“Tomorrow is the designated signing day, Lord Radiant Order.”

Radiant Order looked at the documents in his hand.

Over the past couple of days, Croft had been acting as if he had Starlight Illusion in the bag, not reaching out to talk at all.

After all, even though everyone contributed to the production—the entire design framework, right down to the final content additions—it was Croft who took the lead.

So even bickering over details wouldn’t resolve anything in a day or two.

Meanwhile, Starlight Illusion couldn’t afford to wait that long.

Gong Huanwu said helplessly, “Let’s just accept this loss. The influence of a designer from the Magic Elite Hall is immense; if he puts out word, it may be difficult for us to get other designers to leave the Fate Track and come here to oversee construction.”

Radiant Order nodded.

She picked up her pen, swiftly signed her ornate name on the document, and handed it to Officer Gong Huanwu waiting nearby, asking him to submit it to the company.

……

Late at night, in a dim and quiet ancient room, a woman’s silhouette suddenly emerged.

Huan Bao’er’s Psychic Body transitioned from translucent to a solid form of flesh and blood.

The long screen embedded in the deep wall suddenly shifted from stillness to dim, flickering light. A illusory eye opened, as if just waking from sleep.

{Director Hong, why are you being so sneaky?}

“Please submit this arena project proposal to the council for review, quickly.”

{Arena project?}

On the old screen, the illusory eye glanced at the woman with curiosity. Then, on the platform before it, a piece of scaled armor clicked and lifted, revealing an interface. A device the width of two fingers was plugged in.

A faint, buzzing hum arose, then subsided quickly.

{All information has been transmitted to the Holy Ring Council of the new Fate Track.}

Huan Bao’er let out a long sigh.

Having done everything humanly possible, it is now left to fate.

……

It was once again the dark, Gothic-style grand meeting hall where the midnight session was convened.

At this moment, the lights were bright, with several chairs arranged behind the decorated signing table directly ahead.

Below sat some team members and officers involved in this matter, along with other employees of the Starlight Illusion, gathered around the beverage tables in the venue conversing. Although the process had not been pleasant, and the outcome was already unchangeable, they might as well keep handling the tasks that needed to be done properly.

Hence, the atmosphere at this signing ceremony was still quite pleasant.

Croft entered through the main door and headed straight for the signing table. Gong Huanwu smiled and guided him to take a seat first.

“A few more minutes, please wait a moment,” Gong Huanwu said.

“Mm.”

Croft nodded without even lifting his eyes, paying no heed to the murmurs from below.

In less than two minutes, the Radiant Order also approached with a beaming face.

Today, the woman was dressed in a crisp gauze blouse and wide-leg trousers, draped in a small jacket, with a simple little bow tied at her chest, exuding the look of a vibrant, young new employee in the office.

After taking her seat behind the long table with the contract in hand, the Radiant Order smiled and spoke softly and calmly:

“Officer, if someday your experiences were turned into a memoir of a hero, would you hope someone would read it?”

Croft pursed his lips.

“I’m not exactly a legitimate member of the ‘Preservation Society.’ My desire is to choose new possibilities for the world. So, let the past be drowned in history; the world needs new history… Mm, let’s not talk about this today.”

The Radiant Order curled the corners of her mouth slightly.

This old fellow, it turns out his skin isn’t thick enough to the point of complete shamelessness after all.

Gong Huanwu hurried over, “It’s almost ten o’clock. Shall we get started?”

The signing table had four chairs, but at this moment, only two were occupied.

Radiant Order glanced at the door; Huan Bao’er hadn’t arrived yet.

“Let’s get ready.”

“Ladies and gentlemen!” Gong Huanwu straightened up and addressed the observing crowd in the venue, “Welcome all to witness our first Demon Glory Hall application ceremony since the restart of this Fate Track here at Starlight Illusion. In ten minutes, our signing ceremony will begin.”

Some other staff members walked in from the entrance, shook hands with Croft one by one, and then took their seats behind two tilted tables nearby.

Croft looked at the two chairs beside him, his brow slightly furrowed.

This chair originally belonged to a representative from the Upper Council of Fate Track and was also his friend, Secretary Xiyun’s seat. But he hadn’t arrived yet.

Radiant Order also glanced at the chair beside himself; it belonged to Huan Bao’er. Although Huan Bao’er was on leave, it would still be proper etiquette for her to be present at this time.

They both looked at each other’s empty seat. Croft narrowed his eyes and quickly made a decision, saying:

“Hmph, forget it. Just let it be. Let’s begin.”

“There are still five minutes left. Not going to wait a bit more?”

“Do we have to end up losing face till the very end? Let’s finish early. If they come later, that’s best. If not, I’m just giving you an out.”

“Well… alright.”

Radiant Order signaled Gong Huanwu that he could begin.

Officer Gong sighed to himself—the design and construction of the Magic Elite Arena this time had been a total mess from start to finish.

Forget it, just let it fall apart like this, he muttered inwardly.

The man stepped forward, a smile spreading across his face as he raised his hand. “The inaugural signing ceremony of the Starlight Illusion Magic Elite Arena begins now—”

“Wait!”

