Whitestag National High School was located on a small hill in the northern part of town. There were less than five minutes before class started when Claude and the others arrived just before the school gates closed.
Speaking of which, it was thanks to Stellin IX that Whitestag was able to build a national high school and primary school in town. As the birthplace of the kingdom's renaissance, after Kargat ascended to the throne, the officials of the kingdom took the initiative to invest in Whitestag in terms of funding and policies. They invested more in public infrastructure and education.
For example, the prince's former campsite had now become a memorial plaza with a huge monument erected there. The statue of the prince on top of the monument looked insufferably majestic.
But in fact, the prince had fired the first shot in his own tent, and it had not hit any target. It had only made a hole in the top of the tent, and the prince's subordinates had rushed over when they heard the gunshot and disarmed the baron's private armed forces …
There were four classes in the second year that Claude was in. There were three male classes with around 200 students and one female class with 32 students.
Even though the kingdom's new education law stated that both genders had the same right to education, the commoners still preferred boys over girls. Of course, that had to do with the fact that the commoners couldn't afford the school fees for their children.
Even though the primary and secondary schools were allowed to accept female students, they were split into classes to avoid trouble. The boys were split into liberal arts and physical arts, while the girls were all liberal arts. Apart from the liberal arts being taught in the same way, the physical arts were changed to include flower arranging, drawing, art appreciation, sewing, cooking and other classes that were more suited to daily life. Naturally, the girls could also enroll in swordsmanship and horsemanship if they were interested.
There were basically three classes in the morning and afternoon. What was different from his previous world was that every class here lasted an hour, and the break between classes was 20 minutes. Classes started at 8 am sharp, and ended at 11: 40 pm. Lunch was provided by the school, and the cost was included in the school fees.
After lunch, students were allowed to move about freely in the classroom and weren't allowed to leave the school. Classes started at 1.30 in the afternoon and ended at 11.40 in the afternoon.
Most of the classes in the morning were about the liberal arts. Today, for example, there were three classes: grammar, mathematics and history.
Claude's seat was at the very back of the classroom. Firstly, he was taller than his classmates and secondly, the instructors purposely arranged the seats at the back of the class to prevent them from affecting the arts students' studies.
Ever since he rose from the bottom of the class to the middle of the pack, the homeroom teacher, Wickham, asked him if he should move his seat a few rows forward so that he could be taken care of in class.
However, he rejected the suggestion. As a transmigrator, he believed it was best to keep a low profile and blend in with the crowd.
"… Under the situation where the firepower of the frontline was completely suppressed by the enemy, the wise prince did not lose the confidence to win. He firmly refused the suggestion of his subordinates to leave the battlefield and hide for a while. Braving the enemy's fierce artillery and flying stray bullets, he stood on the high ground of the battlefield and used the monocle to calmly observe the enemy's battle line that was approaching step by step.
"Soon, the prince noticed a loophole in the enemy's battle line. The infantry and cannons were separated and he immediately ordered his guards to circle around the frontline and launch a roundabout attack.
That was the only force the prince had left. His subordinates were worried about the prince's safety and suggested that he shouldn't take such a risk.
"The prince said, 'When my soldiers are fighting bravely, as their leader, I have to bring them victory and not retreat on my own.
Go and fight. I'll be right here and watch over you until you plant the flag in the enemy's formation. '
The guards that were encouraged by the prince were like ferocious tigers that came down from the mountains. They broke through the enemy's interception and took over the enemy's cannons in one fell swoop. Then, they turned their cannons around and bombarded the enemy's battle line.
Faced with the sudden bombardment from behind, the enemy on the frontline collapsed and scattered in all directions, just as the prince expected.
The prince seized the opportunity and ordered his soldiers to launch an all-out attack, turning defeat into victory and achieving a great victory at Ingjil Hill.
"In this battle, the prince fought against more than twenty thousand enemies with less than eight thousand men and killed more than fifteen thousand of them.
The victory at Ingjil Hill isn't just the prince's first battle in the northern expedition, it's also the first great victory in his journey to revive the kingdom. The significance of this battle isn't just a victory on the frontline, it also signifies … "
It was the third lesson of the morning, a history lesson.
The history teacher, Mr Alim, stood on the podium, his head lowered as he read the descriptions in the textbook. He looked listless.
He didn't seem to notice the small movements and whispers of the students below him.
As long as it didn't affect his reading and the arrangement of lessons, Alim didn't really care about class discipline.
From that point of view, Alim was a good person in the eyes of the students.
Claude couldn't help but yawn. Welikro, who was sitting beside him, was already snoring on the table and would occasionally snore.
