Chapter 38 The Proficiency Tests

After Meira left, Evernya scrolled through the subjects available, trying to decide what to get over with first.

I shouldn’t have any problem with math, English, and probably science, but social studies and magic studies will give me issues. Let’s get math over with first, since it will probably be the easiest. I was always good with math in my old body. Hopefully, it is the same here.

She selected the math proficiency test and stared at the screen in disbelief at where the test started. Seriously? One plus one? I really hope this isn’t high school level math. Otherwise, I’m worried about this world’s education.

Evernya breezed through multiple levels of the math proficiency test, reaching algebra-level math. Finally, some math that takes over one second to solve! I wonder how far this test goes.

She continued. To work her way through the test, passing algebra one and two before moving on to geometry and trigonometry. Finally, she passed both pre-Calc and calculus, reaching the end of the test.

Just as I thought, it wasn’t too bad. Some equations differed slightly from what I was used to, but otherwise, most of it was the same. I’m happy with 95% proficiency that last 5 percent was probably those unfamiliar equations. My result should be good enough to skip all the math assignments Meira planned to force on me. Now, which one should I do next? I doubt English or science will be as straightforward as math was. Let’s go for English. It was never my best subject, but I should be good enough to pass most of this test. Wait, is it really English? Or is my mind automatically translating again? Oh well, I’ve had no trouble reading or speaking yet, so my auto translator should be able to pull this off.

Evernya selected the English proficiency test and trudged through the elementary school level English. Once she made her way into middle school level English, she ran into some problems.

Oh no, I was afraid this might happen. How am I supposed to know who wrote this supposedly famous story? Luckily it is multiple-choice, so I will just have to guess. I should still be able to pass all levels of this test by relying on my scores on sentence structure, reading comprehension, or anything else that is the same as earth. Good thing this test seems to focus on practical aspects of the English subject like reading and writing proficiency or I would bomb this test.

A little over an hour later, Evernya completed the English proficiency test. Finally done! That was much harder than the math test. Somehow I still got 70%. Hopefully, that’s enough to skip this subject. I still have three tests to go. These tests are going to take forever. I’ll deal with the rest of the tests after a nap.

Evernya set the laptop on her nightstand and awkwardly moved the pillows out of the way to lie down.

Dammit, I hate being weak. I can barely move a bunch of pillows! I only have myself to blame for my weakness, though. If I didn’t lose control of my anger over this stupid cuff, I could at least function. Hopefully, by tomorrow, I can at least make it to my bathroom because I would rather avoid a bladder explosion on my bed. Just how big is my bladder? Or my stomach? There is no way an average person can drink or forty liters in one sitting. According to Elizabeth, my body organs function normally, but what is normal for a shifter? Is everything about my body weird? Thought Evernya as she drifted off to sleep.

A couple hours later, her Elven keeper prodded her awake. Evernya’s eyes struggled to stay open as her weakened body desired to sleep. Just as she succumbed to her drowsiness, Meira lifted her upper body before jamming pillows between her back and the headboard, forcing her kitten upright. The change of position gave the final nudge her body needed to stay awake.

Her Elven keeper, in a chipper tone, congratulated her. “Good job on your first tests. I think we can skip math and English to save time.”

Her chipper tone vanished a moment later as Meira scanned her kitten for any signs of discomfort. “How do you feel?”

Now wide awake, Evernya responded, “I still feel weak, which is annoying. Hopefully, by tomorrow, I can at least walk to the bathroom.”

“No leaving the bed until I say so!” Her Elven keeper ordered with a scowl.

“What if I have to the bathroom really bad?” Questioned Evernya.

“Then use the intercom I will come running.” Said Meira.

“Fine.” Grumbled Evernya.

“How were your first tests?” Inquired Meira to take her kitten’s mind off of her current bed confinement.

Despite knowing what her Elven keeper was trying to do, she answered. “The math test was simple, but I had some trouble with the English test.”

“70% is still pretty good considering you didn’t prepare for the test. I am impressed with your math score. You could’ve probably passed even higher-level math. Though, it isn’t uncommon for mages with psychic abilities to have strong math skills, especially teleporters, since it requires a lot of calculation.” Meira complimented.

After a moment of silence, Meira apologized for her earlier outburst. “I’m sorry if I was a little harsh with you staying in bed, but you must limit your movement. Almost all your available mana is being used to keep you alive. If you didn’t need frequent meals to refuel, I would have put you under like I did before your mages test.”

