Chapter 39: Chapter 38: The Test Will Be A…
Overnight, Rip came to terms with himself and lifted away the depression that was hanging like a veil over his head.
After a night of good sleep, he was still the same as always, energetic and cheerful. Acing like an arrow through all the lessons and classes.
For the next few days, Rip and Chase did not deliberately stay away from Blake, however, they no longer hovered around him like helicopters.
They greet him normally in the mornings and at night, as well as whenever they pass by him and happen to notice him.
They no longer went up to him and forced him to become their activity partner.
They no longer squeezed next to him during lunch.
To this, Blake showed no obvious relief or disappointment. He went along with his life as usual.
Secretly, Rip was a tad bit sad to see that.
Like the landing of a dragonfly upon a calm lake, causing a momentary ripple. Upon the departure of the dragonfly, the lake regains its previous calm.
He was like that dragonfly, doomed to never leave a permanent mark on the surface of the waters.
In this way, time quickly flew by. Mornings became evenings and evenings became mornings.
Everyday without fail, sounds of wailing, anguish, regret, and tolerance never ceased. More and more trainees quit, unable to endure the seemingly endless sufferings.
By the time their head finally spared enough space to think from the torrent of lessons, they realized that the last day of the special training had come upon them.
The realization that they were about to leave this place they had called home for 30 days gave them a mixed feeling, happy as they were to finally be rid of the lessons they called abuse.
Within the special training building, inside Room A, the same auditorium in which the last announcement was made, assembled everybody related to the building.
Identical to last time, all instructors stood on stage, their backs straight and their gazes forward, carrying serious and harsh expressions.
The only difference this time was the absence of Butler Srca and the appearance of Instructor Mary taking his place.
Every trainee stood at attention below the stage. Comparing the survivors of the special training course to what they looked like when they first started, the one thing you would notice is their—
—Posture.
On the first day they arrived, a handful of them hunched their backs, while some unsightly placed their hands and feet, moving around randomly at times from restlessness. Some of their limbs hung loosely while some looked out of place.
After a whole month of back-breaking training, they now stood as straight as the instructors before them. Their hands either rested sharply at their sides or folded behind their backs. With an undeniable firmness they did not possess before. Their gazes unwavering and bright, none of the former hesitance or decadence can be seen. Their legs and feet were linear and unmoving, perfectly symmetrical with no restless fidgeting.
Row after row, they appeared like perfectly trained soldiers ready to set off and fight for their country.
Every some years, this sight would greet the aged and experienced instructors who for a long time had been grounding this special training into every staff who went through the Everett Mansion doors.
This sight brought tears to Instructor Mary's eyes. She was one of the youngest instructors recruited to join the special training instruction team. She was proud of her title and position, because it represents the trust the Everett family had in her to allow her to nurture the new generation of servants and maids who will be dedicatedly serving the Everett family.
"Ahem." Clearing her throat and blinking away the slight moisture in her eyes, Instructor Mary started her speech. "All of you before us have exceeded our expectations with your perseverance, with your undaunting will. By far, you are the group with the most survivors at the end of the special training period. We know and acknowledge how tough and harsh this training was for everyone—in fact, that is even an understatement—, because we have gone through it as well. Now we stand before all of you as instructors of this training.
"It was not supposed to be easy. Trials and tribulations shape you and prepare you for challenges that seem difficult because of your inexperience and lack of skills. Now that every one of you here has grasped the basics and essentials of all the skills you will need as a servant or maid of the Everett Mansion, you will fear no challenges!
"Nothing can stump you! Nothing will be hard for you! That is the true purpose of this special training!"
Instructor Mary's solemn yet fervent voice echoed off the large, spacious auditorium's walls, bouncing into the ears of all the trainees. Her fierce and determined eyes and grand momentum rocked the listeners' heart.
Transparent liquid seemed to leak from their eyes. Their hearts raced in excitement, infected by the intense and majestic atmosphere.
Under the bright lights, the instructors with their unbending backs and solemn attitudes appeared heroic and reliable. Like boulders who won't bulge no matter what waves hit them next. The trainees suddenly felt the urge to be like them.
"To teach you the skills you lack!"
One instructor suddenly stepped out of line and roared in a deep voice.
"To cultivate your will!"
Another instructor stepped out and boomed.
"To grow your mind, heart, and body!"
A third instructor stepped out of line.
