Love or Die: CEO’ s Daily Dose of Swoon (Cordelia)

Chapter 57

Frankie stared at his phone, the words familiar yet strung together in a way that seemed to mock his understanding.

Lost in thought for too long, his thick-framed glasses slid down his nose before he caught them with a single hand, nudging them back into place with a practiced push. Squinting, he looked at the screen once more.

Frankie, a man in his sixties, face etched with lines of time and fingers trembling slightly, deleted his meticulously typed message to replace it with a less certain reply, “Are you pulling my leg?”

An eighteen-year-old girl proving Batra's Conjecture? It seemed about as likely as a piglet winning at the Kentucky Derby.

LearnLover replied, ‘What?’

LearnLover continued, ‘What's your email?’

Frankie composed himself and sent his email address. Then, setting down his phone, he waited in silence.

Patience, he reminded himself.

Over the years, there had been many claims of proving Batra's Conjecture, only to fall apart under scrutiny, riddled with errors. Perhaps this girl was just another wild goose chase.

He took a deep breath. About five minutes later, a reminder from his computer announced the arrival of an email, his phone lighting up in tandem. Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

LearnLover said, ‘I sent it. Did you get it?’

Frankie asked, half in disbelief, “Do you even know what you've proven?”

Perhaps she didn't understand the magnitude of the conjecture in the mathematics.

LearnLover replied, ‘Batra's Conjecture. It was tough, sure. I had it half done when you first reached out. With this last week, it took me about twenty days total.’

Frankie was dumbfounded.

Did she have any idea how many had spent their lifetimes without cracking it?

With dwindling hope, Frankie replied, “Alright, I’ll take a look.”

After sending the message, he downloaded and printed thirty-some pages of draft proofs, binding them in order before turning to the first page. Once he started reading, he couldn’t stop.

Cordelia waited a bit longer, noticing Mathster had yet to reply. With ten minutes left before class ended, she pulled out a set of math Olympiad problems to pass the time.

Hanley, also in the math club, watched her with a mix of curiosity and concern. He'd been researching Batra's Conjecture and realized she'd attempted to prove it. She must have given up by now, he thought.

When class was dismissed, Hanley approached her with a brotherly tone, “Batra's Conjecture isn't kid's stuff. You shouldn't bite off more than you can chew. Better to focus on the National League, huh?”

She glanced at him, indifferent, and quickened her pace to leave.

Hanley thought Cordelia had listened, he explained to her, "You can't underestimate others in the National League. Do you know the first place in the Galaxy Math Whiz Competition last year? He

got 270 points as a sophomore last year! Moreover, he won the first prize in the National League last year. If he hadn't had a physical problem and didn't go to the winter camp, he might have been accepted by the Top Crest Academy now, and he would be Keen of our province. And don't underestimate Jake. Although he didn't do well in the Galaxy Math Whiz Competition, it doesn't mean that his results in the competition are worse than yours."

Cordelia thought he was noisy, picked up her books quickly, and walked out with her arms.

Hanley was still following her, still trying to ramble. Juliana came out of physics class. At the sight of Hanley, she hastily came after him, "Hanley!"

Cordelia was already downstairs and out of earshot as Juliana caught Hanley’s attention. He turned to her, sheepishly shifting the conversation, “I heard Mr. Stanton visited you for an assessment. With your skills, you must've impressed him, right?”

Juliana forced a smile, her voice a whisper, “No.”

Hanley was taken aback, “But why? I heard Stanton took on a new student. Not you, then... Cordelia?”

Juliana shook her head, “It’s Joy. She seemed so lonely and never had proper schooling or friends. I let her have the chance.”

Feeling relieved, Hanley accompanied her back to class, murmuring, "Just as I thought, Cordelia, raised in an orphanage, wouldn't know how to play the piano..."

Juliana tightened her fingers around her physics workbook, but she kept silent, letting Hanley stick to his assumptions.

Back in the classroom, a classmate waved his phone, “Hanley, who do you think will take the top spot in the National League? Keen’s leading the polls, then some guy from out of the province.

Jake’s third, and Cordelia’s fourth! Does Cordelia stand a chance for gold?”

The notion of being the national champion made Juliana scoff, “National champion is not a title easily won. Cordelia's too green. What do you think, Hanley?”

Lost in thought, Hanley glanced toward the last row where Cordelia packed her bag. Memories flooded back when he was the math wunderkind. Now the talk had shifted to national glory.

He turned back, “I’d say it’s a long shot.”

As Cordelia left the room, her bag heavy with books, Hanley couldn't help but watch her go, a flicker of doubt in his mind.

Maybe, just maybe, she could surprise them all.

The stakes couldn't be higher for the statewide math competition. Only the top whiz would be plucked from the ranks to compete in the National League showdown. Everyone else, despite being dubbed first-rate, might as well have been runner-ups. What did it matter if you weren't the one crowned champion?

Cordelia, however, couldn't shake the tension even after returning home. She pushed through dinner, blitzed through a barrage of practice problems, and finally flopped onto her bed. Yet, there she was, under the soft glow of her bedside lamp, her gaze flickering to her phone with an almost religious fervor.

Why hadn't Mathster replied to her message?

Meanwhile, at Ontoky City's Superiority College, nestled within the labyrinth of the mathematics laboratory, a graduate student was making his evening rounds.

The lab was quiet, save for the soft hum of Frankie's office light.

The mentor was known for his relentless pursuit of numbers and theories but this late hour was unusual even for him.

Curiosity piqued, the student nudged the door open, intent on flicking the switch off, only to freeze at the sight.

There was Frankie, glasses in one hand, the other quivering as it hovered over a sheaf of paper, his eyes devouring the contents with an almost manic intensity.

"Professor, why haven't you gone home yet?" The student's voice was tinged with concern. It was midnight and today's problems didn't warrant burning the midnight oil, did they?

Startled back to reality, Frankie snapped up his gaze from the answer that had captivated him. He surged to his feet, a triumphant gleam in his eyes. "Yes, it's right! She's done it!"

The mathematical conundrum that had stumped minds across the globe had been unraveled!