As they cleared out the Ethereals blocking their path, Phaeton followed the signal from the safe, leading the Cunning Hares right up to the edge of a spatial rift.
"This one drops down—watch your step," Phaeton warned, standing before the rift.
"How far to the target?" Anby checked herself for injuries. "We're already close to the limits of our Ether tolerance in here."
"That upper-class Ethereal must've noticed us. It's been sending waves of them to encircle us, but we've broken through fast enough."
"Once we're through, the target's right there," Phaeton said with confidence. "Ignis, you go first."
"No problem." The Salamander nodded and stepped straight into the rift.
His senses were scrambled; the scenery blurred and twisted. When control returned, he landed on the rail outside a familiar platform.
The Proxy had been right—the rift had dropped him exactly where they'd escaped before. Even the fire extinguisher dust from Billy's last firefight still lingered.
Switching to thermal vision, Ignis found no heat signatures. Maybe the Dullahan wasn't here.
"Waaahhhh—!"
Billy came tumbling from above, unable to control his body. He was about to land head-first when Ignis caught him mid-air and set him down gently.
"Thanks! Another hit like that and I'd need a new tune-up," Billy said, waving a hand. "Doesn't matter how many times we do this, it still sucks."
"The Cunning Hares' low on funds these days," Anby said dryly as she landed, holding Nicole in her arms. "Try not to break anything."
"We'll avoid rifts whenever possible," Phaeton's Bangboo said as it floated down smoothly. "But this time, it was necessary."
"Right. The safe's just ahead," Ignis agreed.
At that, everyone perked up and hurried onto the platform.
Anby spotted the safe lying on the floor first and pointed. "Found it!"
Phaeton's Bangboo dashed forward on its tiny legs and began inspecting it for damage.
"Ha! Lucky day!" Billy clapped his forehead and started dancing.
"That's my safe!" Nicole squealed, running forward with unrestrained excitement.
"Hahahaha!" Billy laughed and whistled as he followed her.
Seeing the two act so carefree, Ignis just shook his head and kept watch at the entrance.
Anby smiled faintly and was about to follow—
—but the space behind her warped, and the Ethereal appeared again.
Dullahan drew back its sword and thrust at her.
Anby shifted her weight, pivoting sharply on one leg, drawing her blade to block the thrust just in time.
The impact sent her sliding several meters, nearly crashing into the startled Nicole and Billy, with the Ethereal driving her away from the safe.
Before she could recover, Dullahan struck again. Her arms went numb under the shock, reflexes lagging.
"In Vulkan's name!"
With a roar, a giant in deep-green armor charged in. His shoulder slammed the Ethereal aside, blocking it from Anby.
Dullahan steadied itself, sword embedded in the floor. Spotting the safe at its feet, it stepped forward to face the Cunning Hares.
Phaeton glanced at the Ethereal and reluctantly retreated behind the group.
"Found it…" Anby muttered, rubbing her sore arm.
"Yeah… lucky us…" Billy grumbled, spinning his pistols into position.
"That's my safe!" Nicole snapped, deploying her cannons.
Purple-pink light surged from the Ethereal's body. Ignis tensed, activating his Power Field.
"Damn it! You again?!" Nicole shouted, opening fire. "No more mercy this time!"
Dullahan raised its shield to block and roared, glowing brighter.
"It's going berserk! Watch out!" Phaeton warned.
"I don't care! Give back what's mine!" Nicole fired relentlessly, bullets sparking off the shield.
"Nice! Boss is going berserk too!" Billy whooped, joining the barrage.
Ignis seized the opening, charging forward and slamming a punch into the shield.
This time, his Power Field met resistance—a null reaction, but no effect.
So, the active Ether radiation must've neutralized the field.
Dullahan focused on him and swung.
Too slow. He caught its sword arm again—but when he tried to snap it, the limb held firm. The creature's reinforced Ether form made it stronger.
So, he pressed down on the top of its shield, forcing its head into view.
"Burn, heretic!" he roared.
The flamethrower roared back, engulfing Dullahan's upper body in fire.
Nicole and Billy flanked it, firing continuously, stripping away layers of Ether flesh.
Anby circled behind, charging her blade in its sheath—waiting for her moment.
Dullahan screamed, detonating some of its own active Ether. The blast forced Ignis back a step and broke his grip.
He cut the flames immediately to avoid friendly fire.
Freed, Dullahan swung its shield like a battering ram. Ignis sidestepped and took the blow on his armored shoulder.
For a skinny-looking Ethereal, it hit damn hard—enough to stagger a one-ton Aggressor.
Its arm secreted liquefied Ether, making Ignis's hand slip toward the sword's edge.
No thanks. He released it, letting Dullahan reclaim its weapon.
The Ethereal knew he was the biggest threat. It unleashed a furious combo of shield and blade. Ignis could only dodge carefully, looking for an opening.
But the Cunning Hares had numbers on their side.
Seeing Anby behind the Ethereal, Ignis lunged into its strike.
His Power field-coated fist clashed with the blade in a shower of sparks.
Using his size advantage, he grappled the Ethereal—shield pinned to its chest, sword arm locked.
Honestly, they looked like dance partners mid-waltz.
