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Join the ServerFirst place: Lucia’s team.
…What? What!?
Bathed in the admiring gazes of the crowd, Julie felt as if she had been struck by lightning the moment the final rankings were announced.
She stared incredulously at Lucia across the way, then turned her gaze towards the Archmage on the altar.
‘It had to be a mistake, somewhere! My score was clearly the highest!’
Second place: Julie’s team.
Third place…
As the Archmage continued to announce the subsequent rankings without hesitation, Julie finally understood. It wasn’t that the Archmage had misspoken; the true rankings were exactly as stated.
Lucia’s team was indeed in first place.
In truth, even Lucia and her two companions wore expressions of utter bewilderment. They exchanged puzzled glances, and Imeline’s suspicions about Julie were temporarily set aside by this sudden turn of events.
They, too, found it hard to believe, wondering if the Archmage had somehow made a mistake.
“Archmage! Have you made a mistake? Our team’s score was clearly the highest. Why is Lucia’s team in first place!?”
From Julie’s team, the knight who harbored affection for her couldn’t help but step forward at this moment. He loudly questioned the Archmage on the altar.
Though the Archmage was an elder, how could he remain silent and composed in the face of such perceived injustice?
The other professionals were equally perplexed. Their silence didn’t signify a lack of questions; rather, they either felt it unnecessary, trusting the Archmage to explain, or simply dared not be the first to speak out.
The knight from Julie’s team, however, was the first to lose his composure, especially since their own interests were at stake.
“Please explain this in detail.”
The Archmage, unfazed by the questioning, simply nodded and began to explain the reasons to the assembled crowd.
“Since you are also a member of Julie’s team, you must know where Julie’s team’s score truly came from, correct? Perhaps you could explain it to everyone yourself.”
Upon hearing this, the knight’s heart instantly lurched. The gazes of the crowd below all fell upon him, and he felt an overwhelming sense of embarrassment.
Unsure how to respond, he could only look towards Julie, hoping she would step forward once more to resolve the situation.
This time, however, even Julie had lost her composure. She pressed her lips together, her head bowed low, her eyes hidden beneath her bangs, utterly unwilling to meet anyone’s gaze.
‘Just moments ago, Julie had been boasting about her team’s score and strength, bragging about how dangerous those mysterious figures were. If she confessed now, wouldn’t she be humiliating herself?’
‘Yet, even if she didn’t confess, the Archmage would surely expose her. At this moment, Julie’s thoughts were a tangled mess; she couldn’t conceive of any way to reverse the current predicament.’
‘Had she known this would happen, it would have been better to honestly admit that she had never encountered those mysterious individuals, and instead, had traded with Lucia for a portion of her points. At least that way, she might have salvaged some dignity.’
‘Now, however, her bluff had been called completely. She was about to be exposed, and once revealed, her reputation would undoubtedly be dragged through the mud.’
‘No, this couldn’t happen! As the third young lady of the Crimson Family, I could never allow such a thing to occur!’
The consequences of being exposed made Julie’s pupils constrict. She hastily took a step forward, looking up at the Archmage, desperate to stop him from speaking further.
“Archmage, I have no objections to the final rankings! Please, continue to announce the subsequent placements!”
“Pfft… Hahahaha! Weren’t you quite arrogant just now? Why are you suddenly so flustered?”
Witnessing Julie’s complete change in attitude, Imeline couldn’t help but burst into laughter. She openly mocked Julie, hoping to provoke her further.
If Julie were allowed to simply gloss over this, it would be unfair to Lucia and Attestor. Furthermore, it might lead professionals who didn’t know the truth to believe they had cheated.
Since they, who were second in points, had been declared first, the truth of the matter had to be revealed to avoid any gossip or suspicion.
“Didn’t you always want first place? Why aren’t you fighting for it anymore? Are you now content with being second, beneath us?”
The professionals gathered around her looked from Julie to Imeline, growing increasingly curious about what had transpired between them.
They wondered why Julie’s face had suddenly turned so grim, and why Imeline was openly taunting her.
“Shut up!”
Julie could no longer spare the energy to retort to Imeline. Even accepting second place was secondary; her main priority now was to save face.
She absolutely could not allow the lies she had just boasted to be exposed. If they were, she would suffer immense humiliation.
However, the current situation no longer permitted concealment. All the professionals present were intensely curious about the truth.
Hiding it would undoubtedly provoke widespread dissatisfaction and suspicion, making it impossible for the Archmage to keep the matter under wraps.
“Julie, these matters cannot remain undisclosed. Concealing them would only lead others to doubt the fairness of the assessment. Calm yourself.”
“Archmage, please don’t say—”
“Archmage! As long as you don’t reveal it, our family will certainly…”
“Impudent!”
Julie remained undeterred, even attempting to leverage the Crimson Family’s influence as an incentive. The Archmage immediately cut her off mid-sentence, sternly reprimanding her.
“Julie, what exactly do you mean by this? How dare you utter such words in public? Do you take the Church, the Mage Association, and the Knight Order for mere decorations?”
“Dare to speak another word, and I will have you expelled from this place!”
A surge of anger flashed across the Archmage’s face. He had not expected Julie to dare invoke her family in public, attempting to bribe him.
Whether it was bribery or a threat, such behavior in this setting was an undeniable act of contempt for the rules of the kingdom’s three major organizations.
If Julie had been allowed to finish her statement, the Archmage wasn’t sure if she would face punishment. However, his own career as an Archmage would undoubtedly be over.
Only after the Archmage’s furious reprimand did Julie realize her grave misstep. The Archmage had issued his ultimatum, leaving her no room for further argument.
Her mind went completely blank, and even the sounds around her seemed to fade into the distance.
Seeing that Julie had fallen silent, the Archmage finally continued.
“This Monster Hunt Exercise was a special case. After investigation, it was found that the mysterious individuals and the artificial Bloodkin all targeted Saintess Lucia.”
“Lucia’s team, in conjunction with Guardian Lovelenica, managed to eliminate those black-clad figures and repel the Bloodkin.”
“The score they actually obtained was far more than two thousand; it should have been upwards of three thousand.”
“However, because they had previously made a deal with Julie, transferring a portion of their points to her, Julie’s score had surpassed theirs.”
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