The morning sun sliced through Kai's blackout curtains in thin, golden lines, catching the floating dust in the air. He blinked at the ceiling for a moment—then turned his head to the side and checked his phone.
Three missed texts.
Zoey: "We need to catch up. Call when you're free."
Hào: "Bro you still owe me that Fortnite rematch."
Unknown number: "Hi. Is this… Kaijo?"
He sat up immediately.
The third one didn't have a name, but he had a feeling who it was.
He didn't reply.
Not yet.
He had bigger things to take care of first.
Midday - Discord Call with Zoey
Kai booted up Discord and joined the private server. Zoey was already in voice chat, humming some off-key song from the early 2010s.
"You're late," she said flatly, not missing a beat.
"Good morning to you too," he replied, grinning.
"It's 1:13 p.m."
"Still morning if I didn't eat yet."
She laughed—a dry, sarcastic sound that Kai had missed more than he wanted to admit.
"Listen," Zoey started, tone shifting slightly. "I was thinking… what if we actually do it this time?"
"Do what?"
"The content house."
He paused.
"Seriously?"
"I've got savings. Hào's working remote now. Linh's been dying to move out of Sweden. And if you're still into this whole Kaijo arc..."
"I am."
"Then maybe it's time."
They talked for two hours.
Not about finances, not about logistics. Just vibes.
Stories from their teens, dumb in-jokes from their gaming years, ideas for what kind of rooms they'd want.
"Mine needs soundproofing," Zoey said. "I scream at games like I'm being murdered."
"Linh would want something soft and pastel. She's half-silent but makes the dirtiest jokes."
"What about Enzo?"
"Bro sleeps shirtless on stream and somehow it works."
"And Vi?"
"Vi just wants a window and fiber internet."
By the end of the call, Kai wasn't just thinking about the mansion.
He was already planning it.
Evening - Save and Load (Again)
Kai sat down in front of his PC and opened his system.
Three save slots.
Only one active right now:
Slot 1 – Day of RebirthSlot 2 – EmptySlot 3 – Empty
He'd never touched Slot 1.
It was his ultimate fallback. His ultimate insurance.
A "just in case the world ends" button.
Slot 2, though?
That could be useful.
He opened up his Bitcoin portfolio, scanned upcoming trends, checked global financial news… and created a save right before pulling the trigger on a major buy.
Slot 2 – 'Market Confidence'
He exhaled.
And clicked Confirm.
Night - Unknown Number
Back in bed, Kai stared at the unknown number again.
There was something off about it. Something familiar.
He tapped the number, opened the message.
"Hi. Is this… Kaijo?"
He thought for a moment.
Then replied.
"Who's asking?"
The response came a few minutes later.
"We used to play a lot. Long time ago. Minecraft. Stardew. Clash."
He blinked.
His fingers paused over the keyboard.
And then he typed:
"...M?"
Another pause.
Then—
"So you do remember me."
His heart skipped.
But before he could reply, another text came in:
"I'm not trying to be weird. Just saw your stream. Recognized the voice. You've changed. In a good way."
Kai stared at the screen.
He leaned back and smiled.
Then he typed:
"You've changed too, I bet."
No reply after that.
But that was okay.
He wasn't in a rush.
Not this time.
Late Night Stream – Teasing the Future
"Yo chat," Kai said on camera, half-lit in a warm yellow light. "Quick question. If I wanted to turn this into something bigger, would you be into it?"
"Bigger?""You moving?""Streamer house arc let's GOOOOO"
He laughed.
"You guys are too fast. But yeah… been thinking."
He didn't confirm anything. Didn't deny anything.
But the twinkle in his eye said everything.
"Just a dream for now," he added, sipping tea. "But dreams are where all this started, right?"
Somewhere in Belgium…
A Chinese girl sitting cross-legged on her bed minimized Kai's stream.
Her lips curled in a half-smile.
"So he is going for it…"
She clicked open a folder titled "Old Screenshots."
And stared at one from five years ago.
Two pixelated characters on a bench in Stardew Valley. One named Kaijo. The other, simply named M.
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