The tapping stopped, and three pairs of eyes turned toward him simultaneously.
Arthur held up the notebook in his hand, his gaze sweeping across the room. "Let's wait until Kiana, Stelle, and March 7th arrive. I have a surprise to show everyone, or rather, something to do with the prologue of our first project, Honkai Impact 3rd."
Arthur's tone was calm, but a flame burned in his eyes, impossible to suppress.
"Before that, though," he looked toward Dan Heng and Bronya, "based on the direction we discussed last night, and what I have in my hands right now, I need a preliminary technical feasibility assessment on implementing '3D real-time action switching and a perfect dodge mechanic' by end of day today.
Even a theoretical breakdown will do. Don't worry about resources; just think about the logical ceiling."
Dan Heng and Bronya both looked at the thick notebook in Arthur's hands and gave a nod. "Sure."
He then turned to Mei. "Mei, I'll give you a more detailed character description shortly. I need at least a first-draft sketch of the characters' official concept art today. Something that captures their core qualities and... the underlying tension within them."
Mei responded softly, "Understood, Arthur."
She watched him, a flicker of curiosity passing through her violet eyes, though focus was the dominant expression.
"As for me," Arthur settled back into his chair, "I'll be organizing all of this into a cleaner document and filling in the details."
With the task assignments complete, the office fell silent once more. But this silence was nothing like the lifeless stillness of the day before. It was a poised, purposeful quiet, charged with clear direction. The sound of keyboards, brushstrokes, and turning pages wove together, taking on an almost orchestral quality.
The sunlight had shifted a little further, illuminating the motes of dust dancing through the air, and the quietly focused expressions on each person's face.
They were waiting for the other three teammates, and for the "surprise" Arthur had promised.
Bang!
The office door flew open, blown in by a whirlwind of energy. Kiana Kaslana burst through, her hair slightly disheveled, blue eyes still glazed with the drowsiness of someone only half-awake, a faint red crease still pressed into her cheek.
"Haaah... yawn..."
She let out an enormous, thoroughly undignified yawn and rubbed her eyes. "Morning, everyone... I'm dead tired... Arthur, where's my breakfast?"
Her gaze drifted out of habit toward Arthur's desk, but all she found were two empty containers: a sandwich wrapper and Mei's lunch box. She pursed her lips, about to complain, when the door opened again.
This time, Stelle and March 7th walked in side by side. Stelle had her signature tousled silver-gray hair and wore an expression of inexplicable excitement. March 7th waved energetically at everyone. "Good morning! The subway was packed today!"
Kiana immediately redirected her attention. "Hey, how come you two came together?"
Stelle cleared her throat, straightening up in an attempt to look more dependable. "We ran into a bit of a situation on the way. I, uh, helped out."
March 7th let out a little giggle beside her and added, "Stelle saw this old grandma struggling up the stairs with a ton of bags at the subway station. So she went over to help carry them, nearly tripped over herself in the process, and then the grandma had to catch her!"
Stelle's face fell. "Hey! March! Whatever happened to the 'heroic rescue' version of events?"
"But she was a grandma, and honestly she had way more energy than you did!"
March 7th declared this with complete confidence, then spun toward the group. "Oh, oh! I also walked my little sister, Nattia, to school this morning! She was so well-behaved!"
Arthur looked up from behind the notebook, rubbing his tired eyes, and cut through the morning chaos. "Good, everyone's here."
His gaze moved across the room: bleary-eyed Kiana, slightly flustered Stelle, and the ever-bubbly March 7th, as well as Dan Heng, Bronya, and Mei, who were already deep in work mode.
"I said I had a surprise to show everyone."
His voice was quiet, but it pulled every person's attention like a magnet.
Arthur moved to a slightly more open area in the middle of the office and used magnets to pin several key pages onto the whiteboard.
At the top, a bold heading read: Honkai Impact 3rd, Prologue Core Framework.
Below it, the board was divided into several sections: Story Overview, Main Characters, World-Building Core, and Key Scenes.
Every pair of eyes locked onto it.
Kiana was still yawning lazily, giving it a half-hearted glance, not paying it much mind. Then her gaze landed on the first name in the "Main Characters" column, along with the brief description beside it.
Kiana Kaslana
Role: Student at Senba Academy, Rank-B Valkyrie (trainee) of Schicksal, last descendant of the Kaslana bloodline.
Personality: Upbeat and outgoing, passionate and righteous, sometimes impulsive; conceals an inner uncertainty about her own destiny and a quiet longing to find her "father."
"Wait!" Kiana's half-finished yawn lodged in her throat. Her blue eyes went wide. "This... this Kiana Kaslana... that's me?"
"I used your name and certain aspects of your personality as inspiration," Arthur explained, unfazed. "She's the beginning of this story: the first Valkyrie to guide players into the world of Honkai. Brave, kind, fighting to protect others."
Kiana blinked, every trace of sleepiness gone. She stared at the description, especially the words "passionate and righteous" and "protect others," and couldn't stop the corner of her mouth from creeping upward. But she quickly schooled her expression and crossed her arms.
"Hey! Arthur! Did you even get my permission to use my name and likeness? Where are my royalties?"
Arthur had seen this coming.
He answered without missing a beat, "I definitely need your consent. But think about it, Kiana: in this story, you open the whole thing as the undisputed lead. You're the hero who saves the city. You're the first character players control, the first one they'll fall in love with. You know what that's called? That's called a legendary protagonist debut."
"A legendary protagonist debut?" Kiana tilted her head. The phrase was a little unfamiliar to her.
"The kind of character who's extraordinary from the very first moment, carrying a monumental destiny, growing stronger step by step, and ultimately becoming the one at the heart of saving the world. Brilliant, beloved by all."
Arthur put it in simpler terms. "And even though this is a story about catastrophe and combat, the spirit of it is warm. It's beautiful. It's a tribute to girls who lift each other up and fight to protect everything precious in this world. And Kiana Kaslana is the brightest light in that beautiful story."
The brightest light...
Color crept into Kiana's cheeks. She fought hard to keep the smile off her face, and lost. She folded her arms, feigning composure, and gave a deliberate little cough.
"Hmph, you certainly have a way with words... I suppose it does sound pretty good. Fine, I'll graciously allow you to use my name! But if you draw me ugly, or the story turns out to be boring, I'm coming after you!"
"Don't worry." Arthur let out a quiet breath of relief. Step one: successful.