Eriksson and Borkal, on the other side of the table, were whispering to each other and scribbling on a piece of paper from time to time.
Claude flipped through the history textbook out of boredom and felt rather helpless.
Even though he was interested in the history of Aueras, he had been taught the history of the kingdom since he was a child. It was like a delicacy that would spoil anyone's appetite if they ate it every day.
As a transmigrator, Claude was actually most interested in the history of Freia. However, most of it was skipped over in the history books. One of the words that had become taboo in the real world caught his attention: magic.
The history books stated that Freia had gone through a dark age that lasted for thousands of years. Back then, evil magi ruled the continent. But five hundred years ago, stonemasons who couldn't stand the oppression formed an underground organization called the Brotherhood and stirred up a storm of resistance against the evil magi. It only took them eight years to defeat the high and mighty evil magi and chase them out of the continent. They migrated to Higros Island, which was far away from the north of the continent.
The leader of the Brotherhood, stonemason Regus o Hil, founded the Amslan Dynasty that unified Freia and granted three thousand nobles to guard the continent.
However, the evil magi who had fled to Higros were unwilling to accept their defeat. They plotted in secret, destroying the peaceful lives of the people on the continent. The Amslan dynasty fell apart after the death of Emperor Regus O'Shiel. Nobles everywhere began to rise up and kill each other. Freia was plunged into the flames of war that lasted for more than a hundred years.
More than three hundred years ago, Baron Aueras Don Stellin, a small noble in the eastern part of the continent, was determined to put an end to the chaos and protect his people. He led his warriors on expeditions to expand his territory bit by bit, laying the foundation for the establishment of a kingdom.
After he passed away, his son didn't let him down and founded a kingdom in the east of the continent. He named it Aueras after his father.
Alright, that was the end of the history of Freia. Next up was the history of the kingdoms. From Stellin I to Stellin IX, the history books were filled with records of these kings, big or small, tirelessly.
As a transmigrator, Claude didn't even have the energy to complain about it.
But there was nothing he could do about it. The records of kingdoms had always been the focus of history, especially Stellin IX's revival of the kingdom.
The history of this world is really a little strange … The transmigrator thought. Regarding the history of the continent being ruled by the evil sorcerer for thousands of years, all the books that he had read about it were written in a certain year of the Dark Calendar. Even in those legendary novels, where a knight rescues a princess, the ending would always end with the protagonist defeating the evil sorcerer and winning over the beauty.
As for why magi were evil, there was never a clear conclusion. It was as if magi were born evil.
Does magic really exist in this world?
Claude seemed to have asked that question when he was young. His father's expression changed for the worse and he gave Claude a good scolding. He emphasized that magi were the embodiment of evil and that the word "magic" was taboo. The moment traces of magic were found somewhere, it meant that misfortune was about to befall.
"Hey, Claude. Hey, hey, what are you thinking about?" Borkal called out softly from the side.
Claude snapped out of his daze. "Oh, what's up? I was just feeling sleepy."
Borkal handed him a piece of paper. "Take a look. Eyke and I discussed the things we need to buy and prepare. See if there's anything else we forgot."
Written on the paper were camping equipment and food that they needed to bring. There were not many things that they needed to buy, because most of the equipment and food could be brought from home by the four of them.
"Wero said he has a tent at home. Eyke said his father has a ship's tent that can be used on the deck and he can bring it over. That way, two tents should be enough for the four of us.
Wero said he can bring his father's musket, but we'll have to buy the gunpowder and lead from the grocer's shop. He doesn't have much left.
Eyke said he can bring his father's short-barreled musket, but the gunpowder and lead aren't compatible with Wero's musket. "
Borkal rambled on at the side.
"Our main expenses are on renting the boat. Old Sunny can let us use his single-sail fishing boat for two days, but he wants four riyases for the rental. I tried my best to convince him to lower it to three riyases and two sunars.
However, he took back the fishing net and didn't let us use it. We're going to Egret to set up camp and not to fish, so I let him be. "
Claude pointed at the four bottles of gran wine on the paper. "What's with this wine?
It doesn't seem to be a necessity for camping, does it? "
Borkal chuckled. "Well, I heard Wero say that it's cold in the mountains at night, even if there's a campfire. His father brings wine every time he goes into the mountains.
I think we're going to Egret by the sea. It's windy and humid, so I wanted to buy four bottles of gran wine, one for each of us. We can also go out at night to ward off the cold. "
Claude snorted through his nose. Actually, everyone knew that a sixteen-year-old was at the age when curiosity was at its peak.
None of them could drink openly at home.
Borkal was just using the opportunity to buy a few bottles of wine to satisfy his cravings with his friends.