It is included!
While I encourage participants to make retro pulp covers, this is not a requirement and I don't want participants to feel they must sacrifice a full page of content for it. I made a bunch as a way to communicate the vibe of what people will be writing, because they make for good marketing materials, and because it was fun.
If you would like to make one but want to avoid it cutting into your page count, several participants have put the cover on their projects itch page but not included it in the PDF. Just be aware that when doing this the cover will not be considered part of the project in terms of judging since it isn't part of the 4 page PDF.