Old Tales, Virgilius, part 65: Virgilius frees a spirit, gets the magic books, and faces his foes

Tests: 2 of 14 right · Exam: 1 of 4 right · Kind: ★ · Understood: 13 of 18 · Run: 2026-10-18, commit f3c23ea72

Lesson 1814 of the books course of Mova's primary school, as Mova's small model took its tests: it had read this lesson and the ones before it and learned from their exercises. Each test shows the options in the order the student saw them, its choice, the right answer, the score of every option and why it chose.

Every question of this lesson and each of its options parsed by Mova, with trees and pragmatics: the lesson's questions in the corpora.

Test 1 · ★ · wrong ✗

yo, did that evil spirit really get stuck in the hole again?

1. Yeah, he got stuck and then wriggled out after the magician gave him a shove from behind — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Yeah, he showed off and jammed himself in — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Nope, he slipped out right away — no support
4. Yeah, but he got out easily — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 2 · ★ · wrong ✗

bruh, why did Virgilius even fall for Febilla?

1. She tricked him into a basket and laughed — ✓ the right answer · score -4
2. He had no idea she was a witch until she had lured him into the basket from her high window — score -3
3. She promised him a royal wedding — no support
4. He was fooled by her sweet words and she laughed as she left him hanging above the square — ← Mova's choice · score 1

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 4 with score 1, against -3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1814, line 17: «Why: Febilla plays a trick and leaves Virgilius hanging "over the market-place," where crowds laugh at him.», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. What matched: the same action «hang» (+2). Against it: the same doer «virgilius» (-1). The right option, 1, scored -4. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 3 · ★ · wrong ✗

lol, how long did the emperor say he'd sit on the case?

1. Five whole years, probably — score 6
2. Four whole years, like, forever — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. Forever, because he never intended to decide the case at all in his entire life — ← Mova's choice · score 7
4. Three long years, I guess — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what something is like. It chose option 3 with score 7, against 6 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1814, line 12: «What: The emperor says he will "think over the matter for the next four years," so Virgilius gets no justice at once.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same doer «emperor» (+4); the same action «think» (+2); one says «not», the other does not (counts against) (+1). The right option, 2, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 4 · ★ · right ✓

no cap, what did Virgilius do to the fire-less Romans?

1. Made Febilla stand in a smock so folks could relight — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 4
2. Made the emperor's guards bring new wood — score 3
3. Ordered Febilla to walk the streets with coals — no support
4. Lit the fires himself — no support

Why: It took the question to ask what is done. It chose option 1 with score 4, against 3 for the next best. Its support: lesson 1814, line 18: «What: Every fire in Rome goes out, and Virgilius makes Febilla stand in "a single white garment" so the Romans can relight their hearths.», reached through the remembered sentence the question matched. What matched: a different doer (counts against) (+3); it fills the role the question asks for (+1); its «because» matches the remembered cause (+1). Against it: the same action «relight» (-1). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 5 · ★ · wrong ✗

wait, why did the rich relatives keep their distance?

1. Because they had long ago sworn a secret oath to the emperor to share all his inheritance among them — no support
2. They wanted him to leave the city alone — ← Mova's choice · score 1
3. They were scared Virgilius would stop their robbing — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. They believed Virgilius would punish their greed with a magic curse that followed them into their graves — score -2

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 2 with score 1, against -2 for the next best. Its support: lesson 91, line 9: «Pau Amma: «Once a day and once a night I go out to look for my food. Once a day and once a night I return. Leave me alone.»», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «leave» (+2). Against it: the same property (-1). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 6 · ★ · wrong ✗

so the spell froze the enemies mid-climb, right?

1. Yeah, some were halfway up the ladders — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. Yeah, some were halfway up the ladders while others were still marching toward the river bank — no support
3. Nope, the spell only froze the officers at the front of the column who were riding horses — ← Mova's choice · score 7
4. Nope, they were trapped at the gates — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 7, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 728, line 4: «The fairy turns Jorinda into a nightingale and carries her off, and Jorindel is frozen to the spot by her spell.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «freeze» (+5); the same doer «spell» (+2). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 7 · ★ · wrong ✗

bro, how did the magician even get involved?

1. He arrived at court with a long list of demands and a small army of loyal followers from Spain — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. He offered to sell his services to the emperor — ✓ the right answer · no support
3. He had been summoned from Toledo by the emperor after the rumours of Virgilius's spells spread across the whole empire — no support
4. He sought revenge on Virgilius's family — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 8 · ★ · wrong ✗

did the spirit get out of the cave or not?

1. Yeah, he escaped through the back door — score 1
2. Nope, he stayed under the bolt until the magician came back with the Black Book and freed him — ← Mova's choice · score 7
3. Yeah, he wriggled out after a long while — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. Yeah, he wriggled out after a long while, then folded himself back inside the cave to show his size — score 7

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 7, tied with another option at 7 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 794, line 15: «Old word: "consecrated ground" means land blessed by the church for burial, so the spirit could rest there.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «rest» (+5); the same doer «spirit» (+2). The right option, 3, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 9 · ★ · wrong ✗

so what's the deal with the pail thing?

1. He jumped in headlong and then the pail was carried off by a wind to the far end of Rome — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. He climbed in and sealed the lid so no one in the crowd could see him ever again at all — no support
3. He jumped in and vanished from sight — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. He dived in and got swallowed by a cloud — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 10 · ★ · wrong ✗

wait, why did Virgilius stop the fire-thing?

