The Decathlon tryouts were scheduled for Friday, but the pressure began building from the moment the sign-up list went up. Whispers buzzed through the halls like static electricity—sharp, invisible, and impossible to ignore.
"Did you hear? Li Xinyue signed up."
"She's never even been in the top ten before."
"She must be joking, right? Competing against Lin Zeyan?"
Xinyue walked past the gossip with a calm face and straight back, but inside her stomach twisted. No matter how many memories she had from her past life, no matter how mature she felt now, she was still stuck in the same seventeen-year-old body—small, slightly fragile, and entirely underestimated.
Perfect.
Let them think she was weak. Let them underestimate her.
That was her greatest weapon.
After school, she stayed in the library, far after the others had left, running through mental math shortcuts and science formulas like old friends. Her hand flew over the pages of her notebook, her eyes scanning print with the kind of focus that only desperation and rebirth could create.
In her past life, she had spent this time studying too, but she'd been afraid to compete. Afraid of the spotlight. Afraid of failing. Now, she knew the true failure was not trying.
When the clock struck six, the librarian cleared her throat loudly behind the desk.
"Xinyue, dear. We're closing."
"Oh—right. Thank you, Auntie Liu."
As she packed her things, her phone buzzed.
A message popped up on her lock screen.
Unknown Number: Don't study too hard. You'll still lose.
She stared at it.
A chill crept up her spine.
She didn't reply.
Instead, she saved the number under one word: Coward.
She wouldn't let fear win. Not this time.
Friday arrived with too much sunshine and not enough air. The school auditorium was buzzing. Forty students sat in rows, waiting for their names to be called. At the front of the room stood four teachers and a long table of tests.
Academic Decathlon tryouts weren't like any regular exam. The questions were brutal—designed to crush your confidence and expose your limits. Only the top three scorers would make it onto the team. In her past life, she hadn't even dared to register.
Now, she sat in the fourth row, pen in hand, heart pounding.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Lin Zeyan walk in. Calm. Distant. Perfect.
He wore a white shirt with sleeves pushed up to the elbow, exposing the lean muscles of someone who probably played piano or boxed in his spare time. His expression was unreadable as he took the empty seat beside her.
Of all the places.
"Is this a joke?" she muttered.
He glanced at her, barely interested. "Why would it be?"
"You're sitting next to me."
"So?"
"You think I won't focus?"
"I think it doesn't matter."
She turned her head and gave him a dry smile. "You're going to lose."
Something flickered in his eyes—surprise, amusement, maybe even admiration—but he said nothing.
The timer began.
The test was brutal.
It started with math—brainteasers, equations, logic puzzles. Then came science, then literature. Questions flipped from Chinese poetry to international politics in the blink of an eye.
But Xinyue's pen didn't stop.
She remembered the questions—half of them were exactly the same as last time. Her past life had given her knowledge no one else had. But what surprised her wasn't that. What surprised her was how much she had changed.
She wasn't panicking. She wasn't blanking out. She was thinking clearly, answering confidently, and fighting for her future.
For a moment, she felt invincible.
Until she noticed Lin Zeyan.
His pen was just as fast. His expression never changed. He didn't hesitate once.
He was as terrifying as she remembered.
After two grueling hours, the test ended.
Xinyue leaned back in her seat and exhaled slowly. Her hand was cramping from writing, but it felt good.
The teacher collected the papers.
The results would be posted Monday morning.
As students left the auditorium, whispering and comparing answers, Lin Zeyan stayed behind. He was standing by the door, arms crossed, waiting for her.
She hesitated for a moment, then walked up to him.
"You really think you'll make it?" he asked.
She raised her chin. "I don't think. I know."
He tilted his head. "You've changed."
"Have I?"
"You're not pretending anymore."
She looked at him closely. "Neither are you."
He smiled faintly. "Good luck, Li Xinyue."
It wasn't a challenge. It was something else. A soft acknowledgment. A truce. A warning.
Or maybe... all of them at once.
The weekend passed in slow motion. Xinyue spent most of it in her room, rereading her old journals, making mental notes of future opportunities she didn't want to miss this time. Scholarships, internships, college exams. She was planning her future like a general preparing for war.
Sunday evening, while brushing her hair in front of the mirror, she paused.
In the reflection, she saw something that stopped her heart.
A small scar at the edge of her jaw—barely visible, but she knew it too well. It was from her past life, a reminder of that rainy night, when someone had shoved her and she had hit the metal pole before blacking out.
But if this was a new body, reborn…
Why was the scar still there?
Her fingers trembled as she touched it.
Could it be... that her body wasn't entirely new?
Was she simply reborn in time—or had her soul been rewound inside the same vessel?
The thought unsettled her more than she wanted to admit.
Monday morning.
The school hall was already crowded when she arrived. Everyone was staring at the notice board. Students were whispering, some gasping, some already walking away looking defeated.
She took a deep breath and pushed through the crowd.
And there it was.
Jinling High School Academic Decathlon Final Team List:
Lin Zeyan – Score: 97/100
Li Xinyue – Score: 95/100
Wu Ruo – Score: 89/100
She stared at her name.
Second place.
She had made it.
Her breath caught in her throat—not from disappointment, but disbelief. She had done it. Her name was printed there, right next to Lin Zeyan's, just as it was supposed to be.
A second chance. A different destiny.
Behind her, someone clapped softly.
She turned around.
Lin Zeyan.
"Welcome to the team," he said simply.
She gave him a slow, knowing smile.
"Hope you're ready to lose next time."
He raised a brow. "Careful. That almost sounded like flirting."
She laughed once, surprising even herself.
Maybe… just maybe… this new life wouldn't be so bad.
If she played it right.
If she stayed ahead.
And if she never, ever forgot who the real enemies were.
Because some shadows from the past were already watching her.
And they weren't going to let her rewrite her fate so easily.