Chapter 8, Interlude Before Departure

He only realized after coming to his senses that he did not know anything, slumped over the table in a state of exhaustion, dozing off in a daze for the entire morning

Hmm?

Thus, the atmosphere suddenly became somewhat awkward. Even the classmates around, who were subconsciously paying attention to this place, clearly showed expressions of astonishment and peculiarity, and whispers began to arise.

"Um, Xia Ran-jun, my name is An Yi Lun. " The boy's forehead broke out in a large bead of cold sweat as he said this with a hint of disbelief

Omitting irrelevant parameters such as age, height, weight, and blood type, Xia Ran directly observes her most fundamental character attributes

However, it is worth mentioning that the boy was actually sitting not far from me, with less than two seats in between, yet I completely failed to remember his name

Time quickly arrived at the second day

Although the guide also mentioned that this is a very normal phenomenon, almost every lost soul experiences a prolonged period of weakness before awakening, a weakness that brings them to the brink of death on a spiritual level... Therefore, it is indeed very normal to have insufficient foundation

At that moment, someone suddenly called out to him from behind

Xia Ran let out a gentle sigh, her gaze shifting to the lunchbox in the hands of the boy across from her, and then she glanced at his somewhat awkward and uneasy demeanor

It is as if everything is designed specifically to refute all his arguments, to shatter his worldview; no matter what reasons he attempts to use to deny that absurd situation, they will be countered by the system interface that can be summoned at any time.

... ...

... ...

After all, if it is merely a matter of helping to convey a message, then there is certainly no need to spend too much time on psychological preparation

... ...

Xia Ran appeared completely unfazed on the surface, merely nodding lightly before turning and walking out of the classroom

Although there is one more person, it is merely one additional person. The other party is sitting quietly in the middle of the activity room, just like yesterday, and in the midst of the silence, the only sound that occasionally arises is the rustling of turning pages.

She did not simply sit down; instead, she looked towards Xia Ran beside her and then calmly went to retrieve another chair.

He moved a set of tables and chairs over, sat down, and quickly finished the bread in his hand, then crumpled the packaging bag into a ball

Agility: 4

3:35 PM

It is foreseeable that after today, there will likely be an increase in rumors about the peculiar student Xia Ran, and it is estimated that they will not be of a positive nature

There are still many things that are difficult to understand, but his preparation time is not considered sufficient. According to the facilitator, he is likely to face the first task session arranged in the white space tonight

Although the persona that Xia Ran has established for himself is neither approachable nor friendly, it does not reach the point where classmates would completely dare not approach him; in this regard, he is still confident.

Moreover, the process of making up for it is actually quite quick; as long as one is not unfortunate enough to die immediately, there is essentially no time for growth. After all, it is certainly not easy to become a superhuman through allocation of points, but becoming an ordinary person is not considered difficult.

Spirit : 3

Or rather, to accept this non-illusory surrealism

Intelligence: 7

Isn't it classmate Sakamoto? Could it be that my memory is failing me? ... Xia Ran's expression suddenly froze for a moment, clearly he had just felt confident that he had quickly recognized the other person's identity...

Although it resembles a warehouse-like activity room, with tables and chairs haphazardly piled in one corner, creating an empty and quiet atmosphere, the environment is not considered poor

... ...

Thoughts rapidly whirled in her mind, and Xia Ran coughed lightly before decisively preparing to activate the A.T. force field once again, keeping others at bay from a thousand miles away

It is a very simple principle; if it is not his own troublesome issue, but rather a matter of conveying a message for a teacher or someone else, then he should not appear so hesitant, indecisive, and reluctant to make a decision.

The appearance is that of an ordinary high school boy, with short hair and wearing a pair of large round glasses

He quietly muttered an apology and then left the corridor without looking back

The hygiene is well maintained, with no dust or garbage on the floor, and the air is not stuffy. This is especially true with the arrival of summer and the opening of windows for ventilation. The curtains sway in the breeze, and the air begins to circulate

Special Building, Activity Room of the Service Department

After the system extracted the data and displayed it in a quantified manner, his physical ability values, as well as his intelligence and mental capacity values, were presented in the most intuitive numerical form... However, they seem to be rather unimpressive, as expected

That person seemed to have noticed her arrival, so he raised his head and said softly: "Good afternoon, Yukinoshita classmate..."

Good afternoon

A strange feeling arose; while it naturally made her even more displeased, it also allowed her mood to relax slightly, no longer entangled in the place that had always been hers alone... suddenly, the occurrence of a stranger...

In any case, for the time being, the most relevant reference for him is these fundamental attributes

Xia Ran, like the other students around her, stood up from her seat and staggered out, intending to spend the afternoon in the club activity room of the special building

Still entangled in the information obtained last night, Xia Ran wobbled her way out of the classroom

Although there are also sections such as lineage and race, enhancement exchange, and skill specialties, they would be empty otherwise. It seems that the *illustration* book is part of the default factory settings; for instance, the display of lineage and race is naturally set to "Human".

