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墨書 Inktalez
A few days later, James stood at the podium in the university library, his usual professional smile plastered on his face, but inside he was filled with disgust and impatience. This lecture was part of the school's Holistic Education initiative, aimed at promoting interdisciplinary knowledge, theoretically to broaden students' perspectives. However, the actual effect of this lecture was clearly diminished.
Below the podium, students sat scattered in groups, their postures relaxed and disengaged. James's gaze swept over the expressionless faces, fueling his anger further. He knew these students were not here out of interest in his lecture. Their only motivation was to fulfill the school's requirement for lecture hours to ensure they could earn credits at the end of the semester. They cared nothing for history, academia, or even who was speaking.
The scene below made James feel even more nauseous. Many students were staring down at their phones, fingers flying across the screens; some even began whispering to each other, completely ignoring the lecture taking place on stage. Occasional muffled laughter broke out, clearly unrelated to his topic. His voice seemed merely background noise—no one cared, no one paid attention.
In the front row sat a few students who appeared to be "seriously" listening; they sat upright, eyes fixed on James as if fully engrossed. But this illusion offered him no comfort—instead, it made him feel more uncomfortable. These individuals looked like a bunch of complete oddballs, their faces blank and expressions wooden, as if devoid of any emotional fluctuation. James scoffed internally, thinking that these students probably couldn't grasp anything normal.
"They look like a bunch of ignorant fools," James thought mockingly. Those students seemed very "focused" on his lecture content, but he knew they were not contemplating the historical issues he discussed. Perhaps they couldn't even understand what he was saying; their minds might be completely blank.
James's voice remained smooth and carried a hint of restrained calmness, but his thoughts had long drifted away from this lecture. He understood that this was merely a futile performance—no matter how brilliantly he spoke, this group of students would not care. Their attention was entirely elsewhere; all they cared about was that annoying credit and the required lecture hours.
"Holistic Education?" James sneered inwardly. "These people can't even be considered competent students; how can they talk about Holistic Education?" To him, this lecture was just another meaningless duty to fulfill. For James, it was simply part of continuing to demean himself.
The host stood at the podium with a microphone in hand, continuing to ramble on about his "thoughts" on James's lecture. His tone was filled with exaggerated enthusiasm as if this lecture were a significant academic feast for everyone involved. However, the students below had long lost interest and had never expected much from this lecture in the first place. Their sole purpose for being there was to complete the required attendance and accumulate necessary lecture hours to earn credits.
James stood off to one side of the podium, coldly observing this tedious spectacle. His expression maintained an artificially composed calmness, but inside he felt utterly weary. He knew that this lecture had been meaningless from the start; he was merely going through the motions while these students played a game of mutual indifference just to check off their attendance. He had already noticed several students growing impatient, their eyes wandering around as they awaited a signal for it to end.
As the host's hollow praises echoed throughout the room, one student finally stood up quietly, moving swiftly yet silently toward the exit as if afraid to disturb the dull lecture. This action seemed to break some unspoken silence; soon after, a second and third student followed suit, silently trailing behind him toward the exit.
These students moved quickly and decisively as if they had planned for this moment all along. They paid no attention to the host's continued praise and summary; his words were mere background noise to them—they didn't even want to spare a sliver of attention for this lecture. At that moment, their only goal was to get that small attendance sheet proving they had "listened" to an hour-long lecture and completed this tedious credit task.
Gradually, more and more students began joining this "great escape." One by one—two, three… like dominoes falling—more students rose silently and headed toward the exit to line up for attendance. Their faces were expressionless as they moved swiftly; clearly, they could hardly wait any longer. The entire attendance area suddenly became lively as many engaged in quiet conversations about their upcoming plans while the speech on stage faded into mere background noise, completely forgotten in their minds.
James looked coldly at everything unfolding before him, filled with disgust and mockery. He understood that this speech was nothing more than a meaningless farce, and the students eager to sign in were merely actors in this absurd play. For him, this lecture represented an unbearable humiliation in his academic career, while for these students, it was just a trivial tool for earning credits. There was no real connection between the two.
The host remained on stage, continuing with his bland expressions of gratitude and summary. He seemed completely oblivious to the fact that the crowd was gradually thinning out, with students already beginning to leave one by one. His voice still brimmed with "enthusiasm," but that enthusiasm felt so hollow and powerless, as if he no longer believed in the words he spoke. Meanwhile, the line at the sign-in area grew longer, and signing in had become the true focus of this lecture.
James's gaze was indifferent yet sharp, and his sense of disgust intensified. He knew that this dramatic conclusion symbolized the absurdity of it all. He stood there, appearing calm on the surface, but inside he felt a deep disappointment and ridicule towards everything happening around him. This so-called "academic exchange" was merely a series of powerless compromises with reality, and these students couldn't even be bothered to show the most basic respect.
In the end, only a few people remained seated in the venue, contrasting sharply with the host's forced enthusiasm. The students who had signed in had long vanished into the hallway, leaving behind a few "odd ones" who lingered for reasons unknown. James knew that it was finally coming to an end, and its conclusion was absurdly laughable—more ridiculous and meaningless than he had anticipated.
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