Winning Them Over

No sooner had he finished speaking than a bespectacled male university student, clutching several books from different fields, squeezed forward and said in a challenging tone:

"You're Gallo? Stur said you understood the contents of more than twenty of his professional books in just half an hour?

"And you could even identify their core ideas.

"That's impossible!"

The other student dismissed Gallo's abilities right away, then looked at Stur beside him with a stubborn, unconvinced gaze.

Stur merely spread his hands. "Buddy, we argued long enough in the dorm last night.

"Today, you'll see it for yourself. Gallo will definitely blow your mind, so prepare yourself.

"And Gallo is absolutely going to become a big name on this street!"

"Hmph!" The other student snorted, then turned to Gallo.

"I'm from the Department of Engineering Mechanics. I have several books here, along with the latest dynamics journals and magazines.

"Find the latest discussions on 'fluid transmission stability' and tell me exactly which pages they're on in these books, journals, and magazines!"

As he handed the books to Gallo, the student added another sentence.

"Even if you're looking for specific content, you still have to skim the contents of every page.

"If you can finish a book in minutes, then you're simply a... uh... ridiculously incredible guy!

"Compared to you, I wouldn't even deserve to stay at Imperial Industrial Institute."

Gallo smiled and accepted all the books. This world had no technological products like scanners, so the student could not think of a proper way to describe it.

These people were all students of Imperial Industrial University, and their status made them quite proud. Gallo did not want to crush the student too badly in a moment.

To him, this scene was practically a public "interview."

The people around them fell silent, wanting to see how this youth whom Stur had described as almost miraculous would respond.

Gallo's expression did not change. He simply held out his hand and took the books.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, he began "reading" at that inhuman speed once more, just as he had yesterday.

Rather than reading, it would be more accurate to say that he was "scanning" them with his eyes.

The pages rustled beneath his fingertips. His gaze was focused and profound, as though every word had turned into streaming data that he absorbed in an instant.

Many people watched the scene and shook their heads with smiles, believing that this was all a farce Stur had deliberately arranged.

But Stur was not a student of the sociology department. He had no reason to gather a crowd for such a ridiculous social experiment.

They quietly watched Gallo flip through the books at high speed. Even though everyone believed he was putting on an act, no one interrupted him.

Nor did anyone leave. Most of them sat at the outdoor tables outside the café, ordered coffee or snacks,

and waited to see how the two would bring this farcical performance to an end.

They did not have to wait long.

Ten minutes!

After only ten minutes, Gallo closed the last book.

He raised his head and looked at the engineering mechanics student, whose face was full of mocking amusement. Speaking evenly and clearly, he said:

"Sir, the cutting-edge discussions on 'fluid transmission stability' that you need are mainly concentrated in these three books."

"Page 217 of Modern Transmission Theory, subsection three, specifically discusses stability models under high pressure. The formula derivation is on page 221."

"The case analysis on page 88 of Frontiers of Mechanical Dynamics uses an entire chapter to discuss instability in centrifugal force fields. It is highly relevant to your research."

"In addition, a short article on page 45 of the third issue of this year's Journal of Applied Physics: Engineering Volume proposes a new fluid damper design concept, which may inspire you.

"You can buy this year's first and second issues of the journal from New Knowledge Journal Press, though I cannot guarantee they contain relevant material you need."

With every sentence Gallo spoke, the student's mouth opened a little wider. By the time Gallo finished, he was completely frozen in place, subconsciously flipping through the pages Gallo had mentioned to confirm them.

"Heavens... it's all right!

"And... far more precise than what I found on my own!"

That scene immediately drew the people who had been sitting nearby drinking coffee back over.

At that moment, they all whispered among themselves. The look of people watching a spectacle was gone from their faces; instead, everyone was shocked, their expressions grave.

The only person still smiling was Stur. Having won the bet, he would receive a large amount of spending money.

After the student finished verifying what Gallo had said, he suddenly raised his head, his face filled with fervor and admiration. All his previous doubts had vanished.

He said excitedly, "That's incredible!

"How did you do it?"

Gallo, meanwhile, showed him the cardboard sign he carried with him and tapped its contents. "I read all the books you brought.

"But I only analyzed the contents of three books for you and found what you needed.

"So the fee is three Copper Nil. No bargaining!"

The writing on the cardboard was very clear:

"Knowledge Navigation, saving you time

"-Can't find the book you need? I can tell you its exact location in the bookstore.

"-Consultation fees: Basic book-finding, two Fenso per request.

"Content analysis, one Copper Nil per request.

"Complex requests negotiable."

"Boom—"

The crowd instantly erupted into noise.

"Uh... all right... I'll pay."

The student willingly took three one-Copper Nil banknotes from his wallet and handed them to Gallo.

Even after seeing the student pay, some people still believed that they had arranged the whole thing beforehand.

Perhaps it was meant to complete some kind of social experiment, with all of them serving as the observed subjects.

"I definitely wasn't in on it! But... he really is amazing!" the student argued loudly.

Stur said from the side, "If you don't believe it, why not let everyone try for themselves?

"But you saw what Gallo's sign says. It isn't free!"

Stur then threw an arm around the student's shoulders and said, "Don't forget to pay me ten Copper Nil later. You lost."

Gallo, who had heard their conversation, gave a light cough. He had only earned three Copper Nil in total.

Still, judging by the eager people gathering around, Stur would probably collect quite a bit of betting money this time.

In an orderly fashion, everyone began testing Gallo according to the two services listed on the cardboard sign.

Those who had brought books asked Gallo to analyze their contents directly. Without exception, after finishing each book, Gallo could provide the correct core information in a very short time.

If Stur's promotion had still seemed like the exaggeration of a friend, then this public, immediate verification of book contents down to the exact page numbers completely won over every onlooker.

"I want a consultation too!"

"I was here first! Mr. Gallo, please help me look at the direction of this literature review first!"

"I need to find several books about the evolution of ancient historical writing on the Southern Continent. They're very obscure. Can you help?"

The scene instantly became heated.