The private box provided isolation, so it wasn't noisy, and the two chatted back and forth.
Soon, it was time for Astra Yao's concert to begin.
The white lily-of-the-valley-shaped headpiece was daring in size, but it was perfectly complemented by the dark red evening gown she wore.
The white hem and cuffs softened the intense heat of the dark red, adding a touch of gentleness and restraint through the stark color contrast.
Beneath the short-skirted dress, a pair of fair white legs extended from the cheongsam-like hem, looking perfect and slender in her high heels.
The perfect styling made Astra Yao as radiant as a blooming flower.
The thunderous cheers seemed to pierce through the open-air venue and soar into the clouds. Andrew felt that Belle's cheers coming from the other end of the phone were about to shatter the speaker.
When Astra Yao noticed Andrew watching her intently from the prime viewing spot he had prepared, she couldn't help but smile.
Then, she raised a hand and gave Andrew a wink before saying:
"Tonight, you have to watch me closely, okay?~"
Seeing Andrew nod seriously, Astra Yao's smile unconsciously widened.
At the same time, the fans in her direction, thinking she was interacting with them, erupted in another fierce cheer in response.
Watching Astra Yao on stage, naturally waving and greeting the crowd in all directions, Andrew had to admit.
Astra Yao under the spotlight, compared to the one he saw at home, now exuded an unprecedented charm.
Buoyed by her confidence, she was so dazzling.
It made one unwilling to look away for even a second.
Light music began to play. Accompanied by the resonance of Ether energy and her singing, all the performers were lifted into the sky on platforms.
And supported by the performers in the air, Astra Yao was like an elf from a manga appearing in reality.
Her voice led all the fans present, making everyone unconsciously immerse themselves in the world of music under her guidance.
A Dreamy Journey Through Paradise.
He heard this was a song from Astra Yao's album Paradise, released before she joined DGA Entertainment.
To be honest, Andrew was starting to understand the heartache Wise had felt back then.
It was truly a shame that the first edition of such good music was shattered by an accident.
Fortunately, there was Elfy.
Speaking of which, Andrew suddenly remembered the record still lying in his storage pouch. He had promised to get Astra Yao's autograph on it.
So much had happened in these two short days that he had completely forgotten about it.
Good thing Wise went fishing, otherwise if he asked, Andrew wouldn't have been able to bluff his way through.
After all, Wise was his brother-in-law, more or less. Messing up the very first thing he asked for was a bit too reckless.
Dazzling fireworks exploded in the sky, forming brilliant patterns. Star-like decorations sparkled around her, as if Astra Yao was dancing with the stars.
As the last note of the music faded, the fans present seemed to awaken, breaking free from the world of music to gaze intoxicated at Astra Yao standing on the largest platform.
They let out hoarse screams.
"Astra, I love you!!"
"Astra, I want to be your dog!!!"
With his powerful hearing, Andrew heard all sorts of bizarre cheers and shouts from the surrounding fans.
And what he couldn't handle the most was...
The shout about wanting to be her dog even came from someone in another private box next to his.
And their voice was louder than anyone else's.
Are all fans this bizarre?
In the venue, the concert was still going on.
Meanwhile, in the outermost region of New Eridu, a young police officer named Tolun was staring boredly at a uniquely shaped giant cactus in front of him.
The sun, already on the horizon, dyed the entire ground and sky a layer of orange-red. The air, mixed with yellow sand, gave off a dry, dusty smell after a full day under the sun.
Although desolate, this land had a unique charm under the setting sun.
But Tolun was in no mood to appreciate the beautiful scenery.
"Damn it! This patrol route is too far from the concert! And is it really necessary to patrol a place out in the middle of nowhere?!"
Unable to resist, he reached out and plucked a thorn from a cactus on the roadside. Tolun, a new police officer, grumbled with some frustration.
He had managed to snag a front-row ticket, and to get those two days off, he had even worked overtime for a whole week. He had all his merchandise for autographs and his concert outfit ready.
But just when everything was perfectly prepared, the unexpected happened.
Public Security's Officer Bringer suddenly issued a new order for all personnel to return to duty, citing a very serious incident that occurred yesterday evening—a terrorist attack involving a large amount of Corruption poison being released in the city.
Although it ultimately caused no casualties, it caught the attention of the higher-ups, who immediately demanded all leave be canceled to reinforce New Eridu's patrol forces.
Then, even Tolun's last hope—getting assigned to the patrol route at the concert venue—unsurprisingly...
went sideways.
Otherwise, he wouldn't be here keeping company with a cactus.
So the final result was...
His vacation, his concert-chasing plan, completely turned to dust within just half an hour of the notice.
After all, chasing stars couldn't be a reason for leave during a special period, and as a police officer, he wouldn't allow himself to do so.
At a time like this, a police officer can't just desert!
But he still couldn't understand.
"Seriously, what's the point of assigning someone to patrol a place where there's not even a single person?"
Although all the police officers knew that an extremely unusual monster had recently appeared near New Eridu.
But Tolun still didn't quite believe it was true.
A monster that can appear outside the Hollows, is this some story made up for a movie?
He would rather believe it was to prevent terrorists from sneaking in to launch an attack.
After all, what happened yesterday was solid proof.
But in any case, he still had to eat.
To avoid wasting three months of scrimping and saving, the best way was to sell the ticket to recoup his losses.
It was just a pity about that first-row seat he had been so lucky to get.
The warm concert ticket was forced to turn into cold Dennies.
The sum from three months of scrimping and saving instantly transformed into an amount that would take two and a half years to save up. When he held the heavy Dennies in his hand, he suddenly felt his heart warm up again.
Bored, he plucked a thorn from the cactus and couldn't help but count the digits on his bank card for the first time, to console his empty heart from missing the concert.
