Matthew Clark sighed, stood up, and decided to have lunch first before going to practice catching dogs.

He opened the door and walked out of the bedroom, running right into James Bennett.

The latter seemed about to go out, and turned his head when he heard the sound. Their eyes met, and James Bennett looked him over for a moment before speaking,

"Uncle, do you remember what happened last night?"

What does that mean?

Matthew Clark nodded, "Of course I remember."

James Bennett asked, "Don’t you have anything you want to say?"

Say what? Matthew Clark did a quick self-check: he remembered the traffic laws, had sensibly not revealed any BL tendencies, and except for accidentally breaking the key off in someone else’s door lock...

But in the end, that was resolved perfectly.

He thought for a moment. "Yesterday was a lot of fun, thanks."

James Bennett: ...?

James Bennett was silent for two seconds, then finally said, "No need to thank me," and turned to head to school.

-

After lunch, Matthew Clark headed straight to Little Lucy’s place.

He had just helped her meet a deadline last time, and now she was about to miss the extra pages for the standalone volume.

For such a chronic procrastinator, Matthew Clark guessed their motto must be: There’s always tomorrow.

When he pushed the door open, Little Lucy and her three assistants were gathered around the table, looking utterly miserable. The moment they saw Matthew Clark, hope lit up in all four pairs of eyes—

"Boss!"

"Kamiiii—"

"Savior!!!"

Matthew Clark calmly glanced at the blank manuscript paper on the table, waited a few seconds, and then gently said, "I thought I was just here to review the draft."

He looked at the group, who were as quiet as mice, "What’s this? Is this 'Starting from Zero in Another World'?"

The group: "………"

All four heads drooped low to their chests.

After a while, Matthew Clark took a deep breath, set down his canvas bag, sat at the table, and took out his notebook:

"Give me a reason for a progress of zero."

The three assistants all turned to Little Lucy—

Little Lucy instantly put on a pained expression, "I’m stuck on the setup! I just can’t think of a reason for the seme and uke to not go home in the middle of the night, and instead go halfway up a mountain to stargaze—"

Matthew Clark felt the pain too, "...So why do you have to draw them stargazing on a mountain in the middle of the night?"

"Sitting side by side under a sky full of stars is so romantic!" Little Lucy said guiltily, "And I already posted a teaser on Weibo..."

Assistant Little Grace piped up: "Cutting off your own escape route."

Annie: "Digging your own grave."

Little Jack racked her brains: "Bringing... bringing humiliation on yourself!"

"Stop." Matthew Clark interrupted their sudden idiom relay, finally understanding why there had been no progress.

He rubbed his temples, "Let me... think."

The whole room quieted down, all relying on the only reliable adult present.

Matthew Clark lowered his eyes in thought. Countless images and scenarios flashed through his mind, and suddenly a spark of inspiration, tinged with a strange sense of familiarity, surged up—

"How about this: have the seme and uke break the key off in the door lock when they get home."

With the lock jammed, no one’s getting back in!

The people at the table: ..........

Little Lucy slapped the table, "Hahaha, how could anyone be that stu—"

Matthew Clark looked at her with a gentle, serene gaze.

Meeting those calm, quiet eyes, Little Lucy shivered and instinctively changed her words,

"...stupidly adorable person."

Matthew Clark said softly, "Hurry up and draw."

...

With Matthew Clark helping to review the drafts, the drawing progress sped up considerably.

By evening, the phone on the table buzzed.

Matthew Clark turned to look and saw it was a WeChat message from James Bennett.

Apparently it wasn’t convenient to type, so the other party sent a voice message. He played it directly, and heard James Bennett’s voice come through the speaker:

"Uncle, I have extra practice tonight, so I won’t be home for dinner."

Maybe he’d just finished running, as his deep voice was a little breathless.

Matthew Clark didn’t think much of it, but suddenly there was a shriek from nearby:

"Holy crap!!!"

His fingers trembled as he looked up to see Little Lucy and the three assistants all staring at him, eyes shining with a look he knew all too well,

"Who! Who is this sexy hottie!?"

Matthew Clark, "........."

How did they even tell it was a sexy hottie from that?

—Though James Bennett really was.

Little Lucy gossiped excitedly, "Ohohoh~~ Editor, you’re living with a hottie~~~"

"But he called you uncle... he’s not your nephew, is he?"

Matthew Clark explained, "He’s my friend’s nephew, just staying over."

Little Lucy instantly swooned, "No blood relation!"

An assistant whispered, "Isn’t that even more exciting..."

Matthew Clark, "……………"

He couldn’t take it anymore and knocked on the table in warning, "Hey, this isn’t a lawless place!"

-

After a day of rushing the draft, the extra pages were finally done.

As Matthew Clark packed up to leave, it was already getting dark outside.

"Wait a sec, Editor." Little Lucy took a sandwich and a rice ball from the fridge and put them in a lunch bag. "Thanks for your hard work today, take these home to eat!"

Matthew Clark took them, "Thanks... They’re not expired, are they?"

"Of course not!"

He left, took a cab, and went home.