Samson was genuinely surprised.
Ariel didn’t bother exining.
Over at the VIP section, Cecilia spotted Samson talking to Ariel. She raised a brow and nced at Jayson beside her. Smiling, she said, “Mr. Larkin, I’m curious. Who are you rooting for between the two of them?”
Jayson’s gaze met hers, cool and indifferent. He didn’t answer.
Cecilia frowned:
Frederick, overhearing, chimed in, “Isn’t it obvious? The first two rounds were just appetizers. Today’s the main event, the real test. Not just anyone can go toe–to–toe with a top university graduate.”
Matt watched Jayson closely, unsure.
Jayson didn’t seem concerned at all about today’s results.
Matt frowned. He knew Nancy was truly talented. There was no doubt about that. However, Ariel was unpredictable.
If Nancy were to outperform her, the Larkins might have something to say about it.
After all, this was a publicpetition. If Jayson’s wife got beaten by Nancy, it wouldn’t look good.
Frederick’sment made Zach nce at him. “The results speak for themselves. You really don’t need to say that, Mr. Swanson.”
He found Frederick’s remark unnecessary, almost like he was trying to drag Ariel down. Had she offended
him?
Frederick opened his mouth to say more, but seeing Jayson, he reluctantly shut it.
After Zach spoke up, Perry studied him for a moment, then frowned thoughtfully. –
Meanwhile, Ariel was preparing when Nancy approached. Her gaze swept coldly over Ariel. “It’s not toote to quit now if you want to spare yourself embarrassment.”
Ariel, recognizing the words were directed at her, replied tly, “Mind your own business.”
She showed Nancy no courtesy at all.
Nancy’s expression froze for a moment, then twisted into a cold smirk.
Ariel was only bringing trouble on herself by ignoring her warning.
Without saying anything else, Nancy turned and left.
Janice and Chad, arriving just then, overheard. Janice asked in confusion, “Why is she so confident? She’s bluffing big time,”
Chad patted Ariel on the shoulder. “Have you noticed that Nancy’s been quite prickly toward youtely?”
Ariel had noticed, of course.
Maybe it had to do with Veyo Solutions, but it was probably not just that.
Especially since Nancy hade over the other day, talking about spending the night with Jayson. She was probably feeling insecure.
“It’s fine. I’ll go get ready,” Ariel said, brushing off the distractions.
Chad then guided Janice toward the audience section.
Today was the final day, thest round of thepetition. Codes were to be submitted for real–time testing, with each project subjected to extremely precise trials.
Some tests even involved military drones. This would require wless coordination between software and hardware. Any deviation, even 0.1, could make all the difference.
Samson kept a close eye on the results after submitting. He was more curious than ever about Ariel’s ability.
1
He wasn’t trying to be proud, but he was confident he would be in the top two. He had a rough sense of Nancy’s abilities through Veyo Solutions‘ project.
However, he had no idea about Ariel’s real ability.
Results began appearing, item by item.
Nancy remained calm. After meeting Cedric yesterday, she had a fresh strategy. She knew nobody would be her match today.
She had broken through certain limits.
Even Samson and Elsie couldn’tpete with her now. Ariel wouldn’t evene close.
At that thought, a faint smile tugged at Nancy’s lips.
As soon as the host’s words ended, she looked toward therge screen, and her smile froze at once.
She wasn’t the only one who was surprised. Even the audience gasped.
Cecilia squinted, instinctively looking to Jayson for his reaction.
But Jayson simply lifted his gaze and fixed his eyes on the boldest name on the screen.
Zach and Matt both jumped to their feet. Stunned, they stared at the name in the first ce–Ariel,
Matt couldn’t process it.
Was Ariel this capable? In a battle among the best of the best, she could still…
Nancy couldn’t ept it at all. She was too shocked. As the announcement was made, she said with a stiff expression, “Sorry, I don’t ept this! Please re–run the test!” <i>2 </i>