Chapter 98: The Subplot Surge
The Bureau was designed to manage trajectories, not to be hijacked by them. But at 02:00 Cycles, the Giant Silver Anchor—etched with runes of "Personal Growth" and "Side-Quest Logic"—tore through the vaulted ceiling of the Lobby. It didn't just crash; it hooked into the Great Mainspring and began to reel the entire Bureau toward the Sea of Subplots, a churning ocean of tangential stories that lay just off the margin of the main page.
"Commissioner!" Assistant Yue's voice was a frantic staccato of cinematic horns. "WE. ARE. BEING. BOARDED. BY. A. 'RECURRING. MINOR. CHARACTER'. THE. ANCHOR. IS. EMITTING. A. 100%. 'PROTAGONIST. VIBE'. SOMEONE. IS. TRYING. TO. TURN. THE. BUREAU. INTO. THEIR. BACKSTORY!"
The Return of the Baker
Standing on the rim of the anchor was a man in a flour-dusted apron, wielding a rolling pin that glowed with 7.5% more importance than it had in Chapter 83.
"I am Bartholomew the Baker!" he roared, his voice possessing the resonance of a man who had spent the last fifteen chapters training in a montage. "You dropped a 'Broken Promise' on my shop during the Novus Aethel drift! You turned my soufflés into 'Metaphors for Despair'! Now, I have come to collect my Narrative Justice! I am taking this Bureau to the 'Isles of Yeast' to help me win the Great Cosmic Bake-Off!"
"Bartholomew?" Ne Job squinted. "You were a background extra in a pun-leak. You're supposed to be 'Kneading Dough,' not 'Leading Revolutions'!"
The 7.5% Main-Character Energy
Bartholomew didn't listen. He had developed Main-Character Energy.
The Lobby's lighting shifted to focus exclusively on him.
A swell of "Inspirational Strings" began to play from the walls, drowning out Ne Job's protests.
The Muse found herself accidentally providing "Dramatic Backlighting" for the baker. "I can't help it, Ne Job! His 'Motivation' is too strong! He's 7.5% more compelling than our current task!"
"My city!" Ao Bing cried as the Bureau tilted. "We're being dragged into a 'Culinary Adventure'! If we hit the Sea of Subplots, the 'Main Plot' will be delayed by seventy-five pages of recipe descriptions!"
The Semicolon Side-Step
Ne Job realized he couldn't just "Delete" Bartholomew. The baker had earned his "Screen Time." He had to Re-Categorize the conflict.
"Pip! The... wait, why is Pip wearing a chef's hat?"
"I've been recruited, Boss!" Pip yelled, currently seasoning a trajectory-report. "Bartholomew says I have the 'Heart of a Pastry Chef'!"
Ne Job pulled out the Semicolon. He didn't fire a staple at the baker. Instead, he fired a burst of violet light at the Anchor Cable. He used the Semicolon to perform a 7.5% Parallel Narrative.
The Clause of Cooperation
"Bartholomew!" Ne Job shouted over the 'Heroic Theme Music.' "You don't want to hijack the Bureau! A hero is defined by his Struggles, not his Resources! If you take us with you, your victory will be 'Deus Ex Machina'! It won't be Satisfying!"
The Semicolon's energy flowed into the cable, turning it from a "Rope" into a "Split Screen." Ne Job wasn't cutting the baker off; he was giving him his own Spin-Off.
"I am granting you a 7.5% Independent Clause!" Ne Job declared. "You get your 'Great Cosmic Bake-Off,' but you do it in the Margins! You are a 'Parallel Story,' not the 'Primary Text'!"
The Spin-Off Split
With a sound like a page being neatly perforated, the Anchor Cable split. Bartholomew and his anchor were shunted into a shimmering, golden bubble of "Side-Story Reality." He was still on his quest, but he was no longer dragging the Bureau with him.
The Bureau snapped back to a level position. The "Inspirational Strings" faded, replaced by the comforting, boring hum of the filing cabinets.
LOG: CHAPTER 98 SUMMARY.
STATUS: Hijacking averted. Spin-off successfully launched.
NOTE: Never underestimate a minor character with a grudge and a montage.
OBSERVATION: A good story is a 7.5% balance of focus and flavor. Too much flavor, and you lose the plot.
P.S.: Pip is still wearing the chef's hat. They say it helps with 'Structural Kneading' of the files.
The Muse leaned over his shoulder, her hair returning to its electric-neon blue. "You gave him a 'Happy Ending,' Ne Job. Or at least, a 'Happy Middle'."
Ne Job looked at the Semicolon. It was glowing with a supportive, yet distant violet.
"He earned his own sentence, Muse," Ne Job said. "Now, why is Assistant Yue sounding a 7.5% alarm and why has a Giant Silver Stamp appeared in the air, and why is it currently trying to mark the Bureau as 'EXPIRED'?"