After speaking, Belle set aside the matter of the title and turned to Wise about what Zane had mentioned earlier.
"Brother, what do you think about this..."
Her expression steadied. She folded her arms and lowered her head slightly in thought.
Investigations were necessary, but only investigating and doing nothing else served no purpose.
"Those people may be extreme, but they wouldn't involve civilians. It would be wrong, both morally and logically. Doing so would be digging their own graves.
If Zane believes they're planning something inside Hollow Zero, then it's probably as good as certain.
That gives us plenty of room to maneuver."
Wise turned and sat down in front of the computer. The monitor's glow flickered across his eyes. His fingers tapped swiftly across the keyboard as he spoke.
"We've been investigating the cause of Hollow Zero's eruption and the fall of the Old Capital. You and I both know—the detonation of the Test Tower was the single most decisive event that stopped Hollow Zero from expanding.
And now, it seems they want to try again. There are two possibilities. One: to shrink Hollow Zero and reclaim lost territory.
As for the second..."
A pale light flickered on the computer screen. Wise swiveled his chair toward Belle, shifting aside to show her the data.
"They might want to eliminate something inside Hollow Zero—using a device similar to the Test Tower to erase it completely."
Looking at the data, Belle caught his meaning and picked up his thought.
"So you mean the purpose of the device is to cause a self-detonation like the Test Tower?"
Wise nodded. Belle raised an eyebrow, her tone incredulous.
"But your first theory doesn't work. Blowing up the Test Tower back then was a desperate measure. Even if someone tried to repeat it now, it would be extremely difficult. With Hollow Zero's current scale, it might not even have an effect.
As for the second... I can't think of anything that would require such a method. If the target is Zane, then why do it inside the Hollow?
That's just suicide. They'd be better off finding a place in the Outer Ring..."
"You're right."
Wise nodded again, but his bright eyes lingered on Belle, holding a subtle gleam.
"But do you remember what Zane said?
If it's not just one... that thing can be mass-produced. With today's technological progress, it's no longer as difficult as before. As long as humanity has enough resolve...
Either the first or second possibility could be achieved. But like you said, if it were truly aimed at Zane, it wouldn't happen inside the Hollow.
They're not that stupid. Which means it must be something else. As for what, I don't know—there are too many things we don't understand."
Wise shook his head with a trace of resignation.
"Of course, this is only speculation. What we need to do now is confirm or disprove it.
Based on that, we can decide our next move. At best, it might help Zane. At worst, at least we won't drag him down."
Belle nodded softly.
"You're right. The underground sector of Mars District exists precisely for advanced military facilities. Research and mass production wouldn't be impossible.
After all, we've already seen the finished product.
It just makes me wonder—why go through all this trouble? Why not just take it directly from Mars District..."
Her words trailed off. She lifted her gaze to Wise, blinked, and said quietly,
"Brother, doesn't this whole act—which looks like a blunder to anyone paying attention—fit a certain phrase? After all, to outsiders, this really does look like rebels carrying out a malicious attack against the authorities."
"What?"
Wise raised his brows, puzzled as he looked at Belle.
Was his sister about to unleash her super-brain again?
Belle's eyes sharpened as she spoke deliberately, enunciating each word.
"Deceiving the heavens to cross the sea..."
...
"Zane, that's enough already..."
Ellen sat on the bench, her legs shifting restlessly as an odd sensation coursed through her.
A peculiar touch ran along her tail, and her flushed face disappeared beneath her hair.
Her friends had touched her tail before, and it was nothing. So why did Zane's touch feel so...
She shouldn't have agreed to this...
"Enough? Not even close..."
Zane gripped the tip of her tail, lifting it to reveal fin-like flukes. He flicked them gently, his brows lifting in surprise.
"Wow, so springy! So this is what makes Thiren special..."
He took back his earlier thought—the novelty was definitely there. Before, he had only gotten a rough sense of the texture. Now he could study it closely.
"A little rough, but still soft—not like scales. A unique skin layer... huh, it feels even softer underneath..."
He squeezed curiously, feeling the tail shudder. At the same moment, he sensed a murderous glare fixed on him.
Clearing his throat twice, he quickly stopped squeezing the inner area and let his gaze wander upward.
"So, where did you even get this tail..."
In a flash, Ellen yanked her tail from his grasp and stood up, glaring at him.
She could guess exactly what he was about to ask.
"Ahem... I went to Mars District recently and met some researchers. I guess I picked up their 'dig deep' scientific spirit..."
Zane gave an awkward laugh and spread his hands. Ellen didn't seem convinced.
"Keep glaring like that, and I'll just put in a request with Victoria Housekeeping instead..."
Zane blinked as he said it quietly.
Ellen didn't know what he meant by commissioning Victoria Housekeeping, but she could hear the veiled threat in his tone... and his bad intentions.
When she turned her eyes away, Zane sighed inwardly. Hard-headed, huh?
They lingered by the riverside a little longer. Finally, Zane rose to say goodbye. The others, still absorbed in the night view, were surprised but bid him farewell nonetheless.
When it came to Ellen, though, all he got was a soft snort and her turned-away face.
Zane's gaze lingered on her as he let out a helpless sigh. Just as he was about to leave, a voice reached him.
"Um... I don't know what you're up to, but you seem strange today.
Anyway... come back safely."
Ellen spoke softly, glancing up to meet his eyes for just a moment.
If something could weigh on Zane so heavily, then it was no small matter.