After hanging up the phone, I logged onto the forum to see what Sophie might be posting now that she couldn't access my code.
But when I saw her new post, chills ran down my spine. She had included a screenshot of the last line of code from what I had just completed.
I couldn't believe it was real. Rubbing my eyes vigorously, I compared it over and over again—it was exactly the same, down to the last detail.
Trembling with fear, I looked back around the room, wondering if this hotel also had hidden cameras. In a panic, I began searching everywhere but found nothing.
I checked my computer again but still found no signs of tampering.
All I could do was reopen the webpage and scrutinize Sophie's post for any clues.
Her post read, [Today's ideas became so much clearer.]
The comments below were filled with her sycophants fawning over her. [Goddess is indeed a goddess; she managed to solve such a difficult problem in such a short time!]
[Even though she isn't Smith's biological daughter, with her skills, she'll be sought after anywhere!]
[I heard that the true daughter of the Smiths moved out today; could it be that her absence allowed our goddess to progress so quickly?]
Sophie only replied with one line, [Please don't say that; after all, it was the Smith family that raised me. They've done me a great favor. Regardless of what the true daughter wants, my adoptive parents and I will compensate her. Plus, she's participating in this competition too; I hope she can achieve good results.]
Sophie's post painted her as a kind-hearted yet pitiful young lady, giving off an impression of being both strong and tragic.
In my past life, she had used these posts to crush me completely. But after years of studying programming and consistently winning awards in competitions each year, how could I just admit defeat now?
I felt like an ant on a hot pan, sweating with anxiety.
I kept replaying the situation in my mind, trying to figure out where things had gone wrong.
Since there were no cameras in the room, the issue had to be with my computer.
I couldn't believe that Sophie was also a skilled hacker. But if she could steal my code without me noticing, why didn't she just write her own and compete fairly?
I pushed those thoughts aside for now. I added an extra layer of login authentication to my code and then set up a trap using some hacking techniques.