‘This is easy~’
Hehe. The test questions were so easy that I almost felt like singing. But no one could know what I was really thinking.
I lowered my head, bringing the test paper so close that my nose nearly touched it.
“Ugh…”
“Please remain silent during the test.”
Madam Freya, who was supervising the exam from the podium, immediately responded to my groan. In response, I deliberately slowed my pen movements or pouted my lips.
I had to put on the perfect act of someone struggling with difficult questions, playing the part of the lowest-ranking student.
The exam lasted an hour. I finished the last question just in time.
Exactly 61 points. Perfect.
“W-wait! Just let me check this one more question—!”
As soon as the time was up, the test papers were collected promptly. Marty begged Madam Freya for more time, so I decided to do the same.
“Just one more minute, please—.”
“No.”
“…Okay.”
That was enough effort. Without any regrets, I let go of my test paper and stretched my arms. Now, I had only one remaining concern.
‘Did Calypso do well? He should be fine, right?’
I glanced back. Calypso sat silently with his lips pressed together.
Last week, I had asked Aqum to get me Calypso’ level test results. Fortunately, they were only half disastrous.
He had some subjects where he ranked quite high. But in others, his guessing skills were absolutely terrible. Language, math, biology…
[What do we do? He seems to have no luck with multiple-choice questions.]
“There’s no such thing as impossible for Tutor Berry!”
‘It was so hard making those summaries.’
Once the subjects were decided, I checked Calypso’ bookshelf to review the lessons covered in the past month.
Since I was always left alone in the classroom after lessons because of the assignments Madam Freya gave me, it wasn’t a difficult task.
I organized key points from the syllabus and asked Aqum to pass them on to him. I focused on the kind of material that I would likely include in test questions if I were the teacher.
‘Why is he so quiet? If he had done well, he’d be bragging about it by now. No way… Did he not even read my notes?’
My summary notes were flawless. They were so dazzling that even I wanted to read them again!
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one wondering about Calypso’ unusual silence. The twins sitting behind me noticed it too. Ciel, busy preparing for the next subject, didn’t pay any attention to anything else.
“Brother, you’ve been quiet for a while. Did you do well?”
Marty leaned back in his chair and asked.
“Don’t ask Brother Calypso about that. It was a language test.”
Harty stopped Marty.
Calypso, who had been staring blankly at the noisy twins, suddenly spoke in a dazed voice.
“…Yeah.”
“Huh?”
“Does that mean you did well?”
At the repeated question, Calypso’ eyes regained focus. With confidence, he nodded.
“I did well.”
***
The second subject on the first day of exams was history.
Since this was a subject Calypso was fairly confident in, I took the test with peace of mind. Considering my own level, as someone who had just begun reading fluently, most of the questions were picture-based.
Choose the animal that symbolizes the Count of Travel’s family from the options below.
1. (Picture of a rabbit)
2. (Photo of an eagle)
3. (Picture of a frog)
4. (Picture of a snail)
There were a lot of questions that practically gave away the answers. I was sure I could score over 60 points without any doubt.
However…
“Argh!”
I should have been suspicious when we were told to return to the education building after lunch, even though the exams had ended in the morning.
I let out a scream as I stared at the stack of papers placed on my desk.
“Why are we getting extra work during exam period?!”
“You scored 61 points in language. It was the first test, so the questions were fairly basic.”
“But I still passed 60—”
“Barely. You will need supplementary lessons. I have listed the questions you got wrong, so copy both the questions and answers ten times each.”
Supplementary lessons?!
My afternoon plans were utterly ruined.
Determined to defend my freedom, I protested to Madam Freya.
“B-but I need to prepare for tomorrow’s exam…!”
“Tomorrow is a practical exam, so you don’t need to worry. Miss Berry, you haven’t taken any lessons in horseback riding, swordsmanship, or social dance, so you have no exams to take.”
“Oh.”
That was an appealing piece of information. The next day’s subjects were horseback riding and social dance. I had been wondering how those tests would be conducted since I had never attended any lessons.
It turned out I wouldn’t be taking them at all.
The only downside was that I had actually prepared to at least score over 60, so all that effort had gone to waste.
“Why didn’t you tell me this earlier…?”
“Did Lady Marian not inform you? She said she would tell you personally.”
“Ah.”
So Aunt Marian had deliberately withheld the information. What a petty way to get back at me.
But in any case, that meant I had the day off tomorrow?!
‘As long as I finish this assignment!’
As if reading my mind, Madam Freya added,
“I will also prepare something for you to do tomorrow. Come to the education building and complete it. The day after tomorrow, you will review the questions you got wrong on the third day of exams.”
“…Yes.”
After Madam Freya left, I was once again left alone in the classroom. With my assignments.
“Life… is so hard…”
No allowance, endless assignments…
Even the manufacturing rights fee that Grandma Marshall had promised to share wouldn’t come until at least next year.
Sigh.
As I reflected on the hardships of my seven-year-old life, I let out a deep sigh.
Bang—
“Huh?”
As the front door of the classroom swung open, I locked eyes with Calypso.
What? Why was he here?
Calypso never stepped foot near the education building after class.
Is he here to pick a fight…?!
Not wanting to back down, I met his gaze with determination.
Calypso spoke first.
“What are you looking at?”
With an annoyed huff, he stomped to the last row, dropping his bag onto his desk.
I continued to watch him curiously until he sat down and pulled a book from the shelf.
“Wait, are you studying here?”
“Yeah. Thanks to your dad, the atmosphere at home is suffocating.”
“Oh… Sorry.”
I immediately apologized.
While I didn’t feel bad about what happened to Aunt Marian, Calypso hadn’t done anything to deserve my revenge during the pearl earring incident.
Besides, Aunt Marian had a notoriously short temper. If Calypso said the household felt stifling, he was probably telling the truth. Since I had unintentionally dragged him into this mess, an apology was in order.
He seemed a little surprised by my quick apology.
“You’re not picking a fight this time?”
“I really do feel bad. But if you want me to, I can start one!”
“…I’m going to study, so be quiet.”
Completely ignoring my playful offer, Calypso pulled something from his bag.
Oh.
It was Tutor Berry’s Perfect Study Guide, a summary I had put together.
Looks like it really helped him on today’s test.
***
“Calypso scored 85 on the language test?”
“Yes. It seems Young Master Calypso studied diligently.”
“Hah. He must have been terrified. That kid always had the potential, yet he’d been getting scores in the 50s.”
Count Lassek clicked his tongue as he leaned forward in his study, where he was receiving a report from Callet.
“And what about her?”
At this point, it was obvious who he was referring to.
Whenever the Count mentioned someone without using their name, it was usually just one person.
“Young miss Berry… scored 61 in language and 63 in history. I did instruct the teachers to make the questions easier…”
Callet hesitated, speaking in a troubled tone.
Despite the request to simplify the test for someone at her reading level, the results showed that even those easier questions had been challenging for Berry.
Barely scoring above 60…
It’s official. She’s this year’s lowest-ranked student in the education building.
It seemed that Madam Freya’s prediction on the first day of class was coming true.
Callet felt a strange sense of responsibility.
It wasn’t his place to feel ashamed, but since Berry had come under his care, he couldn’t help but feel accountable for her performance.
“I assume you mentioned her score to encourage the other students, but it was her first test, so she must have been nervous…”
“Pfft—”
Callet, who had been staring at the edge of the desk to avoid eye contact, immediately looked up.
“Count…?”
Count Travel was covering his face with his hand, his shoulders shaking with laughter.
