Nicole stood off to the side, veins twitching on her forehead. To think she had assumed Su Chen was a warm, gentle guy—turns out, this man was just a walking central heater.
She abruptly cut off the weird tension between the two and said, "Proxy, have you found any sign of Billy and Anby?"
"I've pinpointed their location. They're not far," said Belle, speaking through Eous with a serious tone. "But there are active Ether signals along the way—we won't be able to avoid the Ethereal."
"That's no problem. We'll just take them out."
Nicole waved her hand, radiating confidence.
"Mm."
Eous nodded and trotted ahead on her short legs.
After walking about a hundred meters, they indeed spotted two Ethereal.
Screee!
Two glowing green lizard-like creatures let out sharp screeches from atop a derailed train. Their forms were large—larger than average lizards—and emitted a sickly bioluminescent glow.
"Ethereal spotted—eliminate them quickly!"
Eous instantly stepped back, shielding Su Chen and Nicole with her tiny frame.
While she had basic weapons onboard, avoiding combat was always preferable.
"You retreated fast."
Su Chen looked down in exasperation at the Bangboo now clinging to his pant leg.
The two lizard-Ethereal, upon spotting the group, lunged forward.
One came from the 10 o'clock direction, the other from 1 o'clock—executing a pincer attack at a 120-degree angle.
They moved incredibly fast—any ordinary person would only see two streaking shadows before being sent to meet their maker.
Judging by their size and speed, they were likely Level 2 Ethereal—the kind that took three normal people to bring down.
Thankfully, no one here was ordinary—not even Eous, who wasn't human to begin with.
"My turn!"
Nicole adjusted her transforming suitcase, launching a small explosive at one of the Ethereal.
Boom!
One of the lizard-Ethereal was blasted off the train and hit the ground hard, its body heavily damaged.
But what would have killed an ordinary human three times over was merely a setback to an Ethereal. Thanks to Ether regeneration, its wounds began visibly healing.
Meanwhile, Su Chen, facing the other one, calmly drew Ebony from his waist with his left hand.
"So weak."
To Su Chen, the Ethereal's movement was like watching a slow-mo replay—utterly non-threatening.
He raised the handgun and fired instantly.
The bullet shot straight for the exposed Ether core near the lizard's abdomen.
Bang!
Crack!
The Ether core shattered with the crisp sound of breaking glass.
The Ethereal, mid-leap, went limp in the air and collapsed in a heap before Su Chen, bowing in an unintended five-point prostration.
Su Chen casually fired another shot at the other Ethereal Nicole had wounded.
Another clean hit. Another shattered core. Both lizard-Ethereal were down for good.
"Clap clap clap!"
The Bangboo clapped its tiny hands in admiration. "That was excellent teamwork!"
Belle had originally assumed Nicole's new employee was just a pretty face. Turns out, he had real skills.
And his coordination with Nicole was shockingly smooth—as if they'd been a duo for years.
"Of course! I always pick the most compatible employees!"
Nicole lifted her chin proudly.
Though to be honest, she was also a little puzzled. It was their first time working together—how could they be this in sync?
"Boss Nicole's right."
Su Chen smiled, echoing her praise.
This wasn't "teamwork." It was overwhelming compatibility.
When someone's capability was vastly superior, they could anticipate others' moves—almost like a parasite in their brain.
With his tenfold-enhanced physique, Su Chen could read Nicole's every move.
Like when she walked… he could tell something was about to bounce. (Not that he looked.)
After finishing off the two Ethereal, the group pressed on.
Nicole, ever the practical one, didn't forget to scoop up the shattered Ether cores. "Nice little haul. Not much, but hey—mosquito legs are still meat!"
These Ether cores, being condensed forms of Ether energy, couldn't be used directly—but they were fine for raw material processing.
Ethereal cores could be sold.
Su Chen quietly made a mental note.
In the game, defeated Ethereal didn't drop anything. But real-world monsters always left behind something useful.
If every Ethereal left a corpse, wouldn't Hollows be littered with bodies by now?
Curious, Su Chen asked, "Do the Ethereal corpses just stay here? Wouldn't that cause problems?"
"What kind of problems?" Nicole looked at him skeptically. "Ethereal are made from Ether energy. After they die, they quickly dissolve back into the Hollow."
"You didn't know that?"
"Of course I knew. I meant… wouldn't the scent of Ether attract more enemies?"
Su Chen tried to act like a seasoned local.
Revealing his transmigrator identity would bring nothing but trouble—better to keep it hidden.
He hadn't expected the Ethereal to be so eco-friendly. No pollution, no cleanup. Nice.
"At least for today, we don't need to worry about reinforcements. We're just here to find people."
Nicole didn't question Su Chen's phrasing.
She figured it was probably a leftover habit from a past profession—something like cleaning up a scene.
"Look! Battle traces up ahead!"
Eous suddenly cried out, interrupting the two.
Su Chen and Nicole turned toward the voice and saw the ground littered with spent casings and distinct blade marks.
"These bullets—Billy's model for sure! And those cuts, no doubt Anby's handiwork!"
Nicole studied the scene with certainty.
"Looks like they're up ahead. But their situation might be rough—we need to move!"
The group quickened their pace.
As they ran, Su Chen noticed Eous was struggling to keep up.
So—
"Proxy, your legs are too short. Let me carry you."
Before Belle could react, Eous had already been scooped up by Su Chen's long arms and placed back into his embrace.
"Hey! My legs aren't short!"
…
Elsewhere, deeper in the Hollow.
Clang!
Anby swung her electric blade, parrying an Ethereal's strike.
She followed up with two swift slashes, shattering its Ether core.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Billy, dual-wielding pistols, was laying down heavy fire into a horde of Ethereal.
Weaving through them with mechanical agility, his cyborg body moved like a liquid metal octopus.
Watching the Ethereal scatter from his bullets, Billy shouted with theatrical flair: "Starlight Knight delivers your eulogy! Wail in the agony of death! I often reflect on the fragility of life—yours is as brittle as paper!"
"Rargh!"
"Ababahbah!"
The Ethereal had no idea what Billy was yelling about—they just kept attacking relentlessly.
"In the name of Starlight Knight—"
Billy tried to belt out another line but suddenly felt nothing when he pulled the trigger.
"Oh no! I forgot to reload!"
His dramatic pose crumbled into panic as he fumbled with his clips, dodging frantically as Ethereal chased him down.
After slapping in fresh magazines and letting loose a pair of bursts to push them back, Billy shouted with despair: "Hey! Anby! I'm low on ammo! We're seriously gonna get trapped here!"
"Hold on a little longer. We'll be rescued."
Anby pushed back an advancing Ethereal with a precise slash, her voice calm and cold.
"You're still recording this, right?" Billy yelled while rolling to avoid another strike. "If Nicole hears this recording, tell her to place some Starlight Knight figurines at my grave!"
"And—please!—add a Monica Onee-san photobook too!"
"..."
Anby kept fighting with a blank expression, choosing to ignore Billy completely.
Suddenly, dozens of bullets and explosions rained down from above—relieving the pressure on Billy.
"Billy! Your wishes can be granted—but the cost comes out of your insurance payout!"
Nicole said with a playful smirk, lifting her transforming suitcase in one hand.
Beside her, Su Chen blew the smoke from Ivory and gently placed Eous back on the ground.