherent. I surprisingly paid no mind, simply turned over, and continued to sleep.
The next day, upon waking, I discovered I was the earliest riser in the entire dormitory. If you asked how I knew the moment I opened my eyes, it was entirely thanks to the three women snoring peacefully on my bed.
At that moment, Xilinka slowly sat up. “Good morning,” she said. “You’re up so early today; how unusual.”
I was already curled in the corner, clutching my blanket. I wasn’t sure why I was doing it, but the action came to me instinctively.
“Um, why are you sleeping in my room?” I asked in a quiet voice.
“It was convenient,” Xilinka replied, sitting up and starting to change in my room, shedding her pajamas for a school uniform. “After our showers, Lavishly Karafar said she’d go check on you, and when she saw you asleep, we just decided to crash here. It’s spacious enough, after all. It looks like it’s getting late. Wake the other two up; we’ll grab breakfast at the cafeteria this morning.”
I went to the changing room to get dressed. When I emerged, I roused Mifeier and Lavishly Karafar.
After quickly washing up, I sat in the living room, waiting for them. Checking the information on my terminal, it indeed seemed quite late, and the class location wasn’t particularly close.
Before long, Lavishly Karafar scurried out, grabbing my hand. “Hurry, hurry! We’re going to be late!” she exclaimed, muttering, “We’re dead, we’re dead, we’re dead!”
Bewildered, I followed her. Mifeier and Xilinka quickly caught up behind us.
At the cafeteria, I simply picked up a set meal: a pastry, a packet of biscuit-like food, and a bottle of drink.
Their classes were in different locations than mine, so after a few reminders, we parted ways. I was headed to the Sixth Campus, while one of them went to the Ninth Campus, and the other two to the Seventh Campus.
The Seventh Campus was nestled within a vast sea of flowers. From a distance, a towering golden spire could be seen in the distance, undoubtedly the academic building, as it was the only structure visible.
And so, I set off towards that building. Around me, many students dressed like me came and went, all heading in the same direction.