Lazy Ant

The main gate of Plato Academy towered high, made up of three marble archways—the largest in the middle and two smaller ones on either side.

Besides the archways, the main gate was flanked by walls of trees. There was no surrounding wall, nor any guards.

A line of words was carved into the gateposts.

Those who do not understand geometry may not enter.

"So that really is written here..."

Suye thought for a moment. He could probably remember some basic geometric knowledge, such as the Pythagorean theorem. He happily stepped forward, but after running a few paces, he suddenly wondered, How do you prove the Pythagorean theorem again?

Suye continued forward, though he was no longer very happy.

He rushed through the gate. Smooth marble pavement stretched beneath his feet, with thick lawns on either side.

Countless marble statues were displayed along the roadside.

Suye's eyes lit up, and he nearly let out a gasp.

He had never expected to see such a rich collection of Ancient Greek statues here.

The statues nearest the main gate were incredibly simple. They had only human outlines, as though pieced together from geometric shapes, but every statue displayed distinct male or female traits. This was Suye's earliest memory of Ancient Greek statues. They had appeared around 3000 BC in his previous life and had been named the statues of the Cyclades Islands.

Although these statues were simple, they possessed an indescribable beauty.

The statues farther ahead gave him a more familiar feeling. They were filled with a strong Egyptian flavor. However, unlike the overly flat style of Egypt, these statues had more three-dimensionality, more muscular detail, and more vitality. Their finer details were merely rather rough.

Suye continued looking as he went, growing more and more delighted. Such a vast collection of statues arranged according to their eras was a sight that could not even be found in the museums of his previous life.

The farther forward he ran, the more delicate the statues became. The proportions of the figures grew more perfect, and the details more refined. By the end, the statues had fully reached the New Realm. Nearly every one displayed joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness, as though a living person had been frozen in place.

Suddenly, Suye turned around and quickly swept his gaze over the statues on both sides. Rich people.

Aside from the early works, nearly all the statues here were made of Parian Marble, the most precious sculpting material in all of Greece. Needless to say, every marble statue here was the work of a master.

Unfortunately, time was too tight for Suye to appreciate them carefully, and he soon left the statue area.

A fountain pool with a diameter of thirty meters lay directly ahead. Countless white statues stood within it: statues of people, legendary heroes, and magic beasts, as though they formed a stirring epic.

At the center of the statue group stood a statue of the Hydra. It resembled a dark cloud occupying the entire sky above the pool.

Suye ignored everything else and rushed straight to the edge of the fountain pool, scooped up some water, and began washing his face.

He had not washed himself since yesterday.

After washing his face, Suye found the water quite clean. He ran beneath a Hydra-head spout, caught water in his hands to rinse his mouth, and then started running again.

"Taking the marble road would mean going a long way around. I can only run straight through the lawns and woods. But my feet don't seem to get scraped as easily as before today. Could my talent be taking effect?" Suye observed himself as he ran toward his class, and his face soon lit up with delight.

The Suye of before had been extremely thin and weak, but now he had not only grown taller, he had also developed obvious muscles. He was in no way inferior to an ordinary Warrior Apprentice.

When Suye stepped onto the lawn with his back to the pool, all the statues in the pool slowly turned their heads. In particular, the nine heads of the Hydra stared at Suye's back together.

A Plato Academy teacher not far away witnessed this scene and rolled his eyes. Who's bold enough to do that? That's the famous Sea Demon Fountain, a legendary Magic Artifact personally refined by Plato. It contains three legendary magical Sea Magic Beasts.

Over the years, everyone who had dared cause trouble in Plato Academy had ended up in the bellies of the three Sea Magic Beasts.

As Suye ran, he thought that the pool seemed to have some impressive origins. Unfortunately, some of his memories had vanished, and he could not remember. Forget it.

Plato Academy faced south with its back to the north. Directly north of the pool stood the famous Plato Hall. Although it was far less ornate than a temple, it was no less majestic.

Suye charged diagonally toward the northeast of the academy, where classes were held.

Even without taking the main road, Suye could see from the corner of his eye the huge columns outside the magnificent Plato Hall. Unlike ordinary columns, every one of these had been carved into the form of a different, powerfully built man.

The moment Suye saw the Male Caryatids from the corner of his eye, he remembered that female Caryatids were forbidden throughout Greece because they were reserved for temples. Moreover, every Male Caryatid in Plato Hall was a Holy Domain puppet.

There were a full thirty-six Male Caryatids on either side of Plato Hall.

Directly above Plato Hall was a conspicuous magical clock. Apart from lacking a second hand, its minute hand, hour hand, and markings were especially similar to those of Blue Star.

As expected, one must never underestimate the wisdom of mages, Suye thought.

Suye kept running, but his mind was filled with those nearly perfect statues. The key difference was that, unlike the damaged and dilapidated statues he had seen in his previous life, the statues he had just seen were all perfectly preserved by magic, filled with beauty that shook the soul.

Even with the talent of the Demon Bull Body, Suye had run for so long that he was beginning to breathe heavily.

Plato Academy was simply too large—so large that it was known as the biggest man-made garden in all of Greece.

After crossing one lawn and wooded area after another, Suye saw that the building where his class was located was getting closer. Suddenly, he spotted someone crouching beneath a large tree.

In the past, Suye would not have been able to see clearly at all. But after his body had been strengthened by the Demon Bull Body, his eyesight had improved, allowing him to clearly see that the person was constantly using a branch to obstruct an ant, seemingly trying to force it back into the Ant Nest.

"Don't obstruct the Lazy Ant. It will create a miracle!"

Suye thought he might as well say something since he had nothing better to do. After shouting, he did not look at the person and continued running.

The young man crouching on the ground had thick, slightly curly black hair. He slowly raised his head and looked toward Suye. His eyes seemed to roil with mist.

"Lazy Ant?"

After murmuring those words, the man threw away the branch and began staring at the ant.

After emerging from a stretch of woods, Suye saw rows of stone buildings. Some were connected, while others were scattered throughout the area.

Suye quickly found the building where his class was located. With the fragrance of soil and fresh grass beneath his feet, he walked to the classroom entrance.

Second-Year, Class Three.

Under the sunlight, the students dressed in "bedsheets" of different colors and styles looked over.

Ripples of laughter came from inside the classroom.

Teacher Niedern, who was explaining the matters concerning the new school year, turned to look at Suye.

The instant he saw Teacher Niedern, a large amount of memory surfaced in Suye's mind.

Niedern was a tall, red-haired old man dressed in a gray Greek robe. Aside from that, he wore no decorations at all. He was neat and clean. The features of the Greeks were already rather three-dimensional, but his face was even more angular than theirs, and his enormous aquiline nose was especially striking.

However, upon closer inspection, one would notice that his two eyes were slightly different.

His left eye was false.

Every student knew that there was a saying circulating throughout the academy: Teacher Niedern was so kind that even his false eye was filled with warmth.

However, Teacher Niedern rarely smiled. His reputation for kindness came from the fact that he always answered every student's question without ever growing impatient.

He often kept one of Socrates' famous sayings on his lips: There are no foolish questions, and there are no foolish answers.

Niedern quietly looked at Suye.

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Note: That saying was spoken by Socrates of the World of Gods.