A voice rang out from the doorway.

Croft’s furrowed brow twitched—just as he had feared, something had gone wrong.

The entire hall-like conference room, housing over a thousand people, turned to look at the entrance.

Officer Montague, slightly out of breath, brushed a hand over his suit to smooth it, then calmly strode through the doorway and said to the staff member standing there, “Hurry up, add a chair.”

Several people in the corridor quickly carried obviously more luxurious chairs toward the doorway. The staff, caught off guard by the situation, had no choice but to assist, lifting them toward the signing stage.

Montague followed the group as they strode briskly toward that area.

Radiant Order froze, “Officer Montague, what is this—”

“Chief Executive, please step aside for a moment. We need to rearrange the venue.”

“Rearrange the venue?!”

Montague didn’t have time to explain to Chief Executive Radiant Order. He nodded in deference, then walked with a smile to stand before the grim-faced, blue-skinned Croft.

“Mr. Dwight, please move aside for a moment. We need to reposition the setup.”

“Why!” Croft clutched the contract in his hand, urgently saying, “I think we can sign right now. There’s no need for all this ceremonial fluff—just give me a pen.”

“No, the venue must be rearranged to avoid a breach of etiquette. After all, this is the first time Starlight Illusion is officially signing with the Demon Hero Hall. Everything will be recorded in history.”

“This…” Croft’s face flickered with uncertainty. “Fine.”

The moment the odd man stood up, the chair behind him was swiftly removed by Montai without a second’s delay.

Then, another person waiting nearby respectfully placed a more luxurious chair.

“Right this way, please.”

Montai gestured toward a table slightly off to the side, guiding Croft, who remained standing on the ground.

Clutching the contract in his claws, Croft slowly looked up at Montai. “Right that way?”

“What is this all about?” Radiant Order walked over quickly, shock and anxiety evident on her face.

Montai straightened up and looked at her. “The esteemed Steward will arrive shortly.”

Radiant Order’s eyes lit up with an incredible glimmer.

“Master is coming.”

“So it’s the Steward arriving. No wonder it’s so grand.”

Croft let out a cold laugh.

“What, has your Green Crown of the Lotus passed review?”

Officer Montai smiled. “No, it was rejected—you know that.”

Croft thought for a moment. His friends hadn’t informed him of any new Demon Hero Hall projects passing review in the past two days.

The confidence in his heart was reborn:

“This is an insult, Lord Director. You are insulting me, insulting the entire Magic Crest Hall design industry. Your reputation will be tarnished forever in this field.”

“No, Director Croft. We are inviting you to witness our moment of honor. For you, this is a privilege.”

“You—!”

Croft, enraged, pointed his finger at the person before him.

Utter humiliation!

The Radiant Order stared in shock at Mengxi. The ring on her chest glowed, and a broken line shot into Mengxi’s chest in full view of the strange man.

The two were connected by a thread as faint as a strand of hair.

Croft’s forehead was practically steaming with anger.

[Mengxi, what are you up to!]

{I am informing you, Order Director, that the upcoming signing ceremony will be conducted personally by Steward Gu.}

[Lord Gu is signing with whom? Has he found a suitable Magic Crest Hall in the new Fate Track?]

{No, he hasn’t.}

Just then, Huan Bao’er ran to the entrance. The Radiant Order, sensing something, turned around and saw her twin sister standing sideways to the corridor, speaking softly: “Lord Gu, this way, please.”

A figure of distinguished and transcendent bearing appeared before everyone’s eyes.

“Steward Gu has arrived～”

In the Radiant Order’s view, that figure turned toward her with a clear, pure gaze and gave a faint smile.

Steward Gu slightly turned aside. “Mr. Jin, please come inside.”

With that, he stepped forward and walked toward the signing stage.

Then, to Radiant Order’s disbelief, Director Gu personally turned to invite another person inside, and even Huan Bao’er slightly bowed in a welcoming gesture.

The man behind him looked quite ordinary, yet he carried an undeniable presence. The moment he appeared, he seemed to fade everything else in the world into the background, compelling everyone’s gaze to focus instinctively on this ordinary middle-aged figure.

Radiant Order’s heart trembled. She immediately stepped down from the signing table and stood by the aisle with a smile.

Croft, who had just sat down in a corner seat by a small table with a sullen face, saw that figure—one that should never have appeared—walk in through the door.

“Oh my god, I actually get to see Director Gu in person.”

“And who is that Mr. Jin?”

Two more people entered from the door. Croft’s eyes tightened slightly—one of them was none other than his friend Xiyun, who was originally supposed to come.

At that moment, the sharp-nosed, sharp-eared green-skinned man, who looked quite similar to Croft, was carrying a bag and following behind Mr. Jin. Originally meant to be a witness, he had now become this man’s little lackey.

Seeing Croft’s gaze, the strange, bag-carrying man averted his eyes slightly, meeting his for a brief moment, and gave a subtle shake of his head.

Croft’s heart turned cold.

He knew that this signing had nothing to do with him anymore.