"I don't know what right you have to decide whether or not I want to attend horsemanship lessons," Claude said as he glared at Arbeit with disdain.
"Compared to a certain idiot who spent five thales and still can't ride a horse, I didn't even have to spend a penny to learn how to ride a horse and I can do it better than you. That means I'm talented in horsemanship. That's why you're jealous of me and don't want me to improve my skills to satisfy your petty vanity, right?"
"Who are you calling an idiot?!
I … I'll be jealous of you … "Arbeit jumped up with a reddened face. Claude's words were like a sharp knife that pierced through his heart.
It had been half a year since Claude became Claude. Sometimes, he felt that the world he transmigrated to was rather strange. There were many similarities with his previous world. For example, there were seven days in a week and on Sundays, people would go to the temples of their faith to pray.
Aueras also had a basic education system, such as elementary schools and secondary schools.
But there were also many differences. Not to mention the two moons in the sky, even the temples of the people were polytheistic rather than monotheistic. The temples also had their own functions. For example, farmers worshiped the Gaia Goddess who brought harvest, sailors worshiped the God of Storms, warriors worshiped the God of War, the Goddess of Silver Moon who represented love and health, and the God of Sun who brought light to the land.
What surprised Claude the most was the education system. It was very different from the exam-oriented education of his previous world.
The education system was divided into subjects, but it wasn't divided into arts and sciences. Instead, it was divided into arts and sports.
The focus of the liberal arts was grammar, history, arithmetic, theology, geography, and nature.
Grammar wasn't the language of his previous world, at least that was what Claude thought. The common language of Aueras was Hebraic, a language that evolved from the ancient Hertz language. It was spoken in the eastern part of Freia. The kingdom's archenemy, Nasri, and Berkeley, which was annexed by the kingdom, all spoke Hebraic.
Grammar classes in elementary school were simple. Students had to learn how to read and write fluently. Hebraic wasn't alphabetic. Instead, it was a diamond-shaped script that was large at the top and small at the bottom with a bulge in the middle.
The beautiful handwriting was like an erect little tadpole.
In a way, the Hebraic script was a bit like the Chinese characters familiar to the travelers. There were more than six thousand characters recorded in the dictionary, and the same alphabet was used to pinyin, and the same word meaning could be known.
Grammar classes in middle school were more like a comprehensive course. not only did they have to learn a few uncommon words, they also had to learn administrative and commercial writing.
At the same time, he also had to learn two new languages, Gemir, which was popular in the northern part of the continent, and Lessihet, which was in the central part of the continent. These two languages also evolved from ancient Hez and could be said to be close relatives of Hebraic.
History was an important subject in middle school, but Claude had privately complained that it was a good brainwashing course.
The textbook didn't focus on the history of Freia. Instead, it focused on the arduous process of the founding of Aueras and the achievements of the previous kings. Stellin IX's achievements took up more than half of it. For example, most of the exams focused on the Tricolor Scepter War, the battle that lasted for three years, and the tactics Stellin IX used to defeat his enemies. It was something that annoyed the transmigrator to no end.
Arithmetic went without saying. Elementary school taught the basics of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Middle school only had quadratic equations. Geometry and algebra were nowhere to be found.
What puzzled Claude was that even budgeting and auditing were included in arithmetic. What the hell was going on?
Theology could basically be viewed as myths and legends, but it was worth noting that different gods had different prayers and rituals, as well as different taboos in life. This was an important point that every student had to keep in mind.
Geography was more like a business planning book. In addition to describing the geography and mineral knowledge of the known continents, islands, and oceans, it was more about describing the landscape and customs of each place. The focus was on the local specialties of each place and the profit difference between selling them to other places.
Nature was also a comprehensive subject. Claude believed that the kingdom's education department irresponsibly mixed biology, botany, and common sense together to form a course called nature.
The textbook mostly focused on the differences and characteristics of various flora, fauna, and insects. That was probably the area the kingdom's scholars researched the most thoroughly. For example, there were clear conclusions on which part of the Kunshan antelope's fur was most suitable to be used as a scarf.
Generally speaking, it was easy for a middle school liberal arts graduate to find a job in the kingdom's various administrative departments, large merchants, and factories that paid enough to support their families. Claude's elder brother, Arbeit, was recommended to be the personal secretary of Sir Fux after graduating with the first place in liberal arts in Whitestag Middle School.
Physical subjects were actually courses that trained the students' physical qualities in various ways.
It included the common exercises such as long-distance running, swordsmanship, boxing, wrestling, metal throwing, club fighting, equestrian training in the second year of middle school, and firearms training in the third year of middle school. Sometimes, Claude even wondered if he had entered a boot camp for new recruits.
