Chapter 3: August 28, 2624

"Wow, a little kitty? So cute!"

A female coworker sitting next to Elias admired the doodle on his notepad—a simple cat sketch bursting with charm. She practically squealed in cheer.

"Elias, why haven't you shown this to Lily yet?"

Huh?

Whoosh—!

At once, everyone in the conference room turned to stare their way. The designers, in particular, looked at Elias with a mix of desperation and hope, as if silently begging him to present a better idea than all the failed concepts so far.

"What is it? Let me see!"

Tap, tap, tap!

Lily Jones marched over with quick strides, trying to maintain her air of authority. Underneath her tough exterior, she was clearly on edge—worried that the entire morning's meeting with Ms. Harrington had been a disaster. Ms. Harrington, the company's founder, had hardly spoken a word, but everyone could feel her displeasure rippling through the room.

With a swift motion, Lily snatched Elias's scrap paper.

Slowly, her tense demeanor softened. Her breathing steadied. It was as if the roaring flames of her anger had been extinguished.

"You… you drew this…?" Lily scratched her head, smacking her lips in thought.

"This is… actually pretty good."

She set the paper in front of Ms. Miranda Harrington, who was seated at the head of the table:

"Ms. Harrington, take a look—Elias came up with this cat design for our new brand."

Everyone craned forward, heads bobbing for a better view. The A4 sheet bore only one illustration:

A simple, minimalist cat's face, captured in just a handful of black pen strokes. Simple yet distinctly adorable. Clean lines that perfectly conveyed the cat's bright, playful expression.

Even though it was just a rough, monochrome sketch, the cat practically leapt off the page with life and energy. The design team began chattering:

"Whoa… I actually love this cat's face. There's something so charming about it."

"I'll be honest—this might be cuter than Hello Kitty. Kitty is sweet, but a little too prim. And that whole 'no mouth' thing… This one has a more youthful, energetic vibe!"

"It's got everything we want: youthfulness, fun, a modern spark… This is perfect for the brand! Elias, why didn't you show us sooner?"

"A strong mascot should be super simple, so it's easy to recognize and remember. And this cat has that same instant appeal as famous icons like Kitty or Mickey Mouse."

Applause and praise flooded in from the design staff, relieving Lily's jittery nerves. She shot a hopeful glance at Ms. Harrington, who'd been silently studying the sketch.

Miranda Harrington—founder of MH Cosmetics, and the current chairperson—was known for her sharp business sense and striking personal presence. After studying abroad, she'd built MH Cosmetics from the ground up in under two years. Already the brand was making waves among younger consumers, propelled by her keen instincts and confident style.

In that moment, Harrington stared at the cat doodle, lost in thought. Everyone held their breath, waiting for her verdict.

At last, her brows smoothed out:

"Not bad."

Lily practically exhaled in relief, her crisis seemingly over. She beamed, eager to lavish praise:

"Exactly, Ms. Harrington! Our design team does have hidden gems! Elias here—he's our secret weapon, the backbone of the group! Normally, I just give him total creative freedom, so, uh… I don't interfere or ask many questions."

She turned to Elias:

"Come on, Elias, share how you came up with this cat design! What inspired you?"

Ms. Harrington also glanced up, curiosity lighting her eyes.

Elias, ever the straight-shooter, simply said, "I dreamed of it."

Lily's face fell. "Elias, are you—ah…" She sighed inwardly.

A golden chance to impress the boss, and this guy just says he dreamed it?!

Several coworkers giggled at Elias's honesty.

But Ms. Harrington gave a small smile and nodded. "Well, many great ideas do come from dreams. History is full of examples—Mendeleev reportedly pieced together the Periodic Table in his sleep. Einstein, too, credited a dream with spurring his thinking on relativity. But no one can deny that behind such breakthroughs lie countless hours of preparation and research. I'm sure you've put in a lot of effort, Elias."

Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap…

Someone started applauding, and soon the entire room joined in, celebrating Elias's work. He shifted uncomfortably under the sudden spotlight.

"However…" Ms. Harrington gently set down the sketch. "Just having a cat's face isn't enough. For packaging, posters, brand collaborations… we need a full-body design. The cat will need limbs, clothing, maybe shoes—though we can swap outfits later, we still need a base concept to build from."

She paused, looking directly at Elias. "Would you mind drawing the full body and outfit for this little cat as well?"

At that, everyone realized their excitement might be premature. A simple, endearing face was great, but they did indeed need the rest of the design.

What proportions would the body have? How would it stand or move? What kind of clothing or accessories fit the brand?

All eyes turned to Elias.

He took a sip of water—stalling for time.

Truthfully, the mask he'd seen in last night's dream only covered the face. He had no clue what the cat's body looked like beneath it. But that hardly mattered—he could always go back to the dream and find out more from Claw himself.

"No problem," Elias said, setting down his cup.

"All my design drafts are at home, so I'll bring a finished version tomorrow."

***

Elias finished brushing his teeth, glancing at the clock on his nightstand.

9:01 p.m.

After last night's dream, he felt he had a clear plan:

The catastrophe at the bank happened because Claw was supposed to meet a "mask-wearing vault hacker."

They wore cat masks and hero masks as secret signals. Elias, by random chance, had grabbed the same type of hero mask—and was promptly mistaken for the real hacker.

"Which means, if I do exactly the same thing tonight—put on that hero mask—Claw's going to show up again. Then I can ask him about that cat face on his mask. Maybe he knows more about the design or where it came from."

He latched the window shut. The winter draft was no joke, and he didn't feel like freezing tonight. After setting his alarm and placing his phone on the nightstand, he flicked off the light.

"Time to sleep."

***

Whoosh!

Warm summer air brushed his cheeks, carrying the fresh scent of newly sprouted leaves. Elias opened his eyes.

He stood in the bright, bustling plaza again, full of kids dashing around, giggling, shouting:

"Catch me if you can!"

"Watch out—Ultraman slide-kick!"

"I want a popsicle, I want it now! Wahhh!"

"I'm not going home yet—I still wanna play!"

"Mom, let me ride the bike!"

He lifted his gaze to the giant digital billboard at the plaza's center. The top corner displayed:

[August 28, 2624]

[ 21:37:17 ]

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