Ding! My System Turns Your Arrogance Into Cash

Chapter 2: The Class Outcast

The grand lecture hall was packed with over two hundred students.

Nicholas slipped through the back door, trying his best to be invisible.

His clothes were still damp from last night, clinging to his skin with a stale, cold scent.

A prominent brownish stain from the courtyard mud ruined the hem of his faded jeans.

As he walked down the stairs to find a seat, a heavy silence suddenly fell over the room.

"Well, well. Look who finally decided to join civilization," a sharp, mocking voice boomed through the microphone.

Nicholas stopped. Professor Vance stood at the podium, his tailored gray suit pressed to perfection.

Vance adjusted his golden wire-rimmed glasses, glaring directly at Nicholas with pure arrogance.

"Tell me, Nicholas. Is your alarm clock as broken as your financial situation?" Vance asked.

The entire lecture hall erupted into a wave of snickers and muffled laughter.

Nicholas felt a familiar, burning sting in his chest, but he kept his face completely blank.

"The campus bus was delayed due to the storm, Professor," Nicholas said quietly.

"I don't care about your excuses!" Vance snapped, tapping his thick leather ledger aggressively.

"Look at you. Your clothes are a complete mess. You look like a total disgrace to this institution," Vance added.

Nicholas clenched his fists inside his pockets, his jaw tightening as two hundred pairs of eyes stared at him.

Right in the front row, Miranda sat leaning against Chad’s shoulder, a look of ultimate smugness on her face.

She leaned over, whispering loudly to Chad, "I am so glad I got rid of that loser. Imagine being seen with him."

Chad chuckled, flashing his shiny luxury watch as he looked back at Nicholas. "He looks like he slept in a dumpster."

Miranda giggled, tossing her glossy hair over her shoulder. "Honestly, it's embarrassing that I ever dated him."

Nicholas heard every single word, the betrayal cutting fresh wounds into his already broken pride.

Yesterday she was holding my hand. Today, I am just a circus animal for her new boyfriend, Nicholas thought bitterly.

Professor Vance cleared his throat loudly, flashing a slide onto the massive digital projector screen.

"Since Nicholas has graciously volunteered to be our late guest, let's use him for today’s topic," Vance sneered.

"Today, we are discussing systemic financial failure and poor life planning," Vance announced to the class.

"Nicholas here is a perfect example. He relies entirely on a university scholarship to be here," Vance said.

"Yet, his attendance is slipping. He works low-class jobs instead of focusing on his studies," the professor continued.

"If you do not maintain a perfect record, Nicholas, I will personally sign the paperwork to cancel your scholarship."

Nicholas felt the room spinning, a wave of cold sweat breaking out across his forehead.

If he lost his scholarship, his entire future would vanish in an instant. He would be completely ruined.

"Do you understand me, Nicholas? Or do I need to speak in terms a diner dishwasher can grasp?" Vance mocked.

The students around Nicholas laughed openly now, pointing and whispering without any shame.

Chad gave a thumbs-up to Professor Vance, silently praising the man for the brutal public humiliation.

Nicholas took a deep, shaky breath, forcing the overwhelming panic down into the pit of his stomach.

He refused to cry here. He refused to give Miranda and Chad the satisfaction of seeing him completely break apart.

"I understand, Professor Vance," Nicholas said, his voice remarkably steady despite the storm raging inside him.

"Good. Now find a seat at the very back where you won't distract the students who actually have a future," Vance barked.

Nicholas walked up the stairs, his head held high, ignoring the glaring eyes and the constant, petty snickering.

He sat in the final row, pulling out a cheap, frayed notebook and focusing entirely on taking notes for the next two hours.

He forced his mind to become completely numb, staring straight ahead like a statue made of ice.

When the lecture finally ended, the students packed their bags, still casting judgmental glances his way as they left.

Miranda walked past his row, deliberately linking her arm tighter with Chad's as they strolled out the door.

"Make sure you don't miss the bus, Nico!" Chad called out mockingly, throwing a paper ball toward him.

Nicholas didn't look up until the entire lecture hall was completely empty and silent.

The heavy weight of his reality settled back onto his shoulders, suffocating him with a dark, hopeless despair.

He needed to escape. He needed to go somewhere where nobody could look down on him or laugh at his clothes.

Nicholas grabbed his backpack and headed straight for the campus library basement.

The basement was an old, abandoned archive room that smelled of dust, mold, and decaying paper.

Hardly anyone ever came down here, making it the perfect sanctuary for his isolation.

He sat down at a creaking wooden desk underneath a single, flickering fluorescent light bulb.

He buried his face in his hands, a quiet, bitter sob finally escaping his throat in the darkness.

Why is this happening to me? I work so hard. I do everything right. Why does money dictate my worth? He stayed like that for an hour, his mind spinning with dark thoughts and absolute exhaustion.

Suddenly, a sharp, violent vibration erupted from his front pocket, making him jump slightly.

He pulled out his cracked smartphone, expecting another automated alert about his negative bank balance.

Instead, the screen instantly glitched out, the background turning into a terrifying, flashing blood-red display.

The regular clock icons and applications completely vanished, replaced by a massive digital countdown timer.

It was the exact same mysterious timer that had appeared in his pocket yesterday right after the breakup.

Nicholas stared at the red glow illuminating the dark basement, his heart skipping a beat in sheer confusion.

"What is going on?" Nicholas whispered aloud, his voice echoing eerily against the concrete walls.

Suddenly, a piercing, cold, and entirely mechanical voice rang out directly inside his head.