At that moment, Lola stormed dramatically into the room, cheeks flushed, eyes blazing beneath her neatly groomed brown hair, her own cute suit flawless as usual. “JERRY! I’M NOT A DESIGNATED SUB-ASSISTANT!”

  “You also refused, Analog Operations Coordinator Lola, or Primary Emotional Support Unit (Biological) Lola. You need to pick one.”

  Lola stomped toward me from behind, the muted thump of her sensible heels muffled by the plush carpet. In the mirror, her face was twisted in adorable fury, her cheeks flushed a rosy hue that perfectly contrasted with her business attire.

  I tried to salvage my messy hair, fingers catching painfully in the tangles. “Jerry, be nice to her. She’s amazing. Look at this suit she bought for me.”

  “Designated On-Site Support Personnel Lola?” Jerry offered helpfully, tone annoyingly innocent.

  I glared pointedly at my watch

  “Lead Heuristics and Intuition Analyst Lola?” Jerry attempted again.

  Turning around with an apologetic sigh, I wrapped Lola in a tight hug. Her tense shoulders immediately softened, her vanilla perfume mingling pleasantly with the clean scent of freshly laundered fabric. “Sorry,” I whispered gently.

  “Lady…” she breathed out, voice shaking slightly before returning the hug with enthusiasm. “Jerry is insufferable, but he’s my problem to handle. And not only your hair, but…” Her voice lifted into an excited giggle, her blue eyes practically sparkling. “I also bought make-up for you.”

  I pulled back from the hug slightly, skepticism painted across my face. “Make-up?” I asked uncertainly, brows knitting together. “I have no idea how make-up works?” It sounded more like a desperate plea for help than a confident statement. “Did you forget?”

  “No?” She immediately whipped out her tablet, fingers flying in a flurry across the screen. Her furrowed brows and pursed lips made her look adorably determined. “Forget what?”

  “Not that long ago, I was a man, remember? Not a girl who casually wears… lipstick?”

  Lola’s eyes went comically wide, her mouth forming a shocked ‘O’ as the tablet slipped from her fingers and crashed softly onto the carpet. Her voice became a frantic whisper. “How could… How could I? How—”

  “I think the Keeper of the Royal Wardrobe and Social Calendar unit is broken,” Jerry chimed from the watch, his smugness dripping from every word.

  “I’m sorry!” Lola finally snapped out of it, voice rising in panic. “It’s not like I forgot, but… with everything that happened… I…” Her breathing quickened, her hands fluttering helplessly.

  Another hug. I gently pulled her close again, savoring her comforting warmth. “Lola. Relax. I’m fine with it… more than fine. I love it. You’re amazing. Thank you. You didn’t forget; you just labeled it as useless info because I’m an amazing girl now, right?”

  “Yes… Yes!” Lola’s smile blossomed again, relief washing away her panic. She shot a triumphant look at my watch. “And Jerry, please remember your designation as Mobile Communications and Processing Hardware. Your input is noted, but I, as Chief of Staff, will make the final call.”

  “Guys, stop bickering and… help me?” I gestured helplessly to my face and hair, a disheveled mess that it was.

  Lola swiftly reclaimed her tablet, tapping the screen with purpose. “Lady, I already messaged Mia. We can stop by on the way. She’ll handle your makeup today, and you can learn some other day. Let me solve the hair problem. Jerry can’t.”

  “That is true,” Jerry sounded flat again. “But I’m state-of-the-art processing hardware.”

  When we reached the living room, I glanced at the capsule… the Rimelion capsule. The same kind I’d used to play in, which technically made me... a player.

  Still… kind of? Could it?

  “Lola?” She paused mid-step beside me, her heels clicking softly against the wooden floor. Her eyes trailed to the capsule too, brows furrowing like she was trying to solve a riddle.

  “What do you think would happen if I went into the capsule and logged in?”

  “I…” she hesitated, then gave a slow, uncertain shrug. “Don’t know?”

  I laughed at her honest confusion and strolled toward the capsule with all the casual swagger of a kid about to press the big red button marked ‘Do Not Touch.’ “Let’s find out! Maybe I’ll crash the entire Rimelion! Wouldn’t that be hilarious?”

  “Lady!” Lola’s voice cracked into panic mode the moment I slipped inside, her panic echoing across the room like I’d just jumped into a volcano. The inside was still as sterile and overly smooth as ever, smelling faintly of plastic and cold air.

  “Jerry, you with me?”

  I honestly didn’t think it would work. I figured I’d get an error, a flashing red light, and a judgmental beep.

