The Trending Topic Herself: The Villainess is the Superstar!-Chapter 63: Plot Breakdown

Maya Monroe yawned, her cloud-like, slightly wavy long hair lazily draped at her waist. Her hands were crossed over her chest, less like she was anticipating the result and more like she was just there for the fun of it.

Seeing her look tired, Ryan Spencer couldn’t help but ask, "Didn’t sleep well yesterday?"

"Not really." Maya always felt tired and sleepy when faced with things she wasn’t interested in.

"You should take my words to heart. I’m genuinely looking out for you; you need to be more ambitious." Ryan, dressed as a business elite, spoke like a hard-working and devoted mother.

Maya yawned again, her eyes tearful, and responded indifferently, "Ah... okay."

Ryan knew her lazy nature couldn’t be changed overnight, so he turned his head to focus on the screen. He was quite looking forward to this ranking.

Maya stood lazily, one long leg stretched forward, with a stance reminiscent of a loafer. But she was beautiful, and a faintly discernible rebellious aura emitted from her brows, making others only find her stance inexplicably cool and bold.

Her beautiful almond eyes squinted as she quickly caught sight of Kiki Monroe. She still retained her immaculate little white flower appearance, seemingly not having had a comfortable time recently, with clouds of worry gathered at her brows.

However, the heroine of a Mary Sue story is never short of fervent admirers. Kiki only needed to stand there, and instantly, many people were drawn towards her, talking around her, praising her makeup for being exquisite and her face for being flawlessly white, complimenting her from head to toe.

Kiki’s cheeks flushed red as she listened to the crowd’s praise, quickly saying, "Please don’t say that. I’m just an ordinary person and can’t take such compliments..."

As soon as she looked up, she caught sight of Maya, nearly losing her composure with an angry and grim expression.

Maya scoffed lightly, raising her eyebrows provocatively before withdrawing her gaze. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Kiki’s hand involuntarily clenched into a fist; she hadn’t intended to do anything, but Maya just had to come over to provoke her.

Why does Maya have such hostility towards her, repeatedly stealing her spotlight, either by insulting or provoking her whenever they meet?

Kiki couldn’t swallow this grievance.

"Sister, I didn’t expect to see you in the hall, what a coincidence!"

Maya turned her head to look at Kiki, surprised she had come over. Kiki’s voice sounded gentle, but upon closer listening, an unmistakable coldness and resentment could be detected.

Maya chuckled gently; sometimes she found Kiki to be quite foolish—her disguise was deliberate and pretentious. Yet in Mary Sue literature, the heroine doesn’t need high intelligence or strength. She only needs the heroine’s halo to captivate everyone completely, focusing on her love-hate relationship with the male lead.

Already in a highly tense state, Kiki felt embarrassed and angry when Maya smiled as if mocking her.

"What kind of fate could I have with you? It’s not even a cursed fate. There’s no relationship between us, so stop calling me sister; it’s embarrassing!"

As soon as Maya said this, Kiki’s frown instantly deepened.

Kiki had people behind her who could speak up for her.

"Maya Monroe, do you really think you’ll be invincible just because your acting skills have improved a bit and the netizens are praising you? Everyone knows your character is bad!"

"If it weren’t for your good family background, do you think you’d be able to get to where you are now? Without your backing, you’re nothing!"

"You don’t even realize how bad your reputation is! You talk about embarrassment, but Kiki finds you embarrassing!"

...

Kiki stood at the forefront of those people, not speaking to stop them, her shiny black eyes inevitably revealing a trace of smugness.

Maya gave a cold chuckle; her bone structure was sharp and hard, not lending to a soft appearance. When she smiled lazily, her almond eyes slightly squinted, exuding rebelliousness. But once she got serious, she looked as intimidating as The King of Hell himself.

"Think I’m embarrassing? Then get lost; why are you coming to me?"

Kiki, standing at the forefront, was also taken aback by surprise; Maya’s words remained harsh, yet her smoky makeup was washed away, and even in the most oversized casual clothes, she didn’t appear approachable.

Those who had just spoken now fell silent like they had been muted.

Kiki regained her expression: "Sister, they were just joking with you, no need to be so sensitive; not everyone is against you."

Kiki’s eyes naturally released gentle light, resembling a saint trying to enlighten others. Maya felt genuinely nauseous.

"I’m petty? I only casually teased you, and I didn’t see your followers being much more generous. You only allow those in power to set fires, while barring ordinary people from lighting lamps. Kiki, you’re really good at playing this game!"

Kiki’s face turned unsightly, like someone had pierced her heart, exposing her most shameful thoughts: "I definitely didn’t mean what you’re saying..."

Maya snorted: "Don’t hover around me; once the ranking is out, you’ll see how impressive I am. You, a fool, aren’t even fit to clean my shoes!"

Maya finally found a reason to say her last line.

Indeed, it’s another face-slapping episode. And an especially important one. "Wandering Beyond the Horizon" is Kiki’s breakout hit, but merely saying how amazing she is won’t suffice; the thrill comes from contrast. Maya provokes first, and then faces a severe backlash—a stark comparison emerges.

As Maya had understood, readers beyond the book loved watching such plots, so now she deliberately acted brutish and annoying, only to later show an incredulous abandoned puppy look after being face-slapped hard by Kiki. This would wrap it up.

Maya had long been well-acquainted with this old trick.

Kiki seemed truly irritated by her, almost unable to maintain her good-hearted, innocent expression: "Let’s wait and see!"

As soon as she finished speaking, the enormous electronic screen began rapidly refreshing data, one subtitle after another rolling.

In fact, many artists vying for a spot on the leaderboard had reason enough. Valerius Entertainment’s rule is survival of the fittest; the higher the ranking, the more attention from the company, the lower means being neglected. For instance, Valerius Entertainment’s annual gala allows only the top thirty to participate, where various big shots, directors, producers, and company executives gather. It’s an excellent opportunity for negotiation, where artists often gain satisfactory resources and powerful networks.

Maya saw the leaderboard had emerged but could hardly bother to raise her eyes to look. She turned her head to look at Kiki, displaying a startled expression as described in the story: "Kiki, how could you be so incredible..."

She hadn’t even finished her lines when Kiki’s face turned crimson, not out of happiness or joy, but shame and anger.