Bus Incident (1)

Three A-rank skills! Toudou Shizuka clicked his tongue in amazement. No wonder Kushida Kikyo was called a "Social Monster" in the original work. Her abilities were almost entirely stacked in the realm of interpersonal relations, and she had reached the pinnacle of mastery. This kind of talent... no, skill, was exactly what someone "quiet" like him lacked most.

Then, an unusually striking figure with an extraordinary aura entered his scanning range. That person sat alone by the window in the middle of the carriage, with a well-proportioned, slender build and a head of dazzling golden hair. He was currently tilting his head slightly, gazing at the fleeting street scene outside the window, his posture elegant and leisurely as if he were sitting in his own luxury car, utterly out of place with the crowded surroundings.

[Scan Target: Kouenji Rokketsuke]

[Skill Tree Expanding...]

Aristocratic Demeanor and Etiquette (Comprehensive): B-rank (Graceful bearing ingrained to the bone)

Art Appreciation (Multiple Fields): B-rank (Possesses deep aesthetic foundations)

Multilingualism (Proficient): B-rank (English, French, etc.)

Financial Investment (Basic Theory): C-rank (Possesses relevant knowledge)

Classical Music (Piano Performance): C-rank (Reached a certain level)

Self-Awareness and Mental Strength: A-rank (High self-identity, not easily influenced by external factors)

Toudou Shizuka narrowed his eyes slightly. Kouenji's skill tree was as flashy as a peacock spreading its tail. Though most ranks were B or C, the range was vast, and that A-rank Self-Awareness and Mental Strength stood out especially. This was probably one of the sources of his confidence to act independently and treat rules as nothing.

Our protagonist, Toudou Shizuka, moved like a ghost hidden in the shadows, his gaze silently drifting through the crowded carriage. His mind drove the system, greedily scanning one future classmate after another, as if inspecting a trove of treasures waiting to be unearthed.

[Scan Target: Hirata Yousuke]

Team Coordination and Organization: B-rank

Emotional Soothing and Mediation: B-rank

Basic Leadership: C-rank

[Scan Target: Karuizawa Kei]

Reading People (Small Groups): B-rank

Attachment to the Strong and Seeking Protection: C-rank

Basic Fashion Styling: C-rank

[Scan Target: Sudo Ken]

Basketball (High School Top Tier): A-rank

Burst Strength: B-rank

Irritable and Impulsive: D-rank (Negative Trait?)

Every name, every skill, lit up a small piece of the puzzle in Toudou Shizuka's mind, sketching out a corner of the future picture of this meritocratic academy. He was like a thief who had just entered a treasure vault, his heartbeat quietly quickening with anticipation.

Just then, the bus gave a slight jolt from braking. An elderly woman with graying hair, leaning on a cane, tottered up from the front door, her eyes searching for an empty seat in the crowded carriage. According to the usual script, this was the moment for someone in the "priority seat" to stand up.

Toudou Shizuka's gaze, almost instinctively, with a certain fateful premonition, turned toward the back of the carriage.

In the seat by the window in the last row sat a boy. He wore the same brand-new school uniform as everyone else, but it looked like a costume that had nothing to do with him. Beneath his silver-gray short hair was a face lacking any obvious emotional fluctuation. He kept his head slightly lowered, eyes half-closed, as if immersed in his own world, indifferent to all the noise around him—including the elderly woman who needed a seat. He exuded a strange "transparency," sitting there yet seeming merged into the background air, easily overlooked.

Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.

Toudou Shizuka's heart skipped a beat, his focus instantly sharpening.

[Scan Target: Ayanokouji Kiyotaka]

[Skill Tree Expanding...]

Whoosh!

Unlike the smooth unfolding of lists when scanning others, the moment Ayanokouji's skill tree interface popped up, countless entries cascaded down like a waterfall! The speed was blinding, the volume of information far exceeding everyone before!

Combat Skill (Military-Grade Mixed Martial Arts): S-rank (Pinnacle of human combat technique)

Firearm Mastery (Multi-Type Proficiency): S-rank (Flawless from theory to practice)

Tactical Analysis and Planning (Real-Time): S-rank (Battlefield-level command ability)

Intelligence Gathering and Counter-Reconnaissance: S-rank (Professional agent level)

Psychology (Application and Manipulation): S-rank (Insight and guidance of the human mind)

Disguise and Stealth: A-rank (Near perfection)

Driving Technique (Multiple Vehicles): A-rank

Multilingualism (Proficient): A-rank

Computer Technology (Hacker-Level): A-rank

Physical Fitness (Comprehensive Limit): A-rank (Approaching human physiological limits)

Pain Tolerance: A-rank

Drug Resistance: A-rank

Learning Ability (Theoretical Absorption): A-rank

Mathematics (Advanced Application): A-rank

Physics (Advanced Application): A-rank

Chemistry (Advanced Application): A-rank

The densely packed entries continued scrolling, and among them, the glaring "S-rank" characters struck Toudou Shizuka's retinas like a red-hot branding iron, searing deep into his consciousness! Especially the one at the very top—[Combat Skill (Military-Grade Mixed Martial Arts): S-rank (Apex of Human Combat Prowess)]—exuded a suffocating pressure.

So this was... the "ultimate masterpiece" forged by the White Room? The apex of the human skill tree? Toudou Shizuka felt his mouth go dry, the sound of surging blood pounding in his eardrums. The system's cold verdict—"Apex of Humanity"—carried an impact far beyond any written description.

At the front of the bus, a minor drama over seats was unfolding. Several students in the priority seats shifted blame among themselves, their eyes darting, none willing to stand up. The elderly woman gripped the handrail, looking a bit embarrassed. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka maintained his usual detached posture, as if everything around him was separated by a thick pane of glass. He didn't even lift an eyelid.

Toudou Shizuka forced himself to look away from Ayanokouji, no longer paying attention to the moral dilemma playing out. He lowered his head again, channeling all his focus and willpower like a wound-up spring, pouring it into the entry glowing with dangerous red light on the right side of the system interface in his vision—Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's skill tree: [Combat Skill (Military-Grade Mixed Martial Arts): S-rank]!

[Enter Virtual Training Ground to simulate learning Target Skill: Combat Skill (Military-Grade Mixed Martial Arts)?]

[Warning: S-rank skill training ground intensity is extremely high, with immense mental load. Risk for first-time novice is unknown. Confirm?]

Confirm!

The instant his will took hold, Toudou Shizuka felt his soul wrenched from his body by an irresistible force! The sights, sounds, and smells of the real world—the bus engine's hum, the students' murmurs, the early morning air of early summer—were pulled away, blurred, and utterly sealed off.

Plunged into darkness.

The next second, the sensation of solid ground returned. He stood on an endless, cold, smooth black plane, beneath a false white sky radiating a constant, cold light. There was no wind, no sound—only absolute silence and a chilling emptiness.

Ten meters ahead, a figure silently coalesced. Silver-gray hair, eyes of extreme indifference—it was Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's virtual projection. This projection bore no trace of expression or emotion, like a perfect doll programmed with combat commands, silently "watching" Toudou Shizuka.