The further the teacher graded, the more shocked he became.
Nearly every single question was correct.
Only the very last problem had a minor issue — a misplaced decimal point in the unit conversion, probably because she'd been writing too fast.
The disdain in the physics teacher's eyes slowly shifted into disbelief… and then into barely contained excitement.
He knew Autumn James couldn't have cheated — this paper had never been released publicly!Not even the students' own scores from this test had been announced yet; only the teachers knew the results.
And besides, a score this close to perfect wasn't something anyone could fake by copying.
The physics teacher handed the paper to the next teacher, taking a deep breath to steady himself before asking calmly,"You solved all this yourself?"
Autumn straightened in her seat, looking polite and well-behaved."Yes, sir."
"Don't be nervous," he said, his tone softening. "I just want to ask — why did you choose the liberal arts track before? With your physics level, I'm sure your other science subjects are just as strong."
Autumn pressed her lips together before replying obediently,"I was young and didn't know better back then… I just followed what my family told me to do."
The teacher nodded with understanding."I see. Well, from now on, if you're under my teaching, you'll have to keep working hard. Even if you're talented, I don't go easy on anyone who stops learning."
The teacher's name was Mr. Simon West, the homeroom teacher of the Grade 11 Advanced Science Class A — one of the best physics teachers in Cloud City.He only taught two elite classes: Grade 11A and Grade 12A.
Students under his guidance rarely scored below the top percentile.
Autumn caught the meaning behind his words — her eyes lit up slightly.She realized she had likely been accepted into the advanced class, though she hadn't expected it to go this smoothly.
Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she smiled faintly."Thank you, sir. I'll do my best."
Mr. West saw her composed demeanor and secretly nodded in approval.At 17 or 18, most students couldn't hide their excitement, but she managed to stay poised.
The other two teachers soon finished grading their respective papers as well.Both came out in the 80s range.
Biology had a total score of 90, and her result was already considered outstanding.
Though it had only been one month since the school year started, the Advanced Class A was already far ahead of the regular classes — they'd even included second-semester material in the test.
For someone who hadn't yet learned the new topics, to still score this high was proof of exceptional natural talent.
The two teachers nodded repeatedly, clearly impressed.
It was rare to see a student so well-rounded in every subject; even their class representatives each had weak spots somewhere.
This girl — if trained properly — could easily become the school's next shining star.
They couldn't help but wonder: what had her family been thinking, letting her study liberal arts in the first place?
Wasting a talent like this for an entire month — what a pity.
That thought left all three teachers silently blaming her unseen relatives.
Mr. West was just about to say something when a cheerful female voice interrupted.
"Mr. West, I've collected all the homework for today — I'll just leave it on your desk!"
The girl spoke brightly and was about to leave, but Mr. West stopped her.
"Wait, Summer! Come here for a second."
"What's wrong, sir?" Summer Moore — the class representative — walked over curiously.The moment she saw who was sitting across from the teacher, her eyes widened in surprise.
"Wait! Autumn James? It's you?!"
Mr. West looked up from the papers. "Oh? You two know each other?"
"Of course!" Summer answered before Autumn could.
Summer Moore was both the physics class rep and the Advanced Science Class A monitor.
Mr. West smiled. "Well, that's even better. You'll be classmates from now on — look out for each other."
Summer's big almond-shaped eyes widened further, her doll-like face lighting up with excitement.Was this real? Just a few days ago, she'd been wishing she could be classmates with this gorgeous girl — and now it was actually happening!
"Hi, Summer," Autumn greeted her softly with a small smile.
"Hi~" Summer replied, her grin uncontrollable.
Mr. West clearly knew what kind of bubbly personality his class monitor had.He didn't interfere, letting them talk for a moment before speaking again.
"Summer, come take a look at this test paper."
Summer wasn't particularly interested — she just wanted to chat with Autumn — but out of respect, she leaned over to glance at it casually.
She meant to just skim… until she noticed the answers.
Her eyes widened. She grabbed the paper straight from his hands.
"Oh my god, sir, who's the genius that did this?! Every single question is correct! This is amazing! You have to introduce me to her!"
Mr. West chuckled. "The genius is standing right next to you."
"This is Autumn James's test. I graded it myself — almost perfect. You can take it back to the class and study it later for reference."
"Also," he added, "since you're here, take Autumn with you to the classroom and help her get familiar with things. She'll be joining your class from now on. If I remember right, there's an empty seat next to Yanshu — she can sit there for now."
At the mention of that name, Summer's cheerful expression instantly fell. Her adorable doll face twisted into mock misery.
"Ah? Yanshu?"
"Just for now," Mr. West said with a small smile. "I'll adjust the seating arrangement later."
"…Fine." Summer sighed dramatically, though her mood bounced back quickly.
"Come on, Autumn! I'll take you to our class!"
She scooped up the test paper, looped her arm through Autumn's, and practically dragged her out of the office.
Autumn blinked, momentarily caught off guard.She had been wondering who this "Yanshu" person was, but the sudden warmth of Summer's hand startled her even more.
No one had ever been this physically close to her before.
Back at Q University, surrounded by seniors and classmates, she'd never really had friends of her own.
Sometimes, she'd see two girls walking hand-in-hand and feel a faint pang of envy.
But she'd always convinced herself that the attention and care she got from the older students were enough — that she didn't need anything else.
Looking back now, she could only laugh at her own naïveté.
Summer Moore was one of the most well-known figures in their grade — a straight-A student who constantly ranked in the top 3 among all science students. Many teachers even used her test papers as model examples in other classes.
Meanwhile, Autumn's reputation… was infamous.To put it mildly, most students wouldn't go near her even if she paid them.
So when Summer walked into the corridor, holding Autumn's arm like an old friend, the whole school practically stopped in its tracks.
By the time they reached the classroom, whispers had already spread through every corner of the building.
Back in the liberal arts class, the atmosphere was buzzing with gossip.
"Did you hear? Autumn James is transferring to the Advanced Science Class A!"
"No way! Where'd you hear that? Can a liberal arts student even transfer to a science class that elite?"
"I'm serious! Summer Moore herself came to get her — looked like she was treating Autumn super respectfully!"
"Wait, Mr. West is the science class's homeroom teacher, right? He actually let her in that easily?"
"I don't know the details, but it looked pretty official to me…"
Anna Hawthorne, sitting quietly at her desk and scrolling through her phone, froze.
Her fingers tightened unconsciously around it.
She's… really transferring?
To the Advanced Science Class A, of all places?!
Everyone knew that being a girl in the science track was far more impressive than being one in the liberal arts track.
Could it be… that Autumn was transferring just to get Ethan and William's attention?
Either way, with her gone, only Anna and Ethan would remain in the liberal arts class.
Just thinking about Ethan's bad temper made Anna feel exhausted.
He was hard to please, impossible to impress — and now, with Autumn gone, all the chores and breakfast runs would fall to her.
And Ethan probably wouldn't even appreciate it.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. Her face twisted in silent frustration.
"Anna! Hey, Anna!"
A familiar voice called from outside the window.