"Mmm! (Big bro, you're back!)"
Panta was playing with No. 6 and Eous behind the door. When he saw Zane, he bounced up excitedly. Zane reached out and rubbed his head.
"By the way, Zane, I put the stuff you brought back this morning over here."
Belle suddenly remembered something and pointed to the two backpacks in the corner.
When Zane returned, he had tossed them aside casually, so she helped move them—they were pretty heavy.
Seeing how indifferent he was about it, Belle leaned forward a bit and asked curiously,
"Zane, what's in them?"
"W-Engines."
Zane didn't bother hiding it. To him, they weren't anything valuable.
"If you're interested, feel free to take one."
Belle blinked, then suddenly realized—W-Engines? Weren't those the illegal goods sold in toy shops?
She leaned in, unzipped one of the backpacks, and looked at the neatly packed W-Engines inside.
"These seem way higher-end... Zane, these must be super expensive, right?"
Zane shook his head.
"Not at all. They're free."
"Free?!"
Belle looked stunned. This many, and such high quality—yet free?
Even though she was surprised, she didn't dwell on it too much. Outside of her role as a Proxy, she was just an average person with limited combat power. She didn't even have an Ether weapon, so W-Engines weren't of much use to her.
"Zane, don't you use Ether energy too? Why not pick out a W-Engine to power up your abilities?"
Wise hadn't come down yet, so Belle took the chance to chat.
"W-Engines, huh... I can't use them."
Zane shook his head. These W-Engines couldn't even handle his transitional Ether energy, let alone boost his techniques.
"But I do have something similar—kind of like my own personal 'W-Engine.'"
He chuckled as something came to mind.
"What is it?"
Belle grew curious and leaned in as Zane raised his hand, but his palm was empty.
Just as she was starting to wonder, a small black orb slowly materialized above his hand, edged in a soft white glow.
"What's that?"
Belle frowned and leaned closer.
"A W-Engine."
Same shape, same size—what else could it be?
"Really…"
Belle extended a finger, cautiously reaching for it, but before she could touch it, her finger was stopped midair. She couldn't move any closer.
It felt like a soft rubbery barrier was blocking her, repelling her approach.
"Alright, alright, I'm done teasing."
"This is actually a Cretan Hollow."
Belle blinked, then her eyes widened.
"Cretan Hollow…"
"Wait."
"What?!"
Belle stared at the little black orb in Zane's hand in disbelief.
"You're saying… this is a Cretan Hollow?!"
The shock hit hard—her mind was practically frozen. According to Zane, he was literally holding a Hollow in his hand!
That was insane.
If she didn't already know Zane's personality, or that he was the "Fire Picker," she wouldn't have believed this tiny black orb was the Cretan Hollow.
So the Hollow hadn't vanished—it was in Zane's hand all along?!
She'd long suspected the Hollow's disappearance was connected to him, but she never imagined it was to this extent.
Hollows vanishing was rare—but not impossible.
Controlling a Hollow, though? She'd never even heard of it.
Let alone holding one in your hand!
What kind of W-Engine was this?!
"Shh."
Zane held the Hollow in one hand and raised a finger to his lips with the other.
"Keep it a secret."
Belle nodded instinctively like a chick pecking at rice, then quickly added,
"Zane, hurry up and put that thing away! If you drop it, the whole video store's gonna be gone!"
"And maybe my brother and I along with it!"
It was Eous who could resist Ether erosion, not her!
Zane nodded, and as he lowered his hand, the black orb didn't vanish—it simply fell.
Belle's expression changed instantly. She didn't even have time to react before the orb hit the ground.
She reflexively covered her eyes.
It's over. It's over. How did it come to this? If I'd known, I never would've gotten curious...
Silence.
After over ten seconds, Belle slowly uncovered her eyes and looked toward Zane—only to see the black orb back in his hand.
Looking up at his smiling face, she realized immediately—he had been messing with her.
"Ahhh! Zane!!!"
...
When Wise came downstairs and saw Zane had returned, he smiled. But then he noticed Belle fuming nearby, clearly itching to get back at Zane. That left him a bit confused.
What happened? He'd only been gone for a little while...
Whatever. Business first.
Wise gave Zane a quick rundown of the plan—they'd agree to the meeting request, then use the name Phaethon to intimidate the other side with the legendary Proxy's reputation.
But the one actually going to the meeting wasn't Belle. Or Wise.
It was Zane.
After all, no one knew anything about Phaethon.
On the surface, he was Phaethon.
Behind the scenes, he was the Fire Picker.
This setup ensured safety while letting Zane observe the situation and decide how to respond.
Once he understood the plan, Zane agreed without hesitation—perfect.
After the discussion, Belle left the room. The video store was about to close, and she needed to help the last few customers finish up.
Only Wise and Zane remained.
"Honestly... Belle was the best choice to go. She's the one who's been talking to them."
"Switching people could raise suspicions."
Wise leaned back on the couch and glanced at Zane.
"But... I'm worried about her. She's not that strong, so..."
"It's fine. This way's better. If Belle really went, I'd be worried too."
Zane shook his head with a soft laugh.
Wise nodded at first, then suddenly shook his head.
"No, you're not allowed to worry about Belle."
"Why not?"
"I'm worried about her as a friend. That's allowed, right?"
"Just friends?"
"Just friends."
Wise paused, then decided to believe him.
He didn't really have a choice—he couldn't handle the alternative.
All he could do was reassure himself silently.
After a bit more chatting, Belle returned, quick and efficient as ever, with a small black cat trailing behind her.
"Zane, this little guy seems to be looking for you."