Seeing the return of the Adepti and the members of Hare's House, Hoshimi Miyabi and Tsukishiro Yanagi instantly breathed a sigh of relief.
Moreover, Hoshimi Miyabi shared the findings of the investigations into the "Seth Incident" and the "Bringer" case with everyone.
The investigation itself had not been difficult. With the clues provided by Perlman, they quickly contacted Belobog Heavy Industries. With the help of that young president, they soon uncovered evidence proving the years of illegal activities committed by Miss Sarah and Bringer...
At the same time, Seth's innocence was finally cleared.
Unfortunately, Perlman had merely been a puppet controlled by Miss Sarah and Bringer. He knew very little about the Exaltist Order and provided no further useful leads.
After listening to Tsukishiro Yanagi's account, Nicole nodded. Then, in one breath, she laid out the entire process of suppressing the Development Zone Hollow—the efforts of Hare's House, the bullets Billy had spent, and the equipment Anby had damaged...
Upon hearing this, Hoshimi Miyabi said earnestly,
"You've worked hard."
Nicole leaned forward expectantly.
"And then—?"
Hoshimi Miyabi blinked in confusion.
"Then what?"
At that, Tsukishiro Yanagi quickly stepped forward.
"Miss Nicole, thank you for helping us search for Seth and Perlman today, and for assisting in suppressing the Development Zone Hollow. Regarding your equipment losses and other compensation, I'll submit a request to the H.A.N.D. Headquarters Superior Officer. Rest assured, your efforts won't go unrewarded."
Hearing this, Nicole finally nodded in satisfaction.
"Miss Tsukishiro Yanagi, Miss Hoshimi Miyabi, if you ever need anything else, you can always reach out to Hare's House."
Tsukishiro Yanagi nodded.
"Yes. For the upcoming battle against Hollow Zero, we'll still need Mr. Sam Li's assistance."
At this point, though they still didn't know Sam li's true identity as the Geo Archon, they believed he was simply another Adeptus from Liyue, like Cloud Retainer and the others.
Even so, Sam Li's power left them deeply shaken. In the fight against Hollow Zero, he was absolutely indispensable.
...
After exchanging information, Hoshimi Miyabi discussed a few more matters with the Adepti before preparing to return to H.A.N.D. Headquarters.
Nicole smiled.
"Miss Yanagi, Miss Ya, later we're heading to Sixth Street for a feast. We'll invite the two managers, Zhu Yuan and Officer Qingyi. You two should come along too... Oh, and bring Asaba Harumasa and Soukaku."
Hoshimi Miyabi hesitated, about to refuse.
But Tsukishiro Yanagi spoke first.
"Alright. Manager Ya and I will head back to H.A.N.D. Headquarters first, then we'll join you on Sixth Street."
Nicole smiled faintly.
"It's settled then—"
Nicole was unusually generous once more.
After Hoshimi Miyabi and Tsukishiro Yanagi left, Nekomata looked at Nicole in surprise.
"Nicole, why did you invite so many people this time?"
Nicole gave a small smile.
"What do you know? You need patience to reel in the big fish."
Nekomata's eyes lit up in realization.
"Ohh, so you're fishing..."
Anby: "..."
Billy: "..."
...
That evening, Nicole—rarely so generous—invited both New Eridu's officials and its underworld figures to a feast at Xiangling's newly opened restaurant on Sixth Street.
Of course, the guests weren't limited to the Proxies siblings, the two Public Security Officers, and the members of Section 6. Nicole also invited Soldier 11, Keqing, the Adepti, and Hu Tao.
The entire "Wanmin Restaurant Branch 2" was packed full.
Today marked the official opening of Xiangling's "Wanmin Restaurant Branch 2," making everyone present her very first customers in New Eridu.
With such a crowd and only Xiangling in the kitchen, Hu Tao, Keqing, Nekomata, Zhu Yuan, and Tsukishiro Yanagi all rushed in to help.
Finally, a massive table of delicious dishes was prepared.
Over the past few days, Xiangling hadn't just been renovating the restaurant—she had also carefully studied New Eridu's flavor profiles and ingredients, blending them with Liyue's culinary traditions to create a new style of cuisine.
After tasting it, everyone was full of praise for Xiangling's cooking.
Soukaku beamed.
"Sis Yanagi, after we finish missions, let's come here for dinner!"
Tsukishiro Yanagi readily agreed.
"Mm-hmm—"
What's more, compared to the pricey restaurants in Lumina Square, Wanmin's dishes were not only tastier but also much cheaper. An entire table of food cost only a handful of dennies.
It had been true in Liyue, and now in New Eridu, Xiangling still faithfully upheld the business principles her father had taught her.
...
During the meal, Zhu Yuan, Tsukishiro Yanagi, Hoshimi Miyabi, and others discussed internal matters of the Public Security Bureau.
For several months now, the Superior Officer had dispatched people to search for the "Golden Bangboo" and "Platinum Bangboo," but the two seemed to have vanished into thin air.
Hearing this, Nicole and Billy exchanged looks.
They knew those Bangboo all too well—their capture had earned Hare's House tens of millions of dennies, making them rich overnight.
True to their word, they later transported the pair to Bangboo Town in the Outer Ring—the territory ruled by the so-called "Bangboo King Azhdaha."
If it had been before, Nicole would never have revealed this to Zhu Yuan or Hoshimi Miyabi.
But things were different now. With Zhu Yuan and Hoshimi Miyabi becoming allies, Nicole saw no reason to hide it.
She recounted the events from two months prior: how they had captured the two Bangboo, then delivered them to the Outer Ring.
Upon hearing this, Hoshimi Miyabi and Zhu Yuan stared at each other in shock.
After searching fruitlessly for so long, they had never expected news of the two Bangboo to appear like this.
But as Zhu Yuan thought it over, her expression grew troubled.
She still remembered vividly the terrifying might of that hundred-meter-tall "Geo Bangboo." Had Sam Li not intervened, her team would likely have died in the Outer Ring.
Beside her, Qingyi glanced at Zhu Yuan, then turned to the Adepti.
"That massive creature known as the Bangboo King Azhdaha also came from Liyue. Could it be one of the Adepti as well?"
Cloud Retainer shook her head.
"Azhdaha's nature is highly unusual. He isn't an Adeptus, but he's no weaker than one..."
And with that, Cloud Retainer began recounting the days of the Archon War—describing how the Geo Archon had discovered the slumbering Azhdaha deep underground, unearthed him from stone, and personally bestowed his divine gaze upon him...