Harem System in an Elite Academy

The announcement came on a Wednesday morning.

It wasn't loud or dramatic — just a notice projected across every dorm terminal and classroom screen at the same time, the kind that made students stop mid-conversation.

[Academy Directive: Mid-Term Practical Examination – Dungeon Assessment. Attendance is mandatory. Failure to participate will result in disciplinary action or expulsion.]

Arios stared at the notification for several seconds before finally lowering his cup of tea. Liza leaned over his shoulder, reading aloud with a slow, unimpressed tone.

"'Failure to participate will result in expulsion.' They really know how to motivate us."

Lucy, sitting on the edge of his desk, crossed her arms. "Dungeon practical... that means they're sending us into the actual underground network beneath the training wards, right?"

Arios nodded. "That's what it sounds like."

Liza sat back down beside Lucy. "I thought those dungeons were sealed to the higher divisions only. If first and second years are being called, it means something's changed."

Her, flipping through her tablet beside the window, spoke without looking up. "The notice says it's a collaborative point-based assessment. Teams will be ranked based on monster subjugations, item retrieval, and survival time. Low-ranking teams will face remedial sessions… or removal from the current academic batch."

Lucy blinked. "So they're actually serious about the expulsion threat."

"Yeah." Arios exhaled slowly. "It's not just a mock exam."

The room went quiet for a moment. Outside, the early morning fog drifted past the dormitory windows, pale light breaking through the haze. For weeks now, life had finally settled into something peaceful — classes, meals, a few quiet afternoons with Lucy and Liza teasing each other while Amelia occasionally joined in despite herself. But this new announcement broke that rhythm instantly.

Liza drummed her fingers against the desk. "It's too sudden. The semester's midpoint was supposed to be theoretical evaluations. Why change the entire schedule?"

Arios turned the screen toward her. "Because this test isn't about theory. It's about control. After the Garron incident, the administration probably wants to test every student's stability in a real environment."

Lucy frowned. "You mean they're still worried about system-related anomalies?"

"Exactly." Arios closed the screen. "They're probably checking for behavioral risks — students who can't maintain control under combat stress."

Liza leaned back in her chair. "So in short, we're being thrown into a dungeon to prove we're not dangerous."

"That's one way to see it."

Lucy finally looked up. "There's another line here," she said quietly. "The exam will be observed by external evaluators from other academies."

Arios glanced toward her. "Observers?"

"Probably to cross-reference our results," She said. "They want legitimacy — no favoritism, no inside grading."

Liza groaned. "So we're entertainment now."

Lucy stood, stretching her arms. "Whatever. If it's a dungeon, we just clear it. I've been training harder since the last incident. I want to see if it paid off."

Her determination earned a small smile from Arios. "That's the spirit."

shut her tablet. "You'll need strategy more than spirit. This won't be like a normal expedition. The floors are randomized, and monsters are scaled by collective combat ranking."

Liza glanced at her. "So the stronger we are, the harder it gets?"

"Pretty much," Lucy said.

Two Days Later

The academy's southern field had been converted into a deployment area. Massive archway gates lined the open yard, each glowing with containment sigils. Behind the cordon stood professors, system monitors, and automated drones, all scanning equipment and mana resonance levels. The students — grouped in teams of four — stood waiting for their numbers to be called.

Arios' team stood together in uniform gear:

Lucy adjusted her gloves, Liza checked her short blade, Amelia scrolled through her datapad for floor layouts, and Arios tightened the straps on his gauntlet.

Around them, other groups whispered — some nervous, some confident. The sound of mechanical hums and mana stabilizers filled the air.

Instructor Helvin stepped up to the announcement platform. "This will be your first major practical assessment. Your objective is simple: clear as many dungeon floors as possible within the time limit. Each team begins with one hundred points. Lose members, sustain serious injuries, or fail an objective — you lose points. Survive, clear monsters, or recover artifacts — you gain points. Expulsion awaits any team with a negative score at the end."

Murmurs spread quickly. A few students turned pale.

Helvin raised a hand. "This is not a death trial. There are safety failsafes. But consider this your only warning: panic, and you fail. Adapt, and you survive."

Lucy whispered, "That's… comforting."

Liza smirked faintly. "Comforting would be staying in the dorm."

Arios' gaze drifted toward the distant corner of the field, where Chase and Regulus stood with their own squad — Class A's elite formation. Regulus caught Arios' eyes for a moment and gave him a smirk. Chase didn't even bother looking; his focus was somewhere beyond, calm and unreadable.

Arios turned back to his team. "Stick together. Don't overextend."

Lucy nodded. "Got it."

Amelia pocketed her datapad. "I've preloaded some floor data. But since this dungeon is illusion-generated, layouts might shift depending on our resonance."

"Meaning?" Liza asked.

"Meaning the dungeon adapts to our mana types and skill patterns," Amelia said. "It's dynamic. If we don't coordinate, it'll scatter us."

Lucy rolled her eyes. "So it's alive."

"In a way, yes," Lucy replied.

The call came soon after.

[Team 47 — Arios pureheart, Lucy Nightshade, Liza Garnet, Verin Pokner. Report to Gate 5.]

The four walked forward. The portal pulsed with faint blue light, the mana hum vibrating through their bones. Arios took a steadying breath.

