novelraw Chapter 374 - 230: Zero’s Identity Discovered by Clement Winter [Part 2]
Chapter 374 - 230: Zero’s Identity Discovered by Clement Winter [Part 2]
Tomorrow’s filming, they absolutely can’t mess with the mechanical puppets!
Thanks to Nora Scott!
He managed to capture such a memorable video!
Ohhhh——
Next time, I must get Nora Scott’s contact information! Oh, and the other two friends too!
On the surface, Clement Winter looked a bit pleased, but inside, his heart was bursting with fireworks, shooting straight up and exploding, extremely happy.
Until, half an hour later——
A spirited Clement Winter, while rewatching the video, suddenly saw a wrist flash across the screen.
Just a brief one or two seconds, but it gave him a piercing sense of familiarity.
He tried several times, finally pausing on a specific frame, then took a screenshot, zooming in on the wrist to see that faint black string...
Hmm?
Hmm??
Hmm???
Zero, female, bracelet, twenty-four or five...
!!!
No way, right?
Clement Winter felt like he exploded on the spot.
*
The next day, the sky finally cleared up.
Nora Scott and Henry Chapman only participated in the small theater section of this episode, which was shot yesterday, so they had no other arrangements afterwards.
Katherine Collins and the others had to continue filming the "Greenhill Town Puppet Show" section. Even though they returned late, they rushed to various shooting locations early in the morning.
With nothing to do, Nora Scott and Henry Chapman agreed to tour Greenhill Town together. As a result, the next day, they both slept until late morning, only getting up around noon, and exchanged a quick call.
"It’s eleven o’clock."
Henry Chapman’s voice was a bit indifferent over the phone.
"Yeah."
"Where to?" Henry asked.
"At this time, Katherine and the others should be done with their shoot and heading to the puppet museum to prepare," Nora said, lounging in a wicker chair, lazily suggesting on the spot, "Why don’t we head over there to find her and have lunch together?"
"Why bring her along?"
Henry couldn’t quite grasp the reason for going out of their way.
Nora answered frankly, "Because she also wants to go to the restaurant we chose for lunch."
"..."
Henry was at a loss for words.
"See you downstairs in ten minutes?" Nora squinted her eyes, looking at the blue sky through the clear glass.
"Yeah."
Henry responded listlessly.
*
Ten minutes later.
The two sleep-deprived individuals met downstairs, confirmed each other’s identity with a glance, and hailed a taxi straight to the Trump Puppet Museum.
"Do you want to go in?"
Before getting off, Nora asked Henry.
From what she knew about Henry, having been to all the interesting spots, his curiosity had nowhere to go, and considering he had a bit of an unpleasant experience there, he probably wouldn’t want to enter the puppet museum again.
After a pause, Henry, still half-asleep under his hood, asked, "Is that annoying film crew still shooting?"
"They are."
Nora’s gaze landed on the bodyguard waiting outside the museum through the car window.
"I’m not going," Henry decided immediately.
Nora raised an eyebrow, understanding, and signaled the driver to wait at the entrance.
Happy to earn money by waiting, the driver let Nora leave with pleasure.
...
While still in the car, Nora contacted Katherine Collins, who said they were almost at the puppet museum and should arrive slightly earlier.
After getting out of the car, Nora didn’t enter the puppet museum directly and contacted Katherine first.
However, when she tried calling twice, Katherine didn’t answer either time.
Nora sensed something was off, hesitated slightly, and walked towards the entrance.
This time, though, the two security guards at the door didn’t stop her, she was blocked by Lucy Windsor hiding from the sun under the eaves.
"Why is it you again, addicted to riding others’ coattails?"
Lucy fanned herself, her cheeks slightly flushed, and when she saw Nora, she asked arrogantly.
Nora recognized her and couldn’t help finding it amusing.
Just yesterday she had eaten humble pie, bowing and apologizing, and now she doesn’t know how to restrain herself?
"Who are you?"
