Back inside the Dead-End Hollow, after chugging several more bottles of Chiya's medicine, a half-dead Nekomata finally reached the location where Chiya and Corin were.
To be honest—when Nekomata braced both hands on a railcar to catch her breath, and a chainsaw suddenly punched through steel right in front of her face, roaring as it spun…
Nekomata admitted that, at that moment, the round thing was only 0.01 centimeters from her.
And a quarter of a second later, the chainsaw's owner would definitely be apologizing—because she'd almost been scared into peeing—no, crying—tears!
"Waaah! I'm sorry! Miss Phaethon! Corin didn't mean to!"
"Me… I almost died, meow…"
"Uh, Corin… she isn't Phaethon."
"Huh?!"
With a sigh, Chiya looked at Eous—who was standing there hands on hips, waving furiously, eyes wide in a full-on (＃`Д´)ﾉ rage—and immediately figured out who was controlling it right now.
So he obediently squatted down.
In the next second, a round little hand smacked down.
"Ow! That hurts!"
"Who told you to run into such a dangerous place without saying anything?! (＃`皿´) What if something happened?! And Nugget—why didn't you notify us?!"
"Mm-neh… (Ugh…)"
Belle didn't stop until she'd yanked Chiya's ahoge into a droopy, wilted-leaf state. Only then did she retract her hand in satisfaction.
Corin, meanwhile, rushed up the moment Belle pulled back, her expression full of concern as she gently touched Chiya's head.
"Doctor Chiya… are you okay?"
"Mhm. I'm fine. With Corin comforting me, it doesn't hurt at all."
"R-really…? Hehe… that's… kind of embarrassing…"
"I'm being honest, you know?"
"Mm… Doctor Chiya, you're mean—saying that to Corin… hehe…"
Just as Corin blushed and squirmed shyly, she suddenly felt something tug at her skirt hem.
She looked down.
The Bangboo who'd just been yanking Doctor Chiya's ahoge like it owed her money was staring up at her, ears drooping.
"You—where'd you come from? What's your relationship with my Chiya? Spit it out. Fast."
"S-sorry! It's an honor to meet you, Lord Phaethon! My name is Corin. I work for a housekeeping company. I'm a Gemini, RH-negative blood type, I like cleaning, my citizen ID number is—"
As Corin started spilling her life story like a bamboo tube dumping beans, Nekomata sprang in with a myaow and slapped a hand over Corin's mouth.
"Miss, stop right there, meow! Phaethon is a famous Rope Weaver—if they want your information, it's child's play. That just now was about attitude, meow. You don't have to be that naive!"
"Right, Lord Phaethon… uh—Phaethon… are you mad, meow?"
"Ah, yes, yes, that's exactly right."
"YOU'RE REALLY MAD, MEOW?!"
"Huh? Mad—what mad? Mad about what? Why mad?"
Random Play — Wise & Belle Watching
While Nekomata tried to help Corin save face, back at Random Play, Belle and Wise silently stared at the intel they'd just gathered through Eous's perspective.
"Uh… Brother… does a housekeeping company really need a chainsaw as a cleaning tool?"
"Uh, Belle… maybe it's just a broom shaped like a chainsaw. Like how some people use phone cases shaped like cleavers. Last time I went to Lumina Square, I even saw a white-haired cat Thiren officer yelling 'Stop! Criminal!' and pinning a girl to the ground while she was literally trying to pay—"
"Brother, you told me that ages ago. And then when the cat officer realized he'd messed up, he bowed so hard his face was as red as Master Chop's and stood there for half a day holding a sign that said 'I shouldn't be this impulsive'… Also, the fact you watched for half a day is honestly impressive in the worst way."
"Ahem. It was too funny—I couldn't stop. And Belle, Nekomata already thinks you've gone offline. Say something."
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?! I'll respond—huh?"
Wise quietly "trimmed" the message content, deliberately creating a tiny moment of Bangboo-eyes vs cat-eyes confusion, satisfying his inner schemer… then turned to the data Fairy had pulled up and fell into thought.
