Carmen’s face burned deathly pale. “The chief judge found out I took someone else’s spot in the finals, and my eligibility has been revoked. If the cheating gets out, it’ll be announced to the whole school. How can I ever stay at this school again?”

She thought, “With this stain on my record, Rithol Art would never accept me. Alvin is definitely going to leave. Will I ever be with him now?”

“How could this happen?” Daston was utterly stunned. He thought, “Only Alec and I knew about this…”

Before he could finish speaking, the loudspeaker crackled to life, cutting through the air, and announced the competition results.

The announcement seemed to drift further away from him. How can…

A person said, “First, we would like to thank all participants for their hard work. Now, we announce the top three winners. The Gold Medal goes to the Department of Mathematics at Rithal University. The Silver Medal goes to an international contestant. The Bronze Medal goes to Aubree Miller.”

“Remaining participants may check their rankings on the scrolling display. Top three medalists, please proceed to the award podium to claim your prizes.”

The announcement was broadcast three times in succession, sending waves of astonished murmurs through the square.

It wasn’t the gold medalist who stole the spotlight at this competition, but the bronze. The single name announced meant this contestant had fought their way up from the open qualifiers.

The International Mathematics Competition had been held for several editions, yet never, regardless of the host country, had an open qualifier become a medalist.

A person asked, “Who the hell is Aubree? She’s…”

Another said, “Wow, what a legend! I gotta head to the award ceremony to catch the interview. I’ve never even heard of this prodigy!”

A third said, “Wait, I just remembered! There was this young girl in my exam room, she looked like a high schooler. Could that be her!”

Someone exclaimed, “A high schooler with skills like that? Shouldn’t she have been fast tracked to college already?”

The Wilson family were equally dumbfounded when they heard the announcement.

Alice was so shocked she forgot to comfort Carmen. Grabbing Daxton’s arm, she gasped, “Daxton, did I hear that right? Did they just say Aubree?”

Daxton’s face darkened, furious at Aubree’s blatant grandstanding.

Through gritted teeth, Daxton muttered, “Unless there’s someone else with the same name, it has to be her.”

Daxton’s thoughts were already churning with a thousand tangled ideas.

Daxton couldn’t help but wonder, “Aubree clearly knows she has what it takes to win. Did she deliberately enter the math competition after finding out Carmen was participating in the painting contest?”

As he pieced it together, Daxton’s expression grew even darker. He thought bitterly, “There’s no way this is just a coincidence. Of all times, Aubree had to enter the competition exactly when Carmen was in the painting contest?”

“How could she be so calculating? Does she really think that by outshining Carmen, we’ll regret ever being good to her?”

Alice’s jaw dropped. She thought, “Wasn’t Aubree always at the bottom of the class? When did her grades improve so much?”

Carmen clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her palms, drawing blood, though she barely noticed, lost in a storm of humiliation and rage.

“Aubree again,” Carmen seethed.

The surrounding whispers about her became the final straw. Carmen shoved Daxton violently and shouted, “This is all your fault! If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be humiliated like this!”

Carmen was having a complete emotional breakdown, her face buried in her hands as she sobbed quietly, when suddenly, the loudspeaker crackled to life again.

The results of the painting competition were announced, not only were the top three winners revealed, but an additional statement was also included.

A person said, “An investigation has revealed that a contestant in this painting competition used unfair means to enter the finals. The judging committee has decided to revoke this contestant’s qualification, and investigations into those involved are still ongoing.”

The announcement didn’t specify names, but anyone who cared to check the contestant list would know exactly who it was.

Carmen was completely shattered, wiping away her tears as she stumbled out.

She couldn’t stand being branded a cheater while Aubree got to bask in all that glory.

Carmen’s resentment made Daxton’s heart ache for her. He longed to comfort her, but reason dictated that he stay behind to investigate who had leaked the information. “Mom, go comfort Carmen now!”

Daxton thought anxiously, “I have to find out who leaked this!”

A venomous glint flashed in Daxton’s eyes.

Alice finally snapped out of her daze and hurried after Carmen. Meanwhile, Daxton went to review the surveillance footage from that day.

Hearing the broadcast announcement, a satisfied smile played at the corners of Aubree’s lips. She thought, “Did Carmen really think she could have all the good things to herself? Not a chance.”

“If you dare to play dirty, you’d better be ready to face the consequences.”

As the judges prepared to present the awards, Aubree finally made her graceful entrance onto the podium. The crowd watching the ceremony was unusually large this time, all drawn here by her presence.

Everyone was dying to see who fought her way up from the open qualifiers to claim bronze at this international competition.

A person said, “Oh my God! She’s so young! She’s only in high school, right?”

Another said, “If she’s in high school, why didn’t her school nominate her? What kind of idiotic school wouldn’t nurture a prodigy like that?”

Even the judges presenting Aubree with her medal were stunned. How could someone so young win at such a prestigious international math competition?

Some teachers were already scheming ways to poach Aubree.

Aubree found all the attention both amusing and a bit overwhelming. “I never thought I’d actually win bronze,” she mused, “Honestly, I would have been content with just a consolation prize, anything to get noticed. What an unexpected windfall.”

The moment the awards ended, reporters swarmed the three medalists, but nearly all the questions were fired at Aubree.

A person asked, “Miss, how old are you? Still in school? With skills like yours, how did you end up competing through the open qualifiers instead of being school-nominated?”

Let alone winning the bronze, even just picking up any award would make her a prized asset, and every high school would treat her like gold.

Not only were the reporters baffled, but the surrounding crowd held their breath, waiting for Aubree’s answer.

Taking the microphone, Aubree replied with composure, “I’m a senior at Rithol High School. There are two reasons I entered the competition through the open qualifiers. First, my school didn’t nominate me. Second, I’m currently suspended.”

The reporters immediately fired off questions. “Being suspended? What exactly was the offense?”

Aubree flashed a faint smile. “Anyone here on Twitter? Do you follow that League of Legends match fixing scandal a while back? Yeah, that was me. The principal of my school said it was a negative influence and suspended me for a while, so I’ve been staying home. Honestly, I still haven’t heard when I can go back to school.”

The reporters exchanged glances in confusion. “Wasn’t that match fixing scandal settled ages ago? Why aren’t they letting her go back to school? It’s such a crucial time for seniors,” one of them whispered.

The educators frowned, sensing that something was amiss.

Sensing a potential headline, the reporters pressed on, and Aubree was ready for their questions. “Before high school, I lived in an orphanage. I went through some things, and yes, I’m still an orphan. After transferring to Rithol High School, if you ask about my experience… well, to be honest, it hasn’t been great. Right after I enrolled, I witnessed a female student being bullied into jumping off a building. The teachers barely did anything, and the principal even held a meeting ordering us not to talk about it.”

“And after that? Well… I ended up becoming a bullying victim myself.”

“My thoughts on the principal? Well, I suppose he has his own… unique perspective. Like not telling me when I could return to school, maybe he thought I looked exhausted and wanted me to “rest a little longer.”

Aubree’s explosive interview went viral across major news sites. Meanwhile, Will, blissfully unaware in his office, received a phone call.

When the call ended, his face went ashen. He had been suspended pending investigation.

With trembling hands, Will recalled the warning from the call and unlocked his phone. The moment he saw Aubree’s interview, his vision darkened in waves. Clutching his chest, his eyes rolled back as he collapsed. He knew his career was over.