Before the Exam

"Haha, it's only because you, Miss Messenger, haven't been in Kjerag long that you still find the scenery here so special. People like us have long been tired of seeing these snow scenes."

Hey, messenger, what are you dragging along?

"Holy crap, a frozen Mountain Jumping Beast! That's a rare find, and it smells delicious. Do you need our help to get rid of it?"

When Suika got closer, the group was astonished to find a dead Jumping Beast being dragged behind Suika by an iron chain.

"On the way back, this thing was blocking the road and almost made me trip. When I looked at it, it seemed to have only recently died. I figured it was edible in the middle of winter, so I dragged it back."

As Suika spoke, she unchained the Jumping Beast, picked it up, and handed it over.

"Miss Messenger, you're so strong! This thing weighs about 200 pounds, and you can lift it with just one hand. That's amazing!"

The person who took the Jumping Beast thought it wasn't heavy because Suika had handled it so easily, but when he actually held it, he almost dropped it. After wrapping it up and weighing it in his hand, he gave Suika a thumbs up.

Suika proudly raised her arm, showing off her barely visible biceps.

"That's right, I'm known as the King of Super Strength back in my hometown."

"Hahaha..." Everyone at the door couldn't help but laugh.

"What's going on outside?" Ever since the First Elder sent people to hunt down Suika, he had felt an immense pressure on his shoulders.

He had been wondering if Suika had succeeded since she hadn't returned, but when he suddenly heard laughter outside, a sense of foreboding washed over him.

After all, if the people I arranged for them to come back, they definitely wouldn't cause such a commotion.

The guard returned shortly after and reported.

"Elder, the messenger girl is back... She even dragged back a Jumping Beast. Everyone's getting ready to Jumping Beast it to the canteen to stew it..."

Upon hearing the guard's words, the Grand Elder's pupils constricted sharply. After a few seconds of silence, he shook his hand.

"You can all leave now. I need to rest, so I won't join in your fun."

After finishing his speech, the elder turned and went into the room.

Back inside, he clutched his chest, feeling as if his heart was about to jump out of his chest.

Why is she back?

What about the people I sent out myself?

Didn't find her?

Or was he killed by her?

Why would she laugh and joke so happily with others outside?

The confusion among the crowd was driving the Grand Elder crazy.

That evening, the group sat inside, enjoying a steaming bowl of meat soup while singing and dancing.

"Where is the Grand Elder? I haven't seen him since he came back today."

Suika looked around and saw that all the other elders were there, but the First Elder was missing. She couldn't help but ask the guard beside her.

"The Grand Elder said he had caught a cold and was going to sleep."

"Oh, thank you for reminding me. I'll bring a bowl of food outside for the Grand Elder, so he'll have something to eat if he wakes up."

The guard stood up, took a small bowl of meat soup, and hurried over.

After the excitement subsided, Suika returned to her room. Seeing that no one was around, she blew a breath towards the door.

After hundreds of grains of Suika flew out, the method of the technique arrived at the room where the Grand Elder was.

Through the clone's vision Suika discovered that the Grand Elder was not asleep at all, but was quite awake.

He was sitting on the edge of the bed, writing a letter with his brows furrowed, showing no signs of having a cold.

After finishing writing, he stuffed the letter into a hidden compartment to the side. Just then, Suika took the opportunity to jump in.

Because of the dim candlelight, the other party did not discover Little Suika's whereabouts, and Little Suika followed the letter to the other side of the hidden compartment.

The person on the other side picked up the letter, looked at the person on it, then took a Fowlbeast, tied the letter to it, and threw it out of a nearby window.

Meanwhile, Suika's clone remained hidden behind the letter the entire time and was not discovered by that person.

A while after the Fowlbeast flew out of the window, the clone suddenly grew larger, then crushed the Fowlbeast to death, took the letter in its hand, and flew towards where Suika was.

In the Elder's room, after finishing writing the letter, he sat on the edge of the bed, stared blankly for a while, and then lay down.

