August 30 (Friday)
1:57 PM
As Jiro Sanata completely froze, his internal monologue screaming at the sheer absurdity of the broken system, his physical exterior remained an absolute masterclass in deadpan apathy.
He didn't argue. He didn't complain to the VICES officer about the lack of prior instructions or the missing mechanics. He just stared at her with hollow, stuttering eyes.
"Ah, okie," Jiro simply nodded, his voice completely flat. "Thank you po."
He reached out to the cold, tiled concrete table. He packed his premium graphite arsenal back into his blue pencil case and picked up the heavy, pristine box of Jesper's oil pastels.
Quest failed. Mission aborted due to missing key item. He turned his back on the bustling BSN hangout house and began the long trek back to his base. He walked toward the stairwell, deliberately taking the right-wing stairs clearly marked with a massive, bold DOWN ONLY sign.
He didn't care. He walked up the DOWN ONLY stairs, completely ignoring the campus rules, mostly because everyone else ignored them anyway.
As he climbed the steps, the heavy weight of the unwritten rules finally caught up to his Shonen strategist mind.
Bruh, why didn't they just say that earlier? Jiro sighed internally, shaking his head at the glaring lack of patch notes. Eh, how and where can I even buy that crappy illustration board...
Even if he had enough money to buy the 1/4 illustration board right now, the logistics were impossible. The KSU Taytay campus didn't have a fully stocked supply store inside. He would have to leave the premises, and the strict campus guards were notorious for locking down the gates during major events. He was completely soft-locked.
He finally reached the fourth floor and stepped into the familiar, humid confines of Room 406.
The entire BEEd 1-A cohort was currently acting as a unified viewing party. Every single student was glued to the Smart T.V. screen, actively watching the NSTP Virtual Common Module Orientation. At the very front, sitting right beside the teacher's table, was Reo Bairo, acting as the designated tech guard for her screencasting phone.
Jiro quietly slipped into the room and immediately walked over to the front row.
He gently placed the oil pastel set back onto Jesper Arufe's desk.
Jesper blinked, looking completely confused as he picked up his untouched, pristine coloring materials.
"Oh beh, are you done now?" Jesper asked, his eyes wide. "Or haven't you started yet?"
Before Jiro could even explain the devastating mechanical failure, the Commander's radar locked onto him. Hidy Medona turned away from the T.V. and spotted her officially deployed tribute standing idly in the room.
"Oh, why did you return, beh?" Hidy asked, her brow furrowing in confusion. "Haven't they started yet?"
Jiro looked at his President. He didn't drop a dramatic speech. He just delivered the punchline of his entire decade-long artistic comeback with absolute, deadpan acceptance.
"I didn't bring an illustration board lol," Jiro said softly.
Hidy's eyes widened as the realization of the broken system hit her. She immediately shifted from strict Commander to a deeply sympathetic party leader.
"Aww that's awful, you should have just bought one..." Hidy started, before her own strategic mind instantly mapped out the campus constraints. "Ay... on second thought, the guard probably won't let you out eh... and the school supplies store is still far away... that is okay beh."
She offered him a comforting smile. There was literally nothing he could do. The environment had successfully defeated him before the timer even started.
Jiro nodded and began to navigate through the crowded room. He stopped at his designated spawn point in the second row first, dropping his blue pencil case onto his desk.
With his inventory cleared, he turned around and approached his squad in the fourth row.
As soon as he reached their territory, the interrogation began.
"Uy, what happened?" Niewi asked, leaning forward in her chair.
Mira and Ivyn immediately turned their attention to him, completely ignoring the ongoing NSTP livestream.
Jiro simply smiled, shrugging his shoulders. "No illustration board hahahaha."
A collective wave of heavy disappointment instantly washed over the girls. They had hyped up his stats, only for him to get disqualified on a technicality.
Niewi, naturally wired to analyze the flaws in the system, immediately fired back with absolute criticism.
"Bruh, what is that again," Niewi scoffed, crossing her arms. "They should have stated clearly who will provide the illustration board, and it falls on the participants instead."
