Ultimate Choice System: I Became The Richest!

Inside the kitchen, Noah sat with his family as they ate breakfast together.

Caroline, leaned slightly toward him, her expression encouraging but her concern couldn't be hidden.

"How are you feeling about the exam later, honey? Don't be nervous, okay?" she said, her tone soft and reassuring even though she was nervous herself.

Noah, in the middle of a bite, nodded casually. After swallowing, he gave her a confident smile. "Don't worry, Mom. I'm very confident about the exam. I'll make you guys proud."

Caroline smiled warmly, her eyes glimmering with pride. "That's my boy," she said, patting his hand gently.

Across the table, Emily was finishing her cereal, her eyes bouncing from excitement for her brother.

After finishing his teacup, David stood up and adjusted his tie. "Emily, Noah, let's go. I'll drop you both off at school. Your brother has an important exam today, and we can't risk him being late."

Emily nodded eagerly grabbing her bag, while Noah followed behind her calmly with a soft smile.

After dropping Emily off at her primary school, the car ride grew quieter, leaving only Noah and David.

A minute later, they pulled up in front of the school gates. Noah reached for the door handle but paused to glance back at his dad.

"Thanks, Dad," he said, stepping out of the car.

Before he could close the door, David leaned over the passenger seat, his voice filled with encouragement. "Go smash that exam, you've got this."

Noah smiled at his father's words, before waving goodbye.

With a nod, David drove off towards work, leaving Noah standing at the gates. As the car disappeared down the road, Noah turned toward the building.

'I'm thirty minutes early,' Noah thought, as he glanced at the time on his phone.

Noah headed toward the building where the exam was set to take place.

Walking for a few minutes, he arrived to find the area already filled with students. Groups clustered together, some nervously flipping through their notes, others chatting their worries off.

"Hopefully I do well in this exam. Otherwise, I will have to go back to the village and work as a farmer with my uncle."

"You don't want to be a farmer? At least you got a job, if I do fail this test I will at most be considered homeless." Another student, sighed as his friend comforted him.

"Don't worry man, we are in this together. We are in this together,"

Noah unbothered by the students, found a quiet bench off to the side and sat down.

Away from the students and their nerves, he leaned back, observing the place while waiting for the time to pass.

A few minutes later, a familiar voice pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Hi."

Noah turned his head to see Lily approaching him with a smile.

"Hey," he replied casually, returning the smile.

"Are you going to do any last-minute revision?" she asked, even though she already knew his likely answer.

Noah shook his head, his expression indifferent. "Nope. I think it's worse to do that. Unless you don't know anything about the topic, last-minute revision might help you pick up a few marks. But if you already know the topics, you're better off leaving it alone. Too much cramming adds stress."

She nodded thoughtfully, taking a seat beside him. "That's true."

They sat in silence for a moment, the din of the surrounding students filling the air, before the tranquillity was broken by the sound of hurried footsteps. Aiden approached his face having a subtle hint of frustration and disbelief.

Spotting Noah and Lily sitting together, chatting easily before the exam, Aiden rolled his eyes and kissed his teeth audibly.

'This guy…' Aiden thought, shaking his head. 'Flirting right before an exam? Does he want the entire school to pray on his downfall?'

He plopped down heavily next to Noah, shooting Lily a polite nod before turning his attention to his friend. "Hello," he said, his tone unusually formal with her around.

Noah gave him a side glance. "Hey."

Aiden leaned in slightly, lowering his voice. "Bro, you have to help me cheat in this exam if I get stuck. I might be cooked. I've been revising, I swear, but…" he hesitated, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "My YouTube channel kind of took all my attention, you know? Content creation is a full-time grind."

Noah raised an eyebrow, his lips twitching into a grin. "So, let me get this straight. You ignored the exam prep for the 'full-time grind,' and now you want me to cover for you?"

"Exactly!" Aiden said as if Noah had just read his mind. "That's what friends are for, right?"

Lily held a laugh, her expression betraying a hint of amusement.

Noah chuckled.

"Alright bro, I got you don't worry. Just hint at the question with ur fingers."

Aiden beamed as he heard Noah agree, his face lighting up with exaggerated joy. "I love y—" he began, lunging forward for a bear hug.

"Stop right there." Noah extended his hand like a traffic officer, halting Aiden in mid-motion. The sudden stop caused Aiden's hands to flail around awkwardly in the air as if he were a malfunctioning robot.

"I just wanted to express my gratitude!" Aiden said, his voice dripping with fake hurt as he pouted. Yet the mischievous grin on his face gave him away.

