The First Round

“This is looking bad already for Ravel and Fantasia.”

Yutaka has clearly recovered from the infatuation and is back to thinking rationally.

“Tell me more, li’l Joe?”

Even though Zhang had no way of actually hearing the conversation, his sixth sense made him look villainously at Seko calling Yutaka his li’l Joe.

“Remember what Zhang said? That it was Silveria who pushed Fantasia into the rank 1 of the eight finalists just for her amusement. Without her, I doubt Fantasia would ever be even considered a contestant, let alone a finalist.”

“So that means that she can actually bend the opinions of people here to her will, damaging Ravel and his tamed monkey?”

“Yes, with her judge points, she can influence the voting decisions of the students.”

“Hehehe, we’ll see if Silveria has more political power than me here,” Ares joins the conversation with an ominously sounding statement.

“Huh?” Seko and Yutaka turn around and gaze at Ares in confusion.

“Now, my little piglets, I shall assume my position so watch me as I gracefully walk towards my seat~,” Silveria moves like a princess trying to dance while elegantly walking, the tiara shining on her silver head is captivating the audience.

“Aw, silly me~! Who is going to be the host of this show if I am a judge?” She tilts her head and points her index finger at her right temple. “Oh, I know! I’m a genius! Here, take this!” She throws the microphone to the volunteer girl as she catches it in surprise at the last second, almost dropping it down.

“I’m gonna smack that pretty head of hers one of these days!” She grunts and then quickly composes herself, addressing the audience. “Alright, let’s get this event started, shall we?! My name is Liko and I’ll be your host!”

A big round of applause erupts as she is welcomed as the host.

“From now on, we’re rivals!” Fantasia playfully says to Ravel seated next to her.

Ravel nods, recalling their previous conversation when he stated he would enter the contest, too.

“The first round is pretty easy! I’ll call out your name and you will come forward to the stage. I have the same three questions for each of you. Contestants ready?” She looks to her left where all 8 finalists are seated. “First, finalist no. 8, Lucy of class 2.C, please come forward.”

The brown hair girl who was frowning at Fantasia earlier stands up and comes to the stage.

“G-good luck!” Leanna wishes to her classmate.

Lucy swiftly and somewhat forcefully takes the microphone from the host, Liko.

“H-hey, I didn’t ask a question yet!” Liko protests.

“I don’t need any question. I have something to say!” the girl proclaims loudly, her voice seething with frustration. “Have we really stooped so low?! This competition has always been prestigious but what kind of a farce is this?! Look at that monkey!” She points out at Fantasia sitting among the competitors to Lucy’s left.

Fantasia and Ravel look surprised that right from the beginning, somebody is creating tension already.

“Is that abomination supposed to be competing in a ‘beauty’ contest?!” The whole vestibule is mute but there are a few individuals yelling how right Lucy is. “If she’s here, then this contest is nonsense! And I won’t tolerate it! I refuse to potentially lose to Swan because of some shady stuff behind the scenes! And what the hell is a guy doing in this contest?!”

Silveria warmly smiles and carefully takes her microphone from the table for judges.

“Are you that scared of being defeated in a beauty contest by an ‘ugly’ girl as you say?”

“T-that’s not the point!”

“And regarding Ravel Unique, there is no rule against males joining the competition. Anybody could have done it for the past 25 years but I guess only Ravel had the courage to face the gender equality problem.”

“… Fuck you, president. I’m outta here.” Lucy drops the microphone on the floor and storms off the stage.

“Now then, does anybody else of you bastards think this is not going to be a fair contest?! Huh?? Step forward and talk to your Queen!” Silveria’s other personality has surfaced once again.

However, nobody dared to oppose her and thus the venue remained silent.

“Good, my darlings~. Now, you may continue, sweetie.” She puts the microphone down allowing Liko to proceed with the first round.

