Chapter 107: Chapter 107: Replacement

Jessie Sterling wasn’t very familiar with Aethelburg, so the group looked up some recommendations on their phones and headed straight for a nearby mall to get some barbecue.

The mall was filled with a festive holiday atmosphere. With Yvonne Rhodes joining them, the four of them took a bunch of pictures in front of a giant Christmas tree.

Meanwhile, Zoe Marx and another editor, who went by the pen name Chestnut, went looking for Shawn Stuart.

Chestnut was Shawn Stuart’s editor-in-charge. He had planned to go ask Shawn what happened at lunch, but before he could find him, he was summoned by the editor-in-chief.

The editor-in-chief of Manhui showed Chestnut what people were saying online.

“This is your artist?” the editor-in-chief asked.

A cold sweat broke out on Chestnut’s back as soon as he saw what people were discussing online.

He was a veteran editor. Even if he didn’t know every single detail, he’d heard rumors about the things Shawn Stuart had done.

But he had never gotten involved.

’After all, I’m just Shawn Stuart’s editor, not a celebrity’s manager. Am I supposed to manage the artist’s comics on the site *and* meddle in his personal life?’

Chestnut nodded.

The editor-in-chief continued, “I recall his name being on the list of award winners for this year’s conference. And like Yvonne Rhodes, he’s also supposed to be a guest presenter for the newcomer awards?”

Chestnut nodded again. “Shawn Stuart’s series, *Spirit Fire*, is in the top ten on our sales charts. He’s one of our veteran artists, on par with Yvonne Rhodes. Plus, he has a huge following on social media. Among all the artists on our site, his influence is definitely top-tier.”

The editor-in-chief asked, “So, do you think he can still show up at the conference now?”

The editor-in-chief had already gotten the full story of what had happened online. A star artist was certainly important to the site, but this artist’s reputation was now so publicly tarnished that it was known to everyone. Letting him receive an award at the conference, let alone act as a guest presenter to encourage and award newcomers, would be highly inappropriate.

Chestnut wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. “So what do we do now? Find someone to replace him?”

The editor-in-chief said, “Yes. Go have a serious talk with him. If he has any objections to how the company is handling this, tell him to come see me. And one more thing—if he gets upset and decides not to sign on for his next project with us, don’t even try to convince him to stay.”

“Huh?” This time, Chestnut was genuinely surprised. “We’re not renewing his contract?”

Their site had a clause in the contracts for top artists that granted the company priority renewal rights. On top of that, the company’s benefits were excellent and it was very well-known, so most artists would actively choose to renew for their next project.

Besides, in Chestnut’s view, while Shawn Stuart’s character was definitely questionable, his work was undeniably popular. Was it really worth negating his entire value just because of his personal life? From the company’s perspective, it would be a significant loss.

But the editor-in-chief’s intentions were crystal clear. Even if Chestnut wanted to save Shawn Stuart’s career, it was obvious the EIC wasn’t going to budge.

“His character is rotten. He was bound to cause a major incident sooner or later. It’s better for us to cut ties with him now.”

“Let’s just do it,” the editor-in-chief continued. “Go up and explain the situation to him. If he wants to leave today, we can reimburse his travel expenses. We’ll consider it a final gesture of goodwill between him and the company.”

As the editor-in-chief was sending Chestnut to find Shawn Stuart, he had Zoe Marx go along as well.

“Zoe Marx spoke with the young woman before she was signed and knows her series is just a journal of her daily life. Now look at your artist—instead of focusing on his own work, he’s busy spreading rumors online. Both of you go, and make things crystal clear to him.”

The elevator ride was awkward for both Zoe Marx and Chestnut.

They had been colleagues for years. When an artist one of them managed caused such a mess, it reflected poorly on them as editors.

When Shawn Stuart heard the knock, he still hadn’t managed to calm down.

“Go away!” he shouted from inside the room.

“Shawn, it’s me,” Chestnut said from outside.

A moment later, Zoe Marx and Chestnut heard the sound of approaching footsteps stomping down the hallway.

The door opened.

When Shawn Stuart saw Chestnut, he suddenly had a bad feeling. “Boss? What are you doing here?”

Chestnut said, “Let’s talk inside.”

Half an hour later, a grim-faced Shawn Stuart saw the two editors out.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Shawn Stuart kicked over the smart trash can by the entrance.

’…As for the company’s conference, you should probably just rest in your room for the remainder… or maybe go for a walk outside. That would be nice, too.’

’From now on, you really should be more careful about what you say and do online. You’re a public figure, after all. A mess like today’s makes everyone look bad.’

’Let’s leave it at that. If you get bored at the hotel and want to head home, just say the word. I can take you to the airport.’

“Hah!” Shawn Stuart let out a cold laugh in the empty room, muttering to himself, “Dressing it up in pretty words… don’t you just want me to get lost?!”

With that, he snatched a cup from the drink station and hurled it to the floor.

The cups at the Sanctum were good quality, but even they couldn’t withstand being smashed with such violence.

The clear glass cup instantly shattered across the carpet, sending shards flying everywhere.

Shawn Stuart reached up and touched the side of his face. He felt a smear of fresh blood on his fingertips.

A flying shard of glass had sliced open a shallow cut on his cheek.

It wasn’t deep, but beads of blood were already welling up.

He took out his phone, found a contact, and dialed the number.

“Hey. Find out where they are right now.”

After dinner, Jessie Sterling, Yvonne Rhodes, and the others were dragged to a nearby karaoke bar.

During that time, Victor Morgan called Jessie Sterling twice, but both calls went unanswered.

Victor Morgan sat on the black leather sofa, raising a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose.

“Hey now, you’re hanging out with us. Why are you staring at your phone?” Xavier Warren had been keeping an eye on Victor Morgan all day. After all, the man had initially turned down their invitation, only to show up at the tennis court that afternoon and proceed to wipe the floor with him.

Xavier Warren suspected that Victor had been shut out by his wife and was now taking all his frustration out on his buddies.

He felt like his arm was about to fall off from swinging, yet he still got completely crushed.

Xavier Warren’s comment immediately drew the attention of the other two guys in the private room to Victor Morgan.

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