The rest of the morning passed quickly.
After Professor Lewis's announcement, none of the four teammates could focus completely on their lectures. Every one of them wondered what kind of challenge awaited them in the Advanced Technology Laboratory.
As soon as the final class ended, Ethan closed his notebook and stood.
"Let's go."
Ryan slung his backpack over his shoulder.
"If Professor Lewis is involved, we're definitely not getting out early."
Mia sighed dramatically.
"I was hoping to eat first."
Benny smiled.
"We can eat after practice."
"If we're still alive," Ryan muttered, making everyone laugh.
The four of them headed toward the Technology Building.
When they arrived at the laboratory, Professor Lewis was already waiting with Professor Thompson standing beside him.
Several large monitors had been switched on, each displaying a different screen.
Professor Lewis looked at the students.
"You're on time."
"No one likes waiting."
"Good."
He placed a small remote on the desk.
"Today's exercise is not about speed."
"It's about teamwork."
He pressed the button.
Immediately, the screens changed.
Simulation: Cyber Defense
Objective: Protect the university's server from a coordinated cyberattack.
Time Limit: Two Hours.
Professor Thompson stepped forward.
"This simulation was designed using real attack patterns from previous cybersecurity competitions."
"It is considerably more difficult than yesterday's exercise."
Ryan quietly adjusted his glasses.
"So that's why Professor Lewis looked happy this morning."
Professor Lewis ignored the comment.
"Ethan."
"Yes, Professor."
"You're the team leader."
"You may assign everyone's role."
Ethan nodded and turned to his teammates.
"Ryan, you'll monitor network traffic."
Ryan answered immediately.
"Got it."
"Mia, you're responsible for system recovery."
"Leave it to me."
He finally looked at Benny.
"You'll work with me on identifying the attack source."
Benny nodded.
"Okay."
Professor Lewis checked his watch.
"You may begin."
A loud beep echoed through the laboratory.
Instantly, dozens of warning messages flashed across every monitor.
WARNING! Unauthorized Access Detected.
Firewall Under Attack.
Multiple Intrusion Attempts.
Ryan's fingers flew across the keyboard.
"There are too many entry points!"
Mia frowned.
"The backup system has already been compromised."
Ethan stayed calm.
"Don't panic."
"Benny."
"What do you see?"
Benny stared at the code scrolling rapidly across his screen.
His eyes narrowed.
"...Something's wrong."
Ryan looked over.
"What?"
Benny pointed at one section of the data.
"These attacks look random..."
"...but they're not."
Ethan immediately moved beside him.
"What do you mean?"
Benny typed several commands.
The attack map instantly rearranged itself.
Everyone stared.
Instead of dozens of attacks...
Only three main attack routes remained.
Ryan's eyes widened.
"They were using fake attacks to distract us."
Benny nodded.
"The real attack is hidden behind them."
Professor Lewis folded his arms.
A small smile appeared on his face.
"He found it."
Professor Thompson looked impressed.
"In less than fifteen minutes..."
Ethan didn't waste another second.
"Ryan!"
"Block the first route."
"On it!"
"Mia!"
"Recover the backup server."
"I'm already working!"
"Benny."
"Can you stop the main breach?"
Benny looked at the rapidly changing code.
"...I'll try."
His fingers began moving across the keyboard.
Lines of code filled the screen one after another.
The room became silent except for the sound of keyboards clicking.
Even Professor Thompson unconsciously held his breath.
Three minutes later—
ACCESS DENIED.
SERVER SECURED.
The warning messages disappeared.
A green notification slowly appeared across every monitor.
Simulation Complete.
The laboratory fell silent.
Ryan slowly leaned back in his chair.
"...We actually did it."
Mia let out a long breath.
"I thought we were finished."
Ethan turned toward Benny and smiled.
"You didn't just save the server."
"You saved the entire team."
Benny scratched his cheek, smiling shyly.
"I couldn't have done it without everyone else."
Professor Lewis stepped forward.
His expression remained as serious as ever.
"That..."
He looked at all four students.
"...is exactly what I wanted to see."
"No matter how talented one person is, a competition is won by a team."
He gave a rare nod of approval.
"Well done."
The four teammates exchanged relieved smiles.
For the first time, they truly felt like a team—not just four students grouped together, but four people learning to trust one another.
Outside the laboratory windows, the afternoon sun shone brightly over Crescent University.
The university selection round was only days away.
And Team Ethan was beginning to look like real contenders for the championship.