1. To show the Romans that the emperor had wronged him and needed to repent before the gods — ← Mova's choice · score 2
2. To prove the emperor should give him justice — ✓ the right answer · score -1
3. To win back the favour of the crowd — score -3
4. To punish the emperor for his cruelty — score -3

Why: It took the question to ask why something happens (its cause). It chose option 1 with score 2, against -1 for the next best. Its support: lesson 725, line 20: «Old word: repent means to feel sorry afterwards, so "you will repent it" means you will be sorry later.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «repent» (+2). The right option, 2, scored -1. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 11 · ★ · right ✓

did Virgilius get rich from the tower idea?

1. Yes, he sold tickets to every merchant in Rome who wanted to listen to their neighbours' secrets — no support
2. Yes, the emperor paid him handsomely for it — no support
3. No, he just built it to hear everything — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7
4. No, he built it only to spy on the emperor and never told a single soul what he heard there — score 7

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 3 with score 7, tied with another option at 7 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1814, line 18: «What: Every fire in Rome goes out, and Virgilius makes Febilla stand in "a single white garment" so the Romans can relight their hearths.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «make» (+5); the same doer «virgilius» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 12 · ★ · wrong ✗

lowkey, what was the Black Book for?

1. It contained every secret of the stars and the earth that he had gathered in Toledo over many years — ← Mova's choice · score 7
2. It recorded the old Roman laws — no support
3. It told him what spells to use — ✓ the right answer · score 7
4. It was a catalogue of the emperors and their wars, written in the ancient Greek tongue of the magicians — score 1

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 1 with score 7, tied with another option at 7 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1698, line 17: «The temple: two "huge lions" guard it, and the book on the altar holds "the names of all the lovers in the world."», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «hold» (+5); the same doer «book» (+2). The right option, 3, scored 7. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 13 · ★ · wrong ✗

no way, what were the statues on the Capitol?

1. Emperors who ruled the empire well — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. Gods of Rome — no support
3. Gods honoured by the Roman senate — no support
4. Gods worshipped by every nation under Rome — ✓ the right answer · no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Test 14 · ★ · wrong ✗

what did Virgilius bring back from Toledo for his mum?

1. A white horse — ← Mova's choice · score -1
2. Four pack-horses full of treasure and a white palfrey — ✓ the right answer · score -1
3. Four pack-horses full of spices and a black stallion — score -1
4. Two carts of silk and an old grey mule — score -1

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 1 with score -1, tied with another option at -1 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 1784, line 7: «What: the emperor sets eight days for the youth to "tame and bring to me three horses that have never felt a master."», reached through the same lesson line as the sentence the question matched. Against it: the same doer «three horses» (-1). The right option, 2, scored -1. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 1 · formal language · wrong ✗

Which action of Virgilius, upon his return to Rome, is the most significant indication of his character?

1. His liberal distribution of gifts to the poor relations and to those who had shown kindness to his mother — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. His loyal return to Toledo to rescue the pack-horses from the robbers on the mountain road — no support
3. His steadfast refusal to accept any payment from the emperor for the sorcery he performed — no support
4. Gifts to the poor — ← Mova's choice · score -5

Why: It took the question to ask who or what does it. It chose option 4 with score -5, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 30, line 20: «Talk in this lesson: «it's giving main character» = acting like the star of the show; «flex» = show off; «sound» (Liverpool) = fine, OK; «don't have a cow» (ol…», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. Against it: the same circumstance (-1); it fills the role the question asks for (-1). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 2 · formal language · wrong ✗

Describe the manner in which the spirit was confined and subsequently released from the hole beneath the bolt.

1. He was held beneath a bolt, wriggled out slowly, and then folded himself back inside to prove his size — ✓ the right answer · no support
2. He was pinned by a bolt in the cave wall, then slipped out gradually and was shown back in to prove his size — no support
3. He was trapped and then freed — no support
4. He was pinned in a hole by iron, then worked himself free with much effort and difficulty over a long time — ← Mova's choice · score -1

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 4 with score -1, the only option with support. Its support: lesson 1814, line 1: «Virgilius lets the evil spirit out of the bolted hole, but the spirit wriggles back in to prove how small he was.», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. Against it: a different action (counts against) (-1). The right option, 1, found no support in what it remembers. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 3 · formal language · wrong ✗

To what extent did the emperor's sorcerer contribute to the subsequent events in Rome?

1. He numbed the emperor's soldiers, so Virgilius turned to the Black Book — ← Mova's choice · no support
2. He drugged the garrison — no support
3. He enabled the emperor's garrison to be stupefied, forcing Virgilius to resort to his Black Book — ✓ the right answer · no support
4. He helped the army — no support

Why: No option found support in what it remembers, so it guessed: it took the first option shown. · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

Exam question 4 · formal language · right ✓

Explain the reason why the Romans were able to rekindle their hearths after the morning of the extinguished fires.

1. They kept the old embers — score 6
2. They took fire from the maiden clad in her white smock, as Virgilius had ordered — ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer · score 7
3. They took sparks from the emperor's own torches which had been kept lit in the palace — score 7
4. They lit new fires from a lamp kept burning in Virgilius's tower all night long — no support

Why: It took the question to ask which statement is true. It chose option 2 with score 7, tied with another option at 7 (the first shown, or the one claiming less beyond what it knows, wins). Its support: lesson 498, line 7: «What: The Romans brought Cybele to Rome in the second Punic war, B.C. 205, "in obedience to an injunction contained in the Sybilline books".», reached through the option's own match among the sentences about the question's things. What matched: the same action «bring» (+5); the same doer «romans» (+2). · the question and its options parsed, with trees and pragmatics

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