Smile

I did not mean to write this but my friend a_sharee993 from Insta shared a Studio Ghibli ambience audio with me after work, and this is what happened. Anyways, I hope you all are doing well, and enjoy this!

Here's the link to the audio if you'd like to check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=238769dQLnc

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Childe did his best not to stumble as he rose from the chair in his office to answer the knock at the door. He didn't even bother checking the clock as he walked past. He knew it was long since past when he was supposed to be done, but every time he thought he was done, he found more work that needed to be done. Granted nothing was all that difficult, but it had definitely piled up. With his skilled set, he was constantly deployed to the front lines, but that didn't change the fact that he was currently the only Harbinger deployed in Liyue, which meant that all of the administrative tasks were part of his duties as well.

"Yes?" Childe asked as civil as he could manage. It was really anyone's fault that he was behind so biting someone's head off probably wouldn't be the best move.

"I've compiled last month's budget reports for you to review. Also, I have this months and the month after budgets for you to look over and approve." Elektrina informed him, completely unfazed by his slightly disheveled appearance. She knew he would rather be anyone else than here right now and she was kind enough to not bring it up.

"Great. I'll get right on that." Childe forced out through his teeth. He took the stack from Elektrina and kicked the door closed after a quick goodbye. He slid the stack he had been working on over as he knew the budget took priority as it was already a week into the new month. Pantalone was going to kill him if they went over their budget without giving him a reason, but he would do something much worse if he discovered that they went over budget without Childe even realizing it due to being behind.

He signed in relief as he realized that they were perfectly in the middle of the range they predicated for last month, which meant that not only did they not go over, but they also even had a little left over to spare. This paperwork reminded him that he needed to go over his own financial records, but that could wait for another day. He always kept a running total of his expenses in his head and knew he was okay. Contrary to popular belief, he didn't use any of the Northland Bank's budget for any of his personal spending. All of those expenses came out of his personal allowance he received monthly due to his status as a Harbinger. It was a generous allowance put in place by the Tsaritsa to ensure that all of the Harbingers would be able to afford whatever they needed to complete their missions or to keep themselves sane and ready for anything.

His mind drifted as he thought about those "personal expenses" he had made recently. In all honesty, there was nothing he particularly used the money for. His clothes were issued and replaced for him whenever he needed it, his weapons were constantly inspected and repaired without him doing anything, his meals and housing were all provided by the Fatui so there was never really anything he needed to spend his money on. Recently it had been different though. He had been encouraged to not be as strict in his personal life and actually enjoy his rare time off. He started eating at the local restaurants from wherever his missions sent him, he would buy more of the unique things he'd come across in stalls instead of just admiring them and moving on. Not only that, but he also started buying more gifts. He would secretly send a dessert over to the child eating at the table across from him, cover the difference if someone came up short from something they wanted, he would buy random trinkets and send them back to his family.