Chapter 268: The Man In the Shadows 1: Chasing the Idol

"For the movie, I’ve rewritten the script to include these beautiful scenes."

Amelia’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she handed her tablet to Lara.

Lara accepted it and began scrolling through the newly added pages. The deeper she read, the softer her expression became. A faint smile curved her lips.

Whoever had written the contents of that scroll knew her far too well.

The thought immediately brought one person to mind—Ivy.

The elegant handwriting looked remarkably similar to hers, and if it truly was Ivy, then everything made sense. Only Ivy would have gone to such lengths, weaving even the smallest details into the story. Jethru must have shared every memory, every emotion, and every hidden moment with her.

Otherwise, how could the scenes feel so vivid? So real?

Across the room, Lionel was reviewing his own copy of the additional scenes.

The veteran producer and director couldn’t help but nod in approval.

These scenes would be phenomenal. The kind that audiences would remember long after the credits rolled. The kind that won awards.

His gaze lingered on a particular page before another concern surfaced.

There was still one major problem.

Who could possibly play Jethru?

His brows furrowed as he mentally sifted through countless actors.

Then suddenly, a face appeared in his mind.

Lionel’s eyes widened. He would be perfect.

A few moments later, however, the excitement faded, replaced by a troubled frown.

Lara noticed immediately.

She had become surprisingly skilled at reading people’s expressions.

"What’s on your mind?" she asked.

Lionel looked up.

"I have the perfect candidate for Jethru’s role."

He paused.

"But convincing him to accept it is another matter entirely."

"Why?" Amelia asked curiously.

Lionel leaned back in his chair and sighed.

"Because he’s a legend. A veteran actor with countless awards under his belt."

The room grew quiet.

"Unfortunately, life wasn’t kind to him."

He paused, allowing the weight of his words to settle.

"The wife he loved for ten years betrayed him."

Amelia’s eyes widened.

Lionel continued, his voice lower now. "She took nearly everything he had and ran away with his talent manager."

"The same manager who had been his best friend for years."

A heavy silence filled the room.

Lara inhaled sharply. What a cruel betrayal. To lose a spouse was painful enough. But to be betrayed by both the woman you loved and the friend you trusted most...

That was a wound capable of destroying a person. For some reason, she suddenly wanted to meet him.

"Who is he?" Lara asked.

Lionel studied her for a moment before answering.

"Sean Conley."

Lara frowned. The name sounded familiar. Very familiar.

Then a memory surfaced. Her eyes widened slightly.

Sean Conley.

She had watched one of his movies on television when she was still a child. Back then, he had been one of the biggest action stars in the country.

His face was blurry in her memory now, but she still remembered the breathtaking stunts he performed.

The impossible leaps. The death-defying fights. The fearless charisma that had captivated audiences.

"He walked away from the film industry seven years ago," Lionel said quietly. "At the absolute peak of his career."

Amelia shook her head sadly.

"I remember him too. He was my favorite actor growing up."

A nostalgic smile appeared on her face.

"He wasn’t just talented. He was ridiculously handsome."

Lionel chuckled before his expression darkened once more.

"The betrayal broke him. Not only did he lose his wife and his closest friend..."

He hesitated.

"...he later discovered that the child he had raised and loved wasn’t actually his."

The room fell silent again. Even Amelia was speechless.

No wonder Sean Conley had disappeared. No wonder he had abandoned fame.

A strange feeling had begun stirring inside her chest.

Perhaps sympathy. Or perhaps curiosity.

Some wounds simply never healed.

"Where is he now?" Lara finally asked.

Lionel’s gaze shifted toward her. He smiled faintly.

"Funny enough, it’s quite a coincidence Sean Conley retired to a small village at the foot of Mount Ourea."

Lara immediately shot him a look.

The timing was too perfect. Too convenient. As though fate itself had arranged it.

A slow smile spread across her face.

"Then let’s go meet him."

The determination in her voice left no room for argument.

Somewhere beyond Mount Ourea, a forgotten legend was living in solitude.

And Lara had a feeling that their meeting was about to change more than one life.

...

The journey to Alpha Village was surprisingly fast and smooth.

As the vehicle rolled along the paved highway, Lara gazed out the window in silence.

The sceneries looked unfamiliar and when the village finally came into view, they looked like nothing it used to be in another lifetime.

A strange ache stirred inside her chest.

If not for the mountains in the distance and the winding river cutting through the land, she would never have believed this was the same village where the Lenard family had once lived.

Back then, the roads had been nothing more than narrow dirt paths. During the rainy season, they turned into muddy trails that swallowed shoes whole. Children would run barefoot through the puddles while adults laughed and scolded them from the bamboo porches.

Now, those roads were gone.

In their place stretched smooth asphalt roads lined with streetlights and wild weeds at the side.

The old bamboo houses with woven walls and straw roofs had almost completely disappeared. Instead, rows of sturdy cement homes stood proudly beneath the afternoon sun. Some even had small gardens and painted fences.

The village had grown and long prospered.

Yet as Lara looked around, she found herself searching for traces of the past.

The old mango tree where children used to gather in the afternoon.

The open field where villagers celebrated festivals under strings of colorful lanterns.

They were gone. Time had quietly erased them.

A faint sadness settled over her heart.

Places changed. People changed.

And sometimes, when you returned after many years, the only thing left was the memory of what once existed.

The vehicle slowed near the center of the village.

Lionel lowered the window and asked a local resident for directions.

After hearing Sean Conley’s name, the villager looked confused but when Lionel showed him a photo in his cellphone, the man immediately pointed toward the far end of the settlement.

"Near the river," he said. "The house closest to the riverbank."

As they continued driving, Lara turned toward Lionel.

"Are you and him close?"

Lionel shifted awkwardly in his seat.

"Not really. We worked together on an independent film when he was just starting out."

A nostalgic smile briefly crossed his face.

"He wasn’t famous back then. Just a young actor with a dream and more determination than experience."

Lara studied him for a moment.

"Then do you think he’ll still recognize you?"

Lionel let out a short laugh.

"After all these years?"

He glanced out the window, looking less confident than before.

"Let’s find out."

The vehicle continued toward the river.

And somewhere there, hidden among the quiet riverside homes, lived a man who had once been adored by millions—and then vanished from the world without a trace.