"It's okay, I accept your gratitude," Noah replied smoothly, with a calm smile.

"I'm just trying to show some appreciation!" Aiden continued.

Noah shrugged, turning back to Aiden with a playful smirk. "Your appreciation doesn't need to involve breaking my ribs, alright?"

"Sigh, alright," Aiden said, as his shoulders dropped.

"Attention! Everyone stand in a straight line," Said an invigilator as they oversaw the crowd.

...

Inside the exam hall.

Noah and Aiden sat in the same row with another student positioned between them. Meanwhile, Lily was seated at the front, far from them.

The invigilator, had a sharp gaze as she stood at the front of the hall.

Her voice cut through the silence of the hall like a sharp knife. "Alright, everyone, you know the rules. Your head stays down, and your eyes stay on your own paper. Turning around or talking will result in immediate disqualification."

Her gaze swept across the room, landing briefly on Aiden, who froze under her intense gaze. She continued. "Cheating will result in failure, not just in this subject but across all subjects under the examination board. Consider this your only warning."

The nervous students became more nervous as they processed her warnings.

With a firm glance at the clock, she announced, "It's currently 9:00 AM. You may start... now!"

The sound of papers flipping and pens clicking filled the room as students dove into their exams. Noah picked up his pen, his expression calm and focused, as he scanned the first question and began writing within a split second.

Aiden, on the other hand, stared at his paper like it had been written in an alien language. His brow furrowed as he squinted at the question, then the answer sheet.

'Damn it, why is the first question so hard. This is why I hate history, what's the point of learning something that is not even real? I mean yes it's kind of real, but it's twisted to favour the victor.' He thought as he struggled.

After a few moments of silent struggle, he glanced sideways trying to make eye contact with Noah without being obvious.

Noah didn't look up, his pen moving steadily across the page.

Aiden, desperate, tapped his fingers softly against the desk—a signal they had agreed on earlier.

Noah finally acknowledged him with a quick glance, his expression amused but unreadable.

Meanwhile, Noah subtly tilted his paper, just enough for Aiden to catch a glimpse of the answer he needed.

Aiden's face lit up in relief as he quickly scribbled on his sheet, mouthing a silent "thank you" toward Noah.

The invigilator began her rounds, her heels clicking against the floor sending shivers down Aiden's spine. When she approached their row, Aiden froze, his pen hovering mid-air. Noah, however, remained composed, his hand steady as he continued writing as if nothing had happened.

The invigilator stopped for a moment, her sharp eyes scanning the row. Aiden felt sweat bead on his forehead.

The invigilator came up to him and her hands moved down.

'Oh no, I got caught. I failed, I'm done for. I will never be anything great in life. My dad was right, I only know how to eat. Damn it!' He thought as he watched her hand go past his paper and fall down under his desk.

The invigilator whispered in his ear.

"Here, you dropped your rubber." She whispered, before walking off.

Hearing her, Aiden let out a sigh of relief that almost revitalised him.

'Thank god, I was just overthinking it.' He thought, before flipping to the next question.

'This is easy. Noah taught us this yesterday,' He thought, giving Noah a quick grateful look before quickly writing the answers he remembered.

The rest of the exam proceeded without incident, with Noah finishing his paper long before most of the class. Aiden, still struggling through the last few questions, couldn't help but marvel at his friend's composure.

As the invigilator called out, "Time's up! Put your pens down," Aiden leaned back in his chair, his face a mix of relief and exhaustion. Noah remained as calm as ever, his paper neatly completed and ready to be collected.

As they exited the hall, Aiden turned to Noah, a grin spreading across his face. "Bro, I owe you big time. You're a legend!"

Noah smirked, his expression mischievous. "Did you shit your pants when the invigilator walked up to our row? I could see the terror in your eyes."

Aiden's grin faltered, and he glanced around nervously, his hands flying up as if to hush Noah. "Shhh, bro! Don't expose me like that in public!" He quickly scanned the area, making sure no one overheard.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Noah chuckled. "Come on, admit it. You were seconds away from a heart attack. I thought you were going to pass out when she stopped at our row."

Aiden groaned, throwing his hands in the air. "Okay, fine! Maybe I was a little nervous, but you can't blame me. Did you see how she approached me? I felt like I was caught. I don't want to be in that scenario again,"

Noah shrugged nonchalantly. "Just don't make it a habit, and it won't."

Aiden nodded, his expression serious. "Of course not. Next time, I'll just study harder."

"Sure you will," Noah replied with a knowing smile, as they both burst into laughter and headed toward the cafeteria.

After eating with Aiden at the cafeteria, Noah headed home.