After settling the two hundred or so individuals, Simon had Bjorn register James and the others the next day, officially enrolling them into the Equipment Department.

Out of the 231 strong and young individuals who stayed, most were between the ages of thirteen and twenty. The older ones, likely having families, had chosen to leave.

"Does anyone here know how to read?" Simon asked, wanting to assess their literacy levels.

The room fell silent.

Simon immediately understood, none of the two hundred or so individuals was literate. This was expected, as this was an era with an extremely low literacy rate.

This also meant that training these individuals would be a long process. Teaching them overly complex techniques now would be futile, as they wouldn’t be able to comprehend them.

Although the system could transfer knowledge, presenting technical steps in their minds through images and other forms, the application of this knowledge required real-world practice.

For example, blast furnace iron smelting and coke production were skills that Fjord had mastered only after many failures. Simon had only provided the technical knowledge, and it was through practice that Fjord truly understood and mastered the techniques.

However, there was one comforting aspect of the system: it allowed the recipients to easily remember the knowledge Simon imparted. While it didn’t grant photographic memory, it enabled them to retain about 80% of the information after a single session, greatly enhancing the efficiency of teaching.

"Since that’s the case, the first thing I’ll teach you is how to read." Simon declared.

These individuals would become the core technical backbone of Brambleford in the future, and illiteracy was not an option. However, Simon didn’t plan to teach them traditional characters. Instead, he would teach them simplified characters.

From now on, all technical documents in Brambleford would use simplified characters. This was also to maintain the confidentiality of the technology and materials. Of course, even with simplified characters, people from the Eldorian Empire would still recognize some of them, but as long as 50% remained unintelligible, it would suffice.

To speed up James and the others’ learning, Simon adopted modern teaching methods, starting with the most basic characters.

In the morning, he taught them the entire system and checked their progress. The results were satisfying; they had memorized more than half of the phonetic alphabet.

In the afternoon, Simon shifted to teaching them mathematics, starting with Arabic numerals and simple addition and subtraction within ten.

Overall, the pace of his teaching was much faster than that of a typical elementary school curriculum. This was partly because they were older and more disciplined than children, and partly because they were highly motivated to learn.

In this era, being able to read was considered a prestigious skill, and people naturally yearned for what they lacked. At least for today, James and the others were fully focused during the lessons.

In the evening, Bjorn brought a plaque inscribed with the words "Oxford Academy." This was the official designation for the courtyard, which would now serve as Brambleford’s educational base.

"James, review the lessons with them tonight. For now, you won’t be assigned any other tasks. Your food, clothing, and daily needs will be taken care of by servants."

James, the most active among the youths, quickly ran over to help hang the plaque when Bjorn arrived.

"Your Highness, how can we be worthy of such preferential treatment? How can we ever repay your great kindness?" James was still unaccustomed to the drastic change from being a slave, ordered around by others, to becoming a scholar who could read and write.

Simon smiled. "This is only temporary. Once you’ve mastered real skills, you’ll need to serve me. That will be your way of repaying me. For now, simply learning what I teach you is repayment enough."

"Yes, Your Highness." James replied.

Given that the two hundred or so individuals were all youths, Simon was concerned that James might not be able to manage his peers. He addressed the group. "From today onward, this place will be known as the Oxford Academy. More people will come here to study in the future. I hope you cherish this opportunity. If anyone among you shows no desire to improve, I will have no choice but to give them some silver and let them fend for themselves. Don’t blame me for being harsh. The reason I selected you is to revitalise your homeland, and there’s no room for error. From now on, I appoint James as your head student. All of you must obey his commands."

The youths bowed and replied in unison. "Yes, Your Highness."

Simon nodded. In the Eldorian Empire, the term ’head student’ referred to someone responsible for ensuring that students adhered to the academy’s rules and assisted the instructors in educating the students. Now that he had established an academy, it was important to formalize the structure and assign the necessary roles.

After giving James a few more instructions, Simon and Bjorn left the academy. The guards at the entrance closed the gates behind them.

Simon had decreed that the students would be allowed to leave the academy for one day every seven days. The rest of the time, they were to remain within the academy to study.

"My Lord, may I also have my son attend this academy and receive your teachings?" Bjorn suddenly asked as they entered the castle through a side alley.

Simon chuckled. "Why the sudden request, Bjorn?"

"My Lord, my son is of mediocre talent, with only a bit of cleverness. If he continues to idle away his days, he will never amount to much in the future." Bjorn replied.

"A parent’s love for their child is always forward-thinking. Though you are strict with Fjord, it is out of deep concern for his future. Rest assured, Bjorn, there will be a place for Fjord in the Oxford Academy." Simon said.

Bjorn’s face lit up with joy. "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness."

Simon waved his hand. "You are all my trusted ministers. This is only natural."

Bjorn’s body trembled slightly. Being called a ’trusted minister’ deeply moved him.

After expressing his gratitude, Bjorn left to share the news with Fjord.

Joan, who had been following Simon all day, finally couldn’t hold back her curiosity. "My Lord, what you taught today was all so strange. Why have I never heard of such things before?"

Both Joan and Ysabeau were literate, so they naturally noticed that what Simon had taught James and the others was not standard characters but rather something they found peculiar.

"This is my secret. Don’t speak of it to others." Simon said with a smile.

Joan nodded, not daring to ask further.

By now, dinner was ready in the castle. Unlike the meagre meals of two months ago, the food was now more abundant, with not only pastries but also stir-fried dishes.

This was partly because the prince’s treasury now had silver, and partly because merchants had flocked to Brambleford, bringing a variety of goods.

A few days ago, Simon had the Machinery Department specially craft an iron work for the residence, along with a coal stove. With these cooking tools, the kitchen was now well-equipped.

"My Lord, here is the braised chicken you requested." The cook said as he placed the ironwork on the table. The aroma of the dish filled the air, making Simon’s mouth water.