Chapter 27

“You’ve got to step up your game; don’t let yourself get sidetracked by nonsense, or that $400,000 scholarship might just end up in my pocket.” Emma’s red lips curled into a smile as she powered on her computer.

Vere fumed inwardly, cursing. That scholarship is my last hope! he thought. How dare she belittle me! I won’t show any mercy. Rage consumed him as he threw himself into the competition. The system randomly allocated questions based on speed and accuracy; faster and more accurate answers yielded harder questions and higher scores.

Emma worked incredibly fast, and Vere’s prowess was equally formidable. Then, someone in the crowd shouted, “Hey, Vere! Your parents are gone! Aren’t you staying home to mourn? Still planning to study abroad? They’d roll over in their graves!” He laughed hysterically.

The teacher quickly removed the disrupter, but another voice yelled, “Vere, forget it! Your parents are gone. What’s the point?”

“Gentlemen, don’t disrupt the competition!” the teacher snapped.

But the heckling continued: “Are you ever gonna fly again? What if you die in a plane crash on your way to study abroad?”

Vere, on the verge of storming down and confronting the heckler, remembered his past impulsive actions. He'd lost the scholarship then, finishing last and never recovering.

A cold voice cut through the chaos. “Vere, they’re doing this on purpose. Give it your all and beat me!”

Confused, Vere couldn't tell if the voice was Emma’s or a hallucination. He saw on Emma's screen that the questions were refreshing with terrifying speed; she was over 200 points ahead.

Instantly regaining his composure, Vere focused solely on the questions. The noise faded as he calculated frantically.

Emma smiled in satisfaction. But as the competition neared its end, she abruptly left, leaving the students shocked.

“Why did Emma leave?” “Did the computer crash?” “Haha, maybe she couldn’t solve any and gave up!”

The blonde girl who’d earlier mocked Emma whistled disdainfully. “Who is she? How dare she join the Vark Invitational Mathematics Examination! She bit off more than she could chew!”

A sharp alert sounded. Time was up. The giant screen displayed the scores. Vere Hurlbutt took first place with 107,233 points! The crowd gasped.

“Holy crap, is Vere human or a computer? Not even a computer has a brain that powerful!”

“Damn, second place is actually Emma!” The onlookers buzzed. Emma, who’d left early, scored 107,232 points—just one point behind Vere. Fear flickered in the onlookers’ eyes.

Leaving early, she’d still come in second, prompting speculation that she might have won had she stayed.

The blonde girl was stunned. She and the other contestants, who’d undergone rigorous training, had never scored higher than 9,000 points. Emma and Vere's scores, exceeding one hundred thousand, highlighted their intellectual superiority. The third-place score was a mere 7,009 points.

The blonde girl, realizing she’d finished dead last (with no prizes below fifth place), was furious. Just as she planned to confront Emma, she overheard Vere publicly berating her.

“Why did you deliberately let me win? Do you look down on me?” Vere’s voice boomed.

Emma remained calm. “I couldn’t solve the last question. It was a waste of time.”

Everyone understood, but Vere knew better. Emma’s abilities surpassed his. He couldn’t fathom why she’d let him win.

After the awards ceremony, Vere received the first-prize scholarship. Emma received a signed book and manuscripts from a Nobel laureate—a prize she happily accepted. She then went to the cruise deck to relax. Vere followed.

Under the moonlight, he watched her elegant back. He quickly regained his composure, straightening his tie. “Was it you who reminded me during the competition?”

Emma turned, meeting his gaze. “Yes.”

“You knew how to solve that problem, and you estimated my score to stop on purpose,” Vere stated.

“Yes,” she admitted. Honesty, she reasoned, was the best policy with someone as perceptive as Vere. She'd intended to help him.

“Why?” Vere asked.

Emma took a sip of juice. “I was helping myself. I’m not short on cash, but I really wanted that author’s manuscript. I only wanted second prize.”

Vere remained skeptical.

Vere was still partly doubtful. But he knew that without Emma’s timely intervention, he would have lost everything. He felt relieved, taking out a note. “I don’t like owing favors. Here’s my number. Let me know if you need help.”

“I have no reason to lie to you,” Emma reassured him.