Thus, students were determined to give it their all. At 7:00 AM, every student was awake. By 7:30 AM, they were dressed and assembled in the Great Hall for breakfast. By 8:00 AM, they had returned to the Slytherin common room, seated in their assigned sections.
Such a large-scale, coordinated effort was unusual for a single house. Their movements were so precise that they even startled other students and professors.
The exam officially began inside the common room’s stone hall, where a tense atmosphere settled over the students. Unlike the preliminary assessment at the start of term, this monthly exam carried actual weight. No one spoke, and the only sounds came from the steady scratching of quills on parchment and the rustling of paper.
Senior students felt less pressure. Their grades were already strong, and their exams were more about review and preparation for N.E.W.T.s. Alex had also granted them additional privileges, making the exam far less stressful. Younger students, however, were noticeably nervous. The monthly exam played a major role in their rankings, and their performance would determine their eligibility for Alex’s training.
After nearly an hour, the first batch of seventh-years, who were only taking two N.E.W.T. subjects, finished their exams. Once they handed in their papers, Alex immediately led them out of the common room and to the empty classrooms to begin their practical spellcasting tests.
Other senior students finished at staggered intervals and followed the same process, ensuring the morning exams would finish on time.
With the upper-year students gone, only the younger years remained in the common room to finish their written exams. The question was: Would anyone dare to cheat?
This was part of Alex’s test. The entire common room was under Fang’s surveillance, meaning every move was being recorded.
Fang, for his part, was thrilled. He had been looking for an excuse to crack down on rulebreakers, and this exam was the perfect opportunity. Alex, meanwhile, remained focused on administering the practical spell tests. Everything was proceeding exactly as planned.
As the senior-year exams neared completion, Alex was in the middle of assessing a sixth-year’s Transfiguration spell when he suddenly paused. For a brief moment, something felt wrong. It was subtle, almost imperceptible, but Alex’s instincts were sharp. His expression didn’t change, but his mind was already processing the possible causes of the disturbance.
He turned to Welen, who had just finished his own exam. "Welen," Alex said, his voice neutral but firm, "finish evaluating the last three students for their Transfiguration practicals. Follow the previous scoring criteria."
Welen blinked. "Huh? Oh… sure." He didn’t know what had caught Alex’s attention, but he nodded without question.
After leaving the classroom, Alex immediately cast an illusion spell on himself and quietly made his way back to the Slytherin common room. The reason for his quick retreat was simple, he had just received a message from Fang. Not long after he left, someone had the audacity to cheat during the exam. And it wasn’t just once. According to Fang, the student had cheated on multiple subjects. That was practically begging for trouble.
Once inside the common room, Alex followed Fang’s guidance and quickly located the culprit, a third-year student named Harlan Crestmoor. Harlan was known for his mediocre grades and repeated disciplinary violations. He was a slippery one, always looking for ways to bend the rules without getting caught. His cheating method was simple yet clever, he used a seemingly ordinary piece of parchment as a cheat sheet. Whenever he came across a question he couldn’t answer, he would channel a small amount of magic into the parchment, and the correct answer would appear. Clearly, it was some kind of enchanted item. If he hadn’t been using it so frequently, Fang might not have caught him.
Alex didn’t expose him immediately. Instead, he coldly observed as Harlan continued his little trick, then left without saying a word. The afternoon exams went on as scheduled. Alex acted as if nothing had happened, calmly overseeing the spellcasting exams for the younger students. Harlan, on the other hand, seemed completely unaware that he’d been caught. He even had the nerve to chat and joke with his classmates afterward, acting as if everything was perfectly fine.
The next day, the house’s monthly meeting was scheduled for the afternoon, while the morning was reserved for the heads of each department to review the test papers. By noon, Alex had already received the final results.
That afternoon, all the Slytherin students gathered in the stone hall, waiting for the meeting to begin. When the time came, Alex stepped onto the platform at the front of the common room. He surveyed the room with a calm expression before offering a slight smile. “The Slytherin House Monthly Meeting for September is now in session,” he announced. “Today’s agenda includes the announcement of exam results and grade rankings, recognition of the top-performing grade and individual students along with their rewards, and finally, the announcement of disciplinary violations and corresponding punishments.”
Alex took in the eager expressions of the gathered students and smiled. “Let’s start with the results,” he continued. “This month, every student in Slytherin has passed their exams. That alone is a good start.” Murmurs of satisfaction rippled through the crowd. “In terms of performance by grade, the highest percentage of ‘Exceeds Expectations’ and above goes to the third years, with 45% of their grades falling into this category. The fourth years follow at 44%, and the second years at 42%, which is an improvement from last month. However, our goal is to reach at least 50%, so there’s still room to improve.”
The third-year students looked especially pleased, grinning with barely contained excitement. Some looked like they were about to cheer but hesitated, unsure if it was appropriate.
Alex chuckled slightly. “If you want to applaud, go ahead. Everyone should give a round of applause to those who made it into the top rankings.” With that, enthusiastic clapping filled the stone hall, the third years clapping the hardest.
Alex let them enjoy the moment before raising a hand to quiet the crowd. “Now, let’s move on to the overall rankings.”
The room grew even more expectant. “The grade with the highest overall performance this time is, ” Alex paused for a beat, watching as the tension built. “the third years. Not only did you achieve the best academic results, but you also earned 22 points for Slytherin this month, ranking second in the house. The only grade that earned more points was the fourth years with 24 points. As for disciplinary deductions, the third years lost 9 points, making them the second least penalized grade after the fifth years.”
The third years erupted into excited applause once again, some of them nearly jumping out of their seats in excitement. Alex nodded approvingly before continuing, “Now, let’s move on to individual rankings. When I call your name, please stand.”
The students fell silent, anticipation thick in the air. “First place this month goes to Victor, a third-year student. He received zero disciplinary penalties, earned 7 house points, and achieved the highest exam scores in the entire house, 6 Outstanding (O) grades and 3 Exceeds Expectations (E).”