"Victoria Housekeeping is known for its (overly) broad scope of services and high standards. Its members present as old-fashioned domestic service professionals from the Old Civilization era, though with distinctive modern modifications. Though 'trying too hard' mishaps can occur, Victoria still does not lack clients…"
"Strange… why haven't we heard of this housekeeping company before?"
"Assistant No. 2, you missed a key point: Victoria Housekeeping primarily serves high-net-worth clients. Shall I retrieve the definition and relevant materials for 'high—net—worth'?"
"…No, thanks."
"You're welcome. Additionally, after 0.000001 seconds of inner conflict, your title is henceforth revised to Assistant No. 3."
"Uh… may I ask why?"
"Answer: last month, you diverted the electricity bill that should have been paid for me into purchasing art films and documentary tapes, and then used sweet talk to trick Chiya—Assistant No. 2—into covering that bill. By definition, this is scumbag behavior."
"Therefore, a scumbag man-machine like you is unfit to occupy the position of Assistant No. 2."
"...Fairy, you've convinced me. So next month, I still won't pay your electricity bill."
"Scumbag evolution trend detected. Searching for methods to eliminate scumbags—results as follows:
'The Last Eunuch,' 'How to Castrate,' 'Sunflower Manual'…"
"You little—OW!!!"
"Brother! Stop arguing with Fairy! Hurry and have Fairy check if the train is about to depart!"
As Wise's chest puffed up like some blue-skinned champion mouser cat, Belle—still annoyed about getting played earlier—reached out and executed the dreaded waist pinch: lock, clamp, nails in, twist.
Wise's expression instantly transformed from distorted anger into pure pain.
No time to complain.
Wise immediately had Fairy pull the latest train intel.
"Fairy—has the train departed?!"
"Searching. Updating latest information…"
"Update complete: Due to a sudden rise in Ether activity within the Dead-End Hollow, and the abrupt berserk state of the powerful Ethereal—Dead-End Butcher—Vision Corporation has delayed departure and replanned the route."
"Huh? Vision Corporation? Belle—why are you suddenly bringing up that company?"
Back in the Hollow — Chiya Connects the Dots
Inside the Dead-End Hollow, Chiya stared at Eous—who had abruptly frozen—and narrowed his eyes.
"Don't tell me… Vision Corporation was your target all along, and I'm just a bonus add-on?"
"Uh… where is this random jealousy coming from, Chiya?"
"Whatever. Belle, Wise—explain what trouble you've run into first. We promised: blessings together, hardship together."
"…Nekomata."
"Huh?"
"You explain it."
"Ugh… Nekomata's mouth is so dry, meow…"
Grumbling, Nekomata repeated what she'd told Phaethon. Thankfully, since Phaethon had already "approved," the explanation went quickly.
"Oh—so Nicole and the others are trapped in Vision Corporation's planned blasting zone, and if that train loaded with explosives moves, then Nicole and the others will get blown into pieces?"
"Yes yes yes! That's right, meow!"
"I see…"
But to Wise and Belle's surprise, Chiya didn't look tense at all. After confirming once more that it was that construction company, he lowered his head and started tapping on his phone.
"Chiya—aren't you worried?!"
"Well… if it were another company, I might not have a way to buy time. But Vision's chief representative—Charles Perlman—I remember him."
"Hm?"
"Uh… even on TV he looks short, but in real life he might be shorter than some modded Bangboo… Belle, I can see Eous lying on the ground slapping the floor—don't laugh yourself into a seizure."
"But what does that dwarf have to do with you?" Nekomata couldn't help asking. "That guy believes his height is because of some kind of dwarfism and he's always been desperate to find a way to grow taller. Never managed."
"Then, a woman—when she saw he was about to despair—'out of kindness' gave him my contact info. Honestly, I've never seen someone spam begging-for-treatment messages that hard."
