Charles and Darwin adjusted their expressions, pushing thoughts of Eva aside. They glanced at each other, seemingly deciding who should speak first.
Finally, Charles broke the silence.
"I am Charles Withered-Flower. As you can see, beautiful lady, I am a branch member of the Withered-Flower family. Perhaps you have already met my nephew, Lancelot Withered-Flower."
"The gentleman beside me is Darwin, also a branch member of the Withered-Flower family, just like myself."
Charles's tone was humble, lacking the overbearing pressure Vieraya had exuded. As he spoke, the goldfish in his fishbowl wandered aimlessly.
However, Xu Xiaoyou sensed a different kind of arrogance from him—an incomparable haughtiness. Using the fishbowl to hide his face seemed like a way to isolate himself from the gaze of commoners and the incompetent.
The Withered-Flower family... Xu Xiaoyou’s thoughts raced. Within Universal Heavy Industries, power was split between the Five Great Families and the Supreme Council. Including Vieraya’s Starfall family, she had now seen the faces of members from three of those families.
"Speaking of which, you are the first S-rank employee to grow to this level without family support."
Winter, Withered-Flower, Starfall. It turned out that every seat in this room, besides her own, belonged to someone with a family background. It seemed that in this world full of urban legends, it was difficult for ordinary people to grow without strong backing, let alone stand out enough to be noticed by the company.
Was she the only exception?
Given her current influence and strength, she didn't believe she had any special qualities that allowed her to be mentioned in the same breath as other S-rank employees.
Why exactly was that Diamond 9 paying attention to her?
"Usually, in the first exchange meeting, we do not make demands of new members. You only need to voice your doubts, the difficulties you are currently facing, or any key items you require. We will do our best to help you solve them within our power."
Her thoughts flickered. Xu Xiaoyou really wanted to ask about that grade 5 standard-bearer, Chihong, but after weighing the options, she rationally abandoned that choice.
She wasn't sure what Charles and Darwin’s perception of her was, but after a moment of consideration, she thought of Tang Xin’s situation and spoke up.
"I need a custom evening gown. One of exquisite quality, designed by the top fashion designer on the Star of Art—a gown capable of capturing the eyes of ten thousand people on stage."
Xu Xiaoyou thought for a moment and added, "If possible, it would be best if it could be finished within the next two days."
"Forgive my incompetence," Darwin said helplessly. "My social network on the Star of Art isn't as extensive as little Viya's or Charles's."
"I happen to have a candidate in mind. However, many people seek him for custom clothing—nobles of the upper class, fixers from major agencies—he is usually very busy and might not have the time. But if you need it, I will mention you and try my best to persuade him," Charles said.
"Thank you for the trouble," Xu Xiaoyou said with a steady gaze.
"It's nothing, just a small favor. I hope you will look after us in the future as well."
"I will send his contact information to you via email later."
Charles seemed to remember something and added in a calm tone, "My nephew, Lancelot, is truly a good child—upright, brave, and selfless. Just as his name suggests, like the knights of the round table of the last queen, he has never pledged loyalty to a king, nor has he bowed to the pressure of the Meteor Hammer or those in power."
"The path he follows and the queen he protects is nothing but the justice of this world. But because of this, I worry that he will sink deeper into the quagmire of the power struggle on the Star of Art. If possible, I hope you can look after him," Charles said with a smile.
Xu Xiaoyou thought to herself that she was just a small security guard, or at most an agent for a shell company. He was the student council president of the Starry Art Academy—there was no way he needed her to look after him.
On the surface, she simply nodded out of courtesy and agreed.
The rest of the meeting seemed to cover trivial topics, but every sentence was laced with probing and hidden agendas. Xu Xiaoyou found it exhausting to keep up, but fortunately, she didn't make any blunders. Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye.
Darwin seemed to receive an important message and looked helpless. "The little family head is running around again. I'm afraid I need to head back."
Darwin stood up and chose to log out. Before leaving, a deep look flashed across the television screen serving as his head as he looked at the girl. "If you ever come to Chichutian in the future, please be sure to tell me. I will entertain you well."
With that, he turned into pale blue particles and vanished into the air.
In the dim room, only Xu Xiaoyou and Charles remained. The goldfish in the latter's bowl swam around as it looked at her. He also stood up.
"I also have some business to attend to. Let's end the meeting here. I will relay the contents to little Viya. Her personality is actually quite innocent; her arrogance is just a way to mask past pain. I hope you didn't take her words to heart."
A moment later, Xu Xiaoyou was the only one left in the room. To be precise, there was also an AI.
Just as she was about to end this brief trip to the Oasis and log out, Eva suddenly appeared before her, watching her quietly.
"Will you come back?" Eva asked an enigmatic question.
"Probably," Xu Xiaoyou replied. She was already used to Eva's special treatment of her, thinking it was perhaps due to the synergistic effects of her social cards.
If there was a necessary reason, she was certainly willing to properly experience this virtual dreamland of a hive city in the future.
Eva did something beyond her expectations. She stepped forward and gently embraced her, as if she had rehearsed the action countless times. As she held her, Xu Xiaoyou smelled the fragrance of roses.
There was no physical sensation, but she saw a vision: this gray-haired girl waiting day after day, year after year, in a small, dark room, hugging the air, rehearsing an embrace with a nonexistent figure.
She looked up, and Xu Xiaoyou saw the gray-haired girl's ethereal, untouchable face break into a human-like smile.
"I will wait for you forever," she said.
Her consciousness sank once more into the dark, deep ocean. In the midst of this dark current, the shimmering surface of the sea sparkled with fragmented light. A beam of light fell from the surface onto her body, and she saw the girl slowly drift away.
When she woke up, she suddenly felt as if she had forgotten something. She tried to remember, but couldn't find anything out of the ordinary.
She had gone to the Oasis, met an AI in the meeting room who didn't smile and wouldn't respond to anything. Then she had met three S-rank employees—a haughty young girl and two others with a television and a fishbowl on their heads, polite yet strange.
"Yuzu, you're awake?" Tang Xin happened to walk into the room. "How was it? Was it fun?"
Tang Xin’s nose twitched as she sat down next to Xu Xiaoyou and asked casually, "Why do you smell like rose perfume?"
"Rose perfume?" Xu Xiaoyou sniffed herself but didn't catch the scent the girl mentioned. She had been in this room the whole time in reality; how could she have the scent of roses on her?
"Maybe I smelled it wrong," Tang Xin didn't pay it much mind.
Just then, a new email popped up on Xu Xiaoyou’s curtain.
[Contact information for the world's most beautiful and charismatic fashion designer—Aivmey: 525A525.]
Seeing this self-indulgent personal signature, the corner of Xu Xiaoyou’s mouth twitched slightly. There was no mistake; this was that strange flavor of the people from the Star of Art.
It was likely the fashion designer Charles had mentioned earlier. Things had moved much faster than she had imagined. Xu Xiaoyou thought to herself, but when she saw the actual sender, she was a bit confused.
Eva... who was that?
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