The Ambition of Students
Chinese Version: Phase 1 - 学生若梦
Next Phase: Phase 2 - Twisted Threshold
Hopes and Dreams under the Great Pressure
In early May (Month 05), Standard Century Calander Year 2021, an independent area – Northern Collective Academy Area…
Northern Academy, as an advanced academy system in the world, is known for its high pressure and strict learning environment. As a result, Northern Academy has produced a number of advanced students and world-renowned research results.
In such a Technological Academy area, a steel-like landscape hangs in the warm May sun, a colorful neon halo floats in the sky, and skyscrapers are lined up like sharp needles piercing the sky. A third-year junior named Seka is caught in the middle of this high-pressure vortex......
In Seka's perspective, all of his time was almost entirely filled with the heavy tasks given by the academy, and the only thing he could do is just shuttle from one lab, library, or academy building to another... And every time he completed a task, he would cross out the corresponding content on the small slip of paper he carried with him that recorded his to-do list...... This kind of life, three years since, he has long been accustomed to.
As time passes, there is only a month and a half left before the junior department graduates. Seka knows that all he has to do is maintain or even increase the intensity of his studies.
"Just try your best, no matter what happens! ......" Seka always kept this thought in mind.
It had been almost three years since he had been in the junior department, and the busy academy had made Seka very thin and tired. Seka and most of the students were always black-eyed and tired, but everyone was used to it.
Except for a few students who suddenly explode "I hate studying!" and then break down, quit studying, and drop out of the academy, all students are always motivated to study - the biggest reason being that they can confidently and proudly say they are students of North Academy, as if that has become a label that directly determines whether a student is good or not.
Seka had enrolled in Northern Academy Junior Department because he wanted to get that shinning "label", and, of course, he had realized that it was a scary and even devilish test. Even though he was mentally prepared, "thinking about it" was not as great as the actual pressure......
Ever since Seka enrolled in Northern Academy Junior Department two years ago, he has chosen and stationed himself in a field he has never given up on to this day - Human Functional Structures, which today is the most popular and emphasized subject in the world. During his first two years at the academy, Seka passed all the exams and tests with flying colors. However, as time passes, the competition is becoming more and more intense. In his final year, he seems to be struggling a bit......
Seka had one big goal in mind - to pass the extremely the difficult and rigorous Northern Academy Senior Department entrancing exam and enter the Northern Academy Senior Department, earning this shining "label" even louder than that of the Junior Department.
Looking macroscopically, all the students at the Northern Academy look like they've made it all the way through under such intense pressure. However, from Seka's perspective, all he did was simply try to imitate the group and follow in their steps - or at least make sure that he didn't fall too far behind.
Time seems to be accelerated by an invisible hand, all that time brings is mysterious knowledge and an infinite amount of exam questions, all time seems to be short but also infinite - "Northern Academy Senior Department", the mountain that is hard to climb, is the goal of Seka, the school that symbolizes glory and the future.
And now he is standing in such a glorious cross to senior academy, with a heavy and thick bag, going straight by pulling all his strength.
However, something happened in these final moments…
Undercurrents Surging
At Northern Academy, countless students excel at discovering academic achievements, and among them are also groups skilled at "causing trouble"…
Within the Northern Collective Academy Area, there are all sorts of students, including those who know how to win people's hearts, wield authority, and simultaneously maintain top academic performance… Around these students or groups, many factions and parties emerged centered on them. They constantly bickered, waged wars, and assimilated each other, forming new forces!
Faced with such a situation, the principal of the Northern Collective Academy Area and even the entire management department often turned "blind eyes". They always believed that relationships among students should be left to govern themselves, and their freedom should not be interfered with.
The political landscape of the Northern Collective Academy Area was reshaped in Standard Century 2019 – the Shane Society, founded by a male student named Shane Macbow who enrolled in Standard Century 2015, once dominated the academy. However, everything changed with the arrival of a female student named Xeeh Lilay, who enrolled in Standard Century 2018. As a top student in Northern Academy's Computer Science department, with her dazzling talent and even more astonishing ability to unite people, the Helengun Society, which she led, quickly rose to prominence, and the Shane Society gradually lost its dominant position.
