C141: The Second Test (3)
Rene was now in a rather embarrassing position. This is because while heading to the classroom to prepare for the next exam, she encountered a familiar person at the entrance of the classroom.
Flora Lumos, a cold-looking beauty with sharp eyes on one side and Sheryl Wagner, who seems to have no worries about the world, and is the opposite of Flora.
She was a year older than her and a person who attended Rudger's class together. Normally, she would have just let it go without paying attention to her, but Rene couldn't.
If there was a reason, it was because of Flora.
'Uh… Did I do something wrong?'
Flora Lumos, who usually has no contact with her, was staring at her like she was her enemy for some reason.
Rene pondered whether she had done anything rude to her. Sensitive to the hostility of others, Rene had never felt any signs of emotion from Flora before so the present situation was really surprising for Rene.
'She's not completely hostile, but I think she's uncomfortable with me.'
It was hard for Linnaeus to guess why. Was it because of the 2nd test? Because she got the same A+ grade as her?
It was a speculation but there was nothing else that came to her mind.
'What do I do?'
Rene agonized.
Flora Lumos was staring at Rene with half-open eyes. She didn't seem hostile but Rene felt she didn't like her and if she opened her mouth hastily things might take a bad turn.
When Rene was agonizing over what to do Erendir who was next to her stepped up.
"Do you have anything to say Flora Lumos?"
"……."
Flora's gaze turned to Erendir. The sharp eyes on Rene had become a little softer for Erendir. To be precise, it is a complex emotion filled with frustration and pity.
Flora sympathized with Erendir, who was with Rene.
'After living in the shadow of her older sister all her life, the Third Princess finally became close with someone.'
But she didn't think to say it out loud because Flora herself wasn't in a position to sympathize with the Third Princess.
"Flora?"
Cheryl, who was looking around, called her carefully. Flora didn't answer and went into the classroom through the open door.
"Ah, hahaha. I'm sorry. Flora must be feeling a little down today."
Cheryl smiled awkwardly and apologized to Erendir and Rene, and immediately followed Flora's footsteps and headed for the classroom as if fleeing.
Erendir glared at the back of the two with disapproving eyes.
"What the hell? Don't suddenly block the road. I asked her, but she didn't answer and just left."
"That's right."
As for Rene, she had no choice but to smile awkwardly and respond to Erendir's words.
Cheryl, who followed Flora in an empty seat in the classroom, asked her questioningly.
"Flora, what happened? It's not like you."
"What's not like me?"
"You usually didn't even pay attention to other students. Did you care that much about the kid named Rene?"
"……."
Flora knew her personality better than anyone else because she had known Cheryl since she was young and was aware that she would not give up.
In this case, there was only one thing to do.
"Cheryl, did you prepare well for this exam?"
"What?"
Cheryl's face was perplexed by the sudden question. She likes to play and usually picks up gossip, and to be honest, she was very far from studying. It was undeniable that the words and actions were lighter than other students.
"You know that the person in charge of the test is Marie Ross, right?"
"Why are you talking about it all of a sudden?"
Marie Ross, Theon's longest-serving teacher, was a popular person thanks to her gentle personality and consideration for students. She was teaching pharmaceutical science and even various fields related to pharmaceutical science were within her class category.
Teacher Marie Ross was so soft on the students that she gave them at least C+ even if they didn't do well on the test. So, Marie's lectures were famous for honey classes and competition among students was very fierce. It was one of the few lectures where they could get a stable grade.
"This year, teacher Marie said that if students don't take the test seriously, they'll be forced into another class instead of getting a low score, right?"
There were also students who purposely roughly took the test to get credit for Marie Ross' goodness. So Mari Ross took special measures on that part.
Students who did not take the test seriously were forced to transfer to other teachers' classes.
It would be impossible for the teacher to change the lecture once decided, but it was possible for Marie Ross, Theon's oldest teacher.
"Are you sure you're going to be okay?"
"Ah."
Cheryl broke out in a cold sweat at Flora's point.
"Oh, what should I do? Flora."
"What do you mean? Why do you ask me that?"
"Flora, please help me. Please."
"Get away from me. What the hell are you doing?"
"But Flora, if I keep going like this, I won't be able to get a proper grade. We're friends. Please give me one more chance."
In the end, Cheryl's choice was to stick to Flora.
Flora handed her the notebook she had brought, judging that this was enough to distract her childhood friend.
"Take it. I've just summarized the points, so if you cram for what you'll remember right away, you'll avoid failing."
"Thank you! I love you, Flora!"
Flora was looking at Cheryl who immediately started cramming and found Rene sitting on one side of the lecture room. Even though she is a commoner, her hair color is rare, but her face is definitely pretty.
If that child was an aristocrat, wouldn't she have been greatly courted by other students?
Just in time, Rene also looked back at Flora as if she had felt her eyes. Their eyes met in the air and Flora immediately turned her head. It was because she was ashamed of herself for arguing with a child for no reason.
'Never mind. I'm not worried about the commoner.'
Flora, who put her elbow on the desk and put her chin on her arm, suddenly muttered to herself.
"What's good food for someone who's not feeling well?"
"Huh? Flora, are you not feeling well?"
Cheryl, who had her nose in the notebook, suddenly raised her head.
Cheryl focused on cramming, while Flora replied heartily, looking at the extraordinarity of her friend who picked up her words like a ghost.
"I'm just curious. Do you have any medicine to recommend?"
"Hmm~"
Cheryl glanced at Flora.
