kscans

Chapter 89 - 6. Latter Half, Bon-Kyu-Bon

They say you shouldn't shoot down ideas during the brainstorming phase. It’s a technique for generating a large number of them. That much is true. And by writing them down on paper, you can keep track of many ideas at once.

However, the ideas you’ve expanded upon must then be narrowed down.

This is a bit of a tangent, but there’s a poem by Misuzu Kaneko that goes, "We're all different, and that's a good thing." They are wonderful words, but they can't be applied as is in this situation.

It's good that "everyone is different." That is because "someone will be right."

This is the principle for making a decision when you don't know the answer. The next point, then, is who decides who that ‘someone’ is, and how. Since no one knows the answer, the answer is that no one can decide.

In fact, this is how biological evolution works. It's also the reason why sexual reproduction, which is ridiculously costly, was adopted. In economics, it's one of the advantages of a market economy.

The ecosystem is a marketplace of genes, or ideas. And as a marketplace, it’s left to the survival of the fittest for products, or ideas. The world itself, including you and everyone else, delivers the judgment. Of course, this too is just a kind of ideal.

Now, in this case, I have no choice but to be the one to decide. And so, a word of caution when narrowing down ideas is that it’s a battle against instinct.

Humans are afraid of loss. It's terrifying to let go of something you once held in your hands. That's why people are reluctant to discard the ideas they've come up with.

And that's precisely why you must do it. If you don't, brainstorming becomes a hindrance. A surplus of ideas can be more harmful than helpful. It obstructs the actions needed to achieve the final goal. You might even say that three excellent ideas chosen at random from a list of ten are better than all ten combined.

And the ultimate goal is to select the single most suitable idea from those ten.

The necessary process for that is ‘Rain’, determining a policy or hypothesis.

"In the next step, 'Rain', we'll refine our ideas into a concrete policy."

As I spoke, I continued writing.

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・ Is there any value in anko if it can't beat jam or honey?
↓
・ Anko has a different kind of appeal that jam and honey lack.
↓
・ By bringing out anko's appeal, we can resolve the unfamiliarity of its appearance and taste, as well as the comparisons to jam and honey!

――――――――――――――――――――――――――

"With that, our 'Rain' policy is decided."

I emphasized the last sentence.

"If the quality of the anko itself improves, that would be good. It's obvious, but..."

"Yes, it's very well organized."

The arguments about honey or jam being better will naturally resolve themselves once the taste of the anko improves. It doesn't need to win. The problem is solved if we can just bring it to a level where it can compete with honey and jam. That is because anko has a charm that is different from either of them. In fact, trying to beat honey and jam would only lead to failure.

The idea is that if we can achieve that, its unique appearance and taste will become selling points.

You could call it a frontal assault. After all, the goal is to popularize the taste of my homeland.

"The final step is 'Umbrella'. We will think of specific methods to realize this 'policy'."

Saying that, I wrote out several sentences.

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□ Add more sugar to the anko to achieve a balance between the bean flavor and sweetness.
□ Strain the bean skins to improve the texture of the anko.
□ Think of ways to eat it other than with bread to emphasize the flavor of the anko.

――――――――――――――――――――――――――

I concluded my thought process. Of course, this demonstration isn't exactly fair, since it’s after we’ve already succeeded with everything from smooth bean paste to yokan, but I think it's a good example of the flow of thought.

Expanded thoughts must be narrowed down to a single policy. That single, abstracted policy must then be developed into concrete actions.

"To summarize, my thought process looks like this."

I showed the completed notebook to everyone.

――――――――――――――――――――――――――
(How to spread anko throughout the kingdom)

'Rain'
・ With jam and honey available, is anko really needed?
↓
・ Anko has a different kind of appeal that jam and honey lack.
↓
・ By bringing out anko's appeal, we can resolve the unfamiliarity of its appearance and taste, as well as the comparisons to jam and honey!

'Umbrella'
□ Add more sugar to the anko to achieve a balance between the bean flavor and sweetness.
□ Strain the bean skins to improve the texture of the anko.
□ Think of ways to eat it other than with bread to emphasize the flavor of the anko.

――――――――――――――――――――――――――

"...Being organized is a good thing." "This seems so restrictive, I feel like my head would just get stuck."

Mia and Fulsy had conflicted expressions. It seems the struggles of the average mind are foreign to them. I knew it.

