A Journey from Bitterness to Truth

Matilda brushed off the offer without a second thought, cheerfully picking up the tab before turning to Willow and saying, “Such a pity. Tell your brother to stop wasting his energy, and oh, to bother me less in the future.”

With that, she sauntered off, leaving Willow sitting at the table, utterly disheveled. Damn, Matilda’s ice– cold attitude was something else!

W

Back home, Willow recounted the tale to Adrian, who was in the middle of an intense gaming session. Hearing of Willow’s failure, he clicked his tongue in annoyance. “Useless! Can’t even con someone properly!”

“If you’re so capable, why don’t you chase her yourself? Why bother me?” Willow shot back, flipping Adrian off behind his back. “Loser! Total chicken!”

“Who

said I’m chasing her?” Adrian shot back, sitting up from the couch with a huff. “Which of your eyes saw me take an interest in her?”

Willow decided it was no use arguing with her clueless brother and trudged upstairs. “I’m hitting the hay. Goodnight, lone wolf.”

Adrian, still gaming, nearly snapped the controller in his hands. Sitting alone in the living room, he fell silent for a moment before a sly smile began to edge across his lips.

Chloe returned to the Love Evolution game studio where she worked, pulling some strings to land Matilda a position. The team was thrilled to have her on board. “Is that Dawn we’ve heard about? Can we collaborate with her? It would make for a great publicity angle.”

Matilda gladly accepted the offer, signed the nondisclosure agreement, and joined

Chloe at the studio.

Though Declan was the investor behind the romance game, he only cared about the financial side and left the rest to his team. Chloe, using her connections, had managed to sidestep his blockade. On their first day, they were met with great enthusiasm, and the studio’s lead, Baxter, greeted them with open arms. “Goddess! Our goddess is finally here!”

Matilda chuckled. “I’m flattered, but thank you for the warm welcome.”

“Ah, we’ve been up to our necks in work, so it’s a bit chaotic inside, but we cleared some space for you two. Chloe, you’ll join the marketing team with your wide network, and Dawn, how about you come to the design department with us?”

“Sounds good,” Matilda replied with a smile. After helping Chloe settle into the marketing department, she was escorted to the design team by Baxter, a long–haired

man.

“Baxter, did you bring a beauty to join our team?”

“Man, Baxter, you’re our hero!”

The game studio was decked out with creative flair, with a circle of people seated around a large table, each with multiple monitors before them.

dala

A guy in a green dinosaur onesie handed Matilda an instant coffee packet. “Welcome to the Singles Club.”

“We’re called ‘Love–or–Die‘ now, remember?” A girl with short hair looked up from her computer, where a sketch and a list of character development progress, IQ, EQ, height, occupation, and other stats were displayed.

“That’s a bit morbid, isn’t it?” Yoshi remarked. “Luna, take it easy, or that ‘die‘ part might just come true for you.”

Matilda’s new workspace was amid the hub of activity, with three monitors, a drawing tablet, a printer, and a pile of design drafts that rivaled the mess in her old studio.