3 A Teacher Is Not Simply About Solely Teaching
Henrik strides through the quiet hallway, heeding the class signs, until he arrives at 10C. Adjusting his tie, the man takes in his breath sharply, with a grin ready to head inside. His fingers on the sliding door, about to pull open. However, he spots the gap between the door, and its frame. Henrik raises a lighthearted brow, looks up and snorts to himself; his eyes on the chalkboard eraser stuck into the door. In other words, here he has an old-school prank.
"Well, that certainly signals an interesting year," Henrik regards, widening his grin.
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Chapter III: A Teacher Is Not Simply About Solely Teaching
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Henrik opens the door. As he expected, the eraser falls from the slightest pull. Yet instead of landing on top of his head, he leans back, using his boot to catch the eraser. In a swift motion, he lightly kicks the thing up, and nabs it with the hand holding his bag. Breathing out, he narrows both his eyes as he tilts his head, only to try to hold back a laugh as the entire class of horse-girls is already descended into complete silence. Several standing horse-girls froze in their place.
"...What genius thought this was funny, I wonder?" Henrik, muses out loud, deliberately, trailing his gaze across the scared witless horse-girls, until he stops at a certain mask-wearing lass—who gulps as soon as his gaze squints, looks right straight into her sky-blue eyes.
In a minute, nobody moves, nobody speaks. A hush washes over his entire class, and as each second passes more and more horse-girls growing more nervous. Their tails either quakingly shifting side to side or too scared to even move an inch.
Which Henrik snorts, suddenly bursts out into a laugh, no longer able to hold back. The entire class, dumbfounded, stares strangely at the teacher. Henrik shakes his head. No longer the glare visible on his face. He closes the door and walks to his desk, smirking at his students amusedly.
"One glare. Back at my hometown, teachers need more than a glare to grab your attentions," Henrik says, placing his bag on the desk. "Honestly, you lassies do need to train your mind a lot more if you wish to compete in the highest stages of Japan horse-girl racing, specifically G-1."
The horse-girls glance at each other, unsure what to say. Until one raises her hand up. "U-Um, sensei, could you explain more to us? I don't think we understand what you meant."
"Not everything is shown on the TV," he starts, smiling. "You may see them racing each other in a... fair and orderly fashion. But I can assure you, once you're out there, your opponents will do anything to win. For some, fair play isn't exactly in their dictionary. And that includes intimidating, or playing mind games, putting it mildly. Well, does that make any sense?"
A collective of "oh" and "ah" resounding throughout the class.
"I'll take that as a yes, then," he continues, holding the chalkboard eraser up. "That being said, since one of you or more decided to prank me, I suppose they should be... held responsible, yes?"
Which got the class silent once more. The horse-girls stare at Henrik nervously, as the man walks to their rows of desk and chairs, looks around for a moment, before he fixes his eyes on a particularly anxious brunette horse-girl, who averts her sky-blue eyes away from his.
"You with the nice-looking Lucha Libre wrestling mask. What's your name, lass?"
"E-El Condor Pasa, teach," she replies sheepishly.
"Sounds Mexican enough. Still, you're American-born, aren't you?"
Her ears flicker. El Condor Pasa blinks. "How do you know, teach?" she asks, looking at him in an out-and-out wonder.
"Your accent gave it away, obviously," Henrik replies, deadpan, making the horse-girl's face becomes slightly red. "That being said, a fellow American to another. A fine pleasure to meet you."
Her ears flicker again, this time seemingly confused. "But... you sound like a British."
Henrik chuckles. "That is what happened when you live in England long enough, lass. Things like a change your accent and vocabulary tend to happen. Though I have a bad habit of mixing American-English and British-English whenever I talk, which also somewhat affects my Japanese."
He places the chalkboard eraser before her. "Do tell me, El Condor Pasa-san. Were you that... genius who orchestrated this little prank to your new teacher?" he questions casually, smiling.
El Condor Pasa sweats. Before she scratches the back of her head, laughing, jitterily. "He he he... It was me—?!"
Which Henrik instantly flicks his fingers on El Condor Pasa's forehead, eliciting a startled, and pained yelp. The horse-girl clutches her forehead with both of her hands. "It huuuuuurts!" El Condor Pasa whines adorably, albeit slightly loudly.
