The Test

In the night of Tokyo, on the bustling streets, cars and people flowed like a stream of light.

A black sedan drove along the highway. In the driver's seat, a young man in his twenties with messy black hair and a black trench coat rested his hands on the steering wheel. His expression was one of clear displeasure.

"Tch... these officials in Tokyo are really something. As soon as we arrived, they tried to start barking orders. Do they really think we're people they can command? Thinking they can treat us like subordinates just because of their high titles... keep dreaming."

The black-haired young man spoke irritably as he drove, seemingly having just encountered something unpleasant.

Hearing his words, another young man sitting in the passenger seat, tall and upright, spoke up.

"Perhaps you were a bit too arrogant, Ryuji. After all, nominally, all Onmyoji fall under the jurisdiction of the Onmyo Agency. We are no exception." The young man in the passenger seat had a tall, thin frame and short orange hair. His face was fair and handsome, but his expression was indifferent and hollow. He was responding to the black-haired youth named Ryuji.

"It's only nominal... We Onmyoji have used families as our primary organization since ancient times. Whether it was the ancient Onmyoryo or the current Onmyo Agency, it's ultimately just a collaborative alliance platform and an excuse for interfacing with the government. It's only in these last few decades that some people have become insufferably arrogant just because they have a little power. It's hilarious that they think they can point fingers at us with their amateur Onmyojutsu just because they hold high office." The young man named Ryuji spoke with disdain, directly expressing his dissatisfaction with the Onmyo Agency.

After a brief pause, the tall, cold Onmyoji beside him continued in a detached tone.

"But... the mission from the main house was for us to assist them in stabilizing the Tokyo demon realm..."

"That's why I said it's just 'assistance,' not being their errand boys to be used at will. We'll act on our own. As long as we achieve the goal in the end, it doesn't matter, right? Mamiru..." Ryuji said to his colleague. The Onmyoji named Mamiru did not say anything more after hearing Ryuji's words. He simply glanced at the back seat through the rearview mirror before speaking.

"Ryuji, where is Yura?"

"Huh? Her? She said she wanted to undergo exorcism training in Tokyo while living independently this time, so she got off the car before we even went to the Onmyo Agency. Once that girl gets stubborn, there's no pulling her back. So, I just let her go. She's probably already somewhere starting her demon-slaying work..." Ryuji snorted and shrugged. Mamiru continued with a hollow face and a calm tone.

"Is it alright for Yura to be alone?"

"Hmph, what's there to worry about? If an Onmyoji of the Keikain Clan can't even handle independent exorcism, then they're beyond saving..." As he spoke, Ryuji accelerated the car, letting it speed into the distance.

...

In the daytime classroom, during the morning hours, a teacher was conducting a lesson. The subject was English.

"The grading for last week's test is complete. Generally speaking, while a few individual students were excellent, the overall level was not very ideal. Everyone needs to pay attention... Now, would the students in the front help distribute the papers?"

On the podium, the English teacher—wearing glasses and dressed in professional attire with long black hair—adjusted her glasses and patted a stack of papers. Her expression was quite serious. She handed the tests to the students in the front row. After a quick sort, the students began moving around the classroom to distribute them according to the names on the papers.

For a moment, the classroom was filled with a tense atmosphere. Students who received their papers were either joyful or distressed, and they immediately began looking around to compare their scores with their neighbors. Although it was still class time, the room started to get noisy.

Hayakawa Rin sat upright in her seat, waiting nervously for her paper to reach her desk. In her heart, she was rapidly and continuously chanting prayers to the gods.

'Lord Deity, please bless me... Lord Deity, please bless me... Lord Deity, please bless me... Lord Deity... mmph...'

Just as Hayakawa Rin closed her eyes to pray, she suddenly felt a sweetness in her mouth. Something round had been stuffed inside. Opening her eyes, she saw her front-row neighbor, Fushimi Inaba, sitting sideways in her chair with her legs crossed. She had reached back and stuffed a lollipop directly into Rin's mouth.

"Mmph... Fu... Fushimi-thun? What are you doing... mmph?" While eating the lollipop, Hayakawa Rin spoke with a face full of confusion. Beside her, Miketsu spoke calmly.

"It's nothing... I just saw you looking a bit nervous and gave you some sugar to relieve the stress..." As Miketsu spoke, she let go, allowing Hayakawa Rin to hold the stick of the lollipop herself. Her attention drawn by the sweetness in her mouth, Rin stopped praying and simply chewed on the candy.

"Mmph... thanks... the flavor is pretty good..."

Just as Hayakawa Rin was enjoying the lollipop, the student distributing the papers reached her and placed a test on her desk. After glancing at the paper, Rin's whole body shuddered. She bit down on the candy, swallowed it instantly, and her previously happy expression turned into one of utter gloom.

"Fif... fifty-four... This... this..."

Although Hayakawa Rin had a premonition that her score might be low, she hadn't expected it to be this bad. Looking at the large number of red marks on the paper, Rin felt her life had turned dark.

'As I thought... I'm just too bad at English...'

Suddenly, it occurred to her that even if she did poorly, there must be someone who did worse. After all, the teacher said the overall performance was bad; maybe she was actually okay compared to others...

Realizing this, Hayakawa Rin suddenly remembered the scene from last week's exam when she peeked at her front-row neighbor. She recalled seeing Fushimi Inaba filling out the test by throwing an eraser shaped like a die. At the time, Rin had felt guilty and didn't dare to copy... If she had failed this badly while trying her best, then surely that method of leaving everything to fate would be even more disastrous.

Thinking this, and perhaps seeking psychological comfort and confidence, Hayakawa Rin leaned forward slightly and whispered in a curious tone.

"Fushimi-san... how did you do?"

"How did I do... Hmm, it was alright." Hearing Hayakawa Rin's words, Miketsu turned slightly and showed the test paper in her hand to Rin. Marked on it was a high score that Rin could never hope to reach.

"Nine... ninety-eight?"

Seeing this, Hayakawa Rin, who had come looking for confidence, gasped in shock. Her expression was full of incomprehension and doubt. She could not fathom how someone could throw a die and end up with such a high score.

"Fushimi-san... how... how did you get such a high score?" Hayakawa Rin blurted out in shock. Miketsu replied with a calm expression.

"Are you asking for my secret to studying, Hayakawa-san?"

Hearing this, Hayakawa Rin paused for a moment before answering.

"Uh... yeah, I guess you could call it that..."

At her words, Miketsu smiled slightly, then waved her hand and spoke mysteriously.

"The secret to studying... I suppose it's a certain ratio of effort plus a certain ratio of luck..."

'A certain ratio of effort and a certain ratio of luck... just what is that ratio?!' Hayakawa Rin screamed in her heart.