NOVPUB"Or what?"
Lanci saw Barton still hesitating and asked him softly.
"You guys can go straight to her, try to make contact, and tell her you were referred by someone she knows, and it’ll be easy."
Barton offered another most reliable plan,
"As long as Abigail is willing to have a private conversation with you, you can tell her I sent you, she’ll at least give me some face, but how exactly to persuade her to help you will have to be up to you."
This way, there was no risk and would allow Professor Landry to meet Abigail as soon as possible, and the process would be quite natural without drawing the Blood Clan’s attention to their three-way relationship.
Having seen Landry persuade Boss Yifa, Barton wasn’t going to question Landry’s negotiation skills anymore, nor was there any need to worry about Landry’s safety.
"Can we go find her tonight? Do you know where she is tonight?"
Talia’s face lit up with anticipation.
She knew if they waited any longer to find Abigail, Lanci’s already dense schedule would become even more packed, and she still hoped Lanci could rest well without overworking himself.
"Yes, she lives upstairs at the Brielda Opera House, or rather, the entire top floor is hers, and she’s also a famous director responsible for arts and culture."
Barton raised his hand from inside his long coat and drew the directions of the Brielda map in the air with his finger, indicating to Landry the safe passage from the Mafia’s turf to the Brielda Opera House.
He was confident that Professor Landry surely knew of this famous Empire opera house.
Located at Broadway 33rd Street in the Manhot Center Area of Blielda City, it neighbored the Bulida Voice Orchestra, the Bulida City Royal Dance Troupe, and other renowned art institutions.
It was founded during the time of the former Seross Empire and the present building was erected in 1662, with around 3,800 seats. It features a performance season from September to May each year, presenting a variety of classical and contemporary operas, inviting the world’s top-tier actors, singers, and conductors.
Now, in October, it was a great time.
In recent years, the Brielda Opera House had begun broadcasting live performances via Kray radio, with a massive audience nationwide and even on the South Continent before the war broke out.
Today, this historic theatre was bought and managed by Abigail with a substantial sum of money and the privilege of living above the theatre was also due to her unique prestigious status.
"Wow, that’s some serious wealth."
Lanci imagined that even Xiu Bao wouldn’t just up and buy the entire Ikelete Opera House.
Probably only Duke Migaya had the finances for it and the clout to get the city government to sell the opera house to him.
"What, jealous of someone? If I put in some effort, I could make a lot of money too, with my Magic Artisan license."
Talia huffed.
She was no longer a stateless unemployed person but a successful 25-year-old unmarried woman with the status of a Platinum Level Card Maker. Even if Nanwantina found some issues with her residency, they’d beg her to settle in Nanwantina.
If Lanci had financial troubles later on, calling her a ’wealthy lady,’ she might be willing to take care of her apprentice for a few more years.
Noe Wilford would certainly hope she could teach Lanci a bit more.
"Then why don’t I just go find Hyperion?"
Lanci raised his query.
Hyperion wasn’t just wealthy; she was even younger.
"..."
The air suddenly became deathly still.
Talia seemed at a loss for words.
"You, you don’t understand the charm of a slightly older woman! Don’t you always talk about ’flavor, flavor’? Would a girl who’s even younger than you have the kind of ’flavor’ you like? I, I don’t actually care, I really don’t. Whatever you like has nothing to do with me, it just happens that I have a friend, yes, I’m talking about Antanas, Sinola, Artemis, Yifa, aren’t they all older than you? If they catch on to your line of thought, they would definitely be devastated..."
She became somewhat frantic, resisting the impulse to pin him down and argue at length, mentally lecturing him with a long discourse in her mind.
"...So, finding someone who’s both wealthy and older is fine, then."
Lanci replied, voice dry.
"Of course, that’s more like it, classy."
Talia flicked her hair with a touch of pride, her spirits suddenly lifted, and she praised Lanci.
"Meow..."
The Cat Boss on the ground couldn’t hear what Lanci and Talia were secretly discussing, but it could roughly guess—they were probably popping champagne for third place.
"If you had booked tickets for tonight’s opera in advance, you could indeed get into the grand theater."
Barton’s explanation of the map to Lanci stopped abruptly, as his face showed a hint of difficulty,
"It might even be a chance to meet Abigail directly since she’s acting as the director supervising the scene there; otherwise, you’d have to find a way to sneak in... but those tickets are hard to come by."
Barton spoke gravely.
The recently performed opera "Holy War Romance" had garnered widespread acclaim, with three casts taking turns to maximize scheduling, yet tickets were still hard to find.
Rumors said that Abigail’s strict selection and intense rehearsals nearly exhausted some of the actors before they could barely reach the effect she was satisfied with. Accordingly, the performance was also highly praised.
If Barton had known earlier, he would have certainly prepared tickets for Professor Landry; now that it was nearly time for the show, he found it hard to get them.
"Also, Professor Landry, it’s best if you bring a companion, just like a normal date to watch the opera. Otherwise, seeking out Abigail with the purpose of Magical Engineering would be too obvious, and she would not be pleased."
Barton added, feeling increasingly challenged,
"Abigail is a kind of genius with a deviation between interests and talent. There’s a bit of paranoia in her personality. What she actually loves is the opera; Magical Engineering is just a talent she was born with and doesn’t value much, hence, she resents those who fawn over her solely for her Magical Engineering and totally disregard her main profession."
Landry’s identity was particularly sensitive; a direct visit to Abigail made the intention very clear, likely leaving no chance for a personal meeting before she would shut the door based on Barton’s relationship revelation.
Barton believed Landry understood his point—to show respect for the drama arranged by Abigail, to watch it seriously with an appreciative attitude, and to then discuss other matters with her, instead of going straight for the Magical Engineering theme and ignoring the drama which would greatly worsen Abigail’s impression.
"Ah? Is the opera called ’Holy War Romance’?"
Lanci and Talia exchanged glances, too surprised by Barton’s other points to consider them, and asked him eagerly.
"Yes, that’s right. Do you happen to have tickets?"
Barton looked up, inquiring.
If this issue could be solved, all else would be negotiable.
"Maybe there really are some."
Lanci remembered that just this afternoon, when Elsa came looking for her brother, she had asked if he was free to watch this play tonight, and the location was precisely Brielda Opera House.
Elsa and Ursula definitely wouldn’t be in the mood for an opera tonight and would need to return to the safety of Saint Kray Monastery; that meant their tickets would go unused.
They had already been purchased.
Lanci raised his wrist and glanced at his watch.
It was just past seven in the evening.
The play was going to start at eight.
There was still time after escorting Elsa and Ursula back to Saint Kray Monastery!
"Going to the play?"
Lanci tentatively asked Talia.
It was a perfect opportunity for Talia to use the new identity Nigel had arranged for her.
This way, his work plans for next week wouldn’t be entirely disrupted, and he could also complete an important task ahead of time!
However, he worried that Talia might struggle to accept the content of the opera, which could evoke some awkward memories between them.
"Let’s go."
Talia’s cheeks reddened slightly, and with a tilt of her chin and a proud turn of her head, she crossed her arms and stated,
She had been on dates with Lanci before; there was nothing to fear.
As long as Lanci could stay seated, she could too.
