Chapter 59: Midterms

The midterm exams were just around the corner.

Students roamed the academy, looking like zombies, clutching their books.

And I was.

“Haaaah!!”

Swinging my sword, as always.

The sword I had to pick up for survival.

Had now become my hobby.

Sweating refreshingly gave me a sense of accomplishment, as if I had completed a proper day’s work.

“That’s all for today. Good work.”

“Thank you for your guidance.”

I thanked Lycan, who guided me in swordsmanship today as well.

I was grateful to him for always taking time out of his schedule to train me.

I asked Lycan, who was organizing the training equipment.

“Um…. I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“Do you happen to know a professor named Lumine?”

“Wh-wh-what?”

Flinch

Hearing Lumine’s name, Lycan froze like a herbivore before a predator.

Seeing him break out in a cold sweat, I could roughly understand.

‘Does he know?’

I was curious how a child could hold the position of a professor.

It seemed those who knew, knew.

Especially Lycan, an Orc with stronger survival instincts than humans, seemed to feel a sense of fear.

Lost in thought, I left Lycan, whose eyes were still shaking, alone.

It wasn’t entirely bad to have a dragon’s attention.

Thanks to her, I gained a new ability.

And I was able to punch Julian’s smug face.

But the method was the problem.

Being dragged around wasn’t my style.

I was searching for a way to safely escape Lumine’s attention, but it wasn’t easy.

“By the way, Louis, aren’t you preparing for the exams?”

“Me? I’m thinking I’ll manage somehow.”

The training room was empty, with other students up all night studying.

Only I was here, swinging my sword.

“Aren’t you worried about being expelled?”

Expulsion meant immediate enlistment.

It was a nightmare all academy students feared.

“I won’t be expelled.”

But I wasn’t being this relaxed without a plan.

I had already prepared my secret weapon for the written exam.

Unless something unexpected happened.

There was no way I would be expelled.

The problem was.

“I just need to pass the practical exam.”

The practical exam, which assessed skills, not written knowledge.

As long as I didn’t get a ridiculous zero, I wouldn’t have to worry about my grades.

“Is that so? Then work hard. I’ll be going now.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

After Lycan left.

I cooled down my heated body in the air conditioning and thought.

The upcoming practical exam.

I already knew the content.

The small mountain behind the academy.

The practical exam involved finding items hidden throughout the mountain.

Of course, if that was all there was to it, it would just be a simple treasure hunt.

But the key to the exam lay in the rules.

Fighting between students was allowed.

And stealing each other’s treasures was also permitted. The so-called survival rule.

If you were unlucky enough to be eliminated before finding any treasures, you would immediately fail.

And your practical exam score would be zero.

Therefore, as soon as the exam started, students formed teams to participate.

But if too many people were on the same team, some might not be able to find any treasures, so the optimal number was around three.

Not many people attempted solo runs, no matter how skilled they were individually.

It wasn’t efficient.

Of course, my situation was different.

I knew the locations of the treasures from the original story.

And with my trump card, Stealth, I could quickly grab the treasures and leave.

The purpose of this historical practical exam was cooperation.

The goal was for multiple people to work together to overcome obstacles.

Even if I quickly collected the treasures and returned.

If my cooperation score was zero, my overall score would drop significantly.

Since I had practically given up on the written exam, it was best to maximize my practical exam score.

So I had to recruit teammates for the practical exam.

“So you’re asking me to team up with you?”

After leaving the training grounds, I went straight to Elena.

“Yes. I don’t think I can survive alone.”

At the cafe inside the academy.

I lured her out with the promise of sweet desserts.

“But how do you know the exam content, Louis?”

Elena asked me as she brought a piece of cake to her mouth.

“Anyone who knows, knows. The midterm exam content is the same every year.”

The freshmen’s practical exam, held every year.

The content hadn’t changed much for several years.

So it had become a kind of tradition.

Anyone with a bit of information could easily find out.

“Hmm…. Alright! Let’s team up.”

After a brief moment of contemplation, Elena smiled brightly and accepted my offer.

That solved the immediate problem.

Now I just had to worry about the exam itself.

“But who’s the other teammate? Didn’t you say teams are usually made up of three people?”

Ah, that?

“She’s coming right now.”

“Guys!!”

I pointed at a pink-haired girl running towards us from afar.

She entered the cafe with a cheerful face and came straight to our table.

“Is Lisa our teammate too?”

“Yes! Let’s do our best!”

Lisa sat right next to Elena, looking at her.

The three-person party was complete.

The day of the midterm exams finally arrived.

Everyone looked tense with dark circles under their eyes, ready to reap the rewards of their hard work.

And I yawned and rubbed my sleepy eyes.

I hadn’t slept properly last night, strategizing.

But thanks to that, I came up with a few decent ideas.

To get a good score on the practical exam, not only skill but also the overall situation had to be favorable.

For example, struggling to save a teammate in danger.

The higher the level of cooperation, the higher the score.

‘This should be enough.’

So I had written a few scenarios last night.

If things went according to my scenarios, I wouldn’t have to worry about the practical exam.

Of course, there was no guarantee it would go as planned.

“Everyone, put your books away.”

Professor Dominic entered the classroom.

“We will now begin the exam. If anyone is caught cheating, they will receive a zero, so don’t even think about it.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll distribute the exam papers. Pass them back.”

The exam papers were distributed to the students in the front row.

And they were passed back one by one, until Lisa turned and handed me a paper.

“Good luck…!”

With Lisa’s encouragement, I unfolded the exam paper.

[1. Describe the three factors that influence mana control.]

The first question was quite difficult.

Sighs erupted from here and there, and the sound of pens scratching against paper filled the air.

But I wrote down the answer without hesitation.

[Concentration, Cohesion, Density]

I answered the following questions without any difficulty as well.

How could I, who hadn’t studied, answer the questions so easily?

The answer was simple.

The Sage’s Bookmark.

Over several days, I had used the bookmark to find out all the answers to the exam.

I couldn’t see the future with the Sage’s Bookmark.

But.

‘The professors would have already created the questions, right?’

Exam questions weren’t created on the day of the exam.

Several days in advance.

Or even at the beginning of the semester, professors prepared the exam questions.

And of course.

“Please tell me the answers to the Basic Mana Studies midterm exam.”

-Answer. Question 1: 3. Question 2: 2 ……….

The bookmark knew the answers.

Among the other students struggling and pondering.

I was the only one writing down the answers smoothly.

Just as I leisurely wrote down the last answer.

“Time’s up! Hand in your answer sheets.”

Professor Dominic’s voice announced the end of the exam.

I quickly wrote my name on the answer sheet and handed it to Lisa, who was sitting in front of me.

To avoid suspicion, I intentionally answered a few questions incorrectly.

This was the end of the written exam.

Since I knew the answers to the remaining written exams, there would be no difficulties.

Items were the best.

I smiled leisurely among the students filled with disappointment and despair.

Now, all that was left was the practical exam.

After all the written exams were over, we all gathered at the mountain behind the academy.

“We will now begin the practical exam.”

“Is everyone ready?”

“Of course.”

“This will be fun!”

With various expressions.

We walked up the mountain.