NovelFastChapter 694
Joshua was always quick on his feet—a fountain of ideas, really.
Rachel's eyes lit up. "Joshua, what are you thinking? Tell me!"
Joshua replied, "There's nothing | can do about the live competition itself. That's all on you. But when it comes to
the livestream, | can make your numbers look a whole lot better."
Rachel immediately understood what he meant. "Wait... you want to boost my stats?"
She felt a pang of discomfort. Sure, she'd seen numbers be "helped along" before -Haynes O'Brien and Jasper
Wilkinson had both poured money and resources into her career to drum up real fans for her when she was
starting out. But that had felt genuine; those were actual people, supporters who cared.
What Joshua was suggesting felt different. This was smoke and mirrors-an illusion of popularity. No one wants a
fake crowd. The thought of performing for an army of bots made Rachel uneasy.
Sensing her hesitation, Joshua added, "Look, | can put money into promoting your stream. That way, you'll have
a shot at attracting real fans yourself. But | can't guarantee you'll beat Stella."
Rachel fell silent.
The competition had already started. Even if she threw money at publicity, there was no guarantee she could
outdo Stella. Building a following the right way took time—and twas the one thing she didn't have. Joshua's
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtway was fast, almost dangerously so.
She made up her mind. "Alright. Let's do it your way."
Joshua asked, "Anything else you need?"
Rachel hesitated. “Joshua... is there any chance you could get to the judges?"
He chuckled softly. "Rachel, I'm not from Novaris, and this is Haynes's territory. That's out of my league. Maybe
you should ask Haynes himself? If anyone could pull it off, it's him."
Rachel fell quiet.
Absolutely not. She couldn't bring herself to ask Haynes for something like that. It would be like openly admitting
she needed to cheat to beat Stella. What would he think of her then?
Twas running out. Rachel ended the call without another word.
She stared at the TV screen, watching as Stella flashed a confident smile for the cameras. A shadow flickered in
Rachel's eyes.
Five minutes passed quickly.
The host was reluctant to let Stella go-she was the kind of contestant you didn't see every year: talented
brilliant, and charismatic. Of the ten finalists, six were returning from last year, and the host knew thei abilities
by heart. If those sfaces kept representing the country, it was easy to guess how the international rankings
would play out.
And this year, Antoney hadn't even entered. The scandal had left Novaris's reputation in tatters, and it had been
ages since a real up-and-comer had appeared.
Now there was Stella-gorgeous, gifted, practically born for the stage. In music, the eyes matter as much as the
ears.
As Stella exited, Rachel took the stage.
Her piece was a classic-"Longing for Liberty." Just as demanding as "Moonlight" or "Moonlight Bay," but with a
different spirit. Where Stella's performance radiated calm serenity, Rachel's was wild and bold a surge of
unrestrained passion.
Abby Murphy, watching from the audience, couldn't help but comment, "I'm surprised—Rachel's actually playing
it straight. | thought for sure she'd pull some
stunt.”
Antoney gave a cold, dismissive
smile. "This is the real deal. No one
here's going to indulge her. If she
messes up, Star wins by defaul ult. Sure, maybe the hcompetitions would give her another shot. But up
against international contenders? If she keeps screwing up, who's going to let her start over?"
He shook his head. "No matter how talented she is, no team wants someone who
can't keep it together."
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