Chapter 127: Learning Experience

At the signal from Rosalia, the mist spirits came forward one by one to introduce themselves.
Despite their height ranging from 1.6 to 1.8 meters and their weight being about twice that of underage humans, they possessed a strikingly beautiful appearance that surpassed that of humans. With the refined demeanor naturally acquired from elf education, they displayed impeccable etiquette during their self-introductions...
However, those "adults" who introduced themselves obediently hid behind Ms. Rosalia and cautiously observed their new teacher, their eyes filled with overflowing curiosity.
This almost absurd scene shocked Nancy.
A group of people who appeared to be around her age actually exhibited a "docile" demeanor, as if they had no thoughts or personalities of their own, and their thinking was as simple as that of a child. Whatever the adults said was accepted without question.
Nancy was stunned for a good while, making sure that she hadn't mistaken.
These people... they really seem to be just a group of children.
Charles hesitated to speak.
After signing the Sacred Sage Covenant, he learned more details from the other party.
After the birth of a mist spirit infant, they will first sleep in the mother tree for fifteen to twenty years, until they grow into a form resembling a human child of about five to seven years old, before being taken home by their parents.
This period of time is mainly to prevent young children from inadvertently channeling extraordinary power and causing harm to their fragile brains and bodies. After all, mana is not the unrealistic energy in novels such as spiritual qi or internal strength, and there is no natural enhancement effect on the body in a scattered state.
The age range from twenty to forty can be considered as the childhood of mist elves. Just like human children, they need to learn how to walk, pronounce, and control their bodies and the magic essence within them.
Of course, this is also a carefree time. The social form of the mist elves determines their stable and slow pace of life. Children will grow into adult size and establish their own appearance at around forty years old, followed by a sixty-year academic career.
The academic system of the Mist Elf Academy is somewhat similar to "Happy Education" in the cognition of Sha'er. Although there are teachers who teach, there is no mandatory requirement to master knowledge other than social common sense and extraordinary courses.
Simply put, Mist Elves only have two main courses, and the rest are elective courses.
The time concept of the Longevity Tribe is so extravagant and capricious. In addition, their abundant productivity is one of the reasons that support their capriciousness. Rosalia revealed to Charles that there are more than thirty tribes like cavemen in the Elf Empire, with population numbers ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands. Most of them are races that were sheltered by Mist Elves because their countries and tribes were destroyed by the magic tide.
After hearing this, Sha'er immediately added an ultimate feudal colonialism label to the other party. If it weren't for the invasion of the Great Demon Tide, this system, just by compensating for the rulers' lifespan deficiency, would have been adopted by the mist elves for at least ten thousand years.
The group of mist elves in front of us is the product of a unique educational system. Their ages range from seventy to ninety, and they have not yet crossed the adulthood boundary set by the elves before being driven to the battlefield by the iron-blood faction within the elven empire.
In terms of human age, these guys have just passed one-fifth or one-sixth of their lifespan, which would be roughly equivalent to being twelve to fourteen years old teenagers. It's not strange at all to refer to them as children.
Xiaer glanced at the group still filled with excitement and curiosity, shaking his head involuntarily.
It's time to let them know how the lives and time of the "poor" have been spent, thinking of this, the young man turned to Nancy and whispered:
"It's not a good idea to always stay here. The other kids have arrived, so let's just go to class."
…………
The first class is math.
Under the encouraging gaze of Charles, Nancy reluctantly walked up to the wooden podium and introduced their new classmate to the students who had gathered here.
A group of "big brothers" and "big sisters".
Looking at twelve mist spirits huddling behind desks that don't fit their size, Xia'ermo couldn't help feeling a bit comical as they obediently greeted the teacher along with the other elementary school students.
However, Miss Miu Lan opened a hidden barrier, and the three people responsible for observing the teaching had not been noticed by the students in the class.
Kane's thoughts were completely different.
