After the lively celebration banquet, it was exactly as Ichin had promised—the company went on a full week of vacation.

And not just any vacation, but paid leave.

With Persona selling so well, Ichin wasn't going to be stingy. Along with the paid holiday, he also planned to hand out bonuses with mid-month salaries. Of course, he didn't announce that part yet—better to save the surprise for payday so everyone could be even happier.

While the employees enjoyed their break, Ichin headed back to the office building. He met with the building managers to rent out the empty space right next to their current office.

Compared to searching for a new place elsewhere in Tokyo, this was perfect.

The rental went smoothly—he signed the contract the very same day, locking it in for two years along with their current lease.

With the space secured, equipment wasn't immediately urgent. Ichin contacted a PC supplier he'd worked with before and reserved a batch of gear in advance.

---

At home, Ichin sat in front of his computer, resting his chin on one hand as he looked at the recruitment posts on the screen.

"Hiring, huh. Both Tokyo and Shanghai need more people."

Utaha, sitting beside him while nibbling on a crepe she had just bought, tilted her head.

"Do you really need to hire so many, Ichin? Between both sides, that's close to a hundred people."

"Mm, about that many." Ichin nodded.

"Shanghai's studio is still too small—they need more staff. I've emphasized they should prioritize candidates with design experience. Hopefully, our company's recent success will attract some seasoned developers. Hazuki's team, which will handle Battle Block Theater, doesn't need too many—around twenty will be enough. The rest have to be committed to developing Dark Souls. As for Shanghai, their focus will be Titanfall and Apex."

"Shanghai is handling those?" Utaha asked in surprise, pointing to a group photo from the banquet on the table.

"But didn't Umiko say she wanted to be part of that project?"

"Exactly. Which means when the project starts, Umiko will probably be traveling there."

"Traveling? Seriously? She agreed?"

Ichin nodded.

"Yeah, I spoke to her. She agreed readily. And don't worry—since the studio's in Shanghai, my mom already knows Umiko. If she does move there, I'll arrange an apartment close to our family home for her. Her Chinese is improving fast too. She's still a bit rough, but once she's living in that environment, she'll pick it up quickly."

"I see. If that's what Umiko wants herself, then it's fine."

Utaha understood. It was the best arrangement, after all. Ichin planned to personally lead Dark Souls, which meant someone else had to head Titanfall. Letting the Shanghai team handle it was the smartest option—they were more than capable.

Stretching, Ichin leaned over to steal a bite of her crepe.

"Don't worry. It's just a temporary relocation. It's not like she'll be stuck there forever. If anyone wants to visit, it's just a quick trip. A two-hour flight, tops."

He wasn't wrong. The distance wasn't far—visits would be easy.

---

Near evening, Ichin was busy preparing dinner in the kitchen when Yagami, Rin, and Umiko arrived at the dorm.

After spending two days at Yagami's place, Rin had returned over the weekend, and today they'd decided to drop by for food.

Utaha stopped Rin from sneaking into the kitchen to help and instead pulled her, Yagami, and Umiko into the living room for girl talk.

Pouring tea for them, Utaha turned to Umiko.

"Umiko-san, I heard from Ichin earlier—you really agreed to take the assignment in Shanghai?"

"Huh?"

"Assignment?"

Yagami and Rin were hearing this for the first time. Both stared at Umiko in surprise.

Umiko, calm as always, nodded.

"Of course. You know I've always wanted to work on a great FPS. Now that Ichin's developing Titanfall, of course I want to be involved. And it's just Shanghai, not some far-off country. If I want, I can come back once a month—or even every two weeks."

Her words left Yagami and Rondo with nothing to say.

It was true. This had always been her dream. A short-term relocation wasn't unreasonable. They'd visited Shanghai before too—the environment was good, and Umiko's Chinese was solid enough that adapting wouldn't be a problem.

Rin tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"But… you're going alone?"

"Yeah. Just me. The team there is expanding too. Ichin said if I go, I can lead the programming group. Honestly, it won't be much different from what I do here."

Unlike Hifumi or Aoba, Umiko didn't get nervous around unfamiliar colleagues. If she went, she'd adapt quickly and dive right into work.

At that moment, the kitchen door opened. Ichin stuck his head out.

"Dinner's ready! Wash up. Utaha, come help me carry the dishes."

"Coming!"

Utaha stood, smiling at the others.

"Alright, let's eat. Tonight it's cola chicken wings!"

"Ohhh, chicken wings! My favorite!" Yagami jumped up excitedly and dashed off to wash her hands.

---

The week-long vacation soon came to an end.

But on the very last day, Ichin and Utaha received a message from Yukino:

Yukino: Senpai, Utaha-senpai, it looks like Sesame's about to give birth!

Reading the message in the campus library, Ichin and Utaha exchanged glances, then quickly packed their things and drove straight to Yukino's apartment.

They had already moved into the guest room there yesterday. With the kittens due any moment, Yukino had read plenty of books and consulted vets, but she still didn't feel confident handling it alone. So she had asked Ichin and Utaha to stay over.

As soon as they entered, they saw Yukino crouched carefully by the big nesting box, holding Peppa in her arms, keeping watch over Sesame.

*