[City of Misty Haze, Unknown Coffee Shop]
The warm afternoon sun broke through the clouds and the thin mist on the street, shining down on the man and woman sitting under the outdoor awning.
The lattes in their coffee cups were still steaming, and the beautiful latte art floated on the surface.
"After that, you should proceed with your original mission." Tendo said casually while stirring his coffee.
"..."
Hearing Tendo's words, Huan Qianying was slow to react.
She had expected her encounter with Tendo to involve a tense negotiation, or even a forcible intervention from him. Yet, he was letting her go so easily?
"Why?"
Without any pretense or calculation, Huan Qianying chose the simplest and most direct way to ask Tendo the doubt in her heart.
"Because... I think it will be very interesting."
A very standard, Tendo-esque answer.
Faced with this response, Huan Qianying was momentarily unsure whether to call him too arrogant or too confident. But strangely, she didn't have much of a reaction to it.
Because Tendo had the right to be.
"However, if your side plans to make a move, you need to inform me in advance. That way, I can arrange the stage and prepare some suitable actors to enter."
"..."
"Understood."
Huan Qianying gave a wry smile, then nodded, signaling that she would follow his instructions.
She knew very well that Tendo wasn't offering her a choice; he was simply telling her what to do. It allowed for no rebuttal, no refusal, and certainly no questioning.
However, Huan Qianying wasn't too resistant to it. After all, her original mission was to help the 'Frost Tone Family—Star Frost Faction' scout the concert's personnel arrangements and security. Her job was simply to provide the 'Star Frost Faction' with useful intelligence at the appropriate time.
Besides, playing both sides was something the Moon Shadow family members were quite accustomed to. Therefore, Huan Qianying didn't feel too burdened by her 'betrayal'.
After explaining what he needed to say, Tendo stood up directly.
"Well, the City of Misty Haze is going to be lively later. I have things to do, so I won't be staying here for afternoon tea with you."
With that, Tendo's figure vanished from in front of Huan Qianying in a light breeze, leaving behind only that airy remark.
After Tendo left, Huan Qianying seemed to lose all her strength and suddenly slumped back into her chair.
She looked down with a bitter smile at her right hand, which was still slightly trembling under the table. Before today, she had believed she was fully capable of standing on her own and had surpassed many people she once thought unconquerable.
But when Tendo truly appeared before her, she realized that some 'courage' could only live in past memories.
The deepest fear in her heart and her body's instinctive dread made her acutely aware of her own 'weakness' and that guy's overwhelming power.
She could see no possible weakness in him, nor any chance of ever surpassing him. He was a perfect individual from every conceivable angle.
"Huan Qianying, you claimed you were going to become the Moon Shadow Family's strongest assassin. Look at how pathetic you are right now."
Despite her self-admonishment, she quickly found a measure of relief. After all, she wasn't the only one who feared Tendo.
Even 'Ye Shenlin', the emotionless girl she looked up to and who the Moon Shadow Family designated as their future successor, used to go out of her way to avoid Tendo back at the base.
For that stoic girl to make such a move was enough to show that, deep down, she subconsciously knew that encountering Tendo meant trouble and had to be avoided at all costs.
If even she was like that, wasn't it normal for her to feel fear?
Thinking this, Huan Qianying stopped stressing, got up, and walked into the coffee shop to pay the bill.
After all, that guy Tendo left without paying!
Seeing Huan Qianying approach the counter alone, the server curiously asked, "Where did your friend go? I just saw him here, and now he's gone?"
Huan Qianying looked through the glass at the untouched coffee and dessert left on the table, giving a dismissive answer.
"Him? He... had an emergency and had to leave early."
"Oh, I see," the waitress said with a hint of regret, then processed Huan Qianying's payment.
Watching Huan Qianying's retreating figure on the special episode screen, the bullet comments on Station 13( China forum) went into full roast mode.
'Mister Riddle, please leave! What the heck are the two of you talking about?!'
'Tendo-Caroline shippers say: Whatever you two talked about, we just care about where Meow Meow is!'
'Tendo-Xing shippers are crying: Hurry, hurry, hurry! Can Xingxing turn up the heat and cook the rice already?!'
'I suggest renaming this special episode to: Stars: Nobody Can Just Talk Normally'
Amidst the audience's complaints, the special episode's scene switched.
This time, the view that greeted everyone was the central building and stage of the special episode: Liuli's New Year's Eve concert venue, the Sea Concert Hall—Aria of the Aurora.
Contrary to what the dimension viewers initially thought, the venue for Liuli's concert was not the existing concert hall in the City of Misty Haze.
Instead, it was a mobile structure, similar to a giant cruise ship, custom-built by the 'Frost Tone Family' and named the 'Aria of the Aurora.'
From a distance, the Aria of the Aurora resembled a colossal, beautiful 'music box.'
Unlike the typical modern construction of standard concert halls, which primarily use cement and steel, the 'Aria of the Aurora' was entirely constructed from translucent eternal ice crystals. Its deep blue walls refracted dreamy, aurora-like colors in the sunlight.
The word 'Aurora' came from this very effect.
Additionally, the bottom of the Aria of the Aurora was supported by twelve anti-gravity sound pillars, allowing the entire structure to float on the sea and gently rise and fall with the tides.
The exterior was encircled by a powerful 'Frost Echo Barrier.' Any unauthorized vessel that approached within a certain distance would be frozen into an ice sculpture.
Therefore, the 'Aria of the Aurora' was less a concert hall and more a mobile sea fortress.
Under normal circumstances, even with Jing Liuli's exceptional talent, she wouldn't possess such a massive fortress. The reason the Frost Tone Family, or rather the 'Frost Tone Faction' behind Jing Liuli, was willing to use the 'Aria of the Aurora' as the venue for her New Year's Eve concert was largely for advertising.
It was a way to showcase their latest research and development to the world.
Thus, this New Year's Eve concert was not only a crucial promotion ritual for Jing Liuli herself but also a product launch event for the 'Frost Tone Faction.'
The importance of such an event naturally goes without saying; it absolutely could not be allowed to be disrupted by outsiders.
As the special episode's camera zoomed in, the scene... switched to the interior of the Aria of the Aurora, inside Jing Liuli's private room.
-----------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------
I handpick only the finest and most captivating novels for you. Don't forget to check out my other novels!
p@treon HongMengZi