Rpms and counterintuition

[BlitzPig_EL]

I don't like putting almost anything aeronautical in automotive terms, as everything is very different, but, a better "transmission" analogy is the Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT).  CVTs in land vehicles are typically programmed to keep your engine at it's most efficient RPM, regardless of road speed.  A Constant Speed Propeller essentially does the same thing as it attempts to keep your engine at a constant RPM regardless of aircraft speed, which it can do within the limits of the range of degree of angle it can set the prop blades to.