chapter1243

The room filled with a chorus of shocked voices as soon as the results popped up.

On the big screen, Lydia's name glowed at the very top of the list. She had scored a perfect hundred. Not only that, but she was a whole twenty points ahead of the person in second place.

The whole room buzzed. Twenty points? That was a landslide.

Marilyn's nails bit into her palms. She could barely believe what she was seeing.

How was this possible? Lydia, of all people, had taken first place?

Yara's lips trembled. She exchanged a wide-eyed, uncertain look with Marilyn. This couldn't be real. Lydia must have cheated. There was no other explanation.

Students from other countries were no less stunned. They stared at the screen, trying to make sense of it.

First place went to someone from this country? That couldn't be right.

"Excuse me, there must be a mistake!" Noah, the second-place student from Country D, was the first to speak up. The idea of someone beating him was just too much. He always assumed first place would be his.

Lucy and Anders, two of the examiners, already had their doubts about Lydia's score. Seeing her at the top only made them more suspicious.

It sounded ridiculous to them.

Emerson, the head examiner, pushed his glasses up his nose and studied Lydia's name. His fingers tapped against the table, slow and thoughtful.

Lucy frowned. "I really don't think this is possible. There must be a mistake. The papers from her classmates were a mess. How could she have gotten a perfect score and come in first?"

Anders nodded. "Her results are way off. We need to look into this before we start the next round. Otherwise, it isn't fair to the other students."

Emerson thought for a moment. "Bring Lydia to my office."

While a crowd of students surrounded Lydia with congratulations, Lucy strode over in her heels.

"Lydia, the head examiner wants to see you."

Marilyn's and Yara's eyes lit up. They shared a look, almost excited. Clearly the exoner had noticed something was off. Lydia was about to be grilled.

Lydia wasn't surprised at all. She kept her expression calm and followed Lucy into the office.

Emerson glanced up as Lydia entered. "You're Mr. Moore's student, aren't you?"

Lydia nodded. "That's right."

Emerson hesitated, then said, "You're as talented as he said. However, there are some concerns about your score..."

Before he could finish, Lydia cut in. "If you're questioning my score, then show me some proof. Don't get jealous just because you didn't get first. Maybe try asking yourself if you did well enough instead of pointing fingers at me."

The office fell silent.

Noah felt his cheeks burn. He was sure Lydia was talking about him.

"Lydia, there's no need to get defensive. We just want to know how you managed a perfect score, Lucy said tightly.

Lydia lifted an eyebrow. "When you actually understand the material and know how to use it getting a perfect Score isn't hard. Isn't that obvious?"

Lucy's face flushed with anger. She blurted out, "We think you cheated. How do you plan to prove you're innocent?"

Lydia let out a cold laugh. I didn't cheat. If you think I did, find some evidence. If you can't, then stop with the accusations."

Lucy stared at Lydia, hand pressed to her chest as if she couldn't catch her breath.

Noah suddenly spoke up. "I don't believe you did this on your own. If you're so confident, compete against me again."

Lydia rolled her eyes. "Why should I? You already lost."