They looked up and saw none other than Wutang, who had only just left!
He had clearly "happened" to come this way too, with a look of surprise that was "just right." "Oh, it's you again, Miss Diantha's friends. Leaving already?"
"Of course not." Xia You glanced at him. "We have plans tonight, after all. How could we leave so soon? We just don't want to disturb her work right now."
"Yes, you certainly shouldn't disturb her." Wutang's tone was laden with meaning. "After all, I've known her for so many years, and I know how serious she is about her work. Once she gets into it, she might not have any attention to spare for anything else. Sometimes she even forgets her appointments entirely."
"That's rather different from what I know." Xia You chuckled. "I can't speak for anyone else, but Diantha has never stood me up."
The smile on Wutang's face froze, then slowly faded. Seemingly casually, he asked, "I haven't had the pleasure of asking your name, sir?"
Xia You gave him a puzzled look. "Where we come from, people generally introduce themselves before asking someone else's name. Are your customs different here? Or... do you not have that sort of etiquette here?"
Their conversation was a clash of needle points, every word brimming with confrontation.
Wutang clearly regarded Xia You as an unexpected complication, while Xia You, because of his relationship with Diantha, also found this pest rather off-putting.
After two seconds of silence, Wutang smiled with affected magnanimity. "My apologies. That was indeed rude of me. My name is Wutang, and I'm the administrator of Pokéstar Studios."
Wutang was merely one of its administrators, but he deliberately left that last part out now, his intention to emphasize his status plain to see.
At the same