"Who the hell... is that bastard!!!"

Gabriel could barely think straight for the rage and self-loathing boiling up in him.

Over the past two days, yesterday and the day before, he'd tasted a shock like none he'd ever taste again.

The party he'd always led had been ruined.

In an instant, he'd become a scarecrow.

Nothing had gone according to plan.

Daniel Jang, the Korean who'd shown up with Vivian—the bastard had abilities beyond anything Gabriel could have imagined.

At the Provence music festival, the bastard had shown off unbelievable piano skills and turned the European music world upside down in a single day.

And then the bastard had even picked up a violin bow.

"Fucking..."

Just remembering it made curses burst out of Gabriel's mouth.

With the soft Mediterranean breeze blowing, the bastard had played the violin.

It was a piece he'd never heard.

The title... was Festival of the Wind, from Heavenly Joy.

At the bright, lively first note, he'd had the illusion of riding the clouds in a cool breeze.

It had to be his own composition.

The feeling in the piece was tremendous.

The violin melody ringing out toward the Mediterranean from the hilltop villa above Marseille...

It was fantastic, dreamlike.

It didn't feel real.

He'd even had the illusion that the wind was dancing to the bastard's violin.

My God—he'd been hearing sound with his ears, and he'd seen a vision in front of his eyes.

He could almost see fairies riding the wind.

It was a solo violin sonata, but it called a whole musical to mind.

Everyone had been moved to tears.

The moment the bastard's performance ended, the violinist Ellie had run over and thrown herself into his arms.

And sobbing, she'd said thank you, thank you. She'd even blurted out that she respected him.

The Marseille mayor's son and the Chanel granddaughter he'd invited felt the same.

They'd poured out rave praise, calling him the Muse come again.

The models had been dying to get his number.

The bastard had enjoyed all of it without batting an eye.

He'd cooked alongside…