"W, well, I suppose it's useless for me, too."

Not to be outdone by the other two, Noel puffed out her chest. But I said.

"Noel. Open your robe."

"Wh, what kind of lewd thing are you saying?"

"Ricardo-kun." "Senpai."

"Hey, you're wearing your uniform underneath, right?"

Noel reluctantly opened the front of her robe. Tucked between two large cushions was a ballpoint pen, tied to a string. She had gone to the trouble of drilling a hole through the pen’s body to thread the string through.

"...It's useful when I'm drafting alchemy diagrams. You can make a whole bunch in one go, and you didn't charge me for the processing, so it's fine, isn't it?"

"I know. But you're going to help me improve the ink next."

"Fine."

It’s already a dramatic improvement in usability, but I have no intention of stopping here. I want an ink with a slightly lower viscosity, and while I’m not asking for a three-color ballpoint pen, I at least want a red one.

"It seemed like you were just stating the obvious. No, that must be why. My head feels much clearer now."

Alfina's eyes sparkled.

"Yes, this method breaks down complex problems into simple steps. Imagine you want a beautiful flower growing on a high cliff. Without superhuman athletic ability, it's useless to keep jumping or clinging to the cliff face. But if you just get a ladder, anyone can climb it. The steps between the problem and the answer are that ladder."

The Sky-Rain-Umbrella framework is an extremely versatile tool for processing information.

"That's right, Ricardo-kun's analysis of my first prophecy felt just like this."

"If you've understood that much, you get full marks. In that case, extracting information from the images in Alfina-sama's prophecy was the 'Sky', the expanding step. Narrowing down the location of the disaster to Leylia Village was the 'Rain'. Using Leylia Village as a starting point, considering the possible calamities was another expansion within 'Rain', and deciding it was a monster flood was the narrowing step. And then, from collecting tree rings to measuring the magic vein to find proof of the monster flood, all of that was the 'Umbrella'."

For complex problems, the Sky-Rain-Umbrella can be nested within itself or lined up in sequence.

"The key, as I said, is to expand and then narrow, and narrow and then expand. You could call it the Bon-Kyu-Bon of thinking, so to speak."

Alfina tilted her head in confusion. My eyes instinctively drifted toward Noel.

"Ah, a clever turn of phrase..."

Fulsy began, before quickly clapping a hand over his mouth. I realized my blunder. No, I actually prefer a more modest figure, but I suppose the eye-catching effect is proportional to the mass. Noel still had her robe open. ...though I was the one who made her open it.

"Ricardo-kun..." "...You're the worst, Senpai." "P, pervert!"

The gazes of the women rained down on me. Alfina looked down sadly, Mia shot me a deadpan glare, and Noel stared sharply as she pulled the front of her robe tightly shut. There was no way I could have an umbrella ready for such a sudden downpour.

"Ahem. In other words, your tedious method requires that pen, which can write small letters quickly and without interruption."

The head librarian spoke, as if to change the atmosphere. It almost sounded like he was covering for me, but he was nodding at my example just a moment ago.

"Y, yes, exactly. Which is why, Alfina-sama, I'd be happy to give you this."

I took out a pen and handed it to Alfina. It wasn't to cover up my earlier slip of the tongue or anything. It was a reward for understanding so well.

"Are you sure? But this is an important tool for your work, Ricardo-kun..."

"I have a spare."

When I showed her the one remaining in the box, Alfina's face lit up.

"We match... I'll treasure it."

Alfina said, clutching the pen to her chest.

"If that was your intention, you should have at least prepared a ribbon. It's a gift for a girl, you know."

"Ah, hahaha..."

Come to think of it, my gifts have all been desk-related things, like bookmarks and pens. Not exactly a gift for a girl, let alone a princess. It would be fitting if I were giving it to my niece, though.

Besides, this gift is a set. the pen is the hardware, and the Sky-Rain-Umbrella is the software. You can't tie a ribbon on a concept, on software.

"If that was a ploy to smooth things over, it was a little crude."

Mia muttered under her breath.

"Whoops, this took longer than I thought. We should get going soon."

I said, averting my eyes from Mia. It seemed my dear secretary's anger hadn't subsided yet. I'd have to make another pen now that I'd given my spare to Alfina.

Maybe if I ask Natalie to cut the yokan extra thick for her, it’ll be okay.