After observing for a long time and confirming that Lu Renyi and Lin Shubei barely interacted, the System finally relaxed.
"Host, the protagonist's group is always surrounded by sudden incidents. Danger will find them the moment they're careless. You have no discussion yet and can't find anything in the System Shop to protect yourself, so you'd better keep your distance from them."
"After all, the protagonist's group is the group most likely to encounter danger. Host, you absolutely must protect yourself!"
That was how the System warned Lu Renyi. In its eyes, its host was weak and helpless, while it had no ability to protect him, so for now he had to stay away from the protagonist's group.
"But if I'm supposed to generate discussion on the forum, I'll have to show my face, won't I? Weren't you the one who told me to say a few words to Lin Shubei whenever I had the chance?"
Lu Renyi sat in the classroom, pretending to listen attentively. He could even answer a question or two from time to time, giving no sign that his mind was elsewhere.
After the teacher praised him yet again, he finally began to consider what the System had said.
"Exchanging a few words isn't the same as becoming involved. You only live with the protagonist because of circumstances beyond your control, and you haven't done anything significant enough to change him or the plot. Things this ordinary won't appear in the comic."
"But interesting content may catch the comic's attention. If you appear in a non-main-plot scene then, you can still attract fans. That's why I want you to interact with the protagonist, but you should avoid getting tangled up in his grudges and disputes as much as possible."
As long as he did not affect the protagonist or the plot's course, he could do whatever he wanted.
That was how Lu Renyi summed it up. Since the comic revolved around Lin Shubei, he only had to ensure that Lin Shubei was the one who benefited.
"So that's how it is. Thank you for explaining it to me. It's wonderful having you here to help, System."
The System, which had rarely ever been praised: !
"Host, I'll work even harder! It really was an accident that bound me to you at first, but now I feel that all of this was arranged by fate. The two of us will definitely get along wonderfully!"
"Fate certainly works in mysterious ways. Still, I didn't expect you to know so much about me, System."
Seeing that Lu Renyi had questions, the System explained.
"All of this comes from the System's internal records. You can think of it this way: the development of this comic-book world was already predetermined, and the comic artist is merely drawing it. The main plot won't change."
"But something like you and the protagonist moving into the same dorm room has too little influence on the main plot as a whole, so it won't receive attention."
As the System spoke, it flipped through the reference book in its system space. Once it confirmed that it had made no mistake, it heaved a deep sigh of relief. This was its first time working with a host, which was why it had misjudged how much energy it needed. If anything else went wrong, it truly would be recalled.
Lu Renyi knew nothing of the System's muttering. He picked out something that interested him from its explanation and asked another question.
"In that case, you probably don't know anything about my past either, System. After all, I had nothing to do with the protagonist."
"That's right. The information stored in the System database follows the protagonist, so we... Huh? Host, you met the protagonist when you were a child?"
The System flipped through Lu Renyi's profile, which contained the records it had downloaded from the database about the first eighteen years of his life.
Just as it had said, Lu Renyi was not a major character, so there was little information about him in the records. Much of it had only just been retrieved directly from Supernova Ability Academy's enrollment information.
But the very first sentence caught the System's attention.
"Host, when you were four, you met the protagonist at Annex 1, Number 15, Heping Street. He even spoke to you. The record says..."
Run south.
Lu Renyi finished the sentence in his mind and felt no surprise. If the System knew every person's information in this world like the back of its hand, then whether his binding had truly been deliberate or accidental would be open to debate.
But if this was the only event in the records, then at least for now, Lu Renyi held the advantage.
Of course, that depended on the System not misleading him.
"For the protagonist, that same point in time seems to have been his debut. He discovered that street's secret and was hunted down. His parents fell into comas while protecting him, and he awakened a psychic-type ability to protect them in return."
"But Host, why were you also on that street at the time?"
The System could not understand it. According to Lu Renyi's records, he was an outstanding person. He had grown up in an orphanage and therefore had not lived well, but his academic performance had ranked among the best throughout his childhood.
At fifteen, he awakened his ability and entered the middle-school division of Supernova Ability Academy. He later advanced directly into its high-school division and had now advanced into the university division. He had always been in Class C. His academic grades were excellent, but he was comparatively lacking in ability use.
The night before, the System had asked Lu Renyi why he remained in Class C despite already being a Level-Five ability user. After all, even the current Class S consisted mostly of Level-Five ability users.
"The cost is too high. Classes S and A are full of freaks with powerful abilities and comparatively minor costs. Of course I can't compare to them."
Abilities depended on talent. Lu Renyi's was illusion-type, but after using it, he would also become trapped in the illusion. Its side effects were too severe. Had his grades not been so good, and had his physical combat and psychic power not been passable, he probably would not even have made it into Class C.