Like a string of beads let loose, The rest of the instructors stepped out in unison, all instructors joined into a horizontal line. They unanimously voiced as one:
"No challenges should be feared! No challenges are challenges once you are strong enough!"
Their voices were awe-inspiring. Their august words resounded loudly within the hearts of those present.
The bodies of the trainees trembled from the vibrations in the air, their hearts pounding, and their eyes growing more and more bright in the midst of this solemn graduation ceremony.
No challenges are challenges once you are strong enough!
All at once, all the trainees felt it was worth it. It was worth it to endure through the hellish training experiences and dying lessons that forced their minds to shut down and their bodies to move tirelessly even then.
All that hardship and torture was worth it, because from now on, there will no longer be anything more challenging!
Once this day passes, there will no longer be anything in this world they will be afraid of.
They all believed so.
Up on the stage, none of the instructors spoke or moved after they finished their powerful declaration.
They allowed a dignified and glorious silence to settle onto the trainees, letting them soak up the atmosphere. To let them truly understand the weight of all they have gone through.
At this time, Instructor Mary spoke, almost like a whisper, but it smoothly entered the ears and then the hearts of all those present, including the instructors behind her.
"As dutiful and loyal servants to the Everett family, we must not shame our masters. We must strive to be the best we can be and push through our limits. Turn our potential into more than just something of a theory, but reality. Our masters protect us and provide for us, asking only that we serve them well in return."
Her words sent the trainees into confusion. The instructors behind her were also puzzled by her sudden, unplanned speech.
One trainee in particular felt his heart thump upon hearing her mention of "loyalty". Entangled like a tightly pulled knot, his orange and yellow hair swayed with the confusion in his heart. No expression could be seen on his face, but within his eyes appeared complicated, inexpressible feelings.
However, no one interrupted her.
Sensing the confusion within the silence in the air, although hesitant, Instructor Mary bravely marched on. "No one in this world can eat for free or dress for free, everything in this world has a price. Jobs are hard to earn and a living is even harder to make. Some of us here might have already experienced, seen the bitter cold world outside who show no mercy to anyone. They demand everything from us, and push us down the pit when it's convenient for them. Yet our gracious and generous masters don't ask more from us than we can give. Rather, they give us more than we deserve.
"They guarantee us our well-fed and clothed family, protection from the cruel society, and hope in this ruthless and uncaring world. I hope you think about what I said when you get tempted to leave."
The trainees kept silent.
Her impromptu words were originally not part of the speech that Instructor Mary had planned to deliver. But looking at some of the youthful faces of the trainees below her, she suddenly felt an urge to tell them.
In her time, she had seen far too many who left the mansion for the outside, complaining that the Everett Mansion was too strict and confining. But how could they know? Most of the trainees were young and ignorant, among them, many of whom called their job here their very first.
Once they get outside, the world cruelly swallows them up and leaves no bone behind.
Within her trainee group that year, she made a friend who soon left the mansion and broke off contact. When she heard from her friend again, she almost couldn't recognize the other person. Her friend's once soft and smooth skin looked wrinkled and dried, dark eye circles drew themselves round after round around her dull and dim eyes. Her once straight back was haggard and slightly bent from servitude.
The once straightforward and shining like a sun personality was nowhere to be found as she timidly spoke and hardly dared to make a move without permission, afraid of the other party's reproach or angered berating.
She was only in her 30s.
Instructor Mary had stayed with the Everett family for practically the whole of her life. Her first job was here. She gave it her all even when it got tough and disheartening at times. She never entertained the thoughts of resigning, because she was also grateful.
Though the Everetts may appear cruel, cold-blooded, and hard to talk to, once you are within their circle, they'll take care of you.
Once, they had open-handedly covered her ill grandma's hospital and operation expenses when they overheard her crying helplessly to another servant about her family's desperate situation.
She was from a poor family. She mainly entered the Everett Mansion as a maid for the above-average pay they offered. She stuck through in the beginning because of her family's need for her paycheck which was what sustained them.
When she found out about her grandma's serious condition, she immediately sent her grandma to the hospital but couldn't pay the bills. Her grandma almost couldn't have the operation she needed to live.
That's why, when the master declared in an irrefutable tone that he would cover all of her grandma's hospital expenses, she was immediately overwhelmed with relief and… unstoppable gratitude.
From that moment on, Instructor Mary wholeheartedly committed to the Everett family.
In the present, years after she finished her special training, a group of graduated trainees stand before her.