When the Helengun Society first appeared, many student groups tried to pose a political threat to it, attempting to usurp its powerful position, but no student or group made any progress.
From Seka's earliest memories of entering Northern Academy, various inexplicable and fabricated cold wars constantly erupted within the academy, but Seka did not pay much attention to them. At the same time, Seka was solely devoted to his studies – he seemed to have no interest in any academy wars, nor was he willing to take any political stance. Therefore, he lost common ground with most students, as most students had groups they were loyal to and tried to push their groups into highly influential positions within the academy zone.
In fact, almost all of the academy wars that have occurred in this academy have been "civil wars" and have had no relationship to other sides. Moreover, the Northern Academy did not need to start external wars to gain benefits… There was only one reason for the wars within Northern Academy: various groups and organizations wanted to dominate the Northern Collective Academy Area – a vast and quite important administrative area.
The S.C.2018 Class of Northern Academy Junior Department was an extremely important class for both the Junior Department and even the entire Northern Collective Academy Area. Xeeh, the leader of the Helengun Society, was from this class of students, and Seka was also fortunate enough to be a part of them. The very few groups that later emerged and could even threaten the Helengun Society also largely came from this class of students.
From the beginning of the S.C.2018 Class Junior Department first year, most groups attempting to replace the Helengun Society, perhaps due to insufficient cohesion or weak numbers and influence, consistently failed to pose any threat to the Helengun Society. As time progressed, students increasingly understood the importance of cohesion and became more adept at strategizing and plotting, leading to the successive emergence of increasingly powerful political groups and factions…
Political groups and parties, each growing in strength, began to emerge, like stars in the dark night gradually converging into brilliant galaxies. They progressively engaged the Helengun Society in one political struggle after another on the political stage of Northern Academy.
Core Scattering
Just as the Northern Academy Junior Department students of the S.C.2018 Class were about to set sail for graduation, a thunderous event shook the entire Northern Academy – the renowned Helengun Society suddenly announced its self-dissolution!
Even more astonishing was that this organization, which had firmly controlled the academy's pulse, resolutely decided not to pass on its power, allowing this enormous political machine to collapse! Even though this party had already gathered core members from various age groups within Northern Academy and could have remained vibrant for a long time!
On the evening of Standard Century 2021.05.14. Xeeh stood in the central square and announced this shocking decision to everyone. She even further stated that she would no longer be involved in the Senior Department of the academy after graduation and would not leave any personal gain for Northern Academy! These words, once spoken, were like a giant rock thrown into a calm lake, stirring up a thousand waves!
Right away, with this event as the catalyst, the political groups that were just below, but still far below, the Helengun Society, completely erupted. Without the Helengun Society as a ballast, the academy's politics, which had been undercurrents, instantly spiraled out of control. Those political groups that had been dormant in the shadow of the Helengun Society ran rampant like wild horses. Unprecedented riots and academy wars swept across the entire Northern Collective Academy Area.
Seka tried to immerse himself in his studies, maintaining his mindset for the upcoming major examination, but the chaotic reality clung to him like a shadow, impossible to isolate – next to his dormitory building, explosions, gunshots, and shattering sounds echoed, and the shadow of the academy war enveloped his world!…
The protagonists of this academy war were the two most powerful groups in the Northern Collective Academy Area, second only to the Helengun Society before its dissolution, and currently the strongest in the academy's political sphere. The philosophies and ideologies of these two groups were poles apart, and their grievances had deepened over a long time. Now, the collapse of the Helengun Society provided them with an excellent opportunity to ascend, and both sides were eager to completely defeat the other.
These two groups were the "Sharkatalpus Class," established by Sharkatalpus Sonich, a S.C.2018 Class student, and the "Elite Scholar Party," organized and led by Shinverse Studine, also a S.C.2018 Class student.