"True eh," Ivyn quickly agreed, nodding her head at the sheer injustice of the unwritten rules.
While Niewi was busy critiquing the event organizers, the squad's designated emotional anchor stepped in. Mona, always carrying that soft, reassuring aura, offered Jiro a warm, comforting smile.
"Ji, that is just okay," Mona assured him softly, trying to heal his damaged pride. "You still have hope to join next time again. Do not think about that illustration board anymore, you will just get stressed there eh."
Jiro chuckled. Despite his cynical internal monologue, he genuinely appreciated Mona's healing words. He didn't actually feel that devastated. In true Oreki fashion, the failure simply meant he could go back to conserving his energy.
"Well, that is okay for me," Jiro smiled, settling back into his casual, laid-back posture. "At least, I almost tried... and we will all suffer the NSTP quiz together anyway hahahaha."
The girls laughed softly, the tension completely dissolving. The short-lived dream of the BEEd 1-A poster making champion was officially dead, but the shared misery of the ongoing Friday Boss Rush was still very much alive.
With his short, chaotic side quest fully concluded, Jiro finally walked back to his designated spawn point. He slid into his second-row aisle seat, completely blending back into the Vanguard, ready to face the screen and endure the rest of the virtual orientation.
As he finally settled in, aiming his attention at the NSTP livestream playing on the Smart T.V., his proximity triggered an unexpected aggro radius. A massive swarm of BEEd 1-A cohorts—Cristel, Zherel, Nica, Mekayla, Anila, Deanne, Hurd, and even his seatmate, Princess—suddenly closed in. They completely surrounded Jiro's territory.
"Uy, Jiro, what happened?" they asked in a chaotic, overlapping chorus.
Jiro stared at the mob. He didn't sigh. He didn't blink. He just deployed his ultimate, cold deadpan face.
"I said..." Jiro muttered flatly. "I don't have an illustration board..."
The wave of sympathy crashed over him instantly.
"Aww, that is okay beh," Cristel consoled softly. "I was gonna support you, you know."
The rest of the mob followed suit, practically reading from the same NPC validation script. Jiro's social battery was already flashing red. He was incredibly tired of hearing the exact same validations on a loop, so he just kept nodding his head rhythmically, wishing for an invisible skip button.
2:18 PM
The virtual orientation was still running, but the physical reality of the campus was shifting gears. The cohort was already preparing their attires. A mass migration of female students started heading toward the girls' restroom just beside Room 407.
At the front, Reo Bairo took full control of the tech station. "I will just be the one to screenshot the slides for us ah," she volunteered, ensuring no one missed the required module data while they scrambled.
Hidy then turned to the room, clapping her hands. "Guys, go change clothes now, the event is going to start soon ah!"
While the girls engaged in a frantic costume change side quest, Jiro opted for maximum efficiency. He didn't even exit Room 406. He just stood by his desk, unbuttoned his light blue polo uniform, and took it off. Underneath, he was already wearing a plain white shirt—the ultimate base layer.
He opened his eco-bag, unpacked the plastic casing, and unfolded his traditional Barong Tagalog. He slipped it on over his white shirt. He didn't even need to bring extra slacks because his dark blue uniform pants were already a perfect match for the formal aesthetic. He folded his light blue polo back into the plastic wrapper and shoved it into his eco-bag.
Done. As simple as that. Loadout perfectly optimized.
Meanwhile, his COF was experiencing a full-blown beauty pageant moment inside the room. Make-up sessions were in full swing. When they finally finished, their visual stats had absolutely maxed out.
They decided to document the aesthetic upgrade immediately. They took over the hallway, leaning against the open corridor fence. It was a perfect cinematic background: the green trees from the campus gate, the imposing structure of the nearby glass factory, and the elegant Metro Manila skylines stretching out against the humid, sunny afternoon sky.
Not satisfied with just pictures, the COF migrated into the empty and open Room 405 next door. The vacant classroom instantly became their private studio. They took endless photos and filmed TikTok videos while wearing their traditional outfits.
