On the thirty-third floor of the company skyscraper, the entire level served as Yaqing's comfortable office space. He stood before the massive floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the stream of traffic that looked like ants below. The sunlight illuminated his face.
Having just finished a meeting, Yaqing looked over the employee files Rita had brought him.
Creative Director: Salome Jokanaan. Concept Art Department: Patrick Highsmith. Voice Acting Department: Shub-Niggurath. Post-Production: Cheng Lixue.
Yaqing couldn't help but sigh. It seemed Overseer Otto had sent over nearly all of his sister's old subordinates, except for Kira Shigure. He really didn't think Cecilia would ever return to work.
"Lord Yaqing, the planning and design proposal has been distributed. Shall I arrange for your afternoon tea now?" The sexy secretary, Rita, dressed in her OL attire, collected the employee files and design plans.
"Rita..." Yaqing said helplessly.
"Hmm~" Rita hummed lightly.
"Never mind. Let's just treat today as a chance for everyone to get acquainted. The official workflow will begin tomorrow." Yaqing picked up his suit jacket from the hanger and pocketed the car keys the driver had delivered.
"By the way, Rita, do you have a place to live?"
Rita's beautiful eyes twinkled as she let out a charming laugh. "Lord Yaqing, one shouldn't casually ask a lady about her living arrangements."
"Er..."
In the suburbs of Nagazora, the Golden Courtyard.
Elysia, an emotional advice radio host with a million fans, dressed in a pink maid outfit, stood with one hand on her hip and a feather duster in the other. She exclaimed in surprise, "Hey, Yaqing, you're back?"
Su, who was bent over with a vacuum cleaner, looked up and smiled. "Long time no see, Yaqing."
Yaqing took off his jacket, hung it on the coat rack, and gave Su a big hug.
"Long time no see, Su."
"Hey, isn't Miss Pink Elf going to get a hug?" Elysia said, feigning a pout when she saw Yaqing was still talking to Su.
Yaqing smiled helplessly, gave Elysia a quick, light hug, and then promptly separated. He rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt to his elbows and asked, "Is today a big cleaning day for the Courtyard? Is there anything I can help with?"
Elysia came up behind Yaqing, pushing him forward with a smile. "Nope~ You must be tired after coming all the way from Europe. Go get some rest. We'll have a surprise for you tonight!"
Yaqing looked completely baffled.
Tired?
He had slept the whole night on the plane.
"It's okay, Elysia, I'm not tired."
"Mmm... well... that's still not allowed, okay~?"
"Alright, alright."
Defeated, Yaqing walked up the stairs. His room was on the second floor, in a sunny spot. His neighbors to the left and right were Su and Kevin, and directly opposite was the gym that Eden had specially decorated.
"Hey, Big Bro Yaqing, you're back?!" A little catgirl with cat-ear accessories and a chubby cat perched on her head poked her head out of her room.
"Pardofelis, my room was emptied out long ago. There's only bedding left. There's no treasure," Yaqing said wearily.
"Ah, hahaha, right." Pardo laughed awkwardly. "Oh, oh, oh, Sis Elysia is calling me! Bye, Big Bro Yaqing!"
Pardo shuffled slowly past Yaqing, hugging the wall. The moment she reached the top of the stairs, she instantly sped up and vanished from his sight, startling the cat into a series of meows.
Yaqing chuckled, took out his key, and opened the door. The room was spotless. Sunlight streamed through the window onto the snow-white bedsheets, and a faint, pleasant fragrance lingered in the air. It didn't look like it had been vacant for three years at all.
For some reason, as if guided by a phantom impulse, Yaqing opened the closet. The corner of his mouth twitched.
As expected. Inside was Elysia's pink dress meant for Mobius, Kevin's instant noodles, Eden's jewels, Su's old notebooks, Kosma's figurines... and even... Mobius's little black panties?!
"What is all this stuff?" Yaqing didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Pardo had clearly been using his room as her personal warehouse.
He closed the closet door. It was better to let Pardo deal with it herself.
Lying on the soft bed felt like resting on a cloud, and it carried a fresh scent. He took out his phone and called Otto.
Otto picked up the moment the call connected. Hearing the sound of a TV drama and Kallen munching on chips in the background, Yaqing said, "Overseer Otto, I've already met with Theresa."
"Yaqing, my little Theresa is still as cute as ever, isn't she? I imagine so. How was it? She wasn't angry that her grandpa didn't tell her in advance, was she?" Otto's voice was as gentlemanly as ever, like an old British gentleman with a terrible translated accent.
"Overseer, Theresa is indeed as petite as always. She wasn't angry with you, just worried you wouldn't give her an allowance anymore," Yaqing chuckled.
"Hahaha, tell little Theresa not to worry."
"Is that little Yaqing?" A muffled, curious voice came from the other end of the line.
"Yes, Yaqing. Kallen wants to talk to you," Otto said with a laugh.
"Little Yaqing, little Yaqing!"
"Yes, it's me, Big Sis Kallen," Yaqing said, a genuine smile in his voice.
"Why did you have to go all the way to the Far East? Big Sis Kallen will be sad not being able to see you. You have to make your anime quickly, okay? Big Sis Kallen believes in your talent. The TV shows nowadays aren't very good."
"I will, Big Sis Kallen."
"Crunch. Okay, you can continue talking business with Otto now."
Hearing the crunch of chips again from the other end, Yaqing continued, "Overseer Otto, my script is missing a villain. I want you to be that villain."
"What kind of villain?" Otto's tone was still full of amusement, impossible for anyone to read his true thoughts from his voice alone.
"A fool. A fool who, after the death of his beloved Saintess, would stop at nothing to bring her back to life."
After Yaqing finished speaking, the other end of the line fell silent for a moment.
"Tell me more in detail."
Yaqing began to narrate the story, from five hundred years ago to the start of the main storyline of the Third Honkai Eruption. His mouth grew dry as time flew by, and soon, the sky had turned dark.
"A character profile like that... I find it hard to refuse. Yaqing, you are a genius. It's a shame there's no Honkai in this world. Or perhaps... if Kallen had truly left me, I really would have become that person," Otto's voice was filled with an unreadable mix of countless emotions.
"Thank you for your praise."
"I'm looking forward to it."
After hanging up, Yaqing heard the lively sounds from downstairs.
"Yaqing, everyone's back!" Elysia called out.
"Okay!"
...
Golden Courtyard Building Layout:
First Floor: Large living room, music room, kitchen, bar, billiards room, and other entertainment rooms.
Second Floor: Kevin's Room → Yaqing's Room → Su's Room → Kalpas's Room → Kosma's Room, Gym.
Third Floor: Griseo's Family Room (2-in-1) → Mobius's Room → Mei's Room → Sakura Sisters' Room → Pardofelis's Room, Movie Theater.
Fourth Floor: Elysia's Room → Eden's Room → Vill-V's Room → Fu Hua's Room → Senti's Room.
Attic: Aponia's Room.