Seeing her chance, Anby leapt, blade crackling with lightning, and slashed upward into its back.
The surge was so strong even Ignis felt his armor tingle.
The Ethereal's glow vanished; its body slumped.
"When you shock someone," Anby muttered through clenched teeth, "they pass out. Movies were right."
The enemy exposed, Ignis released it and hammered its core with both fists.
First blow—half its body gone.
The second blow—the core shattered.
If not for the mutual interference between active Ether and his power field, it would've disintegrated instantly like the rest.
"Haha…" Nicole dropped her case, raised her arms. "Finally—!"
Anby and Billy thought she wanted a high-five and lifted their hands—
—but Nicole darted past them and hugged the safe instead.
Ignis gave the two an amused two-finger salute and nodded toward the box.
Nicole rubbed her cheek against the cold metal cube as Phaeton's Bangboo hopped onto it.
"I hate to ruin the mood," Belle said apologetically, "but don't celebrate yet, Nicole—listen to me…"
Nicole froze mid-hug. Uh-oh.
"That hacker deleted my emergency exit data," the Proxy said flatly.
Lightning struck. Nicole went pale.
"You mean… we're stuck here?" Her voice broke, and she collapsed weakly.
Anby caught her just in time.
"Ahahaha…" Nicole laughed Ethereally. "After everything… back where we started. Guess this is the end, huh?"
"Damn, I never even had dinner with Monica yet," Billy lamented dramatically, leaning toward Anby—only to be stopped by her outstretched hand.
"Well… it's been a good life," the robot sighed, leaning harder, earning a glare from Anby.
"Calm down," she said, steadying Nicole. "We'll find another way."
"Yeah. The Proxy got in—means there's a way out," Ignis said, looking at the little AI.
"There is one way," the Bangboo nodded. "But Nicole has to agree."
"I agree!" Nicole shot up, hand raised high.
"You're not even gonna ask what it is?" Ignis groaned.
"The hacker said the safe's contents are on par with THE Rosetta data," the Proxy explained. "It's a special Hollow Master Data sample."
"Hollow Master Data sample?"
"With it, we can recalibrate the observation data and map a stable path through the Hollow in real-time."
"So… it's basically a map of the Hollow itself," Ignis realized. "That'd be highly classified."
"If the hacker's right, we can use it to get out!" Phaeton patted the safe. "If you'll let me open it."
"I said I agree!" Nicole glared around. "You all heard me!"
"What about the client?" Phaeton asked, worried.
"At a time like this? If we die here, who's delivering it? Open it already!" Nicole demanded, hands on her hips.
The Bangboo pressed its stubby fingers on the keypad. The lock clicked open—revealing a small data card nestled in red velvet.
"But I don't know exactly what's stored in here," it said cautiously. "If something goes wrong during forced access…"
"Wait," Anby interrupted. "Your real body's outside the Hollow. You could've just left us. Why come back? What's your angle?"
"Anby!" Nicole snapped.
"What a strange question," Belle said softly. "I'm your Proxy."
"I promised to get you out. That means I will." Ignis saw sincerity in the little machine's eyes. "If I fail, my HDD system will auto-post a rescue request for you."
"But that means you'll…" Phaeton trailed off. Everyone knew what that meant.
"Relax," Ignis said, deflecting. "We owe you. We'll return the favor."
"Yeah!" Nicole said, thumbing her chest. "No matter what happens, we'll come back for you!"
"Hmph. Words won't get you a discount," the Bangboo muttered, opening a data port. Phaeton inserted the card.
A moment later, things went wrong.
Phaeton's Bangboo—Eous—floated straight up into the air.
"Didn't know Bangboos could hover…" Billy said blankly.
"It's glowing!" Anby started, just before Eous flashed like a stun grenade.
Everyone shielded their eyes except Ignis, whose armor dimmed the glare.
Honestly, the floating, flashing orb looked like a disco ball.
"Boss! You, okay?!" Billy shouted, but there was no response.
"Oh no… don't tell me it crashed again…" Nicole groaned.
"It's falling!" The Bangboo dropped with a thud. Anby moved to pick it up—
—but it suddenly sprang to life and bolted away.
"After it! Don't let it run off again!" Nicole yelled, grabbing the safe and charging after it with the team.
"Didn't know Bangboos could run that fast!"
After a long chase, everyone was winded. Ignis simply scooped them onto his left hand and kept running.
Riding on a power armor wasn't exactly comfortable—they clung to his fingers for dear life to avoid being flung off.
"Up ahead!" Billy shouted over Nicole's screaming. "There's an exit!"
The Bangboo dove through first. Ignis followed without hesitation.
Once more, the pressure vanished—and they emerged in New Eridu, right where they'd entered.
"Boss! You did it!" Billy cheered, lifting the now-still Bangboo.
"Get in the truck, Billy!" Nicole yelled from the cab. "We need to check on Proxy!"
Ignis climbed into the back, watching the city blur past as Nicole floored it.
He hadn't realized the old truck's machine spirit was this strong.
Then he raised his armored middle finger toward an annoyed driver they'd just passed.
The man stared, stunned—then swerved right into a curb.
Serves you right for driving badly.