Life, It's Truly F*cking Dull

Shangguan Che sighed at the skill he had drawn, rubbing his chin with his fingertips while muttering to himself, "My luck is truly terrible. I suppose this skill is just... average, right?" After his grumbling, Shangguan Che's stomach let out an ill-timed growl.

Well, forget about that for now; better head to the cafeteria to fill my stomach first.

He grabbed his jacket and had just stepped out of the dormitory when he caught sight of a few people gathered up ahead.

As he drew closer, he saw a red-haired boy clenching his fists, veins bulging on his forehead—wasn't this the "explosive classmate" he'd heard about this morning?

Standing nearby was the expressionless Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, along with the girl with long black hair who had been quietly reading a book at the desk to his left since the start of the semester.

Shangguan Che quietly shifted to the side, intending to be a mere bystander. He heard the red-haired boy muttering with suppressed anger: "It's just a woman, after all..."

Oh, give me a break! Shangguan Che almost laughed out loud internally; wasn't that line a bit too archaic?

He ranted frantically in his mind, Isn't youth meant for breaking these ridiculous rules? If being thick-skinned is what it takes, then so be it—I'm going to have it out with him today!

Clearing his throat, he suddenly spoke up, deliberately drawing out his tone:

"It's just a brat, it's just an immature student, it's just a pedantic little kid.

In a few years, at most, you'll turn into a corporate slave worn down by the grind of life, Then a middle-aged man with a potbelly, an old man leaning on a cane, and finally a corpse whose tombstone no one even bothers to visit, Guarding a crumbling grave with no one to tend it, a wandering ghost who can't even get a spot in the reincarnation queue—

Is this really going to be my future? I'm so sad."

After finishing, he exaggeratedly covered his face with his hands, putting on a "I'm so sad" act, though in reality, his cheeks were burning because he'd gotten a bit too excited during his speech.

The red-haired boy whipped his head around, eyes wide: "Who the hell are you? What kind of nonsense are you spouting?"

Shangguan Che lowered his hands and grinned at him: "Don't be so hot-headed. Everyone has their own quirks. My name is Shangguan Che, what's yours?"

"Sudo, Sudo Ken." The red-haired boy frowned, his tone softening slightly.

"Alright, Sudo-kun, Ayanokoji-kun, see you later." Shangguan Che waved his hand.

After voicing his thoughts, Shangguan Che noticed that the long-haired girl had already slipped away at some point, likely because she didn't care for the commotion.

He rubbed his stomach; the aroma of the cafeteria seemed to be wafting toward his nose, so he quickened his pace.

But he hadn't gone ten meters when a roar suddenly came from behind: "Stop right there!"

Shangguan Che's footsteps faltered. He looked back and saw three upperclassmen surrounding Sudo and Ayanokoji, all of them looking like hoodlums with bad intentions.

"Ganging up on people isn't very honorable!" Shangguan Che didn't even think; he charged straight back.

One of the tall seniors glanced at him sideways: "Kid, what's it to you?"

"Now that I'm here, it's three-on-three—how fair is that!"

Shangguan Che rubbed his hands together, though he was calculating in his mind, Back at my old school, I only ever got into arguments; I've never actually fought more than three people. This is a rare experience—how youthful!

He recalled the heated scenes from Tokyo Revengers, but fearing the pain of a real fight, he secretly decided to stick to the "chuunibyou" verbal-assault route.

Suddenly, he slapped his forehead, remembering the etiquette of seniors in Japan, and quickly added:

"By the way, it's not good to hit a senior first; it'll look bad for us if word gets out.

You guys throw the first punch, then we'll start the 'delinquent-style free-for-all.'

Don't worry, afterwards we'll just say the seniors were mentoring the juniors—that'll definitely pass as an excuse!"

As he spoke, he extended his right hand, palm up, fingers wiggling back and forth in a deliberate provocation.

"Shangguan, what is a delinquent-style free-for-all?" Ayanokoji suddenly asked, his tone as flat as ever.

Shangguan Che's mouth twitched—was he really hung up on that right now? But he patiently explained: "It means... no maiming, no dirty tricks like kicking the groin, got it?"

"I see." Ayanokoji nodded and said nothing more.

The scene went quiet for a moment, but Shangguan Che was secretly overjoyed:

With Ayanokoji on our side looking like a tough nut to crack, and Sudo being strong, as long as they strike first, I can pretend to run away to lure one off, and then it's two-on-two—a guaranteed win!

Just then, another senior stared at him: "You're from Class D, aren't you?"

"So what if I am!" Sudo shouted before anyone else could.

Shangguan Che's heart skipped a beat: Good grief, he stole my line!

To his surprise, the upperclassmen burst into laughter upon hearing this, one of them slapping his thigh: "Did you hear that? Class D! Truly defective goods—no wonder you're so fond of meddling in other people's business!"

"What did you say?!" Sudo instantly bristled, ready to charge forward.

The seniors stepped back, wearing mocking smiles: "We'll let you poor wretches off the hook for today, but just you wait—you won't be so lucky next time!" With that, they swaggered away.

"Hey! Don't run!" Sudo wanted to chase after them, but Shangguan Che grabbed him: "Forget it, forget it. It's not worth tangling with them. I'm starving—let's go eat!"

After saying goodbye to Ayanokoji and Sudo, Shangguan Che finally rushed into the cafeteria.

Looking at the rows of service windows, he checked the points on his terminal and decided to take a lap before making a decision.

He had to find the perfect balance of price and flavor!

As he wandered, he stopped at the window for free meals.

Most of the people in line were upperclassmen, their uniforms showing signs of wear, unlike the brand-new ones worn by the freshmen.

He pondered while waiting in line: Could it be that everyone's points are different? Otherwise, why would some seniors eat expensive set meals while others are stuck with the free ones?

Are the points actually related to academics and contributions, or are they tied to the combat strength and physical fitness the student council president mentioned?

When it was his turn, he took the tray and looked down; it was filled with vegetables, sprinkled with only a bit of minced meat, and there wasn't even a drop of oil to be seen.

Shangguan Che picked up a mouthful with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth, his brows instantly furrowing—this was far too bland, tasting entirely of the raw ingredients themselves, with barely even a hint of salt; it was likely stewed in a giant iron vat.

After forcing down more than half, he truly couldn't swallow any more, so he carried his tray to the return station and turned to head straight for the convenience store.

As soon as he entered, he locked his gaze onto the cheapest shelf, his eyes wide and round, just like a hungry wolf.

While browsing, he suddenly discovered a free merchandise section in the corner, with a sign hanging above it: "Limit of three items per person per month."

"Even the merchandise has a free section?" Shangguan Che muttered aloud, his heart skipping a beat. "Could it be that the bottom-tier students only deserve the right to survive? No, no, I have to work hard to study and earn points!"

He carefully selected the three items he needed most and spent another 5,000 personal points on some daily necessities before carrying his bag toward the dormitory.

As for dinner? He would just have to stay hungry for now; compared to eating, it was more important to hurry back and research how to earn points.

Back in the dormitory, Shangguan Che lay down on his bed and suddenly remembered that he seemed to possess the ability of God's Eye.

He tried to focus his mind, and the scene before his eyes changed instantly—first, he saw the 4A-rated scenery of his hometown;

Looking a bit further, he saw the rolling Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with snow-capped mountains glistening under the sunlight;

Looking even further, nothing remained before his eyes but pitch-black darkness.