So…if this person gets ten free transcripts…and then pays $20 each for the next ten…that would be a total of $200…or $10 per transcript.
Honestly…that sounds reasonable me.
And as noted, I’m quite sure there is a fund for students of need who need help paying for additional transcripts.
The OP said they were chasing merit aid…which sort of implies that need based aid is not in the mix.