"Everything you do have its consequence, lass," Henrik says, whilst he places his hand atop her head and strokes her hair gently. "While your prank seemed pretty harmless, what if the eraser landed on someone who has allergy to chalk powder, or dust? Just be more careful next time, alright?"
"Yes, teach..." she replies faintly, rubbing the red spot on her forehead.
"Lovely. Good lass." Henrik messes her hair more, prompts the girl pouting cutely.
Henrik moves his hand away from the El Condor Pasa's hair. He soon notices a certain tiara-haired horse-girl, borderline grey, sitting next to the window, with her face planted on the desk, sleeping so soundly without a care for this world, nor what is happening around her. Does she even realize that class is already in? Talk about being a bit too carefree.
"Wakey, wakey. Class is already in." Henrik gently nudges the tiara-haired horse-girl on her shoulder, only to receive a faint murmur, something like "no" and "five more minutes".
"Give up, teach," El Condor Pasa says, as Henrik turns to the masked horse-girl. "She's never gonna wake up. We already tried."
A handful of horse-girls start to plop their head, agreeing with El Condor Pasa.
Henrik looks at the soundly sleeping horse-girl, soon curls the corners of his mouth into a sly grin. He leans towards her head, close enough to hear the soft snoring. He gently grabs and lifts the tip of her ear, blowing into her ear canal. Jolting upright in a flash, with the face covered in shades of red and pink, the tiara-haired horse-girl squeaks, darting her blue eyes around until they land on Henrik, flabbergasted. Her mouth trembling slightly, unable to form any word.
"Morning, sleeping beauty." He simply smiles. "How should your new teacher call you?"
"S-Seiun... Sky," she manages a stutter, grabbing her still-twitching ear.
"Well, Seiun Sky." Henrik ruffles her hair. "You could go to the bathroom to freshen up, splash that cold water across your face to wake yourself up, if you'd like to."
Henrik straightens his posture, ignoring the pout from Seiun Sky and various blushes from his pupils. The man puts his attention to another horse-girl, who remains standing, with some others, throughout the whole time, having a tawny hair that reaches her waists, along a faint white spot located above her parted blunt bangs.
"And you. Another fellow American?" Henrik muses. "Doesn't matter. Your name?"
The said horse-girl blinks. "I-It's Grass Wonder, professor," she replies softly.
"Well, do take a seat, Grass Wonder," he urges. "And the rest, please get to your seat."
The standing horse-girls instantly shuffle into their seats. Henrik makes his way back to the desk with the eraser. Taking off and hanging his coat over the chair, he adjusts his tie, once more, and rolls the dress shirt sleeves up to his elbows. He takes a white chalk from the box on the table, twirls his body slightly and faces the wide board.
"Blackboards?" Henrik snort. "I prefer whiteboards. They are... re-markable."
El Condor Pasa groans. Clearing his throat, holding in a light chuckle, Henrik starts to write his name in both English and Kanji on the board. Once completed, he turns around and faces his students, with a brief glance at a deadpanned El Condor Pasa and a giggling Grass Wonder, prompting him to smile widely. Meanwhile, the rest of the class remains clueless of the blatant pun.
"Good morning, everyone. Welcome all of you to Tracen Academy. My name is Henrik Kaiser, or Kaiser Henrik, as it's called in Japan," Henrik introduces himself, with a friendly grin. "I will be your homeroom teacher for your next three years. I mainly specialize in teaching both Mathematics, and Languages. As for how you wish to address me, you can call me sensei, teacher, Henrik, Kaiser. You name it. Whatever suits you the most. It's my pleasure to meet soon-to-be great horse-girls."
His brief introduction got some reactions out of it. Mostly positivity and curiosity. Henrik gazes across the classroom. His eyes stop right at El Condor Pasa, whose hand is up. With a nod, he gestures her to speak up.
"Your name kinda sounds German for an American, teach," El Condor Pasa specifies.
"My adoptive parents are originally German immigrants, hence the name they gave me. That being said, my first name is more Danish, or Swedish, than actual German."
El Condor Pasa makes a sound, plopping her head.
"In any case, a simple Math and Languages teacher mightn't sound like much, nor it is as prestigious as a horse-girl trainer. Yet in the case that there's a problem which you want to talk about, be it about racing, school, or just personal things, seek me and we shall talk, alright? Not as a student to a teacher, but a friend to a friend."