For instance, taking a nap or something similar is necessary to replenish energy, as he is already struggling to hold on. His mental state has not been particularly good, which is why he always tries to avoid staying up late; however, last night he inevitably embarked on the path of cultivation.

Hmm?" Xia Ran turned around and saw a male classmate standing behind her, seemingly a bit embarrassed as he scratched the back of his head

His gaze became somewhat strange, appearing somewhat troubled, and for some reason, his expression turned listless, completely different from yesterday

This Sakamoto... Aki must have something he wants to request from me from a personal perspective, and what he wants to do may be somewhat troublesome, belonging to the type that is not easy to make requests to strangers.

... ...

That... Xia Ran, please wait a moment

... ...

As he had anticipated, the other party was clearly not thick-skinned

Then, just like yesterday, he took a book that he had placed in the activity room, opened it, and began to read. On the surface, it appeared to be this way, but his gaze seemed somewhat strange

Everything that happened last night truly felt like an absurd dream, but it is undeniable that it caused an overwhelming psychological impact on Xia Ran, severely shaking his worldview, to the extent that he spent the entire morning digesting and organizing his thoughts

He blinked his eyes, quickly gathering his scattered thoughts, while simultaneously searching for this classmate's name in his mind. Then, the light on his glasses flickered slightly: "Is it Sakamoto-san? May I ask if there is something you need?"

It is said that the standard value should be 5 points, and each attribute follows this standard. Under this criterion, his physical abilities are almost entirely unqualified

It can be directly projected onto his retina, and it can also appear through the open pages of a book or the display screen of a mobile phone. Considering that the former would affect his field of vision, Xia Ran has now chosen the latter method

Strength: 4

In fact, Xia Ran was not reading a book, but was instead looking at an interface invisible to others, a data terminal implanted deep within his soul by a white space, which could also be referred to as a "system"

Yukinoshita Yukino opened the door to the activity room on time, just as she did yesterday, and walked in by herself. She looked around the room and found that there was nothing different from usual.

He closed the book after yawning

It is said that from then on, he would no longer have to worry about being plagued by nightmares, as they would become very regular, occurring in a fixed cycle of every ten days

Well, then... see you later

However, Xia Ran currently feels completely uncertain, as no matter how nice the words sound, it is not as good as personally trying it out.

If it were a usual situation, Xia Ran would not mind seeing what problems the other person has and whether he could offer assistance. However, at this moment... he truly does not have the mood for it, as he has not yet sorted out his own issues.

By the time he came to his senses, it was already the break time. His mind was still somewhat confused, and he could not even remember when he had arrived at the school and sat down in the classroom

He is carefully browsing through his personal information, reviewing the display of his attributes

As she walked out of the classroom, Xia Ran instinctively turned her head slightly to glance behind her, only to find that the boy had returned to his seat with a sigh, seemingly troubled by something, his dejection evident.

Using the concept of percentages as an analogy makes it quite easy to understand. A physical constitution rated at 4 points, weakened by 20 percent, would be akin to a frail homebody. If a constitution rated at 3 points is weakened by 40 percent, it would likely resemble a woman who has just given birth.

... ...

But if I can't remember, then I can't remember; at this moment, what is important is not this matter

The young girl nodded calmly, then came to the chair by the window and took a look. She remembered that when she returned yesterday, she had put all the tables and chairs back in their places, so this chair now is ... ...

... ...

However, if he fails, he may have to pay a considerable price, especially given his current situation. He absolutely cannot approach the dream world with the same attitude he had when he used thirty lives to play Contra.

"Eh? No, I... I am... Alright, I apologize for the interruption." The boy across from her was momentarily taken aback, instinctively wanting to say something, but then he quickly realized and said dejectedly.

Constitution: 4

After all, theoretically speaking, the real world should merely be a harsh dimension, where normal individuals cannot perform actions such as "press E to enter eagle eye mode" or "press TAB to open the menu bar"

This boy must have something he wants to discuss with me, but he hasn't made up his mind. It was only when he saw me preparing to leave the classroom that he called out to me in a moment of urgency. That's probably how it is.

Perception: 7

The young girl initially thought that this person was merely putting on an act, much like the clumsy tricks from yesterday, pretending not to recognize her. However, it now appears that this is not the case.

Alright, Aki, may I ask if there is something you need? I am currently preparing to address the issue of lunch, and I also need to visit the club activity room shortly... If there are no issues, may I take my leave?

For instance, the attributes of physical constitution encompass various factors such as physical endurance, cellular vitality, resilience to impact, and immune strength. Although it may appear on the surface that it is merely 1 point below the standard line, in reality, it represents a reduction of twenty percent in effectiveness