The seventh day of the New Year was also the first day of school.
In fact, school was supposed to start on the fourth day, but due to some reforms Lucas had required, the start date was pushed back.
Around seven-thirty in the morning, the roads were filled with students on their way to school, carrying their schoolbags and playfully roughhousing.
"Hey, Kyla, is that the newest style of schoolbag?"
"Yeah, my mother bought it for me. She said since I got third place in class, she'd reward me with a new schoolbag."
"Uh, that's... that's great."
"Kian, you need to work harder. You only scored thirty on the final exam this time. Did your father whip you again?"
"Ahem... he only hit me twice. My mother hit me once."
"You poor thing. Come to my house tonight, I'll tutor you."
"Um... I'll have to ask my father."
"..."
Conversations like this, between the top student and the slacker, played out every day. The innocent conversations of pure friendship between childhood friends made some of the adults feel quite emotional.
"Father, if I score in the top three of my class on an exam, can you reward me with something too?" Dale said, turning to look at Joe.
"As long as you make it into the top ten, I'll give you anything you want, provided it's not too excessive," Joe said very generously.
"Okay, I'll definitely get into the top ten," Dale said with great seriousness.
"Then you'll have to work hard." Joe patted Dale's head. At the very least, his son had improved a lot and learned a great deal, far more than in the Capital.
"Father, I heard the school is going to start a new activity, and it seems to begin today," Dale said, craning his neck. For the past few days, the students had just been going to school to help with cleaning and other tasks.
"Oh? What kind of activity?" Joe was taken aback.
"It's called 'military training,' and it was the Lord's requirement. I heard knights are coming to train us for seven days," Dale said with some excitement.
"Huh? Why?" Joe didn't understand. Why would there be such an activity? Having knights train small children? What would kids this young understand?
"I don't know." Dale shook his head. On the contrary, he was looking forward to being trained by the knights, thinking it would be a lot of fun.
Soon, they arrived at the school. Dale waved and shouted, "Father, I'm heading in."
"Go on." Joe didn't leave. He stood at the school gate, looking inside. He wanted to see what was going on today, and there were quite a few other parents who had the same idea.
Clang, clang, clang...
The iron bell was struck. Joe knew this was the signal for class to begin. He breathed a sigh of relief; it seemed like a normal school day after all.
Clip-clop, clip-clop...
The sound of horse hooves rang out, drawing the attention of Joe and the other parents lingering outside the school. Down the road, ten fully armed knights were riding over.
"They're not really going to have knights train my son, are they?" Joe muttered to himself in amazement.
Under Joe's astonished gaze, the ten soldiers had their identities verified and entered the school, where they stood waiting on the athletic field.
Thump, thump, thump...
"Hurry up, there are knights, there really are knights!"
"Whoa! So cool..."
"..."
The students ran out of their classrooms, followed by their teachers. Helen was among them; she was now gradually taking over the school's affairs.
"Alright, everyone line up just as I told you before," Helen shouted, clapping her hands.
"Yes!" The students shouted in unison. There were over five hundred students present, which comprised all the school-aged children in Sedona City, and also the next generation of talent that Lucas was cultivating.
After all the students had lined up in their class formations, Helen announced, "Today is the first day of school. At the request of the Lord, all students in the school must undergo military training at the start of every new term. It will last for seven days."
The purpose of the military training, aside from physical exercise, was to instill in the students an inclination to join the army. And indeed, as the students looked at the ten standing soldiers, they were all captivated by their cool-looking armor.
When necessary, Lucas would even have the students stay at the military barracks for a few days, especially the older ones, to let them get a taste of the food in the military canteen.
"For the next seven days, starting now, you must unconditionally obey your instructors. Military training begins now!" Helen shouted, then stepped aside to let the ten soldiers come forward.
The school was currently divided into six classes, with about fifty students in each. This was mainly because the new school was still under construction and there weren't enough classrooms. Once the new school was completed, each class would have a maximum of about thirty students.
Thump, thump, thump...
The soldiers had already been assigned to their classes beforehand. As they walked to the front of the student formations, the quiet chatter died down. The soldiers' serious faces as they stared at the students instilled a sense of awe in them.
"I am your instructor. You are the future of Sedona City, you are our hope. I don't care what profession you enter in the future, but one thing will never change: you need a strong body."
The soldiers began to indoctrinate the students, delivering a series of passionate and inspiring words. "And a strong body requires exercise. So, today's first task is to start running."
"All units, turn left! While jogging, run around the field!" A soldier shouted loudly. The soldiers chosen to be military training instructors were, first and foremost, die-hard loyalists of high moral character.
Thump, thump, thump...
The students began to run in a disorganized fashion, but with the soldiers' shouts, the group slowly started to look less like a chaotic swarm.
The parents outside the school were all dumbfounded. Why was the school doing this? Running first thing in the morning? Was this just because they were full and had nothing better to do?
Their confusion was perfectly normal, just like many people on Earth who don't understand the purpose of military training, feeling it's a complete waste of time.
Military training can strengthen the body and mind. It was the first lesson of a school year that emphasized both literary and martial pursuits, teaching people to value physical fitness, learn basic strengthening skills, and cultivate a sense of discipline, execution, responsibility, and team spirit, allowing them to quickly integrate into a collective.
All in all, the benefits of military training were numerous.
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