chapter920

The room quieted down as soon as Desmond spoke. No one said another word.

When all the students' scores had been entered, the results were sorted and sent straight to the judges' tablets.

Dominick hovered over Lydia's name, hesitating. His finger almost tapped her score, but at the last second, he pulled back and opened Daisy's instead. He just wasn't ready for whatever Lydia had written. Deep down, he was convinced the system must have glitched.

Angelo and Stellan, tempted to peek at Lydia's work, paused. They figured there was no way Lydia could outshine Daisy, so they joined Dominick in opening up Daisy's file.

Meanwhile, Dr. Donley's curiosity about Lydia had grown too strong to ignore. He didn't even bother looking at anyone else's answers. He clicked on Lydia's file right away.

The moment he read Lydia's clear, straightforward answer, he was left speechless. Desmond, who had opened Lydia's file with barely contained excitement, felt a thrill rush through him. He couldn't believe what he was reading.

Across the table, Angelo and Stellan were caught up in Daisy's essay, their smiles growing wider with every line. They nodded along, clearly impressed.

"She's a real genius, isn't she?" Angelo said, pride in his voice. "So young, and already thinking on a different level. Give her a few years and she'll make this plan a reality. She could change medicine for good."

"She's even better than we thought," Stellan agreed. "Looks like the Rivers family is really dedicated to fighting cancer."

Dominick was just as impressed. "Lowering the cancer death rate by five percent in ten years... That's what you'd expect from a family of medical legends."

Cancer was still claiming too many lives. If someone could lower the death rate by five percent in a decade, that meant ten percent in two decades, fifteen in three. Just think of all the people who might be saved. Think of the families that might not have to break apart.

He let out a soft sigh. "Amazing," was all he managed to say.

To him, there was no doubt. First place had to go to Daisy. Lydia didn't stand a chance.

Angelo beamed. "We're so lucky to have someone like Daisy at Capital College."

"No kidding. If she can actually pull this off, the whole world will know her name," Stellan added.

The two of them couldn't stop singing Daisy's praises.

Dominick, on the other hand, just felt embarrassed. Capital Med School was doomed to lose, and it stung. He couldn't figure out what Lydia was thinking. She was always so average in her classes, so why would she go out of her way to challenge a genius like Daisy? Did she want to ruin her own reputation? And why did she have to drag their whole school down with her?

Angelo glanced over at Desmond and Dr. Donley, who hadn't said a word this whole time. He puffed up with pride. "Desmond, Dr. Donley, you saw Daisy's answer, right? If there are no ions, can we at agree? Daisy deserves first place."

Dr. Donley finally snapped back from his thoughts. He looked at Angelo and Stellan, who

glowing with

"Have you two even looked at Lydia's answer?" he asked.

Stellan chuckled. Come on, Daisy's answer is perfect. No one's beating her."

Angelo nodded. "Dr. Donley, Lydia's high score is probably just a system glitch."

Dr. Donley shook his head. "No, I'm voting for Lydia. She deserves first place, no question."

Angelo and Stellan froze, their smiles slipping away.

"You... Dr. Donley, did you even read Daisy's answer carefully?"