He felt that everything around him was filled with a sense of unknown freshness, completely different from the monotonous life in his hometown that never changed, and also different from being brought up by Aunt Rosalia to deal with those weak humans. Everything here is extremely interesting!
Because they were generally taller than those little radishes, Casey and his companions were temporarily assigned to the last two rows of the classroom, which allowed him ample interest and time to explore this novel world.
四四方方的木桌上被人用小刀刻了两个牵着手的小人，左上的角落还有一个“早”字, 这证明书桌应该还属于过另一个人；
The tiny booklet, thinner than a finger, emanates a delicate scent of ink. Upon opening, one can see minuscule words printed on its pages, accompanied by a rough sketch of what appears to be a small mountain nearby.
There are two pots of flowers placed by the window, one of them is morning glory, and the other one cannot be called by name. They are a bit withered in the cold wind of winter, and the mist spirit decides to cast a growth-promoting spell on them later.
Without the on-site supervision of Rosalia, the remaining fog sprites have become much more lively.
Nancy noticed the restless behavior of those "troublemakers" immediately, and she already started to have a headache at this point.
Although she couldn't see the Lord and others in her field of vision, she had been informed in advance that this was to avoid disrupting normal teaching, so she was certain that she was being closely watched.
She noticed that the other children had started to become distracted because of the group behind them, and her sense of responsibility as a teacher overcame her uneasiness.
"Cain! Cain!" Nancy called out the name of the most mischievous person.
The classroom immediately fell silent, and both human children and their fairy companions turned their gaze towards the individual who was feeling the table leg.
Startled by the numerous simultaneous stares, the latter was initially frightened, but soon after, a sense of novelty washed over them.
In the college of my hometown, everyone always did their own thing. He had never experienced such a high-profile feeling before. A handsome male elf with a charming face stood up and smiled, asking:
"Teacher, is there anything the matter?"
"Can you solve this math problem for me?" Nancy pointed at the math equation she had just written on the chalkboard with her cane.
Kane immediately fell silent.
Those numbers he knows are all learned in the Imperial Common Language, but why does he not recognize them when symbols are added?
What is the math problem again?
The silence of the mist spirit is getting longer.
Gradually, he felt that the curious looks at him had a hint of contempt, and even heard some children's faint mocking laughter.
Kane has never experienced this feeling in his hometown college.
The piercing gaze of those eyes made the Fairy of Mist's fair complexion flush with a blush of embarrassment, adding a hint of discomfort to the self-esteem she had learned from elders.
What should be done in this situation?
Kane subconsciously wanted to find the elders present, but quickly realized that he and his companions had been entrusted to a human teacher.
According to the guidance he received in the academy, he should seek help from that teacher, who is now his new elder. However, despite following Rosalia's instructions and calling the teacher, he still hasn't fully accepted a human as his elder deep down.
Kane turned his gaze towards his companions.
The mist elves who were accompanying him may be mentally immature, but it didn't mean they were fools. Almost everyone could see Kane's current predicament.
He is very embarrassed now.
Nancy noticed Kane's line of sight and followed his gaze to another troublemaker:
"Kane seems unable to answer this question. Elvis, why don't you give it a try?"
A new victim has emerged.
Nancy felt like she had found a way to deal with these people. She went through each one and called their names, and the mist spirits stood up one by one, their faces quickly turning red.
The children of the natives who originally belonged to this classroom couldn't help but burst into laughter. They were originally curious about these new tall classmates, but didn't expect them to look fierce. As a result, they were collectively made to stand as a punishment.
Charles noticed that the face of Mrs. Fu, the mist elf, turned ugly, and the latter couldn't help but ask:
Is this your human education, to find ways to humiliate us?"
"Please be patient and keep reading, madam," Charle replied with a smile. "
The situation quickly changed.
Nancy on the podium scanned the group of adults helplessly and singled out one person,"
"Joseph, could you come and demonstrate how to solve this problem for the new students?"
