TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: "Yes. The first concerned the removal of the photographs. The second concerned the order in which the contestants would appear."
The elderly gentleman looked at him.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Explain that."
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: "The original schedule placed the blue gown closer to the final section. The revised schedule moved it earlier, before several other presentations."
The woman in green looked surprised.
WOMAN IN GREEN: "Why would that matter?"
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: "The production team received instructions that the final section needed to be reserved for another featured presentation."
The elderly gentleman glanced toward the two contestants.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Was that instruction included in the original competition plan?"
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: "No, sir. It was added later."
The woman in black immediately stood up again.
WOMAN IN BLACK: "I think we should stop here."
The elderly gentleman turned toward her.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Why?"
WOMAN IN BLACK: "Because these records are being presented without context."
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Then this is the perfect opportunity to provide that context."
WOMAN IN BLACK: "I will explain everything privately."
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "If the issue concerns the fairness of a public competition, the explanation must be available to the people affected by it."
The woman in black looked around the ballroom.
Hundreds of people were watching.
The cameras were still recording.
The elderly gentleman returned his attention to the technical director.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Please continue."
The technical director hesitated for a moment before opening the final record.
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: "There is also a message attached to the second instruction."
The woman in green leaned forward.
WOMAN IN GREEN: "What does it say?"
The technical director looked toward the elderly gentleman.
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: "I believe you should read it yourself, sir."
He turned the laptop toward him.
The elderly gentleman began reading.
His expression changed almost immediately.
He looked at the woman in black.
Then he looked at the contestant in the blue gown.
Finally, he turned toward the woman in green.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "I think we have just discovered why the presentation was changed."
The woman in black shook her head.
WOMAN IN BLACK: "You are misunderstanding the situation."
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "I have not made any conclusions yet."
WOMAN IN BLACK: "Then don't make this worse."
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "I am not the one who submitted these instructions."
The audience began whispering again.
The technical director remained beside the laptop, waiting for permission to continue.
The elderly gentleman took a deep breath.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Please display the message on the main screen."
The woman in black immediately raised her voice.
WOMAN IN BLACK: "No. Absolutely not."
The elderly gentleman looked at her.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Why should the audience not be allowed to see an official record concerning the fairness of this competition?"
WOMAN IN BLACK: "Because it contains information that has not been verified."
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Then we will verify it."
He turned toward the technical director.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Display the original message, including the timestamp and authorization information."
The technical director moved his hand toward the keyboard.
The woman in black remained standing.
Her eyes were fixed on the screen.
The woman in green slowly moved away from her chair.
The two contestants looked at each other, neither knowing what to expect.
And just as the technical director was about to display the message, another person entered the ballroom.
It was a middle-aged woman carrying a document folder.
She walked quickly toward the stage, ignoring the curious looks from the audience.
The organizer recognized her immediately.
ORGANIZER: "Madam, we were not expecting you."
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN: "I know. But after hearing what happened, I thought it was important to come here personally."
The elderly gentleman turned toward her.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "You arrived at an interesting moment."
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN: "I understand. I also have something that may help clarify the situation."
The woman in black stared at the newcomer.
WOMAN IN BLACK: "Why are you here?"
The middle-aged woman did not answer immediately.
Instead, she placed her folder on the judges' table.
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN: "Because I was responsible for receiving the original submissions, and I kept copies of every instruction concerning the contestants."
The elderly gentleman looked at the folder.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "You have additional records?"
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN: "Yes. Including a communication that was never entered into the official production system."
The woman in green looked astonished.
WOMAN IN GREEN: "What communication?"
The middle-aged woman opened the folder.
She removed a printed page and placed it beside the laptop.
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN: "This is a copy of the message I received several days before the competition."
The elderly gentleman picked it up.
He read the first few lines.
Then he stopped.
His expression became noticeably more serious.
OLDER GENTLEMAN: "Where did this come from?"
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN: "It was sent directly to the coordination department. I was instructed to make certain changes to the presentation schedule."
WOMAN IN BLACK: "That document has nothing to do with what happened tonight."
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN: "I believe it has everything to do with it."
The woman in black took a step forward.
WOMAN IN BLACK: "You should be very careful about what you are saying."
MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN: "I have been careful. That is why I kept the original copy."
The elderly gentleman placed the document on the table.