Two Reborn, One Throne novel Chapter 73

It came as no surprise that both Amber and Lucian breezed into the tie-breaker round.

But after five sudden-death questions without a clear winner, the entire room was caught off guard.

Lucian knew Amber wanted to beat him, but no matter how desperate she was, he was the undisputed number one in the grade. How could a tenth-place student drag him into the fifth round of a sudden-death match?

She had been hiding her true strength. That was Lucian's immediate realization, but he remained dismissive. Having spent so many years with her, he believed he knew her inside and out.

It was just like a business project from their past life. He had insisted on taking it; she had insisted on dropping it. It had been their first explosive argument as partners. In the end, Amber had caved, claiming she'd done extra background checks and data analysis, and admitted he was right.

Lucian had always trusted his own judgment, whether in business or in women.

The only reason Amber was holding her own right now was because she was being stubborn. It wouldn't be long before she lowered her head and admitted defeat, just like before.

"Give it up, Amber. You can't beat me."

Lucian told her to stop struggling.

What was the point? He had practically handed her the Madison Group sponsorship. She hadn't even shown an ounce of gratitude, and now she was trying to steal his fifty-grand prize money?

Amber, Joanne needed that money to save her life. You took everything from her in the last life, and you're trying to do it again?

—She really was pushing her luck.

Amber sneered. "Are you getting anxious, Lucian? Only five tie-breaker questions in, and you're already losing your nerve? If you want to forfeit, there's the door. Stop talking big. Competitions are about skill, not hot air."

Amber clenched her fists. She wasn't going to quit. Why should she? Just because he assumed everything she did was out of stubborn defiance?

Ha. Arrogant as always. In their past life, when he insisted on taking that project, she only yielded because she had scrambled behind the scenes to clean up the impending mess so it could succeed. Did he honestly think his judgment was flawless?

—He needed to stop flattering himself. Today, she was going to shatter every misconception he ever had about her.

"Fine, so you want to keep being stubborn? Alright, Amber, admitting defeat was never going to be easy for you anyway." His eyes chilled, his aura flaring up. "Teachers, please give us the next question. Today, Amber and I will settle this once and for all."

The elite panel of teachers exchanged helpless looks on the stage. "Another question? Anything else we ask will be completely off the syllabus."

"But we still don't have a winner."

"Exactly. Whether it was the timed challenges or the calculations, they both finished perfectly. Even during the oral defense, it was a dead tie."

"This year's Physics Olympiad is definitely going down in school history. Ms. Harper, both Lucian and Amber are in your class. Is Amber really only ranked tenth? Judging by how she's keeping up with Lucian, they should be tied for first."

"I agree. Maybe both students prepared exceptionally well this year. It's not impossible for the tenth-place student to beat the first-place one."

"True. Anyone can stumble. Besides, Lucian's performance has been excellent as well."

Ms. Harper frowned. She had no idea what to tell the teachers from the other classes and schools.

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