Chapter 2312: 1854 Xia Summer Examinations

Chapter 2312: Chapter 2312: 1854 Xia Summer Examinations

On that evening, before Shard left Moon Bay, both Miss Sylvia and Miss Benanis arrived at the manor.

Clearly, their decision to exclude Shard from Sunday’s action was something they had planned together. The witches weren’t upset with Shard or playing tricks on him; they simply believed Shard didn’t need to manage everything himself.

Consequently, Shard had to agree to the current action plan, but he thought about writing quickly during Sunday’s exams to head to the battlefield as soon as possible.

After returning home that night, Shard also shared his plan with the ladies:

"This coming Friday and Saturday, except for checking the situation in Moon Bay each evening, I’ll be at home preparing for exams. Oh, Galina, this is from Tifa."

He didn’t forget to present the box of pastries Miss Maid had asked him to bring:

"She said she made them herself."

"As expected of my apprentice."

The Duchess laughed and said to Lecia beside her, then reminded Shard:

"Also, you forgot to wipe the lipstick mark Tifa left on your face."

"Oh!"

Shard hurried to wipe it, then heard the witch’s laughter and Lecia’s helpless voice:

"Shard, there’s nothing on your face. I thought you were smart and clever. How could you fall for such a trick?"

The witch sat beside Shard and wrapped her arms around his neck, then boasted to her:

"It’s life’s pleasure, Shard, even if you know it’s a trick, you should fall for it. Isn’t it more interesting than plainly saying you did nothing?"

"Boring."

The Red-Haired Princess snorted, then noticed Miss Galina’s arm wrapped around Shard’s neck, seemingly wanting to kiss him.

"Um... I plan to abstain until the exams are over."

Shard quietly declared again, having already mentioned it to Luvia and Dorothy, but it was the first time he told Lecia and Galina.

They didn’t display any surprised expressions:

"When we wrote to Luvia this morning about us temporarily moving over, she mentioned it in her reply, and Dorothy also told Lecia that you’ve been acting strange lately."

The Duchess said as she tapped a crease on her skirt, then extended her hand to Lecia:

"Hand it over."

Then Lecia reluctantly took a fountain pen from her skirt pocket and handed it to her. The witch took it in her hand and exaggeratedly said:

"Oh~ it dropped."

With a plop~, the expensive-looking fountain pen fell to the floor. The witch stood up slowly, turned her back to Shard, and bent down to pick up the pen.

Lecia smiled and looked at Shard:

"Abstain? Shard, you might as well abstain in your dreams."

Of course, the three of them first finished their various duties in the study that night, and only went to wash and rest after ten o’clock.

Thus, when Shard was awakened on Friday morning by Mia’s "meow meow" noises, and realized he had a white arm draped over his chest on either side which prevented him from getting up, he was truly reflecting on what he had been doing lately:

"Wasn’t I supposed to clear my mind and focus on studying?"

Last night, Shard didn’t lock Mia in the wardrobe, intending to test Lecia and Miss Galina’s reaction to being watched by the cat at night. When Friday morning came and Shard asked about it, the ladies of the House of Cavendish almost said in unison:

"Lock it up!"

So, among certain aspects, mutual understanding between people is possible, such as their understanding of why Shard always locked Mia in the wardrobe.

In summary, on the upcoming Friday and Saturday, Shard adhered to his promise, didn’t roam around Moon Bay, and diligently studied at home or assisted Miss Galina with some office duties.

He found that becoming the Duchess’s secretary or official wasn’t particularly difficult; the hardest part was gaining the trust necessary to access those secrets.

"The key to politics isn’t ability, but relationships."

While having lunch on Friday, Shard suddenly said to Mia, and Miss Galina sitting next to him instructed Lecia:

"Lecia, note down this sentence. You can say it out loud during gatherings with friends later to make everyone think you’re profound and capable."

Her Highness the Princess ignored her.

Studying at home naturally meant more time to handle things recently left undone. This certainly did not refer to housework, as Miss Maid would not allow Shard to lift a finger; he meant washing the cat.

Regarding washing the cat, Shard actually observed that Mia wasn’t scared of water; Shard even guessed that the cat could swim, and it simply hated the act of "bathing" itself.

Shard’s cat-washing frequency wasn’t very high either; he hadn’t washed the cat since summer began this year. On this day, during the cat chase at home, Miss Galina was out on business, leaving only Lecia at home. She watched Shard and the cat run wildly around the house as Shard chased from the second floor to the third and then from the third to the first floor.