Amidst the Riots
Standard Century 2021.05.19 – The sixth day of the Northern Collective Academy Area riots…
These past few days, Seka's phone had practically become a spam receiver. Almost every ten minutes, his phone would receive a message, the content of which was nothing more than a certain group claiming to be able to control the entire Northern Collective Academy Area and asking students to join their "vast forces"! These messages were filled with exaggerated slogans and inexplicable emojis, as if trying their best to convince him to join a certain faction. But Seka always had no interest in these; every time he saw such a message, he would not hesitate to delete it directly, a hint of impatience showing in his heart.
Around 1 PM, Seka had an appointment with his best friend at Northern Academy, Saiko, to go to the laboratory in Northern Academy Building 1826 to complete the final experiment for their junior division graduation collaborative project.
Saiko was one of Seka's few confidantes. In the junior division of Northern Academy, both of them maintained independent thinking – they did not side with any political party or group, nor did they blindly follow any trends. Saiko's rationality and Seka's sensibility complemented each other; sometimes, in their dormitory late at night, they would whisper, discussing obscure philosophical questions while sharing their secrets. For three years, they were not only academic partners but also each other's most steadfast support. They were like a unique landscape in Northern Academy – in this academy filled with various factions and academic competition, the two of them never participated in any political struggles, focusing instead on studying and improving themselves.
The two of them lingered for a while longer. It wasn't until the clock on the dormitory wall had passed 2 PM that they finally managed to set off from the dormitory.
Disappointing Iron Gate
Along the way, they talked and laughed, discussing the steps and key points of the experiment they were about to do, as well as the new content they needed to learn. But when they had walked for more than ten minutes and arrived at the subway station full of anticipation, the scene before them was like a bucket of cold water dousing their enthusiasm – the station's main entrance was tightly shut by an iron gate, and yellow and black seals indicated that it was not operating.
The seal read: "Due to frequent terrorist attacks on the Northern Academy subway recently, leading to extreme difficulty in subway maintenance, all subways within the Northern Collective Academy Area are suspended until further notice."
"Know what? I am almost devastated! Look at the mess these damn people have made, such an important transportation hub, shut down just like that! How shameful…" Seeing the iron gate tightly closed, Seka seemed angry, muttering and venting his inner rage.
"No! Calm down, Seka!… The academy war is indeed terrible, but right now, finding another way to get into the lab can be a better choice. Don't waste too much time here; focusing on our studies is the most important thing." Saiko replied to Seka with an expressionless face; in reality, he also felt a spark of anger, more of helplessness.
"Yes, you're right… We wasted more than ten minutes coming from the dorm!" Seka said, very frustrated about wasting precious time, stomping his foot on the ground as he spoke.
"At least you got some exercise!…"
Both sides fell silent for a while, then Seka suddenly brought up, "Right! I just remembered another convenient way to get to our lab!"
"By walking straight for about five hundred meters across from this station, you can find a stably operating bus stop… If nothing unexpected happens, we should be able to get to a location near Building 1826 from there… Although it's definitely not as fast or direct as the subway station, this is our best option right now…" Seka stammered and lengthily explained the route they were about to face.
Without much time to dither, they rushed to the bus stop. After a period of uphill walking, they soon saw a sign – "The Jumbo Line".
At the bus stop, apart from the two of them, hardly anyone else was in sight. Seka and Saiko stood under the bus stop sign under the station called Forcely Station, imagining the faint outline of Building 1826, where they were about to go. From the towering bus stop, they looked out at the academy area – their standing position felt like an isolated island, looking down, they couldn't see the end, and the Northern Collective Academy Area was surrounded by the clamor caused by the massive academy war. In a trance, they suddenly sobered up. They knew that time was running out today and they had to rush to the laboratory as soon as possible to complete the final experiment of their graduation project.
