Practical Little Skills

"O-okay, Class Leader Ichinose."

Shibata adjusted his glasses and replied softly.

Sato and Kobayashi also quickly nodded, their tense expressions seeming to ease slightly.

Toudou Shizuka nodded inwardly. Ichinose's ability to comfort and unite people like a gentle breeze was remarkable.

No wonder he could hold the top position in Class B. This was a powerful and practical skill in itself.

"Alright then," Kanzaki picked up a printed list and schedule. "This is the preliminary tutoring roster and an analysis of each person's weak subjects. Please pass it around and see if there are any issues.

If there are no problems, we'll start today.

Toudou, Shibata, and Sato all have weaker foundations in math, especially function graphs and geometric proofs. Kobayashi's difficulty lies in physics force analysis. We might need to discuss that cross-sectionally later."

"Understood." Toudou Shizuka took the form and quickly scanned it.

Excellent, Shibata and Sato were both assigned to his math group.

The tutoring quickly got on track, and the seminar room was divided into several small areas.

Ichinose was softly explaining classical Chinese grammar; from Kobashi's area came her clear and rapid English reading and explanations.

Interspersed were the rustling sounds of pens rapidly scratching on paper; Kanzaki was drawing a force analysis diagram on the whiteboard, with Kobayashi frowning and trying hard to understand.

Toudou Shizuka sat opposite Shibata and Sato, spreading out an exercise book.

"We'll start with the most basic concepts of function domain and range. Don't be afraid of simplicity; once the foundation is solid, you can understand more complex composite functions and graph transformations later."

His tone was calm and patient, without a hint of condescension. As he explained, he paid attention to Shibata and Sato's reactions, adjusting his pace and the difficulty of his examples accordingly.

[Shibata Kengo Affection +2 (Current: 12/100 - Stranger)]

[Sato Miki Affection +2 (Current: 8/100 - Stranger)]

Although the increase was small, every little bit counts! Toudou Shizuka's spirits lifted.

While explaining, he deliberately used clear logical expressions and concise problem-solving steps.

This itself carried the shadow of his previously acquired [Rational Analysis B-rank] and [Information Synthesis B-rank] skills, making it easier for students with weak foundations to grasp the key points.

Time flowed by with the sliding of pens and quiet discussions.

When Toudou Shizuka used a very intuitive graphical method to help Sato understand a geometric proof that had been bothering her for a long time.

Sato's eyes clearly lit up, and she exclaimed softly, "Ah! So that's how it is! Memorizing formulas before was completely useless!"

[Sato Miki Affection +3 (Current: 11/100 - Stranger)]

[Gained Simulation Points: 1 (Reward for first time raising affection of non-main character Sato Miki above 10 points).]

1 point! Toudou Shizuka's heart stirred. Could it really be like this?

Helping classmates increase their affection could also earn points! Although it was a small amount, it validated another path!

"Toudou's methods are always so clear."

A voice with a smile sounded from nearby.

Kobashi Honami had finished her English tutoring at some point and had come over, still holding her notebook.

She peeked at the problem Sato had just understood and then at the concise and clear diagram Toudou Shizuka had drawn on the scratch paper.

She praised sincerely, "If I had met a teacher like Toudou earlier, maybe math wouldn't have been so troublesome for me."

Here's an opportunity to gain affection!

Toudou Shizuka looked up and smiled at Kobashi. "You flatter me, Kobashi.

I see you take notes very quickly, and your symbols are quite unique. Is it a shorthand method? Your efficiency is really high."

His gaze naturally fell on Kobashi's open notebook, where those unique symbols, like an ancient text, flowed across the page.

At the same time, he silently issued a mental command: "Scan Kobashi Honami!"

[Scanning Target: Kobashi Honami]

[Skill List:]

[- Speedwriting (C-rank): Through a self-created symbol system, can quickly and extensively record oral information with high accuracy. Improves information organization efficiency.] (Target Locked!)

[- English Speaking (C-rank)... (Omitted)]

"Ah, you mean this?"

Kobashi Honami scratched her head a little shyly, but there was more pride in being recognized. "It's a set of symbols I came up with myself!

The teacher speaks too fast in class, and ordinary notes can't keep up. So I thought about how to simplify commonly used words, phrases, and even logical relationships into symbols, so I could keep up!

Although sometimes I have to think about it myself when I look back, haha."

She generously pushed her notebook further towards Toudou Shizuka. "Here, look. For example, this symbol that looks like a small flag means 'concession,' this wave line means 'important,' and this circle with a dot means 'for example'..."

Toudou Shizuka looked intently, and the peculiar symbols seemed to come alive in his eyes.

Enhanced by the [Composition and Light Capture A-rank]'s exceptionally keen perception of graphics and structures, combined with the logical analysis ability of [Information Synthesis B-rank].

Kobashi Honami's seemingly chaotic symbol system revealed its internal patterns and corresponding relationships, which were quickly and clearly established in his mind, like peeling back layers of silk!

He could not only "see" and understand the symbols themselves, but also instantly grasp the thought process behind Kobashi Honami's design of this symbol system—how to convey the most information flow with the most concise graphics.

[Target Skill: Shorthand (C-rank) meets simulation conditions. Enter Virtual Training Ground for simulation?]

"Yes!" Toudou Shizuka didn't hesitate.

His consciousness instantly sank into the Pure White Space.

[Virtual Training Ground activated. Simulation Target: Shorthand (C-rank). Simulation Count: 1/300.]

[Scene Generation: High-speed Information Flow Classroom.]

There was no physical body, only a massive amount of mixed voice information rushing at him like a surging tide!

The professor's extremely rapid lecture, the whispers of classmates nearby, even the faint chirping of birds outside the window—all sounds merged into a dizzying torrent of information noise.

[Information Noise Filtering activated. Keyword Capture Module loading. Symbol Mapping Logic Analysis.]

Toudou Shizuka's "consciousness" seemed to transform into a high-speed processor.

He needed to precisely capture the core nouns, key verbs, and logical connectors (concession, causality, parallelism) within the professor's words amidst this chaotic sound wave.

Simultaneously, the [Information Synthesis B-rank] ability automatically activated, preliminarily sorting and categorizing the captured scattered words and logical relationships based on their importance and relevance.

[Symbol Generation System constructing.]

The captured information fragments needed to be instantly transformed into corresponding shorthand symbols!

Kobashi Honami's unique symbol system rules operated at high speed in his mind.

A core concept noun appeared? His consciousness instantly "compressed" and "deformed" it, mapping it to the corresponding most concise geometric shape or line combination (e.g., "cell" mapped to a Simplified Ellipse with Center Dot, "revolution" mapped to an Upward Arrow with Broken Line).

Logical relation words appeared? The Small Flag Symbol representing "concession," the arrow symbol for "causality," and the Circle with Dot Symbol for "example" were generated almost the instant his thoughts touched upon the words themselves! (To put it metaphorically, it was like making a mark that only you could understand and was convenient.)