First Lesson
"That's all?" Hearing that "Dexter" hadn't even given his surname, the teacher raised an eyebrow slightly. Dexter calmly nodded.
"That's right, that's exactly it."
"..." Although the teacher knew that most transfer students were more or less troublesome, he did not expect that this seemingly normal boy would cause trouble from the very beginning of his self-introduction.
Taking a deep breath, the teacher sighed:
"So, does anyone have a question?"
"Me!" A lively-looking girl raised her hand and waved, saying with a bright, sunny smile:
"Where did Dexter transfer from?"
"Hmm... Roan, Pachira, Prind, Pishute, Ro Leon, Crimsonburg, Chipper, Er Luo..."
"Cough cough cough!" Hearing Dexter rattle off the list of the most chaotic cities on the planet, ranking them like a menu, the teacher abruptly interrupted him, chuckling dryly:
"It seems Dexter has traveled to many countries. What are your hobbies?"
As soon as the words left her mouth, the teacher wanted to slap herself, fearing that this student might utter something even more shocking. However, to her surprise, Dexter simply smiled and replied:
My hobbies are playing musical instruments and painting, and I hope to work in the design industry in the future.
"Alright, everyone, let's give a round of applause to welcome our new student. Hmm, Dexter, your height is pretty good. How's your eyesight?" The teacher scanned the classroom and asked the question. Feng Xue knew what she meant and naturally responded:
"My eyesight is pretty good, and there's no problem with the people in the back."
"That's good. There's an empty seat in the second-to-last row. You can sit there for now, and we'll adjust it later if anything goes wrong. Nanami, please take care of the new student!" The teacher called out to the girl who was probably going to be Dexter's deskmate, and the girl immediately responded.
Dexter looked in the direction of the sound and saw a girl with medium-length orange hair who looked very energetic.
After Feng Xue sat down, the official bell rang. The homeroom teacher tapped on the lectern and spread out the lesson plan, saying:
"Alright, let's begin the lesson, Dexter. If you have any questions, you can ask after class."
After saying that, the teacher didn't delay. He immediately opened his textbook and wrote what appeared to be an excerpt from a traditional poem by Budali on the blackboard, while reading it aloud in a rhythmic and melodious tone.
The classroom fell silent for a moment, and just then, a note with writing on it was handed to me from beside me.
[Dexter, did you attend school in Luoan before?]
Dexter glanced at his deskmate out of the corner of his eye as he scanned the words on the note, then picked up his pen and, as if taking notes, wrote below:
[Yes, would you like to see Luo'an Experimental Middle School Student ID?]
"Oh, is that okay?" The girl, whom the teacher called Nanami, looked at the note and her eyes immediately lit up. However, remembering that class was still in session, she quickly covered her mouth, straightened her posture, and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that the teacher was still writing on the blackboard. She then continued their written conversation.
I heard that Luo'an was one of the first areas to be attacked by the Heavenly Court?
[That seems to be the case, but I had already transferred to Er Luo at that time.] Dexter's pen moved quickly across the page. Looking at the somewhat familiar yet completely unfamiliar place name, Nanami thought for several seconds before remembering that it seemed to be a coastal city in the Kingdom of Bailin Country. She immediately asked curiously:
[The Bailin Country? I heard that the people of the Bailin Country are all muscular Strong Man, is that true?]
[It's definitely from Bailin, but saying they're all muscular Strong Man is a bit of an oversimplification. While fitness is popular in Bailin, not everyone there only eats chicken breast and drinks protein powder. Your statement is like the Bailin legend that every woman in Budali has tattoos...]
Upon seeing the text written by Dexter, Nanami blushed and immediately wrote:
[That's a magic rune, used to enhance meditation efficiency. It can be washed off, and why do you have that impression?]
"[Who knows?]" Dexter left a meaningful reply, and Nanami's expression immediately became subtle. Judging from her expression, it was clear that she actually knew the reason.
However, just as Nanami was trying to change the subject and stop talking about this awkward impression related to certain movies and TV shows, her homeroom teacher's voice suddenly rang out:
"Dexter, read this passage!"
Upon hearing this, Dexter immediately stood up, looked at the blackboard, and said:
"Heaven and earth intertwine, the afterglow of sunset paints the sky with fire, the Titanic peaks gleam with azure thunder, and all armies are subdued..." (Ancient Budali proverb)
"Very good, Dexter's Budali Ali is quite good." The teacher nodded in satisfaction, then said:
"Then, try to translate what this sentence means."
As soon as he finished speaking, a lot of eyes turned to him, and what the students saw was Dexter's confident expression.
He brought his fist to his mouth, coughed lightly twice, then straightened his chest, raised his head, and said in a tone somewhat like a translator:
"The horizon, stained crimson by the falling incendiary bombs, was as red as the sunset. The towering Typhon-type Titan construct activated its Azure Lightning-type City-Breaker Cannon's sweeping mode, forcing all enemy troops to surrender under its immense firepower... Hmm, the Typhon-type Titan construct, I remember it was a machine deployed during the White Rose War thirty years ago. Was this article written by a war correspondent from the White Rose War battlefield?"
As soon as the words were spoken, time seemed to freeze in the already quiet classroom, until about three seconds later, wild laughter echoed throughout the room.
"Cough cough..."
To maintain the dignity of a teacher, the teacher, forcibly suppressing a laugh, coughed twice and said in a slightly off-key tone:
"Um, well, Dexter, this article is a manuscript by a poet from Budali 900 years ago. In the ancient Budali language, adjectives are placed after nouns. Here, 'Titan' refers to the Titan in Budali mythology, used to describe the height of a mountain, not to describe a Titan. Similarly, 'the afterglow is like fire' means the sunset is like fire, not that fire is like the sunset..."
As the teacher explained, his laughter gradually subsided, but the students, seeing the teacher's serious explanation, laughed even harder.
Then, the one who laughed the loudest had his skull crack open.
The teacher, who had been calm, immediately shut his mouth upon seeing this, took a few steps back to the podium, pressed a button, and almost immediately a voice rang out:
What's going on?
"A student in Class 2-1 laughed so hard their head split open!"
"Clear!"
After a brief exchange, hurried footsteps soon followed, and the student who had laughed so hard his head was immediately lifted onto a stretcher. Only after the other students had stopped laughing did the teacher take a deep breath and say:
"Although the school has comprehensive emergency measures, let's not forget common sense! Got it? Okay, let's continue the lesson!"
After saying that, the teacher continued explaining the poem's appreciation, while Dexter stared blankly at the student's seat being carried away, speechless:
"What's this? Hilarious? Or just mind-blowing? But there's no convertible here!!"
Dexter's Laboratory is a childhood memory. When I watched it as a child, I was so angry at the older sister that my blood pressure soared. Watching it again as an adult, it is indeed full of American anti-intellectualism. Smart people can't solve problems with scientific methods, but idiots who mess around can become saviors. And smart people end up either being bullied wage slaves or villains who destroy the world.
But thinking about it carefully, given the social climate in Colombia, high-achieving students are often ostracized and bullied in schools, while popular characters are often lively and outgoing, like the older sister—champions, rugby players, etc. So, Colombia viewing this animation as portraying the mentally challenged older sister?
Yes, it's a classic example of anti-intellectualism.
However, upon closer inspection, it seems the author is using irony. For example, I recall the last episode aired on TV, where the protagonist turned himself into a broken record who could only say "egg roll," and became popular everywhere. He eventually ran for president and ruled the world, but the lab's password failed, causing the lab to self-destruct. Perhaps I'm overthinking it, but isn't this saying, "Being a broken record (a fool) can bring you everything, but you'll lose yourself?"