His face softens, looking into his students' eyes dearly.
"I know many of you here are far from home, and homesick is totally normal," Henrik continues, as he puts on a faint smile. "For some, it's easy to accumulate to their new environment. For others... it takes time. The important bit is that you need to include someone in your new journal, right here in Tracen. Alone you go fast, but together you go far. No one succeeds alone, lassies. Never walk alone in your future paths. In other words—" he chuckles "—don't be that kind of 'genius' like me."
He makes his way and stands before the teacher desk, before his class.
"I'm not here just to teach you math and languages. I'm here to make sure that each of you is going to have a future better than mine," Henrik claims, "to be both your companion and your friend. Not simply somebody who bloody goes to the class to just give out some lessons that you can find on the Internet before returning home. I frankly give a damn about your future. I can spend the whole 50 minutes without teaching just to be a lot more familiar with you, or just to talk, if I need to. Which is not happening now, obviously"
Which the class goes "aww", as Henrik grins, extinguishes any hope for a free class period.
"Now, now. Settle down now, lassies. Other classes are learning," Henrik reminds, as the class soon turns quiet once more. "Having said that, we do have a period for ourselves in Friday. For now, we are going to deal with math. Get your glasses, lassies, because it will help your... di-vision."
This time, the whole class groans, aside Grass Wonder, who giggles, making Henrik laugh.
"Alright, alright. I'll stop. Anyhow, before that, I'm going to need you to introduce yourself to your new classmates and friends, if that is alright with you all?"
"Yes, sensei~!" the class says together, prompting Henrik to smile wider.
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"That Teaching 101 book really did me wonders," Henrik mutters to himself, taking a large bite out of one of the beef sandwiches he made this morning while sitting on the sloping grass with its whole view of the school's flat running track, enjoying the breezy winds, as the gentle noon sun bathes him with delight. "Really makes me feel like I've been actually teaching for two years."
Of course, having no prior experience to teaching, Henrik was undeniably restless, in spite of the so-called teaching materials were a thing. Yet despite this setback, the being who brought him and gave him a job—the job which he wanted, but not necessarily needed—without his consent mercifully left a book to assist him with the then-pressing matter.
Although, Henrik is not so sure if it should be called a book. The moment he opened that book, he blinked, and the thing disappeared. With it, every information and supposedly "experience" the man needed in order to proceed with his teaching materials was within his head.
An odd experience, that it truly was. Then again, he died, and got revived in an Earth where there're no actual horse. Instead, there are these girls and ladies called horse-girls. Boy, he had hell of a time trying to grasp this Earth's history, especially with the famed Polish Winged-Hussar.
Dressing 3000 horse-girls, or women, in heavy armors, equipping them with lances, before ordering them to charge into the Ottoman Turkish army in the battle of Vienna? Must have been a sight back then, as Henrik wondered, intrigued of what happened.
His Earth and this Earth. So many similarities, yet so many differences; and the only major distinction between them lies on the era of the Cold War from 1947 to 1991 itself.
"...Still and all, what the hell am I supposed to do with all this money?" Henrik sighs, scratching his head with a click of his tongue. "As if someone who knows how to solve this headache is just going to appear out of the blue to help me. Life ain't that easy."
Henrik sighs again, slumps his shoulders. His ears then pick up the soft footfalls approaching him, as he turns around, quirks his brows in elation when his favourite horse-girl smiles at him.
"Sensei," Symboli Rudolf greets, looking at him curiously. "Why are you eating out here alone? You could always go to the teacher's lounge and the cafeteria. Headmaster even assigned a room solely for you. And what happened? You look... downcast."
"Don't worry. I'm just recharging my social battery," he assures with a grin. "Interacting with lots of students and horse-girls alike in a morning is quite mentally taxing."
Symboli Rudolf hums, inclining her head, seemingly satisfied with the answer.
"So, what're you doing out here anyway?"
"As the president of the student council, it is my duty to ensure that the running track is in its best condition to serve as class 10A's initial physical assessment this afternoon," she explains, glancing at the large field in front of them. "As you can see, it looks to be in perfect condition, ready to be used, as soon as the horse-girls have their well-earned rest before they hit the field."
