DreamScape: Survival of the Smartest

Chapter 1: Invitation

"Huh? Where am I?"

I murmured in a low voice, the words barely escaping my lips.

"I can't see anything"

I was surrounded by an impenetrable darkness, and I felt as if I'd lost my vision. While I was grasping the situation In the midst of darkness, I heard the sound of footsteps coming from behind me. As I turned, wondering what it was, I saw a man wearing a white coat. He approached me and started speaking

"Why-"

His voice sounded like a faint murmur, as if my ears were struggling to catch every word, or perhaps my hearing was impaired in the darkness.

"Why don't you have any d- beep beep beep"

As I heard the blaring sound of my mobile alarm, my eyes slowly opened. I reached over, woke up, and promptly silenced it, muttering to myself.

"A dream? Whatever"

I couldn't remember the dream clearly, but it felt like I had a long conversation with someone talking about something important Even though the details were fuzzy, His face appeared blurry in my mind. but it left me with a strong sense of connection. Either way it doesn't matter cause it's just a dream. I approached the curtains and pulled them apart, allowing the light to flood into the room.

"Here we go, off to another boring day."

With a sign, I resigned to the prospect of facing yet another uneventful routine. I took a quick shower, changed into my school uniform, and headed off to school.

[September 5th,2025]

My name is Araki Ryota, a 16-year-old ordinary high school student. It has been five months since I started attending high school in Tokyo, and It has been five days since our summer vacation ended and I returned to Tokyo from my hometown. Incidentally, ever since I began high school, I have been living on my own. I reside in an apartment that is a ten-minute walk away from my school. As you can expect, I don't have the luxury of preparing my breakfast, so on my way to school, I usually stop by a convenience store to buy my breakfast and lunch.

After a quick two-minute walk from the convenience store, I arrived at the school. The hallways echoed with the lively conversations of students, filling the air with the sound of their voices. Without stopping anywhere, I proceeded directly to my classroom, avoiding any unnecessary detours, and took my seat at the back by the window, From the left corner far from the back door. my position allowed anyone entering the room to easily spot me.

"Good morning"

A guy entered the classroom through the backdoor, greeting as he made his way inside. I couldn't help but notice his gaze directed towards me.

"Eh? Is he perhaps greeting me? why?"

Feeling a bit confused by his greeting, I decided to return the gesture and greet him back.

"Go—"

"Good morning"

Before I could finish my greeting, another voice interrupted me. It came from a boy seated diagonally across from me. I realized then that the initial greeting was not meant for me. Ofcourse it's not, it's already weird enough that someone is talking to me because I am known for my cold demeanour, a guy who never smiles or speaks, and always eats alone and stays alone—a true loner.

At that moment, I was just glad that my voice was low. I silently acknowledged that it would have been awkward if he had heard my voice, maintaining a cool demeanour.

"friends?"

For as long as I remember, I've never had any friends, and I've never felt the need for them. I am certain that from this point onward too, I won't make any and I don't need any. Friends invade your privacy, demand your time, and it's exhausting to deal with their selfishness. In my opinion, the downsides outweigh the benefits. friends often use you and then discard you once their needs were met.