Chapter 557: Withdrawal from the Competition
Everyone turned to look at him.
The host’s hand trembled slightly, his gaze narrowing as he slowly—very slowly—turned his head.
Frank couldn’t wait any longer. He longed for the moment when everyone’s envy and praise would fall upon him. Once he claimed the championship, he would be hailed as the next Chief Perfumer, his name celebrated by thousands.
In his heart, he even felt grateful to those Country Y perfumers who hadn’t placed in the top ten.
Because with second through eighth place all taken by Country M contestants, every spectator from Country Y was now desperately clinging to the hope of a champion. That champion was meant to be the savior of Country Y’s pride.
If the entire top ten had been filled by Country Y contestants, the champion’s title wouldn’t have carried the same weight. But standing out as the sole winner in a field dominated by Country M would mean he had salvaged his nation’s honor.
The more Frank thought about it, the more his excitement grew. His face glowed with anticipation as he looked up at the stage, waiting for the host to speak his name.
And then—
"The champion of this year’s competition is... is..." The host broke out into a cold sweat, unable to believe what he was reading, but bound by duty to announce it. His words shattered Frank and Ronald’s dreams completely—
"It’s Selina Clark..."
—Selina?!
It was Selina!
The moment her name was spoken, the hall fell into an icy silence. It was as if the very air had frozen solid.
Everyone doubted their ears. Had they heard correctly? Did the host truly just say... Selina? How could it possibly be Selina?
For a heartbeat, even the Country M audience was stunned—but when they realized they had heard right, they erupted into joyous cheers.
[Selina? Miss Clark? The champion is ours!]
[Oh my god, it’s really Miss Clark! With so many Country Y assistants and the host on stage, there’s no way they misread the name. That means contestant seven is Selina—the champion is truly Miss Clark!]
[If Miss Clark won, then doesn’t Paula have to honor the wager and pay up those twenty billion?]
[This feels exactly like one of those real-life "face-slapping" stories!]
The Country Y audience, on the other hand, refused to believe it:
[Impossible! How could Selina ever compare to Frank? Frank is the student of our Chief Perfumer!]
[There must be a mistake! Even if Frank wasn’t first, he should’ve been in the top ten. Since the entire top ten has been announced without his name, that only proves he must be number one!]
The Country M viewers were speechless:
[...I have no idea how you even came to that conclusion.]
No one was more devastated than Frank himself.
His eyes bulged, veins standing out as he glared at the host. The host hadn’t even finished inviting Selina on stage when Frank’s furious roar cut through the silence:
"What did you say?!"
The host flinched. "I said contestant number seven is Selina—"
Frank completely lost control. Forgetting decorum, forgetting pride, he stormed forward and seized the host by the collar, screaming at the top of his lungs, "Whose name did you just say?! The champion is me—it’s supposed to be me!"
The audience gasped in shock.
This was Frank? This was Ronald’s prized student? The one said to be the next Chief Perfumer of Country Y? So rude? So unhinged?
Ronald’s expression darkened instantly.
But Frank couldn’t hear anyone anymore. He was like a madman, shouting in denial:
"You’re lying! You’re lying! The champion is me—"
"And this is Frank’s idea of proper conduct?"
Logan calmly set down his teacup with a sharp clink. His voice was steady, cold, and carried an invisible weight.
"If the champion were you, you would graciously accept it. But the moment it’s someone else, you throw a tantrum in front of the world? Tell me, Frank—must the champion always be you? If someone else wins, it’s unacceptable? Then what meaning does this competition even hold in your eyes?"
"I—I’m not!" Frank stammered, his face flushing red as he scrambled to justify himself. But then his pride surged back, giving him false confidence.
"But the champion—if it isn’t me—it still couldn’t possibly be Selina!"
Logan drawled, "So what Mr. Frank means is... Selina cheated?"
"I..." Frank faltered.
"The competition rules and judging criteria were set by your princess. The judges and review panel were handpicked by Mr. Ronald. The numbering of the entries was handled by Country Y’s own staff." Logan paused, his tone casual, almost lazy. "So, Mr. Frank, are you suggesting that with all these people helping her, Selina still managed to walk away with the championship?"
The moment those words landed, not only Frank but even the furious Country Y audience in the livestream fell silent.
Because... it wasn’t wrong.
Country Y prided itself as the Kingdom of Perfume. Their princess oversaw the entire event, while Ronald acted in her stead, orchestrating every detail. And ironically, this "generosity"—taking charge of the entire competition—was meant to showcase to the world Country Y’s absolute dominance in perfumery.
But now, with eight out of the top ten spots claimed by Country M contestants... no one in Country Y could believe it, let alone accept it.
So even without a shred of evidence against Selina, Ronald’s face was dark as he declared, "Mr. Reid, please don’t hold Frank’s words against him. After all, Frank wasn’t wrong. Are we really to believe that our Country Y contestants could be bested by Miss Clark, an amateur perfumer?"
"In past competitions hosted by Country Y, the best any Country M professional ever managed was second place—never the championship. And yet Mr. Reid would have us believe that Miss Clark, an amateur, could claim the crown?"
Ronald straightened and announced, "For the sake of fairness, I propose that Selina’s qualification as champion be revoked. Otherwise, how will we explain this to perfumers around the world?!"
The hall fell into dead silence.
Country Y contestants nodded in agreement, while Country M contestants froze in disbelief.
Seriously? No evidence at all, and just a few words were enough to strip Selina of her title?
Logan’s gaze turned icy.
A Country M contestant flushed red with anger. "Mr. Ronald, that’s outrageous! We all admit Miss Clark is the most skilled among us. If she won the championship, what’s wrong with that?"
Ronald didn’t even blink. "Of course you’d say that, just to save her pride. I can understand."
"You—!" Several contestants were shaking with rage.
Selina, however, only smiled faintly.
She had expected Ronald to be shameless, but not this shameless.
She knew he would never accept a Country M champion, but this method... he wasn’t even pretending anymore.
Selina asked lightly, "Mr. Ronald, if you want to disqualify me as champion, surely you need evidence? I entered this competition according to the rules. The judges scored me, and their scores awarded me the title. I understand you’re not convinced, but..."
"If a single ’I refuse’ from Mr. Ronald is enough to nullify the results, if one shout of ’I am the champion’ from Ronald’s student is enough to overturn them, then Mr. Reid was right—this entire competition is meaningless."
She tilted her head, her smile cold. "And since it’s unfair and meaningless, I’m willing to withdraw."