"You probably never expected it, but the Star Emblem Knight isn't a fictional character — he was a real, great knight. My greatest wish in life is to make a true Star Emblem Knight movie."
The director took a deep breath.
He slowly looked up, gazing through the window at the sun hanging in the sky.
Today's sunlight was just like more than ten years ago. Back then, squinting against the dazzling glare, he saw the silhouette of the knight standing proudly beneath the sun.
Now, more than a decade had passed.
In his mind, the figure of that knight had blurred over time, leaving only the Star Emblem Knight he designed.
After hearing the director's story,
Nekomata couldn't help but feel a little sympathetic. "That's kind of sad, meow. Everyone else's Star Emblem Knight is already on the fifth movie, and you still haven't even filmed yours."
Anby thought for a moment and said, "I told you, the Star Emblem Knight really exists."
Billy sighed helplessly. "You're talking about the movie..."
Sam Li glanced at the director, then at Billy.
After a moment of thought,
he seemed to understand something and slowly said, "Maybe, without you even knowing, you already filmed the real Star Emblem Knight."
The director lowered his head in shame. "You don't have to comfort me. I deeply admired the Star Emblem Knight, yet I betrayed his spirit and shamelessly lied to you all. I'm sorry... But I swear, aside from the commission fee, everything I said is true."
The moment he mentioned the commission fee,
Nicole's brows immediately lifted, and her attention sharpened.
Nekomata helplessly spread her hands. "Nicole, what do we do now?"
Nicole frowned, looking at the director. "So, you're saying you want to cancel the commission?"
Hearing the word "commission,"
the director quickly raised his head, his eyes filled with pleading. "No, no! I just don't have any Dennies right now, but I'll get them soon. Just a few days ago, I found a new investor who said if he liked the Star Emblem Knight promo I made, he would invest 100 million Dennies! You heard that right — 100 million! Please help me finish shooting the promo. If the investment comes through, I'll pay you double, no, triple the commission!"
That's why he was so desperate to get the promotional film shot.
No Dennies to hire actors? Hire agents instead.
No Dennies to rent a location? Sneak into the Hollows and use the ready-made set and props.
Hearing this,
Nicole, Nekomata, and Billy all froze for a second.
Their expressions shifted, and they stared excitedly at the director.
"How much did you just say?"
"One hundred million Dennies... but only if the promo catches the investor's eye."
The director knew the investor was very picky. Securing the investment wouldn't be easy.
But he also knew — this was his last shot.
One hundred million Dennies.
It was definitely tempting.
Even though it wasn't Nicole's investment,
if it succeeded, she could get triple the commission — nine hundred thousand Dennies.
Very enticing.
Nekomata turned to Nicole. "What should we do?"
Nicole coughed lightly. "Simple. We help him finish it. We're almost done anyway. If it works out, we strike it rich. And even if the investor doesn't bite, he still owes us 300,000 Dennies."
It wouldn't be easy to get that 300,000 back.
But better than getting nothing at all.
Billy nodded. "Exactly! What a great opportunity! Too bad I'm not the one playing the Star Emblem Knight..."
Anby: "..."
Nicole looked over at Sam Li. "What about you?"
Sam Li thought for a moment. "I agree to continue. But it seems like we don't have enough props."
Hearing everyone's agreement,
the director's heart surged with hope again, his eyes practically tearing up.
"Thank you all! I knew Hare's House was different. You all have the noble spirit of the Star Emblem Knight."
"Cut the sweet talk. No amount of flattery is gonna change the fact that not even one Denney can be missing from the commission."
"I swear, whether we succeed or fail, I'll pay back every Denney. Even if I have to go move bricks at Belobog Heavy Industries, I'll repay you."
"Meow, that's funny. Nicole just happens to know someone at Belobog Heavy Industries. She can introduce you."
"Uh... well, I really think we're going to succeed..."
"..."
Although the commission terms were agreed upon again,
another problem surfaced. The promo wasn't finished yet, and the props the director had brought were running out.
Anby frowned. "Nicole, what do we do?"
Nicole looked at the director. "What's your plan? Just wing it and finish, or pack up and go home?"
The director hesitated. "Don't worry, I have a plan."
After a pause,
the director continued, "You know, the Imperial City Hollows used to be a massive film studio. There's tons of old props left behind. I happen to know where one of the prop warehouses is. If we can find it, we'll have endless supplies for filming."
As he finished speaking,
the director pulled out a damaged map from his chest.
When he spread it out,
everyone could see the location of the warehouse.
Nicole immediately frowned. "It's deep inside the Hollows? Hey, we were very clear about this. We're only supposed to shoot near the edge. Going deeper is dangerous."
Even though the Hollow seemed to be declining,
Nicole still felt something was off. If it was really declining, there shouldn't be so many Ethereals clustered around the edge.
It didn't add up.
The director pleaded again. "Please..."
Nicole shook her head. "No way."
The director kept begging. "I'll add another 100,000 Dennies to the commission!"
Nicole shook her head again. "Nope, not happening. You can't even pay the current commission. What's another 100,000 going to do? You won't be able to pay it either way."
Throwing in more Dennies wouldn't help.
The director was completely out of options. "..."
But then,
as if thinking of something, the director suddenly said, "You're a universal agency, right? You must've done Hollow Thief jobs before. There's not just performance props in that warehouse — there's old-world treasures. If you find them, they could sell for sky-high prices."
Hearing this,
Nicole finally hesitated. She had been planning to treasure hunt anyway.
But...
the warehouse was in the deepest part of the Hollows. If they ran into a powerful high-level Ethereal, she wasn't confident she could get everyone out safely.
Just as Nicole was hesitating,
Sam Li, who had been silent all this time, spoke up. "Nicole, I can feel it. There really might be treasure in that warehouse. It's a rare opportunity. I suggest we go take a look."
It wasn't the treasure he cared about.
It was the Ethereals deep inside the Hollow.
Sam Li could feel it clearly — the Hollow hadn't really declined.
The high-level Ethereals were waiting for them deep within.