Zane wanted to slap himself for his stupidity. Why would he need to calculate all these different paths when he could have a computer do all the work for him? Wasn't that the point of machine learning: to make calculations or deductions easier? A smile crept on his face as he turned around to reach for his laptop, preparing to build a program that did exactly that. However, he immediately stopped himself.
As he looked at his small laptop, he couldn't help but smile wryly. How many neurons are in the brain? Roughly 86 billion. Although he was dealing with far less, the possibilities he needed to calculate were still astronomical. How would a small laptop have the computing power to calculate so many variables? Even a supercomputer might not be enough. The optimal solution or approach would be a specialized AI trained on neurobiology data, but that requires a data center. And as far as Zane is aware, AI or LLM (Large Language Model) technology is still a few years from being perfected.
"And even if I had all those things available to me, it would still be useless. The key to mana channeling is mental energy — an extraordinary power. Without finding a way to take this variable into account, all my calculations are useless," Zane sighed, feeling a bit dejected. He was so close, yet he failed at the last moment.
The best solution to this issue was to receive a finished product directly from the tower. Their magic civilization was years ahead of Earth, so they had already developed the [Flow State] mental skills and even more advanced ones. However, he didn't have the money or access to acquire that knowledge. The second-best approach is to rent an Arcane Spirit for the calculation, but the price is even harsher than just buying the answer directly.
"Right now, I can only rely on intuition, trial and error, and a bit of luck," Zane thought. For now, his only option was to test different approaches on his own and hopefully find a common denominator, rule, or pattern that would help him find the answer. Of course, Zane was never someone who gave up easily on something he was interested in. So, after a swift clean-up, he wanted to hop on the internet to do more research on the subject, but then he remembered the tingling sensation in his left arm. And, as expected, he had a new title.
[Title: Innovator (Blue)]
[Earth is currently in the process of a civilization transition. While friendly foreign forces are aiding us, we must also learn to be self-reliant. Your innovative spirit has contributed to our journey toward self-reliance, and you deserve praise for your work. Good job. Keep doing what you're doing. Earth needs brilliant minds such as yours.]
[Effect: One opportunity for an epiphany.]
"A blue title?" Zane was surprised. So far, the highest title he'd ever received was Light-blue. "The title seems good, but the effect is a bit confusing. How am I supposed to use this epiphany? Do I have to activate it myself?" Zane had many questions and no answers. So, he decided to ask the professor after returning to school.
He closed his holographic screen before reaching for his laptop. Many scientists, neurologists, and psychologists have researched the [Flow State]. Unlike the tower, Zane has many ways to bypass the paywalls of most published research. After spending hours browsing through every piece of information he could find, he had learned quite a lot. First, the tower's research on this state was primarily for combat.
Meanwhile, scientists have realized that anyone can enter the flow state; it wasn't reserved only for athletes, soldiers, or people doing intense work. Anyone who is focused enough on a task can achieve this state. Secondly, Zane found a missing piece to his research.
"I need to add another node in the Inferior Frontal Gyrus (IFG)," Zane muttered. Flow states involve many aspects, but he missed one: impulse control and risk aversion. The advantage of the state is that it lets him make the best decision after rapidly analyzing a situation, and the IFG is the brain area involved; it prevents him from acting impulsively and out of character while also letting him assess the risk level of any situation.
Zane closed his eyes to test out this new theory. Adding a fifth node raised the complexity of the mental network, especially since he now needed to find a way to connect it to the existing system. However, once he succeeded, a smile crept onto the corner of his mouth. The serene feeling that spread through Zane's mind was somewhat addictive. Unfortunately, it soon dissipated.
"About 5.3 seconds, which can be considered an improvement," Zane thought. Unfortunately, five seconds was only enough for him to cast one spell. Such a [Flow State] was useless for battle or for improving his study efficiency. "Well, one step at a time." Zane still had more information to check out, so he returned to his research.
Bang! Bang!
"Hmm? Is it the landlord?" Normally, the landlord would come at the end of the month, but Zane felt he might come early since his son needed resources to train as a warrior.
"Ali? What are you doing here?"
"I've been texting and calling you for hours," Alisha said as she carried a bag inside the room.
"You have?" Zane checked his phone, and there it was: 13 missed calls and 5 texts. "Wait, it's already 6 in the afternoon?" As soon as he uttered those words, his stomach suddenly growled.
"What have you been doing all day?" Alisha said. She put the bag on the table. Seeing Zane's laptop, she grew curious and turned it around.
"I kind of lost track of time," Zane replied before walking to the fridge. "I'm about to microwave some leftovers. Do you want some?"
"No need. I brought food."
"You did?"
"I had a feeling you might be in a trance and forgot to eat. So, I brought some KFC." Alisha removed two 8-piece buckets for Zane and a two-piece box for herself. She also brought sides for both of them, but the fries were for sharing.
"Why do you have so many tabs about brain research and flow state?" Alisha asked.
"I'm trying to build a new magic skill," Zane replied before explaining the concept of mental channeling to her and the benefit of the [Flow State].
"The tower's training seems stressful. You should take care of yourself. And don't hesitate to ask if you need my help."
"I will," Zane nodded. "By the way, can you look at these numbers and help me plan for next month?" He showed her the prices of magical resources from the plaza while explaining his plan to learn a profession starting next month.
"This information is not that useful," Alisha said, shaking her head. "If you want to plan ahead, you need to find out the total sales of each item, and then you can plan which market to target."
"Total sales? Is it daily or monthly?"
"Both would be preferred."
"Is the data from one store enough?"
"Of course not," Alisha replied, which made Zane frown. "Is this information hard to acquire?"
"It might be, but I'll try my best."
The two continued their conversation as they ate. Zane resisted the urge to open the stove and remake both the mac and cheese and the mashed potatoes with gravy. As for the chicken? Well, it was decent but too oily. The fries were the only good thing about this meal.
"Now, can you tell me why you truly came here?" Zane said, wiping grease from his mouth and hands.
"What do you mean?"
"Come on. I can tell when something is on your mind. By the way you've been acting, this seems like an apology dinner instead of you suddenly becoming generous."
"Is it that obvious?" Alisha sighed.
"Out with it."
"Alright. I may have, um, I may have revealed your trainee status to…Sarah."
Zane groaned softly.
"I didn't mean to!" Alisha hurriedly explained. "Yesterday, after I returned home, we got into another argument. You came up. I was heated, and I blurted it out."
Zane sighed and took a sip of his Coke. "It's fine."
"It is?" Ali was already bracing herself for anger, and maybe even a bit of yelling.
"I never expected you to keep it from her in the first place."
"What do you mean by that? I can keep a secret."
"Anyway, don't worry about it," Zane said. He had long made peace with his identity being revealed after realizing people often filmed him or guessed that Sergeant Rhode would reveal it to the US military. And as he told Alisha, he never expected her to keep it a secret from Sarah, especially since he didn't ask her to.
"Regardless, I still feel bad."
"Don't. This may not be a bad thing after all," Zane reassured. With this identity, he hoped Sarah would have more reservations when she felt the urge to alienate Ali from them.
"How so?"
"Doesn't she always look down on me? Now, she'll think twice about it."
"It's not like that. She just wants the best for you."
"If you say so," Zane casually replied. "By the way, what were you arguing about?"