Chapter 563 - 559: For the Sake of Fairness

Though Cecilia was intentionally keeping her distance from the others, she wasn’t trying to be cold or aloof on purpose.

’Weren’t they pretty cold when I joined the group chat today? So there’s no need for me to force myself to fit in.’ She was already reluctant to even be sitting here, and she was in no mood to deal with pointless social niceties.

’This is better.’

Sheila Hughes silently carried her belongings to the front row and sat down. ’Maybe beautiful girls tend to have difficult personalities,’ she thought.

Yates Sanders had planned to sit with Lee Warner, but to his surprise, Lee moved on his own to take the seat behind Cecilia Sterling.

The moment he sat down, he struck up a conversation. "Cecilia, you’re in the astronomy department? Are there more guys or girls in your program?"

Cecilia turned to look at him. The moment Lee Warner saw her heavenly face, he couldn’t help but break into a dopey, lecherous grin. Cecilia’s expression remained impassive. Staring right at his smiling face, she asked bluntly, "You’re the one in the group chat with the ’smoking manga guy’ avatar, aren’t you?"

The avatar was a classic cliché, and it belonged to the first person she’d seen send a message when she joined the group, so Cecilia remembered it clearly.

Lee Warner seemed surprised that Cecilia remembered his avatar, and even more surprised that she would bring it up so directly.

His face stiffened in embarrassment. Cecilia obviously remembered the message he’d sent in the group: "If she’s a no-show, find someone else. Don’t waste our time."

"Hey now, don’t be mad." Lee Warner laughed it off, then gave what he thought was a suave raise of his eyebrows. "I didn’t know you were so beautiful then, did I? If I’d known you were this gorgeous, I never would have said that. A beautiful woman is always worth the wait."

His very words were another tired cliché.

He thought that by complimenting her looks, he could mask his own embarrassment while simultaneously earning her forgiveness—or even winning her over.

But Cecilia only felt disgusted by his smug, entitled attitude.

She’d met plenty of high-quality men, which made the contrast starkly obvious.

Cecilia curled her lip, her expression screaming one thing: Pathetic.

Seeing Lee Warner’s failed attempt at bootlicking, Yates Sanders couldn’t help but sneer. ’Does that guy have any self-awareness at all? The nerve of him, trying to hit on Cecilia.’

Elias Warner, on the other hand, appeared indifferent but had actually snuck several glances at Cecilia.

’Being beautiful really is an advantage. The moment she showed up, she grabbed everyone’s attention.’

’But looks alone are useless. This is the school’s Olympiad team. Being smart and having real ability is what matters most.’

At four o’clock sharp, the team advisor, Ms. Stone, walked into the classroom. Upon seeing their teacher, all the students stood up.

Ms. Stone was an elegant, middle-aged woman who looked to be in her forties. A single glance around the room after she entered was enough to confirm that all five students were present.

She came to a stop at the lectern, smiled faintly, and gestured for everyone to sit. "You’re all very punctual."

Lee Warner immediately piped up again. "Ms. Stone, most of us got here early. Elias was sharing a lot of his Olympiad experience with us."

"Oh, really?" Ms. Stone looked toward Elias Warner. "What did you discuss?"

Elias Warner answered in a serious tone, "Just some basic things. I only scratched the surface. We’ll still need you to explain things in greater depth, Ms. Stone."

’At least he knows how to be appropriately humble in front of the teacher.’

Ms. Stone responded, "So, you all should have a better understanding of the Physics Olympiad now?"

Lee Warner piped up again. "But Cecilia wasn’t here for that. She came in later, so she missed it. You’ll probably have to start from the very beginning for her, Ms. Stone, or else she’ll fall behind."

Lee Warner thought he was helping Cecilia, hoping to score some points with her.

But as soon as he said it, the other students all turned to look at Cecilia. Ms. Stone’s gaze followed.

Before Ms. Stone could speak, however, Cecilia cut in calmly, "You don’t have to go over the basics for my sake, Ms. Stone. It’s fine."

Ms. Stone smiled warmly, then looked down and took out their files. "I’ve reviewed all of your records. Elias Warner is the one with the most Olympiad experience, and he has also achieved many excellent results."

"In that case, I propose Elias Warner serve as our team captain. Any objections?"

The moment Ms. Stone finished speaking, Lee Warner was the first to voice his agreement.

Seeing this, Yates Sanders and Sheila Hughes also indicated they had no objections.

Cecilia remained silent. ’Since everyone else agrees, my opinion doesn’t really matter. This is a team, after all. I can accept the ’majority rules’ principle.’

However, Elias Warner kept his eyes fixed on Cecilia. When he saw that she hadn’t voiced her opinion, he felt a surge of irritation.

Just as Ms. Stone was about to finalize the decision, Elias Warner stood up. "Ms. Stone, aren’t we supposed to be assessing everyone’s skills today? While I may have more competition experience, the other students were all selected for their strong abilities as well. So, to be fair, I think it would be more reasonable for the person with the highest score today to serve as captain."

At his words, the others couldn’t help but blink. Ms. Stone said softly, "Is that really necessary? I’m sure everyone agreed to you being captain because they believe you’re capable."

But Elias Warner insisted, "I believe it is."

After saying this, he shot another glance at Cecilia. But she hadn’t given him a single look from start to finish. In fact, she was propping her head up with one hand, looking like she was about to fall asleep.

To be honest, she’d had a greasy lunch and had been in a carb coma all afternoon.

"Alright, we’ll settle the captaincy later. I did bring a problem set with me today. It’s a fairly typical selection of Physics Olympiad questions. I’d like you all to try them so I can get a baseline of your abilities."

As she spoke, Ms. Stone came down from the dais and handed a test paper to each student.

The test was printed front and back, with only six questions in total.

"Cecilia, have you ever done these kinds of Physics Olympiad problems before?" Lee Warner tried to strike up a conversation with her again after receiving his test.

Cecilia ignored him. She took out a pen and some scratch paper, forcing herself to focus on the test.

Olympiad problems were, of course, extremely difficult. They covered a comprehensive range of knowledge, with nearly every question type extending far beyond the scope of a standard textbook. Some of the prompts were incredibly abstract and open-ended, designed to be a rigorous test of a student’s logical reasoning and overall problem-solving skills.

Therefore, once they received the test and began working, troubled expressions subconsciously appeared on the faces of Lee Warner, Yates Sanders, and Sheila Hughes.

Elias Warner was calmer, but his expression was still stern. He reread the first question several times before finally beginning to work on his scratch paper.

And then there was Cecilia. Even as she fought to stay focused, she looked utterly exhausted. But despite her listless expression, her hand moved without hesitation, writing faster than anyone else.

Ms. Stone paced around the students, eventually coming to a stop right beside Cecilia.