There wasn't a single hair on the empty road, not even a desire to lift his eyes for a look.
But after he had been repeating the cycle of plucking a thorn and counting for a while, an unexpected accident occurred.
Under his feet, the originally solid ground rapidly bulged, and Tolun felt the ground beneath him begin to vibrate rapidly.
Caught completely off guard, the constantly cracking earth made it difficult for him to stay steady.
Fortunately, his decent skills from police training allowed him to maintain his balance and not fall completely, but the constantly splitting ground made it clear this place was not safe to stay.
He lunged forward, jumping out of the cracking area. When he got back up, he found that the ground seemed to be rising with the cactus he had been plucking thorns from at its center.
"What the hell, bro, I only plucked a few of your thorns, you don't have to get this angry, do you?!!!"
But upon seeing the cactus's half-body, which had turned bald, Tolun's expression became a little awkward.
Then, without hesitation, he took off running.
"Nigeruzo!"
After all, there wasn't a single ordinary citizen to protect in this godforsaken place.
If there were others, it would be a different story, but with only himself here, what was there to fight for?!
What kind of police officer would suddenly start a life-or-death battle with a cactus on the roadside?
Besides, he wasn't from a department like the Criminal Investigation Special Response Team that needed to enter the Hollows. The training he usually received was basically just to ensure he had the ability to protect himself.
And behind him, the originally flat ground cracked inch by inch. The cactus at the center rose layer by layer with the bulging earth, as if there was a behemoth underground.
When the ground's bulge reached its limit, the unbearable earth shattered instantly, revealing its true form.
"BOOM!!!"
Before Tolun's shocked eyes, who had just hidden behind the police car, an incredibly ferocious monster drilled out from underground.
Good news, it wasn't a sentient cactus.
Bad news, a monster countless times more terrifying than a sentient cactus suddenly drilled out from underground!
Its earthy yellow body was covered in countless spikes, and most eye-catching was the incredibly thick and huge horn on its head.
The massive horn, like the twin horns of a legendary demon, extended straight up from its head.
It looked ferocious and terrifying.
Its body, capable of destroying everything around it, radiated immense power. As it stepped onto the ground, the earth beneath its feet shattered under its sharp claws.
And its huge tail, wrapped in a carapace, was like a battering ram. A single sweep could level everything within its range.
Just by looking at it, Tolun knew this was definitely not a monster he could face.
Beneath its devil-like face was a ferocious giant mouth that was constantly chewing on something, making him shiver all over.
"Damn it, what the hell is this monster!"
The police car in front of Tolun was like a toy before it, giving him no sense of security at all.
Seeing the unknown liquid dripping from the monster's mouth, Tolun felt that if he hadn't been quick-witted just now, he'd probably be in the monster's mouth!
The way it had burst out from where he was standing meant he was definitely its target!
Although he had greatly misunderstood the monster's habits without knowing the full story, for a creature with a bad temper that would attack any being that invaded its territory, its habits weren't too different from hunting.
It was even hard to say which was better or worse.
"THUD! THUD! THUD!"
Its incredibly thick limbs made a heavy sound on the ground as if stepping on his heart, and the sound of plants being uprooted from time to time made him not even dare to breathe loudly.
But although the monster kept walking around, apart from the sound of plants being pulled up, it had no intention of touching the two cars.
This made Tolun breathe a small sigh of relief.
But as if its goal had been achieved, after only a short pause, the monster began to dig into the ground again with its sharp, membrane-winged forelimbs.
The asphalt road was as easily cut as tofu under its claws, and in just a few seconds, the monster disappeared into the ground.
Only after the monster had completely disappeared from sight did Tolun completely relax and collapse beside the car.
Unconsciously, the clothes on his back were soaked through, and cold sweat had completely drenched his entire back.
As the raised tracks on the ground grew farther and smaller, the smell of death that had been lingering at the tip of his nose...
finally faded away, and a feeling of having walked through the gates of hell emerged.
When the patrol was arranged, he didn't believe it when they said a huge monster that could appear outside the Hollows had appeared around New Eridu.
But now that it had appeared right in front of him, he had to believe it.
On the originally open and flat ground were countless deep footprints, and the claw marks casually left on the ground by its sharp claws were longer than his entire body.
He couldn't imagine what a miserable end he would have met if he had been discovered.
And the scattered cacti that were originally around had completely disappeared, as if they had never existed.
After a while, finally feeling a bit of strength return to his body, Tolun didn't hesitate to pick up the walkie-talkie with his still trembling hands and report the situation here to headquarters.
In just a few minutes, the news of the monster's appearance on the edge of New Eridu reached the mayor's desk.
No one could ignore such an existence, but those who immediately tried to track the monster's whereabouts at the risk of their lives soon completely lost its trail.
Its method of moving deep underground made manual tracking almost impossible, and by the time the equipment capable of tracking underground arrived, the monster had already left the identifiable range.
Looking at the monster that had once again disappeared, the mayor couldn't help but clench his fists until his knuckles turned white.
Having such a monster roaming around New Eridu made it hard for him to sleep or eat in peace.
But for now, at least, he was completely helpless.
It had been a long time since he had been in a situation where he could only react after something had happened, and re-experiencing it was just as unbearable.
But for now, he could only wait.
He took a deep breath to calm himself.
New Eridu had survived fatal dangers countless times, and this time would be no exception.
But no matter what, he still had to make all possible preparations.
He immediately instructed his secretary in the distance:
"Please contact Grandmaster Yixuan of Yunkui Summit as soon as possible, and also try to contact Miss Hoshimi Miyabi, who is currently on a mission in Hollow Zero. It must be quick!"
Watching the secretary leave with the order, the mayor couldn't help but let out a deep sigh.
____
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