Chapter 166


    Xanthea immediately pulled out her phone and dialed Oliver’s number.


    “Hello? Xan, about the shoot today with Director Smith, he-”


    “Uncle!” Xanthea cut him off with an urgent voice. “Was the rights to ‘Realm of Illusions‘ transferred to


    you by Orion for free?”


    Oliver paused for a few seconds before slowly responding. “You found it out?”


    Xanthea’s pupils constricted momentarily.


    It was true, then. The contract was real.


    “Why, Uncle?”


    “Xan, I told you the other day; Mr. Lockwood really appreciated your performance. The mishap during


    the audition was just a misunderstanding, but you were too upset to listen or forgive him. So Mr.


    Lockwood proposed using the guise of a ‘high–value transfer to give ‘Realm of Illusions‘ back to you,


    and I agreed.


    Don’t be mad at me for deceiving you, sweetie. I knew that deep down you still wanted that script. And


    honestly, if Mr. Lockwood had just handed ‘Realm of Illusions‘ over to you right then, would you have


    epted it?


    No, she wouldn’t have.


    She had been too blinded by anger. If one second he had told her she was out, and the next he tried to


    hand her ‘Realm of Illusions‘, she would have thought it was another trick.Belongs to ? n0velDrama.Org.


    “So, you see Mr. Lockwood actually understands you quite well, even better than I do, and I think he’s


    been good to you, especially since that time on The Masked Singer. Maybe it’s because you helped


    him out during the Gemstone G.


    Anyway, now that the misunderstanding is cleared up, I feel a weight has been lifted off my shoulders


    otherwise I’d always feel indebted to him.”


    Oliver rambled on, but Xanthea couldn’t focus on his words; she fixed her gaze on Cedric with


    confusion, “If he intended to give me the script from the beginning, why did he eliminate me at the


    audition?”


    “Ms. Nightshade, did you forget what happened that day?”


    “During the final part of your obstacle course performance, your motorcycle suddenly malfunctioned


    and veered off the track, crashing into a barrier and causing an explosion. It was such amotion


    that everyone thought you were gone, that you had died.” His voice grew intense, “Only Mr. Lockwood


    didn’t think twice before running into the mes, but when he got there, all he saw was ashes, not even


    a trace of you, Ms. Nightshade.”


    At that moment.


    “His world copsed.”


    “I’ve never seen such an expression on his face.”


    After he finished, Xanthea’s mind quickly shed back to the day she surfaced from the water, and saw


    Orion at the shore.


    He stood by thekeside, staring at the burnt–out motorcycle at the end of the track; his eyes remained


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    Chapter 166


    vold and lifeless, until he heard the sound of water and turned to see her.


    When he saw her, he smiled the way he did beside her gravestone in the cemetery, which was so


    unreal and desperate. He plunged into theke and held her so tightly that she almost couldn’t breathe;


    he cried out “Xan” instead of the usual distant “Ms. Nightshade.”


    “The president was terrified, Xan. ‘Realm of Illusions‘ contains many dangerous scenes and stunts. He


    feared that you’d encounter another ident like during the audition, which is why he had to eliminate


    you. But seeing you upset afterwards, he still went out of his way to ensure the script reached you, and


    he even arranged for the top stunt and safety coordinators in the industry for your production.”