Luvia only had three exams, so the parchment she received was very short. Xia De, who took 18 exams at once, received a parchment that, when unrolled, could easily tie Mia, the orange cat quietly lying on the windowsill, into a ball with some left over.
Saint Byron's exams had no breaks. The exam started at nine in the morning, and one could leave after finishing the questions, but if not finished, one could not leave their seat even for physiological needs.
Xia De knew this in advance, so starting from nine on Saturday morning, he communicated with her voice in his mind while writing furiously. Miss Louisa had an appointment with him to go to the Opera House in the evening. 18 exams were not easy, even if the content of each exam was not much, but if he didn't want to miss the first opportunity to go to the Opera House, he couldn't relax at all.
Luvia got up and left at half past ten, followed by Miss Louisa and Doctor Schneider. Even Priest Augustus, who took 7 exams, left the room at twelve in the afternoon, by which time Xia De had already finished the questions for 10 courses.
During lunchtime, neither the professors nor Xia De managed to eat. The four who left early, because they still had to listen to the professors after the exam, waited in Room 1 next door.
They originally wanted to take Mia to eat, but Mia was waiting for Xia De on the windowsill and had no intention of leaving with others. To let his hungry pet cat eat earlier, Xia De again sped up his writing.
His delarion handwriting was already ugly, and speeding up made the letters even more twisted and deformed, but they could probably still be recognized... Xia De thought so.
Because it was only a first-year exam, the content was even simpler than Xia De expected. A week of diligent preparation, plus the help of the voice in his head, Xia De, who was used to various exams, finally finished the last period on the parchment used for answering questions at 4:21 PM that day.
The dark blue ink soaked into the parchment, and the ink stain from the pen tip spread due to the force.
Even with Xia De's current physical condition, he still felt his wrist aching. But after dropping the fountain pen, a smile still appeared on his face. Although he couldn't answer every question, Xia De was confident that he could pass all the exams.
Delaying the use of the time key was worth it; only serious preparation for the upgrade exam without distraction could bring about this moment of joy.
After sending the rolled parchment through the poetry paper on the doctor's table, the four proctoring teachers also breathed a sigh of relief. Because the time was too long, everyone rested for half an hour before announcing other matters.
The projected people got up and left, their transparent figures disappearing into the empty room. Xia De picked up Mia, who finally got up from the windowsill. The small orange cat was probably starving, meowing incessantly after being picked up by Xia De:
"I'll take you to eat something good in a while."
The Detective, in an exceptionally good mood, said while stroking the cat.
Leaving the room, he pushed open the door next door. The other four members of the group were all there. Miss Louisa was flipping through a book, while Luvia sat at the dining table, performing divination with playing cards on the table. Priest Augustus and Doctor Schneider sat on the sofa, looking at the newspaper spread on the coffee table, discussing tax issues.
Seeing Xia De walk over with the cat, they all stopped what they were doing:
"Xia De, how do you feel? Can you pass?"
The Doctor asked curiously.
"Should be no problem."
He sat down on the sofa, the soft seat making Xia De, who had been tired all day, feel exceptionally comfortable:
"How about you?"
"We're having Annette do a divination to see the results."
Priest Augustus said, and Xia De looked at Luvia by the dining table, the purple-eyed Diviner winked at him playfully:
"Xia De will definitely be fine this time. Although Priest Augustus's score won't be very high, he will also pass smoothly. However, the Doctor will have to worry a bit."
"Oh, I knew it!"
Doctor Schneider covered his forehead and sighed, while Miss Louisa next to him showed an expression of wanting to ask but not daring to, fearing to hear bad news.
There was still some food at home, and Xia De and Mia both ate a little to fill their stomachs. During this time, Xia De also heard the others complaining about the exam content. This scene of everyone sitting together complaining about the exam made the Outsider feel as if he had returned to his hometown.
Although in a world where steam and mystery coexist, everything was different from the past, occasionally Xia De could still find traces of his hometown in life. Now, he was no longer as enthusiastic about finding a way back as he was when he first arrived, but he would never forget where he came from and who he was.
After resting for a while, the five people returned to the room next door. The four teachers also appeared on time. The Miracle Academy probably had a very unique grading method; in short, the report cards were sent directly. They did not show specific scores, but rather used Excellent, Exceeded Expectations, Pass, Fail, and Terrible to evaluate.
Out of Xia De's eighteen courses, 11 were Excellent, 6 Exceeded Expectations, and one was a Pass. The passing course was "Folklore, Religion, and Civilization," which required more understanding than memorization, so Xia De barely passed.
But that was enough.
"Cough, cough!"
