The Double ( or More ?) Life of The Fake Heiress

After hearing the news, Mirabella suddenly recalled the cryptic message Vincent had sent her on Facebook Messenger a couple of days ago. [Hey, your mask’s slipping.]

At the time, she hadn’t quite grasped his meaning. Could this be what he was hinting at? Rubbing the bridge of her nose, Mirabella felt a headache coming on.

“I think you might be exposed this time,” Jenna said with a touch of schadenfreude.

If the girls in the chat group found out their idol’s sister was the top dog at their own school, the image would be priceless. Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

Mirabella gave Jenna a blank stare, no longer in the mood to talk.

The Math Olympiad was scheduled for this coming weekend. Usually, Mirabella would spend her weekends co–hosting the ‘Country Comfort‘ podcast with Leo, but because of the Olympiad, she had to sit

this one out.

Come Saturday, she arrived at school bright and early.

Math Olympiad participants from schools nationwide were taking the test at their own campuses. The contest was divided into two sessions.

This year, Eagle High School was hosting in collaboration with the local Education Association, which meant they were also responsible for crafting the questions.

Over two hundred juniors from Parkside High were participating and were spread across eight different exam halls. Mirabella’s candidate number was in the hundreds, placing her in Room 5, while Jenna ended up in Room 2.

Once inside the examination hall, the clock struck eight, and the proctor walked in with the sealed test packets, opening them in front of everyone and distributing the papers.

To ensure the fairness of the Olympiad, the test papers had been delivered by the Education Association that morning in a sealed state, preventing any prior leaks.

The first session was eighty minutes long, and upon receiving the paper, Mirabella quickly scanned the types of questions before picking up her pen and diving in.

Of all the academic competitions, math was the most highly recognized by colleges and also the toughest. This year’s paper, set by Eagle High, was even more challenging than the previous year’s.

Back in the teachers‘ lounge, the math department head had just laid eyes on the first session’s paper and was visibly surprised. “This year’s test is quite tricky. The last three extended response questions are clearly beyond the syllabus. Eagle High… are they trying to trip up this year’s students?”

“It looks like it, and this is just the first session. The second session must be even tougher,” another math teacher said with a grim expression.

“I’ve done a quick analysis, and given the difficulty of these questions, I doubt many students will be able to finish within eighty minutes,” said the department head, setting the paper on the table.

Mr. Hammond had made it clear that Parkside High couldn’t fall behind Eagle High in this year’s Olympiad. In the lead–up, the math department had worked overtime, poring over potential questions and drilling the

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students with practice problems. However, after reviewing the session one test, they realized that aside from three predicted fill–in–the–blank questions, the rest would be entirely up to the students‘ own

mastery.

With little exposure to these question types, solving them would take time; this was why the department head was concerned.

“Now, all we can do is rely on the students‘ performance. Who could have anticipated such difficult questions? It’s as if they were deliberately set this way,” remarked the math teacher with a wry smile.

After all, this wasn’t just about student exams; it was a contest for the hosting rights of next year’s Olympiad, a showcase of the competing schools‘ prowess, and a matter of prestige and reputation.

Parkside High hadn’t got the hosting rights for three yeas. Hopefully, they wouldn’t suffer too embarrassing a defeat.