A faint streak of pale light crept across the horizon.
The night was gradually retreating.
Its final moments ticking away.
Inside Titan Tech's toy store...
"I swear, everything I told you is true! You have to believe me—I saw it with my own eyes! A massive patch of blinding white light!"
The girl working in the toy store crouched in a corner, whispering excitedly into her phone as she recounted what she'd just witnessed.
She'd been feeling drowsy before, but after seeing that strange phenomenon, she was wide awake.
"Ah? Looks like a customer's coming. I gotta go—I'm still on shift..."
Spotting a figure through the store's glass window, she quickly ended the call and headed for the entrance.
The pay at this part-time gig was good. She didn't want to lose it.
But when she got a clear look at the person walking in, her face dropped. She was just about to slip away when a voice called out behind her.
"Haha, do I look that scary?"
"Why do you seem like you really don't want to see me?"
Zane smiled. Girls really were hard to figure out. He hadn't done anything, yet somehow this was the result.
The girl turned back around, her bright face quickly shifting to her trademark smile as she responded cheerily.
"Come on, you're joking, right? You don't even need my help—you just talk directly to the boss..."
Zane waved a hand and said,
"You're not very committed to your job, are you? Even if I don't need your help, you can't just turn and run when you see me."
"Besides, I'm kind of a VIP here. What if I went and complained to your boss…"
"No, no, please don't! I'm sorry, don't tell the boss..."
She grabbed Zane's arm, looking up at him in a panic. Realizing the gesture was inappropriate, she quickly let go.
"Big brother, you're clearly someone with taste, kindness, and excellent character. You wouldn't hold a poor little salesgirl's behavior against her, right?"
"Right?"
Through his glasses, Zane could see her eyes sparkle. It was forced, but she still managed to look pitiful.
"Haha, relax, I'm just messing with you."
He chuckled and waved it off, suddenly feeling a bit guilty for teasing a young girl.
"Alright, I really don't need anything from you. Go back to your own tasks."
He walked toward the back room, having already spotted Deck inside through the window.
As he disappeared from sight, the girl blinked, then looked down—spotting a Bangboo hugging a single boot.
She recognized it—it belonged to that weird masked guy.
Why only one boot? Did it pick it up somewhere? Or steal it?
Yup. Like attracts like. That Bangboo was just as weird as its master.
Hands on hips, she shook her head. Whatever, her shift was almost over. No need to overthink it…
Sigh… She overheard some people talking about meeting a handsome magician. What a shame she wasn't around.
She really wanted to see some magic too…
Still, what she experienced wasn't bad either. She could brag about it later...
...
In the back room, Zane raised an eyebrow at the dejected-looking Deck and asked curiously,
"What's got you down?"
Deck had thought it was just a store clerk coming in. Seeing it was Zane, he stood up quickly.
Though he tried to perk up for a valued guest, the gloom on his face was hard to hide.
He didn't respond right away. Instead, he looked at Zane with concern.
"After everything that happened at the underground black market… are you alright?"
When Zane shook his head, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, then spoke with a heavy tone.
"When I heard you'd gotten into a fight with someone, I was planning to head down and check it out. Never expected to walk into a full-on disaster. I practically danced with death."
He sighed again. As far as he knew, Zane had only clashed with some Hollow Raiders. He had no idea Zane had also gone up against two of the top bosses.
And he certainly didn't realize that the man standing before him was the very cause of the underground market's destruction.
"Thankfully I had one of the company's high-tech shields on me, or I'd have been a goner…"
He sighed once more, clearly distressed.
"And now it's all gone. Not just that shipment of high-purity Ether explosives meant for the company—but the entire underground black market."
That batch of explosives had been acquired from the Public Security Bureau. What a waste.
"My main mission in the Janus District was to secure a foothold for Titan Tech—to establish a branch."
"But now everything's gone to hell. I failed the mission. I'll probably get disciplined when I get back. I'm not even sure I'll keep my current position…"
Slumping back into his chair, he looked defeated. Zane, watching him, asked with interest,
"Let me ask you—what's more important: the Ether substance I'm holding, or opening a Janus District branch?"
"That's obvious. Titan Tech is all about tech. Those science-crazed maniacs are the company's lifeblood. That super-pure Ether substance? Way more valuable."
"A branch? To those people, it's probably nothing more than 'a total waste of time' or something…"
As he spoke, Deck suddenly paused.
Right!
Sure, he failed the mission—but he got his hands on a rare Ether substance. How could he forget something so huge?
Come to think of it, the two cancel each other out. Not only was he not at fault—he'd made a major contribution!
Promotion and raise? Practically guaranteed!
Deck's face visibly brightened.
Seeing the shift in his mood, Zane gave a small nod.
Guess he was pretty good at cheering people up.
"Oh, sir, you really are my lucky star."
Deck stood again, a far cry from the gloomy man from moments ago. He looked like a whole new person, already envisioning a bright future.
"No need to thank me. Since your future's back on track, it's getting late, so I'll take my leave."
As Zane said that, Deck realized—he'd come here for a reason.
Thinking it over, he remembered the W-Engines. Dennies had already handed over the Ether. That just left these.
He quickly brought out the pre-packed W-Engines, divided into two backpacks, and handed them to Zane.
Noticing that the two bags were a bit much to carry, Deck stepped out of the room and waved to the girl still organizing shelves.
"Lin, come help the guest with his things."
Lin looked confused as she walked over—then saw that the guest was Zane and pursed her lips.