The five people looked down at their respective report cards, and Professor Gulliver coughed, reminding them to pay attention:
"The common era 1853 Summer exam week is over. First, congratulations to all Letter-based Ring Sorcerers. I have seen your report cards, and your team's results are very good; the academy does not need to issue academic warnings. As per custom, I need to remind you about upgrading--"
"Bill Schneider, the academy has received your upgrade application. If you want to advance to the sixth grade by the end of the year, you still have half a year to earn the remaining 30 practical credits. Also, have you already advanced to Hexacle?"
"Not yet, but I've already obtained the ritual materials. The basic requirements for the four Ling Runes have been met, and I plan to advance during the yellow moon full moon phase in autumn."
The Doctor replied, and Professor Gulliver nodded:
"In addition, the academy has received the sample of the 【forged philosopher's stone】 you submitted. You did very well this time; Professor Loggs, who issued the task, is very satisfied. The reward issue will be communicated later. At the same time, the time for this Summer's official student off-campus practice has been set, and the specific details will be notified to you before next Saturday. The current plan is for twelve students to go to the Tobesk area, with local teams evenly distributed. You will probably be responsible for three people."
"No problem, Professor."
The Doctor said, and from his tone, his Aether Mechanics grade must have been really bad.
"Dorothy Louisa, you want to advance to the 5th grade by the end of the year. Please do not forget that you are still missing several basic courses. Also, regarding your fourth-grade evaluation, please communicate privately with the History Academy."
"No problem, Professor."
The blonde Writer also nodded, a big smile on her face, seemingly indicating that Ancient Text had been successfully passed.
"Luvia Annett, regarding the joint training program for the next grade, please remind the Prophet Association to send us the documents as soon as possible. In addition, the Astronomical Academy is organizing an autumn astromancy event. If you are interested, you can get detailed information through the poetry paper."
"Okay, Professor."
Luvia also had no problems.
"Ratt Augustus, whether or not you intend to advance to the second grade in winter, please notify the academy as soon as possible so that arrangements can be made for the subsequent training plan."
"Okay."
Priest Augustus also nodded.
"Finally, Xia De Hamilton."
The Professor glanced at Xia De:
"According to Saint Byron's regulations, grade advancement can only take place at the end of the winter semester, but after receiving your application, and after discussion by the History Academy and the recommendation of Miss Daniste, it has been theoretically agreed for you to advance to the second grade... Advancing from One Ring to Two Ring in a month, you have set a record."
Professor Garcia, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but smile. If it weren't for the unsuitable timing, he would have already started saying that History Academy students should be like this.
"All your basic course written exams have passed, and your practical assignments for alchemy and potions have also been approved. By the way, that Everlasting Candle is really good."
It seemed Old John's tuition fee wasn't intentionally overpriced.
"In addition, although it's been agreed in principle that you can advance to the second year after this Summer's exam week, rules are rules, and breaking them requires punishment. Therefore, as a penalty for advancing to the second year during the Summer semester, you originally needed 10 practical credits, which has now increased to 20. Please complete the remaining 20 practical credits for the first year before next Saturday, otherwise your grade advancement request will not be approved."
Professor Earl Gulliver said very seriously. Saint Byron's school rules were very strict; one could find ways to bypass some regulations, but what needed to be followed must be followed.
In fact, the condition of 20 practical credits was very demanding. After all, the Detective spent a month, went through hardships, and even almost faced an evil god to complete the "forged philosopher's stone" academy bounty, only receiving 5 credits in total. Theoretically, Xia De would need to complete four such difficult tasks to get 20 credits, but not only was the difficulty too great, but there wasn't even enough time.
Fortunately, he had other methods. He had originally thought that if he was lucky, he could keep the "Endless Quicksilver Bottle," but now that was definitely not possible. And this relic alone probably wasn't enough for 20 credits, so it seemed he would need to do other things this week.
"I understand, Professor."
Xia De said, thinking that not only did he have to wait for Iluna to return next Wednesday, but he also had to check if there were any academy tasks he could complete when he had time.
"Very good. In addition to your studies, Saint Byron's Student Management Office also has a document regarding the second descent of gods event in the Tobesk area in the Summer of the common era 1853, sixth epoch. The academy did not expect such an incident to occur and has now received very detailed information from the Orthodox Church."
The Professor turned the page of the document in his hand:
"Because you are Letter-based Ring Sorcerers in the Tobesk area, the academy will give you a report to let you know what exactly happened last Thursday. If you think the Tobesk area is no longer suitable for living, you can also apply for a cross-region transfer for your group."
"There's no need for that for now."
Detective Schneider said cautiously, and the Professor nodded:
"Based on the information you provided, each person in the group will receive a reward of 5 practical credits. You have also fully experienced two descent of gods events, which is more than most professors in the academy experience in their entire lives."
