After Li Sushang and Professor Ratio left, the bar fell into a brief silence.
Bai Luan idly toyed with a square, translucent ice cube, a sharp ice-carving knife twirling skillfully between his fingers.
He focused on carving the ice, and fine ice crystals fell rustling.
Stelle wanted to maintain the dignified posture of a professional bartender, but she was always drawn by the subtle movements coming from Bai Luan's side.
Whenever she realized she was distracted, she would shake her head vigorously, trying to refocus, but soon after, she would involuntarily be drawn back.
After several such cycles, she finally gave up struggling and simply leaned on the bar counter, watching Bai Luan's ice carving performance with great interest.
The originally sharp-edged ice cube gradually transformed in Bai Luan's hands — from simple geometric shapes to a distinctly angular heart, and finally, it became an exquisite work of art.
When a charmingly naive Trotter ice sculpture appeared before her, Stelle couldn't help but applaud sincerely.
"Awesome, awesome."
It's good to be with Uncle; when there's work, you're busy, and when there's no work, you watch Uncle perform. It's never boring.
Bai Luan lightly flicked his wrist, and the ice-carving knife spun into a beautiful flourish before being neatly put away.
"Eh—"
He waved casually at Stelle, as if to say:
Basic operation, no need to praise.
Just then, a smiling voice came:
"It seems even without customers, the two bartenders won't feel bored."
Topaz walked leisurely to the bar with Numby.
As soon as it stood firm on the counter, Numby eagerly slid off her shoulder and stood on the bar.
Then, it curiously approached the crystal-clear Trotter ice sculpture.
Topaz's gaze also turned to the ice sculpture.
"What excellent craftsmanship."
Topaz praised sincerely.
"Although carved from hard ice, the curves of this ice sculpture Trotter show no stiffness at all; instead, they exude a soft feeling."
Bai Luan wiped the ice shavings from his ice-carving knife with a handkerchief, responding with a smile:
"Thank you for the compliment."
"Is this ice sculpture for sale?"
"I'll give it to you. It's just ice anyway."
Bai Luan shrugged.
Although with the enhancement of his abilities, it was actually a curio that would never melt, which might give it a bit of appreciation in value.
However, to Bai Luan, it was still just ice.
"Really? Then I won't be polite."
Topaz said delightedly.
"I'll find a suitable environment to preserve it well."
Hmm... actually, it wouldn't melt even without special preservation.
But whether to say this or not didn't matter.
"Is Miss Topaz taking a break from her busy schedule for a couple of drinks? Or... is there something else important?"
Bai Luan asked.
Upon hearing this, Stelle immediately clasped her hands together and bowed her head to Topaz:
"Please, just a few more days."
"Hmm?"
Topaz frowned in confusion.
"As far as I recall, the Strategic Investment Department has no investment plans for this bar, let alone debt collection."
Bai Luan looked at Stelle, who was overacting, and couldn't help but retort:
"You know, she always likes to be abstract."
Stelle looked up and winked playfully at Topaz.
"Is that so?"
Topaz smiled knowingly, her gaze shifting between the two.
"To have you two as bartenders here, it seems I need to re-evaluate the investment value of this hotel. 'Genius Special mix' and 'Hand-crafted by a Penacony Shareholder' – what great selling points, sounds like it'll be a success."
She asked half-jokingly:
"I personally have high hopes for you two. Is it still possible to invest now?"
Bai Luan waved his hands repeatedly:
"Whoa, whoa, I'm not on duty right now, no work talk. Besides, I'm just a temporary worker, purely join for fun."
Stelle puffed out her chest, somewhat triumphantly for some reason:
"I'm a temporary worker too!"
Topaz chuckled, amused by them:
"No more jokes, let's get down to business."
She said, stretching.
"I've really been swamped lately.
Handing over Penacony's shares sounds simple, but there's a lot to it.
Many confused accounts have been left over the years, and the intricate little tricks between the families are even more taxing."
Seeing her display the typical fatigue of a worker, Bai Luan couldn't help but sigh.
It sounds very tiring and mentally exhausting.
It seems Penacony also needs a Great Sage Equalizing Accounts.
Bai Luan glanced at Stelle beside him.
Hmm... perhaps the Great Sage Equalizing Accounts has already been born, and is right beside him.
Numby let out a timely, tired grunt, perfectly complementing its owner's complaints.
"See, even Numby has gotten thinner from all the work."
Topaz affectionately stroked the little fellow.
Stelle suggested:
"How about a special blend to relax?"
"Alright."
Topaz nodded with a smile, then shared her investment insights:
"First-hand experience is much more reliable than reading ten thousand feasibility reports."
"Alright, coming right up."
Stelle quickly mixed a special drink.
This drink presented a clear, warm brown color, like rich tea, with a bright yellow lemon slice still perched on the rim of the cup—another lemon slice.
It was always lemon slices; Bai Luan was starting to suspect that Stelle had cut too many lemons at once and was now desperately trying to use up the stock.
As usual, Stelle added a pun:
"Question: Why can't Topaz watch magic tricks on the Astral Express?"
"Because Pom-Pom would say: This is *Top*az."
The lively Topaz couldn't help but laugh at the pun.
Ah... this familiar technique reminded Bai Luan of the days when he taught the Inspiration Mushroom to sing little tunes.
At that time, he also used a similar method to complete the teaching, successfully utilizing the Inspiration Mushroom's verbal tic to make it sing the complete lyrics.
Topaz took a sip of the drink, then looked back, surprised to find three treasure chests had appeared out of thin air behind her.
Bai Luan looked at this magical sight unique to the Dreamscape and couldn't help but remark:
"The Dreamscape is really convenient."
Topaz began to open the treasure chests one by one.
From the first treasure chest, a lively Trotter bounced out.
From the second treasure chest, a Jade Origami Bird flew out, solemnly announcing Topaz's promotion from P44 to P44.1.
As for the third treasure chest... hey, it was interesting. When it opened, guess what?
Her precious Boothill popped out!
Fortunately, Numby reacted quickly, charging Boothill back into the treasure chest with a swift pig-rush.
Bai Luan muttered to himself, watching this scene.
How did a 'Boothill' fit into such a small treasure chest?
"You're dreaming, can't you be bolder?"
Hmm... her precious, that makes sense.
While Topaz was frantically tying up the treasure chests, Stelle named the special blend "Fantasia Again."
Hearing this name, Numby let out a long sigh, as if to say that happiness comes and goes quickly.
This instantly made Bai Luan hallucinate Patrick Star sighing.
Perhaps "SpongeBob SquarePants" (old version) should also be put on the production schedule.
Apparently, a wanted criminal was not a pleasant surprise in Topaz's eyes.
So Stelle invited Topaz to have another drink.
This drink had an even stronger effect; after drinking it, one bad piece of news after another followed: her little pets at home caused trouble, a forgotten task was nearing its deadline, colleagues indulging in entertainment caused the department to be on the verge of shutdown...
Topaz, who had come to relax, found herself busy with work again...
Bai Luan silently averted his gaze; he seemed to see his past self in Topaz... No, no, I won't look.
That was a nightmare.
The darkest hours of a worker...