"But I was busy then, so I told him to send me his hospital report, said I'd need time to research and…"
"And?"
"And I ghosted him. His condition wasn't fatal, and at the time I had a patient with Ether Aptitude Failure Syndrome in terrible shape, so I was busy with that almost every day."
"But now…"
Chiya grinned.
"You tell me—does he stay here and honor his promise to the audience… or does he abandon something this critical to chase me down first?"
"That's brilliant, meow! No matter what he chooses, he'll hesitate forever—so we'll gain more time, meow!"
Nekomata jumped up—
And immediately got a knuckle bonk to the head.
"Enough. Anyone who pops champagne at halftime gets slapped in the face later. While we've got time—Belle, keep going with your plan."
"Huh? Chiya, you're not coming with us?"
"…I'm buying you time. That doesn't mean I'm changing your plan. Didn't you say you were going to stop the train?"
"Now is the moment we shine! The Super Ultra Mega Invincible Save-Cunning-Hares Train Heist Plan—START!"
"…Seriously. Whenever he gets excited, Chiya's naming sense goes straight into the gutter."
Corin, who'd been standing there unable to find a place to speak, finally seized her chance.
"Doctor Chiya! Even though robbery is wrong… this is to save lives, so… so…"
"Please let Corin join too! Corin wants to save lives as well—save the people Doctor Chiya cares about!"
"Corin… thank you."
"Uh… where is this weird atmosphere coming from? And wasn't I the one who came first?"
"And why does Chiya's eyes light up whenever this kind of thing comes up?! We're not bandits! Don't look so excited!"
"Of course we're not bandits."
"We're—"
"Gentleman thieves!"
Cutaway — A Gallery Lounge
"'Gentleman Thieves? On the Public Relations Disguise of Wicked Robbers'… heh. How boring. Why don't those big shots hire freshly graduated college kids to write this stuff? At least they'd still have unextinguished passion sharp enough to pierce paper's hypocrisy."
"These articles reek of stale rot—written by stones so old the rusted gears in their heads are practically popping out. Even the kiosk dog wouldn't stock this garbage."
In a gallery lounge, a tall, slender man with blond hair, heterochromia, and a suit sat in a soft emerald chair, chin in hand, flipping through newspapers and skewering their authors with razor-sharp contempt.
Suddenly, the lounge door flew open—rapid heels clacked across marble.
"Yo, isn't this Vivian? What's up—what happened now?"
"Hugo—you have no idea! Lately, for some reason, a bunch of rebels have popped up out of nowhere!"
"Rebels?"
"Yes!"
"Alright, alright—drink some water first. Look at you—you're exhausted."
With a smile, he poured water into a cup.
The water had cooled in the jug and hadn't even tasted the air outside before Vivian downed it in one go.
"Slow down, honestly."
"It's fine—phew, I'm alive again~~ヾ(´∀ ˋ)ﾉ"
Slumped in her chair, Vivian pouted angrily.
"Originally, tons of users on the RopeNet were shipping Lord Phaethon and Lord Asclepius!"
"But now, so many people are saying the two lords aren't a couple at all!"
"Especially those two—'The Outer Ring's God of Fuel' and 'Sniper Red Bean Bun'—they're saying Lord Asclepius belongs to them! Where does that leave Lord Phaethon?!"
Hugo smiled gently as Vivian ranted, then suddenly asked:
"Vivian—if you had to be with Lord Phaethon… or Lord Asclepius… who would you choose?"
"Huh?!! Th-this question! Ugh—it's too hard! It's like asking which of your parents fell into the water and which one you'd knock out first!"
"Oh, that's a pretty good analogy."
"Mm… I can't choose. But if I have to…"
"Hehe… I hope Lord Phaethon and Lord Asclepius can both become my wings!!!"
"…Vivian."
"W-what?! Where'd you get that pillow—huh? There's writing on it? Let me see…"
"…'Pillow for Daydreams Only'?"
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 80)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 80)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 74)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter20)
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