"You take your position quite seriously, don't you?" Which Symboli Rudolf replies with a face-wide smile, slightly puffing her chest. "That said, have you had lunch yet? It's been quite some time since the school bell rung."
She flutters her eyes once. "Ah, not yet, sensei. I'm about to head to the cafeteria."
"I see." Henrik smiles, reaches into his bag—which is laid next to him—and pulls out a foil-wrapped beef sandwich, bringing it to her sight. "Want to have lunch with me? I might be reaching my social battery, but a pleasant company is all the time welcomed."
"A-Are you sure, sensei?" Symboli Rudolf asks, uncertain. "I mean, it's your lunch. And I don't wish to leave you hungry because you don't eat enough."
"Well, they did say food tastes a whole lot better when you share it with someone else," Henrik says, patting on the spot next to him. "Not to mention you could use some time away from your position, just for a short while. Loosen up a little bit. How does that sound?"
The horse-girls looks around for a moment. Before long, she returns her gaze to him with a soft smile, gratified, as though glad. "If you wish to have me, I'll happily take up your offer, sensei."
Delicately, Symboli Rudolf takes a stand next to him and sits down next to him, resting her seemingly ample bum on the heels while keeping both legs folded under her thighs, the top side of her feet flat on the grass, all in a perfect textbook seiza. Henrik smiles, hands the still-warm sandwich to the horse-girl, who mouths a "thank you", and a slight beam. She unravels the wrapped sandwich, revealing a fragrant, with the small hint of char, staring at the juicy-looking sandwich, amazed. Her nose twitches, taking in a deep breath. The corners of her mouth curve up delightedly.
"This smell phenomenal," she remarks, smiling. "Thank you for the food."
Symboli Rudolf takes a small bite elegantly. As she chews the tenderly grilled beef, fresh greens and herbs, caramelized onion slices and the crunchy pickles, her smile transforms into that of a bliss, with tinges of pink appearing on her cheek. Her horse-ears, and her tail shifting merrily, almost adorably in Henrik's eyes. A cute side of the famously stoic student council's president.
"I guess I don't need to ask how it tastes, huh?"
Henrik takes another bite from his sandwich. Finishing his share, he fills a cup with tea from a bottle, pleasantly warm, passes the cup to Symboli Rudolf, as the horse-girl too just finished the sandwich, accepting with a beam. She slowly sips the tea while Henrik pours himself a cup.
"You made quite the impression on your students, Kaiser-sensei."
Henrik blinks. "Really? Is that so?"
"You gave your class a fright, and El Condor Pasa a good scare for her prank," Symboli Rudolf says, eliciting a laugh from Henrik. "But, overall, everybody seems satisfied, or excited, with the way you approached the class and the lessons, aside the few complaints about puns. You are already the talk of the school, sensei. I would say your first day in Tracen is an astounding success."
"That's good to hear. After all, I do strive to be not only a good teacher, but a great one."
"A great teacher?"
"Yes. A great teacher," Henrik affirms. "Tell me, lass. To you, what does it mean to be a teacher?"
Symboli Rudolf, hearing the question, closing her eyes, hums thoughtfully. After a moment, she re-opens them, looking at Henrik straight in his eyes. "A teacher... is a person who helps their students to acquire knowledge, competence or virtue. And be able to hang in there with students until they can get them hooked into learning."
"A textbook answer," Henrik notes, as he turns his gaze to the field. "Though, with enough training, almost anybody can be become that kind of a teacher. A good teacher. That is fine. Me, personally, the sole thing that distinguishes a good teacher and great teacher, is that the great teacher is someone who is willing to lower themselves to their students' level, to become not just a teacher, but a friend, a pal, or simply a person they can truly trust and rely on. And most importantly, a great teacher does not give up on their students, ever, period."
Henrik sighs, switching his gaze back to Symboli Rudolf. "Seriously, think about it. Among the total number of students that attend Tracen alone... how many actually trust their teachers enough to talk to them freely, not as a student to a teacher, but a friend to another, about their problems? Just don't include the academic stuffs. They don't count. I'm talking about things like their life."
"But why should students talk to their teacher about their life?"
