LOGINThe ladies were still talking as they emerged from the dressing room.Charlie had been waiting outside for a while and was caught off guard when both Tanya and Quinn glided outside in their traditional Oskian dresses.It went without saying for Quinn, who was an heiress born in Eastcliff and educated in arts and culture since a child. Her mannerisms were virtually the image of a noble maiden from olden times.As she strode toward the door, her gown seemed to flutter like a field of reeds against the wind. There was a soft chime as sculpted water droplets collided against each other on her hairpin, and she looked like she had walked straight out of an old painting, leaving Charlie stunned.With Tanya's blonde hair and blue eyes, Charlie had thought it would look strange for her to dress in a traditional Oskian dress. However, with her natural curls permed straight by her stylist, coupled with her Oskian headdress, most of the strangeness was gone, and there was even a fusion of bo
As Assassin was Quinn's last song, Charlie didn't enter the dressing room right away.Staying below the stage, he watched as the two ladies planned their exchange as they took the stage. Then, when the song was over, Quinn asked him, "Should we get changed together, Charlie? It's a costume check, and they've already planned a costume for you as well."Charlie nodded and followed them backstage, while Tanya's stage manager came up to them and said, "While Ms. Golding and Mr. Wade are going to change, there won't be anyone on stage. Just leaving the stage empty is naturally going to kill the hype, so the plan is to edit a behind-the-scenes video for five minutes to show how this performance was prepared."Tanya nodded. "Since the whole rehearsal was being filmed the whole time, right?""Yes," the stage manager nodded. "There are about six cameras that are kept on the whole time, so we just need to edit a portion."Tanya then turned to Quinn, "You should send a couple of photographer
Seeing that Tanya was absolutely flustered, Quinn giggled, "Oh, don't worry about it. There are plenty of other girls who like Charlie. It would be weird if the girls who have met him didn't like him, considering how perfect he is."Seeing that no one else was there, especially Charlie, Tanya mustered her courage and said, "I like him, but I think it's not exactly as you imagine. Other girls might be hoping to get together with him, but I wouldn't dare…""Why?" Quinn asked, curious.It was the first time Tanya had had a heart-to-heart with anyone, and so, she decided not to hide anything. "I've been involved in some complicated relationships over the years, and there has been plenty of coverage on that… Moreover, there was some dirty laundry that I had, which was soon exposed after I met Mr. Wade. Even though I didn't know better back then, I'm sure that someone like me isn't exactly that desirable in a relationship, so I wouldn't dare yearn for Mr. Wade to be interested."Quinn
The next day was the last of Tanya's Eastcliff concerts.The crew worked at full speed the whole day for final preparations, and as the protagonist, Tanya had the most responsibilities.She would be working with her crew to run through the full course of the schedule until it was muscle memory, making sure everything went on with precision and zero mistakes.Quinn had her work cut out for her, too—she was brought in at the last minute and had to liaise with Tanya's crew.She brought her own crew, too, as they had been with her when she performed Assassin before and had a plan for the backdrop and lighting tailored to the song, so they would be borrowing Tanya's equipment to replicate it.Moreover, the exchanges as they took the stage, including greetings, introductions, and call-outs to the fans, were also planned.They had just met, but the performance today and the other three after meant they had to look friendly, if not close, which would improve the vibe while on stage.In
Charlie scratched his head in embarrassment. "I know the theme of your song. It's great and touching, but if you sing together, I'd be dancing with one person and then the other… It's like the Assassin had two wives, said goodbye before going to slay the tyrant, and came back to his wives… The whole tone would have changed!"Quinn smiled, nonchalant. "We are talking about olden times—polygamy was a thing back in the day. Would it be strange that a successful assassin who was a hero to his nation did not have two wives? Plenty of martial arts tales protagonists have plenty of wives, too."Charlie sighed in exasperation. "Gosh… That doesn't sound right, but it somehow makes sense…"Tanya giggled as well. "The same also applies to Western civilization in olden times."Then, she asked Quinn excitedly, "Does that mean I should wear an Oskian dress, too?"Quinn smiled and nodded. "That would be perfect, and nothing would look out of place that way aside from your foreign appearance."T
Charlie was surprised that both Tanya and Quinn would share him equally, and he was still not sure about his own choreography on top of that.Nonetheless, the stage was quickly prepared for their performance.Tanya had the sound engineer play Assassin on a more controlled volume as they adjusted their positions and the stage designs. They were also using a stage monitor, as Tanya's fans could be way too enthusiastic—the entire venue had been surrounded by fans over the two days that the stage set was being built. Thankfully, security has maintained a perimeter, keeping them out around a hundred feet.If they heard Quinn's song, they would quickly catch on that Quinn would come on as a guest, blowing the surprise and exposing the fact that Quinn was already back in Eastcliff.After all, everyone had agreed to keep Quinn's guest appearance a surprise and not leak anything beforehand so that she could announce it herself by appearing on stage.While Quinn wasn't as famous as Tanya,
Harrison had yet to return when Julien returned to the banquet hall.It was only when he took his seat that Harrison showed up, his half-pill tucked safely away, but his expression somehow miserable and delighted all at once.Julien's eyes remained fixed on his old man's face to see if he had reju
Yolden then asked, "By the way, there's something I'd like your opinion for.""Do tell," Charlie replied politely."Autumn and I know who you really are," Yolden said. "But that's not the case for Matilda or Paul… Well, Paul's smart, so even if he had no idea who you are specifically, he'd still h
Tarlon nodded. "How do you suggest we find them?"Fleur scowled. "There's no rush. There are things which I'm still confused about, so just keep a close eye on the Ackers and the Wades for the time being. Report to me right away if anything important comes up—don't afford our enemies any opportunit
Jacob's face lit up at Don Albert's words as Charlie spoke over the phone, "It's no big deal—it's about my father-in-law. I'm sure you're aware of his dismissal from the Calligraphy and Painting Association?"Reading between the lines, Albert said, "Yes, I've heard—it seems that Mr. Wilson resigned







