Chapter 195 Rescore
A woman seated next to Octavia leaned forward
“Miss Vance makes a solid point. If the result’s disputed, let the people decide. I’d have given bera den myself. It’s stunning work.”
She looked right at me.
I held her gaze and nodded coce
The chat went wold again..
abo is that woman? She’s making sense.]
(Us she a judge too?)
Someone drop ber name, she’s boc]
(That’s Bowen Balel My idoll Did she just come back from oversees?
Dr. Dubois was sweating through her blouse.
Literal sweet
It scared the edge of her collar and glistened above ber I.
She got up from ber seat, approached me, then spoke in a low whisper.
you sap this on Flestre your submission. A better score, Just… don’t escalate it.
‘No. I’m not the one who started this. You did‘ Traised the mic. “And we still haven’t called
æour vitæ you pulled backstage. You died to smear me, so let’s hear in Go on. Tell them what happened behind that cursein.”
Someone shouted from de audience. “‘Fadsage drama? Tell us!‘
Another yelled, “She got paid off for sure!
Dubois locked like she wanted to bolt, et faint, ofbech.
She covered my mix with one hand.
“Torment to think very carefully. This isn’t just some local talent show. This is the top design competition in the country. We’re backed by the National Guild. If you plan to keep working, you need to mop stirring the pot.”
“Fou’re threatening me.”
“Tes. I am.” Ber mostrils fared. “You’ll never work again if you don’t shut up and cooperate—”
Chapter 185 Rescore
+15 BONUS
I lifted the other mic I’d been holding behind my back to her mouth mid–sentence.
“Sorry, you’re mumbling. Could you repeat that into the mic?”
Her threat blasted through every speaker in the room.
I watched her jaw stutter, and for a split second, thought she might bite her own tongue off.
“Did everyone catch that? She just said she’d blacklist me.”
The audience didn’t hesitate.
“We heard it!”
“Lunatic!”
“She thinks she runs the whole damn industry?”
“She should blacklist herself first!”
Dubois stood rigid beside me, fists clenched so tight her knuckles whitened.
A long, suffocating moment later, she turned and stormed offstage, nearly tripping over a power cable.
But she didn’t get to disappear just because she wanted to.
I saw a man block her way.
They exchanged words in a tense undertone.
Then the man walked onto the stage.
He gave me a smile that was weirdly ingratiating before he turned to face the audience.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Tristan Hadley, the executive director of this competition. We’ve confirmed that Dr. Aliénor Dubois accepted a bribe and deliberately sabotaged the scoring process. The results were compromised. We’ve contacted the police. She’ll be investigated, along with whoever put her up to it.”
Gasps and muttering rippled through the room.
Dubois looked like someone had yanked the floor out from under her.
Her knees gave slightly, and she grabbed the edge of a speaker to stay upright.
She didn’t even have time to form a denial before two officers entered from the back aisle.
They moved straight to her, snapped cuffs on her wrists, and marched her out with no ceremony.
The room buzzed with whispers.
2/4
Chapter 185 Rescore
+15 BONUS
Some phones were still raised, still filming.
I glanced at Tristan.
I was pretty sure I’d never seen him before.
I turned, scanning the audience until I spotted Ashton. (1)
When our eyes met, he gave me a smile and nodded.
The noise faded enough for Tristan to gesture towards the crew.
The screen behind me blinked, then lit up with my original design.
Tristan cleared his throat.
“This design also belongs to Miss Vance. Because of Dr. Dubois‘ interference, she was forced to submit two drafts under ridiculous time constraints. Even so, both entries were complete and technically flawless. It’s obvious she’s working at a level far beyond what we expected from this competition.”
The audience clapped. Loudly.
He kept going.
“If she’d had the time she deserved, the results would’ve been even stronger. It would’ve been a shame if this set had been buried.”
The applause picked up again.
“There’s an old saying about a single rotten apple spoiling the bunch. That’s what Dr. Dubois did to this event. But I hope everyone understands her actions don’t reflect the competition as a whole.”
He turned to the judges.
“We’re going to rescore Miss Vance’s entries. I expect fairness this time.”
That got the comments moving again.
[That’s more like it.]
[No need to score. Just hand @MVanceJewels the damn trophy.]
[Give her both first and second place. Those designs crushed the rest.]
[Stop wasting time. Announce it.]
Tristan stepped aside, gave the crew a signal, and the judging resumed.
“Will you come with me, miss?” he sidled up to me and whispered.
3/4
Chapter 185 Rescore
+15 BONUS
He pointed downstage.
Ashton’s seat was empty.
I followed the man backstage.
Ashton was waiting there.
Tristan approached. “Mr. Laurent, just checking if the arrangement’s to your satisfaction?”
Ashton stared at the giant screen for another three seconds before he spoke. “When’s the award being announced?”
Tristan hesitated. “The judges are scoring live now. After that, there’s a closed session where they’ll finalize the rankings. It’s a weighted system. Two phases of scoring combined for the final result-”
“So the answer is no,” Ashton cut in. “We’re not getting a result tonight.”
“Normally, no. We release the final rankings online within three business days. That’s always been the practice.”
“This is tedious. The event’s already a mess. I want the result tonight.”
“Right–yes–I understand, but…” Tristan swallowed. “It’s a long–standing protocol. We’ve never announced a winner on the same day-”
“Kian Al–Ahmad said this was under my authority. If I want the process changed, are you planning to stop me?”
“Absolutely not!” Tristan backed up half a step, waving his hands quickly. “Not at all. I’ll inform the committee now. We’ll announce the result immediately.”
He didn’t wait for a reply.
He turned and disappeared.
Seven minutes later, the host returned to the mic
Chapter 186 Hired Gun
