Morning arrived.
Or at least...
Something pretending to be morning.
Sunlight poured through the classroom windows.
Birds chirped outside.
Students walked through the hallways carrying books and chatting with one another.
For a few brief moments...
The school looked completely ordinary.
Then the announcement speakers activated.
A pleasant female voice echoed through every corridor.
Good morning, students.
System Version 2.0 is now online.
Please enjoy a fair and enjoyable school life.
The message ended with cheerful music.
Somehow...
That was the most disturbing part.
🔹 BREAKFAST
The cafeteria was crowded.
Students lined up for steamed buns, rice porridge, soy milk, and noodles.
Nobody pushed.
Nobody shouted.
Everything looked normal.
Until Yue Ning noticed something.
"...Why is everyone so quiet?"
Lin Xia looked around.
She was right.
Hundreds of students were eating.
Yet almost nobody was talking.
Instead...
Everyone kept glancing at the giant digital board hanging above the cafeteria entrance.
A ranking board.
But different.
PLAYER STATUS
SAFE
CAUTION
WATCHLIST
UNKNOWN
Mei Chen frowned.
"...We never had those before."
Their own names appeared under one category.
WATCHLIST
Several nearby students immediately stood up and moved to another table.
Nobody wanted to sit close to them.
🔹 THE NEW SOCIAL RULE
As they left the cafeteria, they overheard two first-year students whispering.
"...Stay away from Watchlist players."
"...Why?"
"...My brother said people marked by the system bring trouble."
"...What if they challenge us?"
"...Just don't talk to them."
Mei Chen sighed.
"...Great."
"We've become the weird kids."
🔹 THE SCHOOL CHANGES
The three girls walked through the campus.
Everything had changed in small ways.
New security cameras.
New digital scanners outside classrooms.
New locked doors.
Even the school map had been replaced.
Some rooms simply...
No longer existed.
Others had appeared overnight.
One classroom was labeled:
Probability Laboratory
Another:
Behavior Analysis Hall
A third had no name at all.
Only a black square on the door.
🔹 A FAMILIAR FACE
As they turned the corner—
someone called out.
"...Lin Xia."
It was Han Rui.
One of the stronger players they had met during the earlier tournament arc.
He wasn't smiling.
"You shouldn't be walking around together."
Mei Chen crossed her arms.
"...Since when?"
Han Rui looked around before lowering his voice.
"Version 2.0 added a new mechanic."
"What mechanic?"
"...Association."
Silence.
"The system now tracks relationships."
Yue Ning frowned.
"...Relationships?"
"If one Watchlist player breaks a rule..."
He looked at the three of them.
"...Everyone closely connected to them receives increased risk."
🔹 DISTRUST
The words lingered.
It was clever.
Cruel.
The system wasn't attacking them directly.
It was encouraging people to abandon each other.
Mei Chen laughed bitterly.
"...It wants everyone isolated."
Han Rui nodded.
"...And it's working."
Across the hallway, they saw two friends arguing.
One quietly walked away.
The other stood alone.
Neither looked back.
🔹 THE MESSAGE
Without warning, every student's wrist device vibrated.
A notification appeared.
Daily Optional Challenge Available
Reward: 150 Points
Penalty for Failure: None
Participation closes in one hour.
Students immediately began discussing it.
Some rushed toward the gymnasium.
Others toward the library.
Yue Ning looked confused.
"...No punishment?"
Han Rui's expression remained serious.
"That's what everyone thought yesterday."
"...What happened?"
"No punishment..."
He paused.
"...For the person who loses."
The girls stared.
"...The punishment goes to someone connected to them."
Silence.
🔹 THE COST OF FRIENDSHIP
Mei Chen's smile vanished.
"...So if I lose..."
Han Rui nodded.
"...One of your friends pays instead."
Nobody spoke.
The system had found a new way to make people fear relationships.
🔹 A DECISION
The notification timer continued counting down.
00:43:12
Students hurried past them.
Many looked determined.
Others looked terrified.
Lin Xia closed the notification without accepting.
"So..."
Mei Chen asked.
"...What now?"
Lin Xia looked at Yue Ning.
Then at Mei Chen.
"We don't play until we understand the rules."
Yue Ning smiled slightly.
"...Still thinking three moves ahead."
Lin Xia shook her head.
"No."
She looked at the crowded hallway.
"I'm thinking about everyone else."
🔹 FINAL SCENE
High above the school...
In a room filled with floating monitors...
Someone watched the girls.
One monitor displayed a single statistic.
TEAM COHESION
98%
A gloved hand pressed a button.
The number immediately began to fall.
96%
94%
92%
The unseen figure spoke quietly.
"Let's see..."
"How long friendship survives when trust becomes a liability."
Outside...
The cheerful school bell rang.
And another ordinary day at XO Project officially began.