[Music Theory (Beginner): 45% → 60%. Upgrade to Proficient at 100%.]
[Cello (Beginner): 2% → 40%. Upgrade to Proficient at 100%.]
Looking at the clearly displayed progress bars in his mind, Suzuki Yu felt the soreness in his fingertips from pressing the strings ease a little.
This was his biggest difference from other learners, apart from his increased learning efficiency.
He could see how much progress he had made, and knew which direction to head for proper learning.
Many people can’t stick with something simply because they lack a progress bar—they never know if what they’re learning is actually effective.
But Suzuki Yu never had to worry about that, and his uniqueness was quickly noticed by Hasegawa Aoi.
Having learned music from a young age, she couldn’t possibly fail to notice Suzuki Yu’s outrageously impressive learning speed.
And he always managed to avoid the common mistakes made by beginners.
It was just too unbelievable—could he be a prodigy, too?
As she observed, Hasegawa Aoi grumbled silently in her heart. In the end, she couldn’t help but ask aloud:
“Junior, you really never touched any instrument before, not even something simple like a harmonica?”
“No, didn’t I already say? I was always busy with studying and part-time jobs before. The only hobby I developed was drawing, and that was just manga.”
Suzuki Yu replied.
“Is that so…” Hasegawa Aoi stared at him intently, but she couldn’t find anything unusual about him.
Could it be that I’m just overthinking it? Are there really people out there with such absurd comprehension and coordination?
“Forget it.” She seemed to make peace with herself. “I’ll just treat you like a prodigy for now.”
“Huh? What do you mean by that?”
“It’s nothing, just teasing you for learning so fast.”
“Maybe it’s just because I practice a lot at home, too.”
Suzuki Yu replied offhandedly, but he wasn’t lying. Even though he’d been busy lately, he still found time at home to grind out progress.
“In that case, you’ll perform with me at the showcase in two or three weeks!”
“Huh? Me?”
Suzuki Yu was shocked by this crazy idea that popped into her head out of nowhere.
He promptly gave her a good knock on the head.
“Ow~ What was that for?”
“What are you thinking? I’ve only been learning for less than a week.”
“So what? Counting the time until the showcase, it’ll have been almost a month. A whole month, junior! With your current pace, you can totally master a song!”
“How can you be so unrealistic…”
“Junior, you should know that people learn fastest when they’re under pressure—just like cramming for final exams.”
“What kind of final exam only gives you a month to prepare?”
“If it was anyone else, I’d say it’s impossible. But you’ve seriously surprised me. You need to trust your own potential.”
“I believe in potential, but I don’t believe in miracles,” Suzuki Yu refused flatly, then added, “And aren’t you afraid we’ll mess up the showcase?”
No sooner had Suzuki Yu finished speaking than he was met with the girl’s confused gaze.
“Why be afraid of messing up? Isn’t that normal for a beginner? If you’re timid about everything as a newbie, you’ll always be hesitant no matter what you do.”
“Uh… Don’t you want to recruit more members?”
“No way. I’m only doing this because I have to. One Suzuki Yu is already enough of a hassle—if I get another, there goes all my precious game time.”
“You sure make laziness sound so righteous.”
“In any case, junior, I want you to perform with me. Hmm, and we’ll do a duet! We need a classic piece… Got it, let’s do ‘Canon’ as the finale!”
Hasegawa Aoi’s eyes sparkled, as if she were already planning everything out.
Hearing the name ‘Canon’, Suzuki Yu felt a faint pain at his temples.
It was a beautiful piece, sure, but its polyphonic structure and persistent bassline were a nightmare for beginners.
But seeing the club president already digging out sheet music, all he could do was sigh quietly.
Forget it, if I embarrass myself, so be it. In the end, it’s her problem anyway.
Just as he thought that, Hasegawa Aoi returned, arms loaded with a thick stack of scores, her face beaming with excitement.
“Don’t worry, I have a simplified version. With your pace and my teaching, we’ll definitely manage.”
And so, half-reluctant, Suzuki Yu ended up joining Hasegawa’s little scheme.
By the time practice ended, night had fallen.
[Music Theory (Beginner): 60% → 90%. Upgrade to Proficient at 100%.]
[Cello (Beginner): 40% → 50%. Upgrade to Proficient at 100%.]
“That really is impressive efficiency…”
As he stepped out of the clubroom, Suzuki Yu couldn’t help but remark.
His fingers ached, his shoulders were stiff, but watching those progress bars climb, all that fatigue seemed trivial.
“Junior, are you really sure you had zero foundation before?”
Hasegawa Aoi walked beside him, asking again.
“Really, I didn’t. Senpai, are you asking because… I’m so talented that I’m even better than ordinary geniuses?”
Suzuki Yu deliberately turned the question around. Hasegawa Aoi gave a scornful reply:
“I’m just confirming my own teaching ability, that’s all. Clearly, I’m amazing.”
She placed her hands on her hips, pretending to be proud.
“Is it so hard to just give me a compliment?”
“What did you say? I didn’t hear you~”
Seeing this, Suzuki Yu could only shake his head with a smile, then continued walking alongside her.
As they passed by Year 1, Class A, they were surprised to see the lights still on inside.
Looking in, they spotted Shiina Chisa’s cool, distant face. She was staring at the laptop on her desk, deep in thought.
“Oh, it’s Shiina-chan.”
At this, Hasegawa Aoi whispered quietly.
“Hmm? You know her?” Suzuki Yu asked.
“Not really, but I heard her name back in middle school. She’s one of the few people who ever managed to put Jingu in her place.”
“Oh?”
This piqued Suzuki Yu’s interest.
There were actually things about Shiina Chisa that he didn’t know?
Back when he was looking to rent a boyfriend, he’d gone to great lengths to investigate her.
“Mainly competitions and stuff like that. Jingu always loves beating people in their own specialties, but against Shiina-chan, she lost completely.”
Hearing this, Suzuki Yu tried to recall Shiina Chisa’s special skills in his mind.
“Don’t tell me… Kyudo?”
“Eh? How did you know? That’s right, but not just that. There are other things too—whenever she’s competing with Shiina-chan, Jingu loses way more than she wins.”
Hasegawa Aoi said, looking a bit gloating.
“I see…”
Her words were truly eye-opening for Suzuki Yu.
Come to think of it, he really had guts to approach Shiina Chisa back then.
At the same time, he picked up on another key detail.
That is, his system hadn’t unlocked all of the skills those genius girls possessed.
“Interesting…”
He muttered subconsciously, but Hasegawa Aoi seemed to take it as a response to her:
“Exactly, so about Shiina-chan…”
Suzuki Yu was listening to his senpai, when suddenly she stopped:
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“It’s getting late, I’m heading home!”
“Huh?”
Before Suzuki Yu could react, the petite figure at his side had already dashed off.
Then, he felt a pair of eyes watching him. Looking inside through the window, he saw Shiina Chisa standing up, her emotionless eyes quietly fixed on him.