Liza grinned at him. "Last chance to turn back."

"Not interested," Arios replied.

Lucy tilted her head. "Scared?"

"Always," he said evenly, stepping into the gate.

The world shifted in an instant.

Inside the Dungeon

The air was thick and damp. Faint blue crystals illuminated narrow stone corridors lined with moss. The faint dripping of water echoed through the tunnel network. The team appeared in a large open cavern where their HUDs immediately flickered with notifications.

[Dungeon Floor 1: Active]

[Objective: Locate exit portal. Monster threat: Low.]

[Timer: 00:00:00 → Begin.]

Lucy scanned the surroundings. "Looks normal enough."

"Stay sharp," Pokner said, pulling out her scanning device. "Normal doesn't last long."

The first few minutes passed quietly. They moved in formation — Arios front, Lucy right flank, Liza left, Pokner in the rear. Small scurrying sounds came from crevices, but nothing attacked. Then, faint growls echoed deeper in the tunnel.

Liza drew her blade. "Contact?"

"Probably," Arios said. "Ready up."

The first wave came fast — shadow wolves, smaller than dire wolves but twice as quick. Lucy engaged immediately, her movements fluid. Liza backed her up, cutting through one that lunged from behind. Arios held the line, intercepting two with precise strikes, the wooden sword reinforced with mana.

"Left side clear!" Liza called.

"Front stabilized!" Lucy shouted back.

"Rear stable," Pokner confirmed.

[Sub-objective complete. +30 points.]

[Remaining monsters: 0.]

[Exit portal detected.]

They regrouped. Lucy wiped her forehead. "That was smoother than expected."

Pokner nodded. "The first floor always is."

Arios checked his mana gauge. "We move."

The second floor was narrower — a maze-like structure with high ceilings and dripping stalactites. Strange, floating slimes drifted lazily through the air. Liza poked one experimentally with her blade. It burst, coating her with sticky fluid.

She groaned. "Great. Ambushed by jelly."

Lucy laughed. "You look ridiculous."

Liza shot her a glare. "Keep laughing, and I'll drag you into one."

"Try it."

she sighed. "Please focus."

Arios smiled faintly as the two bickered. For all the tension of the exam, their dynamic grounded the team. It kept things from slipping into that familiar edge of seriousness he used to carry through every mission.

They continued down the path, clearing the smaller monsters and retrieving core fragments.

[Team 47 — Floor 2 clear. Total Points: 210.]

Hours Later

By the time they reached the fifth floor, fatigue was starting to show. Their uniforms were scorched and torn in places, their mana levels gradually depleting. But morale was steady.

Lucy leaned against a wall. "Five floors in… and we're still above two hundred points. That's decent, right?"

Pokner nodded. "Very. We're in the top percentile for now."

Liza pulled out a ration bar. "I say we rest five minutes."

Arios agreed. "Make it quick."

As they rested, Lucy looked toward him. "You've been quiet."

Arios shrugged. "Thinking."

"About the exam?"

"About the structure," he said. "Each floor is tied to resonance data. Meaning… the academy's collecting combat telemetry from every student right now. That's a lot of personal data."

Pokner looked at him sharply. "You think this isn't just about ranking."

"Maybe not." Arios' voice was low. "It's too elaborate. The dungeon's coded to adapt to our systems. That's overkill for a school test."

Liza frowned. "You think someone's watching beyond the academy?"

"Possibly," Arios said. "But we don't have proof."

Lucy's brows furrowed. "Then we get proof while surviving."

He nodded. "That's the plan."

When they reached the next junction, the atmosphere changed. The crystals dimmed. The ground trembled. Pokner scanner flickered erratically.

"Something's off," she said. "Mana density spike — abnormal."

Arios readied his weapon. "Brace."

From the far end of the tunnel, a large, distorted creature emerged — half-ogre, half-metallic beast, its body pulsing with unstable mana streams.

Lucy whistled softly. "So much for a low-level test."

Liza's tone hardened. "No running, right?"

Arios stepped forward. "We hold formation. Amelia, support range. Lucy, Liza — side flanks."

The battle lasted several minutes — harsh, coordinated, and loud. The creature's roar shook the walls. Lucy's blade lit up with red mana as she deflected a strike; Liza slashed through its leg joint, destabilizing its balance. Arios finished with a concentrated burst of energy through the core.

When it finally collapsed, the silence that followed felt heavy. Their HUDs flashed:

[Mini-Boss defeated. +200 points.]

[Floor 5 clear.]

[Total: 410 points.]

Liza exhaled hard. "We're alive."

Lucy grinned. "Barely."

Pokner adjusted her scanner. "That thing wasn't supposed to appear this early. The exam parameters must have shifted."

Arios nodded slowly. "Or someone's manipulating the parameters."

They exchanged a silent look.

Whatever this exam truly was, it wasn't just about grading. Something was being tested — or hidden.

The gate to Floor 6 flickered ahead, faintly humming.

Lucy sheathed her blade. "We keep going?"

Arios nodded. "We keep going."

As they stepped through the portal, the light enveloped them — a new floor, a new danger, and a test that seemed less like an exam and more like a message.

And for Arios, that message was becoming clear:

The academy was no longer just a school.

It was a stage — and someone was pulling the strings behind the scenes.