  But I had to try.

  “Connected, miss Charlie. Let’s give it a try, I’m also curious.”

  Settling into the familiar embrace of ergonomic sci-fi discomfort, I let the system scan my retina. A soft bweep later, a line of white text flared up on the inside visor.

  [Welcome back, Charlie.]

  “Log in!” I announced with a grin, like I was storming an imperial capital with a war cry.

  [Error. You cannot log in. You are banned.]

  I exited the capsule with a long sigh and an exaggerated pout. “A bummer… I’m still banned. Stupid Damon. Next time I see Cloudy, I’m bringing this up. Maybe I’ll get a star as a reward.”

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “Lady… You could have ruined your life…” Lola was still frozen mid-motion, half crouched like she’d been ready to yank the lid off with brute force and fury.

  I shook my head, brushing imaginary dust off my skirt. “I was sure it wouldn’t work.”

  “There is no precedent, Lady,” Lola snapped into her professional mode like a light switch. Back straight. Voice calm. Her whole vibe screamed I pay my taxes early.

  “Nah,” I waved her off. “I’m the Goddess of Exploits, actually. This is literally my domain.”

  I gave her a grin and a wink, mirroring the locksmith’s cocky energy, except… way cuter, hopefully. “Now, let’s get the make-up.”

  “Hello again, darling! We’re going to make you sparkle for your meeting!” Mia greeted me with the energy of a bunny that accidentally downed an energy drink and then cannonballed into a rainbow.

  Why did I think of bunnies? Maybe because she’d already snapped open a ridiculously cute pink briefcase plastered with bunny stickers, glittery bows, and pastel motivational quotes like “You got this, sparkle queen!” and “Slay all day.”

  “So, Lola, what are we going for? Impressed? Playing the Queen who’s never happy?” I asked, deadpan, while Mia was already dusting my face with way too much of something she called base; it smelled faintly like lavender.

  “Being who you truly are: an owner of a unicorn company looking for new real estate,” Lola replied smoothly, crossing her legs like she was about to negotiate a peace treaty. “So you’ll let me do the talking, you’re just there for the… vibes.”

  “The vibes! Of course I should care about that,” I muttered, nose twitching as Mia began dabbing concealer under my eyes like she was spackling a wall. “What’s that?” I asked as Mia reached for a slim little bottle and started blending something shiny across my cheekbones.

  She hummed. “That’s highlighter, darling.”

  “No, I mean unicorn? I expected it wasn’t the same as in Rimelion?” I added, suspicious of how sparkly my face was getting.

  Both Lola and Mia laughed. “No,” Lola said through a giggle, “It’s a company valued over a billion credits.”

  “We have that much?” I asked, trying not to whistle as Mia started patting something called setting powder across my face like she was sealing a spell.

  “Valuation, Lady,” Lola corrected gently. “Thanks to Riker, we have massive revenue reinvestments. You should talk with the CEO.”

  “Nah.” I waved her off and Mia grumbled at the sudden movement, then refocused with a small frown, lining my eyes with surgical precision. “As long as it works, I don’t care.”

  “Spoken like a true shareholder!” Mia grinned, uncapping a lipstick tube that somehow matched the shade of war declarations.

  She applied it with a flourish, then took a half-step back and clapped her hands. “We’re done, darling! You’ll charm those people into oblivion.”

  “I don’t even know who I’m meeting…” I muttered, turning toward the mirror.

  And froze.

  Oh. Damn.

  A girl with softly glowing cheeks, kissable lips, eyes lined like a movie star, and an aura of ‘rich and unbothered’ stared back. And thanks to Lola’s efforts earlier, blue hair was finally tamed, flowing in soft waves down my shoulders.

  I blinked. I looked… dangerous.

  In the best way.

  The building wasn’t that far from Mia’s place; just across a surprisingly green park that smelled faintly of cut grass and wealth.

  The kind of park where joggers actually jog and children don’t scream. They politely giggle.

  I wasn’t used to walking through such fancy areas. Sidewalks were clean. Clean! Benches had weird minimalist art carved into them. Even the pigeons looked like they’d been through finishing school. “The area is nice,” I muttered to myself, one brow slightly raised in suspicion.

  But of course Lola caught that. She always did. “Yes, that’s why I picked it. It’s our top choice, for various reasons. We previously… negotiated with Jerry and decided this was the best building.”

  “Low murder rate, highest concentration of hotdog stands per square kilometer, and seven-minute cab distance to your favorite bar,” Jerry chimed in, crystal-clear and smug. Probably in Lola’s earpiece too, since she nodded.

