Instability Detected

Kai didn't sleep.

Not really.

Every time he closed his eyes, the same message burned behind his eyelids:

You have died. Press [Start] to Respawn.

And then, always, the blinking panel on the wall.

Set Save Point.

Set Save Point.

Set Save Point.

He still hadn't touched it.

He didn't know why.

Maybe it was pride. Maybe it was fear. Maybe he just didn't like the idea of having to choose when to back up a version of himself.

Either way, when the door slid open at exactly 6:00 AM and another student stepped into the dorm, he was already awake.

She stopped just inside the doorway.

Sharp silver hair. Dark brown skin. Intense golden eyes that scanned the room like they were logging data points. She wore the same black academy uniform he'd seen on the NPC yesterday — except hers was modified. Sleeves cut off at the elbow. Collar stitched with red thread. Boots instead of shoes.

Kai sat up from the lower bunk, rubbing his eyes.

"Guessing you're not here to sell me coffee."

"No," she said, voice flat. "I'm your roommate."

She crossed the room, dropped her duffel onto the other bed, and pulled up her HUD with a swipe. It appeared instantly — sleek red interface, stat windows scrolling in vertical panes.

Kai tilted his head to peek.

Name: Lira

Level: 3

SoulCode: Emotional Loadout – Equip emotions as stat buffs

Status: Stable

He didn't understand most of it, but "equip emotions" sounded more useful than "NULL."

He stood and tapped his own HUD open.

Name: Kai

Level: 1

SoulCode: [NULL]

Status: Glitched

Save Point: Unset

Lira didn't look up. "You're new."

"You think?"

"No SoulCode yet?"

Kai frowned. "Did the giant 'null' over my head give it away?"

She finally looked at him — not with judgment, just analysis. "No HUD distortion. Your outline's clean. You don't look corrupted."

"…Thanks?"

"You're lucky. Some of the other nulls start falling apart on day one."

Kai blinked. "What do you mean—falling apart?"

"They get that stretched look," she said, making a vague gesture around her face. "Like a PNG getting warped. Texture glitches. Some start looping voice lines. One guy kept saying 'loading inventory' for three hours straight."

He stared.

Lira shrugged. "Save Point Academy is a repair program. If you can't stabilize, it lets you break."

The hallways were already active by 7:00 AM.

Kai followed Lira through the main atrium — a massive open space with holographic banners floating overhead, each one flickering with updates like a global game feed.

13 Days Until Dead Zone Trial

Cafeteria Now Open – Energy Buff: +2 to all stats for 30 minutes

New Player Orientation: Room D-17

System Error: Respawn Room 3A Locked

The last message kept flashing. No one seemed to react to it.

Students milled about in silence. Some walked alone. Some gathered in tight clusters, whispering. Their uniforms varied — some wore jackets wide open, others had them zipped to the collar. A few had glowing auras. One boy walked by with a transparent third eye on his forehead. Another had floating dice spinning around his wrist like orbiting moons.

Kai kept his eyes down.

He passed one girl who looked perfectly normal — until she smiled, and her teeth glitched. They flickered into static, then reappeared. She didn't seem to notice.

No one stopped to explain anything.

Orientation was held in a room that looked more like a VR hub than a classroom. Rows of chairs with built-in HUD panels. A curved screen on the wall displayed rotating player stats — levels, SoulCode types, current ranking points.

Kai found a seat near the middle. Lira sat two rows behind him, head bowed slightly, eyes closed.

He scanned the screen.

Top 5 Students – Week 1

Dante – SoulCode: Morality Engine – Level 5

Lira – SoulCode: Emotional Loadout – Level 3

Marin – SoulCode: Quantum Recall – Level 3

Taro – SoulCode: Combo Memory – Level 3

?? – SoulCode: [REDACTED] – Level ??

The top spot belonged to a white-haired guy with a predator's grin. His portrait flickered with red-gold lighting. The caption beneath read:

"Gain XP for righteous or sinful actions. Bonuses scale based on intent."

Kai's stomach turned.

A system that rewarded morality as a weapon?

The screen shifted, and Instructor NPC-001 appeared once again, flickering into place like a digital ghost.

"Welcome to your first Academy Day," he said, voice as cold and glitchy as before. "Your purpose here is simple: stabilize. Learn your SoulCode. Build your stats. Survive the system."

He paused.

"Failure to do so will result in corruption, instability… and eventual deletion."

No one moved. No one laughed. Everyone listened.

"You have thirteen days to prepare for your first Dead Zone Trial. In the meantime, you will attend classes, complete simulations, and set your Save Point. One use. No resets."

Kai's HUD pinged.

Daily Objective: Attend Stat Synergy Class

Reward: +1 Emotional Sync

Warning: Failing three objectives disables Save Point.

He felt his pulse rise.

Disables Save Point?

So they didn't just expect obedience — they enforced it.

NPC-001's voice dropped.

"Instability has already been detected in Room 3A. A player failed to load correctly. That slot is now closed."

Kai swallowed hard. That was the door that had been flashing earlier.

No further explanation came.

After class, Lira caught up to him near the corridor that led to Stat Synergy.

She didn't speak at first — just walked beside him, hands in her pockets.

Finally: "What did you think?"

Kai shrugged. "Is 'horrifying' a valid review?"

She smirked slightly. "Pretty standard, honestly."

"Do people actually make it out?"

"The Trial?"

"No. This place."

Lira's smirk vanished.

"…Some. Maybe."

They reached the next classroom. It looked like a combat sim chamber, but cleaner — like a testing lab crossed with an escape room. A new instructor stood waiting, this one shorter and shaped more like a mannequin. Its voice was female, soft, but no less artificial.

"Welcome to Stat Synergy. Today, we will test your SoulCode compatibility and stat distribution under stress. If you do not have a recognized ability, proceed anyway. The system is always watching."

Kai's HUD pinged again.

Stat Check – Emotional Sync: 2

Recommended Minimum: 4

Cool. He was underleveled for feelings.

The floor began to shift beneath his feet — literally. Tiles rearranged, and students were separated into pods.

As he was moved into a chamber alone, Kai saw Lira give him one brief glance.

She didn't look worried.

He wasn't sure if that made things better or worse.