Assessment Day 1

After the debut, Atlas and Cyrus had a few weeks to relax before their first day at the Imperial Academy, so they continued to study and train to ensure they didn’t fall behind.

They also met up with Sophie and Ronan once a week as per usual.

Once they went to the Imperial Academy, they could only come back home during the weekends or the holidays. During school days, they stayed at the dormitory with all the other students.

The students stayed at the Imperial Academy for three years. They could stay longer if they were going to continue their studies, but most people left when they graduated at 18.

Those who graduated either went back to their families to continue training as heirs or heiresses, joined the military, or found employment that didn’t need additional education.

Sirius would be a third-year student when Atlas and Cyrus started school. So Sirius would be in charge of showing them around the academy.

Overall, Atlas was a bit excited to start schooling at the Imperial Academy. The only thing he was worried about was the school’s assessment.

This assessment happened a couple of days before the new school year started. The total maximum amount of points one could get for the assessment was 1200. It was split into three sections, written, magic, and combat.

As long as the student got above 250 on the written exam, they could enter the Imperial Academy. As for the combat and magic scores, that would determine which class (A-E) they would go into.

So, Cyrus made sure to help Atlas study at the end of the day so he would at least get 250 points on the written exam. He didn’t need help with magic or combat but still got training during the day.

Atlas felt his adrenaline pumping for the exam! He needed to get at least 250!

The bare minimum…

He should be able to do this much at least!

*****

On the day of the assessment, Cyrus and Atlas arrived at the same time as Sophie and Ronan. It was just a coincidence, but they were eye-catching nonetheless.

There were four tables in front of the auditorium where the written assessment was to be held. Students followed the volunteers that directed them toward the different lines.

The four were able to go into the same line, but they didn’t bother trying to skip anyone and waited like everyone else.

Atlas looked a bit nervous, but he did his best to loosen his nerves. Everyone could see he was nervous, especially Ronan who watched him twiddle with the bracelet he had given Atlas for their high society debut.

“Atlas,” Ronan said while grabbing his hands. “I know you are nervous. When you feel you are freaking out, remember this bracelet and think of it as me being there with you while you are taking the test.

“Take a deep breath in, and then a deep breath out. Remember my voice when you touch this bracelet during the test. You will be okay. You got this.”

The words he spoke were gentle and only he could hear them.

For the first time, Atlas felt that there was a change in Ronan’s behavior toward him. The look in his eyes was full of love and understanding. He didn’t feel uncomfortable but he was a little confused. What changed?

But still, Atlas was grateful to Ronan because he did find himself calming down. “Thank you, Ronan. I already feel a lot calmer… I will remember your words.”

“That’s good. Keep this bracelet with you at all times. I’m sure it will help you now and in the future.”

Atlas looked at the beautifully crafted silver bracelets with gemstones that looked just like Ronan’s eye color. It did feel like Ronan was claiming that he was his in some subtle manner.

As Atlas was thinking that, Cyrus called out to them. “Hey, it’s our turn to get our numbers.”

Ronan let go of Atlas’ hands and nodded. “Let’s go.”

Atlas followed behind them, putting what just happened at the back of his head. He would deal with it after the exam…

Every student was assigned a random number and that would tell them where their seat was for the assessment. Each student had an individual desk and could only accommodate 500 people at a time. Luckily, this was more than enough for the students trying to pursue education at the Imperial Academy.

For nobles who had been studying since the age of 5, this was just a formality. For commoners, this was life-changing for them. There was a public school where commoners could learn the basics like reading and writing, math, and history. They also learned complex topics magic and combat.

If they wanted, they could study hard to get into the Imperial Academy. If not, there were other jobs they could take up without having to go there. Still, if a commoner could go to the Imperial Academy, it would increase their job opportunities and income. Some could even become Barons if they made decent achievements.

The Hirean Empire made sure that all its citizens had a chance to improve themselves and the empire. Educating the masses made sure that innovations continued and people thrived.

After getting their numbers, they went to their seats like all the other students.

Atlas looked for Cryus, Sophie, and Ronan in the sea of students and found them in different corners from him. They didn’t look around like he did, just facing forward, waiting for the teachers to send out their exams.

Then he looked at the bracelet and rubbed one of the gems in between his fingers. It was a bit cold, but it glittered in the light just like Ronan’s eyes did.

He could do this… Just 250 points and he’s good to go.

As Atlas hyped himself up, the teachers began to distribute the first set of papers. There were five teachers handed out the exams. Each teacher had a different version of the test in their hands as they methodically passed out the set of papers. This was to prevent cheating but also make it easier for the teachers to organize and grade each test paper.

Atlas was handed version C of the exam. He wrote his name and the date down and looked at the first question.

He unconsciously grabbed the bracelet that sat on his left hand and took a deep breath. He heard Ronan’s words in his head. Take a deep breath in, and then a deep breath out.

Then he read the question and found that he knew the answer to it.

The first section of the exam was a math section. The second section was reading comprehension, and the third section was history. Lastly, it was the essay portion that asked about two magic theories, the differences between the two, and the similarities. Finally, he had to write about which theory he thought was the most accurate and give reasons why.

This wasn’t a multiple-choice exam though. It was completely written out which was why students had all day to do the exam. Most people didn’t take that long though, but it was just in case.

He didn’t know if the other versions of the exam were similar to his, most of the content was things that he had learned over the years, whether he remembered the details or not. Some things looked familiar, but he didn’t know the answer no matter how much he tried to remember, so he decided to skip it and come back later to give a guess. As for the ones he did know, it was a lot more than he thought, which gave him a bit more confidence.

Atlas took four hours to complete the exam, but that was quite average. Many people finished at the same time as he did.

As for Cyrus, Sophie, and Ronan, they were the first few to finish. It took them less than two hours to finish, so they continued to wait for Atlas. They knew Atlas needed to take his time, so they got some snacks and drinks ready for him when he was done.

When the trio saw Atlas walk out with a calm look on his face, they knew he did the best that he could.

“Atlas, how did you do?” Cyrus asked, checking Atlas’ facial expression to make sure that he was alright.

Atlas smiled when he saw Cyrus and the others. He gave a nod. “I think I did okay! I should have passed. There were a lot more questions that I knew than I didn’t know, so I feel like that’s a good sign.”

Cyrus gave a relieved sigh and patted his head. Atlas naturally lowered his head so Cyrus could reach it. He gave a goofy smile on his face, different from the anxious look he had on earlier.

“That’s good. You did a good job Atlas. From the looks of things, I’m sure you did better than what you were expecting.”

“Thank you, Cyrus, I hope so too.”

Ronan looked at the interactions of the two “brothers” and was a little confused. He’s never had problems with his studies and always had perfect scores on every test. What did it feel like to learn everything but not recall it? His memory was so good, sometimes, he wished he could be selective of what he knew…

Anyway, since the exam results would not be out until the next day, the four of them went back to the Alnhart estate to hold a small celebration for them, especially for Atlas who was the most worried about the results.

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Grandpa Marky: Hey everyone! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm exhausted. I've had to cut down the amount I can write because I have other things to do. No worries, I will still be posting once a week (unless something changes but I will be sure to let y'all know).

Anyway, that's it from me. I will see you all next week!