Princess Mia talks passionately about study theory (overwhelming quantity strategy!)
Mia confirms the scope of the examination once more after returning to her room.
“There’s a lot to keep in mind, I suppose. Ugh, I can’t possibly recall all of this.”
It may surprise you to learn that Mia did not approach tests by relying solely on intuition and good fortune. Crossing her fingers and praying she got every question right was hardly the approach appropriate for a princess of a powerful nation. Her strategies were fittingly imperial considering that she was a proud Tearmoon princess. Her strategy was the equivalent of crushing opponents with sheer numbers, also known as…mass memorising, rote learning! It was time to commit information to memory without restriction! No matter how significant, if it could be tested, it was consigned to the memory.
She would persevere, ploughing through the sea of information until she could recall every bit of it with the help of her reliable cakes and cookies by her side. It should be clear to everyone who has ever taken an exam that this won’t work. It also never had! She had used this strategy to get ready for many exams in the previous timeline. She would lose focus and procrastinate every time, which cost her dearly in terms of marks by leaving a ton of crucial ideas unstudied.
However, it should be emphasised that in the present timeline, she was faring much better. Her performance on the most recent exam was in the top quarter of students, thanks to Anne’s assistance. This time, the issue was that she had missed numerous lessons as a result of travelling back to Tearmoon.
“…I’m in for a rough time.”
She would have to memorise everything that could come up if she wanted to do well. Her stomach clenched in dread at the mere thought. She wasn’t the only one who was having a difficult time. Her smaller roommate groaned in pain beside her.
Bel was relieved that her enrollment in Saint-Noel went smoothly, but she quickly discovered that she was struggling to keep up with the pace and difficulty of her lessons.
“Hnnngh, there’s something wrong. I think Ludwig-sensei has taught me this before, so why can’t I remember anything? Oh no, that’s not right!”
…Does this sound familiar?
“Aaaaah, this is so hard! Grand – Mia-neesama, can’t you make this easier in some way? a short cut of some kind? Maybe a different way to study? If I could simply remember everything, I think I might be able to…”
Mia regarded Bel’s tears. Like a mirror… In a moment of clarity, she viewed her snivelling granddaughter with newfound impartiality. It was unseemly to complain, she concluded.
“There’s no shortcut, Bel. You’re to blame for not studying regularly.” Her words were wise. “Now you’ll pay. Bel, we get what we sow. Everyone.”
Her sad gaze and sagely words were wasted on Bel.
“Hmph. Easy for you to say, Grandma, since you’re the Great Wisdom of the Empire, but for bad students, studying is torture.”
“That’s obvious. Still…” Her hand shook as she gripped her granddaughter’s shoulder and squeezed. “Sometimes we must…stand. And fight.”
She tilted her head as an idea struck her.
“Hm? Wait…” She cocked her brow at Bel. “What are you so upset about? Nobody is pressing you to ace the exam, and your grades aren’t going to be publicised for all to see…”
“I received a ten on my last test, and they informed me that if I don’t raise my grades, I won’t be able to take summer vacation… It’s the worst mark Saint-Noel has ever seen,” she remarked.
“Wh-Wha— What?!”
Mia was taken aback by Bel’s revelation.
“T-Ten?! How on earth did you get a ten?”
To put things in perspective, Saint-tests Noel’s were normally graded out of a hundred, so…yeah.
Even Mia had never experienced such despair. She wasn’t exactly a dedicated slacker, either. She simply didn’t have what it took to snooze while everyone else was working hard to improve their scores. The same was true in class; she only ever half-listened.
True delinquency required guts, something Mia lacked. As a result, she’d never come close to performing the incredible accomplishment of counting her test score with her fingers.
This chick must have steel nerves. With a mark like that, how is she not having a nervous breakdown? At this rate, they could certainly post her grade for all to see, and she’d just shrug.
She’d begun to develop a developing admiration for Bel before she stopped herself and quickly dismissed the notion with a shake of her head.
