Drai watched Paul introduce himself loudly. He apparently didn't require the aid of a device to be heard by the whole class.
The class was still quite stunned even after Paul's introduction. Drai was particularly baffled because he realized that the professor was actually the huge guy sitting in the furthest row who he saw earlier.
Upon closer look, Drai noticed that Paul's torso and arms were disproportionately huge compared to his tiny legs. This made him wonder if rolling was actually Paul's most optimal method for moving around and not merely done for his amusement.
Seeing as most students had already recovered from their shock, Paul continued, "There's no need for you to introduce yourselves, and this will most likely be the same for other classes. If you hadn't known already, our professors have access to state-of-the-art technology, including one that shows us your IDs and other relevant information. So, most professors will just memorize everyone's name along the way, including me.
"That being said, such a convenience doesn't apply to you, so you still need to make an effort in getting to know one another. Having many friends is always a good thing, especially since you can learn a lot from each other," Paul sincerely advised.
Upon hearing this, Drai thought, 'The professor's right. I've learned so many new things in a couple days just by talking to Christo, Jian, and Auri. Maybe if I make even more friends, I'll end up being as knowledgeable as Christo.'
Beside him, Natalia was glancing at Drai with a contemplating look. It was unknown what she was thinking about.
"Now, let's begin our lesson," Paul said. "The System Introduction class basically familiarizes you with how the System works and guides you to better know your own class. The final goal of this class is for you to work out your ideal and optimal paths of development. I hope all of you will be able to achieve this by the end of the year.
"To start, what is the System? We know that it came to be in the year 2000 and has since become an inseparable entity for humans and perhaps all other organisms on Gaia. In addition, the changes brought about by the System wasn't limited to living organisms but also to inorganic materials. This shows that the System is somehow connected not only to individuals but also to the environment.
"How is the System connected to the air, water and land? Do they adhere by the rules that govern our classes or were they merely transformed by the System to accommodate the transformation of Gaia's organisms? And how is the System able to grant these superpowers that seem to defy the universal laws that we know in the first place? Many studies have been done in regards to these questions, but none has truly answered them.
"In short, we basically haven't been able to figure out what the System truly is, where it came from, how it's able to transform us, and what its purposes are. Therefore, we can only work with our current knowledge, which is how the classes work, or at least parts of their underlying mechanisms that we have been able to observe or perceive.
"I'm sure all of you have a semblance of idea regarding what the System does, since you have gone through your evolution and are able to access to the System screen. So, as you may have noticed, there are two key aspects that our classes are dependent on. Is anyone of you willing to tell us what they are?"
Drai felt a movement from beside him as Natalia quickly raised her hand which was previously taking notes.
"Please, Natalia," Paul said after glancing at his comm, proving the convenience of the aforementioned tech.
"Experience and skill points, or EXP and SP," Natalia answered.
"Correct! Thank you, Natalia," Paul remarked before continuing, "EXP and SP are the fundamentals of a class. EXP let us level up, which improves our stats and opens up more skills. Furthermore, every ten levels, we are able to evolve our class. Meanwhile, SP let us obtain skills, which for many classes are the main source of their prowess and capabilities.
"As your classes focus on body transformation, you have significantly higher physical stats than those of other faculties, so you can make do even without skills. But a mage without skills is only slightly more useful than a non-evolver unless their mastery of mana is so high that they don't have to rely on premade skills.
"So, knowing that EXP and SP are crucial for our development, the next step is to figure out how to optimize their gains. Although not all of you will be eager to rapidly level up after learning about the personal requirements that are probably quite taxing, it doesn't hurt knowing how to do so, since the methods are usually applicable to lesser degrees with equally less yields.
"Now, who can tell us how EXP and SP are usually gained?" Paul asked the class.
Once again, Natalia raised her hand. This time Paul didn't immediately pick her but waited briefly in case there were other volunteers. Seeing as nobody else raised their hand, Paul had no choice but to let Natalia answer.
"According to what I've learned, EXP and SP are usually tied to each other, meaning that they can be said to be simultaneously gained. However, SP is usually only added when one levels up, similar to stats improvements. However, it's unknown whether EXP is added sporadically throughout the level or accumulated until it hits the level cap before being added; but it makes no difference to the end result, which is leveling up," Natalia explained.
Paul nodded in agreement, letting Natalia continue as she hadn't answered the initial question. Meanwhile, Drai was confused by Natalia's explanation because he recalled that his transcendence and SP increased even when he was still at level one. This happened right after his newfound conviction during the scouting event. Drai thought that his class or that particular occasion might be an exception, as Natalia did say "usually", meaning that such exceptions were possible.
"And the methods through which EXP and SP are gained vary depending on each class. However, the methods are usually related to the focus of a class or to the interest of the evolver. For example, classes that focus on physical stats benefit more from physical training compared to magic classes. Another example is that beast tamers will gain EXP and SP from interacting with wild beasts or even domesticated animals whereas other classes will probably gain close to nothing from it." Natalia said in a conclusive tone, indicating that she was done answering.
