The Day I Hoped Wouldn't Come: The Written Exam
I'd hoped this day wouldn't arrive. The written exam.
What do people who haven't studied at all and those who've studied their asses off have in common? They both wish the exam would hurry up and get here. On the other hand, people who've studied halfway—like me—just pray it never comes. I've neither fully given up nor studied enough to feel satisfied.
Even as I received the pre-exam notices and headed to the testing room, my anxiety didn't fade.
Thwack.
Someone smacked the back of my head. I turned to see who the punk was, and there was Jeong In-ah, grinning ear to ear.
"What're you doing?"
"Your head's just begging to be hit."
"……."
I stared at her, too dumbfounded to speak. Jeong In-ah flashed a playful smile.
"You look super tense. Didn't study much?"
"Tense? Nah."
"Acting tough. Anyone can see you're nervous!"
She slapped my back with a couple of hearty thwacks. Guess I must've looked it. Honestly, I was a little tense. This exam had my bet with Seong Ha-yeon riding on it—a huge deal.
I still couldn't fathom why I'd made that stupid bet.
Jeong In-ah glanced at the notebook in her left hand.
"So, how's the studying going? Do a ton?"
"Eh... about as much as everyone else."
Truth be told, I hadn't even done that much. Time was short, and so was my willpower.
She rolled her eyes like she didn't buy it.
"You always say that and ace it anyway."
"This time, I'm screwed for real."
"Screwed... that bad?"
"Yeah. You?"
Feeling down, I changed the subject. Jeong In-ah hesitated, pondering.
"...I studied hard, but not sure. Hope it sticks to what I crammed."
"Sounds like you put in the work."
"Damn right! Super hard."
She shrugged proudly. We chatted more on the way. She'd test in the second-year building; I was in the auditorium. Spreading students out like this, despite the hassle, was obvious: to prevent cheating.
Florence Academy was the toughest clergy academy in the country to get into, and its exams were brutally strict—recent incidents notwithstanding.
"Ace the exam! Not better than me, though."
As we parted, she waved cheerily. Despite everything, she stayed her bright self. I nodded with a smile in reply.
Then her face hardened, and she marched right up to me.
"Do it again."
"Huh?"
"Tell me to ace it too!"
What a ridiculous demand.
"...Ace the exam."
"Yup!"
Only then did she smile, satisfied, and head off. Her steps toward the second-year building looked feather-light. After the school closure, her personality seemed even lighter. Or maybe she was just trying to seem that way. There was a faint tremble at the edge of her smile.
I reached the auditorium—the same one from orientation. The stained glass centerpiece had fine cracks from that recent school chaos. The gym had been repaired, but smaller damages lingered.
"Oh my."
Checking the seating chart at the back, an unwelcome voice piped up. Seong Ha-yeon—all white from head to toe—glared sidelong at me.
"Same testing room?"
Her tone grated as always. Smart yet dumb, dumb yet cunning. She was provoking me on purpose, trying to rattle me so I couldn't focus. No reason to play along.
I ignored her lightly and sought my seat. But her next words were harder to brush off.
"Fate puts us side by side again. You won't cheat, right?"
"Haha..."
Rage bubbled over into laughter. But snapping back would just give her what she wanted. I swallowed the curses rising in my throat, kept smiling, and stared her down.
"Why peek at yours? You're not even worth cheating off."
"Why not beg nicely? Lick my shoes, and I might share."
"Yours? Nah... Kang Dae-man's would be better."
"Pardon? Even so, him of all people...!"
Bam!
A massive brute shoved the doors open and stormed in. Students already seated shot him sharp looks, but dropped their eyes upon recognizing him. Kang Dae-man loomed before us, flaunting his bulging muscles and giant frame. A back brace around his waist aside, he looked unchanged—overwhelming as ever.
"Do Seon-woo! Same room—talk about coincidence!"
"...Yeah, good to see you. What's with the back?"
"Evacuating hospital patients—threw it out big time. An honor for an aspiring paladin!"
He meant the Satanist broadcast threatening to bomb the hospital. A guy and girl student had helped paladins evacuate patients—that guy was Kang Dae-man. Luckily, no bombs were found; the hospital was safe.
"Right... truly honorable..."
I humored him and glanced at Seong Ha-yeon. She'd backed into a corner, fleeing him. Her cocky attitude was gone. Come to think of it, she always seemed scared of him.
Kang Dae-man boomed on regardless.
"But your glory outshines mine. Heard you chased a Satanist solo and fought—"
Thud!
Someone slammed their desk and shot up, glaring bloody murder at us. We'd been too loud. Fair enough. But Kang Dae-man surprised me—instead of yelling back, he bowed 90 degrees to the student.
