Jerry stared at his reflection. The resort shirt made him look like he was either on vacation or about to sell overpriced cocktails on a beach. The jeans fit okay. The cologne? Surprisingly decent. He still looked like himself—just... someone who had tried. And failed to look like he hadn't tried.
The hallway outside pulsed with life. Bass beats thumped faintly through the walls, heavy like a second heartbeat. Somewhere down the corridor, someone shouted, "Bro, put the cheese down!" followed by a loud thud and distant wheezing laughter.
Jerry took a breath. "Alright. Let's do this."
💻 [System Quest Activated: Operation Social Integration]🔸 Attend the Mixer🔸 Make an Impression🔸 Bonus: Trigger a Unique SceneReward: System Shop Tier 1Failure: -3 Charisma + "Most Awkward Human" Title
Zen: "Time to roll that charisma check, champ."Ragnar: "Or just cling to the snack table and pretend you're invisible."Alric: "For the love of all that's decent, don't dance like it's 2008."
The dorm's common lounge had transformed. Fairy lights looped across exposed pipes, blinking like distant stars. A fog machine puffed lazily near the snack table, giving the room a weird misty vibe like someone had mixed up "college mixer" with "low-budget vampire prom." Above the DJ booth, a hand-drawn neon sign blinked in uneven pulses: "Regret Nothing."
Jerry shuffled in, grabbed a soda, and hugged the wall like an anxious gargoyle surveying a kingdom he didn't belong to.
"Yo! 316, right?" a voice called out.
Two guys waved him over from the corner by the console setup. One had a man-bun and the other wore a hoodie with the sleeves ripped off.
"I'm Ron, this is Toshi," the taller one grinned. "You look like a 'reluctantly powerful protagonist with a tragic backstory.'"
Jerry blinked. "...That's oddly accurate."
Ron nudged Toshi. "Told you. He's got anime energy."
Jerry smiled—genuine, albeit small. For a moment, he didn't feel completely out of place.
Zen: "Tell them about the time you cried in the school bathroom after failing a push-up test."Ragnar: "Or that time you accidentally called your teacher 'mom.'"Alric: "No. Not that one. Never that one."
The music shifted—something slower, smoother. The kind of rhythm that made people suddenly start looking for dance partners or pretending to scroll their phones to avoid being asked.
And then she walked in.
Lyra.
She wore a deep blue top, sleeveless, her braid pinned up with little star-shaped clips that sparkled when she moved. She walked with quiet confidence, flanked by two girls who exuded "main character's best friend with side quests" energy.
"...So that's the guy?" one of them whispered as they entered.
"Don't start," Lyra muttered, though her cheeks warmed slightly.
Jerry's stomach flipped like a pancake in a nervous chef's kitchen. He adjusted his shirt like it mattered.
Lyra spotted him and smiled—half sheepish, half teasing. "Hey, Jerry. These are my friends—Myra and Shiri. I… may have mentioned you."
Shiri gave him a slow once-over and smirked. "Oh, so this is the coke-stain guy."
Jerry's eyes widened. "I—what—no, that was one time."
Myra tilted her head, amused. "Kinda cute, though. In a 'falls into bushes regularly' kinda way."
Jerry half-laughed, half-groaned. "This is going great already."
Zen: "At this rate, she's gonna friendzone you with a gift basket."Ragnar: "Smile, dumbass. It hides fear."Alric: "You're radiating 'nervous dog at a vet' energy."
The DJ spun a new track and announced the "First Dance Roulette." It was one of those mixer traditions: no pressure, just awkward semi-romantic chaos.
People began pairing up, laughing, hesitating, dancing badly.
Jerry half-turned, fully prepared to escape through the nearest window—
"Wanna dance?" Lyra asked, her voice casual but her smile open.
"Sure," he blurted, definitely too fast.
They moved to the center. Jerry's arms hovered awkwardly until Lyra gently took his hands, guiding them into place. His feet didn't know what to do—somewhere between marching band and broken Roomba.
"You're not terrible," she said after a moment, which was high praise considering the circumstances.
"Thanks. I practice with ghosts watching me," he muttered, instantly regretting it.
But Lyra laughed—a real laugh, bright and unfiltered.
At the edge of the crowd, Myra and Shiri were watching like hawks with popcorn.
"They're kinda cute," Myra said, sipping from a plastic cup.
Shiri smirked. "He's really trying not to trip on her toes."
Lyra rolled her eyes but smiled. "We're just friends, okay?"
Right then, Jerry tripped over absolutely nothing and stumbled into her. She caught him before he could fall flat.
Ragnar: "Bro, the universe has perfect comedic timing."Zen: "Your dance career died before it lived."Alric: "Good thing you're endearing."
💻 [Quest Complete: Operation Social Integration]System Shop Tier 1 UnlockedCharisma +2New Trait: Socially Clumsy (but oddly charming)
Jerry exhaled, relieved. For once, he hadn't totally blown it.
He took a step back from the dance floor, opened his soda again, and just as he was about to take a sip—
💻 [System Quest Activated: Operation Social Integration]🔸 Attend the Mixer🔸 Make an Impression🔸 Bonus: Trigger a Unique SceneReward: System Shop Tier 1Failure: -3 Charisma + "Most Awkward Human" Title
He blinked.
The exact same prompt. Word for word.
He stared at it. Then at the party, still in full swing. He'd literally just finished this quest.
"…Is this a bug?"
He dismissed the notification. It popped back up again.
💻 [System Quest Activated: Operation Social Integration]⏳ Status: Pending
A chill crept into his spine.
He turned to grab another soda, only to find the exact same one already in his hand. Same condensation trail. Same dent from when he'd accidentally bumped it against the table earlier.
"Okay, what the hell..."
Then the ghosts appeared—sharper than usual. Their glow had a tension to it, like static clinging to a balloon right before the snap.
Zen didn't smile. "You weren't supposed to see this."
Alric's arms were crossed, jaw clenched. "It's not just a bug. The system isn't complete."
Jerry's heart started racing. "You mean this… repeating? It's part of something else?"
Ragnar looked upward, as if listening for something behind the walls. "We thought we had more time. But it's starting to crack."
The quest prompt blinked again. It hadn't gone away.
💻 [??? System Warning: Redundant Task Detected][Status: Error – Loop Flag Missing]
Jerry swallowed. "Is someone… watching? Controlling this?"
The ghosts exchanged a tense look. Then Zen stepped forward, serious now in a way he never was.
"You're not ready to know yet. If we tell you, it could unravel everything."
Jerry clenched his fists. "Then tell me something."
Alric looked him in the eye. "Keep completing the quests. Keep moving forward. Every piece matters."
Ragnar's tone was low, deliberate. "When the time's right… you'll see the real code underneath all of this."
The party hadn't reset. Nothing was rewinding. But the quest—it just kept blinking at him like an open loop with no off-switch.
Zen's voice softened, just a fraction."Until then… just know this system? It's not finished."