Inside the carriage, everyone sat in silence. No one knew how to break the ice.
Ivy Shen, sitting off to the side, kept her head down as low as possible. She could still vaguely remember the contest from a day ago—the way the whole place erupted after a few seconds of stunned quiet. The roar that followed was like a pig being slaughtered!
She remembered that moment when everyone was frozen, not reacting, and then suddenly a wild shout shattered the silence and everyone's eardrums.
“Wow, lady, you’re amazing! You’re the best! Butterfly Rogue worships you! Love you, love you, I love you!” Looking up, she saw Butterfly Rogue perched in a tree, flailing his limbs in excitement, sunflower seeds spraying from his mouth with every shout. Ivy had no clue why this usually image-conscious guy was acting so weird.
“Whoa, this song is evil!”
“This is the wildest song I’ve ever heard!”
“Holy crap, this song actually has a melody?”
Yvonne Li, up on stage, was so moved by the song that she ran over, grabbed Ivy’s hand, and choked up, “Girl, it turns out we share the same tastes! Did you know, wax play and whipping are totally my favorite bedroom activities! I never thought you’d sing my heart’s desire out loud. Fate! It’s fate!”
In the middle of everyone’s madness and Yvonne’s excitement, Ivy somehow snagged first place—totally to her shock!
Caleb Miles, who lost, actually broke into a real, genuine smile for once. She remembered him grabbing her shoulders, doubled over with laughter, his voice shaking: “You... genius! Total genius!”
That day, Lark City went absolutely nuts. Every street and alley was buzzing about the contest.
And the winning song? Yvonne Li announced right then and there that it would become the official anthem for entering Lark City. If you couldn’t sing it, you weren’t getting in!
That rule made Ivy, who already wanted to crawl into a hole from embarrassment, wish she could just disappear.
Ivy had no idea why her song made Yvonne Li so happy. The City Mistress was so delighted, she immediately released the chained man and even sent him exactly where Ivy requested—all because, as she put it, they were ‘fellow travelers.’
Shaking her head, Ivy snapped out of her thoughts and looked down at the bracelet in her hand. All those embarrassing memories faded away—he really did keep his promise and gave her the bracelet.
“I really thought you worked so hard because you liked that guy. Turns out it was just for this bracelet? I don’t see what’s so special about it—it’s not even as nice as my maid’s jewelry!” For the past two days, Clara Night had clearly felt Adrian Night treating Ivy a bit differently, and she was not happy about it.
Hearing this, Ivy smiled at Clara Night and said, “It’s more important than anyone.” With that, she fell silent.
Her words made Adrian Night and Lucian Vane, sitting in the carriage, both a little uncomfortable. The bracelet looked totally ordinary—why did she treasure it so much? Or maybe, what she really cared about wasn’t the bracelet, but the man who wore it?!
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