Even though Aueras' middle school was divided into liberal arts and physical sciences, they weren't separated into classes. The only difference was the focus of their studies.
Every student had to follow the same curriculum.
Liberal arts students had to take physical education classes, and physical sciences students had to take a liberal arts exam.
Claude, who was possessed by Claude, had terrible grades in liberal arts, so he became a physical science student early on. Fortunately, his physique was decent and he was one of the top students in the school.
As for his elder brother, Arbeit, even though he graduated with the first place in liberal arts, it was said that his results in physical education were horrendous and he was at the bottom of the school.
Take equestrian training for example. After a month of equestrian training, a second-year student would be able to ride a horse decently. After a month of revision, a third-year student would have decent equestrian skills and would be able to control any mount they pulled over.
However, Arbeit, who was one of the top liberal arts students in the school, couldn't ride steadily after spending two thales on equestrian training in his second and third years. He would have to perform all sorts of tricks from time to time, probably because of his irreconcilable dislike for horses.
As a result, his equestrian training became a rare occasion for middle school students. Not only was he given the nickname of an equestrian idiot, there were even people who placed bets on how long he could last on horseback.
In an era where horses and carriages were the main means of transportation, Morssen had no choice but to spend another three thales to hire an equestrian instructor to privately train his eldest son.
The result, however, was regrettable. A month and a half later, the master of horsemanship said to Mr. Morssen, "Your eldest son is as stiff as a block of wood on horseback. He can sit still when the horse is moving at a slow pace, but he will fall off at the slightest speed, not to mention a trot.
I'm sorry, but your eldest son doesn't have the slightest bit of athletic ability. There's nothing I can do. "
Fortunately, the horse was docile and the grass was soft. With the instructor's protection, Arbeit didn't suffer any serious injuries even when he fell off the horse many times. That was quite a pity for Claude.
However, it also made Arbeit view riding as a treacherous activity and Morssen gave up on the idea of letting his eldest son learn equestrian skills.
"Shut up, Claude!"
Mr. Morssen reprimanded him with a gloomy face, "You're a physical education student, and Abelle is a liberal arts student. Don't compare your strengths with your brother's weaknesses. If your grades in liberal arts are as good as your brother's, and you become the top student in the whole school, then you'll have the right to criticize your brother."
Claude pursed his lips. He didn't want to be first in the arts. The academy collected the papers of the past top students in the arts and made them into a model essay for the students to reference. Arbeit's final essay was included in it and he even got full marks for it.
Claude almost puked when he read it.
It was an essay that praised Stellin IX. All sorts of praises were thrown at it, but the essay itself was empty and boring. Apart from the fact that it was refreshing, there wasn't much to it.
Only someone with thick skin could write such a shameless essay. It was no wonder the instructor had to give it full marks.
Any change would mean dissatisfaction with the great Stellin IX. No smart instructor would be willing to make a mistake that would be taboo for the Stellin royal family.
Morssen took out a black deerskin pouch with golden edges and placed a shiny silver thale on the table. "Claude, I'll give you what you deserve.
As a father, I won't be partial to any of my children, nor will I mistreat any of them.
Your brother spent a thale on equestrian training for two semesters in middle school. You won't be an exception.
When Booker grows up, he'll be treated the same way as you. "
Claude looked at the thale on the table. "But Father, I still need some money to buy a few books.
I heard from Boa that a batch of new books arrived in town two days ago. I want to take a look. "
Arbeit glared at the silver on the table with fiery eyes. He couldn't help but explode at Claude's words. "You're going to buy books?
You're just looking for an excuse to cheat money from your father so that you can go out and fool around with your gang of scoundrels!
There are more than a hundred books in the study. You can read as much as you want there! "
Claude smiled. "As my elder brother, you disappoint me greatly.
Father gave you the right to use the study, but you didn't use it properly.
I've read through all the books in the study in the past half a year and made quite a few notes.
If you don't believe me, you can take a look at the bookmarks and creases in the middle of the pages. I left them there. "
"You … You read through all the books in the study?" Morssen asked in disbelief.
"Yes, Father.
Claude nodded. "I even rearranged all the books in the study and arranged them on the shelves. You guys put them too randomly in the past."
"Good.
It's good that you like to read. "
Morssen happily took out another silver coin from his pouch. "One riyas should be enough, right?
Forget it, I'll just give you two riyas to buy the books. "
Claude nodded with a smile. He picked up a large silver coin and two small silver coins from the table. "Thank you, Father. I'm full. I'll go to school now."
He then ran upstairs. His bag was still in the attic.
Angelina wiped her mouth with the linen napkin on the table and stood up as well. "I'm full too. I'm going to school."
He picked up his deerskin schoolbag and went out.
"Father …" Arbeit looked at his father.