By 4 a.m., Claire and Cristiano Ronaldo had long since disappeared.
But the excitement at Panda & Sons bar showed no signs of dying down. Instead, news of "Ronaldo Visits Bar to Apologize in Person" had spread like wildfire, drawing even more crowds to the bar located in the Cheshire Plain south of Salford. The local police had to dispatch a significant number of officers just to maintain order.
The entire street was now bathed in colorful neon lights, and the area around Panda & Sons was swarming with news vans and reporters rushing to the scene.
However, the most prominent media presence came from The Sun. Leveraging their home-field advantage, the newspaper had mobilized its entire sports division, sending every available reporter to cover the story.
Armand Ackerman, bundled up in thick clothing, stood beside a news van, barking orders with visible excitement.
"Hurry up! I need on-the-ground details! What exactly happened? I want a full recap!" He rubbed his hands together impatiently as he grilled his team of reporters.
The junior reporters exchanged glances before a young man stepped forward from the crowd. "Boss! Boss! I was here the whole time! Give me a chance—I can explain!"
Armand's eyes lit up when he realized one of his own had witnessed the entire event. "Go on, then!"
The young reporter quickly pushed through the crowd and delivered a concise, five-minute breakdown of everything that had transpired inside the bar.
As Armand listened, he immediately zeroed in on the key figure in the "Ronaldo Apology" incident—Claire Lee.
"Is this Claire Lee really a three-match trial player for Manchester United?"
"Yes! I just checked the official team roster—Claire came through United's youth academy, spent a year with the U19s, and another year at Queens Park Rangers."
Armand took the assistant's laptop, scanning the screen before turning back to the young reporter. "What was the name of that song?"
"**'The Nights'**—the lyrics are really something. I think this song could actually blow up!"
Armand suddenly remembered something and turned to his assistant. "Can we verify the copyright status? Are we sure this isn't some marketing stunt? I've heard United's finances haven't been great lately."
"No, no—we've already confirmed. There's no record of the song in the U.S. or U.K. copyright databases. Plus, I just saw Peter Town himself show up to handle the dispute earlier."
Armand was familiar with Peter Town.
In a way, they were even colleagues. And in the British music scene, Peter was something of a legend. Watching Peter from a distance, Armand got an idea.
"Tonight, I want every key player interviewed. Compile all the leads and send them to the editorial team. And you—the junior editor who was at the bar tonight—I want you to draft an article framing this around 'The Rise of a Musical Prodigy' and get it to me ASAP!"
——
The scene at The Sun was just one small part of the chaos unfolding around Panda & Sons. But as Armand Ackerman was leaving, two young men—dressed far less glamorously—emerged from the shadows.
"Samir, should we sell the video we recorded to The Sun? That money could set us up for a while..."
Samir Brando ran a hand through his slightly messy hair but stayed silent.
As a part-time sales employee at Panda & Sons, he knew their recording hadn't captured much—just Claire Lee's performance. Meanwhile, Danielle Sharp, the daughter of one of the bar's shareholders, had been filming everything with a high-quality DV camera. If anyone could sell footage for big money, it was her.
Then it hit him.
Lately, he'd been obsessed with YouTube, the explosive video-sharing platform that had amassed 6 million users in just two years before being acquired by Google.
Samir had grown tired of his bar job. He wanted to become a YouTube creator—especially after stumbling upon a video where a blogger claimed to have earned $110,000 in a single month from just 400,000 subscribers.
Suddenly energized, Samir scratched his head again and turned to his friend with a serious expression.
"Joan, do you trust me?"
Joan hesitated. Every time Samir got this intense, it usually meant he was about to ask for a loan. "...As long as you're not asking for money, sure. What's the plan?"
"Good. Let's head back to the apartment. I've got an idea—I think we can make serious cash with this video." Grabbing Joan's arm, Samir sprinted toward their apartment, buzzing with excitement.
——
While traditional media outlets were still scrambling for interviews outside Panda & Sons, a YouTube account named "Claire's #1 Fan" uploaded a blurry, pixelated video.
Anyone who'd been at the bar would've recognized it—the full footage of Claire singing on stage.
At first, the video only garnered a handful of likes.
But then, for some reason, YouTube gave it a sudden boost—pinning it to the top of the platform.
The account's follower count began skyrocketing—gaining 10 new subscribers every second.
By the time "Claire's #1 Fan" hit 40,000 followers, the video had gone viral.