Chapter 2

My archive folder was gone.

Sweat beaded across my forehead.

Eva Finch pulled out her laptop, sniffling.

“I have the original files. Everyone can look. I really did start this six months ago.”

She clicked the mouse a few times, and a folder named 【Robot Data】 appeared.

Every document inside was work I had poured night after night into.

The folder's creation date read six months ago, February 16, 2026.

The classmates looked at me with open contempt.

“Eve, Eva's already shown her proof. What else is there to say?”

“You're not going to tell us she stole the files too, are you?”

I looked at them.

“Why not? Stewart came to my house all the time over the summer. He had plenty of chances……”

Laughter cut me off.

“Come on, Eve. Stewart's your boyfriend. He steals from you to hand it to the housekeeper's daughter? Who's going to believe that?”

“If you ask me, you're jealous of Eva, and you wanted Stewart to use his pull to push her around, and he wouldn't do it!”

Stewart put on his patient, well-meaning face too.

“Eve, I'm saying this for your own good. Something stolen is never really yours. I believe one day you'll win an award on your own merit.”

I turned to Eva.

“Since you made it, can I ask you a few technical questions?”

She bit her lip and lifted her chin stubbornly. “Go ahead. I'm not afraid.”

From design principles to data calculations, Eva answered without a single stumble.

I listened to her answers and smiled bitterly inside.

Over the summer, Stewart had clung to me, always asking me to walk him through the details.

He said he was interested, so I told him everything.

I never imagined he was pulling out answers for Eva.

But what he didn't know was that some things weren't in those answers.

I tilted my head and looked at Eva.

“You're very good. It's just a pity you committed a crime.”

I turned and walked out of the classroom.

A wave of mockery followed me out.

“Eve, are you here to make us laugh?”

“I can't. She can't save face so she runs, and she still calls someone else a criminal. A crime of what? Being too good?”

I had just reached the field when Stewart came after me.

He grabbed me by the arm.

“Eve, do you have any idea how far you went today?”

I shook him off.

“Too far? My invention was stolen. What am I supposed to do to not be too far? Applaud and congratulate her?”

Stewart lowered his voice into a growl. “You know perfectly well Gertrude is sick!”

“I let Eva take the award just to make Gertrude happy. I never thought you'd be this vain, that you'd make a fuss over something this small!”

His words actually made me laugh.

“So the person who steals an award isn't vain, but the person it was stolen from isn't allowed to speak, and telling the truth makes her the vain one?”

“If Eva wants to make her mother happy, she can win an award on her own ability, not by stealing someone else's.”

Stewart let out a cold laugh.

“Eve, you just cobbled together some lousy robot. What is there to be so arrogant about?”

“Eva can't do this stuff not because she isn't capable, but because she didn't have your luck, no family behind her lifting her up.”

“If she'd had the same advantages as your family, her achievements would be far higher than yours!”

I raised an eyebrow. “Your family has the advantages. So where are your achievements?”

“How come you never came up with an invention to hand to Eva so she could win an award?”