The moment Riley handed in her paper, every pair of eyes in the exam hall followed her.
Some were envious.
Some resentful.
Some indifferent.
Some quietly panicking.
The exam had been difficult—far harder than anything they'd studied in high school.
Many hadn't even finished half the questions. Seeing someone leave early only made their anxiety spike, and they rushed to scribble down answers.
But Felicia wasn't one of them.
In her eyes, Riley had simply given up.
She doesn't know how to do it, so she just wrote nonsense and left.
Felicia let out a soft scoff and continued writing.
She had already memorized these question types the night before.
This exam?
Easy.
As long as I rank first, no one will ever mock me again.
After leaving the exam hall, Riley took her bunny to the faculty dormitory.
As a special-appointed lecturer, she had been assigned a private room on campus.
She headed straight there, set the bunny on the bed, changed into a different outfit, then stood in front of the mirror and carefully applied makeup.
Only then did she head out.
She had an appointment with Lucas.
Pulling out her phone, she checked the time.
Five minutes to ten.
A message from 1005 had already come in.
[1005: Rye, where are you? I'm already here—by the artificial lake.]
Artificial lake?
Riley paused, thinking.
Right… near the faculty dorms.
She replied with a simple [OK], grabbed her bag, and headed downstairs.
By the lake, Lucas stood with his hands in his pockets, gazing at the lotus flowers drifting across the water.
Imperial University truly lived up to its reputation as the top institution in Lumut.
The scenery was serene.
Birdsong filled the air. Everything carried a quiet, scholarly elegance.
He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.
Ah… the scent of academia.
Then—
A thought hit him.
Rye asked to meet here…
What if she's actually a student?
His eyes snapped open.
"No way…"
He shook his head immediately.
Impossible.
He refused to believe there was anyone more gifted than himself—or his cousin, Adrian.
They were already exceptional.
There couldn't possibly be someone better.
Maybe she's a professor at Imperial University, he reasoned. Even if I didn't find her name on the staff list, it could just be an alias…
But the idea made his mood sink.
What if Rye is… some middle-aged lecturer?
He grimaced.
Her voice is so sweet. There's no way she's some middle-aged woman.
Right.
Definitely not.
But then again—
With today's technology, voice changers were everywhere.
What if she'd used one to trick him?
A chill ran down his spine.
Goosebumps prickled across his arms.
Still—
Given how charming he was, it wasn't impossible for some older woman to take an interest…
"Rye," he muttered darkly, "if you turn out to be old, I swear I'm kicking you straight into the pond to feed the frogs."
"Who are you planning to kick into the pond?"
A voice spoke from behind him.
Clear.
Smooth.
Beautiful.
Lucas froze.
Then turned around.
And stopped breathing.
Standing behind him was a young woman in a red dress.
Her figure was graceful, her skin luminous. Soft waves of hair cascaded down her back, framing her like a blooming crimson rose—striking and impossible to ignore.
She stood tall, poised—
And her eyes—
Bright as starlight.
Like an entire galaxy captured within them.