"But if he refuses, Leo is today's champion. How does that sound?"

No one in the audience voiced any objections, seemingly agreeing that this was the best solution.

Caleb had battled his way to this point for one reason: to win the prize money so his mother wouldn't have to work so hard.

He didn't care about the title itself, but losing it meant he wouldn't get the millions of dollars.

He clenched his small hands, lifted the microphone, and said, "I can take off the mask for the tech team to inspect, but I don't want to show my face."

The judges figured he must have a scar on his face and didn't want to make things difficult for him. They nodded and said, "That shouldn't be a..."

Wesley and Jade were a bit anxious, but she quickly caught the main point: Why was this Caleb refusing to show his face?

He must be incredibly ugly, or perhaps he had a massive birthmark or scar he wanted to hide.

The dark malice in her heart expanded. With a sharp glint in her eyes, she immediately interrupted the judges.

"Little boy, if you refuse to show your face, you can't win the championship, because all contestants receiving an award on stage must reveal their faces." This story is hosted at novel‌ceo.com.

Caleb's gaze turned slightly cold, feeling this woman was being far too aggressive. He retorted.

"The competition has no such rule requiring contestants to show their faces to receive an award."

If that rule had existed, he wouldn't have entered in the first place.

Yara suppressed her anger, realizing this woman was clearly picking a fight.

"My Caleb is right. The competition has no such rule. You can't force unreasonable demands on people."

Jade smirked. "There wasn't one, but... one is being temporarily added right now."

As soon as she said this, all the judges looked at her in surprise.

How could she add a rule on the spot?

However, seeing that she was Mr. York's secretary, they assumed she was conveying his wishes.

For a moment, no one raised any objections.

Jade's gentle tone hid her targeted malice. "Little Caleb, it's not that I want to make things difficult for you. But you're about to win the championship and still refuse to show your face. Isn't that utterly disrespectful to this competition?"

Members of her family in the audience immediately echoed her sentiments. New chapters come out on novelceo . com first.

"Exactly! Earlier, when you refused to take off the mask, the other contestants and judges didn't give you a hard time. They didn't force you to cooperate. But now, you're refusing to even show your true face when receiving the award. You're clearly disrespecting the competition and your fellow contestants."

People whispered among themselves, feeling the argument made sense.

Jade looked at the man beside her, her eyes full of expectation, her voice delicate.

"Miles, Leo feels it's unfair too. Why was he required to show his face, while this boy gets to stay completely hidden?"

"I believe everyone who enters a competition wants to win, but it's also about the experience and making valuable memories. Since it's a fair competition, the most basic requirement is respecting the event and the participants. Hiding your face is essentially dismissing the entire competition and disrespecting everyone else."

Macy also thought she made perfect sense and voiced her agreement.

"Jade is right. Since he disrespects the event so much that he won't even take off his mask for the award, there's no need to let him win."

Miles remained silent.