Rylie stared at the results list, flipping through it over and over again. Most of the classmates were new, and she didn't care about the others—but no matter how many times she checked, she couldn't find Riley's name.
"Riley… your name isn't on here."
Riley nodded. A faint flicker passed through her clear eyes, but she said nothing.
Professor Lane swept his gaze across the room before speaking in a steady voice. "You've all seen your entrance exam results. Honestly, as an elite class, this performance isn't good enough. Yes, we're still ranked first—but I'm not satisfied."
He tapped the desk lightly. "Just look at your math scores. Out of a hundred points, only seventeen of you scored above eighty. And over ninety? Just two people. Even though… the other classes don't have a single one."
Riley pressed her lips together slightly.
Wow. Subtle bragging at its finest.
Felicia studied her results on her phone. She had done well in every subject—except math.
Fifty-nine.
Not even a passing score.
Still, her other subjects ranked near the top, so her overall score placed her within the top five of the entire freshman. That was already an excellent result.
She was satisfied.
Only after checking her own scores did her gaze drift downward—and that was when she realized Riley's name wasn't there.
A faint smile curved her lips.
I see.
Professor Lane deliberately took a sip of water, letting the silence stretch and the tension build before continuing. "I'm sure you've all noticed that one name is missing from the list. Now, I'll share her results separately."
He picked up his phone and sent an image to the group chat.
Curiosity rippled through the room. Everyone tapped it open—and collectively sucked in a sharp breath.
The first two subjects?
Perfect scores.
Every subject after that?
Zero.
And the name at the top—
Riley.
"That's impossible!"
Someone immediately spoke up. "Riley's a fool. There's no way she scored full marks. This has to be a joke!"
Even Rylie looked stunned. Then her expression lit up with awe. "No way—Riley, you're amazing!"
Watching their reactions—so similar to his own when he first saw the results—Professor Lane finally felt a bit relieved.
So it wasn't just me.
There was something strange about this Riley.
"Sir, this can't be right! How could Riley get full marks? She turned in both papers early!"
Professor Lane nodded. He had seen that himself.
Miranda chimed in loudly, "Sir, Riley must have cheated! Our class representative only scored ninety-one, and she got full marks?"
Blunt as ever, Miranda voiced what many were thinking.
Rylie shot her a glare. "Give it a rest, will you? Can't Riley just be naturally gifted?"
Even Rylie didn't fully believe it—but she was certain of one thing.
Riley hadn't cheated.
Rylie stood up. "I can vouch for Riley. I sat right next to her—she definitely didn't cheat."
Miranda shot to her feet as well, clearly unwilling to back down. "I was sitting right behind her! Who knows if someone didn't help her cheat?"
"You—" Rylie flushed red with anger. "Are you blind? Riley only took two exams. If I cheated, how would I still end up with just forty in math?
"And you're accusing her of cheating? The only high scorers in this class are her and the class representative. What, you think she copied his answers right in front of everyone?
"Besides, he only got ninety-one—she got full marks! If you were going to cheat, who would be dumb enough to copy their way to a perfect score?"