The information provided by the five people was actually not of great value. The 5 practical credits were not a reward for the information, but a uniform comfort for the local Letter-based Ring Sorcerers. To experience such a thing, not go crazy or die, and still be able to describe the situation that night, this in itself was an achievement, so it was understandable for the academy to give some unimportant rewards.
In this way, Xia De's task of obtaining 20 credits in a week immediately reduced to 15 credits. Although it was still not easy, at least the pressure was significantly reduced.
"In addition, Saint Byron's has issued a long-term academy bounty task to Letter-based Ring Sorcerers in Tobesk and surrounding areas, to search for and provide information about the Thirteen Ring Sorcerer 'Summoner'."
Professor Gulliver said, and at the same time, the bounty order was sent over through the Detective's poetry manuscript page.
"Professor, are you sure that Summoner is a Thirteen Ring Sorcerer?"
Luvia asked.
"Very sure."
Professor Gulliver nodded, and Luvia looked at Xia De, who was looking at Mia lying in front of him. Because they were going to have a big meal in the evening, he had only fed her a very small amount of cat food just now. Now the cat was lying there in a listless manner, but Xia De knew she was definitely faking it. The wagging tail behind the cat showed that she was very energetic right now.
"Although the descent of gods event has passed, local Letter-based Ring Sorcerers still need to be vigilant about follow-up situations. Although the Orthodox Church has made up its mind to make those crazy light chasers disappear permanently, judging from the situation last Thursday, the Church has probably been too comfortable for too long, to even make such a mistake..."
Professor Gulliver apparently also had some opinions about the Orthodox Church, but he didn't express them very clearly. After saying all these things, all matters related to the exam week were concluded. Professor Gulliver and the two lecturers encouraged the five-person group and then left first. Professor Garcia stayed for a few more tens of minutes to discuss Xia De's second-year training plan with him.
In addition, Professor Garcia had promised to open his personal elective course "Folding Space" to Xia De, which mainly covered large-scale Mystic Locks and Miracle Mystic Locks. This time, he came to inform Xia De of the class schedule. "Folding Space" consisted of four classes, each two credit hours. The classes were scheduled for Monday and Tuesday of the second week of August, starting at 6 PM every night, with two classes consecutively each time.
Xia De would attend the course via projection, and after all courses were completed, he would submit a course report within a week as proof of completion.
And after "Folding Space," depending on Xia De's grades, it would be decided whether to open more elective courses from this academy to him.
"Xia De, your talent has been fully displayed. History Academy is never stingy in providing extra help to talented students. Originally, the Dean of History Academy wanted to come and see you personally today, but something happened in the New World, and he had to rush to resolve it, so it's still me who came to see you. I noticed that it has been a month since your first time key, may I ask if you have any plans for a second time key?"
Professor Garcia asked.
"Of course, I bought a time key from the fifth epoch 3002, and asked Luvia Annett to help me divine a lucky time. I plan to activate it in half a month."
Of course, the report would definitely be submitted after completing three explorations, after all, this key was related to the founder of Saint Byron's, and Xia De needed to confirm which parts could be written. Therefore, this report could not be used to offset practical credits, because even if he wanted to write... or polish it, there was no starting point at present.
"3002? I remember nothing happened that year, at least nothing major happened. It seems this time it's a real Poet Grade key."
Professor Garcia thought for a moment and said. Xia De seemed to have heard this kind of statement before, but he didn't raise any objections.
"Very well, Mr. Hamilton. You are probably the first student in this millennium to be allowed to violate the rules and upgrade outside the end of the Winter semester. Very good, keep up the hard work, I think you have hope of officially entering Saint Byron's before the age of 30."
Professor Garcia encouraged, then bid farewell to Xia De. The transparent figure left the chair, and the projection ceremony officially ended.
The Outsider sighed, feeling completely relaxed at this moment. He got up and went to the window, pulling open the curtains, and saw the fiery sunset outside.
Saturday's daytime finally ended. The red light shone on his face, and the Summer sunset was also so hot:
"Advancing from First Ring to Hexacle in one month, at this rate, it's actually possible for me to advance to Thirteen Ring before the age of 30."
He thought to himself, a smile involuntarily appearing at the corner of his mouth.
"Miracle, blasphemy, inspiration, and whisper of Hexacle, do you have any ideas yet?"
She asked in his ear.
"'The crazy light chaser' has been read for a month, and I can already feel that there will be results in the next few weeks. The story of 'Kiss of the Tree' is being thoroughly read with the help of Miss Louisa, and I'm afraid there will be progress before the end of next month."
"These are most likely inspiration."
"Yes, so I still need to think carefully about the other three elements... After a week of rest, it's time for new adventures. Life really can't stop."