Yet the System always felt that Lu Renyi was lying.
"I used to live there. The place exploded later, so it must have been that incident."
"So that's how it was. Then perhaps you can use that to exchange a few more words with the protagonist. This is related to the main plot, so it will definitely appear in the comic."
"And you're so good-looking, Host. Once your face appears, you'll definitely generate lots of discussion. The more discussion you get, the more points you'll earn, and then you'll be able to redeem even more tools!"
The System had been emphasizing the importance of discussion from the beginning, but everything had its good and bad sides, so the definition of discussion mattered greatly. After all, being hated by the entire internet also counted as discussion.
The System rejected Lu Renyi's interpretation.
"It has to be positive discussion. Discussion represents popularity and, to a certain extent, reflects the number of fans you have. You need at least 1,000 fans to complete the mission. As your fan count increases, you won't be as easy to write to death as you are now."
"Once your popularity is high enough, if you make a major contribution to the protagonist's side, you'll have enough points to live however you want after the final battle ends."
The System's explanation was easy enough to understand. According to what it had said before, discussion plus at least 1,000 fans would ensure that he safely survived his death plot point.
With a little more, he could freely participate in the plot and enter the main storyline, make a contribution, then completely escape the plot's control and live his own life.
Each link followed the next, and a change in one would affect everything. If any step happened too early or too late, he might be subjected to a forced plot kill.
After all, Passerby B was even less conspicuous than Passerby A.
Lu Renyi's hand unconsciously began drawing one straight line after another. From a distance, it looked as though he was taking notes.
His classroom performance had made the teacher believe he was the only student in the class who valued academic subjects, so the teacher simply stood beside him while lecturing. Only the teacher's voice could be heard throughout the vast classroom.
"So calculus is quite simple, isn't it?"
"It really is quite simple."
Even he had no idea which question he was answering.
Lu Renyi looked up and smiled at the teacher. Under the gazes of the other students, who looked at him as if he were a brave warrior, he leafed through the exercise he had just completed and made no attempt to conceal how much he liked the course.
"You teach wonderfully, sir."
Their calculus teacher was named Jiang Yan. He was not particularly old, but it had been a long time since he had received praise like that in a classroom.
Previous students only ever came to him before exams. People like Lu Renyi, who listened attentively and took notes in class, were few and far between.
This was one of the country's finest ability academies. Even Class F students could find respectable jobs after leaving, and those jobs generally cared only about abilities. Naturally, few students placed much importance on academic grades. As long as they did not fail, all was well.
But now, Jiang Yan had finally recovered the passion he had possessed right after graduating from university. He resolved to cultivate Lu Renyi, a student willing to listen to him, properly.
Once Jiang Yan excitedly called Lu Renyi outside, he got straight to the point and asked whether Lu Renyi wanted to join a project.
"Your name is Lu Renyi, right? I know you. You placed fourth in the entire academy's comprehensive admissions ranking. If the side effects of your ability weren't so severe, you would definitely have entered Class A or Class S."
"But I remember that in the career-planning section, you said you didn't want to work in an ability-related field after graduation and wanted a job at an ordinary company?"
Lu Renyi was not surprised that his records could be pulled up, but he was slightly astonished that Jiang Yan had pointed him out so directly. This year's class contained 300 new students. Unless he had done it deliberately, remembering one student's specific information this clearly had to be related to his ability.
But having someone like that teach an academic subject at the academy seemed like a waste of his talents.
"My ability makes it easy for me to remember these things. It's a kind of photographic memory, and your records left a deep impression on me at the time."
Jiang Yan saw Lu Renyi's surprise and selectively revealed a little information about his ability. He was not lying; Lu Renyi truly did leave a strong impression.
Anyone who could enter Supernova Ability Academy had respectable grades, but Lu Renyi stood out even among them. He had even ranked first in his specialized subjects. His physical combat was strong, and his rare psychic-type ability was impressive. Unfortunately, his own psychic power was comparatively low and using his ability caused too much backlash, so he had ultimately received only a D rating.
After entering Class C, he had not networked everywhere like the others. Instead, he seemed to disappear, becoming perfectly ordinary.
What Jiang Yan found most interesting, however, was Lu Renyi's answer to the final question on his admissions test, about his plans after graduation.
Aside from a small number of students with clear goals, most had listed common ability-related jobs. Lu Renyi was the sole exception.
"A job that makes money, but I don't want to enter an ability-related field."
If he wanted to make money without getting involved with abilities, then he would have to work hard elsewhere.
"Would you like to work on a project with me? How about tomorrow morning? Come see me then, and I'll find out which direction suits you. It doesn't matter if none do. At worst, I'll just go home and talk to my dad. My family's company is pretty big, so you could intern there, and then..."