No, failing a test really badly is not a good thing at all. Also, I asked Rafina to sign her up for the class. If she keeps doing this, Rafina might start to look at me badly.
Still, she worried about her granddaughter’s future more than anything else.
“I can’t let this keep going on. I’d better do something for her…”
So, she grabbed Bel by the arm and started walking toward the door. Mia knew from experience that she had to leave her room or she would lose all motivation because her bed was so close and always looked so inviting. Also, her reliable maid was out working and couldn’t help her right now. She couldn’t study in her own room if Anne wasn’t there to keep an eye on her. When it was time to make a decision, she had to stay away from this one place at all costs.
“Okay, then let me teach you. The trick is that you have to win by having more cards than anyone else.
“Memorize everything so you can handle anything they throw at you,” she said as she led Bel toward the library. It was a plan that was pretty much the same as having no plan at all.
“Every now and then, you take a break to eat something sweet, and then you keep going until you’ve gone over everything that could be on the test! That is what will win the game.”
Mia’s way of studying, as you can see, was just plain old force.
“Hello, Mia. Are you here to study?”
At the door to the library, she heard a voice call out to her. She stopped and turned around to find out who was talking.
“My, Abel! How are you doing?” she said, and immediately got happier. “I’m here to help Bel with her homework. Are you also here to study for the tests?”
Abel hesitated to answer and sheepishly scratched his cheek before he did.
“Uh… Well, I guess I’ll do that too, but…it was more for this.” He gave her a little pile of papyrus.
“Oh? “What is it?”
“It’s a recap of what we talked about in class. You’ve been gone for a while, and while you were gone, they taught some things that weren’t in the textbook, so I made this. I don’t think it will be hard for you to catch up on your own, but just in case…”
His cheeks started to turn red, and he turned away, but when he felt her hands close over his, he turned back to look at her.
“Oh, Abel, you’re…” She looked up at him through her eyelashes with teary eyes. “Thank you. You were very kind to do that.”
“Y-You don’t need to say thank you. It’s not much, really. Besides, it’s not like you’ll need them—”
“No, Abel, I do need to thank you. I really mean it. From the deepest part of my soul…”
They looked at each other for a long time and didn’t say anything.
Bel, who had been watching this whole conversation, thought it was a good time to leave.
She said to no one in particular, “Well, I don’t want to bother you, so I’ll just go somewhere else.”
She turned around and took a few slow steps away from the two, but then she let out a strangled croak when a hand closed on the back of her collar. Mia thought to herself as she dragged her granddaughter back, “She doesn’t think twice, does she?”
Bel’s quick thinking when he was trying to get away was admirable, but was also a bit crazy. It made her think about herself. Still, she tightened her grip on Bel’s collar. She needed Bel to stay here, but not just so she could make the girl study. She can’t just run away on me.
Otherwise. I’ll… I’ll be left here with Abel by myself.
Mia from last year might have been excited about studying alone with Abel, but Mia from this year was afraid of it. Gone was the cute but immature young man she could make fun of.
Even though she had only had moderate success in the past when she tried to be the calm adult in their relationship, it was the thought that counted. She at least felt like the more mature person in each situation.
Now, because of all the sword practise he’d been doing with Sion, his body and mind were quickly growing up. He had sharper features, and his muscles were more toned.
The idea of being alone with a young Prince Charming, who was as kind as he was handsome, was terrifying. Well, she never went anywhere with the thought because it melted her brain in seconds.
At best, she’d say something like “My, how strange…” Then she starts to swoon and her chest feels tight. In other words, she was no longer immune to Abel’s charm, and she was now doomed from it.
Bel was the only thing that could help her keep her cool, so as soon as the girl started to run away, she grabbed her. “Don’t worry, Bel. You’re not bothering anyone. You can stay right here and study with us, where I can see you.”
Bel let out a sullen groan.
“Hnnngh… Mia-neesama, you’re so mean. You’re worse than Ludwig-sensei.”
