ZZZ: Trailblazing in New Eridu

With the Cunning Hares

"Do you really need to pack and buy that much?" Anby asks blankly as she and the Cunning Hares walk into the Lumina Square; all of them are going to the court for Perlman's trial.

"Well, I have to look nice in court, you know?" Nicole says with a smug smile, showing off her shopping bags while wiggling her fingers. On each of her fingers are gold rings, shimmering under the sunlight. "Thanks to the money we earned, I managed to get some new dresses and even accessories as bonuses."

"I never understand why people would buy those," Anby asks blankly. "It's like begging people to steal them."

"To look nice, of course," Nicole says as if it were obvious.

"Never understand the appeal," Billy says as he scratches his head. "It's just rings."

"Boys like you wouldn't understand," Nicole says with a huff.

"It's pretty," Nekomiya says in awe as she glances at the golden bracelet Nicole bought for her. She may owe her for attempting to hurt her after the Cunning Hares took down the Red Fang Gang, but due to her good work and Nicole earning a lot of money, she decided to gift her something.

"See, Nekomiya understands," Nicole says with pride.

"Sure," Billy says dryly before he looks at the sky. "I can't believe this is how our lives are now. I mean, our lives used to be full of struggles due to debts..."

"...yeah, it's unimaginable for us to have enough income for self-pleasure," Anby says in agreement.

"Well, we got Caelus to thank for this," Nicole says with a grateful smile. Nicole pauses when her team suddenly goes silent and looks at them before she feels her left eye twitch.

Anby and Billy look at her with the greatest incredulous stare anyone could ever made, staring at her like she got possessed by some eldritch cosmic entity who lower people's guard with false kindness and snatch their soul when they're completely defenseless. Nekomiya may not know her new boss much, but even she could tell she's acting out of character.

"Hey, what's with that look?!!" Nicole asks in annoyance.

"...the idea of Nicole appreciating someone, and even smiling in gratitude when mentioning their name..." Anby mutters in horror.

"...this is a cosmic event on par with the birth of Irontomb," Billy adds with a horrified look, hugging Anby out of fear. Nicole feels several of her blood vessels pop before she lashes out at both Anby and Billy. Thankfully, Nekomiya is spared from such a fate thanks to her not opening her mouth and inserting her foot.

As Nicole lashes out, she pauses when she hears her phone ring. She pulls it out of her pocket, glaring at Billy and Anby before looking at it. For whatever reason, she has been receiving several messages from someone with a rain emoji for a profile picture.

"Rain? Why is she giving me blank messages?" Nicole mutters questioningly as the rest of the Cunning Hares glance at her phone.

"Rain, who's that?" Nekomiya asks in confusion.

"The Phaethon siblings asked us to track down a hacker to help them decrypt Belobog Heavy Industry's memory unit they found in a Hollow," Anby explains.

"...I don't see you guys tracking down anyone," Nekomiya says accusingly. "Most of the time, you guys have been selling books."

"Why would we track someone who's coming to us willingly?" Nicole asks in confusion, which further confuses Nekomiya.

"She appeared out of nowhere when the boss was selling her books, and using that chance, she requested her help," Billy explains.

"Also, she's a close friend of mine. She visited me after hearing I opened a book stall, selling the current best-selling novel in Sixth Street," Nicole adds.

"...that's one hell of a coincidence!" Nekomiya yells in disbelief.

"Our luck has never been this great," Nicole says smugly.

"Please don't jinx it, Nicole./Boss!" Both Anby and Billy say in unison, causing Nicole to pop more blood vessels.

"Shut your mouth, you two!" Nicole snaps at the duo.

"So, why is this hacker contacting you guys with blank messages?" Nekomiya asks in confusion. "And from the history, it's been a few days..."

"...she's been sending this since after she bought the book from us," Anby mutters.

"And since then, she disappeared into thin air," Billy says in concern. "The only evidences she still alive is her sending this blank messages."

"It's been a few days!?! Isn't that clearly a red flag!!?" Nekomiya asks in disbelief.

"Actually, I've been investigating it myself," Billy adds. "I've already reported it to the boss, but she believed Rain was trying to stay under everyone's radar."

"Until today's texts..." Nicole says seriously before she raises her hand. "...guys, we're going on a detour. Taxi!"

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With Phaethon

"You know, I can't help but think that this trial feels more like a waste of time," Belle mutters. "I mean, the list of Vision's and Perlman's crimes is so much that it made the entire trial a cakewalk for the Cunning Hares."

"That may be true, but you know how it is with rich companies like Vision; they could buy their way out of the trial," Wise says with a frown.

"Damn, rich people could really buy anything, huh?" Belle grumbles while hugging Eous.

"And let's not forget, with a lawyer, they're gonna make things as painfully long as possible," Wise says with a sigh.

"...I feel like I don't want to watch it anymore," Belle says meekly.

"Of course the third assistant would quit before everything is started," Fairy says mockingly.

"Oh, shut it, Fairy," Belle grumbles.

"At least try to be creative when retorting; take Mr. Caelus as an example. He managed to hurt your pride by simply commenting on your eye bags." If Fairy had a human face, she would be smiling sweetly.

"At least I try not to be unoriginal by mentioning a previously used insult," Belle retorts.

