Chapter 145: Black and Gold – 16
Arriving at the Golden Carnivals lodging, Ella found herself assigned to Reynas former room.
The journey here felt familiar, only to realize their villa was right across the street.
Ella contemplated sending a pigeon to Wunderstein but decided against it.
She received the time he agreed to contact from Gascon.
She could converse with him in a little while; there was no need to show the locals wariness by sending pigeons flitting around.
She lay on the bed and activated Inspira.
It was a Spirit Link that allowed her to share the senses of her trained animals.
She sent Chick to explore every nook and cranny of the mansion.
While doing so, she overheard the members of the Golden Carnival gathering in the lounge, discussing.
Is the Ringmaster really in his right mind?
Hes certainly diligent in adhering to the sponsors demands.
Wasnt it a request to create a spectacle every month?
So why send Reyna away and bring in some unheard-of girl?
Its like selling a phoenix and buying a chicken.
Ella choked up.
She knew she wouldnt be welcomed here.
Still, speaking so disparagingly compared to Reyna was too much.
Fortunately, one of the members who came for the entrance exam today was there.
He defended her.
Dont take it out on the poor girl. She didnt come here just to be berated. Shes got skills. Comparable to Reynas, if not more.
What? Another one like Reyna?
If there hadnt been an accident last time, Reyna wouldve lost 13-12.
Haha, who wouldve thought such geniuses would come in pairs in one era.
But theres also Charlie. That makes three.
Listen. How she caught the flying ball
The member recounted Ellas performance at the school, leaving the others amazed.
Ella smiled inwardly, nodding her head.
Yes, thats more like it.
But as the conversation shifted to draft talk, the atmosphere turned grim again.
On this, Ella had no defense.
She also didnt expect Lord Fantastic to choose her over his daughter.
The members felt the same.
Hes at it again.
Why does he have to treat Reyna so badly?
Is it because of the obsession with being the best?
Its too much, no matter what.
Ella listened to their conversation, feeling relieved.
The members of the Golden Carnival were all famous people from before.
The person who teased her earlier about being a chicken was one of the acrobats she admired.
As a fan or as a junior in the industry, Ella genuinely wanted to become friends with them.
But she hesitated because she couldnt understand Lord Fantastics intentions.
However, from what they said, it seemed he didnt bring her here with any special intentions.
It seemed he had scolded his daughter like this several times before.
She was surprised to learn there was a shadow even on someone as perfect as her.
But she didnt feel sorry for her.
Her friends from school had it worse off.
Just being able to eat three meals a day was a blessing.
So, should I consider myself here for a two-week visit?
She said they had group practice tomorrow.
Thinking about observing the training of first-class acrobats, she involuntarily hummed a tune.
Getting up from bed, she explored Reynas room.
Despite being a mansion owned by a noble, the interior of the room wasnt much different from where she stayed.
There was a mat on the floor for practicing acrobatics, and there were light tools in the corner for stretching.
And by the bedside were books stuck in.
They were familiar covers.
Most of them were circus magazines.
Ella, who thought she was on the same circus side road, found something strange.
Dust sat white on the magazines stuck in the bookshelf.
It was the same until last months issue.
As soon as she received the books, she put them on the bookshelf and didnt touch them as if they were.
Even going through past issues, there were ones that werent even unwrapped.
Ella looked through the magazines.
There were places where she had read a few.
All those articles contained the same content.
It was an interview where Lord Fantastic mentioned his daughter.
Ella looked around the room again.
Now, she noticed a few things she hadnt seen before.
It was because they werent there that she didnt notice.
The owner of this room hadnt put up a poster of their favorite acrobat on the wall like Ella.
The owner of this room hadnt collected tickets from shows they had seen unlike Ella.
The owner of this room didnt have any circus-related souvenirs or toys unlike Ella.
Ella remembered the girl who, despite her warm approach, responded coldly.
She remembered her father sitting in the audience, only focusing on the difficult moves and not smiling even once.
She remembered what her fellow acrobats said about her father.
She just thought he was a boring lover obsessed with winning.
But now, the other persons face was starting to show.
He doesnt do it because he likes the circus.
But how could she have such excellent skills?
Ella felt jealousy welling up inside her.
She picked up the oldest book on the shelf.