Nora shot her a glance, smirking coldly with a contemptuous look.
"You—"
Lucy was taken aback, and after a thought, it dawned on her.
Although within the crew, they all talked privately about how Nora likes to "ride coattails," and everyone knew and recognized Nora, but Nora didn’t know them.
"Who I am isn’t your concern," Lucy frowned, putting on a stern face, "if you’re planning to cozy up to a guest again, I suggest you think twice."
While speaking, she intentionally glanced around, looking suspiciously like she was guarding against Nora secretly arranging someone to take photos.
"..."
Not wanting to bicker further, Nora turned to the ticket booth.
Annoyed to the extreme at being ignored, Lucy reached out to grab Nora.
But before her hand could touch Nora’s clothing, her wrist was caught and sharply twisted outward, causing her to inhale sharply from the pain.
She opened her mouth to call for security, but before she could speak, her gaze met a pair of cold, sharp eyes.
Those eyes were, inexplicably, somewhat familiar.
Familiar to the point of suffocation.
Nora suddenly leaned in, moving slightly closer, looking her straight in the eyes, and spoke with threatening and cold emphasis, "Didn’t get enough of a lesson last night?"
"You..."
Realizing something, Lucy’s eyes widened in panic.
"Next time you see me, steer clear."
Leaving those chilling words, Nora let go of her wrist and headed to the ticket counter.
Lucy stood there dumbfounded, her face pale, the throbbing pain in her wrist unable to dispel her panic.
*
Without notifying anyone at the museum beforehand, Nora purchased a combo ticket for the exhibition and the show, and went straight in.
Once inside, she tried calling Katherine Collins again, but there was still no answer.
She wandered through the exhibits, searching for Katherine and the others, and within minutes found them in one of the galleries.
Most of those from Katherine’s crew were there, but no one was working. Instead, they stood by with equipment in hand, each looking distressed.
Also present in the gallery were a few of the puppet museum’s staff.
Katherine was in the middle of negotiating with them.
"Our puppet museum has a sudden issue and can’t rent the space for filming anymore. We’ll compensate you for the breach of contract, not a cent less."
The leading staff member spoke with a stern attitude, showing no leeway, "I’ve made myself very clear. If you insist on continuing your filming, we’ll have the right to throw you out."
His loud voice echoed through the gallery.
Even tourists began frequently glancing over.
Nora furrowed her brows.
She took a step inside, and suddenly, a glimpse from the corner of her eye caught something. She turned towards another entrance of the gallery and caught sight of Luna Durant’s assistant leaving.
Luna Durant...
Ugh.
Why does she keep making trouble for herself over and over?
Even bothering to counter her feels like a waste of time.
After a moment’s pause, Nora simply stopped at the entrance and called the old museum curator.
The curator still planned to ask her about the "Easter egg" of the mechanical puppets, but after she briefly explained the situation there, he became furious and didn’t even let her finish before hanging up with a hasty "I’ll look into it."
The old curator had quite a temper.
Putting her phone away, Nora stepped forward into the center of the crowd.
"There’s really no room for negotiation?"
Katherine exhaled, attempting a final negotiation.
The leading staff member frowned, leaving no room for compromise, bluntly asking them to leave, "I suggest you all leave early and not waste time here."
Katherine wasn’t furious, just slightly frustrated.
She could guess that the Trump Puppet Museum suddenly reneging wasn’t due to a simple "sudden issue," but because someone was stirring up trouble behind the scenes.
She could even guess who was behind it.
Luna Durant.
Here, she only had a falling out with Luna. Luna trying to get rid of José didn’t succeed in trapping them, so there must be other plans.
And in Greenhill Town, where Luna had some influence, it wouldn’t take much effort for her to make the Trump Puppet Museum renege on their agreement.
Clearly, this newly rising star was at odds with her...
"Leaving isn’t an option," suddenly a languid voice interrupted, the nonchalant tone carrying a hint of undeniable force, "this matter needs an explanation."