"And there's also Isabella Austin."

A pause hung in the air before Arianna George continued, "There's still no final verdict on Vivian Martin's case. So, her results in the finals won't be affected. Even if she is officially found guilty of plagiarism, the organizers don't have the authority to revoke her score, since the piece she played in the finals wasn't involved. At most, they could just ban Isabella Austin from competing again."

Emily Blair's eyes flickered with thought.

Given what she knew about Isabella Austin, Emily had a strong suspicion that Isabella's so-called original composition in the finals was likely borrowed from someone else—if not outright stolen, then perhaps purchased for a hefty price.

But she kept these thoughts to herself. After all, this was just speculation, and without any real evidence, voicing her suspicions would only give Isabella an opportunity to fight back.

Besides, the Vivian Martin situation was far from resolved. Emily wanted to focus all her energy there for now.

Still, the conversation gave her an idea. If she truly wanted to eliminate Isabella Austin as a threat once and for all, maybe she should start digging into the rest of Isabella's piano pieces.

Emily's face remained calm and composed as she replied softly, "I understand. We'll just stick to the Starlight Piano Competition's rules."

Arianna was about to nod in agreement when Emily's voice dropped to a more private tone.

"Ms. George... I just don't understand. Why are you helping me like this?"

Arianna was momentarily caught off guard. She looked down at the young woman in front of her-barely eighteen.

The first time she'd met Emily Blair was out in the countryside. At a glance, Emily had seemed like nothing more than a naive girl. Back then, Arianna hadn't thought much of her. As a judge for the Starlight Piano Competition—and many other contests besides she'd seen more than her fair share of contestants trying to bribe their way to better scores. She'd grown weary of it all, so when Emily had tracked down her rural address, Arianna assumed the worst: that Emily was just another competitor hoping to buy her favor.

But as time passed, that first impression began to change.

Emily was resilient, composed, and astonishingly gifted-her talent for the piano was nothing short of breathtaking.

But what stood out most were her eyes, clear and bright, the kind of eyes that seemed to see straight through you. Only someone truly pure and upright could have eyes like that.

Yet, none of those things were the real reason Arianna wanted to help Emily.

There was something else—a shadow that lingered around Emily, a heaviness that spoke of a quiet self-destructiveness, almost impossible to spot.

Once, Arianna had seen Emily standing in the midst of a bustling crowd, head bowed, lost in thought. A girl next to her, probably a classmate, had tried to engage her in conversation. Emily didn't smile, but her friend did, grinning so wide her eyes all but disappeared.

Emily just managed a slight twitch of her lips in response.

Soon after, the friend was called away by others, and Emily was left alone, swallowed by the crowd.

Nearby, a dark lake glimmered under the night sky. Emily walked to the water's edge and stood there silently, gazing down at her reflection.

Surrounded by noise and laughter, she looked utterly alone. Sparse moonlight washed over her, making her seem even more isolated.

She kept staring at the still, dark water. In that instant, Arianna was seized by a sudden dread-was Emily about to step in?

Her heart pounded in her chest as she instinctively moved closer.

Only when she saw Emily turn and walk away from the lake did Arianna finally breathe again.

She'd never been the meddling type. Other people's business was not her concern. So the urge to help Emily Blair had taken even her by surprise.

Even now, Arianna wasn't sure she understood exactly why she wanted to help this girl.