“Don’t call me sweetie you arrogant beautiful bitch,” Liko grumbles again and takes the microphone from the floor. “E-ehm, well, the first finalist is out! Even though this was not supposed to be a battle royale, ahahah!” Nobody found the attempt for a joke funny, except for a loud chuckle from Fantasia.

When did she become her ally, Liko wondered.

“Alright, next up, we have Violet from class 3.B!”

A rather tall girl with short purple hair and golden eyes stands up from behind Ravel and slowly makes her way to the stage.

“So here is your first question, Violet! If you could be granted anything in this world, what would you wish for?” Liko hands the microphone to Violet, who takes it with confidence into her hands.

“I would wish for a world filled with love and compassion. I believe that when people truly care for one another, we can overcome any challenge and create a better future.” She returns the microphone back to the host, Liko.

“What do you think is an ultimate form of happiness?”

“For me, the ultimate form of happiness is making a positive impact on the world. It’s about using my voice and resources to uplift others, to leave a lasting legacy.”

“Alright, last question: Does appearance matter? What role do you believe beauty plays in society?”

Violet glances at Fantasia who is watching her with a smile.

“Appearance does matter to some extent as it can create initial impressions. However,” she averts her gaze back to the audience, “true beauty goes beyond physical appearance. It is about being kind, confident and compassionate. Beauty is one means to uplift the others and inspire a positive change in society.”

“Those were some heartfelt answers! Now, stay with me for a while, girl, let’s hear what the judges have to say, they can each award you up to 5 points! Judge Diantha?”

Diantha’s head has been resting on the table in apparent disinterest..

“H-huh, what? Oh yeah, Violet, 4 points out of 5.” She raises a card with a number 4 written on it.

Each judge has 10 cards with numbers 1 through 10 written on them, choosing the card according to how many points they want to award to the contestant.

“Starting strongly! Next, judge and a student council member Zhang?”

“Short hair isn’t my thing, lack of pleading for attention. 2 out of 5.”

“But Zhang, you know we aren’t evaluating the appearance yet-“

“I said 2 out of 5! That’s it!” Zhang raises his voice just like he normally does.

“There goes your li’l Joe.” Seko remarks with a hint of scoffing.

“But he said 2 out of 5! That’s it! Bam!” Yutaka imitates Zhang playfully.

“And for our last judge, Queen Silveria?”

“Last but not least, you should have said, lowlife!” Silveria takes offense at Liko, who just rolls her eyes. “Anyway, Violet, I felt a little dishonesty in your answers, especially the last one. So gotta agree with Mr. That’s It here, 2 points.”

Violet’s face contorts with disgust. “Hmph!” She turns on her heel and returns to her seat.

“Thank you to our beautiful contestant no. 7, Violet from 3.B! Now, let’s welcome Leanna of class 2.C!”

“I-I’m coming!” She stands up quickly and nervously walks towards Liko.

“So, the same questions for you! Our audience can see them on the big screen behind us!”

Leanna takes the microphone and looks at the screen, reading the questions.

“W-well… I would wish for equal opportunities for everyone… I was very touched by Ravel when he said he would join this contest which is usually exclusive to girls. He truly cares about gender equality and I wish everybody was the same. I want to live in a world where everyone has a fair chance to pursue their dreams”

She stares directly at Ravel, her cheeks are blushing as she continues with the answer.

“A-as for the ultimate happiness… It’s deep connections and meaningful relationships, right? Creating memories, building strong bonds… I wish we could go back to those days of my ultimate happiness.”

Her innocent gaze is uncomfortably piercing Ravel.

Damn it, Leanna, why do you have to do this? Ravel feels awkward as it is, trying to not look her in the eyes. However, what he sees next is something that he never thought would be possible.

Fantasia’s heartbeat increases, Ravel can feel her hot breath on his ear, even if they are not in the close proximity. She stares at him with teeth subconsciously gritted behind her sealed lips, waiting for his reaction.

The feeling Fantasia experienced could be described with one word only.

Jealousy.

CHAPTER 16: END