13. Monthly Evaluation and Bottom Ranking
The day after we rescuing Leaf Village and Baron Voltman’s two arms, we returned to the Count Travel household.
‘What is all this—?!’
Sitting at my desk in the classroom, I stared in disbelief at the mountain of assignments stacked before me.
With unfocused eyes, I internally screamed in horror.
“Did you enjoy your educational field trip? I heard that Young Master Reytan has returned to the position of Grand Master. Congratulations on that achievement.”
Madam Freya’s sharp and precise voice pierced my ears. She spoke so quickly yet clearly pronounced every word.
“Leaving behind your field trip application form was quite well done. But with enjoyment comes responsibility.”
“Responsibility…?”
Surely she didn’t mean all this work in front of me was my ‘responsibility’?
Before I could even ask, Madam Freya, a highly competent teacher, answered my unspoken question.
“These are the assignments you missed during the week you were away. Begin completing them today. You’ll also have daily assignments added to this pile, so don’t forget to keep up.”
“Ugh…”
My fingers already ached just thinking about it.
‘This is way too much work for a seven-year-old to handle!’
“…How about completing 30 percent of the assignments?”
Inspired by Dad’s impressive negotiating skills, I decided to give it a try.
Madam Freya glanced at my four extended fingers and then at my face before firmly replying.
“Do all of it. And you need to learn how to count properly.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Rejected in one swift stroke. She left no room for negotiation.
Faced with Madam Freya’s unyielding demeanor, I lost all will to resist.
“The first lesson is history. Complete your assignments after all your classes are over. For now, take out your history book and place it on your desk.”
With that unbelievable instruction, Madam Freya exited the classroom.
As I silently cleared the assignment papers off my desk in preparation for history class, a mocking voice reached my ears.
“Idiot.”
Turning around, I saw Harty and Marty quickly avoiding my gaze, while Calypso leaned back in his chair with his hands clasped behind his head, looking straight at me.
“What are you looking at?”
He started it, yet he shamelessly questioned me. Still, it was only polite to return the favor when provoked.
“You look like Pochi.”
“Pochi? What’s that?”
“It’s a cute little dog!”
“What?”
Calypso froze in his seat, still clasping his hands together. He seemed unsure of how to respond to my words.
“But Calypso, don’t you have any bad words to use other than ‘idiot’? The young master of the Count’s family is definitely a kind person, huh?”
“…Hey.”
It seemed he had realized I was picking a fight.
As Calypso stood up from his seat, Ciel, who had been quietly reading a book beside him, spoke up.
“Stop it, Calypso.”
“Stop? Did you not hear that? Are we just supposed to let some idiot who was a commoner until last month talk so arrogantly?”
“The monthly test is coming up. Don’t make a scene.”
“…Tch.”
At Ciel’s words, Calypso plopped back into his seat and began flipping through a math textbook on his desk.
‘Calypso is actually studying math…?’
Even the twins were doing the same. Though they seemed unhappy about it, their eyes were fixed on their books.
I was genuinely surprised to see this.
Ciel was always diligent in all aspects, but Calypso and the twins usually relied on their strengths to cover their weaknesses.
‘Why are they taking it so seriously now?’
Ciel, with her usual responsible tone, turned to me.
“Berry, you should start studying too. You know there’s a monthly evaluation next week, right?”
“Yeah.”
“You should start soon. It’s better to be prepared.”
“Why? Isn’t studying for smart people?”
I didn’t actually think that way. I said it deliberately to give my rival, Calypso, some motivation. My goal was to stay at the bottom, and Calypso was the rival who might threaten that position.
But what Ciel said next made me break into a cold sweat.
“Grandfather said he’ll be directly involved in this month’s evaluation. He also said anyone scoring below 60 in any subject would face consequences.”
“Oh….”
This was bad.
***
There were two reasons why this month’s evaluation was a big deal.
First.
I didn’t want to face Grandfather’s wrath. I needed to narrowly scrape past 60 in every subject.
Second.
What if I scored better than Calypso? There was a chance Calypso might fail to score above 60.
“Aaaahhh!”
I buried my head into the stack of assignments Madam Freya had given me earlier. Evening had come, and my right hand ached from writing non-stop.
‘This memory doesn’t exist in my other life.’
Why was Grandfather suddenly so involved in the evaluation?
In my previous memories, I rarely had one-on-one interactions with Grandfather, nor did we exchange many words. I couldn’t figure out his intentions.
‘This time, I should stay out of trouble.’
The pearl earring incident was less than two weeks old. Aunt Marian was probably still furious. Provoking her right now wasn’t a good idea.
Since Calypso was Aunt Marian’s only son, beating him in the evaluation might set her off even more.
