New Life, New Task: I'll Be A Mom Then!!!

"Young man, your time is up." One of the judges finally announced as the contents of the hourglass ran out.

Desmond nodded and proceeded to prepare for his performance.

He looked at Eli as if seeking a little bit of encouragement, to which she replied with a gentle smile and nod.

Desmond gently placed his fingers on the piano keys and took a deep breath.

A smooth and slow series of arpeggio followed by the melodic voices on the right hand was heard in the room.

The judge's eyes immediately lit up the moment Desmond played the first few bars of the songs. True enough, the music of the lad is different from the previous auditionees!

They looked at each other and carefully listened to Desmond's practice. Eli revealed a relaxed smile and watched Desmond reveal a glimpse of his growth to the judges.

She felt like a mother bird looking at her chick flying for the first time. She knew at this moment, Desmond is now taking his first step to becoming the musician he was always meant to be.

Desmond's performance was not perfect, he had some mistakes that could be openly nitpicked by the judges. But overall his performance pleased the judges as they knew what to expect from pianists that played a piece for the first time.

In fact, they were amazed that Desmond even attempted to play the entire sonata successfully. But the most impressive thing was, that he was even able to bring out a little of the intention of the composer within the short time he was given to understand the piece.

"The results will be displayed in the bulletin three days from now. Should you pass, the next stage would be exactly a week after." The judges visibly treated him softer than when they first stepped into the room.

Desmond bade goodbye to the judges and heaved a sigh of relief as soon as they exited the room.

"You did a good job!" Eli patted the lad's shoulders which were visibly stiff at the moment.

Desmond was still mulling over the mistakes he made during the performance, but looking at Eli's expression while she said her words, he decided to believe in her and entrust the results to the judge.

"While you wait for the results for three days, try to find time to practice what we have prepared as your main pieces. You'll never know when you will have to play them throughout the tournament." Eli smiled mischievously and assigned more practice time since Desmond would clearly have a few more days to prepare for the next stages.

"Mentor, you really believe that I will have the chance to use them?" Desmond sighed as he helplessly replied to Eli's orders.

"Yes, in fact, I have the confidence that you would play all of them." Eli gazed at him with confidence. "I thought you, you know? Everything I knew and experienced, was passed it down to you… so have the confidence that you will succeed."

With that, Eli turned to exit the hall with Desmond but not before saying, "As for how you define the word success, it is up to you. I have no right to dictate your own view of success."

Desmond was startled as he listened to Eli's words.

Sometimes, she felt like his mentor had gone through several lifetimes, that's why she could tell such profound words and still become convincing despite her young age!

Sometime after exiting the audition area for piano, Eli reunited with Lainie who was busy organizing the information in her notebook.

"How have you been, Lainie? Did you find people we can recruit for your ensemble?" Eli looked at her, who seemed like she had just been through a feast. Eli thought that she might have seen a lot of musicians which sparked her creativity in arranging and composing.

"Indeed, mentor! All I could say is that there were really a lot of people who were talented and in Prasinos! I've discovered another world!" Lainie excitedly shared her experience going around the area. "Too bad, some sections do not allow spectating so I was not able to check out the other instruments.

"Don't worry you will have more time when the main tournament comes," Desmond replied. Soon the trio started to engage in telling stories of their experiences on the first day of the tournament while they were checking out the other's situation.

It was a very good day for everyone as the rest of their teammates were also confident that they would be chosen for the next round.

On the fine arts side, Anna and Raphael's situations were also as optimistic as the music bunch. Overall, it was only Max and Lainie who had to wait until their turns before they could fight on their own preliminary rounds.

And so the first round of the tournament ended like that. Eli internally heaved a sigh of relief as the day ended without any mishaps.

However, knowing that the enemies were still roaming freely among them, she dared not to let her guard down.

Before she went on her way home, she thought that she should check the situation in the research branch. Unlike the other events, there was only one round for the research branch, and that was to present their thesis in front of a large panel of critiques.

Eli thought that aside from the strength and confidence the research branch had for their work, they should have the capacity to present their case well.

Since she was pretty free after the preliminary round, she wanted to spend this time giving the chosen research thesis presentation.

"Little Sister! You're here!" As she walked outside the campus, she heard Kayden's voice from afar.

Turning to look in Kayden's direction she smiled quite surprised, "Big brother Einz! Dr. Sophie!"

Einz and Sophie smiled as they walked towards Eli, both were out not wearing their white doctor's gowns but the gowns of the Farauld Research Professor gowns.

"Are you on your way to the research branch, my little Eli?" Sophie looked at Eli with doting in her eyes, she immediately linked her hands with hers as she asked her.

"Yes, I figured that I should check the group before they finalize their routine for the presentation," Eli replied with a smile.

She had a very good impression on Sophie, not only on Elise's original memory but based on her recent interactions.

Dr. Sophie is one of the few people, apart from her and Dr. Thomas, who could assist Kayden and keep up with his thought process during research. She was also a very good subordinate and teammate to Kayden as she not only supported him through the work but also reminded him to stop and rest when he gets too engrossed in the research.

Sometime after the internal war, Sophie temporarily took Kayden's place as the medical advisor for the three researchers who were interested in the medical field. She was now working in the Farauld Institute as a part-time assistant professor in the research branch!

"Then, we're just in time! We are on our way to check on our own teams too!" Dr. Sophie smiled happily as it was now so seldom for her to see Eli because of her busy schedule.

"Alright, let's go!" Kayden looked at the two ladies, and a rare smile bloomed on his usually serious face.

He felt like it had been so long since the two women reunited. Just like the old days in Riverfront. Though it was only that, it was Eli who was present, not Elise. But he knew that wherever Elise was at this moment, his little sister was in a happy place.

While the trio was absorbed in a sweet reunion, they did not notice that far from their location, the hooded mages that accompanied Crown Prince Renon a while ago were looking in their direction.

"It seems like the genius inventor had a good life after getting engaged with the crown prince…" The other one commented, quite amused as he observed Eli from afar with a telescope.

"Tsk… Crown Prince Renon was quite a paranoid person. Why is he thinking that this little woman was able to detect our presence? She looked quite weak to me!"

"Without her cursed bear, she was just so so…"

The man of the duo continued to blabber as he observed Eli's every move. It turns out that Crown Prince Renon did not let go of her act earlier and is quite adamant to ensure that she was not a threat to him.

The mage's partner kept silent, but she did not take her telescope out and seemed to continue to watch the trio until they entered the Research Branch Campus.

But if one would take out her hood, they would see that her eyes were filled with a crazed obsession and a creepy smile on her face.

She looked so ecstatic as the hand that was holding her telescope started to tremble.

Soon she was unable to contain her excitement and let out a chuckle, "Dr. Einz… we meet again… Ah…!"