It was the family album.
There was a young Reyna imitating acrobatics with awkward movements between her smiling father and mother.
I dont even know my dad or mom
Ella muttered softly, thinking of Reyna who would be with Wonderstein by now.
She should be grateful just to have a family.
She waited for the time to come to talk to her partner.
***
The next day, Reyna arrived at the training ground early in the morning.
Wonderstein looked at her in her workout clothes before sunrise.
Ella also got up early to practice from dawn, so it had become a habit for him too.
He didnt do morning practice in Luz, but he had no choice but to help with morning practice here because he would be scolded if he didnt.
Rainas eyes had traces of being washed away, although she tried to hide them.
Maybe she cried all night.
Wonderstein approached her from behind.
Would you like to do the usual training routine of Ella?
As she finished her warm-up exercises and looked at the training equipment set up in the yard, her body stopped for a moment.
Ella.
Her face stiffened at the mention of that name.
Even when she lost to Charlie, she didnt feel any emotions towards Charlie himself.
But Ella was different.
The wench who took her father away.
The girl who showed the behaviour of a circus maniac that she hated during the exam.
Todays morning training was board breaking.
Wonderstein threw prepared boards and instructed her on the movements.
As directed by him, she broke the boards with a punch, split them with a palm strike, and kicked them with two kicks.
The boards rotated and flew, and if you didnt attack at the right timing, you could get hurt by hitting the edge.
But she smashed the boards flawlessly with precise movements and speed.
Im competing with that girl right now. My father is watching.
She repeated this to herself, focusing her concentration.
Wonderstein smiled as he watched her effortlessly catch the thrown 2nd and 3rd boards, from various angles. She truly had the skills of a top-ranked individual. She easily replicated the training which Ella did.
After more than two hours had passed, the members came out to the yard for breakfast.
The members watched the two of them practicing.
Is that kid who is Assistant Director Maya Yangs peer?
Everyone nodded at Bendicts words.
That aside, shes quite a beauty.
Womon, you cant keep your mind straight when you see a pretty girl?
You were all giddy when Maya came by.
At first, you were following Ella around saying shes pretty.
The triplets lived for teasing the large, innocent 10-year-old boy regularly.
Womon looked at Maya standing beside him, unable to contain himself.
Ironically, Maya glanced at him once and showed no interest.
Watching Womons reddening face, Yurakne chuckled.
Then, Sven, who had been quiet, remarked.
Haha, come to think of it, dont they seem like an old family?
It was the moment the last board was thrown.
He said it without much thought.
The term old family distracted Reynas concentration.
She missed the timing to deflect the last board.
With a sound, the edge of the board hit her fist and fell away.
Leaving one board completely intact.
She shrugged and closed her eyes tightly.
It was a habit ingrained in her body over the past ten years.
Whenever she made a mistake, a chilling gaze would be directed at her.
Instead, cheers and applause followed.
Amazing! Look at all the board pieces scattered around!
Wow, impressive! I couldnt even break one coming at me!
I couldnt even smash the one holding still!
Wonderstein approached her with a smile.
Well done! Hoho, indeed, the name Golden Libra suits you perfectly.
It was only then that Reyna realized this place wasnt Golden Carnival.
This wasnt a real confrontation, and her father wasnt watching.
The moment she realized that fact, a sense of relief tingled and passed through her armpits.
She looked up at Wonderstein, who extended his hand towards her.
Instead of criticizing her final mistake, he praised her for doing well.
She must have practiced in an atmosphere like this. That girl.
But how could she possess such outstanding skills?
Reyna felt jealousy welling up within her.
She pushed Wondersteins hand away and stood up from her seat.
Last night, she came to realize something here.
The two men and women who walked arm in arm through the alley she had passed a few days ago.
Upon comparison, it was clear.
They were undoubtedly the man who was the leader here and the girl who had taken her place.
She had tried to downplay their harmony by asserting that her path was different from theirs.
If practice is over, lets have a meal together!
Weve prepared a welcome ceremony for the new member who joined us yesterday!
Haha, Ive never tasted it, but I recognize Yuraknes cooking skills!
Reyna looked at the meal set up on the garden table with the monster members.
The image of Ella enjoying herself with loved ones came to mind.
She turned her back towards the building.