Chapter 349 - 347: The New Drama Wraps Up

Ethan was actually a little embarrassed, so he didn’t say anything more. He really didn’t know what else to say to Golden Blade and his crew besides "thanks."

So with a push of his foot, he rode away on his bike!

"Blade, I think he just thanked us..." said the skinny, dark-skinned boy called Monkey.

"I heard him." Golden Blade averted his gaze, his reaction just a beat too slow. "Caelum, you got a smoke?"

The other boy, Caelum, quickly fumbled in his pocket and pulled out a cheap pack of cigarettes.

Golden Blade pulled one out and lit it, then pulled his jacket tighter. "Let’s go."

When Ethan returned home, his eyes were immediately drawn to a luxury car parked in the open courtyard as soon as he entered the gate.

He quickly parked his bicycle and ran over, circling the car admiringly.

It was an orange Rolls-Royce Phantom. Cecilia Sterling had spotted it and ordered it on a whim last year when she was picking up her first car. She had just picked it up from the dealership today after leaving Aetherium.

The Phantom is a famous top-tier luxury sedan with an imposing look, the kind of car boys Ethan’s age absolutely adore. He ran his hands lovingly over the smooth car body, unable to stop. The cool touch of the metal sent a thrill through him.

So cool!

So badass!

"Like it?"

Cecilia Sterling, holding Yoda, had appeared at the villa’s entrance at some point. She watched from afar as her younger brother circled her new car, only speaking after a long moment.

Ethan turned around, his eyes lighting up when he saw his sister. "Sis, is this your car?"

"Just picked it up today!"

"It’s so cool! I love it!"

Cecilia walked over and gently draped an arm around her brother’s shoulders. "I’m not really into such flashy cars. I bought it on a whim for something new to drive occasionally. Once you get your license, you can drive it."

"For real, sis? I can drive it?" Ethan was so excited he was grinning from ear to ear.

"Of course you can. And this doesn’t count as the car I promised you for a college gift. I’m still buying that for you. But the models you showed me last time won’t do. They’re all too cheap!"

Over the New Year, her brother had carefully picked out a few car models for her consideration, but the most expensive one wasn’t even five hundred thousand. Naturally, Cecilia wasn’t impressed.

Upon hearing this, Ethan felt like he was walking on air.

Overcome with excitement, he swept his sister into his arms and spun her around. "Sis, I’ll be your loyal servant for life!"

"Alright, alright!" Cecilia yelped, startled. She quickly patted her brother’s shoulder, urging him to put her down. "Forget about being a servant. Just be a good little brother to me and your sister, and a good son to Mom. That’s enough."

"That’s a given!"

Just then, Jasmine Sterling walked out. She must have seen the siblings’ playful antics, as she was smiling. "Stop gawking at the car. Dinner’s ready!"

"Coming!" Cecilia called back, then turned to her brother and lowered her voice. "I’ve taken care of the Fulton family situation for the time being. You just focus on school. I don’t know if they’ll stir up more trouble later. But you did the right thing this time by keeping it from Mom and coming straight to me. If anything like this happens again, tell me right away."

Ethan nodded and then told Cecilia how Golden Blade had helped him get out of trouble.

*

「One week later.」

Lily Sterling’s film finally wrapped.

"Lily!"

At the entrance to the village, Sheila stopped Lily Sterling’s RV, clutching a bouquet of wildflowers she had picked from the mountains.

Lily stepped out of the RV and took the wildflowers from Sheila. The little girl’s eyes were red, and she choked back a sob. "Goodbye, Lily."

Lily was moved as well. She reached out to stroke Sheila’s hair and said, "Study hard, get into a good university, and become a doctor. Remember what you promised me."

Sheila nodded, stubbornly holding back her tears.

Partings were always sad, but Lily didn’t dwell on it. She turned and got back into the car, confident that she and Sheila would meet again someday.

Back in town, they had to stay for one more day at the hotel they had used before.

Yuna had just finished helping her pack when there was a knock at the door. It was Jade Smithson’s assistant.

Jade Smithson’s assistant was tall and fair-skinned, so much so that Yuna had to crane her neck to meet his eyes. Because Jade had constantly targeted Lily on set, Yuna didn’t have a good impression of anyone on her team.

"What is it?" Yuna asked coldly.

But after Jade Smithson’s reputation on set had collapsed overnight, the rest of her team had lost face as well. The male assistant looked a bit awkward as he handed something to Yuna. "It’s a wrap gift from Jade for Ms. Sterling."

Yuna glanced at the fairly exquisite gift bag and thought, ’What a nuisance.’

Still, out of basic courtesy, she took it. "Thanks."

With that said, she immediately shut the door.

When she returned to the room, Lily asked curiously, "Who was that?"

"A wrap gift from Jade Smithson. I have no idea what she’s up to. She waits until filming’s over to try and be friendly? Is she afraid word will get out about all the crap she pulled on set?"

Lily instantly lost interest when she heard the gift was from Jade Smithson, but on second thought, she added, "Well, it wasn’t all bad."

"Lily, you’re too kind. How can you say what she did wasn’t all bad?"

Lily smiled. "Well, at least Jean Donovan and Director Frank Fletcher got together because of it!"

Yuna pursed her lips. "I guess that’s true. So, do you want this? We could just throw it out. I feel like it’s bad juju just keeping it."

Lily thought for a moment. "Just leave it there for now. Check later if everyone else got one. If it was just for me, then you can return it."

She couldn’t bring herself to throw away someone’s gift, but she also couldn’t act friendly toward Jade Smithson anymore, so she wouldn’t accept a gift that was given only to her.

A short while later, Yuri Tucker arrived to say goodbye to Lily.

"You’re leaving now?" Lily asked, surprised. She instinctively glanced at the time—it was already six in the evening. "What’s the rush? Why not rest at the hotel for the night?"

Yuri Tucker didn’t look tired in the slightest. In fact, he seemed full of energy. "No time to rest. I just found a Red Eye Flight for close to midnight tonight. It’s super cheap!"

"Are you heading straight to Lorcain?"

Yuri Tucker nodded.

"Do you have everything planned? Where will you stay once you get there?"

"I’ll stay with a friend for now. He’s another aspiring actor I met when I was an extra at Starwood. He said I can crash at his place, so don’t worry."

Seeing that he had everything planned out, Lily felt relieved. "Alright, then. I’m heading back tomorrow as well. If you run into any trouble in Lorcain, feel free to contact me. I don’t know if I’ll be able to help, but two heads are better than one."

Yuri Tucker smiled at that. "Okay. Well, I’m off. See you!"