After I Amazed the World the Cold Alpha Regretted

Chapter 84

Chapter 84

Aria's voice rang out, sharp and clear, cutting through the celebratory atmosphere like a knife.

The room fell into a stunned silence as all eyes turned to her.

"This competition was rigged!" she declared, her tone accusatory.

"Orlando Martin, one of the judges and Elizabeth's father, couldn't possibly be unbiased. She only won because of her connections! This entire competition is a sham!"

Murmurs rippled through the audience, disbelief and shock on every face.

The judges exchanged uneasy glances, unsure how to proceed.

The atmosphere that had been jubilant just moments before was now thick with tension.

But at this point I was the only one standing very calmly on the stage, as if I had known this was going to happen.

Before anyone could respond, a member of the competition's staff stepped forward, microphone in hand.

"In this connection, please allow me to introduce the rules of the competition," he began calmly, "in cases where a participant has a close relationship with a judge, that judge is required to abstain from scoring that participant. In this instance, Mr. Orlando Martin did not participate in the scoring of Miss Elizabeth Martin's performance. He recused himself to maintain fairness and transparency."

The staff member's explanation seemed to quell some of the murmurs, but Aria wasn't done.

She opened her mouth to argue further when suddenly, the large screen behind the stage flickered to life.

The audience gasped as security footage began to play.

There, on the screen, was Aria, instructing a staff member to swap out my sheet music.

money and giving specific instructions to

The evidence was undeniable,

The room erupted into chaos, with gasps and whispers filling the space as the truth came to light.

the score that had been

play from," I said, my voice steady

had transpired, erupted into applause, admiration

minutes without the score.

after reviewing the footage and questioning the bribed staff member, stood up and addressed

that we must disqualify Aria from the competition,"

the history of this competition that such a penalty has been necessary.

mask of shock and humiliation, was

capturing every moment

to cover her face, but there was no escaping the scandal that had

"No, it wasn't me,

15:35

World,

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evidence, no one believed her sophistry

host turned back to me, the golden trophy still in his

anew, this time

A

solid and reassuring in my hands, and turned

held the trophy aloft,

who was leading the

him, knowing that this

International Piano Competition