"Sorry. We were noisy."
A textbook apology. The student scratched his head awkwardly and sat. Kang Dae-man lowered his voice to me.
"We'll talk after. Not the time now..."
"Sure."
He lumbered to his seat. I hunted for mine on the chart until just before start time. As I pulled out my pens, the proctor grabbed the mic.
As mentioned this morning, the following are deemed cheating by proctors: looking at another student's paper, continuing to mark after the bell without instruction...
Teachers distributed exam and answer sheets right after. The auditorium rustled with paper. A brief wait, then:
Ding.
The bell signaling start. First subject: Theology of the Divine. My worst, least-studied topic. No illusions of acing it—half right would be a miracle. I eyed question 1 desperately.
"Huh..."
A dry laugh escaped. Jeong In-ah's blank-slate method was genius. My mind was utterly blank. Nothing came. That's the blank-slate method! Despair hit late. I'd expected tough, but not this impossible from question 1.
[Theology of the Divine? Can't help there. Not my expertise.]
Legba chimed in after I blanked on question 1 for a minute. He knew history and religion but zilch on theology or divine materials. No choice—time for my ace.
I slyly pulled Baron Samedi's die from my pocket.
*
Seong Ha-yeon scanned the questions upon receiving her paper. 29 multiple-choice, no essays. 60 minutes—about 2 per question. Factoring variables, 1:30 each left buffer for review.
She dove in. Tough, but doable—easier than expected. She excelled in theology and divine materials. While others groaned past page 1 after 20 minutes, she had five left at 25.
"Excuse me, can I submit early?"
A guy stood, asking the proctor. Seong Ha-yeon startled, looking up. Submit after 25 minutes? Impossible for 29 questions. Sure enough: Kang Dae-man. His sheet was straight lines—all blanks filled randomly. Proctor sighed.
"...Didn't I say no straight lines?"
"Hits six for sure!"
"...Go."
Florence allowed early exit post-submission, but rarely beyond total surrender like his. Most barely finished in 60. He left; she refocused. 30 minutes left, five questions—plenty even at 6 each. Smooth sailing; full score possible sans mistakes.
Then:
Clack.
A weird noise from beside her—Do Seon-woo. She tried ignoring, but it persisted. Concentration frayed. Biting her lip, she peeked.
"……."
He was rolling a die... marking by the number. Ridiculous. She'd slaved over studies to beat this idiot? Pathetic to have ever seen him as a rival. No worry about the bet now. Good riddance—back to the exam.
Focus...
Clack.
"……."
Clack, clack. Clackclackclackclack.
She raised her hand, whispering to the proctor so others wouldn't hear.
"Can't focus—the dice rolling."
"Dice?"
"Next to me, Do Seon-woo. Keeps rolling. Please say something..."
Proctor nodded and approached. Seong Ha-yeon smirked inwardly, watching. Die in an exam? Disciplinary action post-test—maybe zero for cheating.
"Dice? What the..."
Unbelievable: Do Seon-woo palmed it slickly under the proctor's nose—magic trick level. Then the most innocent face, protesting innocence. He escaped scot-free. They whispered; proctor frowned, confused, then came to her.
"...Seong Ha-yeon, Do Seon-woo says you're staring—don't look his way."
"Pardon...? He had a die in his—"
"Keep it up, and it's cheating."
Students' eyes turned to her. She bowed her head, silenced. Arguing would just waste time.
"Yes... sorry..."
Her voice barely audible. After proctor left, she glared murderously. He met her eyes—middle finger raised. His face bore the clearest, brightest smile she'd ever seen. Proctor glanced; he switched to studious instantly.
First time she felt murderous rage.
"...Hoo."
No—don't waver. Ignore childish provocations. Solve problems. Time lost, but plenty left. Last five tough, but doable with focus.
Focus...
Clack.
Ignore. 26: Blessing circles in images (A) and (B) respectively...
Clack.
26 doable. On to 27.
27: In the following diagram, clack.
Clack... Damn clack! How long would he roll? All by die? No—focus. Time short. Star 27, skip. 28, clack.
29 clack. Wait, 30. Clackclack.
30...
"Haa..."
Five minutes to end, she finished. Dice nearly broke her, but she powered through. Now mark carefully. 9:4, 10:2, 11: clack? No, 12:5. Done at 30—
Ding.
Exam over, good work. Hands on heads. Ignoring instructions or marking post-bell is cheating...
The tumultuous theology exam ended. Dice hampered her, but she felt good. Proud for ignoring Do Seon-woo's sabotage. Small pride swelled—no full score, but top grade easy.
She noticed something off when the proctor collected her paper.
"Huh...?"
29 questions. Why marked to 30?
(To be continued next episode)