Zane felt as though he were suspended in midair. With nothing visible around him, information was limited, but faintly—he could sense the vastness stretching in every direction.
Unlike its outward shell, the Hollow's interior felt endless—space itself warped into infinity.
A wave of intense dizziness surged into his head, so strong it made him want to vomit. At the same time, sharp stings and itching sensations pricked across his body, leaving him unbearably uncomfortable.
His first impression was simple: distortion and chaos.
"Spatial energy... I'm being torn apart, twisted, teleported over and over..."
The last time he'd tried this had been long ago, when his grasp of spatial energy was far less refined.
Now, though, he could faintly perceive it.
But the sensations were far too chaotic to describe. Zane had no energy left to analyze them.
The strange storm of perceptions scrambled his thoughts completely. All he could do was abandon everything else and focus on trying to grasp the wildly concentrated, endlessly chaotic energy inside the Hollow.
Here, time seemed to lose meaning. After what felt like forever, Zane finally managed to smooth the flow of energy around his body, stabilizing himself.
"Condensed, unclaimed energy... harder to control than raw, scattered streams..."
He had realized this before. Mastering a Hollow was essentially reclaiming the world's energy from disaster.
But once he subdued a Hollow, its energy no longer belonged to the world—or to calamity. It became his.
Only after he used it would the excess return to the world, even inside the Hollow itself.
It was as if the world used him as an anchor, slowly eroding the Hollow...
By the same logic, when the Hollow replenished its reserves, its ownership shifted—from "the world" to "Zane."
This wasn't like a normal Hollow. It wasn't theft—it was a gift the world offered willingly.
So he suspected the reason Hollow energy was easier to control was because the world itself supported him, granting partial ownership to smooth the process.
"The world plays a bigger role than I thought... I should consider this more carefully from now on. After all, our goals align."
That woman may not have been the world's will, but her nature wasn't far from it. From her attitude, he could tell just how important he was.
And then... that snowfall before...
Usually, he was the one cleaning up after others.
Perhaps this time, the world was cleaning up after him.
Shaking his head, Zane resumed analyzing and organizing the Hollow's energy. His talent was formidable—after his initial breakthrough, everything came together much more smoothly.
Eventually, he carved out a small domain where he could exist comfortably.
He lifted his hand and stared at it. In this entire "universe," it was one of the only tangible things he could see.
A soft glow flickered in his palm—it was Ether energy.
"Can't go on seeing nothing... Even darkness is better than pure void."
Strands of light gathered at his fingertips. His clear, ice-cold eyes reflected the shimmering glow as it danced.
Zane smiled faintly, then flipped his hand, pressing the glowing point downward, streams of light trailing from his fingers.
"Let there be light."
Ding—
As the glow touched the unseen space, a strange tone reverberated through the void, lingering endlessly.
From that point of contact, a golden halo rippled outward like waves across water, sweeping past Zane and spreading rapidly into the distance.
Wherever the ripple passed, emptiness vanished. The unseen energy all around revealed itself.
Shades of pink, pale red, crimson, and deep scarlet—fire energy.
Blue-white, pale blue, azure, and deep indigo—ice energy.
Deep blue, dazzling gold, violet-gold, and pitch-black—lightning energy.
And countless others—greens, yellows, and unfamiliar hues—while the greatest share belonged to radiant, multicolored Ether energy.
A dazzling spectrum, blinding in its brilliance.
With the energies visible, organizing them became far easier. Zane swam through them like a fish in water, sorting the streams while continuing his search for that mysterious "core."
Gradually, his figure was swallowed by the sea of radiant light.
High above New Eridu's skies, a pitch-black Hollow hung suspended. Its size and color ensured it went completely unnoticed.
Time passed. As deep night arrived, moonlight wove a thin veil over New Eridu, and the flow of people and vehicles dwindled.
Quiet.
Just like any other night.
...
"Ugh..."
"Zane, what's wrong with you...?"
At dawn inside the Tanuki House, Nekomata looked at him in worry. Zane leaned weakly against a trash can, and Nekomata raised a hand to rub his back.
He had only come by for his usual "work," yet here he was, clearly unwell. Could he even get sick?
She'd never seen him like this before.
Oh—well, that one time with the nose injury didn't count. That was different.
"Nauseous."
After a few dry heaves, Zane caught his breath, straightened, and collapsed onto the sofa, looking like he had lost the will to live.
His head felt like it was about to split open.
Inside the Hollow, while organizing the energy and drifting through, he had felt fine. But the moment he emerged empty-handed and returned to the Tanuki House, the backlash hit him all at once.
How could it feel this awful...?
Maybe the energy had seeped into him too deeply?
Even thinking back, the scenes around him in the Hollow were dizzying beyond reason.
On the sofa, a small black cat leapt lightly onto the backrest, padded toward his head, and gave him a look.
Hmph, what a fragile human...
"Feeling that bad? There's nothing much happening at the Tanuki House today. How about I stay and look after you?"
Nekomata leaned closer, watching him hold his forehead with one hand. Her brows furrowed as she spoke.
She figured she was pretty good at looking after people. Rarely did she have the chance to actually help Zane.
"I'll be fine. I just need a little time."
Zane waved her off. He had gained nothing again this time, and honestly, he had no desire for another attempt.
The Hollow's core—if it even existed—he had no idea how to find it.
Maybe there wasn't one at all.
Or maybe he was just thinking about it wrong. The "core" didn't have to be at the Hollow's center.
Just like a human heart wasn't in the stomach.
Except for Hannibal.
It was even possible the Hollow's core wasn't inside the Hollow at all...
Zane shook his head, pushing away the mess of thoughts.