To be honest, the situation was rather awkward. The Dragon Nation had braced itself for a fierce diplomatic showdown, only to find that the White Eagle hadn't even accused them.
The reason was simple: Martyr had genuinely infiltrated the Dragon Nation and concealed himself remarkably well. The White Eagle remained completely unaware of his whereabouts until all his Creations vanished and millions of people awoke from the Illusionary Realm. Only then did they realize Martyr had disappeared.
Even then, the White Eagle refused to believe Martyr was dead. Their reasoning was straightforward: with his immense power and the absence of any recent major conflicts, how could he simply vanish without a trace?
The prevailing theory in White Eagle circles was that Martyr had stumbled upon a Dimensional Rift and become trapped in another realm. This blockage of his abilities, they speculated, explained the disappearance of his Creations.
Consequently, many White Eagle citizens eagerly awaited Martyr's return, leaving the Dragon Nation in a quandary.
What should they do? Publicly reveal the cause of Martyr's death? Or remain silent and let time smooth things over?
In truth, concealing the truth would only worsen the consequences once the White Eagle inevitably discovered it. The Dragon Nation's moral high ground would evaporate if they hid the facts.
Yet, given their current advantageous position, proactively revealing the truth felt like deliberately inviting trouble.
Ultimately, the Dragon Nation opted for a compromise: neither public disclosure nor outright concealment. Instead, they privately contacted the seven surviving members of the White Eagle Eight to explain the situation.
Four days after Martyr's death, on the advice of her professional manager, Chu Xingyu, Robin decided not to rush into planning her next concert. Instead, she focused on compiling the songs from her previous performance into an album for release.
This was a win-win for both her and her fans. Otherwise, they would have been stuck watching fragmented concert videos and listening to the "battle-worn" versions of her songs. With high-quality recordings available, who would settle for those inferior versions?
It's worth noting that Invincible Bro had joined the Longcheng Bureau of Anomalous Investigations, forcing him to resign from his position with Robin. However, Chu Xingyu's arrival filled the void, leaving only Shu Cat thoroughly bewildered.
"What? Invincible Bro is an Evolver?!"
"What? He joined the Bureau of Anomalous Investigations?!"
"Huh? My new colleague is a former executive from a major corporation?!"
Despite Invincible Bro's departure, the group chat remained as lively as ever, especially after this message:
Invincible Bro has invited Red Cape Hero to join the group chat. Everyone, please welcome him!
Red Cape Hero: "Ahem! No ulterior motive here. A friend told me this group was interesting, so I thought I'd check it out..."
Free Eagle: "Welcome, welcome! Newcomer, post a face reveal, please."
Shu Cat: "Amazing, this group actually gets new members?"
Today I Want to Eat Soup Dumplings (Group Owner): "Stop whining. If you want lewd pics, go look in the group album. They're all there."
It's worth noting that this group originally started as a doujinshi (fan-made manga) group. But the Group Owner discovered that drawing lewd art was far more enjoyable, so he switched gears.
It's that whole "too much exposure kills the thrill" thing—the real appeal lies in the tantalizing glimpses!
Okay, the real reason was simpler: drawing lewd art was faster, easier, and didn't require plotting a story. What could be better?
It was evening. Robin, fresh out of the shower and wrapped in a towel, was idly scrolling through the group chat when she instantly recognized Red Cape Hero's identity. No doubt about it—it had to be that guy Lü Heng.
In this world, "Red Cape Hero" sounded like the nickname of a protagonist from some children's cartoon. Robin was surprised that this mature-looking guy would actually use such a childish screen name.
Soon, Robin joined the group chat and casually sent a message. Almost immediately, the posting frequency of Invincible Bro and Red Cape Hero noticeably decreased. Even Shu Cat picked up on this and teased in the chat:
"Hey, little bro, what's up? Why are you typing so slowly? That's not like you at all!"
"Stop spacing out and log in already! Let's play! Hurry up!"
Robin couldn't help but chuckle wryly.
Sitting on the edge of her bed, she idly scrolled through the group chat while swinging her legs. Suddenly, she noticed that the nail polish on her toes seemed to have faded significantly.
Setting her phone aside, she propped her ankle on her thigh and leaned down for a closer look.
The first thing she noticed was a faint, fresh scent—the lingering fragrance of the bath gel she had just used. Her petite feet glowed, each toe resembling a lustrous pearl, perfectly rounded and undeniably cute.
However, perhaps because it had been a while, Robin noticed her toenails had grown slightly, and the nail polish had begun to chip. Her first thought was, "Isn't there a type of shop called a nail salon that specializes in manicures and pedicures? I wonder if they do toenails too."
She quickly shook her head. "What on earth am I thinking?"
In the end, Robin decided to trim her own toenails. The idea of putting her feet in front of someone else for a pedicure felt too embarrassing.
As for the chipped nail polish, after a brief mental debate, Robin went to the store the next day, picked out a similar color, and reapplied it herself.
She dressed up primarily for her own enjoyment. Why shouldn't she?
A few more days passed. Finally, thanks to Chu Xingyu's relentless work ethic, Robin's album was successfully released. At her request, it was titled Inside, though Chu Xingyu didn't quite understand the meaning behind the name.
It wasn't a big deal; he just had to follow his boss's instructions.
For some reason, Chu Xingyu felt far more motivated working for Robin than he ever had at any large corporation. Was it because his current boss was an incredibly beautiful young girl? Or perhaps it was because he could clearly sense he was witnessing the birth of a miracle? He firmly believed that Robin would undoubtedly become the greatest singer of all time!
And he was playing a part in it! The thought filled Chu Xingyu with an immense sense of accomplishment, which he promptly channeled into forcing Shu Cat to work several more hours of overtime.
Shu Cat: "Damn it!"
Then, on the very day the album was released, the completion rate for Robin's "Songstress" objective in the System surged again, finally reaching one hundred percent!
The Beautiful Girl Masquerade System is at your service.
Host: Mu Heng
Current Identity: Robin
Current Objective: Songstress (100%)