When the last twenty minutes remained, Mel and Maria Gloove took the lead with seven buds, with the rest following them. Though the noble disciples outscored the commoners using their juices ten minutes ago, the rapid success of Mel and the boy with crooked bangs were pushing them forward.
Grumpy Hanry's sickle-shaped dagger passed from hand to hand, and the plants of the children who had cut their palms began to open their buds quickly. All of the public participants had their fifth buds opened.
"How many years from their lifetime have these idiots spent just to succeed in one test!"
If they had reached the lower limit of seven, they would get the required score for this test. Since they were willing to sacrifice their blood energy, Mel's intervention was not noticed, so other people thought that this would shorten their lifespan.
Young Master Louise spoke with vanity and disdain again, but now someone else sitting at the same height had some words to speak.
"They use their own blood instead of the juices that their families would buy for them. I think it's a big stupidity. Fortunately, the Plants Department of our academy is very fair, even if they didn't pass this acceptance exam, we would hire them as plant collectors!"
Hanry was like a collapsed levee. Whatever he had in his mind was pouring out from his mouth.
"While the trinkets, supported by their families, become Botanists, people who will sacrifice their life for this job can only become Herb Collectors. Thinking about it now, it's actually a very fair system! If we chose the Plant Collectors among those, which should deal with many wild creatures as well as the natural conditions, we probably won't have plants to cultivate in two years!"
When the middle-aged man finished his speech, the eyes of the children from lower classes shone, despite the blood flowing from their hands. Someone from the Plant Department was clearly supporting them, and that person was Senior Master Hanry.
"Masters, let's not spoil the concentration of young people!"
The Head of the Plant Department warned his two deputies in a sweeter tone this time. It was difficult for him to regain his former toughness after his favor to the nobility.
Still, his intervention had made one side outweighed in the scales. The children using their juices were reaching their sixth buds, and they were very relaxed.
"We will be able to bloom seven buds with ease!"
"I might even go up to eight. We didn't even have to force ourselves!"
Although they spoke in a whisper, some words could be heard easily. They seemed to do it on purpose to demoralize the children they see as rivals.
"Patience, old friend. Let them have fun. That's better!"
The tree, which had the power to change everything instantly, was angry at the provocations and wanted to make the Ten Buds Ghost Orchids bloom by using the energy Mel had fed him for two and a half years.
"Last fifteen minutes!"
Apart from the Head of Department and the Two Masters, there were many supervisors from the Plant Department inside the building. Although they could not speak much due to the strange events that had happened so far, they were warning the participants every fifteen minutes.
Despite meeting the minimum standard required, Mel and Maria proceeded solemnly, and they reaped the fruits of their concentration by opening the eighth bud, which they had bloomed almost simultaneously.
"Damn peasant! He seems to do it on purpose every time!"
Although he spoke it out, Louise would not think it could be possible. But that was exactly what was happening. In addition to his own plant, Mel was watching the girl's Ten-Buds Ghost Orchid, whom he saw as a rival.
The moment the bud in the plant of the girl in gaudy clothes started to open, Mel was making the next bud bloom.
Maria was staring at the child she ignored from the beginning with hateful eyes. Perhaps not even in her wildest dreams, she would think that a peasant from an unknown place could compete with her.
"Last year we saw nine buds bloom. I wonder if it comes out better this year."
The inspectors in the public section were talking among themselves. One of them, who was here last year, was wondering something.
"I don't think so. It was the best score of the last two decades, and it was the young master of the Gloove family who made it!"
Another five minutes passed with waiting and gossiping. Mel and Maria were at the eighth bud, and everyone else was at the sixth.
Sweat began to drain from Maria's face. She opened the lid of the juice that appeared in her hand and emptied it on the soil of the Ten Buds Orchid in one move. She was the only noble who did not use her own juice when the Head of Department gave his permission. But by the end of the test, she would have felt that she was at her limits, and therefore didn't hesitate to use this privilege.
Nine minutes were left and Maria's sap began to take effect. The bud of the plant was trembling uncomfortably, and when another minute passed, it became clear that she was showing great effort to open it.
Finally, in the last six minutes, the beautiful girl managed to bloom the ninth bud. The ten-budded Ghost Orchid now had nine white flowers on its stem. The only unopened bud was on the right. If it was bloomed too, the plant with five flowers on each side would fully display its beauty.
Maria wiped the sweat off her forehead with a handkerchief with embroidered edges she took out from her pocket. At one corner of the white handkerchief, her name and the initials of her last name were elegantly embroidered with gold strings.
Then she looked up at Mel. Her attitude was showing the arrogance of a human being who had finally prevailed. Since she used sap, she wouldn't attract attention as much as the success of her kin. But she still had one of the best ranks in the last twenty years. How could she not be arrogant?
"At the end, the best has shown herself! It may take time for some to learn that there are limits they cannot cross!"
Again, Louise was wiggling and he loosed his tongue after the representative of her family bloomed the ninth bud. The target of his words was directly Mel. Louise meant that as the only person competing with Maria, this was Mel's limit.
"This year, our participants are really successful. There is no one under six buds. Most of them reached up to the seventh bud and some of them reached up to the eighth bud!"
The Head of Department softened the words of the Young Master, and briefly summed up the situation.
The children of the common people were at the sixth, most of the nobles were at the seventh, and the rest, except Maria, were at the eighth. The children of noble families could easily achieve what Mel and others had achieved by shedding their blood.
"Money versus blood; I guess that's how our Academy's new order works!"
Grumpy Hanry collapsed into his seat. Although the situation was gratifying on the surface, the words he muttered by himself sat like a heavy stone in his heart.
"My friend, don't!"
A high-pitched child voice echoed in the single-story building at the moment when the result was almost obvious and the test was less than five minutes to complete.
It was none other than the blond and crooked-haired boy who shouted, sitting next to Mel. The reason for this action was the sickle-shaped dagger in Mel's hand.