Countless fragments of information came crashing down like a waterfall: anonymous forum posts, snippets from upperclassmen, vague hints from teachers, even contradictory rumors... There was an overwhelming amount of information, and most of it was noise.
Toudou Shizuka tried hard to imitate Shiranami Chihiro's efficient, precise way of organizing information. He attempted to sort it by time, type, and source...
[Failure: The categorization was too mechanical. You failed to extract the core, and the information you organized was superficial and offered little practical guidance.]
Scene Reset.
He tried looking for frequently appearing keywords...
[Failure: You were led astray by misleading high-frequency words (such as "cruelty" and "elimination"), overlooking more subtle but crucial structural information (such as "resource allocation" and "the weight given to teamwork").]
After being overwhelmed by information countless times and reaching ineffective or incorrect conclusions, Toudou Shizuka gradually found his rhythm. He learned how to quickly assess the credibility of information (official sources > reliable witnesses > anonymous rumors), how to find common ground or logical footholds in contradictory information, and how to condense a vast amount of information into actionable points using the simplest possible keywords and logical chains.
When the scene unfolded again, Toudou Shizuka's fingers flew across the virtual keyboard like a precision instrument. He quickly filtered the vast amount of information by "reliable sources," "frequently associated keywords," and "points of logical conflict," then distilled it into three core points:
1. Resource management is key: All reliable information pointed to the acquisition, allocation, and competition for resources (food, water, tools, and information) as the central aspects of the exam.
2. Teamwork carries significant weight: More than 70% of the information mentioned "team decisions" and "division of labor," which affected the final evaluation far more than individual performance.
3. The rules contain hidden traps: Several sources vaguely mentioned cases of failure caused by "differences in rule interpretation," suggesting that one should be wary of deeper meanings beneath the rules' literal wording.
[Success: The core information was extracted accurately and concisely, with high practical value.] [Comprehension: Information Synthesis B-Rank: 19.87%... 52.43%... 84.21%... 99.99%!]
Information Flow fused! Countless fragments of knowledge about filtering information, recognizing patterns, extracting keywords, and condensing logic merged perfectly with his hard-won experience of struggling in a sea of information!
A sense of clarity, like that of an efficient filter, seeped into his instincts for processing information.
[Congratulations, Host! You have successfully mastered a skill: Information Synthesis! Rank: B-Rank!] [Simulation Points gained: 20!] [Current Simulation Points: 90!]
His consciousness returned to reality. In a corner of the Old School Building, vines wrapped around the walls, and sunlight filtered through the leaves, scattering dappled spots of light. Toudou Shizuka opened his eyes, feeling as though his brain had been thoroughly cleaned and upgraded into a precision instrument.
[Thought Acceleration], [Rational Analysis and Decision Making B-Rank], and [Information Synthesis B-Rank] worked in tandem, elevating his perception and analytical abilities to a whole new level!
He glanced at the System Interface:
[Simulation Points: 90] - He was not far from [Dynamic Vision (Fine-Tuning), 120 points] or his next talent. [Shiranami Chihiro Affection: 41 (Close)] - Relationship stable. [Kanzaki Ryuji Affection: 45 (Acknowledgment)] - Relationship stable. [Ichinose Honami Affection: 38 (Friendly)] - Target: 50 (On good terms). [Sakura Airi Affection: 48 (Deep Gratitude and Trust)] - Target: 60 (High Trust).
With two B-Rank skills in hand, ample points, and an increasingly solid network of relationships with key figures, Toudou Shizuka stood up and brushed the fallen leaves from his clothes, his gaze turning toward the Teaching Building.
Class D's debt situation was brewing beneath the surface, the lingering effects of Chabashira's card-flinging still remained, Miyazawa-sensei's hint pointed toward a "Major Event," and Ayanokoji's gaze hung over him like a silent shadow. Who knew what he thought of me? In any case, all I had to do was focus on myself for now. With abilities like these, I wouldn't care about the school's social placement job assignments anyway.
He pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting sunlight filtering through the vines. New power surged within him, and the Chess Game in his mind grew clearer.
What should he do next? Continue building Ichinose's affection and unlock the A-Rank Team Cohesion?
Or save up points to enhance his own perception (Dynamic Vision)?
Or perhaps... turn his attention to the Class D, thrown into chaos by its Zero Points, and see if he could find a new, unexpected "key" among those "despairing" vines?
The answer lay in his steady steps as he walked toward a complicated future, carrying his newly acquired rationality and clarity.
In a corner of the Old School Building wrapped in vines, the clarity brought by [Rational Analysis and Decision Making B-Rank] and [Information Synthesis B-Rank] flowed through Toudou Shizuka like a refreshing spring, elevating his perception and analysis of his surroundings to a new level.
He left that quiet spot and walked steadily into the slightly noisy campus of the afternoon. His newly acquired power surged within him, but his goal was clear—Sakura Airi.
He needed to understand the real situation beneath Class D's Zero Points crisis, especially the details of the lending and borrowing going on beneath the surface.
Sakura Airi, the Class D girl with whom he had formed a fragile connection because he'd "taken pity on her," was the perfect window into the situation. Besides, she seemed like the kind of socially anxious nobody who'd be easy to push around, and like someone who wouldn't refuse if her classmates asked to borrow points. Aaaah...
But how could he start a conversation without triggering her A-Rank Social Phobia? That was another problem. She seemed to be caught between liking him and panicking, then refusing his help anyway.
Just then, raindrops began to fall, fine and gentle.
Toudou Shizuka opened his umbrella and headed toward the Teaching Building.
At the corner of the corridor leading to Class D, he "happened" to run into Sakura Airi, who was hurrying along with her art supplies in her arms and her head bowed.
The rain had dampened her bangs, which clung to the edges of her oversized Black-rimmed Glasses. A small dark patch had spread across the shoulder of her baggy hoodie. She was like a startled rabbit, trying to avoid everyone's gaze.
"Sakura." Toudou Shizuka's voice sounded gentle as he naturally tilted his umbrella to shield her from the falling rain.
Sakura Airi flinched and looked up. A flash of panic showed behind her huge glasses. Only after she recognized Toudou Shizuka did she relax a little, her slight trembling now a mixture of gratitude and habitual nervousness. "T-Toudou..."
"The rain's coming down pretty hard. Are you heading to the art room?" Toudou Shizuka glanced at the art supplies in her arms, his tone full of natural concern. "Your shoulders are already wet."
He deftly used the "rain" and "art supplies" to start the conversation, avoiding the sensitive subject of Private Points.
"Y-yeah..." Sakura Airi replied softly, instinctively hunching her shoulders. "I-It's okay..."
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