Chapter 4: The Cube (1)

For the past three days, I tried earning as much as possible while only training my speed as when using the Kekei Style, speed is the most important factor. My method to earn money was to ask. Yeah, I asked my traveling "mom" for money, and to my surprise, she gave me enough money to cover my food for an entire week. However, I used most of the money on buying a treadmill that would be delivered to my cadet dorm as I only needed food for the three days before entering the cube. My old computer also changed now displaying.

[Sychronization 50% ETA: 3 Days]

[Day of the Cube Starting Ceromony] [One day until Sychronization]

[7:30]

Entering the cube, I had only brought my backpack, containing my now useless old computer, some average school supplies, and my cube cadet uniform, which I was wearing now. Sitting on the ship sailing towards the Cube, I held the Kekei-style martial arts guide in my hand. For now, I couldn't do anything with it as I would need to reach Enlightenment before using it, but simply holding it made me feel cool. Like Kim Hajin, I assumed I would be able to view my status menu once my computer fully synchronized, which would be tomorrow.

"Who's the weird kid hugging that book" a couple of students whispered, watching me from afar.

"Idk, he's weird though"

Ignoring their whispers, I got off the boat and headed to the help station to get a map. The first order of business was to find my class. The Veritas Class. The classroom where the main character, Kim Hajin, as well as the main cast were stationed. The people I hate the most, and the people who ruined my chances of getting into college. I vowed to stay as far away from them as possible. Following the map, I first familiarized myself with the important buildings such as the training hall and cafeteria. 

[30 minutes before class starts (8:00)]

I stood outside the Veritas class door, afraid of who was already inside. Actually, I was more afraid of them.

'I swear it's on sight for any of them, there's all goners if I see them. (I would probably die before touching any of them)'

Opening the door, I thankfully saw none of the main characters sitting down, just some extras like me. Finding the most suitable spot was easy. Kim Hajin would be sitting in the left corner of the class, so the next best choice would be the right corner. Putting my backpack down on the seat next to me, so no one would dare sit next to me, I took out my laptop. After using my laptop outside while training, I realized that nobody besides me could see it, so I could use it to cheat on any tests by searching for the answer on it. It might seem weird for teachers as I would appear to be typing on air, but I already came up with an excuse. 

"It's a breathing exercise teacher!"

[Sychronization 85% ETA: 16 Hours]

I decided to spend the remaining twenty minutes of class doodling in my notebook. After about ten minutes, a group of three girls walked into the classroom. One with blonde hair and black eyes. Another with black hair and black eyes. The last with green eyes and black hair with-.

'That's the girl who yelled at me and called me ugly'

Clenching my fist, I decided to hold back my anger as I wouldn't want to draw unwanted attention. I put my head down on my desk to avoid her recognizing me and she thankfully sat on the left side of class. For the next ten minutes, I was so engrossed in drawing my Mona Lisa that before I knew it, most of the students, including the main cast, arrived and it was 8:29.

*Ring~ ring*

The bell rang and the teacher entered.

All the students immediately silenced themselves and paid attention except Hajin, who was still asleep.

"NOW!" the teacher yelled

I chuckled as Hajin's head immediately jerked up.

"Today's the first day, so there won't be any special training, but I hope you all did your morning training. Training. Training is never wrong, especially in the morning when mana density is high."

"Morning training, fuck that"

"SHH," An ordinary-looking boy shushed me.

'Yeah he's dead right after, Hajin, Suho, the other main cast characters, the bastard who sent the laptop, and the annoying neighbor.'

"Now Let's start with self-introductions. I'm Kim Soohyuk, the instructor in charge of you all for the year. My ranking point is 3850. World rank 9737. By the Association's classification, I would be high-intermediate rank grade 5"

Other students immediately started paying attention as 9737 out of 7 billion is pretty impressive

'That's light work ngl. (His aura would kill me)'

"I think that's enough for my introduction. The first day will feel special. You might not have slept due to excitement..." Kim Sooyuk continues.

"Damn, this guy can talk, get to the useful shit"

"SHHHH" the same boy shushes me

'Yea you're the first one dead now'

"I can already see a few faces I'm familiar with" the teacher continues while glancing at the main cast: Kim Suho, Chae Nayun, Yi Yeonghan, Shin Jognhak, Yoo Yeenha, and Rachel except Kim Hajin.

"I repeat. At Cube, you will need to confirm the things you've learned until now and hone your skills to be used in battle. There will be no kind /raining here. Remember that. Now get ready. What's scheduled for today won't take long. The first task is the main weapon selection"

Though in my past life on Earth, I had never trained long enough with a specific weapon to master it, I decided that a sword would be best for me due to the Kekei style. I had already prepared for this by practicing the fundamentals in the two weeks before the Cube, however, I'm still majorly behind the other cadets. 

In my previous life, I was seen as somewhat of a prodigy in Kendo due to my outstanding record of 50-3, however, as a natural loner, the attention brought to me just made me want to quit Kendo even more. I gave it up after reaching high school as the majority of my time was consumed by web novels and keeping up the physique required a lot of time. In most web novels, the main character's weapon is a sword, so that also added to my desire to use a sword here in this world.

[At the weapon selection hall]

"Any weapon you can think of should be here. Stand in front of the weapon you want. We'll supply you with the training weapons. But don't look down on them just because their market price is 5 million won"

'Who the hell would look down on 5 million won? Oh wait the fucking rick kids: Chae Nayun, Yoo Yeonha, and Shin Jonghak. They just moved up on the revenge list.'

Not wanting to draw attention to myself like someone, I glanced around the hall and found my main sword. More specifically a katana. The katana is lighter than most swords allowing for more speed and the reach on it is insane, so I decided it would be the most suitable for me.

"Choose carefully. Once you pick your main weapon, you won't be able to change it for at least 6 months.'

'Heh, that dumbass Kim Hajin is about to get yelled at'

"Kim Chungdong, why are you standing still?" - Kim Soohyuk

The entire class, including me, started at him as he slowly picked up a gun. If you're wondering why guns are bad, it's because guns don't have a long history, meaning there are no artifacts that boost their power. On the contrary, weapons like bows, swords, and spears have great histories, meaning they have a bunch of artifacts. Unknown to the class, with Kim Hajin's cheat abilities, the gun could essentially become an artifact, so it is indeed perfect for him.

After walking out of the hall and towards the dorms, I could see Hajin getting picked on for choosing a gun, but I just ignored them like a true background character.

"Rank 933, Ren Jin. Grab your keycard and luggage"

After grabbing my card, I found my dorm and quickly entered. Inside, I found the treadmill that I had ordered earlier and my backpack that I had left in class. Besides that, the dorm was quite spacious and much better than my previous accommodation, so I was happy. After checking the synchronization on my laptop and seeing that it was 95%, I showered and put on my PJs. I grabbed my smartwatch and opened the Spotify app, hoping that my account from the previous life would still be active. I logged in and it worked. I laid on my bed, putting in my wired headphones. I know I'm broke. Then I put on the national loner anthem, Hikigaya's famous speech from Oregairu.

*I hate nice girls,*

Listening to the speech made me feel at home in an unknown world.

*I know they're just being nice*

I fell asleep