The moment she uttered those words, Selena's body stiffened.
The rare sight of Selena's cheeks dyed deep pink slightly stunned Eun-woo.
"Ah… I…"
As Selena couldn't hide her embarrassment, she mumbled upon her breath.
What the hell was she saying?
Eun-woo had no idea at all, so only her eyelids moved.
Then Selena bowed her head, feeling so embarrassed as if straightening her hair.
"T-the handkerchief I received from the Crown Prince last time…"
Eun-woo widened her eyes.
If she was talking about the handkerchief, then was it the same handkerchief she received at the banquet?
Eun-woo was surprised that Selena still kept the handkerchief.
But above all, she flagged the fact that the candidate who brought the Imperial Prince's belongings to the admission examination was right in front of her.
One was for the heir's watch and the other was for the Crown prince's handkerchief.
She felt new witnessing how the 1st and 2nd place were competing before her eyes.
Selena quickly added,
"Even the title of Notem Knight by Sir Ubera has an influence that cannot be ignored. I am sure Eleanor has a strong hold for that one."
However, Eun-woo's thoughts were already heading elsewhere.
She pondered as she recalled Tashian's necklace.
"The Duke's necklace must be the same..."
Selena nodded her head as if she was right.
"I heard that the last two doors' layouts are assigned in the order of how high their scores are in the evaluation test."
Eun-woo once again realized the importance of the evaluation process. She didn't know that the thing she put as her evaluation was that important.
Then, one of the priests of the church in white, who seemed to be one of the organizers of the convention, solemnly declared to them.
"Soon there will be an explanation of the room layout and the first gate tomorrow. All candidates must prepare."
Eun-woo watched the girls all at once, walking neatly, taking their seats at the table in the middle of the hall. She and Selena also exchanged glances, and then sat down together at the same table.
Soon before them, Irena appeared. She was surrounded by committee members who helped setting festivals with the same insensitive expression as before.
"As of today, the candidates will be staying here for about two weeks in the White Cathedral. From now on, I will tell you the rules of the church that you must follow."
Irena's sharp eyes flashed and met each of her candidates' eyes. No matter how much she emphasized, she asked, as if it was not enough.
"All the candidates will sleep and eat meals here. Even if you leave the White Cathedral after passing through the three gates, you must return before sunset. Clothes to wear during the competition and daily necessities are allowed to enter and exit only once by asking your family or relatives. However, no matter how much you miss your family, you can't visit after that."
She added in a cold voice.
"Remember, curfew is until sundown. If you do not return by that time, you will be disqualified from your candidacy at that moment. Also, no candidate will be admitted unless there is a personal problem or injury. You cannot leave the cathedral until the competition is over."
As soon as Irena finished speaking, the hall was filled with the shouts of girls.
Another priest behind Irena banged on the table, as if trying to silence those candidates.
"Quiet! We still have an explanation of the room layout and the first gate, so please listen.
Eun-woo tried not to frown on the stricter rules of the camp than expected.
The priest behind Irena followed her and started explaining. A long parchment was held in her hand.
At that moment, something caught Eun-woo's gaze. It was the back of Irena, who suddenly disappeared behind the back of a priest who stepped in front of her. As if her business had finished, she was then heading to somewhere that easy.
"…He is the one who oversees the White Cathedral. You probably have a lot of other things to do besides the competition."
Selena explained whether she felt Eun-woo's gaze towards Irena by her side.
Soon after, room allocation began.
The priest in white, who followed Irena and stood in front of the candidates, read aloud the parchment in his hand.
"The room allocation was decided in an extremely fair way, regardless of the candidate's status or rank. The lodgings will be numbered from 1 to 25, starting with the room in the hallway on the right."
Eun-woo was able to read the slight tension in the air between the candidates.
Room 1, which is closest to the hallway, seemed to be proof that it had the most advantageous position in the competition.
Then the priest opened his mouth.
"…In Room 1, Kalista Dofenski and Selena Wellwoods are staying together."
A weak resentment flowed from among the candidates.
Eun-woo could feel everyone's attention focused on Selena sitting next to her.
In a way, it was a natural result. One was the heir and the other was the candidate who submitted the items of the Crown Prince to the Immigration Examination. It was naturally common sense for them to give these two women Room 1.
After that, the names of the candidates in the following order were mentioned one after the other from the priest's mouth.