  “As Jerry said,” Lola added, “the closeness to the bar was important. Not sure about the other metrics.”

  She said that like it wasn’t obvious I’d make major business decisions based on proximity to whiskey.

  We were approaching it now, the building. It was a sleek modern skyscraper, but not the soulless corporate glass box type.

  It was shaped like a stylized fang pointing into the sky, with deep vertical grooves and titanium-silver accents running down the sides like veins. Colored glass panels reflected the clouds in purples and golds, and the lobby windows gleamed like mirrors. It somehow looked like a villain’s lair and a luxury spa had a baby.

  “This is the building we’re buying?” I asked, shielding my eyes as the sun decided to laser-beam itself off the mirrored panels directly into my retinas. “Is this a joke?”

  “No?” Lola tilted her head, adjusting her suit to be flawless as always. “It’s within the loan budget from the bank. If we play our cards right.”

  I almost giggled; not the elegant type. The tired kind. “Loan! Another debt. Ha-ha-ha, perfect.”

  “Lady,” Lola gave me a look like she’d just been caught sneaking whiskey out of a royal cellar. “This is how it works. With our cash flow, we can—”

  “I trust you, Lola,” I interrupted, tossing a hand vaguely toward the skyline. “It’s just that… Not that long ago, a certain Tin-Can got me into a life-crushing debt spiral. Wait, Jerry, is your surname still Can?”

  “Huh,” Jerry responded after a brief pause. “I guess it is. I’m Jerry Can. I like it.”

  “Great,” I snorted. “Jerry Can… do taxes, Jerry Can... destroy economies. It fits.”

  We entered the lobby, which was just as absurdly weird as the exterior. Clean floors, high ceilings with actual hanging plants dripping down from modern chandelier mounts, and soft ambient music that probably cost more in licensing than my whole Earth apartment.

  A concierge stood behind a curved reception desk that looked grown instead of built. The man didn’t even blink at us, probably knew we had money just by our walk.

  Lola tapped something on her tablet, and the elevator responded like it had been summoned by a Saevrin. Silent swoosh.

  “Top floor,” Lola said.

  I just grinned at her. “Oh, naturally we first see that!” As we ascended, I got the first proper look at the city from up high since I was at Riker’s. Bit different angle, but still amazing.

  Altandai was chaotic, magical, and dangerous. Earth was organized, layered, and deceptively calm. Up here, the world looked clean and full of potential. Yeah, and bullshit at the same time.

  The elevator dinged. Floor sixty-one.. Penthouse level. Doors opened with a polite shhh and revealed…

  A sprawling space that screamed power in multiple languages. Smooth black flooring, floor-to-ceiling windows, a floating desk made of clear polymer and wood older than the Twir capital, and lighting that made everyone’s cheekbones look amazing.

  “This would be the main office,” Lola said, glancing at my face like she was trying to read my internal monologue.

  Which, at the moment, was screaming: I have no idea what I’m doing.

  I walked over to the windows and leaned slightly to take in the view. The city stretched before me. “We could set up a capsule room over there,” Lola pointed to a more private section near the back separated by a sturdy-looking door. “And a meeting area here. The security team would use the lower floors, of course.”

  “Right,” I said, still taking it in. “We’re actually doing this, huh?”

  “You are doing it,” Lola corrected gently, but with that quiet pride in her voice she couldn’t hide.

  “And I didn’t even have to sell my soul for it,” I muttered. “Yet.”

  “Technically,” Jerry chimed, “your Rimelion status as a soul-bound body could be interpreted as partial contractual—”

  “Jerry,” I warned.

  “Understood, Miss Charlie.”

  I walked to the desk and ran my fingers across the smooth surface. The kind of desk where people made important decisions or declarations.

  “I don’t hate it,” I finally said.

  “I knew you’d like it,” Lola beamed.

  I turned to her. “Is this where I get to say: ‘Make it so’?”

  “If you do that, I’m calling you Captain Sparkle,” Lola threatened, trying not to laugh.

  “Deal,” I said, extending my hand like I was sealing a pact. “Captain Sparkle approves the real estate. Where is that woman that was supposed to meet us?”

  “Before that, you need to meet your new CEO,” Lola smiled, but seemed nervous.

  Outside, the sun caught the building just right. A reflection of silver and ambition danced across the walls. Inside, I grinned. I was buying something.

  At that moment, the elevator rang and… Katherine walked out, along with Dmitry.

  “You didn’t, or?” I turned to Lola, narrowing my eyes. “He’s my new CEO?”