I should have been more careful while looking at the junior division grades, but I’d forgotten that Louise was also in the prince’s class.
“Are you going to become a diplomat, Lady Patience?” Louise asked. “I hope you don’t catch any diseases while in a foreign country.”
Louise wasn’t even trying to hide her dislike of me. She was basically trying to curse me into getting sick. Her display of malice made me question if her evaluation was wrong and she’d actually been bestowed with dark magic instead of light.
“My, that is so kind of you to say. Thank you very much. Fortunately, my constitution is one of my stronger attributes, so there is no need for you to worry.” I replied with the same snark she’d directed at me.
Prince Keith was right there, so Louise decided to back down. Good grief. I brushed off my shoulders and body as if to get rid of the negativity her words had sullied me with.
“What was that?!” Prince Keith huffed. “She was being incredibly rude!”
This is bad. He shouldn’t get so upset in public.
“Oh, I wanted to ask you something. Princess Margaret invited me to visit the summer palace with Samuel and my brothers. Would it be all right with you if we visited?”
Prince Keith was easily distracted by the new subject I brought up.
“Oh, you’re bringing Samuel too? That sounds great! Richard won’t be there this summer, so I only have Marcus to spend time with.”
I was glad to see his mood improve, and Ralph and Hugo also looked relieved. Must be tough, being his schoolmates.
At this point, Princess Margaret came up to me.
“Patience, let’s go look at the art and home ec displays.”
We set out to view the various displays for classes like art, sewing, embroidery, and weaving. Princess Margaret’s painting had earned a blue ribbon.
“It’s a very lovely piece,” I said. I meant it genuinely, without any flattery. It made sense that she was talented—otherwise, she wouldn’t have gotten a certificate of completion.
“Of course it is,” the princess replied. “I worked very hard on it. Let’s move on. I believe embroidery pieces are over there.”
Princess Margaret’s embroidery piece was made with very neat needlework, and it had also received a blue ribbon.
“It looks like you’ll be able to pass Embroidery II in the fall, Lady Margaret.”
My piece was the needle painting, which had received a blue ribbon as well. There were people gathered around it.
“This is incredible, Patience,” Princess Margaret raved.
I’m glad. It was a lot of work. I hope I can finish the piece I’m making of the Satisford Viscounty coast during summer break.
Next were the calligraphy pieces, and mine had received a blue ribbon again.
“I don’t want to look at the sewing exhibit,” Princess Margaret lamented.
She’d successfully finished her gown, but the final piece had strayed quite a bit from her original design, which was likely what she wasn’t happy about.
“Though the design was simple, I thought your gown was beautiful.” That was truly how I felt. I preferred simple designs to overly decorated ones, and I wasn’t a big fan of frills.
“Your gown really is lovely, Patience. I’d love for you to make me one like that sometime.”
My polka dot gown stood out among the sea of solid colors. If I had been a bit taller, the final gown would’ve looked even better.
For weaving, all four of us newbies had gotten blue ribbons on our pieces.
“We passed!” Hannah exclaimed with shock. I was just as surprised.
“You all have more than enough skill to pass,” Ms. Derby remarked with a smile. “Starting in the fall term, you should all be taking Weaving II. You’ll also need to take Dyeing II if you want to weave patterned textiles.”
Yay, I’m excited! I looked over at the Weaving II pieces, and they were all patterned. It seemed difficult, but I was looking forward to it.
After we went around the various art exhibits, Princess Margaret said she wanted to visit the music club, so we parted ways. I went to the teachers’ offices, where I’d been summoned by Ms. Makias.
“Took you long enough,” she grumbled. “I was starting to think you didn’t want to be paid for those potions and herbs.”
Her tone was as gruff as ever as she pulled out a brown envelope from her desk and handed it to me.
“This is all of it. There’s a statement inside. Hurry up and sign it, otherwise Old Man Maverick won’t let you leave with the money.”
I looked at the statement and was surprised—I’d ended up earning thirty-four rhoms.
“Is it really all right for me to have this much?” I asked.
Ms. Makias let out a witchy cackle.
“If you don’t want it, I’ll take it.”
I quickly signed the slip and got my money. I was going to split it with my brothers, so we would each be getting eleven rhoms. Buying a souvenir would be nice, but getting my hands on a magic stone is also enticing.
“So, you going to take the novice apothecary’s exam?”
Oh, I’d forgotten about that. Money is one of my weaknesses.
“Yes, I’d like to take the exam!”
Ms. Makias let out a wry chuckle in response to my enthusiasm, and she handed me a slip of paper.
“The exam is only held twice a year, which won’t really be an issue for you, since I’m sure you’ll have no problem passing it.”
It appeared that there was one before summer break, and one before winter break. Is it too late to try and take the exam?
“Can I still sign up for the summer exam?” I asked.
Ms. Makias cackled again.