"That is the thing. That is the question. Why do I have to talk to my teacher about my life, or should I say, the problems that I'm having?" Henrik rephrases. "You might not know, but actively listening to somebody talk alone can actually help them a lot. Of course, I'm not talking about prying into the students' personal or private life. It is about letting them talk about the things they want to talk. With no judging. That IS the key here: no judging.
"Not to mention, you might even detect a problem or two and help them with, before it becomes a, well, menace to their life and their future. And as I stated to them, I frankly give a damn about their future. I've seen enough teachers who gave no fuck about their students, left them to their own device with no proper guidance, compassion, or a place for them to rely on when they needed the most.
"Many of my old friends have been the very victims of such neglect, especially those who had family problems. Their teachers should've been there for them, but there weren't any."
Henrik softens his gaze, smiling bitterly. "I, myself, was a victim too. My parents passed away when I was 15, when I was approaching high-school. Instead of finding a little comfort, maybe just a word of understanding is enough, my own teacher told me to fuck off to the counsellor."
Symboli Rudolf briefly widens her eyes.
"From that one moment, I began to think that all teachers are assholes. In any case, I moved to England with my parents' relatives and started high-school there. I basically shut myself in those three years. Felt I didn't belong there. Somehow got into Cambridge, but soon grew tired of school. So, I joined the army, hoping to find a place that I could call home. Turns out, it didn't take a genius to realize it was... the biggest mistake of my life. The only things I received are this goddamn scar on my left eye—" which he gestures to the large scar across his left eye "—what's left of my right knee, and... and a bunch of dead comrades whom I couldn't give a proper burial to."
Henrik sighs again.
"Anyhow, once I resigned from the army, my old high-school teacher invited me to his birthday. I... was quite hesitant, not sure if I wanted to come. But since he insisted so much, I gave in." He smiles with his eyes. "Once I was there, I learned the truth. That there were still teachers like him, teachers who actually give a damn about their students. He wanted to help me, genuinely. But... since I shut myself from everyone, I never noticed that. But, well, the truth and all, it was still too late. And three months later, he passed away with a big smile on his face while I was rethinking about my life."
"...Is that why you started to become a teacher, Kaiser-sensei?"
"You could say that." Henrik grins. "I want to my students to have a better future than mine. To not experience what I went through because of some bloody blokes of the teachers. Life is not all about sunshine and rainbow. There are ups and downs. I want to be there for them when they need me."
Henrik rubs his jaws, humming thoughtfully.
"Moreover, there bounds to have people, or horse-girls in this case, who find it difficult to get used to their new home. After all, this is a boarding school. Students here are all over the country and the world. 90% are far away from home. And when they can't get accustomed to this new life, aside their parents, who might be halfway across the Earth, who in the school are they going to turn to?
"Heck, I even saw one or two of my own students who couldn't talk to anyone until I came along. Or the break, some loners here and there across the school. One might make the so-called argument that they may want to be alone. Although, when I look at their eyes, I see my younger self in them. And by no means it is a compliment. At the end of the day, I simply want to prevent what happened to me from happening to them."
Henrik blinks, realizing he might have lost himself in the conversation.
"Oops. Was the talk too boring for you? My apologies."
Symboli Rudolf, in response, shakes her head, smiling assuredly. "No, it was not. In fact, I think this conversation solidifies my opinion on you being a great addition to our school. Like you addressed, I have seen several cases of horse-girls who wasn't able to get accustomed to their new home, which unfortunately led to some of them transferring or quitting. I believe many horse-girls will be relieved to know a teacher like you is here."
Henrik scratches his cheek. "Ha, you make it sound like I'm a big deal."
"You are, sensei." Symboli Rudolf stares intently at Henrik, before she blinks once, beaming. "I have an idea. Kaiser-sensei, why don't you join class 10A this afternoon for their assessment?"
"I can?"
"Of course. I think many will be thrilled to see you, since you already taught them, and the feedbacks I received are overwhelmingly positive."
"...I don't think that's a great idea though, lass."
Symboli Rudolf blinks. "May I ask why do you think so, Kaiser-sensei?"
"Well..."
...
"AH! What on God's Earth is that perverted teacher doing here?!"
