With a loud thud, Wise landed atop the moving train.
[|Carreful Master. Your bottom hit the roof quite hard.|]
"I know without you saying it," Wise grumbled. "But whose fault is it that this body's limbs are so short?"
He stretched his tiny limbs and began to walk carefully along the roof. He hadn't moved far before Fairy's voice chimed in again.
[|Do not be discouraged by this current form. Your relative once praised this exact build. To quote her directly: 'Small is also very cute.'|]
"Thanks a lot, Fairy."
[|You're welcome, my dear Master.|]
Wise let out a long sigh at Fairy's words. Trying to argue with an AI only made him more tired, so he chose to ignore it and continued forward.
After spotting the skylight ahead, he crouched down and prepared to slip inside.
[|Master, the skylight on this train's roof is so small that even Nekomata would struggle to fit through it. But for you, this should be manageable.|]
"What a strange comment. Never mind, I just need to reach the cockpit and activate the shutdown button."
Wise squeezed through the narrow skylight and dropped into the train with effortless ease. He landed lightly, but the sharp clinking of metal reached him before he could take another step.
The noise came from close by. Several figures were gathered together, hurriedly readying their weapons.
He looked up and found a squad in Public Security uniforms, all pointing their dark muzzles straight at him.
"Ah, so there's more than just a bomb on this train."
Every one of them looked ready to fire the moment he twitched. With no room to hesitate, Wise moved first.
His small, springy body shot upward. He darted forward and knocked the nearest enemy to the floor with surprising force.
At that same moment, a sharp crack split the air as the train window shattered. Glass scattered across the floor while Nekomata leapt through the opening with a clean and effortless jump, landing inside the carriage.
Wise had planned to team up with her and knock everyone out together, but before he could react, she grabbed him and tossed him straight out of the window. He had no time to prepare.
"You go back first! I'll handle things here. I have the Carrot. We'll meet at the store later!"
Wise only managed to hear her voice before the train sped away.
At that speed, it was impossible for the Bangboo's short legs to catch up unless Wise decided to put all his attribute points into speed.
But since Nekomata had said so, Wise could only trust her and leave the Hollow first. When he returned to the Video Store, Belle immediately asked about his condition, then checked Eous to confirm he was functioning normally.
"Vision Corporation told everyone the delayed explosion happened because of technical issues. Just hearing that already feels suspicious," Wise said.
"Hmm, big brother is right. They said the train had no one inside and was only carrying explosives, but it was actually filled with heavily armed soldiers. Even if they wore Public Security uniforms, their behavior made it obvious they weren't real Public Security personnel."
Wise and Belle continued discussing the situation, taking turns speaking. As the tension eased slightly, Wise let out a soft yawn, the fatigue finally catching up with him.
Seeing this, Belle spoke up with a hint of concern.
"Brother, why don't you go back to your room and rest for a bit? Connecting with Bangboo takes a lot of mental energy. Don't push yourself if you're tired. I'll wake you if anything happens."
Wise nodded, agreeing with her suggestion.
"Hmm, Nekomata is clearly hiding something from us. We'll ask her to explain when she gets back."
After saying that, he went back to his room, washed up, and lay down for a short nap.
Much later, Wise woke up again to the ringtone of a phone message. He picked it up and saw that the sender was Nekomata.
The message was a string of garbled characters, completely unreadable. It didn't look like a code or anything, just like a cat's paw pads randomly hitting the keyboard.
| How are things there? Are you okay? |
Wise sent the message, feeling a small twinge of worry. Luckily, she replied almost immediately.
| I'm good, I'm good! Almost at Six Street! Sorry for making you worry. I'll be at the Video Store soon. See you then. |
| Okay, good. We'll wait for you. |
After sending his response, he went downstairs to tell Belle about the messages. The two siblings waited together, watching for her arrival.
A short while later, Nekomata burst through the door again. By an incredible coincidence, she leapt straight into Wise's arms, just like last time.
Wise forced himself to resist the urge to touch her ears, waiting patiently for her to climb down on her own.
Thankfully, the video store was empty. If anyone had seen this…
"Nya! I'm back! Huff… huff… I'm so sorry it took longer than expected. I could only find a more distant exit," Nekomata said, letting Wise go, her cheeks tinged with a faint blush.
Then, like she suddenly remembered something important, she added, "Oh, right, I saw the news on my phone. Even though the explosion got delayed, those guys still drove the train away. Nicole and the others are still in danger. What do we do now? We need to figure out our next move fast…"
Wise calmly cut her off.
"Nekomata, I get that you're worried, and I want to help Nicole and the others, too. But first, we need to talk."
"Wah?! Why are you talking like that all of a sudden? My ears are standing on end!"
"Nekomata, there's something important you need to explain. What kind of trouble have you and the Cunning Hares gotten into?"
"This, this…"
Under the siblings' questioning, Nekomata looked a little wronged, her ears drooping slightly. Then she straightened up and spoke seriously.
"Um, I really didn't mean to hide anything. I didn't even know there were people on the train. You're right, the Cunning Hares and I have gotten ourselves into big trouble this time, but we were trying to save someone!"
The siblings blinked in surprise. They hadn't expected anyone else to be involved.
At Nekomata's request, they decided to continue watching the rest of Bangboo's recording. The three of them returned to the computer, and Fairy pulled up the earlier footage once more.
This time, the video showed what happened after the Cunning Hares members and she entered Dead End Hollow.
During the search, Nekomata spotted a little girl. Although Nicole and the others in the footage didn't notice her, Bangboo's recording clearly captured her presence.
Despite this, the Cunning Hares members still actively helped her search for the little girl.
It was merely a coincidence that, throughout the pursuit, only Nekomata had glimpsed the little girl's figure.
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