Meira materialized a forty-liter barrel of the same liquid as before, causing Evernya’s stomach to growl as her sensitive nose caught a whiff of her next meal through the sealed container.

“How big was the deer?” Evernya inquired while eyeing the large clear barrel with intense interest.

“Around 200 kilograms, not huge, but a fairly good-sized one. I still have enough ingredients to make at least three more barrels of this size.” Commented Meira as if such a massive deer wasn’t insane.

“You know I can eat solid food now. You don’t need to blend everything.” Evernya said before a question popped into her mind as she eyed the forty-liter barrel, “Wait, how big is your blender?”

While Meira attached a feeding pump to the barrel, she responded, “You don’t have the strength to eat this much food if it were solid. Besides, having it in liquid form is easier for your body to digest. It would take longer to prepare enough plates for this much food than blending, so it’s convenient for me.”

After completing the setup process, Meira returned her attention to her kitten, continuing, “As for your question, I have never owned a blender, as it would be useless for me. All I needed to is cook it, then toss it in this barrel before shredding it with some air magic. You could do the same with telekinesis. And no matter what you say, all your meals for the next week will come in liquid form. Hopefully, by then, you will be strong enough to eat this much solid food.”

Meira glanced back at the barrel while adding, “You haven’t gotten a stomachache yet, so I don’t think I am overfeeding you. Just in case, I consulted Elizabeth, and she agrees this is the best meal plan for now. The taste doesn’t seem to bother you as long as it’s rich in mana. There are some drawbacks to this type of diet, but I don’t think those will apply to you, but just to be safe, it may not be a good idea to only drink your food once you recover.”

While continuing to stare at the forty-liter barrel outside her reach, Evernya said. “Even if I were to eat solid food, I would eat it too fast to taste much anyway. So it doesn’t matter what form my meals come in. I agree it is very convenient to just suck on that tube. But won’t a liquid diet give me issues with constipation and some deficiency in nutrients?”

“We aren’t sure exactly what your nutritional needs are yet. Shifters and dragons are typically carnivores, so Elizabeth and I theorized your diet needs to be high in protein and mana. However, your digestive system seems to defy logic. There is no way someone as small as you should be able to eat this much. So I doubt you will have issues with constipation as long as you get the proper nutrients.” Meira assured, easing her kitten’s worries.

Meira handed her the tube before turning on the pump to aid Evernya in drinking such a large barrel. Evernya sucked on the tube for almost 15 minutes before raising her hand for Meira to shut off the pump.

Meira hit the shut-off switch before toward her kitten, scanning her face for any sign of discomfort as she questioned in a worried tone, “What’s wrong?”

A cute little burp escaped Evernya’s mouth before replying, “Nothing, I am full.”

Meira’s shoulders loosened in relief as she teased, “Interesting, so your black hole of a stomach does have a bottom.”

“Hey, I don’t eat that much! I am sure other shifters have just as much of an appetite.” Defended Evernya.

“You’re right. Shifters do have an enormous appetite, and so do dragons, but you are tiny in comparison. Yet you can eat more than a shifter twice your size. You drank almost sixty liters of my concoction in a day! That’s more than double your body weight, but at least we found a limit. I was beginning to think you could drink an entire lake. Hopefully, when your body is healthier, your appetite will become more manageable. Otherwise, it will be hard to maintain such a ridiculous diet.” Stated Meira before stopping when she noticed her kitten’s, ‘I need to pee,’ fidget.

“bathroom break again?” Meira asked, receiving a nod in response.

Meira picked up Evernya and carried her to the bathroom. “I should start charging you for taxiing you around. It feels like all I do is carry you around. Luckily you are light, though that might change with your appetite.” Teased Meira.

“Hey! If most humans aren’t fat, then there is no way I will ever be. Besides, I’ll have to hunt for my meals providing great exercise.” Evernya defended as Meira planted her on the toilet.

“Have fun, don’t fall in. I don’t want my house to smell like a wet cat.” Meira continued to tease.

“Impossible, I’m immune to stinking. I haven’t even bathed myself in a few days,” Countered Evernya.

Meira wrinkled her nose before commenting, “That is not something to be proud of. Aren’t you supposed to obsess over cleaning yourself? How can you call yourself a feline shifter if you don’t bathe yourself a minimum of three times a day?” Teased Meira.