Mejiro McQueen, currently wearing the school tracksuit for her assessment, cries, pointing her finger at Henrik accusingly while he keeps a blank stare at the hose-girl. Rolling his eyes, he expels a snort, eyeing her from top to bottom. She instantly has her arms covering her body, slightly tilting back as she glares at him. Unfazed, he sighs, deadpan.
"Ha! You spoke as if I am here to lust after that flat body of yours—"
Henrik rears his head backwards, as a flying kick barely goes past him. As red tick marks appear all over her head, Mejiro McQueen looks to chew him alive, rushes at him with barrages of kicks, as if intending to send him to the hospital. Even though each strike only hits the air. Henrik effortlessly dodges her attacks, grinning, steps to the side, and let another kick past him, then hits her butt with his cane. The lavender-haired horse-girl yelp, but enraged, grinding her teeth.
"Still a hundred years too young, lass." He wiggles his brows. "Though, that part ain't flat at all. Quite a nice curve with a nice sound when spanked, eh?"
She charges again. However, this time, Henrik catches her, brings her to a bridal carry, causing the girl's face to go absolutely beet-red.
"Adorable," Henrik muses amusingly. "Though, you need to reserve your energy for the upcoming assessment. We don't want to let you participate when you're tired, do we now~?"
"L-Let me down! I won't stand for this humiliation any longer!"
As Mejiro McQueen thrashes around in his arm, the rest of her classmates looks to the commotion, with mixed faces, but most of them seem to be amused. The poor horse-girl, realizing what is going on, stops, covers her face with both hands, with her horse-ears droop, muttering something like "do end me" repeatedly under her breath.
"Henrik-sensei? What're you doing here?" Tokai Teio approaches him, wearing her school tracksuit, and looks at Mejiro McQueen, who is still hiding her face in her hands. "And... uh, what is Mejiro McQueen doing there, in your arm, sensei?"
"We are just bonding, right, McQueen dear~?" Henrik asks teasingly.
"Just end me already..."
Henrik laughs. "Anyhow, I'm here upon Symboli Rudolf's suggestion, mainly to see what you lasses are going to do in your assessment," he says. "I did say I haven't really gotten myself into this horse-girl racing thingy until recently, didn't I?"
Furthermore—
"Kaiser-sensei, from what I can conclude, your goal is to get yourself more involved in your students' school life, yes?" Symboli Rudolf speculated, prompts a nod from Henrik, as they were walking back to the school building. "Attending your students' assessment is a great first step in letting them know you actually mean it when you say you give—I mean, care about their futures. Show them how willing you are by being there. The students already like you, so with your presence there, it will boost their morale and let them do their best."
Henrik looks to the rest of class 10A, grinning ear to ear. "I heard this assessment is really important, so you lassies have to make sure to give it your all, alright? One hundred percent!"
"One hundred percent!" the entire class 10A follows suit, raising their hand eagerly, with Tokai Teio joins in and screams out loud.
Henrik chuckles, can't seem to wipe off the smile on his face.
"Oh, my~. You guys are that excited for your assessment? That's nice~!"
Until he hears the sultry feminine voice behind me. Henrik drops his smile, his eyes going wide, as if stunned to his very core, going unnoticed by Tokai Teio. Slowly, he puts Mejiro McQueen down, as the girl soon makes her way to the woman dressing in a white dress shirt and black mini pencil skirt, clearly embarrassed from what transpired earlier.
"S-Sensei!" Mejiro McQueen whines, almost whimpering. "H-He's the pervert I told you!"
"Oh. Him?" The blonde-haired woman pats her head. "Fret not, darling. I will deal with him—"
Henrik turns around, and stares straight into her baby-blue eyes. "...Marie."
Marie, with gaping jaw, flickers her eyes. "H-Henrik...?" Marie stutters, as equally stunned as the man himself, going unnoticed by McQueen Mejiro and Tokai Teio, and the rest of 10A.
The two only stares at each other, as their onlookers grow more nervous with each second passing. And—before anybody could see it, in a swift motion, Henrik already has his sword cane drawn and pressed against her throat, whilst Marie unsheathes her gun and trains it on his face. The pair sends shock to the entire 10A class, rendering every student stupefied and frozen.
Until Mejiro McQueen and Tokai Teio got out of their shock first.
"J-Just what is going on?!" they both scream, while their sensei remains their standoff.
This is certainly not how the two of them imagined their assessment would go.
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