The visual composition of the squad was high-tier: Mira was rocking a black dress paired with a cream Filipiniana top detailed with black designs. Niewi went for a classic look with a simple cream Filipiniana top and a black dress. Ivyn had completely transformed, wearing an elegant white Filipiniana top over a vibrant salmon pink dress. Cicille was fully equipped in a complete, matching cream Filipiniana set. Mona wore an intricately designed Filipiniana top paired with a shining rose gold dress. And Cosma completed the rainbow, wearing a bright yellow Filipiniana over a black dress.
2:41 PM
The impromptu photoshoot concluded. They went back to Room 406 to grab their bags and belongings. It was time to go down. The room was left in the hands of Group Charlie, who were officially deployed to execute the cleaning side-quest before leaving.
The cohort made their way down to the gymnasium. As expected, the attendance side-quest was active again, featuring another ridiculously long queue just to get their signatures on the paper.
Once they officially signed in, they found their seats. The afternoon phase of the Buwan ng Wika event finally kicked off. They watched the parades, the fashion shows, and the various cultural performances taking over the middle of the gymnasium floor, with the participants eventually walking up to perform on the main stage.
But the Philippine weather mechanics are notoriously unpredictable. Midway through the festive event, the sunny sky rapidly grew darker. The lighting dropped ominously.
And then, it rained. Heavily.
The massive tin roof of the open-air gymnasium turned into a deafening drumline of falling water. The upbeat OPM music was completely drowned out by the noise, and the humid air quickly shifted into cold, wet conditions. The aesthetic vibe of the event was instantly washed away.
5:20 PM
The event finally ended, but the moderate rain debuff was still fully active.
It was a very brutal environment to navigate. For every student, commuting home while wearing traditional outfits in rainy weather was an absolute death sentence for their delicate Barong Tagalogs and Filipinianas.
11:08 PM
The remaining light rain continued to batter the roofs of Taytay, masking the exhaustion of the BEEd 1-A cohort. Most of the freshmen were already half-asleep, desperately trying to recover their HP for the incoming weekend.
But the main group chat remained active, lighting up dark rooms with a string of late-night patch notes.
Reo Bairo: "Guys, do not forget to prepare your A4 bond paper and coloring materials for our reporting activity in Art 1 tomorrow ah."
Reo Bairo: "And also prepare for the debate for our reporting activity in Filipino."
Before anyone could groan about the impending Saturday Curse, she dropped a massive academic cheat code into the chat. She forwarded a set of images containing the exact copies of their previous quizzes in Filipino 1 and Art 1, complete with all the correct answers.
Reo Bairo: "Just review our quizzes in Filipino 1 and Arts 1 for tomorrow ah."
And to wrap up her late-night dispatch, the Lore Master added a crucial merchant update.
Reo Bairo: "And I will bring the ordered PE pants tomorrow morning ah."
The aesthetic Friday was officially over. The digital notifications faded into the sound of the thunderstorm, leaving the cohort to brace themselves. The grueling Saturday Curse marathon was waiting.
August 31 (Saturday)
The Saturday Curse was fully on course once again.
By 6:35 AM, a significant portion of BEEd 1-A was already inside Room 406, mentally bracing themselves for another grueling reporting marathon with Mr. Jeypi Shono across his two subjects, FIL 1 and ART 1.
Jiro arrived at exactly 6:40 AM.
The room was already buzzing, but not with academic panic. It was an active merchant transaction. At the front of the room, Reo Bairo was hauling a massive plastic bag filled with the highly anticipated loot.
"Ay, guys, get your ordered PE pants here while Sir is not yet here!" Reo announced, distributing the dark fabric to her buyers.
Meanwhile, Jesper Arufe was already executing his weekly pre-class ritual. He dashed downstairs to the Storage Room, surrendered his SHS I.D. as collateral to the staff, grabbed the remote and extension cord, and sprinted back up to wire the Smart T.V. Connection successful.
At exactly 6:53 AM, Mr. Shono arrived. He sat at his desk, opened his laptop, and initiated the attendance roll call. Sadly, a few students were missing today, officially failing the Saturday survival check.
7:01 AM.
