Utopia: The Perfect World

Arav sat motionless, lost in the maze of his own thoughts. His head rested on his folded arms, the world outside a distant blur.

He hadn't noticed when the second lecture ended. Or when the classroom emptied. Or when the clock crept past 4:00 PM.

The college was nearly deserted now—just him and the silence.

And yet, the silence wasn't empty. It was heavy, pressing in on him like a weight he couldn't shake. A void, vast and consuming, where only his own mind echoed back at him.

Scene Shift

A girl with short hair, glasses, and an oversized hoodie rushed through the hallway. If someone wasn't paying attention, they could've easily mistaken her for a boy—but she wasn't.

She had an emergency.

Spotting the restroom, she pushed the door open—only to freeze.

Inside stood something menacing. Not a goblin, but equally disturbing.

A male janitor.

The old man turned his head, flashed a smile.

She slammed the door shut in an instant.

"What the hell was he doing in there?" she muttered, heart racing.

But there was no time to think. Her situation was critical.

Steeling herself, she turned on her heel and made a decision.

"No one's here anyway."

She marched straight into the men's restroom.

---

Meanwhile, Arav finally snapped back to reality. The sun was already setting, casting an orange hue over the empty campus.

Checking his phone, he groaned. 4:30 PM.

"Damn it. I'm late for the gym. Now it'll be packed."

He ran a hand through his hair, exhaling in frustration before heading toward the restroom to change.

I cannot take the smell of old sweat and damp lockers hit me the moment I walked in.

"No choice."

He pulled off his shirt and caught his reflection in the mirror.

Lean, muscular, yet worn out. His back, crisscrossed with scars and stretch marks, told a story of relentless training.

The dry blood still lingered on his face, yet he felt nothing.

A sad smile ghosted his lips.

"Why do I even do this ,I don't remember a single day waking up without pain yet I still train?"

Just then, a flush came from the other side of the restroom.

Arav barely reacted—until he noticed someone standing there.

A short-haired "boy" in a hoodie.

The person had frozen, eyes locked onto Arav's shirtless form.

Arav blinked. "Uh… hey? I was changing here."

Still no reaction. Just stiff posture and a deepening flush.

"You okay?" Arav frowned. "Dude, why are you acting so weird?"

Then, for the first time, he got a proper look at the person's face. Light brown eyes. Pale skin. Sharp, delicate features.

"Wait a second…"

"You're a freshman, right?" he remarked casually. "You've got a nice face. A bit of muscle would suit you. How old are you?"

The "boy" stammered. "T-Twenty. Twenty… twenty-two."

Twenty-two?? What the hell? you are 3 years older than I'm! Arav spoke in astonishment,

Weird. That voice was way too high-pitched.

Then, as if trying to change the subject, she blurted, "Your back… those scars…"

Arav barely reacted. "Your voice—" He paused, realization hitting. "Why the hell is your voice so damn high?"

She spun around, quickly washing her hands, clearly trying to escape. Suspicion crept into Arav's mind, but he brushed it off.

Before she could make her exit, her foot caught on the tile.

She tripped.

Arav tried to hold her but

Arav's sore ankle gave out.

They both went tumbling down.

A second of stunned silence.

Then—Arav felt something soft against his elbow.

His brain stalled.

The hoodie had shifted. Her glasses had fallen, revealing long, fluttering eyelashes. And that softness—

His eyes widened.

"You're a girl?!"

She shoved him off, scrambling to her feet, face burning red.

Arav, still on the ground, processed everything. Then his confusion turned into irritation.

"What the hell were you doing in the men's restroom?!"

She tried to explain, but he cut her off.

"Get lost!"

Without another word, she bolted out.

Arav sat there for a moment, running a hand down his face before shoving his head under the cold tap water.

"This day just keeps getting worse."

"First a Murderer, Now a Pervert?"

Arav's mind spiraled.

First, he had killed a dog. The image flashed in his memory—blood on his hands, the dull look in the animal's eyes.

And now… a pervert?

A low, maniacal chuckle bubbled up from his throat, mocking his own life.

He caught his reflection in the mirror again, his lips twisting into a bitter smirk.

Composing himself, he turned on the tap, trying to wash off the dried blood from his face.

But it was too late.

"Damn it… These cuts won't fade for at least a week. If I try to peel them off, it'll only make it worse. Four days, maybe… if I'm lucky."

Frustration clawed at him.

"Shit, shit, shit."

An overwhelming sense of hopelessness crept in. Everything felt out of control, like the universe was hell-bent on making things worse.

With a deep breath, he pushed himself out of the restroom, stepping into the dimly lit stairway—only to stumble upon his classmate.

Greah.

"Man, luck really isn't on my side today."

Greah's face lit up. "Finally! I was looking for you all afternoon. Where the hell were you?"

Arav sighed. "Nowhere important."

"Anyway, there's something you really need to know."

His tone shifted.

Arav's gut clenched. "What?"

Greah scratched the back of his head. "Uh… so you got your topic for tomorrow's presentation."

The moment those words left Greah's mouth, Arav felt his soul leave his body.

A long silence.

Then—

"WHAT?!"

Greah winced. "Yeah… I'll DM you the topic. I don't even remember what it was."

Arav, in pure disbelief, sank to his knees, staring at the darkening sky.

The universe wasn't just against him.

It was actively screwing with him.

Arav had no choice but to head home and prepare for his presentation.

That's what he should have done.

Instead, he went straight to the gym.

With every rep, he relived the chaos of his day—every mistake, every frustration, every damn thing that went wrong. He pushed himself harder, past exhaustion, until his body screamed for him to stop. But he didn't. He trained to utter failure, ignoring the sharp pain in his ankle.

Then came leg extensions. He worked them extra hard—only realizing too late that his sprained ankle was already wrecked.

By the time he finished, his legs felt like dead weight. The sound of blood pounding in his ears was deafening, like distant war drums. When he tried to stand, he couldn't even hop on one foot.

"It's not my fault."

"This day… this whole damn day is cursed."

Why did everything keep getting worse?

On the bus ride home, his mind went blank. No thoughts, no frustration—just an eerie calm, as if he had forgotten himself completely.

It was just him. The bus. And the darkness outside the window.

Arav found himself in a place of absolute darkness.

Nothing existed—just him and the void.

He kept walking, pushing forward as far as his legs could carry him. But there was no end, no one else. Just the abyss.

Then—pain.

A sword pierced his body, followed by countless other weapons stabbing through him. His breath hitched as a silhouette emerged from the shadows—a woman, featureless, faceless. She stepped closer, embracing him, their blood mingling together.

A whisper escaped her lips.

"Finally, we are one."

Arav jolted awake, nearly screaming. His body was drenched in cold sweat, his chest rising and falling in rapid breaths.

"What… the hell was that?"

His mind was still trapped in the nightmare. Disoriented, he turned instinctively, searching—

"Gurro?"

The name left his lips before he fully processed it.

Silence.

Then it hit him. Yesterday.

Reality sank its claws into him, and his senses betrayed him.