Chapter 29

“I didn’t cause trouble,” Starfield Sakura shook her head in denial. “I was in a bad mood that day too—if it had been any other time, I wouldn’t have reacted so fiercely.”

“I thought to myself the second time we met, why are you still smiling? I actually thought you were hiding ill intent behind your smile.” Luo Quan recalled the scene backstage at MS—Starfield Sakura’s attitude had been much better then than at the beach. Perhaps Starfield Sakura had originally intended to apologize, but Luo Quan’s sharp words had instantly killed that thought.

“I was wrong too. My tone shouldn’t have been so harsh.” Luo Quan was straightforward—she spoke up whenever she saw something wrong, and admitted her own mistakes without hesitation. In her hometown, they called this kind of person honest, just like Wen Xia.

Starfield Sakura lowered her head. “I’m the one who should apologize. I should have told you the full story sooner.”

Luo Quan laughed. “Actually, it’s quite coincidental—if we hadn’t had a falling out, I wouldn’t have come specifically to your house today, and you wouldn’t have been saved.”

Starfield Sakura smiled too. “Come to think of it, it really is fate.”

As they laughed, she suddenly stood up, walked to a nearby cabinet, and pulled out a comb. While tidying her messy hair, she said, “You saved me once. I don’t know how to repay you, but at least I can clear up the rumors about you online.”

After combing her hair, Starfield Sakura sat beside Luo Quan and opened her phone’s selfie function. “Smile. Make it look like we’re close friends.”

“Whoa… I’m really bad at this.” Luo Quan had just opened her mouth when she remembered the “Abyssal Maw” incident from a few days ago. She immediately clamped her lips shut, only slightly tilting her lips upward into a YES.

“Click.” Starfield Sakura pressed the selfie button.

After typing a message on Twitter and attaching the photo, Starfield Sakura hit post.

“Even though online public opinion has already fully erupted, this photo at least can save your career. The rest can only be investigated slowly to find out who the real mastermind is.”

“What about you? How are you going to handle that big boss from Sumiyoshi-kai?” With her own matter settled, Luo Quan turned her attention to Starfield Sakura’s problem.

Starfield Sakura shook her head. “The two Sumiyoshi-kai members sent here must have already prepared for arrest. The police probably won’t extract any useful information from them—it’ll have to be handled by the company.”

Wen Xia said, “Sony is such a big company. They should be able to handle it properly.”

Starfield Sakura frowned and shook her head. “It’s not that simple. Organizations like Sumiyoshi-kai have people everywhere—in politics, in every sector. If it were just some low-level boss, fine. But this involves a Wakagashira. The outcome is uncertain.”

Luo Quan sighed. “If all else fails, we’ll have to expose it and mobilize online public opinion.”

In Japan, even celebrities face a huge problem if they cross paths with the yakuza.

Don’t be fooled by those soft articles online that paint the yakuza as noble men who never harm ordinary people, rush to disaster zones, and even have cute traits.

In reality, the yakuza are the yakuza—always involved in gambling, drugs, and prostitution; murder, arson, kidnapping, and extortion are routine. It’s just that ordinary people rarely encounter them. If you do, the outcome is unpredictable.

After about fifteen minutes, a shrill siren sounded outside the house. Three male police officers entered, and were stunned to see two men lying on the floor and four girls sitting on the sofa.

“Starfield-san!”

“Luo Quan-san!”

“Wen Xia-san!”

The three celebrities in the room were idols to these three officers. Liu Sheng Junzi watched enviously.

“Am I dreaming? I never thought I’d meet you here!” The lead officer’s hands trembled with excitement, but then he noticed the two men on the ground and snapped back to reality. “These two are the home invasion kidnappers, right? I never expected four girls could take them down. Impressive.”

“What’s the procedure?” Starfield Sakura cut straight to the point.

“Uh… Could the four of you come with us to the Metropolitan Police Department? Just to give statements—it’ll be quick.”

“Let’s go.” Luo Quan stood up and walked with the other three girls out of the house, into the police car.

They said it would be quick, but they spent nearly an hour at the Metropolitan Police Department because this was a serious home invasion kidnapping case involving the yakuza, requiring many details to be clarified.

Although the investigating officer had assured the victims he would enforce the law impartially and get to the bottom of it, Starfield Sakura didn’t believe him for a second.

Even Sony might not be able to resolve this matter properly.

But Luo Quan’s situation had made progress: her photo with Starfield Sakura had shattered the rumor of their feud.

Starfield Sakura wrote on Twitter: Though I’ve only known Luo Quan-san for a short time, I feel a strong connection. Her true character is nothing like the vile rumors online. We have no conflict.

Countless people were watching Starfield Sakura closely—just one tweet could end the entire controversy.

Once this tweet was posted, the narrative pushed by Weekly Bunshun collapsed on its own. Luo Quan’s fans finally sounded the counterattack, and Starfield Sakura’s fans were drawn into the battle too.

Soon after, as if given instructions, many artists under Sony publicly voiced support for Luo Quan. Sony’s official account also tweeted a scathing condemnation of the rumor-mongers, vowing to find and legally punish the mastermind.

After much thought, Luo Quan finally narrowed down one possible mastermind: Avex Entertainment, which had previously tried to recruit her.

When Luo Quan’s songs were first uploaded to YouTube, Avex and Sony were the first companies to approach her. But due to the system’s mandatory quest, she didn’t sign with either.

Avex’s shockingly low offer failed to win the rights to her three songs—Sony, with genuine sincerity, secured them instead.

Perhaps Avex, seeing Luo Quan reject them and choose Sony, wanted to teach her a lesson as a newcomer—or simply crush a competitor. Either way, their motive was clear.

After Luo Quan told Miki about this suspect, Miki immediately reported it to Director Ishimura and dispatched investigators.

As the saying goes: If you don’t want anyone to know, don’t do it. Everything done online leaves traces. After spending a large sum, Sony finally gathered evidence proving Avex had hired a troll studio to smear Luo Quan.

Luo Quan then forwarded her emails with Avex to Miki, who handed both the evidence and the email content to the PR department.

At 8 p.m., Sony posted a tweet condemning Avex for unfair competition, hiring trolls to deliberately attack Sony artists—simply because Avex had been rejected when trying to sign Luo Quan.

Below the tweet were several screenshots of chat logs and email content—irrefutable proof.

The tweet immediately sparked a massive uproar.

“Three million yen to buy these three songs? That’s ridiculously stingy.”

“I knew Luo Quan was framed. Don’t those who insulted her feel ashamed?”

“The truth has finally come out, but the harm done to Luo Quan and her fans can never be undone.”

“It’s hard to imagine so many people used such vicious words to attack an eighteen-year-old girl—based entirely on baseless rumors!”

“There were at most five hundred trolls, but over a hundred thousand people insulted Luo Quan today. This world is truly disappointing.”

“Humanity is full of malice—and virtual networks amplify that malice infinitely.”

“I think those haters should apologize to Luo Quan—if they still have any conscience left.”

In one day, Luo Quan went from viral fame to universal hatred, then instantly reversed into a victim, experiencing the full rollercoaster of life.

As Sony’s tweet climbed to the top of trending topics and drew nearly two hundred thousand netizens into heated discussion, Avex—faced with undeniable evidence and overwhelming public pressure—finally responded.