The FIL 1 reporting marathon commenced. The topic flashed on the screen: Mga Teorya ng Diskurso sa Filipino: Aplikasyon sa Filipino (Discourse Theories in Filipino: Application in Filipino).
The vanguard for this session was composed of Reo Bairo, Brittany Bausta, Aira Berdez, and Aprille Bolente. They efficiently dismantled the complex theories and explained their practical applications. They pushed through their parts smoothly, and when Mr. Shono unleashed his usual barrage of Q&A questions from the back of the room, the group easily parried the attacks.
After dropping a quick quiz on the class, Reo took the floor to introduce their main activity. But instead of forcing a heavy, brain-draining debate on the exhausted class as originally planned, the Lore Master flipped the script.
She transformed the activity into a Role Playing game, mandating everyone to physically act out the different discourse theories they had just discussed. It was an absolute riot, filled with hilarious, over-the-top acting that successfully restored the class' dwindling sanity points.
But there was no time to rest. Mr. Shono seamlessly transitioned into ART 1, and the schedule dealt a brutal hand.
Reo Bairo, Brittany Bausta, and Aira Berdez were summoned right back to the front. It was a punishing double boss fight for the trio.
Their Art Appreciation topic was Creativity, Imagination, and Expression. They pushed through their dwindling stamina, discussing their parts efficiently. Another Q&A survived. Another short quiz administered.
Then came the final AoE drop: A drawing activity.
This was the exact moment Jiro had been waiting for. His discontinued, decade-old artistic talent was finally getting a chance to breathe. He unzipped his "Hulk" bag and proudly pulled out a premium set of coloring pencils. He had borrowed them from his cousin, refusing to face a coloring quest unarmed ever again. He focused on his A4 paper, letting his Shonen protagonist energy pour entirely into his artwork.
12:24 PM.
The morning marathon officially concluded, and the lunch break bell rang in their minds.
Jiro opted to stay inside Room 406. He comfortably ate his packed lunch in his wooden armchair, chatting idly with the remaining BEEd 1-A survivors who had decided to bunker down.
Meanwhile, Mira, Ivyn, and Niewi decided to venture out. They trekked down to the cafeteria to buy their lunch and secure some cold bottled water. It seemed like a standard food run, but the campus mechanics were unpredictable.
A while later, Mira, Ivyn, and Niewi returned to the room, slouched in their chairs, looking uncharacteristically pale. Their HP bars were visibly flashing red.
"Uy, my stomach hurts," Mira groaned, clutching her abdomen.
"Same," Niewi winced, resting her head on the desk. "I feel so dizzy ah."
"Ay, me too. My tummy is not so well," Ivyn added, looking equally miserable.
Jiro stared at them, his Shonen radar pinging aggressively. The campus had officially inflicted a poison debuff on the party. Ah, the cafeteria food and water strikes again, Jiro thought, sighing internally. They were allegedly suffering from food poisoning.
Realizing their stats were critically low, the three girls immediately went downstairs to the campus clinic to seek healing their HPs. They found the male nurse on duty, but instead of an instant potion, they were met with absolute bureaucratic logic.
"Ay, you need to create a letter first before I can excuse all of you po," the nurse instructed calmly.
A fetch quest just to get healed? It was absurd, but they complied. After the paperwork was finally cleared, the nurse provided the necessary remedies. Their poison status was neutralized, and they were miraculously cleared to continue their afternoon physical endurance test.
2:10 PM.
Back upstairs, Group Delta officially clocked in for cleaning duty, erasing the blackboards and arranging the armchairs in Room 406.
The rest of the cohort, including Jiro, had already migrated down to the Gymnasium, setting up their ranks for PE 1.
Mr. Casto arrived with his deceptive, chill smile. He didn't waste time on long lectures today. Instead, he introduced a new, terrifying vocabulary word to the freshmen.
TABATA.
It was a high-intensity interval training workout. The upbeat music blared from the Bluetooth speaker, and Mr. Casto initiated the drills.
Squats. Jumping jacks. High knees. Planks. The entire class was thrust into a brutal, non-stop stamina-draining sequence. The afternoon heat mixed with the intense physical exertion, leaving the future educators absolutely gasping for air on the dusty concrete floor.