"Be caution to time!… We are late and need to hurry, or we won't finish today," Seka said anxiously, showing Saiko the bus schedule on his phone. The schedule showed that the bus journey from here to Building 1826 station would take approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes.
"Don't worry! We still have time! Patiently waiting for the bus now!" Saiko comforted him, a hint of determination in his eyes.
Five minutes later, a slightly dilapidated bus arrived at their stop. Large characters "Jumbo Line" were written on the bus; this was the bus they intended to take, so they boarded the carriage.
Encounter
A faint smell of engine oil permeated the carriage. Other than a girl sitting by the window, there was no one else. Seka sat next to the girl, while Saiko sat in the same row across the aisle. The girl kept looking out at the passing scenery and did not turn back to look at them even once.
Seka seemed a little shy and embarrassed, but he still took the initiative to say hello: "Hi! Emm… Hello there! My name is Seka Steller, how should I address you?… And, why are you here alone? Where are you planning to go?!" Seka asked a lot in one breath, and seems there was something awkward in his sudden tone… Saiko sat quietly beside him, enjoying the scenery outside the window by himself.
The girl seemed very startled, her face flushed a little: "I… I… I'm Luce…" The girl looked a little shy, answering Seka's questions tremblingly.
"Sorry about that I startled you! So, I'm planning to go to… the stop closest to Building… 1826! Because the subway is closed, we're taking the bus! The one sitting next to me is with me, his name is Saiko Ryo!" Seka replied, perhaps speaking too quickly, he stumbled and slurred many words but immediately corrected them.
"You are fine…" the girl then replied, her tone seemingly more relaxed, "I… plan to go to Northern Academy's Vice Dragon Lake Campus! It can be a bit far from here, I've been on the bus for an hour, and I'll need to be on it for another hour or so, and I'll have to transfer twice to reach my destination… Oh! And… you two are the first people I've met on the bus!" The girl continued, "My real name is Luce Fingod, just call me Luce!"
Seka smiled, "Nice to meet you, Luce! I'll probably also need about an hour to reach my destination…" As Seka was replying to Luce, Luce suddenly interrupted the conversation, "Wait a minute—!"
"You… You just said you're going to the stop closest to Building 1826, I'm right, aren't I?" Luce asked, her tone sounding a bit alarmed.
"Emm… We're planning to go to the lab in Building 1826 to finish the experiment for our graduation project!" Seka replied, wondering why the girl was surprised by this. "In that case… did something happen at Building 1826?…"
Luce replied, "Nothing, it's just that recently I heard that the academy conflicts within Northern Academy are very intense, and the North Dragon Lake Campus, where Building 1826 is located, is the central area of the academy war… I know how shocking this can be. Sorry to tell about this."
Seka seemed to realize something and replied, "Is that so? No wonder I always felt so unsafe when I was in the North Dragon Lake Campus recently!"
At this point, Saiko, who had been looking at the scenery, suddenly came to his senses and began to participate in the conversation.
"I have to say that I hate these political groups that are desperate to control everything!…" Saiko said bluntly as he joined the conversation.
Luce was stunned for a few seconds when she heard this, then she replied: "Sigh!… We definitely know that students who have stayed in the Northern Academy for a long time have more or less experienced conflicts between political groups. It's just that this conflict seems to have gotten a bit too big!… Yeah, right! By the way, what is your party?!"
Seka and Saiko exchanged glances, then Saiko blurted out: "Unfortunately, our situation is special; we are unaffiliated and don't take any political stance!"
Luce was stunned upon hearing this news, looking somewhat startled. She stammered, "Ah! My god! Really? You know, only very few Northern Academy students who don't belong to a political party! I've seen a set of data about the political party affiliations of Northern Academy Junior Department students…" Then, Luce took out her phone and tried to find the content she wanted to show, about 30 seconds later…
"Oh, oh! I found it!" Luce showed a set of pictures saved on her phone to Seka and Saiko. The pictures were nothing more than data charts on the political stances of Northern Academy Junior Department students.
