Calm, How Can You Make Me Calm

"Calm? How do you expect me to be calm? Why do they get so much?" A hot-tempered, blurry projection immediately cut him off, spittle nearly flying into his face.

"Exactly! This isn't fair!" A chorus of agreement erupted.

Toudou Shizuka's smile froze on his face. His prepared words were choked back, his mind going blank, leaving only the pounding of his heart.

[Failure: Interrupted mid-speech, failed to establish authority and trust. Evaluation: Lacked presence, mishandled the response, failed to grasp the core demand.]

Scene reset. The chaotic classroom reappeared.

Toudou Shizuka forced himself to steady his nerves, trying to raise his voice and put on a more severe expression. "Everyone, stop arguing! Listen to my arrangement!"

As a result, the gazes cast up at him grew even more resistant and contemptuous.

"Who do you think you are? Why should we listen to you?"

"Yeah, who's putting on airs?"

[Failure: Heavy-handed approach triggered greater backlash. Evaluation: Forcefulness unsupported by affinity is ineffective; it backfired.]

Once, twice, ten times... countless scene resets.

Toudou Shizuka tried different tones, different entry points. He learned to lower his posture and listen to the most vocal complainer among the projections, only to be led off track by the other party, sinking into endless debates over details while ignoring other groups. He tried to reason through pros and cons, only to be accused of "talking without feeling the pain." He attempted to mimic Ichinose's sincere empathy, but because his expression and tone fell short, it came off as fake and contrived, drawing even greater mockery.

Each failure made him more deeply appreciate the terror of A-Rank Leadership Charisma. It wasn't just a gentle smile or smooth talk. It was an aura radiating from within that made people naturally willing to listen and trust, an instinct to instantly seize the core contradiction amid chaos and find the softest entry point, a balancing art that could simultaneously address the emotions of different groups, making everyone feel valued. This required immense inner composure, profound empathy, and superior communication skills.

After who knows how many failures—being drowned in spittle, accused, ignored—when the chaotic scene unfolded again, Toudou Shizuka did not speak immediately. He forced himself, like Ichinose, to first slowly and earnestly sweep his gaze over every emotionally charged, blurry projection, striving to convey understanding and regard through his eyes. He caught the core of the argument—the resource allocation plan indeed had obvious flaws, and the disadvantaged group felt severely overlooked.

He stepped down from the lectern and came before the projection that complained the loudest, representing the "aggrieved party." Without looking down from a height, he maintained eye level, his tone low and sincere. "I understand your anger. If it were me, working hard only to get no due reward, I'd feel it was unfair too, like I'd been let down." He first affirmed the other's core emotion.

The irritable projection froze, its momentum visibly faltering.

Seizing this momentary softening, Toudou Shizuka shifted his tone, but still carried understanding and a genuine intent to solve the problem. "Arguing won't solve anything. It'll only hurt our Class B as a whole. Can we take a look together and see where exactly this plan went wrong? Find the problems, and we'll fix them together, striving for a fairer outcome for everyone, okay? I promise, this time we'll fully listen to everyone's opinions." He timely introduced the concepts of "collective interest" and "joint resolution," and made a concrete commitment.

[Success: Core demand understood, emotions initially soothed. Hostility significantly reduced.]

[Training Objective: Guide discussion direction, unite consensus (in progress)...]

This time, the situation did not spiral out of control. Toudou Shizuka struggled to steer the discussion, striving to balance the demands of all sides. Though the process was bumpy and far from Ichinose's smooth flow, in the end, a relatively compromised revision plan barely gained acceptance from the majority.

[Comprehension: Leadership Charisma (Affinity) A-Rank: 21.45%... 48.92%... 79.31%... 99.99%!]

When comprehension reached the critical threshold, a massive flow of information surged into his mind! Countless fragments of knowledge about aura cultivation, emotional guidance, conflict resolution, empathetic expression, and commitment management fused explosively with the insights from his countless failures and clumsy attempts in that chaotic classroom! A warm, gentle force seemed to infuse his spiritual core, subtly adjusting the subconscious aura he projected when interacting with others.

[Congratulations, Host! Successfully mastered skill: Leadership Charisma (Affinity)! Rank: A-Rank!]

[Obtained Simulation Points: 50 Points!]

[Current Simulation Points: 200 Points!]

[Detected Simulation Points reaching 200 Points. Talent Shop unlocked!]

Consciousness snapped back to reality in an instant.

In the Class B classroom, the applause had just died down. Teacher Hoshinomiya was cheerfully congratulating Ichinose Honami and Kanzaki Ryuji.

Ichinose wore a look of joy at being trusted, tinged with a sense of mission, and was saying something like "Let's all work hard together." The sunlight was still warm, the atmosphere harmonious.

Toudou Shizuka sat by the window, his face bearing the same gentle smile as the other classmates applauding their class leader and vice class leader, as if he had never left. Only he knew that in that brief instant just now, he had clumsily played the role of a poor leader countless times in a virtual storm of chaos, experiencing the frustration of being doubted over and over.

And now, on the system interface in the upper right of his vision, the characters [Simulation Points: 200] shimmered with an enticing glow. More importantly, the [Talent Shop] icon, which had always been grayed out, was now lit, radiating a faint golden halo, like a long-sealed treasure chest finally cracking open for him.

What was the next target skill? Or... should he see what was in the shop?

Toudou Shizuka's gaze, calm and steady, swept over Ichinose Honami, radiant on the lectern, then passed by Kanzaki Ryuji beside her, coolly adjusting his glasses, and finally landed back on the golden icon in his field of vision.

The sunlight in Class B was warm, but the "Xunxue Liequan" within him was calmly assessing the next "prey" or "tool" worth investing in.

Points were precious. Choosing items suited to oneself required caution.

After Teacher Hoshinomiya announced the class leader and vice class leader selections, she briefly explained a few points of attention, then declared everyone free to move around, familiarize themselves with the campus, or interact with each other. The warm sunlight spilled lazily onto the desks, and the relaxed atmosphere in the classroom rippled slowly like tepid water.

Toudou Shizuka remained quietly seated by the window, his gaze seemingly casual, resting on the neatly trimmed lawn outside, but inwardly, waves were churning.

200 Simulation Points! The Talent Shop was unlocked! He couldn't wait to focus his mind on the icon radiating a faint golden glow in the upper right of his vision.