Chapter 3

On the day college admissions were announced, Lucille became a trending topic.

The Kirk family spared no expense promoting their daughter's acceptance into a prestigious university, paying for news coverage and interviews across major media outlets.

In every clip, Lucille appeared in a designer dress, smiling confidently for the cameras.

When a reporter asked if there was anyone in particular she wanted to thank, she glanced at Sawyer standing beside her.

"I'd like to thank my family—and my boyfriend."

Sawyer had received early admission to Aurelia University's School of Finance.

Standing side by side in front of the cameras, the two looked like the picture-perfect golden couple.

The Kirk family even arranged an exclusive interview, and throughout the feature, one name kept coming up: Clement Carnegie, the eldest son of the Carnegie family, who had supposedly spent years chasing after Lucille, only to be publicly rejected after the college admissions results were announced.

The comment section was flooded with mockery.

"The simp finally got rejected."

"Imagine spending years chasing after someone just to get rejected in the end. This is hilarious."

"Lucille and Sawyer are the ones who were truly meant to be."

I didn't react to any of it.

Instead, I opened my laptop and sent my academic transcript and research materials to Aurelia University's Olympiad School.

Less than ten minutes later, I received a reply. "Clement Carnegie, congratulations. After careful consideration by our admissions committee, we are pleased to offer you a place in Aurelia University's Algorithm Research Program."

I looked at the message on my screen and smiled.

They all thought I needed the Kirk family to secure my future.

What they didn't know was that I had already built a company of my own—right under their noses.

I had registered the anonymous company "Star Holdings" when I was a sophomore in high school.

Through it, I took on projects, conducted research and development, and filed patents.

By then, Star Holdings had grown into Kirk Holdings' largest overseas technology supplier.

The Kirks, however, had no idea that I was the person behind it all.

As for Mabel, her college entrance exam scores looked fairly ordinary. But standardized tests had never been where her real strengths lay.

I submitted her work to one of Aurelia University's research labs as well.

Three days later, the lab replied with an invitation. "Ms. Hearst, we were extremely impressed by the signal recognition model you submitted. We would like to invite you to join our lab as a specially recruited researcher."

When I showed Mabel a screenshot of the email, she stared at the screen for a long moment.

"Is that really meant for me?" She hesitated.

"Of course, it is," I confirmed.

"But my grades…"

I interrupted her. "Aurelia University cares about what you're capable of, not the labels other people have placed on you."

She looked up at me.

The red indicator light on her hearing aid blinked.

"Why are you helping me?"

I looked at her and said matter-of-factly, "Didn't you say you wanted to go to the same university as me?"

The tips of Mabel's ears slowly turned red.

…

On the day of admission, we went to school together.

The moment we reached the campus entrance, Lucille and Sawyer stepped in front of us.

Sawyer stood with one hand in his pocket, wearing that same smug, self-satisfied expression.

"Clement, I heard you and Mabel both got into Aurelia University. Well, well. Congratulations."

Lucille looked us both up and down.

"So, you really went through with it? Clement, have you completely lost your pride just to prove a point?"

Then she turned to Mabel with a dismissive sneer.

"And Mabel? Someone like you actually thinks you can get into Aurelia University?"

I pulled up our admission emails on my phone and held the screen out to her.

"Take a good look. I was personally recruited by the Olympiad School, and Mabel was invited to join one of the university's research labs as a specially recruited talent."

I lowered my phone and looked at Lucille and Sawyer.

"And as for the two of you…"

I shot Sawyer a cold look.

"One of you got in with a carefully manufactured resume, while the other bought her way into the business school."

I gave them a pointed look.

"So, tell me—who exactly got into this university because of connections?"

Sawyer's expression finally stiffened.

The fake smile vanished from his face, and his voice turned cold.

"Clement, we're all going to be at the same university now. There's no need to say something like that just because you're jealous. You need to learn to be the bigger man."

By then, a crowd of students had already gathered around us.

Lucille immediately stepped in front of Sawyer, shielding him as a protective mother bear.

"Clement, apologize to Sawyer!"

"Why should I?" I shot back.

"Because you're still trying to marry me!"

I let out a short laugh.

"What kind of fantasy world are you living in? I'd rather stay single for the rest of my life than marry someone like you."

A ripple of quiet laughter spread through the crowd.

Lucille's face flushed with embarrassment and anger. She took a step forward, but Mabel immediately moved between us.

Though slender, Mabel stood her ground without hesitation, shielding me from Lucille.

Lucille sneered at her.

"What? You, of all people, think you can play the damsel in distress and swoop in to save the hero? You're nothing but a dummy. Do you even realize what you're doing?"