"Very good, Natalia," Paul praised. "What Natalia said is correct. EXP and SP gain is usually considered inseparable, so there's no need to make a distinction between them in practice. If one is training for EXP, you can consider them training for SP too. Therefore, I will also only mention EXP when referring to their gains.
"In addition, this inseparability also means that it's pointless to ask whether EXP or SP is more important for us. You can still debate it if you want, but there's nothing you can do to affect their gains, such as wanting to only gain EXP and not SP or vice versa in hopes of focusing your development either in levels or skills."
Paul stopped briefly to let the students comprehend his explanation. Drai was trying hard to memorize the lesson while Natalia was rapidly writing on her notebook.
After a while, Paul continued, "Now that we know how EXP is usually gained, your task is to relate these methods to the details of your class and come up with specific activities that you think will yield significant EXP. You may write them down on paper or type them in your comm or other devices. Just make sure that by the end of the class, you report them to me.
"If any of you have questions, feel free to come forward and consult me or you can also ask your friends. I allow discussions related to this topic, so don't worry about being silent. Just be considerate toward other students. Now, you may begin."
The previously calm atmosphere started to turn hectic. Some students were busy ruminating or writing down their thoughts, while others were engaged in discussions.
Natalia was still busy writing on her notebook, which made Drai unwilling to disturb her. Drai actually had several questions regarding his previous EXP gain that resulted in his level up, but he hesitated whether to consult his professor, as nobody else had come forward.
Drai decided to temporarily ignore the questions and focus on whatever he could come up to fulfill his current task. Thinking about his class, he jolted down several words that came to his mind into his comm.
'Strength, constitution, transcendence, fearless, and creed. Those are all I can think of my class. Wait, what about the words that appeared in third stanza of the poem? Merry and free…'
Drai added those two words to the list. He then stared at the list, feeling lost regarding what to do after noting them down.
'Hmmm… These are the only things that I feel are related to my class. Should I start writing down activities that focus on each of these aspects? It's quite easy for 'strength' and 'constitution', as I can probably write down dozens of training methods for each of them. But what about the rest?
'Training to be fearless probably involves facing dangers or things that make me afraid. But doesn't my skill prevent me from being affected by fear? Will such training methods even matter if I'm already fearless in the first place?
'For 'creed', I probably need to make an effort to avenge the titans, so I can only ignore it for now, since I don't even know the identity of their foe.
'And for 'merry' and 'free', I'm not even sure if they're related to EXP gain. And how do I even train to be merry and free? Do I practice laughing so I can laugh my ass out like Jian always does? Wait… Why do I feel that Jian is like the embodiment of 'merry and free'? Do I have to mimic Jian the next time he goes laughing like crazy?'
Drai felt unwilling as he pictured himself recklessly laughing without restraint while looking unhinged, similar to what Jian had previously done on more than one occasion. Drai shook his head and decided that he wouldn't be able to do it regardless of the potential EXP he could gain.
'Looks like I can only reliably train my strength and constitution for now. Maybe it will be enough to carry me through the levels. Maybe my next evolution will be implicated, but there's nothing I can do about it. I wonder if other people train every aspect of their classes or focus on certain aspects instead? Too bad Natalia still seems busy, or else I could've tried asking her.'
Drai was having such thoughts when his wandering eyes froze due to being looked back by a smiling Paul. Drai didn't know if Paul had been paying attention to him or if he had merely caught him in the middle of a glance. However, Paul didn't look away and instead gestured with his head, seemingly inviting Drai to come forward.
Whether the professor was actually expecting him to come over or if he was mistaken about the gesture, Drai didn't want to leave a bad impression in case he wasn't mistaken, so he stood up from his seat and walked toward the professor. This slightly surprised Natalia, making her pause her rapid writing. She watched Drai from her seat, looking intrigued.
At the professor's desk, a seat had been prepared opposite to Paul. The hulking Paul nodded at Drai, gesturing him to take a seat.
After sitting down, Drai smiled at Paul, hesitatingly saying, "Hello, Professor. I'm sorry for the inconvenience."
"What inconvenience? Didn't you come here because I indicated for you to do so? There's no need to be overly polite with me, Drai," Paul said as he shrugged off Drai's attempt to behave as a model student.
"Ah, okay then, Professor," Drai sheepishly said.
"We professors aren't as rigid as you probably imagine, Drai. Didn't you see our rector during the entrance ceremony? We learned from the best, so most of us don't intentionally place social barriers between us and the students. If you were to mock Professor Zar for his small stature, he would probably find it amusing and even mock you back, hehehe."
Drai didn't know what to do with this information. He was glad that the academy professors were willing to be chill with the students, but he also wouldn't start calling them "bro" or dare to treat them as equals, let alone mock his rector.
"Are you wondering why I called you here, Drai?" Paul suddenly asked.