“I’ll be waiting for you to take home the trophy, Lottie.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m heading out to grab some food.”

Charlotte grinned at Dr. David’s dramatic complaints, then switched off her phone. Just as the screen went dark, the lounge speakers crackled to life.

“All contestants, please make your way to the stage.”

She stood, brushed out the wrinkles in her jacket, and tossed her phone to Adonis. “No matter what happens out there, I’ll take care of it.”

Jackson and Adonis nodded at the same time. “Got it, Charlotte.”

The doors opened. Contestants stepped out into the blinding lights, met by a wave of deafening cheers. The crowd was wild with excitement.

The five finalists were the best of the best, the kind of people you read about in medical journals. Letty was everyone’s favorite, the one with the spotlight on her since day one. But Charlotte, the one no one expected, had stunned everyone with flawless scores in all the early rounds. Now, people whispered that the real battle would be between her and Letty.

“Honestly, since Letty and Charlotte are both from Eldoria, it’s a win for Eldoria either way. Does it really matter who takes first?”

“You can’t say that,” someone shot back right away. “Letty’s been working toward this for five, six years. This is her last shot at joining the International Medical Alliance. If she doesn’t make it now, she might not even get to try again. And Charlotte… well…”

The girl gave a dramatic eye roll at Charlotte’s face on the big screen. “Who knows, maybe she just got lucky in the first two rounds. I’d trust Letty’s steady work over that any day.”

Letty had put in the years, step by step, her skills solid. Charlotte? Luck seemed to be all she had going for her.

Then someone gasped, “Wait, are Charlotte’s hands hurt?”

The words barely left her mouth before the whole crowd turned to stare at Charlotte on stage.

Charlotte was in short sleeves, both wrists wrapped in white bandages. Not just one hand, but both.

Today’s final wasn’t just about theory. There was a hands-on surgical challenge coming up. How was she supposed to hold a scalpel like that?

“Guess we don’t have to wonder anymore,” the girl said, sounding almost happy about it. “Letty’s got this in the bag.”

“Wow, how careless can you be?”

People all around shook their heads, voices full of disappointment. No way Charlotte could even make top three now.

What a waste.

In a shadowy corner of the audience, Anthony’s eyes turned icy when he spotted Charlotte’s hands. She was hurt Yesterday, she was fine Did something happen this morning?

His jaw tightened. He pulled out his phone and messaged Adonis. With the competition streaming worldwide, he could finally check in on Lottie without hiding it.

Adonis messaged back almost right away. “Charlotte says she knows who did it. She wants to handle it herself and told us to stay out of it.”

“Alright.”

Anthony put his phone away and stared at the stage, his brow locked in a deep frown.

If she wanted to handle it, he’d let her.

Meanwhile, Letty, who had been

wound so tight her hands shook,

finally felt her fingers relax when she

saw Charlotte’s bandaged wrists.

Was this what Lydia meant by having a backup plan?

The surgical challenge was coming

up. It needed precision, steady

hands, total focus. Even with healthy

hands, that was hard. With both

hands injured like Charlotte’s, it was almost impossible.

Relief washed away Letty’s nerves. Her chin lifted, confidence shining in her eyes.