“Hey, Sharl, what’s this test gonna be like?”
After reviewing the foundational studies for a bit, we took a break, and I decided to ask her.
“Test? It’s just a recap of everything we’ve learned so far. Same as tests in regular schools.”
“Are there make-up tests or anything?”
“Sort of. Since this is more like a qualification exam, you can take it as many times as you want.”
“What do you mean?”
Is this some kind of certification?
“All subjects have their curriculums split into several stages. The test that’s happening next month is the first stage. Foundational studies might be a bit unclear, so let’s use alchemy as an example. If you pass the test next month, Tsukasa will have earned a qualification that says they’ve passed the first stage of alchemy. With that qualification, you can work in the relevant field. Though, honestly, the first stage is kinda basic. You’d need at least third or fourth stage to do much with it.”
I see.
“What about your alchemy, Sharl?”
“Alchemy has three years, ten stages in total, but I’ve already finished everything.”
Wow…
What’s impressive is that she completed it by middle school.
“By the way, how impressive is that?”
“If you’re thinking about alchemy-related jobs, it basically means you can get a job anywhere. Like, you’ve seen people selling potions in town, right? You’d be at that level, and I think you’d even succeed in opening your own shop.”
Of course, this is the person who adds flavor to potions.
“Don’t you think it’s a waste that you’re not going into that field?”
With this kind of ability, success would be almost guaranteed.
“You know, everyone probably thinks you’re more suited for that path.”
When I saw her fighting with Toko, her attack magic was impressive, but Sharl fundamentally isn’t strong…
Besides, her personality isn’t suited to battle.
“But, you’re not going into it, huh?”
“It’s because I’m the heir to Iver. Well, alchemy is just a hobby to me. A hobby.”
It doesn’t feel like a ‘hobby’ level to me.
“I’m going to work hard on curse studies, too.”
“I think that’s great. Oh, and curse studies are extremely profitable. Every household wants a curse caster.”
“Really?”
“Both cursing and curse removal are important.”
Now I’m a bit more motivated.
“If you succeed, you’ll get a high-paying job.”
“I do own my own house, but La Folle would probably welcome me happily, I think.”
That’s also true.
“In that case, even if Erik from La Folle asks, I won’t curse Sharl.”
“Erik La Folle… I know him”.
She definitely knows him.
“I think he’s a nice guy and wouldn’t say anything like that, but if you tried to curse, I’d do a Cobra Twist to stop you.”
“By the way… cursing is a serious crime. Even if you’re from a prestigious family, you’d get arrested.”
That’s true.
While Sharl and I were casually chatting during our break, we heard a knock on the door.
“Hmm?”
“Tsukasa, could I talk to you for a second?”
It was Mother’s voice.
“What?”
I stood up and opened the door, and there stood Mother.
“It’s almost lunchtime. What do you guys want to do?”
When Mother mentioned it, I looked at the clock—it was already 11:30.
“Ah… Should we go out somewhere?”
I hadn’t thought about lunch.
“By the way, would you like to prepare something for Miss Charlene as well?”
Hmm… I wonder?
“Sharl, what are your plans for lunch? Mother says she’ll prepare something…”
“Eh? But… wouldn’t that be an inconvenience?”
Sharl looked down as she spoke to Mother.
“Is it an inconvenience?”
“There’s no such thing. If we’re going out to eat, you may as well eat here.”
“Still…”
She passed Mother’s words directly to Sharl.
“Eh? But I’m from Iver… wouldn’t that be strange?”
“Does that matter? When I visited your house, didn’t you serve me food?”
“Yes, I would…”
“Then it’s fine. Mother, Sharl likes pasta.”
She always orders pasta at family restaurants.
“Understood. I’ll call you when it’s ready.”
With that, Mother closed the door and we returned to where Sharl was sitting.
“I’m sure she hates me already.”
“That’s not true. You can tell just by looking at her face.”
You learn that over 16 years of being a mother’s son.
“Really?”
“Our mom wears her emotions on her face, so it’s easy to read. The other day, when I said I hadn’t taken a shower for two days, she gave me a look of sheer disdain.”
As I said that, Sharl gave me a look of extreme disdain…
“It was a joke!”
I was only teasing, teasing.
“You should take a shower every day.”
“It was a joke!”
“Take one anyway.”
“Yes, sir…”
It’s just because I couldn’t take one while I was at Grandfather’s place in the mountains.
After that, we decided to take a break until lunch. Since Sharl wanted to see the photo album, I showed it to her and we reminisced about old times. Just then, Toko came into the room.
“You guys are doing something so cliché… seriously, big brother, you shouldn’t show these albums too much. It’s a classic thing to do when someone of the opposite gender is visiting, but in most cases, I’m also in the pictures.”
Almost all of the childhood photos are of the two of us.
That’s the fate of being twins.
“It’s fine. We were kids.”
“President, you’re laughing a lot, aren’t you?”
When Toko said that, I looked at Sharl and she was furrowing her brow while looking at the album.
Clearly, she was trying not to laugh.
“What’s so funny?”
“Stop it.”
Sharl said that and closed the album.
“What was that?”
“How skilled are you two at perfectly doing the same thing?”
Sharl was impressed.
“Is it twin synergy?”
“If you think about it, it’s pretty easy to mirror each other’s expressions.”
If you try to mimic the feelings of the moment, it usually works.
“Is that how twins usually work?”
“Don’t know.”
“Well, the worst part is when you match without even trying. High chance you’ll get laughed at.”
Yesterday, Yuika was laughing, so it happens.
“Huh… Speaking of which, I never noticed, but the expressions when you’re mirroring are identical. Even the timing of your blinks!”
I didn’t know that…
“Now I feel like we found something disturbing…”
“Totally… but whatever. It’s time for lunch.”
As Toko said that, Sharl took out a compact mirror and started fixing her bangs.
“You haven’t changed.”
“Big brother, minus five points.”
“It means you’re good as is.”
“Minus ten points.”
Why!?
“Let’s just go. I’m hungry.”
We left the room and headed downstairs.
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