“Whatever.” Himo sighed and sprawled on the wooden desk. System, how can I read a recorded book?
[It's enough to close the eyes and think about it.]
Leaning with his cheek on the desk, Himo closed his eyes. With but a thought, a screen appeared in his sight. Just like a computer window, it encased a folder in an empty rectangle—a folder named “Entry Guide on Basic Formations”. He focused on the folder and it opened up, showing the text from the first page.
Formations are a way of manipulating the currents of Qi. Through this manipulation, they can create effects that vary from making simple barriers to complex self-destructing devices.
Himo glanced at the rest of the first page and opened his eyes once more. “Perfect!” He smiled and turned to Phylia. “Bring me all the books in this area, five at a time!”
She nodded and crouched. Just as Himo wondered what she was up to, she dashed away as fast as a bullet and returned just as quickly, holding five books. Himo blinked. She placed them on the table and turned back—
“Wait, wait, wait!” Himo grabbed her hand. “No running here!”
“Oh.” She blinked and nodded.
While she walked in search of the next books, Himo skimmed through the pages of the books.
[New book recorded: “Mastering Low-Quality 1-star Formations.”]
[New book recorded: “How to: Basic Killing Formations.”]
[New book recorded: “Formations' Rankings.”]
[New book recorded: “How to NOT Kill Yourself While Making a Formation.”]
[New book recorded: “The Importance of Sleeping.”]
Himo’s lips twitched at the sight of the last two.
Once Phylia came back with the next five books, he asked her to place back the already-recorded ones. Then, he restarted skimming. System notifications rang continuously for hours as the number of folders in the recorded function grew exponentially.
Meanwhile, he had unknowingly become the center of attention in the library. At first, no one had paid attention to him, but after he skimmed, skimmed, and skimmed the books, the students wondered if something was wrong with him. At last, a student walked up to him.
“I’m sorry, but, do you perhaps need help to find a book?”
Himo turned his gaze away from the book. He smiled. “Thank you but there’s no problem, I’ve almost finished.”
“I-I… see?” The student tilted her head and walked away more confused than before. She took a book, but she found herself getting distracted by the sound of flipping pages.
By the time Himo stopped, it was already way past lunchtime. After that event, the existence of a books-skimming freak spread through the students.
-----
With yet another fried squid in his hands, Himo, followed by Phylia, tried to return to the dormitory by tracing back his way. And he got lost. Only an hour later did he find his room, hidden at the end of the dormitory's hallway. Smiling, he barged inside. But he froze. The room was empty. Aside from a door that led to a bathroom, only a small bed and a bright gem on the ceiling adorned the metallic place.
“Now I see why he didn’t treat these rooms as anything important. The only thing that’s five stars is the hallway.” Himo sighed. “Had I known it before, I’d have brought some furniture.”
Even though he acted annoyed, he threw himself on the bed and closed his eyes. “It’s reading time!” While Phylia idled beside him, he opened the reading function. It had enough folders that even just scrolling through them would require several minutes. He opened the first book he had recorded.
Entry Guide on Basic Formations.
Making a formation requires three things: special rods, a qiclock, and deep knowledge.
The special rods, also called formation rods, allow to alter temporally the pathway of Qi. By doing so, it’s possible to generate otherwise impossible effects(for the list of known possibilities, go to pages 248-282). However, seeing the pathway of Qi is extremely difficult. That’s where the qiclock comes in: the qiclock is a tool that can measure the movement and direction of a pathway. By analyzing the terrain, it’s possible to act upon it(note: higher-level formations require additional considerations. Read more about this in pages 423-429).
And to act upon it correctly, deep knowledge is necessary. Knowledge of a single thing: math.
Math? Himo widened his eyes slightly, but his lips then twisted into a smirk. Bring it on! Back in school, I’ve always been the best at math!
[How surprising. To think that the user had decent grades.]
They weren’t decent, they were great! Himo frowned Top-tier grades! Before the system could reply, he started reading the next page. He paused for a second and skimmed to the next. And the next. And the next. On each page, a cluster of formulas showed their splendor. The heck is this?!
[If the user wishes so, 2 BS points are enough to memorize the content of the book.]
Before those words, Himo tightened his fists and grit his teeth. System! I won’t fall to temptation! My hard-worked points won’t fall into your hands!
-----
[You now have 68 BS points!]
With the newfound knowledge, Himo tackled the other books with ease. He spent three days reading. Employing his expertise as an ex-NEET, he managed to read over a tenth of the recorded books. And, on the fourth day, he walked out of the room.
After getting lost by wandering through the portals, Himo and Phylia soon reached their destination: the market hall.
A large hall filled by stalls of students—a place where knowledge and items could be traded. Tents, buildings, carpets—many were the stalls there. Some had their wares in plain sight, others held a sign with listed merchandise.
As he walked on the main path, Himo eyed the wares. Food, items, weapons, materials, books… the list stretched to anything one could think of. But no smile was on his face. Instead, the more he walked, the bigger his frown grew. The currency… isn’t gold coins! How can I buy the necessary now?
He clicked his tongue and looked resentfully at the coins on the hands of the students. Each coin was black and had a golden letter on it, ranging from common D’s to rare A’s. But after a few seconds, his eyes lit up. According to the novels I’ve read, I’m about to chance onto an opportunity to strike it rich!
[Good luck with that.]
Himo smirked. Is it going to be through a duel or a quiz? Followed by Phylia, he strolled amidst the stalls in search of an opportunity. It never came. He spent several hours roaming in vain. Soon, despair clouded his mind. What if I were to sell my sword? But… no! That sword’s already an ally of mine!
[No one would buy it anyway.]
I refuse to believe that! Himo humphed and crossed his arms. Sitting on a bench amidst a few tents, he shut his eyes. And he snapped them open. “Right!” He laughed as he made his way to the closest portal. “I should just close my eyes! How could I not think of that?”
