After saying goodbye to Seth, Zane headed toward Sixth Street. Before going to the Public Security Bureau, Wise and Belle had said they wanted to discuss the matter of that mysterious person. They told him to come back once they'd made a decision.
Night gradually settled in.
"What do you want?"
At the entrance of Sixth Street, Zane found himself "facing off" with a small black cat.
"Meow—"
The little black cat let out a cry, crouched on a trash can by the roadside, and lifted a front paw to lick it. Its amber eyes quietly watched Zane.
"Meow—"
It meowed again, then jumped down nimbly from the trash can and disappeared into the night.
Zane raised an eyebrow. What was that all about?
Surely it didn't come out just to greet him?
Cats were really hard to read...
He shook his head slightly, then walked toward the video store. Passing the ramen shop, he glanced inside and saw General Chop still diligently working.
It wasn't too late yet, and there were still quite a few people eating. Zane glanced over and was about to look away—when a flash of white caught his eye.
His gaze paused.
As if sensing something, a Defense Force soldier who had just started eating a fresh bowl of spicy ramen suddenly stopped and turned her head.
Their eyes met mid-air.
In that one moment, time froze.
The enemy in her sights—Soldier 11 tensed up the instant she recognized his face. How could she forget it?
A second later, her instincts kicked in. She reached back with one hand—
Nothing.
Then she remembered—this was just a ramen outing, not a combat mission. There was no way she'd brought her special gear or weapons.
But the man who'd been on her mind day and night was right in front of her. Soldier 11 wasn't about to just let that go.
With one forceful push of her leg, she sprang up from her seat and spun around, charging at Zane.
Zane remained calm. He raised one hand to block, the other to counter, catching her arm and twisting it behind her back. With his own arm, he pinned her with a hold around her neck.
Guess what he learned from his master today really paid off.
"You!"
Soldier 11 hadn't expected such a fast reaction. She grit her teeth and tried to break free—but her strength was no match.
Her breathing grew shallow. In desperation, she raised her free arm and drove her elbow back.
But Zane gave her no opening. He slapped the elbow away and released her arm—then flicked her forehead before she could turn around.
She stumbled back instinctively, pain blooming across her forehead as it visibly reddened.
"If you can't win, don't pick a fight. Don't worry, I'll be hanging around here lately. I won't bully you. We can fight again when you're ready, alright?"
Zane shrugged. His easy tone snapped Soldier 11 out of her frenzied state—only for her frustration to surge.
What she took the most pride in was her strength.
And Zane had just humiliated her in that exact area.
She looked like she still wanted to fight, but Zane subtly tilted his head toward the crowd.
People had started gathering when the scuffle began.
Spectators were already watching.
Soldier 11 realized this wasn't the time or place to throw down—but still, she couldn't accept it. Even if she knew she'd lose, part of her still wanted to fight. She hesitated, caught between pride and reason.
Zane noticed and smiled faintly. With a turn of his wrist, he revealed a pair of orange goggles.
Soldier 11 saw them immediately. She recognized them—they were hers. The so-called "spoils of war" he'd taken.
Zane raised the goggles and perched them on his forehead. He brought his index fingers together, tucked the rest away, and tilted his head slightly.
"You haven't even finished your noodles. Don't waste food—someone once said that's a shameful thing to do."
"Oh, and I really like these goggles. Thanks for the gift. I won't disturb you any longer."
"Buh-bye~"
Zane winked, gave a nod, and let the goggles slide down over his eyes. They fit perfectly.
Soldier 11's forehead wasn't the only thing red now—her face had flushed too. And not from embarrassment.
From rage.
"Zane!"
"You! Are! So! Dead!"
Behind him, her furious voice came through gritted teeth. Zane didn't turn around—just raised a hand and waved casually behind him.
"Looking forward to it."
Soldier 11 didn't go back to finish her ramen.
She packed it to go and left.
Zane didn't give it another thought. With Soldier 11 around, who knew—maybe someday he'd go into the goggle wholesale business...
It was still early, and the video store hadn't closed yet. Zane stepped inside and found Belle chatting with two girls.
They looked familiar—one had orange hair tied in a ponytail, the other had purple pigtails.
The first was Heddy. The second was Sjal.
One was a video tape enthusiast. The other was the chosen part-time worker.
"Hey? Zane, you're back!"
Belle spotted him immediately. Even with orange goggles, he was easy to recognize.
"Yeah. I'm back."
Zane removed the goggles, revealing his clear blue eyes. At Belle's call, the two girls turned and looked at him.
"Are you a friend of the store manager? Hi there."
They greeted him politely, and Zane returned the greeting and introduced himself.
Then his gaze fell on something on Sjal's forehead—and he froze.
What was that black-and-green tag hanging there?
Noticing his stare, Sjal blinked and smiled.
"Zane, are you interested in the crystal badge too?"
"Crystal badge? What's that?"
Zane was curious. Sjal, naturally a bit forward, put her hands on her hips, shook her twin-tails proudly, and said with a grin,
"Hehe, this is a badge issued by the Fire Pickers' Society to official members! I only got it an hour ago!"
"According to the president, it was a gift from the handsome and wise Fire Picker himself!"
Fire Pickers' Society? What?
When did he ever give anything to anyone?
Zane was completely confused—but seeing the joy on Sjal's face, he didn't question it.
Maybe wearing that thing on her forehead gave her some kind of weird bonus?
At that moment, Belle came over and, seeing his confusion, explained,
"The Fire Pickers' Society is a new online group that researches the Fire Picker. It's part of the Hollows forum now..."
"They came looking for video tapes about the Ethereals. Sjal's interested because of the Fire Picker. Heddy just loves tapes in general."
With that, Zane understood what they were doing.
He exchanged a few casual words with them, then followed Belle into the next room.