Chapter 20 Interesting

Chapter 20 Interesting

Every subject at Plato's Academy is assessed with a standard percentage-based grading system.

Passing all subjects with a score of 60 or above is the first method of passing.

Scoring first in three subjects, passing ten or more, and receiving any score, even zero, in the rest, is another way to pass.

Passing half of the subjects and ranking in the top five in five of them, with any score, even zero, in the rest, also counts as passing.

The final method is contributing to Plato's Academy and earning a medal.

A Black Iron Medal can be exchanged for a first-place in one subject; a Bronze Medal can be exchanged for first place in three subjects; Silver Medal recipients automatically pass their annual exams.

Last year, out of thirty-nine students, seven failed.

"From this perspective, it's still possible to pass..."

"It's unrealistic to start with the difficult subjects; I should gradually begin with the easier ones."

Suye's gaze fell on the first subject, Greek, and the page immediately changed, revealing last year's Greek textbook index.

Suye glanced over it, memories surfacing, and he felt a sudden sense of warmth.

"Suye, that little brat, didn't go to Lion Harbor for nothing. His vocabulary far exceeds others, though his grammar is a mess. Hmm... If the highest difficulty is 10, then Greek has a difficulty level of only 2 for me. Not too hard. I'll keep this subject."

The page returned to the course list, and Suye circled Greek.

"There are many who speak Roman in Lion Harbor, so the difficulty is probably around 4. That's not bad, I'll keep it."

"Egyptian... no, it gives me a headache. Difficulty 7. Persian... even worse, difficulty 8. No, let's be honest, 9. Northern European... hmm? These letters look familiar individually, but when combined, they make no sense. Let's say 6..."

While looking at the course list, Suye also reviewed the textbook indexes, continuously setting difficulty levels.

"Geography? Finally something familiar. My geography is actually quite good... Why are the geographical terms here completely different from what I learned? Fine, 4 points."

"Botany... still different. 5 points!"

"I know Greek history well; I specifically studied it before my trip to Greece... This textbook index... forget it, let's pretend I never studied Greek history. 5 points!"

After reviewing the textbooks for mathematics and geometry, Suye almost shed tears of joy.

"Finally, a course with a difficulty level of 0! Even though I'm a poor student, these concepts are so familiar that I can master them with just a bit of study!"

"Hmm? Why are *Iliad* and *Odyssey* not included in the epic class? Where is *Works and Days*... Oh right, the Trojan War hasn't happened yet..."

"Art? Difficulty 1! I've studied sketching for a while, so I understand lines, perspective, and shading."

Suye first rated the old courses he would study this year. He crossed out all subjects with a difficulty rating of 5 or higher, leaving only a few subjects on the list.

In the end, Suye chose the easiest subjects: Mathematics, Geometry, Greek, and Art—four in total.

Looking at these four subjects, Suye thought for a moment. Although he understood art, he had no time to practice, making it suitable only for breaks to relieve mental fatigue. So he removed it.

Finally, Suye marked Mathematics, Geometry, and Greek as priorities.

Choosing these three subjects was mainly to find breakthroughs and boost confidence. At such times, mindset outweighs everything.

Before fifty-five subjects, even intelligence must rely on mindset.

Suye frowned as he flipped through the new courses, his frown deepening. But soon, he realized something, and the page instantly turned into a mirror.

In the magic book, Suye's troubled face reflected back at him.

"My mindset is wrong!"

Suye looked at himself in the magic book, thought for a moment, and began using common techniques to shift his thinking.

"Although I'm worried about my studies, it proves I'm a responsible man and that I have goals and direction. The reason for the struggle and difficulty is because I'm climbing uphill! More importantly, I'm so handsome!"

Suye finished saying this to himself, immediately smiling and dispelling his troubled expression.

Turning off the mirror function, Suye regained his composure. Though he stopped smiling, his features relaxed, and his mindset had changed.

The shift in mindset was just the beginning. Suye continued his subsequent thoughts.

"Since I aspire to become a legendary mage, I must master a vast amount of magical knowledge. With so many courses, I can't possibly study all of them. I need to focus on a few key subjects and gradually fill in the gaps later. Which subjects should I choose?"

Suye thought for a moment and made a decision.

"Choose subjects I find interesting! As long as I find them interesting and genuinely enjoy them, every bit of learning will bring a sense of achievement, which will motivate me to continue, creating a positive cycle. However, being interesting alone isn't enough; they also need to be low in difficulty, otherwise, they'll hinder other subjects. As for importance, I can't judge that now, and I might even be wrong. Once I have a better understanding, I can reassess their importance. So..."

Suye immediately thought of a two-dimensional matrix, a common analytical tool derived from the Cartesian coordinate system.

He opened a blank page, moved his index finger lightly, drew a horizontal line through the center of the page, and then a vertical line, forming a large cross that divided the page into four equal sections.

At the left end of the horizontal line, he wrote "Difficult," and at the right end, "Easy."

At the bottom of the vertical line, he wrote "Uninteresting," and at the top, "Interesting."

Thus, the page was divided into four quadrants: "Interesting and Easy," "Interesting and Difficult," "Uninteresting and Easy," and "Uninteresting and Difficult."

Suye then flipped back to the course list. For each new subject, he reviewed the textbook index to estimate its difficulty. If he didn't understand it, he briefly skimmed through the content.

After flipping through a few pages, the bell signaling the end of class rang.

Niedern's voice came from the podium.

"Classmates, take a ten-minute break. After that, we'll be reviewing all day. Before the end of the day, I'll teach you the most important class for second year, the meditation class, and guide you through your first meditation experience."

Niedern left the classroom, and it immediately erupted into excited chatter.

"Finally, we're starting meditation!"

"It's said that Plato's Academy's meditation techniques are on par with those of the demigod ducal families!"

"Both warriors and mages need meditation. This is what I want to learn! I hate natural history! I hate linguistics! I hate sports and art!"

"Yeah, finally we can start learning real magic and combat skills..."

"Awesome!"

Everyone cheered, but Suye seemed to hear nothing, continuing to analyze the new courses for the year.

Most of the new courses this year were related to magic, and the alien languages were far more complex than human languages. Even just skimming through them was challenging for Suye.

A few classmates from the fourth table turned around, grinning at Suye across their desks.

"Third Fool, how was your summer?"

"Suye, why were you late?"

"Teacher Niedern has such a good temper."

Without looking up, Suye replied, "Thanks for your concern, but I'm eager to look over the new courses for the year. Let's chat during the lunch break."