Bride To Be Not Me (Janice and Simon) novel Chapter 122

Janice felt her phone buzz and glanced down at the screen.

It was a message from the diplomatic representative of the International Crochet Union.

"Ms. Olson, the finals over there should have started by now, right? I have some exciting news to share. From what I know, the National Crochet Union in your country has already selected a company called Melody & Loops Creations for the international championship.

"If you're able to participate, you could join Melody & Loops Creations and travel together at the start of the year."

Initially, the message seemed like a friendly offer, an opportunity to secure support and avoid facing the competition alone. With a team behind her, she wouldn't be completely reliant on herself.

But as Janice continued reading, she uncovered something far more surprising.

Pre-selected?

Had the competition been decided before it even started?

Janice looked up, and at that exact moment, her gaze met Heidi's. The smug, knowing smirk on Heidi's lips confirmed everything.

No wonder Heidi had been made a judge. No wonder she had made those comments earlier. The National Crochet Union, Melody & Loops Creations, and Heidi…

It was clear now that fairness had never been part of the plan. With that realization, Janice knew there was no reason to remain silent any longer.

She lowered her gaze and swiftly typed out a reply.

To her surprise, the response came back almost instantly.

After reading the confirmation, she tucked her phone away.

…

The public voting countdown was drawing to a close.

Once the voting ended, the four crochet pieces would be ranked based on the average public votes, along with an additional ten votes from each judge.

However, those ten votes rarely impacted the results unless the competition was exceptionally close.

Ten minutes later, the images of the crochet pieces disappeared from the big screen and were replaced by four numbered entries.

Normally, the vote count would be displayed next to each entry, but this time, it was strangely absent.

"Are they still calculating the scores?" someone muttered in confusion.

"That's not possible. The system processes everything instantly."

The tension in the air was thick.

As soon as the signal was restored, everyone's phones began buzzing with notifications.

At this point, no manipulation was possible. All on-site voters had been required to hand over their phones, and the entry numbers had been randomized.