Standing at the front of the classroom, looking out over all the students trying their best to wrap their minds around the various little bits of formations esoterica he’d fed to them… Mingtian tried his very best not to sigh. They weren’t stupid, by any means, just… perhaps he’d let himself be spoiled by Lily when it came to just how dedicated his mortal students could be.
It wasn’t that they were dumb, no— not by any means. All of them were at the very least smart enough to get into the elite part of the academy— there were no slackers amongst their group, not by any conventional definition of the word. Each and every one of them put their best foot forward in his class, their best effort…
They did not truly care, though. He could tell. They did not stride into the depths of the art and see it as that, art— they followed what he taught them and wrote what he told them to write, and understood what he explained to them and…
Maybe he was giving them too little credit. They were only children, after all. “Alright. Time’s up.” A scattering of groans, as pencils and brushes clattered to their desktops. A few students dropped their heads into their hands, no-doubt bemoaning just how much— or as it was, how little— they’d managed to achieve on the quiz. “Line up and hand in your papers. Your grades will be posted by next week’s class.” Earlier than that, if he had a moment to himself to loosen his bonds just a little, but he tried his best not to behave too unbelievably.
Almost laconically, the class shuffled up to his desk one by one— no, definitely tiredly. It was a friday morning, and he was sure that everyone there was rather exhausted. Every time he was handed a slip of paper, he’d deftly roll it up into a small tube and tie it shut with a ribbon, stamping it with a little jade seal before laying it gently in the box he’d brough specifically for this purpose. After what Urmaphara had tried for the last quiz, he was not going to be taking any risks with potentially unstable formations that could, at any point, ignite into a conflagration and force him to make everyone retake the exam. Hypothetically.
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As a hypothetical. For no particular reason…
All too soon, it was over. He didn’t even take the time to look over Lily’s, as much as he wanted to— he had to get out of the room before their Qi Theory instructor arrived, which… well, he wouldn’t say that Kaihe hated his guts and tried to ruin his day at every possible opportunity, but that didn’t stop it from being true.
He snapped the case shut with an impressively final clack, giving all the students settling back into their seats a single, heavy glance. “I’m sure all of you did well.” Strangely enough, that didn’t seem to reassure them much at all. “Have a good day.” He nodded to them, and without waiting for a response, strode out into the school’s silent hallways. The moment he was out of sight, he waved his hand, making the box of formations disappear into his spatial ring. It was getting rather cramped in there… he’d have to go through it sooner than later. Maybe after the kids graduated…
Another thing to remember to do. He’d get to it sooner or later… East Saffron’s 32nd Preparatory Academy, he couldn’t help but notice as he strode through its silent halls, possessed a strange character during the day. A sort of… busy stillness, a knowing that behind every wall and door were so many students eagerly awaiting the end of their week a few hours and lunch later, when they’d be released for a couple days of freedom before they had to come back and repeat the whole process all over again. The whole of their generation— the entire precinct, as far as he knew— there, around him, not even knowing they stood in the presence of an immortal.
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