Clara's heart was incredibly heavy. She watched the staff member get dragged away, taking a long moment before she could finally pull her gaze back...
In stark contrast, Seraphina couldn't care less. Her entire focus was locked on the final results, her fingers tightly intertwined in anticipation.
Anna picked up the microphone. Sweeping her gaze across the contestants, she announced, "The first-place winner of this year's National Design Championship is—"
"Seraphina Shaw!"
The name echoed through the hall with undeniable finality.
It struck like a bolt of lightning from a clear sky.
Clara froze.
Seraphina froze for a second too, utterly in disbelief, thinking she had misheard. But as the reality set in, she broke into a radiant smile, practically moved to tears of joy.
She covered her face, taking a moment to compose herself, before shooting a triumphant glance at Clara. Seeing Clara's pale, stunned expression made her victory all the sweeter. The suffocating weight in her chest instantly vanished!
"Heh. See that, Clara? It doesn't matter how talented you are. At the end of the day, you still couldn't snag first place!"
"Do you want to know why?"
Seraphina chuckled meaningfully, her smugness practically overflowing.
Her words pierced Clara like needles.
Thinking back to before the competition, when Julian had brought Seraphina out to speak with the organizers in the lobby.
A painful lump formed in Clara's throat.
If she couldn't connect the dots now, she'd be a complete fool.
Julian Lowell had ordered the organizers to artificially inflate Seraphina's score!
A suffocating wave of despair crashed over her. It was violent, heavy, and compressed her chest until she could barely breathe.
Clara squeezed her eyes shut, the corners of her eyes stinging with hot, unfallen tears.
She was furious, heartbroken, and deeply wronged.
How could he do this to her?!
Seraphina's voice didn't stop. "All your talent can't even compare to Julian saying a single word to the organizers for me!"
"Now, I'm going to collect my trophy! Oh, and right after that, I'm going to have a chat with Anna about my internship at The Alabaster Atelier!"
As Clara listened, the color completely drained from her face. Her entire body was rigid with tension.
Seraphina laughed, turning to accept her trophy as the host called her forward.
Meanwhile, Clara had to leave the stage!

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABEL
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Three years of loving him, three days to erase myself from his world