"Don't worry," he said. "I won't let some people who are ignorant affect my mood and state. I will get first place!"
His face was full of excitement when he said that. He could already see the trophy being in his hand and his fans excitedly cheering for him.
Alan didn't pay any attention to him and instead turned his head to look at Irina and Cecilia who were excited looking around the auditorium.
He smiled thinking that they were too excited about such a small contest. While the contest was indeed great and a good opportunity for new idols, it was not comparable to the truly great competition where millions of people would come to watch.
The size of the auditorium was also many times bigger than this one. Alan promised himself that he would make sure that they both get the chance to perform there. But first, they had to win this contest.
Mia looked relieved seeing Alan be not affected by what Xin and Manager Ciel had said.
"Okay, let's go in now and take a walk around. Mia leave that guy and come with me!"
Mia looked reluctant. Xin didn't let Mia refuse him and approached her.
He tried to forcefully grab her hand but before that, he was stopped by Alan.
"You! Let go of your hand!"
Xin yelled. He tried to fight back but Alan was much stronger and he couldn't break free from himself. This angered him further, but it was of no use. His strength was still not enough to free his hand from Alan.
Alan let go of his hand and he stumbled back.
"You! How dare you attack him?"
Manager Ciel angrily said.
"Old lady, if you want your star to sing in the contest, you better take care of him more carefully. Who knows what sort of people he would offend? Not everyone is as nice as me."
Alan said it casually.
"Old Lady?"
Manager Ciel was stunned by Alan's words. Although she was not pretty compared to the idols, she still believed that her appearance was better than most people's. However, she quickly stopped thinking about that and said,
"Do you know the consequences of attacking an idol?"
"Oie, Oie! Are you seriously blind? That guy tried to grab Mia's hand without her permission and I just stopped him. If it is someone who should bear the consequences, it is him."
Manager Ciel clenched her fists, her face red with anger. She was used to people respecting her as she was an idol manager. However, she calmed down as she knew that the situation was not looking good for her and Xin.
Even if she filed a complaint, Xin might need to face some backlash from some people and also the company. The video of Alan and Xin fighting had already caused quite a headache for now. She can't mess up before the contest.
Xin, who regained his composure, immediately approached Alan and angrily said, "I will break your face!"
Alan just chuckled. "You can try!"
Alan just stood waiting for Xin. Xin, who made a bold claim, just stood still. He knew that he would get beaten up as before. However, he couldn't just walk away as well because that would be shameful.
"Humph! Xin forgot it! Let's deal with this insolent brat after the contest. I will make sure that he and his family know what it means to fight people from the idol industry."
Manager Ciel threatened.
"Good luck with that. You'll need it."
Alan said as he didn't take their word seriously.
After finishing their conversation, Xin and Manager Ciel walked inside with sour expressions on their faces. After they went inside, Mia turned around and said, "Thank you!"
"No problem!"
Then Alan looked at Xin and asked, "Do you want to come with us?"
After thinking for a moment, Mia nodded and said, "Okay!"
Mia didn't think that being with Xin and his manager was any good. It was better to go with Alan who would rather protect her. Anyway, her company just asked her to feel the atmosphere, not to follow Xin.
Mia and Alan also went inside.
"What took you so long?"
A stern voice said to Alan. Alan looked at Irina's expression and it was completely different from what she had a couple of seconds ago.
She was frowning and kept staring at Mia.
"What are you doing with her? Don't tell me you have changed your crush."
Irina said while looking at Cecilia.
"SHEESH!"
Alan immediately put his hands on Irina's mouth and gestured to her to shut up. She was glaring at him. Alan slowly glanced at Cecilia who looked confused by their behavior.
*PHEW!
Alan was relieved that Cecilia didn't know that he liked her. He was still not ready to confess and it was not the best place to be found out. Luckily he was not found out.
"Hello, I'm Mia. It's a pleasure to meet you, Senior Cecilia."
Cecilia smiled warmly and shook Mia's hand. "Nice to meet you too, Mia."
Mia turned towards Irina and greeted her with a slight bow. "Senior Irina, it's been a while," she said.
"It certainly has, and you look even prettier now!" Irina responded with a smile. However, despite Irina's friendly words, Mia couldn't shake off the feeling that being with her didn't make her feel completely safe.
Anyway, she continued, " Congratulations on a successful debut! Senior Cecilia too! I watched the performance many times and was mesmerized every time."
Mia began to praise them, expressing her genuine admiration for their talent. It was not just a word to please them but what she truly felt.
Irina nodded in acknowledgment, then turned her attention to Alan. Her eyes asking for an explanation for them being together.
"Eh! Um...I just met her just now at the entrance. It appears that she is here to watch the contest too. Since we have the same purpose, I thought we could go together."
Alan replied.
Anyway, after that, Irina didn't say anything and the four of them went to check out the place. Irina, Cecilia and Mia pointed to some idols present there and explained about them. Among the four, it seems that Alan is the one with the least amount of knowledge of idols.
As they were walking around. He met other acquaintances, or maybe someone he had seen before.
Considering Alan had only recently joined the Idol world, there were not many people from the Idol industry that he knew except some from Dreamwave Entertainment. And indeed they were from Dreamwave Entertainment.
It was Composer Jules with Mina and Jun. They were talking to some people and Composer Jules had a big smile on his face.
Looking at the people surrounding them, one could see that they are more popular than many other idols. It also seems that many had come to Composer Jules to ask for a song.
"Haha… Composer Jules, your latest song was truly brilliant. I believe that your song will easily get the first position."
Hearing the other party flatter him, Composer Jules' arrogance was further increased.
"Haha… Manager Lin, you flatter me. The competition has not even begun! How could I dare claim first place without a result?"
Composer Jules replied. He tried to be humble but his expression which was full of arrogance gave it away.
"Composer Jules, this is the idol that I am managing right now!"
Manager Lin showed a young boy beside him.
"Hello, Composer Jules!"
The young man said respectfully to Jules. The man seemed extremely excited to get the chance to meet with Composer Jules.
He was a new idol but he wasn't very popular. Moreover, he was from a third-rated idol company, unlike Dreamwave Entertainment which is considered one of the best in Sunshine City.
"Haha… So he is the one. Is he participating in the contest?"
Composer Jules asked.
"No, he might get a chance next year. Today, he is just here to listen to music."
Manager Lin replied.
"Is that so. I might give him a song then!"
Composer Jules said.
Hearing this, Manager Lin and the young man were filled with excitement.
"Thank you!"
After that, he talked for a bit with the others. After all the conversation, he felt a little tired and wanted to leave.
He suddenly glanced out of his corner and noticed Irina and Cecilia. He tried to see whether he could see their manager but couldn't. All he saw was a boy and another girl that he didn't know. He didn't know that Alan was their manager and assumed it to be some middle-aged man or woman.
"I've got something to do. Please excuse me!"
No matter what, he decided to approach Irina and Cecilia and try to ask whether they would be willing to fire that manager. He believed that as long as he was the one to say, they would obey him. He was also willing to offer two songs as compensation.