Chapter 3 - Chapter 3: The Newly Appointed Boss of Stellar Veil

One week later, on a清晨 (early morning), the sunlight over London's South Bank finally pierced through the clouds and spilled onto the floor-to-ceiling windows of the "Stellar Veil" art studio. Seraphina clutched her resume, standing at the studio entrance, her fingertips turning slightly pale from nervousness — this was the 12th resume she had sent out since losing her job, and the only one that had received an interview notice. The studio's receptionist, a girl in a mint-green shirt, immediately stood up with a smile when she saw her: "Miss Seraphina Voss, right? Director Hale is already waiting for you in the conference room. Please follow me." As she walked through the open-plan office area, Seraphina's gaze couldn't help but be drawn to the works on the walls — those digital artworks that blended traditional oil painting textures with 3D modeling, exuding a cold yet delicate beauty, much like someone's style. It wasn't until the receptionist pushed open the conference room door that her breath suddenly caught. At the head of the long table, Elara Hale was低头 (bowed her head) flipping through documents. The buttons of her charcoal-gray suit were fastened up to the top one, accentuating the修长 (slenderness) of her neck. She wore thin-framed glasses on her nose, and behind the lenses, her dark brown pupils were focused and calm. On the table lay an open copy of *Norse Mythology*, the page resting on the chapter about "Freyja." Next to it was a cup of steaming black tea, with two lumps of sugar on the saucer — the same combination she used to have in the library back in high school. "Director Hale, Miss Voss has arrived," the receptionist said, then quietly withdrew. The conference room door slowly closed, leaving the two standing in silence, facing each other. Elara looked up, her gaze falling on her. There was no surprise, nor alienation, just a calm gesture toward the chair opposite: "Sit down." Her fingertips traced over the resume on the table, stopping at the introduction of the "Urban Night Fox" series. "Your illustration style is very unique. Could you talk about the light and shadow treatment in *Night Fox*?" Seraphina struggled to steady her racing heart, sat down, and tried to make her voice sound calm: "I used a layered rendering technique. The base layer is the texture of neon photos from London's streets, the middle layer is叠加 (overlaid) with hand-painted oil brushstrokes, and the top layer uses cool highlights to simulate the reflection on foggy days — much like your *Stellar Orbit Atlas* at the Cambridge graduation exhibition back then, which used geometric lines to enwrap the thickness of oil painting." As she finished speaking, she clearly saw the corners of Elara's mouth twitch almost imperceptibly. Elara closed the resume, stood up, and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window. Outside was the River Thames, with cruise ships slowly passing by: "Stellar Veil is advancing the 'Stellar Mist' project, a digital derivative of Norse mythology in collaboration with the British Museum. We need an illustrator to design Freyja's image." She turned to look at Seraphina, her gaze resting on her resume photo: "There's a 'sense of contradiction' in your style — it has both the vitality of the streets and can handle the depth of mythology, which fits perfectly with our positioning for Freyja." Before Seraphina could recover from the shock of "collaborating with the British Museum," she heard Elara continue: "If you're willing, you can start next Monday. The salary will be 120% of your expected amount, and additionally, the studio provides an extra artistic creation fund." "Don't... don't you think our relationship will affect work?" Seraphina finally asked the question that had been weighing on her mind — after all, just a week ago, they had shared a rainy night in a hotel room. Elara walked up to her, bent down, and pushed a glass of warm water to her hand. The scent of cedar hand cream wafted over, bringing a familiar sense of reassurance: "At work, we are director and illustrator; privately, we are... friends." Her fingertips gently brushed Seraphina's手背 (back of the hand). "I trust your professionalism, and I trust myself too." At the end of the interview, Elara handed her a business card. On the silver-gray card was printed "Elara Hale | Founder / Creative Director of Stellar Veil," and in the bottom right corner, there was a small line of text: "Available 24/7, contact me anytime with project issues." As Seraphina took the card, she noticed the cedar hand cream peeking out from Elara's sleeve — exactly the same as what she had smelled in the Cambridge library six years ago. As she walked out of the studio, the receptionist girl secretly pulled her aside, her tone filled with gossipy amusement: "Miss Voss, you're amazing! Director Hale rarely interviews illustrators in person. Last week, she even postponed a cooperation meeting in Paris because of your resume." Seraphina held the business card, her heart feeling as warm as if it had been sunned. She looked up at the Stellar Veil sign and suddenly remembered another rumor from high school — some classmates said that Elara hadn't thrown that love letter into the Cam River, but had tucked it into page 112 of *The Collected Poems of W.B. Yeats*. Back then, she had dismissed it as a rumor, but now, she suddenly started to believe it. On her first day of work on Monday, as soon as Seraphina walked into the studio, she saw a small succulent plant on her desk. The flowerpot was painted with a fox — exactly the same as the one in her *Night Fox*. Next to it was a note with clear and strong handwriting: "Welcome to Stellar Veil. Your easel and drawing tablet have been set up. Come to me if you have any problems. — Elara" Sunlight streamed through the glass onto the note. As Seraphina's fingertips traced over the words, she suddenly felt that London's winter didn't seem so cold anymore.