"Here's the situation. Our crew is filming the promotional video for Star Emblem Knight 5: Hollow Rescue. Not long after shooting began, the actor playing Star Emblem Knight fell ill. We urgently need someone to step in and play Star Emblem Knight. I saw you—you're handsome, well-mannered, upright, powerful—you fit the image perfectly. Please, help us and take this commission."
The middle-aged man speaking was none other than the famous director of the Star Emblem Knight movie series.
But right now,
he looked utterly humble, like he was terrified Sam Li would turn him down.
Before Sam Li could answer,
the director quickly added,
"I saw the reviews about you guys on the forum! I heard Hare's House has the best skills, best service, and never mistreats clients. That's why I came to you..."
As he spoke, the director avoided Sam Li's gaze.
It was obvious he was lying.
He had probably already gone to several agencies, got rejected everywhere, and finally had no choice but to come crawling to Hare's House.
The director went on showering Hare's House with empty praise.
If this had happened before, Sam Li might have believed him a little.
But now that he had a phone, Sam Li had personally checked the forum—
nine out of ten posts about Hare's House were complaints, and the last one was just someone asking who they even were.
Anyone who had browsed the forum knew Hare's House had a terrible reputation.
But Sam Li didn't care about any of that.
He looked calmly at the director and said,
"Please explain the details of the commission."
The director brightened and quickly said,
"It's simple. Like I said, we're shooting a promo for Star Emblem Knight 5: Hollow Rescue. To make it more realistic, we've decided to film inside an actual Hollow. The Imperial City Hollow has just entered a decline, so we'll shoot there—ready-made scenery, ready-made props..."
Seeing Sam Li remain silent,
the director hurriedly continued,
"I can pay 50,000 Dennies upfront as a deposit. After the job's done, another 250,000 Dennies. That's 300,000 Dennies in total. Pretty generous, right?"
Sam Li nodded.
"We accept. Please transfer the deposit to Hare's House's account."
Without another word,
Sam Li picked up his birdcage and turned to leave.
Behind him, the director called out,
"It's a deal! I'll transfer it right away. See you tomorrow morning at 8:30 outside the Imperial City Hollow! And remember—stay out of sight of the security personnel!"
...
While Sam Li was making his way back to Hare's House with the birdcage,
inside Hare's House—
Nicole was sprawled on the sofa, phone in hand, digging up all the information and rumors she could find about the Imperial City Hollow.
"Not bad, not bad at all. I'm telling you, there's definitely treasure inside. Undiscovered treasure! Anby, Billy, Nekomata—stop standing around. Help me find more info about the Hollow's treasure!"
"Nicole Boss, I just checked. There are rumors of high-level Ethereals inside."
"Meow! I checked too. They say there's a Notoriety Ethereal."
"Nicole, I don't think the Imperial City Hollow is that simple. The collapse might just be an illusion. I don't recommend going in."
"I don't want to take risks either! But Hare's House is out of food! You guys already ate the last mackerel and the last burger! If we don't find a way to make some Dennies, we're going to starve to death!"
Nicole grumbled as she took screenshots of every scrap of treasure-related info she could find.
She fully intended to dig up every last bit of treasure once they got there.
"Billy, get me some water. And check the glass properly this time."
"Got it, Nicole Boss."
After spending half the morning gathering data,
Nicole finally had a pile of information ready.
Just then—
Ding ding ding—her phone buzzed.
Annoyed, she muttered,
"Ugh, busy here. Who's messaging me? Blocked."
But after glancing at the screen,
Nicole's eyes widened and she broke into a huge grin.
"Fifty thousand Dennies! Ahahaha! Who's the sweet little angel who just dropped fifty thousand Dennies into my account?"
She hugged her phone and kissed it.
"It must be Sam Li! He must've landed another commission!"
Billy looked puzzled.
"But didn't you just say he didn't get any?"
Nicole shrugged happily.
"That was then. This is now. Sam Li's not lazy like you lot. He even picks up commissions on his way home."
No sooner had she finished praising him
than Nekomata spotted Sam Li walking in.
"Nicole, Sam Li's back!"
Birdcage in hand,
Sam Li strolled into Hare's House.
Nicole shoved Billy off the sofa and patted the empty seat beside her.
"Sam Li, we were just talking about you! Come, sit here and tell us about the commission you picked up."
Billy: "..."
Sam Li: "..."
Sam Li sat down, setting the birdcage on the table.
Without wasting time,
he told them about running into the director of Star Emblem Knight.
"The director's preparing to shoot Star Emblem Knight 5: Hollow Rescue and wants to film a promo first in the Imperial City Hollow. Their lead actor got sick, so they hired Hare's House. The commission is for me to step in and play Star Emblem Knight. Total pay is 300,000 Dennies. That fifty thousand you saw was the deposit."
Everyone's eyes lit up.
Nicole was thrilled about the fee.
It sounded like a simple enough commission, and yet the pay was amazing.
Billy, on the other hand, was overjoyed at the thought of playing Star Emblem Knight.
As a die-hard fan, he never imagined he might get the chance.
"Yo, Sam Li, tell me when we're starting! I can't wait!"
Billy twisted his waist and struck a classic Star Emblem Knight pose.
But—
Nekomata cautiously said,
"Uh, Billy, I think you heard wrong. Sam Li said he was the one chosen to play Star Emblem Knight."
"What?! I'm not playing Star Emblem Knight? No way! Who else fits the role better than me? Sam Li, say the commission details again!"
"The client asked me to play Star Emblem Knight."
Billy froze for a second.
"You heard that, Nekomata? Sam Li said—wait—me to play...? Sam Li to play?!"
...