“But Grandfather is so scary.”
Ugh. Ugh.
I couldn’t stop thinking about the conversation I overheard between the twins behind me earlier.
“Calypso is in trouble. He’s always just studied the subjects he’s good at, thinking it’s fine as long as his average score is above 70.”
“An average score of 70? Why?”
“What, you didn’t know? Aunt Marian said she’d let Calypso slack off until the end of this year if he managed that much. Next year, he has to start preparing for the academy entrance exams.”
“Ugh, entrance exams. But still, how bad is Calypso at this? Is he really failing to get even 60 points?”
“He doesn’t study the subjects he dislikes at all. It’s going to be tough for him.”
Just how bad are you, Calypso?
After some thought, I stood up from my seat. Sitting and brooding wouldn’t get me anywhere.
“Let’s get things done, step by step.”
Carrying the assignments I needed to submit to Head Butler Cerberus, I headed toward the main building. The main building could be reached by passing through the outer corridor from the education wing.
And there, I met a familiar face—my dad’s childhood friend and Grandfather’s assistant, Mr. Callet.
“Mr. Callet~!”
“Miss Berry? What brings you to the main building at this hour?”
“I’m here to see the Head Butler! I need to submit my assignments!”
Mr. Callet looked surprised when he noticed the stack of papers in my arms. Unable to hide his emotions, he frowned slightly.
With his large hand, he took the assignments from me and carried them himself.
This was a stroke of luck. Since Mr. Callet was Grandfather’s assistant, I might be able to gather some information about the upcoming monthly evaluation.
“Isn’t this too much work for a child?”
“Hehe. It’s just a week’s worth of assignments piled up. By the way, Mr. Callet, can I ask you something?”
At my question, Mr. Callet nodded.
“Grandfather—”
Suddenly, I felt an eerie sensation and turned around.
“What’s the matter?”
For a moment, it felt as though Grandfather might appear behind me, just as he had before. But when I turned, no one was there.
I let out a sigh of relief, clutching my chest.
‘It must have been my imagination. After all, I didn’t even notice when Theon and Jeffrey sensed Dad’s presence. There’s no way I’d be able to sense Grandfather.’
“I must have imagined it!”
I turned my attention back to Mr. Callet.
“Is it true that Grandfather himself will oversee this evaluation?”
“Ah, you’re referring to the monthly evaluation at the education wing. Yes, that’s correct.”
“Is Grandfather the one writing the exam questions? Will it be difficult?”
“It would be unfair for me to reveal any details in advance.”
Mr. Callet flatly refused to answer my question.
“…I heard that if we don’t score at least 60 points, we’ll be punished.”
“That’s correct. You’ll need to work hard.”
“Can’t you give me even a small hint…?”
“I cannot.”
Even when it came to his childhood friend’s daughter, Mr. Callet strictly maintained his professionalism.
He was someone who stood firmly by the rules.
“I see…”
I lowered my head in thought.
‘Will the questions be difficult? If they’re too difficult, Calypso might not score above 60. What should I do?’
Staring at the tips of my shoes helped me concentrate. Before long, a brilliant idea struck me.
“……….”
Oh! I can help Calypso!
Bringing results to direct descendants who lack ability was another one of my specialties.
For subjects that require physical activity, Calypso wouldn’t have any trouble scoring well. So I just needed to focus on his weak subjects.
‘Wait, which subjects was Calypso bad at again?’
Math was a definite weak point.
The last time I saw Calypso’s math textbook, the pages near the back were as pristine as a new book.
But Calypso was also enrolled in history, diplomacy, trade, foreign languages…
A shadow seemed to loom darker over my shoes.
“Huh?”
When I looked up, Mr. Callet’s hand was hovering right above my head. His fingers, caught in the act, wavered uncertainly in midair.
“Is there something on my head?”
“…Yes, just a bit of dust.”
“Oh, please get it off for me.”
Mr. Callet gently removed a speck of dust from my hair. It was so small that I had to squint to see it clinging to the tip of his finger.
Honestly, it wasn’t even worth removing, but Mr. Callet seemed to be just as meticulous as Dad.
“Thank you!”
“…Miss Berry.”
Mr. Callet glanced around. No one else was nearby. Then, in a very soft voice, he whispered to me.
“Focus on math.”
***
The next morning.
In the Sapphire House, Calypso’s room.
“What the heck is this?”
Calypso woke up to find a neatly written note placed beside his bed. Frowning, he picked it up.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••
<Exam Preparation! A Special Lecture Just for You!>
Do you want to score above 60 points?
Why not join me on the path to becoming an elite?
Please complete the attached subject-level test!
•••••••••••••••••••••••••