"You know what! Half a year ago, the Helengun Society had just experienced its peak in recent years. Back then, a third of the Northern Academy Junior Department students were members of the Helengun Society, and none of the other parties were even a fraction of the Helengun Society! The Green Society, the Sharkatalpus Class, the Elite Scholar Party, the Airavo Party… none of those messy parties had a membership count that reached one-third of the Northern Academy Junior Department! At that time, only one-tenth of the junior department students were unaligned with any political group! That was the historical high!… What happened after that? Speaking of this, after the Helengun Society disbanded, the Sharkatalpus Class and the Elite Scholar Party took advantage of the chaos to develop, their members almost evenly splitting half of the junior department students, and the number of unaligned students also significantly decreased in this area, at one point dropping below 1%! And various political groups were developing amidst the chaos… I was a former Helengyun Society member and later joined the Green Society… Speaking of the academy war, this riot war was a battle centered on the those two major groups! the Sharkatalpus Class and the Elite Scholar Party, but the Green Society was very smart; although they didn't directly participate in the war, they…" Luce analyzed the various political situations of Northern Academy with a sparkle in her eyes, speaking a lot in one breath without stuttering.
"Ahem!" Saiko rudely and abruptly interrupted the conversation with a cough, seemingly signaling Luce to stop talking about this topic.
"My goodness, this is like Vale Empire language to me!!!" Saiko said, while Seka shook his head.
"…Ah! What I want to say is that I apologize! I startled you both! I really shouldn't be talking so much about political topics right now!…" She suddenly realized what she had just said. Her face flushed red, showing a very humble expression. Normally, Northern Academy news was her favorite topic. At this moment, she realized how offensive it was to discuss these with "unaffiliated" people, and therefore, felt guilty.
"Please don't be like that! Miss! Or, let's talk about the differences between the various Northern Academy campuses?…" Seka spoke, trying to use his imperfect eloquence to adjust the conversation's atmosphere, which, though not hostile, always felt somewhat inscrutable…
And so, on the bus, the three of them began a conversation whose atmosphere shifted unpredictably, discussing everything from the current situation to academy history, from academy politics to their respective experiences… until Seka and Saiko were almost at their stop.
This bus seemed to become a place of tranquility for them in this chaotic academy, temporarily isolating them from the outside clamor, which made the three of them feel a sense of emotion.
Before saying goodbye, Saiko spoke directly, interrupting the unfinished conversation: "You know, I've always thought that these conflicts in the academy, in the end, are just fleeting clouds! What's truly important is simply our own hobbies and pursuits!"
Luce nodded, understanding Saiko's meaning perfectly. She realized that in this academy filled with competition and power struggles, political groups and parties were sometimes favored not for their excellent policies, but simply for their ability to persuade people. In such an environment, there was always a small group of people who maintained their original intentions and were not swayed by external disturbances – what they pursued was knowledge and truth, not power and status.
The bus slowly came to a halt amidst a cacophony of sounds. Seka and Saiko quickly got off and walked towards Building 1826.
Along this rugged road, they saw many traces of the academy war: broken glass, graffitied walls, and occasional quarrels. The once clean and tidy road was now cracked and covered with dust and garbage. However, these did not stop them; but only strengthened their resolve.
"Oh! We are almost there! Seka, keep it up!" Saiko encouraged, his voice exceptionally clear amidst the surrounding clamor.
Seka nodded and quickened his pace. They walked through one blocked-off area after another and finally saw the familiar silhouette of Building 1826… Although the surroundings were chaotic, the building's interior was surprisingly quiet.
Saiko had been walking ahead of Seka, so he entered Building 1826 first. Then, Seka also walked to the main entrance of Building 1826 and passed through the identity verification system at the door—
Seka Steller
- NAID 14983420
- S.C.2021.05.19.16:12
- Num.1826 Building
Northern Academy Gene Verification Passed (Code:4000)
Next Phase: Phase 2 - Twisted Threshold