"Is it really okay for someone your age to be sleeping at this time?"

I had just closed my eyes when I heard a voice in my ear.

"Who's there!" He sat up abruptly, only to find no one around.

After calming himself down, he lay back down on the bed, but the sound came again as soon as he closed his eyes.

Don't you feel even a little bit guilty about those who died because of you?

The elder suddenly waved his hand but missed, the noise attracting the attention of the guards outside.

"Elder?"

"Ahem, it's nothing, no need to come in!" The Grand Elder looked around with suspicion, but there was still no one there. Where did that voice come from?

He sat for a while, but finally couldn't stay awake any longer and went back to sleep.

"Aren't you afraid that the people you killed will come after you to claim their lives at night?" A voice came to his ears again after he closed his eyes.

He suddenly opened his eyes in the darkness but saw nothing but familiar furniture.

He endured this until late at night, hearing only sounds when he closed his eyes and seeing nothing when he opened them, until finally he couldn't take it anymore and fainted.

After he fell into a coma, a group of Little Suika ran out from various places and gathered around him to discuss something. Then, all the Suika climbed onto the blanket and used Density Enhancement on themselves to make themselves heavier.

Under this spell of "ghosts pressing down on the bed," sweat poured down the elder's forehead, but he was held firmly in place by the Little Suika and couldn't break free.

I could only let nightmares and stress assault me wave after wave in my sleep.

When he woke up the next day, he found that his whole body felt like it had been hit with a sledgehammer, from his head to his feet.

He couldn't muster any strength at all.

Sweating profusely all night, he successfully turned his self-proclaimed mild cold into a real cold.

The guards called him for a long time in the morning but received no response. When they opened the door, they were terrified to see him so weak that he looked like he was about to die. They hurriedly called for a doctor.

Meanwhile, Suika chuckled after retracting her clone and regaining the memories of what she had done. She had asked the little ones to help her find the old man and collect some interest, but she hadn't expected the clone to have so much fun. If she had known, she would have done it herself.

Chapter 322 Before the Exam

As for the letter that was never sent, Suika looked at the name, realized she didn't recognize it, and figured it was probably from a minor character who hadn't appeared in the story, so she burned it.

The contents are not important.

After all, whatever's in an unsent letter, it won't succeed.

After getting up in the morning, she even went with the guards to the Grand Elder's door to offer her condolences.

The dazed elder was jolted awake upon hearing Suika's voice.

I heard that voice so many times last night; I could even feel her whispering in my ear in my dreams.

Fear, anxiety, and constant harassment throughout the night were the culprits that turned him into this.

But he dared not utter a sound. The men he had sent out had not returned all day. He wasn't stupid; he could naturally guess that something must have happened to them.

Given Suika's almost undisguised "attack" on him, he had reason to believe that all of this was her revenge.

Suika had no idea what the other person was thinking. If she did, she would only despise him. What kind of revenge was this? It was just an appetizer or dessert. True revenge would require him to pay with his blood.

After "meeting" the Grand Elder, Suika did not go out again today.

Because the exams are starting tomorrow, the students of Kjerag, led by members of several major families, have been arriving at Manjushri Monastery one after another.

Here, Suika not only saw students, but also members of the three major families.

"Miss Messenger, so you've already arrived!" A loud voice caught Suika's attention. Looking over, she saw Arctos, the bear dad, striding over with a swagger.

"After all, I naturally want to handle this matter perfectly. Mr. Arctos didn't expect you to personally lead the team here."

As Suika spoke, she looked into the distance. Enciodes and Ratatos were also nearby, but they stopped when they saw Arctos approaching and chose to watch from a distance.

To be Suika, if I had to choose one person from the three families to chat with, I would choose Arctos.

After all, this guy is straightforward and doesn't mince words. Although he initially stuck to his stance as a conservative, he was completely convinced after being forced to drink by Suika several times.