Suspicious. Very suspicious. Flora Lumos, who's not interested in others, is worried about what's good for her body? However, it would be her consideration as a friend to move on without pointing this out.
"It's not like there's nothing, right? I heard that there are many medicines that aristocrats in their 40s and 50s take these days. Was it a powder made by grinding dried mandragora?"
Mandragora, which is counted as an A-grade ingredient in pharmaceuticals, was a precious ingredient that was hard to get even with a lot of money.
The reason Cheryl purposely brought out these ridiculous ingredients was half a joke.
"Is the mandragora the best?"
"What?"
She thought it was just a thoughtless question, but Cheryl, who didn't expect such a serious answer, could not hide her embarrassment. But it wasn't long before she smiled like a playful cat.
"Hmm. There's someone in the world that cares about Flora, right? Who is he?"
"What?! It's not like that!"
Flora's fair skin turned red and Cheryl's suspicions were assured by her unusual violent reaction.
"No way~. I've known you for a long time. You can't fool my eyes!"
"Why aren't you quiet? You have less than five minutes until the test. Will you be okay?"
"Oh!"
Cheryl, who became aware of her situation, hurriedly looked at the notebook. She, who was in tears, asked Flora for help with a pathetic stare.
"Flora, what was the scope of this test?"
"From the production of the beginner recovery potion to the precautions for transferring magic power."
"There are too many."
"Why haven't you studied regularly?"
"Flora studied similarly to me. Why me?"
"………You get angry when I say it's because I'm a genius. Do you think I don't know that you always play without studying?"
"Hey!"
As if giving the final sentence to Cheryl, who was screaming in pain, the door to the classroom opened and Ms. Marie Ross, who was in charge of the exam, entered.
Teacher Marie remained calm as usual, but she had a charismatic smile that could not be resisted.
"Did everyone prepare well for the exam?"
Cheryl's complexion turned white.
* * *
Teacher Marie Ross's exam was over and the assistants came forward and collected the test papers, as the students stretched out in joy that the test was finally over.
Cheryl, who burned everything, was the only one who was dead with her head stuck on the desk.
"Ugh. I managed to solve it somehow."
She wasn't dead, but her voice was half dead.
"Ho-Ho. You all worked hard on the test."
As Mary Ross spoke in a gentle voice, the relaxed students focused on her words one by one.
No students left after the exam.
"Cheryl, get up. It's tip time."
"Oh, right!"
Cheryl, who was becoming one with the desk, raised her head quickly, straightened her back and entered the listening mode.
Usually, students run out of the classroom immediately after a test, but today they did not.
There is only one reason to stay in the classroom and give teacher Marie Ross a look of anticipation. It was because of the special subject that they could only take in teacher Marie Ross's class.
There is a famous story among students in Theon. Teacher Marie Ross tells the students who take her class that they had a hard time taking the test and then talks about a topic that's not in her class materials.
This is the "tip time" that Flora told to Cheryl, and this tip time is both fun and very useful, so it's popular among students. It was not just a tip, but information that might become a big topic in the magic world, so students paid attention to it.
"As everyone knows by taking the test today, I have an additional explanation about the precautions for magic transfer."
The students listened closely and some had even prepared to take notes.
"Magic transfer is done between wizards. It can also become very dangerous if the messenger has poor control of the magic power."
These days, mana recovery potions are used, but if that doesn't work, it's not uncommon to transfer magic power to a patient who is out of power as an emergency treatment.
Realistically, you can save money on medicine if you take a little risk.
"But you know what? A mysterious phenomenon occurs when the magic power of the two wizards collides and is mixed together."
"Teacher, what is that mysterious phenomenon?"
"You can read memories."
You can read memories while sharing magic power?
Unlike the bewildered students, some of them who had their own knowledge in this area responded that they had heard of it somewhere.
"This is called Memory Storming, and it's actually a phenomenon listed in the Tower Papers."
"No way. You're not lying?"
"I think I've heard of it."
Marie Ross smiled mildly as if the students' reactions were cute.
"Do you know mana has a memory? Mana is said to contain many things that we don't know. In particular, the mana inherent in the wizard's body contains more memories the longer it sticks with the wizard."
"Teacher, how does Mana remember?"
When asked by the student, Marie Ross shook her head.
"Unfortunately, it hasn't been revealed yet. There is a lack of research, and it hasn't been long since the paper came out."
"What?"
"Mana is still an unknown power, and it is our job as wizards to explore it. However, recently, research results from the Tower came out, and although the cause of this memory storming phenomenon is not known, it is said that it can be used."
She was speaking lightly, but the weight of her words was great.
It was too easy to talk about the research results from the New Tower, which was split from the Old Tower. This is the reason why Marie Ross 'tip time' was famous among students.
'As expected, she's the longest-serving teacher in Theon.'
'Among the students she taught, there are a lot of people from the Tower, right?'
'Even after they graduate, she still keeps in touch with her students.'
The students were excited about the news that was not yet known.
"Actually, there are only talismans that can implement this memory-storming phenomenon in a very small way. My old disciple sent it to me as a gift, saying it was a success."
Mary Ross took out several pieces of paper that looked like a white talisman. They had a geometric pattern on them that can cause memory storming.
"It's a prototype and it's not that effective, so there's no risk. Who wants to try it?"
Was she saying that if they use that talisman, they can read the memories contained in magical powers?
When the students were puzzled by it, Flora Lumos was the only one whose eyes lit up.
'Can I use that on other people?'
Her brilliant mind was already thinking of a different way.