The Double or more Life of the Fake Heiress (Mirabella)

Calvin gave Mr. Belcher a quick glance. He didn't know anything about Ben, hadn't even heard the name before. But judging by Mr. Belcher's attitude, it was clear this Ben guy wasn't just anyone.

After a pause, he said, "Wade's never shown interest in this stuff before. Why's he suddenly so invested in the institute's research this year?"

Mr. Belcher scoffed, "Who knows."

"Is he trying to compete with you for this year's award?" Calvin blurted out.

Every year, the school held a selection where the chosen professor or academician would receive a national honor medal, a recognition even more prestigious than a promotion. It was like the military's annual honor medals.

Mr. Belcher's lips pressed together, his eyes darkening ominously. Clearly, Calvin had hit a nerve.

**

After leaving Mr. Belcher's office, Calvin had someone deliver the approved funding application to Zane. Holding the form, Zane was in disbelief. He knew that after offending Mr. Calvin, getting the application approved wouldn't be easy, let alone so quickly. He had even prepared to overstep his bounds and go directly to Mr. Belcher, but hadn't expected the approval to come so easily.

Quickly composing himself, Zane felt a weight lift off his shoulders once the finance department received the funds. He then messaged Linden and the others to share the good news. Everyone reacted just like Zane-ecstatic, except for Mirabella, who seemed to have anticipated it.

Without wasting time, Zane created a group chat on Messenger and added everyone. Linden, Kason, and Jessie hadn't added Mirabella yet, so they quickly sent her friend requests. They all had a good impression of this polite, beautiful younger student and felt the need to look out for her.

For a long time, they frequently asked Mirabella if she needed help with anything, to which she could only smile wryly.

*

A few days later, Zane gathered everyone in the specially equipped bio-computer classroom. The artificial intelligence system was a brand-new research project, so the department had purchased a set of special computer equipment for their work. Today, all the machines were finally installed and ready.

After testing a few devices, Zane escorted the technicians out and let the students get accustomed to the machines. Mirabella turned one on and took a quick look. Although its performance wasn't as good as Wade's, it was more than sufficient for Al systems.

While she remained calm, Linden and the others were like kids who had just discovered treasure. "These are definitely meant for professional research. These computers are so much better than the ones in the classrooms!" Kason said, booting up the machine and opening the biological software.

Linden glanced at him, his expression serious, "The data system for artificial life is huge. Ordinary bio-computers would crash once they start simulating."

Next to them, Jessie's fingers flew over the keyboard. She made a couple of clicking noises before turning to Mirabella. Seeing her just looking at the computer, Jessie remembered that Mirabella might not be very skilled with computers. She coughed lightly, scooted her chair closer, and said, "Just treat this computer like any ordinary one."noveldrama

Mirabella looked up, "..."