Chapter 250
Mirabe poised her pen above the exam sheet and confidently scrawled her name at the top. With a
deep breath, she dove into the questions.
The first section was a hodgepodge of arts and sciences, a veritable smorgasbord of disciplines that
tested rote memory, analytical prowess, and depth of understanding. Even deciphering the questions
posed a challenge for those students with a less–than–ster breadth of knowledge.
This prelims round was a marathon, not a sprint, clocking in at a hefty three hours.
As the first hour ticked by, while most of her peers were still wrestling withprehension and
multiple–choice questions, Mirabe was already tackling the hefty essays at the end.
The invigtor, a seasoned professor, paced the ssroom with the slow gait of a watchful guardian,
asionally ncing over the students‘ progress.
The presence of a single girl in the sea of anxious faces was a spectacle that he couldn’t ignore.
Mirabe’s calm, collected demeanor starkly contrasted with her peers‘ furrowed brows and nervous
ticks. Drawn to herposed aura, he found himself circling back to her
desk more often than not.
His surprise was palpable when he noticed Mirabe had already progressed to the final questions. He
checked his watch in disbelief–had she really breezed through the initial sections in just an hour?
Impressed and slightly incredulous, the invigtor couldn’t help but recall the conversations had among
the professors during the exam’s construction. They had voiced concerns that the allotted time might
be insufficient due to the difficulty of the questions. The consensus was that even the faculty might
struggle toplete the test in under two hours.
Casually, he nced at the name on the answer sheet beside her.
Mirabe.
As one of thepetition’s organizers, he was familiar with the name. Her track record was
impressive: top scores in the initial rounds, city prelims, and city finals–dominating her peers. with
perfect scores, save for one instance where the answers to the questions had exceeded the
curriculum.
Such results had made her the subject of keen interest among thepetition’s faculty. If she
maintained her performance through the national prelims and finals, she stood a chance at ranking
internationally.
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The thought alone sent a ripple of excitement through the invigtor, his her shining with admiration.
Yet, not wishing to disturb her concentration, he lingered but a moment before resuming his pacing.
With another hour gone, Mirabeid down her pen. The final questions had posed a
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Chapter 250
challenge, indeed. Since she needed to answer them with the knowledge within the hight. school
curriculum, the circuitous paths to their solutions had demanded a good half hour of her time.
An hour remained on the clock, but she was done. She handed in her paper, leaving the exam. room
while others gawked in disbelief. Her early submission sent shockwaves through the ranks. This was a
cutthroatpetition, where only the crème de crème advanced to the nationals, and her audacity
heaped pressure on those who had only just started on thetter sections.
Stepping out of the exam hall, Mirabe retraced her path down the academic building. Perhaps it was
the quiet of a Saturday morning or maybe the school’s deliberate scheduling, but she encountered not
a single soul from Prestige College on her way out.
Adjacent to the academic building were the administrative offices and a lounge area where teachers
from various provinces and cities waited for their students to emerge from the battleground.
The administrative door was ajar, and next to it, arge ss window offered a clear view of the
building’s exit.
Anthony was deep in conversation with a colleague from another school when something caught his
eye.
“Huh, someone’s turned in their exam early?” he remarked, a hint of curiosity in his voice.