189: A Different Idea

The trip to Haruko's office was shorter than expected.

When the elevator stopped in this special domain, Carl truly understood what "office" meant to Haruko—the entire floor was her private territory.

Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, Night City's neon-lit night served as a natural backdrop. The smart glass automatically adjusted its transparency with the angle of the moonlight, and even the air circulation system carried a faint scent of Sakura.

It reminded him of the two-person office downstairs that ordinary Arasaka employees envied—looking back on it now, it was practically a high-end storage room.

At the same time, Carl recalled the office Haruko had used when she was Chief Executive Officer of Arasaka Tower in Night City. Because she had been the only member of the Arasaka Family in the tower at the time, she had needed to occupy that room at the very top, the symbolic center of power. Compared to this place, it had seemed as plain as a conference room.

Thinking about it now, there was nothing strange about that.

An executive's office was ultimately just a stage for appearances, while this—an entire floor fashioned into a living space—was the true private domain of Arasaka Haruko.

Like an ancient samurai who needed both a dojo and a tea room, the former was for displaying authority, while the latter held real elegance and selfhood.

The soft sound of the elevator doors closing interrupted his thoughts.

Carl stepped into this forbidden zone for Arasaka Tower personnel. His shoes made no sound on the soundproof carpet, Maki's faint humming drifted from afar, and the scent of freshly baked cookies lingered in the air.

Everything here spoke of one simple fact: for an heir with Arasaka blood running through her veins, the entire tower was no more than a potted plant in