The Queen's Back

"Barbara, were you the one who tipped off the entertainment reporters yesterday?" Brendan asked.

Despite asking a question, his tone was certain. He played with the walnut in his hand, and it rolled again and again in his hand.

Barbara thought she had been discreet when she contacted the reporters, but she didn't expect the man in front of her to call her out directly.

For a moment, she felt a bit conflicted.

'The man in front of me doesn't look like someone to be trifled with,' she thought.

Rather than hiding and being exposed in the end, she reckoned it was better to just admit it outright. "Yes," she said.

'If this man didn't have any evidence, he wouldn't have sent someone to the hotel to fetch me,' she thought. 'All I know is that he's the man in the bathroom yesterday. I don't know anything else.' "You admit it very quickly," Brendan said.

"Since you called me over, doesn't that mean you already know?" Barbara replied with a question as she looked at Brendan with her big, innocent eyes.

Brendan warned, "Just this once. Before you do anything next time, think about your identity."

He was only doing this out of consideration for the fact that Barbara was Mona's cousin.

Barbara was still in a daze as she was led out of the villa.

She thought she would have to come up with an excuse for herself again, but unexpectedly, she ended up leaving just like that.

She had to think carefully before she did anything next time.

Six days was neither long nor short. Time passed as Maxwell counted the days on his fingers.

Noretin Design Competition was held in a lecture hall in downtown Noretin, which could accommodate over ten thousand people.

Before it even started, the hall was filled with spectators one after another. They all wanted to see what this year's designs were like and which lucky person could get first place.

Scorching light illuminated the hall. Mona, wearing a mask, followed Leander backstage. Haley held a dress designed by Mona. It was tightly sealed in a dust bag.

Along the way, they met all kinds of people. It would not be an exaggeration to say that there was a sea of people here today.

Once they reached the backstage area, Mona, Haley, and Elara went straight to their designated area.

The three of them carefully removed the dust bag from the gown. They did it very gently, afraid of damaging the gown.

Many people came to participate in Noretin Design Competition this time. The top three from each city took part, and there were several hundred cities that sent contestants. Excluding some cities that did not participate, there were hundreds of groups in the first showcase alone. There were two more improvisation rounds to follow, making the process quite challenging.

Standing out among these people was not an easy task.

According to rumors Mona had heard, there seemed to be a direct mentee of Danielle participating in this competition at Noretin. Danielle was almost retired, but her reputation in the fashion industry continued to rise.

If it really was her direct mentee participating in the competition, that mentee's skills should not be underestimated.

Elara grumbled, "Mona, what should I do? I'm so nervous." This was the first time she had seen such a scene in her life.

Just looking at so many people made her scared.

Mona said in a light-hearted manner, "Don't be nervous. We just have to do our best. Besides, the gown is already prepared. Even if we don't get a ranking in the first round, with so many spectators, someone may like our gown. We can then sell it for a good price. When we go back, we can still have a nice meal." She thought, 'If I don't win this time, I'll come back next year. After all, I have plenty of time ahead of my life. I can accept failure.'

"Mona, even at this juncture, you can still smile. Well, I'm really more concerned about the outcome than a contestant." Hearing Mona say this made her racing heart calm down a bit.

While speaking, Mona's phone rang, and she guessed it was Maxwell.

She picked up her phone and glanced. As expected, Maxwell's name appeared on the screen. Mona answered with a smile.

"Hey, Maxwell, you've arrived, huh?" Mona asked.

"Yep. I'm at the entrance."

"Wait there then. I'll come to get you." As Mona spoke, she gestured for Elara and Haley to keep an eye on the gown. Then, she strode toward the entrance.

It had been six days since Mona last saw Maxwell. Even though she did not say it out loud, she missed him a lot.

After bypassing the sea of people, Mona immediately saw Maxwell standing at the entrance. As usual, he was dressed in a black suit, but today, he was holding a bouquet of beautiful roses.

It was somewhat at odds with his cold demeanor.

The moment he saw Mona, he

placed the bouquet of roses into her

arms and hugged her. He said aggrievedly, "If I keep counting the days on my fingers, I won't be able to hold on much longer. Mona, I missed you like crazy."

Mona inhaled the familiar scent of Maxwell and her heart completely calmed down. It was as if in this small space at the entrance, there were only the two of them tightly embracing each other with no one else around. "I missed you too," Mona said honestly.

For the past few nights, she instinctively leaned toward the edge of the bed when she slept. Previously, that spot was occupied by Maxwell. When she leaned there for the last few days, she wasn't leaning against Maxwell.

The two of them hugged for a while. Mona held the flowers in one hand and wrapped her other arm around Maxwell's waist. This posture was somewhat strange. "Could it be that you brought these flowers from Nathontown?" she asked.

"Yeah," Maxwell said. "Do you like them?"

It was Bernard who reminded Maxwell of the roses when he came here.

To see the person he loved the most, he had to bring a bouquet of flowers to express his love.

"I like them," Mona said. "Honey, you're so thoughtful."

With that said, she heard the announcement inside saying it was time to draw the contestant order. Elara also reminded her to go for the draw. Holding Maxwell's hand, she walked inside.

Maxwell's viewing spot had already been reserved in advance before he came. It was in the third row, which was the best viewing spot.

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After quickly calming Maxwell down, Mona walked toward the organizer. Upon entering her name on the computer, she pressed the space bar under the guidance of the staff. The system automatically generated the participating position.

Compared to the competition in Nathontown, Mona was lucky this time. She drew a good spot in the third group. Moreover, she was in the fifth position in the third group. It was in the middle, which was very advantageous. Mona looked at the number tag in her hand, and the corners of her mouth curled up involuntarily as she thought, 'I'm somewhat lucky this time around.'

When she returned, she happened to see Barbara, who was following Leander, chatting and laughing with him.

Of course, Barbara and Leander also saw Mona. Barbara immediately walked up to Mona and said, "Mona, you've already drawn your number. That was quick. Mr. Ford and I just went inside to look for you."

Mona thought, 'Isn't she implying that I cause them to worry, so much so that Mr. Ford has to come looking for me?'

"Mona, your participation order is not bad," Leander said. "Congratulations!" He did not care about Barbara's words. Instead, he was filled with hope that Mona would win the competition.