Although he didn't immediately bow down and become a follower like in some novels, he also stopped adhering to his conservative stance and would often call on Suika whenever he got some good wine.

So the relationship between the two sides is actually not bad. If it weren't for the fact that the forces behind him are too stubborn and he doesn't yet have the ability to break the conservatives' stance, Suika might have turned him from a half friend into a full friend.

"Where is the Grand Elder? Why have we been here so long and haven't seen him today?"

Arctos felt something was missing. He looked around and asked uncertainly.

"The Grand Elder has been working tirelessly and painstakingly on this exam these past two days, but he is getting on in years. He caught a cold last night and fell ill in bed. The doctor visited him this morning and said he needs to rest."

"By the way, you'd better keep the students in check these next few days. They should keep their voices down so as not to disturb the Elder's rest."

Suika answered in a very serious tone.

Upon hearing her words, Arctos and the other two family heads looked at the guards of Manjushri Monastery standing to the side. After the guards nodded in agreement with Suika's words, Arctos said...

"The Grand Elder's illness is no small matter. Miss Messenger, please have a look around first. We need to go and visit him."

Seeing that the other two family heads were heading towards the residence of the Grand Elder, Arctos bid farewell to Suika and followed closely behind.

"Keep looking, you won't be able to see it in a couple more days!"

After watching them leave, Suika raised an eyebrow and said in a low voice.

The departure of the clan leaders did not attract much attention on the field, since the students' order and discipline did not require their personal intervention.

The three clans are negotiating with the guards, but it seems the negotiations are not going well.

Suika had anticipated this.

There are simply too many students to accommodate everyone at Manjushri Monastery, but due to the sacred nature of Manjushri Monastery, there are no large accommodations available for students nearby.

Therefore, the final solution proposed by Manjushri Monastery was for these students to spend the night in their exam seats.

After all, the best place in the entire Manjushri Monastery is the examination room, where the temperature is suitable and so many students can rest.

This arrangement clearly did not satisfy the three races, but what could they do? They dared not cause trouble here, nor did they dare to take the students away, so they could only grit their teeth and accept it.

Enciodes and the others remained silent about the news after they returned.

Suika glanced at the expressionless Arctos, guessing that the three of them must have known about this matter and agreed to the arrangement long ago, otherwise they wouldn't be so calm.

As for the students... they could withdraw from the exam on the grounds that the testing environment was too poor, but no one would do something so foolish.

After all, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Moreover, others would probably be happy if someone withdrew, so that there would be one less competitor.

Just after the students were led into the examination room, Suika walked to the back of Manjushri Monastery.

Although the Grand Elder was ill, other matters proceeded smoothly because they had been arranged in advance.

Upon arriving at the area where the exam papers were kept, I learned that the photocopier had been delivered yesterday.

Based on the principle of not bothering two people with the same task, and that the more people who handle the exam papers, the easier it is to leak them, the copies of these exam papers were also given to Jian and his two companions.

So the room where the exam papers were kept is now completely surrounded by outsiders. According to the previous plan, this place will not have any contact with the outside world until the exam.

After leaving with regret, Suika took her camera and went to the examination room, where all the students had already been assigned seats.

To Suika's surprise, although these people were not required to stay in their seats and the exam was tomorrow, everyone sat obediently in their seats and flipped through the books.

Apart from the rustling of pages turning, there wasn't a single other sound in the entire area.

Suika saw the Matterhorn not far away, walked over and patted him on the back (his shoulders were too high for her to reach).

The two walked out of the house

What's going on inside?

Suika pointed inside the room and asked.

"These children care a lot about this exam. They know they have a weak foundation, so they are willing to spend every minute to study as much as possible in the hope of succeeding."

After listening, Suika fell silent. In these children, she seemed to see a group of people from her past.

They went abroad one after another to learn advanced science and technology from various countries, and then returned despite great dangers and differences between domestic and foreign countries to participate in the construction of their own motherland...