"Lucinda Julan… Rihanna Sobien… Cecilia Arnott… Jeffina Darlene… Evelyn Cayhorn…. "
However, it seldom happened that her name could be heard by Eun-woo, who stiffened nervously. She shakily touched her fingernails.
Next to her, Selena also pricked her ears, waiting for Eleanor Miller's name to be mentioned.
'Obviously, I expected that the coin of Karzxion, the knight of the Notem Knights, would rank quite well in the rankings...'
Why?
Eun-woo glanced around her with an anxious mind.
However, her name was not mentioned until the names of the 49 candidates were called, and the name of a young girl who, in the last order, had brought one of the best blacksmith's boots from her village was called.
Eun-woo finally lifted one of her hands with her bewildered expression.
The priest, who was holding her parchment in his hand, asked with a frown on his face.
"What's going on, candidate?"
"I… you didn't call my name."
The priest lifted the glasses he was wearing and looked into the parchment as if he couldn't.
"No way. All 50 candidates were called. What's the candidate's name?"
She looked at Selena in embarrassment. It seemed that she wasn't informed that she got the 51st place among all.
Then she said that another priest behind the priest whispered something to her in her arrogance. Before long, a light of understanding flashed in the priest's eyes.
"...Right. So ah…"
Eun-woo swallowed her dry saliva as she saw the priest's gaze submerging strangely as he looked at her.
All of a sudden, the eyes of all her candidates in her hall were focused on her.
"You are the candidate who brought the title of Notem Knight. Eleanor Miller?"
As soon as the priest's words fell, there was a loud commotion among the candidates.
Eun-woo swallowed his saliva and answered.
"Yes. I am Eleanor Miller."
The priest raised his glasses and coughed heavily.
"You were the reason there was a setback for a while. You'll be using Room 2 and Miss Evelyn will use the next room."
As soon as the priest finished speaking, the muffled noise grew louder.
The priest pounded his prize once more, as if unwilling to change anything.
"Quiet!"
Again, the surroundings quietly subsided.
Eun-woo looked around anxiously. She could feel the gazes filled with dissatisfaction were focused on her.
A girl named Evelyn was pushed to the third room, and then the candidate in the next room, one space after another, because she suddenly took up room number two.
Candidates began to gossip among themselves, expressing considerable dissatisfaction with the rankings that had been changed in the blink of an eye.
"… Don't worry too much. Everyone is sensitive, so it was an unavoidable result."
Selena muttered a little as if comforting her beside her.
"Now, we'll start explaining the first gate."
As soon as he finished allocating the room, the priest continued his speech without a moment to catch his breath.
Candidates, who had been making a lot of noise also began to shut their mouths one by one in order to listen to the priest.
As Selena said, unlike the second and third gates that faces the same ordeal every year, the attention of all candidates was focused on the content of the first gate, which always presented differently from the rest.
"All of the candidates will remember the question written on the paper that was given to them when they were running for candidacy this afternoon."
Eun-woo's eyes widened at the priest's words.
How can she remember it when she didn't even join in?
Selena noticed this and explained it slightly by her side.
"There was a small note attached to the paper along with the candidacy application."
"A note?"
"Yes. It was a question that asked me to name the person I would like to join in the ordeal."
Eun-woo frowned at the vague question.
"Are you the person you want to join in the ordeal?"
Selena replied with an ambiguous smile.
"I tried to interpret it as meaning to write down the name of the person you want help with when you go through the gate… but I don't know the exact meaning either."
At that time, the priest tapped the table again as a request for quietness.
The candidates who had been exchanging opinions head-to-head all turned to the priest standing in front of the hall.
The priest spread his arms on the podium and made a very solemn declaration.
"The first gate will be one of the traditional gates of the competition, 'bringing stuff'."
As soon as his words fell, several older candidates nodded their heads, exchanging glances as if they knew. It seems that there has been a similar gateway several times before.
However, Eun-woo soon found that the faces of the other candidates were dissatisfied with the priest's words.
A blonde candidate named Evelyn, one of the candidates who had been called earlier, raised her hand, and asked a question.
"But, it's no different from the 'treasure hunt' that will be the second gate! What is the meaning of the first gate?"
Eun-woo was somewhat embarrassed by her bold question.
However, some of the candidates were already stubbornly clasping their arms and nodding their heads in approval.
==
Translator's Note: And yes again, it took a lot of time for this release. Ehehe. Sorry. I hope you enjoyed! Thank you!