“Hurry up and leave before I explode and dirty your supposedly clean floors.” Threatened Evernya.

“Fine, yell when you need your elfy taxi service again.” Said Meira as she left the bathroom in a leisurely fashion.

A few minutes later, Evernya finished relieving herself, so she called her elf-shaped taxi to pick her up. After forcing her to wash her hands, Evernya was back in her bed.

“Have fun finding out if a 10-year-old human knows more than you. I will be downstairs enchanting page me if you need anything.” Meira jabbed in a teasing tone.

“You are enjoying my helplessness way too much. Now shoo, go do your elfy things. I’ll be fine.” Evernya dismissed her annoying elf caretaker.

“Fine, I’ll be back in a few hours to feed you again,” Meira announced before leaving the room.

After her annoying Elven keeper left, Evernya grabbed her laptop from the nightstand to continue with her tests. I may as well get the science test out of the way. Hopefully, it isn’t too different from my old world. I think Meira was right about my excellent memory because I can recall almost everything I learned from high school, despite graduating over a dozen years ago in a different body. Unfortunately, as a side effect, I also remember all the embarrassing moments. Still, my improved memory won’t save me if what I learned from Earth doesn’t apply here.

Evernya selected the science proficiency test, hoping for the best. To her relief, she found most of the science subjects similar to earth. The only difference was some formulas were slightly different, and many things had different names, but she figured them out. Over the next, over the next two hours, Evernya worked her way through the sections of the science test.

I guess I can live with an 80% proficiency. It’s not like these grades will go on some transcript. I am surprised how advanced this world’s science is, considering they have magic. I suppose some magic may rely on science. I doubt a doctor in this world could do their job well without an advanced knowledge of their patient’s biology. Luckily, the test focused on the human body, not other races, or I would fail the biology section. It’s sad that I know more about the human body than my current body, though to be fair, no one else knows much about me either.

The only ones who probably know anything are whoever created the lab, but even they failed to awaken my body until I came along. I hate how they could be out there somewhere, tracking me with the stupid brand on my mana core. With my limited knowledge of how brands work, I think it is inactive though, at least I hope so. When those accursed enslavement runes branded on my mana core, they were glowing as they were, in effect, unlike this brand. Either way, there is no point in dwelling on something I have no control over. I just have to focus on getting stronger in case they decide to come for me. This is my body now, and I refuse to allow anyone to control me ever again! I would rather die than face enslavement again!

Okay, back to the task at hand. I need to keep my temper in check, at least until I am healthy. Now time for the tests I’ve put off. I highly doubt I will pass either of these tests, but it would be nice to at least make it to the middle school level. Let’s go for social studies first. It should be the easier of the two. Thought Evernya as she hesitantly selected the social studies proficiency test.

Twenty minutes later, Evernya stared at the screen, depressed. How can it be over already? 5% proficiency? I didn’t even get past 4th-grade level questions! Sure, I probably got all questions on history wrong and most likely government as well. But I didn’t think I would get every geography question wrong. I mean, sure, the world is different, but as far as I can tell, there are still trees, dirt and rocks like earth. Mage’s councils didn’t exist in my old world, so I doubt the government structure is the same here either. I didn’t even get far enough to get to economics or any other aspect of social studies. It looks like I still have a lot to learn on the subject, but I expected this. At least I can skip most of the core subjects from earth. It’s not even worth trying to retake it. I doubt I could get better than 20% proficiency with my current knowledge. I may as well get the magic studies test over with. I doubt it will take long with how quick I failed the social studies test.

Evernya selected the magic studies proficiency test, resigned to fail. However, the first few questions surprised her and gave her hope. She spent the next hour working her way through the test.

She forgot her previous depression as stared at her results. Wow! 60% proficiency! Thank you, video games, and Pokémon! Most of the questions I could make an educated guess based on prior experience in video games and from what I’ve learned from Meira. Most magic names are pretty self-explanatory, so it isn’t hard to guess what they do. Elemental counters were relatively easy to figure out from playing Pokémon when I was a kid. What got me was who created certain spells or who was the first mage with blank ability. Some situational questions tripped me up too. How am I supposed to know what spell you use for a situation I have never been in or heard of? From my experience with having mana system problems, I pieced together enough to answer most questions related to how a mana system works. Overall, I think I did pretty good, considering I have almost zero experience with magic.

Evernya’s thoughts paused as her sensitive ears and nose picked up a certain elf entering her room.