Lu Renyi had no chance to get a word in. By the time Jiang Yan finally finished and looked at him expectantly, Lu Renyi vaguely felt as though the man had just flaunted his wealth.
So that was what it felt like to have a family sitting on a gold mine? He liked a student, so he would bring the student straight into his company. Even an internal referral was not that fast.
"If that's possible, of course I'd be willing. But we seem to have quite a lot of classes. I remember that I still have a combat-arts class tomorrow morning, and the teacher said we need to undergo an assessment. We can't be absent without cause."
"This early in the year? It seems the change in leadership above really has had quite an effect."
Jiang Yan appeared to understand the assessment situation already. Seeing Lu Renyi's confusion, he did not conceal it.
"The World Ability User Tournament is held every three years, with military, government, and university divisions. Our country's rankings in the last few tournaments weren't very good, so after the leadership changed this year, they focused their attention on your class."
"I don't know what the organizing committee was thinking, but they mandated that only first-year students could participate. Your Teacher Zheng was probably given an uncompromising order, which is why the assessment was moved forward."
"The participant list will be released during this year's winter break. Everyone selected from each academy will be brought to one place for intensive training, then set out overseas for the expedition in April."
For that reason, everyone selected would be regarded as one of the academy's true elites.
"Then you really can't miss it. How about this? I remember that your class has no lessons this afternoon. I'll speak to Zheng Jue and have you take the assessment with Class A today. He teaches the entire first year anyway. Does that work for you?"
"Of course. See you tomorrow, sir."
Only after seeing him off did Lu Renyi have the energy to deal with the System, which had been screeching incessantly inside his head.
"Aaaaah, Host! Why does your student record list your ability as psychic-type?!"
"Aren't you illusion-type?!"
The piercing electronic voice combined with an alarm was so loud that Lu Renyi could not help rubbing his temples.
"What my ability is shouldn't matter, should it? Whether it's illusion-type or psychic-type, it has nothing to do with the main plot and won't affect the protagonist's group."
Although Lu Renyi evaded the issue without explaining the reason, the System immediately calmed down.
That was true. As long as it did not affect the protagonist's group, everything was fine.
Just in case, the System filed a report with headquarters. Suddenly remembering Lu Renyi's earlier comment, it silently dropped a letter into the suggestion box as well. Perhaps they really could consider tempting some hosts with money.
"It's fine, but I also find it strange that the two definitions differ. When I awakened my ability at fifteen, I went to an assessment center for an evaluation. I've always thought I was psychic-type."
"Then why did you say yesterday that you could throw down an illusion and turn on the lights, Host?"
"It was only a joke. Relax, relax."
【Silent Prison】
That was the name assigned to Lu Renyi's ability during his assessment at the center. Supposedly, only the relatively rare psychic and precognition types received names.
When used, it could plunder the color, temperature, sound, psychic power, and even life force from a space, plunging an opponent into boundless dead silence. The only thing they could feel was despair, until their soul was likewise plundered away completely.
"Perhaps it's because the definitions in this area are somewhat vague. After all, the silent space you create requires exceptionally powerful psychic power in its own right. The assessment center probably only saw what the ability itself did, while headquarters conducts a long-term evaluation."
Illusion weaving by illusion types and sensory plunder by psychic types were indeed similar in some respects. An illusion could make someone believe their senses had been taken away, while psychic manipulation could make them believe they had entered a certain space.
Once mastered, an illusion-type ability could even expand its range to cover an entire city, making it exceptionally well suited to warfare.
It was not impossible for a psychic type to control many minds simultaneously either, but the corresponding expenditure was enormous. The slightest carelessness could drain their psychic power dry.
"Class C is wonderful. The students are friendly, the teachers are caring, someone even invited me to join a project, and my future internship is already settled. Paradise."
The System suddenly felt that Lu Renyi was breaking character. It was not only what he said; even his gait and attitude in class had become languid, bearing no resemblance to his earlier seriousness.
It thought the sudden mission had disrupted Lu Renyi's original plans and hurried to make amends.
"Don't worry, Host. If you don't want to change too much, you can also choose to play the protagonist's loyal follower. Just show your face occasionally and gain a few fans."
It truly was not difficult. The only obstacle was Lu Renyi's own unwillingness.
"If I'm going to change my image in the comic, then of course I ought to become a little more impressive."
"But I still have one tiny question. Once it's resolved, I'll make a change."
Meanwhile, after returning to his office, Jiang Yan sent Zheng Jue a message.
【There's a Class C student I'm rather interested in. His name is Lu Renyi. I told him to go to you for an early assessment this afternoon. Keep an eye on him. I searched his memories just now and found nothing. Interesting.】
【All right.】