She didn't want them to make the same mistakes as the generations before them. She also didn't want the Everett house to lose capable hands like them.
Composing herself, she disregarded the unnatural silence of the trainees.
Instructor Mary carried on with the rest of the graduation ceremony which was really simple. One by one, she handed each of them their certificate that stated that they had gone through the Everett's Special Training, and survived. The biggest proof that they are now qualified household staff.
At the end, she gave a simple closing speech. Then came the most important announcement she wanted to make this day, as instructed by her young master.
"As you all know, surviving the special training is not the end goal in your application process. Your ultimate goal and challenge is to pass the test that follows after the special training concludes," Instructor Mary began to announce.
All trainees perked their ears up high, eager to finally hear more about the mysterious, legendary test that would decide their fate.
"You will all be given two weeks to prepare, and during that time, you will continue to stay in this building, in your current dorms. As before, you won't have to worry about the expenses you incur in this period. Now, I'm sure all of you are very curious about this test you'll be taking.
"Every time, the test format changes, however, like never before, the test this time will take the form of…"
Gulp.
The trainees nervously swallowed their dry saliva. Their hearts racing like never before.
They expect the legendary test to be an even higher and rockier mountain to climb than the special training. Just thinking back on the abuse that peeled layers of their skin off, they couldn't imagine what greater difficulties lay ahead of them. Why else would this test be the final determinant of their employment?
Instructor Mary scanned all the trainees one by one, slowly and steadily, not anxious at all to finish her sentence. All their trembling pupils and sweating faces were imprinted on her retina.
Finally having had enough fun tormenting them, Instructor Mary finished with a smile.
Her lips opened and closed with a high arc.
"…a talent showcase."
"…" The trainees stared with blank expressions.
*****
"…"
"…"
"…can somebody say something?"
"What do you want us to say?" Someone snapped.
"Do you want to hear us say that everything we learned was crap? Completely useless and a waste of time?!" Another one sneered.
"No…?" The trainee, who spoke out first to break the silence, was hesitant.
Another trainee cut in, trying to calm down the rumbling emotions of the other trainees. "You can't say that everything we learned here was useless. All of us here didn't know how to cook, clean, or fold our clothes before coming here, and now look—" They gestured with their hands towards the neatly piled and folded clothes sitting in the open drawer under the bed of a random trainee. "—we gained so many useful life skills."
Another one chipped in, "Plus, we might be able to impress our employer with the skills we learned here!" He tried to be optimistic.
Still, the air was dreary and heavy.
"…What talent do I even have?" One lamented aloud what the other trainees mourned over in their hearts.
At this moment, the future appeared bleak.
On the other side where Rip and Chase were, unlike the other trainees, Rip was very interested in the concept of a talent show for the deciding test. It sounded exciting, like anything can happen and that stoked him.
But like the other trainees, Rip also didn't know which talent of his to emphasize on.
'No, wait. In the first place, did I even have a talent?' The good-at-everything Rip doubted.
Balancing plates?
Cooking?
Cleaning?
Dancing?
Painting?
Unable to think of anything special or unique he could do that others couldn't even after going through the list of things he had learned during the special training, Rip turned to ask his good friend Chase.
"Chase, what talent do you think I have?"
"Talent?"
"Just anything that comes to mind that only I have!"
"Mm, your cheerful attitude?"
Rip rolled his eyes, "Ha ha, very funny. That's not a talent."
Chase shrugged. "It could be counted as one. Not everyone could be as cheerful and energetic as you. You were the only one who actually enjoyed and had fun with the special training which the others went through like corpses."
"Urgh!" Frustrated, Rip clawed both of his hands into his hair, messing up his neat and fluffy blue hair that he had brushed this morning. "I can't think of anything! What are you going to do? Have you thought of anything?"
Truly blank on a solution, Rip decided to leave it alone for now and inquired about Chase's choice.
Without missing a beat, Chase answered, "Cooking."
Rip's eyes widened as his jaw dropped.
It wasn't that he was shocked by the talent Chase decided to go with—Chase really was born with a gift for cooking, even Rip couldn't beat him in that area of expertise—he just felt offended and hopeless because Chase already knows what he'll be doing without a doubt while he still doesn't.
Jumping onto his bed, Rip wrapped himself into a cocoon and screamed.
Chase flinched.
In a corner of the dorm room that prevailed with an inexplicable sense of gloom that came from nowhere and for no reason, Blake calmly put on his white headphones, relieving his ears.
Weekly Power Status
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