Without using any supernatural abilities, he relied solely on his speed and agility to eventually corner Mia in the first-floor kitchen and caught her.

When Shard carried the cat back to the second floor to enter the bathroom, Her Highness the Princess sitting on the sofa reading asked:

"Do you need help?"

"No, I just don’t understand, what kind of prejudice does Mia have against bathing?"

"Meow~"

"No meowing, I won’t sympathize with you."

Her Highness the Princess once again hid her face behind the book.

Later that evening, he briefly went to Moon Bay. After confirming that there were no pressing matters to attend to, Shard returned home for dinner. Then it was a repeat of the day; Saturday’s routine activities lacked cat-washing, but in the afternoon Shard went to Milestone, spending a leisurely afternoon with Grace and Helen.

Recently busy in Moon Bay, Shard hadn’t had much time to accompany the Red Butterfly Maiden. Since the snowy issue after the Green Lake incident, their relationship underwent a qualitative change; Grace and Helen had become like family to the Outlander.

That afternoon, he mentioned Miss Eles:

"She too is from the Fifth Era, only she’s been sleeping and recently awakened in the past few hundred years. However, she was born in the late period of the Fifth Era; I’m not sure if you ever encountered her."

The sisters exchanged glances, the elder Grace seemingly transmitting a signal to her younger sister, but Shard didn’t understand what they were thinking. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

However, on Saturday evening’s trip to Moon Bay, even though Miss Eles hadn’t yet brought Sister Delphine and Miss Aphrola along, it happened that Ciris at Belindel Estate gave Shard many tickets:

"Starting next week, the Golden Dawn Opera Group will perform in Moon Bay City’s ’Edington Grand Theatre.’ Shard, don’t you have many friends in Moon Bay? You can give these to them."

"Will Miss Benanis and you perform on stage?"

"Definitely not; Vanessa hasn’t been on stage for years. Although I’m the deputy director, I rarely perform; I mainly handle backstage management and financial tasks."

"So what’s interesting about this show?"

"You sure know how to speak."

The young blond lady smiled, looked around to ensure no one was watching, and then pushed Shard’s head against the corridor wall as she embraced him. Just then, the Little Unicorn passed by the hallway and saw this scene, bewilderedly blinked its eyes, then turned around and left.

And after Saturday, time officially moved on to the 27th of Thunder Moon, the last Sunday of July.

The two Cavendishes and Miss Maid at home left early this morning, while the formally dressed Dr. Schneider, Priest Augustus, Dorothy, and Luviya arrived promptly at Shard’s home at eight in the morning.

To prevent any accident, Shard temporarily moved the Mermaid Oil Painting from the living room to the side bedroom. As everyone sat on the sofas in the living room, Shard looked at his friends and suddenly felt like time had shifted back a year.

Because around this time last year, everyone was also this nervous.

The exam began at nine in the morning, using the same venue as last year, the second-floor room number two. Now, that room served as the entrance to the "Hall of the Keeper of Secrets," but these ancient places wouldn’t easily affect the projection ceremony; otherwise, they wouldn’t be so secretive, thus no need to worry about the "Hall of the Keeper of Secrets" being detected by the professors.

Just like last year’s summer and winter exams, Dr. Schneider still insisted on Shard placing Mia at the windowsill because he believed it could bring good luck to people.

As the seating ceremony commenced, professors from the distant Far North City Academy projected over to here as well. Shard was glad to see the History Academy’s Vice Dean Professor Garcia again; this professor with Elven lineage had been supportive of Shard since he joined Saint Byrons. However, given it’s exam time, they didn’t talk much.

Due to Luviya’s joint training status, she naturally had the least number of subjects in this exam. Yet this exam was exceptionally important for her, as she aimed to complete the remaining subjects for the "Registered Diviner" during this exam.

Once passed, she would officially receive the "Registered Diviner" certificate and the Diviner’s Certification.

With these two certificates, even if she stays at her current Seventh Ring Level without doing much, she would still lead a prosperous and joyous life in the future.

And if Luviya continues to pursue the "Astrologer’s Certification" and "Keeper of Secrets Certification," she could apply to become president of a local division of the Prophet’s Society while holding all three certificates and reaching a high ring level herself. If luck is favorable, she might even have the chance to compete for key positions or even the presidency at the headquarters of the Prophet’s Society.

Overall, in this rather smooth career advancement path, the hardest exam is the "Registered Diviner," but Shard has great confidence in Luviya. After all, Long-Haired Luviya has taken this exam many times, so Shard doesn’t believe she won’t assist herself.