The mist elves watched as the small and silent boy walked up to the podium and quickly drew out an answer with just a few strokes. Then, he turned around and confidently explained the meaning of each symbol to them.
Nancy watched as the determined child returned to his seat and quietly asked the group of "grown-ups" who were still standing in detention:
"Did you all understand what Lole said earlier?"
Most of the mist elves, including Kane, did not understand, but still nodded subconsciously, just wanting to get out of this embarrassing situation as soon as possible.
So Nancy erased the answer written by Joseph and asked Kane to try again.
As expected, laughter burst out in the classroom again, and the mist elves' faces were already ashamed like boiling red prawns.
This time Nancy is really angry, she walked down the platform and came to Kane, shouting loudly:
“If you don't understand, you can learn slowly! Why do you have to lie?! If you have any shame, just tell me honestly, can you do it or not?!”
Kain felt so ashamed that he couldn't face anyone. He even thought about finding a place where he would never see anyone again and hiding for decades. However, the pride inherited from his bloodline prevented him from escaping from here.
The misty elf lowered his head, his voice as soft as a bug's chirping: "Teacher, I can't do it."
Nancy turned her head and looked at those individuals with their flushed faces and lowered heads: "What about you?"
"Sorry! We don't understand!"
The female teacher nodded in satisfaction.
"Now you remember, because you don't understand this question, I need to take up other students' time to explain this question again specifically for you!"
The Sprite of Mist glanced up at the short humans who had previously been disregarded. The disapproving looks from the latter quickly ignited their shame once again.
"You have one more class period to study seriously! Before class ends, every person must try this question again. This is your last chance to prove yourselves!"
…………
Rosalia observed the entire class.
It was the first time she saw these younger students break free from their lazy and indifferent demeanor.
Watching them blush and grit their teeth, committing the human teacher's lecture to memory, and ultimately passing the test, she suddenly felt a sense of satisfaction.
Completely forgetting their initial appearance as if they were about to rise up in rebellion.
"The education methods of humans are indeed different from ours, the mist elves," Rosalia thought for a moment and finally praised.
"This is called being ashamed and then brave," Charles calmly explained, "You protect the next generation too well."
Rosalia's speech was momentarily stagnant, not knowing what to reply.
The iron-blooded faction sent these ignorant children onto the battlefield, and the other side still feels it's not enough?
Cher seemingly saw through her thoughts and said, "If I'm not mistaken, each of them has magical artifacts that can protect themselves in critical situations, right?"
The mist elves could not argue and could only nod.
The elders of the Ironblood faction, who also consist of mist elves, instinctively protect the precious next generation. They would not be foolish enough to send the young ones to their deaths.
"To grow, one must experience loss. Our descendants do not have the almost infinite resources and opportunities for trial and error that you have. Human life is inherently short, so we must seize every moment to unleash our light and heat. This is the greatest difference between humans and elves."
"So, Ms. Rosalia. If you are truly determined to change, then think carefully about how much you are willing to sacrifice for it." Charles concluded in the end.
Rosalia silently looked at the group of "children" in the classroom.
The juniors who passed the test seemed to have gained the recognition of human children. They didn't mind their study time being occupied but instead gathered around them, sincerely giving their praises.
She noticed the expression of her juniors, which was completely different from when they were back in their homeland.
So proud, so confident.
Compared to their submissive demeanor in front of their elders, and their impatience with easily obtainable luxuries, perhaps she liked them better now.
"I understand," Rosalia sighed, "Perhaps the greatest gain for the fog elf returning to the land this time is not receiving the news of the great magic tide, nor discovering the steam creation, but meeting you."
"Your Excellency Charles, if you do not betray, I am willing to represent the Mist Spirit and establish a true and everlasting friendship with you."
She extended her fair hand, following the customs of Elnis.
Xia Er paused for a moment, then extended his hand and shook it as well.