Fake Daughter Is The Real Legend (Iris Sutton) novel Chapter 40

Chapter 40 Watching The Concert

Chapter 40 Watching The Concert

Competition day arrived.

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Since it wasn’t an official university open house, outside visitors could only enter with invitation tickets.

Iris wore a simple hoodie.

A mask covered most of her face.

She blended into the crowd effortlessly.

Almost nobody paid attention to her.

The moment she entered the venue, she spotted Chloe.

Her sister occupied a prime seat near the front.

Several friends surrounded her, chatting enthusiastically.

The invitations didn’t assign seating.

Iris had no interest in sitting nearby.

Instead, she chose a seat near the back.

Quiet.

Unobtrusive.

In truth, she’d received an invitation long before Chloe offered one.

She wasn’t attending because of Chloe.

She had another reason for being here.

Once the audience and judges settled, the host officially began the competition.

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Chapter 40 Watching The Concert

Ethan was the third performer.

A favorable position.

Not too early.

Not too late.

Backstage, he stared at his sheet music.

Olivia’s contribution had arrived fairly late.

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He’d spent most of his preparation time memorizing it rather than analyzing it.

At first glance, nothing seemed terribly wrong.

Still…

Compared to that melody he’d heard in the music building…

Something felt off.

“Contestant number three.”

The stage manager called.

“Ethan Vaughn.”

No more time for second thoughts.

He straightened his jacket and walked onto the stage.

After bowing respectfully to the judges, he began.

The performance was technically strong.

His intonation remained stable.

His fundamentals were excellent.

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Chapter 40 Watching The Concert

Three of the five judges nodded approvingly.

“Solid technique.”

“Good control.”

“Strong execution.”

The remaining two judges sat expressionless.

Neither appeared impressed.

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When the performance ended, Ethan looked hopefully toward the judging panel.

The three experts praised him generously.

He’d actually performed better than during rehearsal.

Then one of the Violin Association judges picked up a microphone.

His critique was blunt.

“The piece lacks cohesion.”

“The stylistic transitions are forced.”

He flipped through the score.

“One section feels particularly disconnected from the rest.”

The judge looked directly at Ethan.

“I can’t tell what you’re trying to express.”

The words hit like a hammer.

Ethan tightened his grip around the violin neck.

No one had ever criticized him so directly before.

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Chapter 40 Watching The Concert

In that instant, he understood.

First place was impossible.

Backstage, he finally had time to examine the score carefully.

The more he looked, the worse it seemed.

This didn’t make sense.

He had shown Olivia his original composition.

All she’d needed to do was build upon it.

Instead, the inserted section felt awkward.

Forced.

Lifeless.

Most importantly—

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It possessed none of the brilliance he’d heard that day in the music building.

His phone came out immediately.

[Olivia.]

[Did you really write this melody yourself?]

Olivia had spent the entire competition pacing around her room.

The moment she saw the message, she knew something had gone wrong.

Of course it had.

The deadline had been absurdly short.

There hadn’t been enough time to hire truly elite composers.

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Chapter 40 Watching The Concert

She’d only managed to find an expensive instructor with an opening.

Immediately, she switched tactics.

[I’m sorry…]

[I’ve been struggling lately.]

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[My sister keeps harassing me.]

[She keeps telling me to be careful.]

As always, Iris became the perfect scapegoat.

A few pitiful messages later, Ethan’s frustration faded.

Olivia was so sweet.

So gentle.

How could any of this possibly be her fault?

The blame naturally shifted elsewhere.

To Iris.

Again.

Remembering how she’d embarrassed him in front of the entire school, Ethan’s resentment deepened.

The competition continued.

More than twenty contestants performed.

Each received roughly three minutes.

Before long, the event reached its conclusion.

C

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Chapter 40 Watching The Concert

:

After the final scores were calculated, a surprising winner emerged.

A freshman.

His name was Darius Lane.

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Backstage, Ethan stared at the young man’s baby-faced grin while applause thundered through the hall.

The bitterness in his chest intensified.

Standing beneath the spotlight, Darius accepted the microphone with trembling hands. His excitement was impossible to hide.

“Winning today means everything to me.”

He swallowed.

“But there’s someone I have to thank.”

“My teacher.”

Then he stopped.

And began scanning the audience.

Row after row.

Searching.

Unfortunately, Iris was wearing a mask.

A plain hoodie.

And sitting in the back.

He didn’t recognize her at all.