"Telling people to shut up after losing in a battle of insults is a peak of unoriginality," Fairy responds casually, causing Belle's left eye to twitch violently. Before Belle could lash out, the Cunning Hare suddenly popped up by slamming the door open.

"Wise, Belle!" Nicole exclaims, startling the siblings.

"Oh, gods! Nicole?! What are you guys doing here-?" Belle pauses upon noticing the shopping bags Cunning Hares are carrying.

"...aren't you guys supposed to be on your way to the trial? Why are you guys holding so many shopping bags?" Wise asks questioningly.

"We have to look nice," Nicole says defensively before shaking her head. "Never mind about that, remember when you guys asked me to track down Rain?"

"Oh, you guys do remember," Wise says in surprise. "I honestly thought you guys forgot about it after being too busy selling the current best-selling novel."

"She did forget," Anby says blankly, earning a betrayed look from Nicole. "Rain just happened to visit our stall, and thankfully, Nicole remembered your request."

"That makes much more sense," Nekomiya mutters quietly.

"Anby!" Nicole yells in disbelief.

"A-anyways, something may have happened to Rain," Billy decides to continue for his boss's sake. Upon hearing this, both Phaethon siblings look at them with serious expressions.

"Can you guys explain in detail?" Wise asks.

"Ever since Rain showed up to buy a book from us, she suddenly disappeared, and the only evidence that she's alive is these messages the boss got. From what we heard, it seems that anyone who is close to Rain receives the same messages. But she only sent one blank message to everyone every few days," Billy explains. "At first, we thought Rain was just trying to stay under everyone's radar, perhaps trying to shake off her pursuers by confusing them with these messages. Then, we received several of them earlier."

"...okay, that sounds strange," Belle mutters.

"Fairy, could you-?" Wise didn't get the chance to finish his sentence.

"Already on it, master," Fairy says cheerfully, which surprises the Cunning Hares.

"...since when did Fairy talk with so much emotion in her voice?" Anby asks in surprise.

"After I read the masterpiece that is 'As I've Written'," Fairy praises. "It expanded my horizons in understanding what it means to be human, and it feels liberating."

"...if she manages to get a mechanical body, she could try the Forbidden Fruit Test," Billy suggests, which horrified Belle.

"No-!" Belle says in horror, but Fairy's next words would traumatize her even more.

"Having a body so I could be of use for my master, what an excellent idea, my friend," Fairy says happily. "Thank you. I shall find a way to create one."

"NOOOO!!!!" Belle wails in despair as Wise sweatdrops.

"Fairy, can you please tell me what you found?" Wise asks exasperatedly.

"Of course, master," Fairy says cheerfully. "There is no additional content in those messages; all are nothing but blanks. But I managed to find the sender's location. Based on the analysis, Miss Rain sent these messages near the Ballet Twins building."

"Hold on, B-Ballet Twins?" Nicole asks in horror.

"Something's wrong? And why do you look pale?" Wise asks in confusion.

"You must not care much for the urban legends, do you?" Anby asks. "The Ballet Twins are a set of two towers, and lately, there have been popular rumors of paranormal events happening there. People say that there's—"

"Quit it, Anby," Nicole shuts her up. "A-anyways, that shouldn't be possible since Ballet Twin was swallowed up by the Hollow years ago."

"With Fairy's capability, I doubt Fairy is mistaken," Wise says, ignoring Fairy, who happily hums upon hearing her master's praise.

"Since Nicole is going to represent in the court, and we're in a hurry to look for her, how about we go and take a look?" Belle suggests.

"Take Billy and Nekomiya with you guys," Nicole suggests.

"We're happy to help!" Billy and Nekomiya say in unison.

"...okay," Wise agrees.

"Can we ask Caelus to help us out?" Belle asks curiously.

"I...don't think it's a good idea," Wise says hesitantly. "Now that he's a recruit of Section 6, he will be under heavy supervision by the H.A.N.D., and the last thing we need is to drag a friend into trouble..."

"I guess so..." Belle mutters.

"Don't worry, even without Caelus, we could handle this very well," Billy says reassuringly. "Besides, I got a few upgrades thanks to him!"

"... Did he give you a Quantum core?" Wise asks with a great deal of curiosity as he starts inspecting Billy's mechanical body.

"Yup, and my suitcase along with our W-Engines got some upgrades as well," Nicole says with a grin. "Since he's our business partners, he gives us discounts."

"Huh...is something going on?" Wise asks curiously. "Because you guys seem like you're preparing for a huge battle?"

"...remember when Caelus said a woman who worked under Perlman who escaped is suspected to be a member of a cult?" Anby asks, and the Phaethon siblings nod in response. "He suspected that she might return to kill Perlman to shut him up."

"And there's a possibility that she might have ambushed him during our trip to the Supreme Court in the airship," Billy says seriously. "And given the airship also has citizens from the Canvas Street, it's safe to assume they plan to get rid of any witnesses who might know their secrets as well."

"I see..." Wise mutters. "I suppose preparing for a fight is a good idea."

"Let's just hope Caelus' predictions are wrong and things go smoothly," Belle adds.

"Don't jinx it!"/"Don't jinx it, third assistant!"

To be Continued