Chapter 5 - The Unprecedented Tie
Dr. Vance held up a hand, silencing the fading applause. The smile on his face widened, replaced by a glint of genuine excitement that rarely crossed the faces of jaded academics.
"Now," Dr. Vance said, his voice dropping to a dramatic register that commanded absolute silence. "For the first time in eleven editions of this competition, the jury has encountered an anomaly. After running the final diagnostic algorithms three separate times to verify the results..."
He paused, letting the suspense hang like a guillotine blade over the crowd.
"...we have a perfect tie."
A murmur rippled through the auditorium. Whispers broke out among the parents. Ties were practically unheard of in a competition featuring over five hundred elite students from across the country.
"Furthermore," Dr. Vance continued, a broad grin breaking across his weathered face, "the two highest scores ever recorded in the history of this Olympiad—scoring a staggering 99.8 percent across all four modules—do not just belong to two separate individuals."
Álvaro frowned, leaning forward in his seat, his smug expression faltering slightly.
"The two best results," Dr. Vance announced proudly, "belong to two brothers."
The auditorium erupted into absolute pandemonium. Flashbulbs blinded the front rows.
"Marcos Serrano and Mateo Serrano!"
The silence that followed in Álvaro's immediate vicinity was deafening. The color drained completely from Álvaro’s face, leaving him the shade of skimmed milk. His mouth opened slightly, but no words came out.
Down in the back row, Marcos and Mateo looked at each other in stunned disbelief. Lucía grabbed both of them by the arms and shoved them gently forward.
"Go on," she whispered, her voice thick with tears she refused to let fall. "Take what is yours."
May you like
The twins stood up side by side. As they walked down the center aisle, parting the sea of wealthy, dumbfounded parents, the spotlight caught their sharp cheekbones, their fierce, unbroken posture, and the undeniable fire in their eyes.
Álvaro sat frozen in his seat, his eyes locked on their faces. The shock wave hit him like a physical blow. The jawline, the nose, the terrifyingly familiar intensity in their gait—all the pieces clicked together in his terror-stricken brain with the force of a freight train.
