The train rocked gently as I sat in silence, watching the blur of cityscape out the window. My name is Seisio Nagi. Today, I'm on my way to Averleigh Dominion University—ADU for short. It's a newly reopened private university with a reputation that's... still undefined. No alumni, no legacy. Just a name, and a very strange acceptance message sent to my phone two weeks ago.
The train slowed.
Shfff.
The doors opened.
I stood up and stepped onto the platform, adjusting my bag. One breath. Then another.
Here we go.
As I rose up the escalator, the building came into view. A sleek, modern campus standing tall above the rest of the district. Letters in silver steel read:
Averleigh Dominion University.
"So that's the place I'll be staying in," I muttered.
Just then, someone bumped into me.
"Oh! Sorry, I didn't see you!" a girl said, looking up from her phone. She had shoulder-length dark hair and a distracted look.
"It's okay. Are you going to ADU too?"
"Yeah. Do you mind showing me the way?"
"Sure."
As we walked, she introduced herself. "I'm Miyu. And you are…?"
"Seisio. Seisio Nagi."
"So tell me," she said, glancing at the gates ahead. "What do you like about this university?"
I shrugged. "I'm still figuring that out."
She gave a weak laugh. "My parents forced me to enroll. I didn't even want to join."
Those words hit something in me. I slowed for a moment. A memory flickered—my parents, silence, a choice I didn't really make.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
I blinked. "No. Let's keep walking."
We arrived at Class X, the one I'd been assigned to yesterday through a strange digital form. My seat was already listed—4B.
The classroom was new and spotless. A few students murmured among themselves. I found my seat, and Miyu sat one row ahead.
The bell rang.
A man stepped into the room. Neatly dressed, mid-thirties, sharp eyes, confident stride. No theatrics.
He clapped once. "Good morning, Class X. I'm your advisor for this term—Mr. Kaien. Let's get right to it."
He tapped a button on a remote. A projector turned on behind him. The screen read: "Welcome to ADU: Orientation Phase."
"No riddles. No hidden meanings," he said. "This is a competitive university. What makes us unique is our integrated Point System, custom ADU App, and our Performance-Based Elimination Model."
The class fell silent.
"Let's start with the app. Pull out your phones. Download the app: 'ADU Nexus'."
Phones came out. I opened the app store. Sure enough—ADU Nexus. The icon was a sleek silver crest with a glowing blue circle in the center.
"This app is your student ID, class schedule, point tracker, social interface, and personal report log," Kaien continued. "You'll receive notifications about class assignments, location updates, even real-time alerts."
A few students murmured in confusion.
"Points?" someone asked.
"Good question. Let me explain." Kaien smiled.
"Each of you will begin with 1,000 ADU Points. Everything you do—attendance, class participation, group work, sports, research—either earns or costs you points. If your points drop below zero... you are expelled. No exceptions."
The room went dead quiet.
"Elimination is not personal. It's policy. We're here to push the best version of you forward. You stay in this school by proving your capability every day."
I stared at my phone. The app had finished installing. Welcome, Seisio Nagi –
Class X
Points: 1,000
Rank: N/A
Kaien continued, "Here are the four main rules of ADU:
Respect your peers and professors. Harassment results in instant penalty.
Never skip class without valid reason. Penalties range from -100 to -500 points.
Breaking campus regulations— like hacking the system, fighting, or tampering with data—leads to instant elimination.
Complete your daily tasks. Failure to do so lowers your weekly score.
Simple, right?"
Nobody said a word.
"Think of this as a game if it helps you cope," he added. "But understand this—graduation from ADU opens doors no other university can. You're not just learning here. You're competing."
Someone raised a hand. "What happens to students who get expelled?"
Kaien's smile faded slightly. "They return home. Sometimes. Other times, they're transferred into 'external monitoring.' You'll learn more about that in the coming weeks."
Miyu leaned back in her chair and whispered, "Okay, this school is crazy."
I glanced at my screen again.
Points: 1,000
Daily Task: Introduce yourself to 3 classmates,
Time Limit: 3 hours
A strange tension settled in my chest.
What kind of university did I just walk into?