Chapter 3

In the chat, his fans immediately started spamming the screen.

[Wow, Josh really is a Layne genius. Even the stuff he reads is next level!]

[Tutoring his future brother-in-law? Josh is way too good for this family!]

[What's Blake even going to understand? Don't waste Josh's time.]

I was drifting somewhere between asleep and awake when I felt someone nudging me gently.

It was my sister.

"Blake, wake up. Josh's calling for you." Her voice was low.

I let out an irritated grunt and buried my face deeper into the cushion. Sleep was the single greatest invention humanity had ever come up with, and whoever interrupted it was my enemy.

"Blake, just take one look. Just one."

Josh's voice picked back up. "This problem is a real challenge. The standard method for solving it is incredibly complicated. Apparently, fewer than ten people ever solved it completely."

Annoyed, I pushed myself halfway up, hair sticking out in every direction like a bird's nest, and squinted a bleary glance at the screen.

Seeing me finally react, Josh perked right up and launched into an enthusiastic explanation. "See, the key to this problem is constructing an auxiliary function, and then using..."

"You don't need to," I cut him off.

The rest of his explanation caught in his throat. He stared at me, blank.

I lifted a finger and tapped it in the air over the tablet. "Start from this singularity. You'll have your answer in three steps."

I paused awhile, then added, "I'd bet even the people who wrote the problem never found this solution."

Josh's face froze. He clearly had no idea what I'd just said.

My sister looked stunned too. She glanced between me and the dense cluster of symbols on the screen, that searching look in her eyes growing even sharper.

"Too easy," I concluded, then flopped back onto the couch and pulled the blanket up over my head. "Good for putting me to sleep."

The chat went completely still. The living room fell silent right along with it.

Josh's face had gone white as paper, and my sister Ruby's brow was pulled into a tight frown.

As for my parents, the look they gave me now carried something on top of their usual disappointment, an anger they couldn't quite place. They probably thought I was being not just lazy but rude, humiliating their future son-in-law in front of the entire country.

There was a sudden chime at the door.

Everyone's heads turned toward the entrance at once.

An elderly man in glasses hurried in.

"Ch... Chancellor Perry?"

Josh's pupils shrank the second he spotted him.

Layne University's chancellor. Benjamin Perry!

He'd only ever seen the man once, from a distance, at an orientation ceremony, but there was no mistaking him.

My parents froze too. They didn't recognize Benjamin Perry, but the way Josh had gasped his title made the situation clear enough.

The chancellor of Layne University, showing up in person! What an honor that was!

Whatever irritation had been on their faces vanished instantly. They exchanged a glance, and in each other's eyes, they saw the exact same wave of satisfaction over their future son-in-law.

"Josh is doing so much for the O'Brien name!" my mother whispered to my father, practically buzzing with excitement.

After a long stretch of stunned silence, the chat exploded back to life.

[Wait, did I hear that right? THE Layne chancellor? In person?]

[Oh my god, even the chancellor showed up! Josh is unbelievable!]

[He must have seen the livestream and come to reward him! His genius reputation is locked in for good now!]

Josh had already straightened up, a perfectly composed smile fixed on his face. Every camera, every light in the room, focused on the short stretch of space between him and Chancellor Perry.

He'd already worked out exactly what he was going to say, how he'd express his surprise, how he'd humbly thank the chancellor for the recognition.

But Chancellor Perry didn't so much as glance at him. He walked straight past.

Josh's smile froze on his face.

Chancellor Perry didn't slow down for a second. He strode toward me and stopped in front of the couch. Then, in front of everyone's stunned eyes, he bowed deeply to me, still buried in the cushions.

"Director O'Brien, I'm begging you, come teach as a doctoral advisor at our school!"