As they lay there, desperately trying to recover their shattered lungs, Mr. Casto dropped the final patch note of the day.
"Alright class, the group activity performance will be moved to our next meeting ah," he announced cheerfully. "September 7. So you guys need to practice your Tabata dance workout routines until then."
A collective, exhausted groan echoed through the gym. More cardio.
At exactly 4:10 PM, Mr. Casto finally called it a day.
"Okay... class dismissed hehehe," he smiled, waving a hand casually.
Jiro grabbed his heavy bag and dragged his aching legs out of the gymnasium. The Saturday Curse had thoroughly drained his stamina, but he had survived another week in the KSU Taytay server.
7:23 PM.
Jiro was lying flat on his mattress, his physical HP completely depleted. The DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) debuff was actively creeping into his calves and thighs. He couldn't even find the energy to open his manga app.
Then, the main section group chat lit up. The Commander was back online.
Hidy Medona: "Good evening guys! I know everyone is so tired and experiencing heavy muscle and body pain from our PE earlier eh, but..."
But. The most terrifying conjunction in the academic vocabulary.
Hidy Medona: "As per Doc Rick, we need to submit and process the following tasks for next week po ah."
She dropped the ultimate quest log into the chat. It was a massive, multi-tiered objective list that made Jiro's aching muscles throb even harder.
First on the list was the NSTP Adopt-A-Place activity. They needed to prepare a formal proposal template for their designated cleaning areas. To keep things perfectly fair and avoid any faction wars, Hidy had relied on the ultimate RNG (Random Number Generator) mechanic.
Hidy Medona: "For the assigned locations that we will clean and fix, I just used a spinning wheel app per group po ah. Here are the results:"
Alpha - 2nd floor
Beta - Cafeteria
Charlie - 1st floor
Delta - 4th floor
Enigma - 3rd floor
Falcon - Gym
Jiro stared at his screen. His eyes widened, locking onto the final assignment.
Falcon - Gym.
Wait. The Gymnasium?
His mind flashed back to the massive, sprawling, dusty concrete floor where they had just suffered through their Tabata workout.
Are you kidding me? Jiro complained internally, his soul practically leaving his body. The other groups got a single hallway or a small cafeteria, and we got the entire gym?! There are only six of us! How are we supposed to clean that massive court?!
But the system showed absolutely zero mercy. Before he could even type a complaint, the Commander unleashed the rest of the patch notes.
Hidy Medona: "Also for NSTP: We need to create a proposal letter for the upcoming LTS weekly program. Each student must tutor their nephew or any elementary student once a week, and there must be documentation po ah."
A weekly escort and tutorial mission. Great.
Hidy Medona: "Prepare for a long quiz regarding the NSTP Common Module livestream we watched yesterday. And please, finish filling out the hard copy registration form so we are legally registered under the LTS component eh."
Ah yes, the physical registration form. An actual document that must be printed, filled out by hand, signed, and submitted. The bureaucratic final boss.
Then, she pivoted to their Math 1 requirements.
Hidy Medona: "For MMW: Create a summarized Canva presentation regarding the Module 1 topic per group. There will also be a long quiz next week, so review! And do not forget to bring your scientific calculators ah!"
And finally, the cherry on top of the exhaustion cake.
Hidy Medona: "For PE 1: Make your own practicum Tabata steps by group. It must be an 8-minute routine po."
Jiro slowly lowered his phone.
An 8-minute continuous cardio choreography. A Canva presentation. A long quiz in Math. A long quiz in NSTP. A tutorial program proposal. And sweeping the entire freaking gymnasium.
The month of August was officially ending, but it was leaving behind a massive, overwhelming trail of loaded tasks. The quest log wasn't just full; it was overflowing, bleeding directly into the impending September schedule.
It was physically and mentally painful to see the growing hell week of tasks. As Jiro stared at the glowing blue light of his screen, the sheer weight of the upcoming deadlines crashed down on him, blurring his vision until his exhausted eyes literally began to stutter.
END OF THE STUTTERING EYES