This time, the Emperor had three things to do in New York.
The first was to use the connections he had built to keep the New York Immigration Bureau from causing trouble for a woman named Valeria and her family. Stephanie did not need to handle this, nor was there any need to activate the spy network. A single call to Wilson Fisk, the leader of New York's underworld, would suffice. The second was to have dinner with the children at Mount Athena Orphanage. The last time he had done so was four years ago. Although Athena never shortchanged the children when it came to meals—the gallery and art exhibition income was enough to keep them healthy—she would not waste relatively scarce and precious ingredients on them. This time, the Emperor would still cook personally. He also intended to introduce Stephanie Malik to the children, because the smartest among them might one day work under her.
The third matter would have to wait until he met Athena.
Stephanie Malik was clearly unaccustomed to such a comparatively humble dining environment, but for the Emperor's sake, she had to put on a very happy expression. She even had to pick up napkins and wipe the faces of children covered in sauce, trying to demonstrate her compassion. The task was eventually taken over by some of the older children, who thought Stephanie Malik was simply too clumsy. Every child whose face she wiped was left with a rough red mark, and cries erupted everywhere she went. Compared to the thoroughly uncomfortable Stephanie, the Emperor, seated at the head of the dark brown long table, appeared quite relaxed. Amid the noise, he ate calmly while smiling and listening to the leaders among the boys and girls report on what had happened lately, including the