Ayanokoji Kiyoha's Transformation

Back in her dormitory, Ayanokoji Kiyoha sat on the edge of her bed, quietly examining the faint pink nail polish on her nails under the soft light. A strange, unprecedented sensation lingered at her fingertips—it wasn't heavy, yet it served as a constant reminder of everything she had just experienced. She had to admit, this feeling was quite novel.

These were "superfluous decorations" she had absolutely never experienced in the White Room, things that were not even permitted to exist. Was this... the life of an ordinary person? Filled with color, noise, and these seemingly useless but delightful little details.

She gently clenched her fist, then relaxed it.

Hmm... as expected, she could try to experience the life of an ordinary person to the fullest.

Perhaps this was the intention behind Wu Qiao having her interact with those girls—to understand the humanity and daily life that had been completely stripped away in "that place."

Just as she was lost in thought, the personal terminal on her nightstand suddenly vibrated, shattering the silence of the room. Ayanokoji Kiyoha snapped back to reality, picked up the terminal, and glanced at the screen; the caller ID showed Ichinose Honami.

She answered the call and leaned back onto the soft mattress, looking up at the white fluorescent light on the ceiling, and asked in a calm tone, "Honami, is something the matter?"

A slightly hesitant voice came from the other end of the line, as if Ichinose Honami was weighing her words: "Um... Kiyoha, do you happen to know about Wu-kun's recent study progress?"

Ayanokoji Kiyoha blinked and replied with a faint "Mm," saying, "I know. He's been cramming mathematics lately and has already reached differential equations. He's very fast."

Hearing the term "differential equations," Ichinose Honami paused noticeably on the other end, as if digesting the information. After a moment, she continued with a hint of curiosity and inquiry: "Do you know what's going on with Wu-kun? I mean, why is he suddenly studying so desperately?"

Ayanokoji Kiyoha was silent for a moment. She recalled the scene she had witnessed when Wu Qiao dragged her to the library a few days ago, as well as his usual lazy, casual, yet unfathomable demeanor.

"I don't know," she finally answered truthfully, her voice devoid of emotional fluctuation. "I only know his learning speed is very fast. Hmm... based on his previous pace, he finished all the high school math problems in a single day, and now he's challenging even harder ones."

Finished all high school math problems in a day... The other end of the line fell into a long silence.

Ichinose Honami's hand tightened slightly around the terminal, and the sense of unease in her heart grew stronger. So, the pained expression he wore in the library wasn't because the problems were too difficult to solve, but because he was forcibly devouring knowledge at this inhuman speed.

"Kiyoha," Ichinose Honami took a deep breath, her voice turning serious. "Thank you for telling me this. Um... if Wu-kun needs any help, or if you notice anything unusual about him, please let me know immediately, okay?"

Ayanokoji Kiyoha stared at the glaring halo of light on the ceiling, the image of Wu Qiao's face, always wearing a nonchalant smile, appearing in her mind.

"I understand," she replied softly. "However, I don't think anything is wrong with him. He is just... walking his own path."

After hanging up, Ayanokoji Kiyoha placed the terminal on her pillow and turned over, watching the night sky outside the window gradually darken. The life of an ordinary person was interesting, but that guy, Wu Qiao, seemed to be forever chasing something incomprehensible to normal people.

"Differential equations, huh..." she whispered to herself and closed her eyes. Perhaps, at the next study session, she should prepare something more difficult to see if that guy could still maintain that effortless composure.

The level breakthrough of the Path of Erudition didn't actually have any earth-shattering physical sensation; there was no golden light protecting the body, nor any sudden enlightenment. If one really wanted to see the difference, one would have to test their mental calculation speed to notice it.

Now, Wu Qiao's brain felt like a computer that had just upgraded its CPU; the lag when processing complex logic and numbers had significantly decreased.

Of course, to grind for experience, learning wasn't just about dry mathematics; languages were also a category of knowledge. And when it came to languages, one had to mention that damned English.

Wu Qiao scratched his head and had no choice but to turn to Wang Meiyu. After all, Ayanokoji Kiyoha still needed to maintain a certain "ordinary" disguise; letting her have the label of a math supermodel was enough to give this hidden "Miss Road" a moderate sense of presence, but any more would be counterproductive and easily invite unnecessary trouble.

Thus, at their usual spot in the library, Wu Qiao dragged Wang Meiyu over. Wang Meiyu's English was excellent; as an international student, daily communication and exams were a breeze for her. But... unfortunately, Wu Qiao's learning speed was truly too fast, so fast that it made her a little dizzy.

"Wait, Wu-kun, slow down!" Wang Meiyu looked at the dense grammar notes Wu Qiao handed her, feeling as if her own CPU was about to burn out. "I haven't even finished explaining the inverted usage of the subjunctive mood you just asked about, and you've already analyzed the long, difficult sentences that follow? And... you actually corrected a preposition I mispronounced just now?"

Wu Qiao blinked innocently, his pen still recording non-stop: "Did I? Maybe I just filled in the blanks in my head and felt it should be that way. Wang-tongxue, let's move on to the next point, regarding the nested logic of this clause..."

Watching his thirst for knowledge (which was actually for the sake of filling his experience bar), Wang Meiyu could only sigh helplessly and resign herself to continuing as his "human reading machine."

Because of Wu Qiao's behavior of grabbing anyone he could find to study with, his reputation in the class became extremely bizarre and safe. No one thought much of him being close to girls, and no one even associated it with rumors.

After all, Hirata Yosuke had been dragged by him for tutoring, Sotomura Hideo had been pulled in to discuss computer algorithms, and even Horikita Suzune had been forced by him to discuss essays.

In the eyes of the students of Class D, Wu Qiao was now a complete study maniac; anyone who got close to him had to be prepared to be dragged along to "suffer."

Of course, Wu Qiao wasn't a "freeloader" who only took without giving back. Every time he caught someone to be his "teacher," he would offer a token of gratitude, such as a cup of iced milk tea, a bag of beautifully packaged snacks, or a bottle of expensive sports drink.

"Thanks for your hard work, thanks for your hard work. This is today's reward." Wu Qiao handed a freshly bought hot cocoa to Wang Meiyu with a flattering smile. "Thanks to Wang-tongxue, I feel my English intuition has improved again."

Wang Meiyu took the hot cocoa and took a sip of the sweet liquid, the fatigue in her heart dissipating quite a bit. She looked at the boy in front of her, who was like a devil when studying but unexpectedly considerate when dealing with others, and couldn't help but smile: "Wu-kun, if you keep going like this, you'll eventually turn the whole class into your private tutors. But... for the sake of this, come ask me again next time you don't understand something."

Wu Qiao was secretly delighted; it seemed this "bribery" tactic was remarkably effective. He could grind experience for the Path of Erudition while simultaneously building up favor with his classmates—it was killing two birds with one stone.