"So it ended like this...?"
Perched on the edge of a skyscraper, Zane sat with a bag of potato chips in hand. His mask was long gone, and his eyes brightened as he gazed down at the scene where the two districts met.
After a moment of thought, he understood the brilliance of this outcome. Compared to Hare's House struggling desperately to escape, or him stepping in personally, this method was without doubt the best.
He wasn't sure who had come up with it, but it was clever. It had to be either Belle or Wise. Belle didn't seem that sharp... so it must have been Wise.
He lingered a while longer, then prepared to leave—until he spotted a figure waving at him. Looking closer, he realized the person was waving directly at him.
He raised a brow. Even with a mask on, his hair color was hard to miss.
"Tsk... does my senior have hawk eyes? How'd she spot me so easily...?"
With a sigh, Zane shook his head. He hadn't even been here long. Then, with a slight shrug, he leapt down.
...
"Belle, that was clever."
"The results turned out even better than expected."
Inside the video store, Wise praised the outcome of the plan. Beside him, Belle tilted her snow-white chin proudly.
"Hehe, that's the power of an open scheme!" she said with a grin.
Yes—escaping a pursuit wasn't easy. But if you could make the pursuers give up on their own...
After all, if the authorities truly wanted to dig deeper, even if Hare's House slipped away this time, there'd still be countless problems. Without Fairy's help, the omnipresent surveillance was a nightmare; even with Fairy's help, there were still plenty of flaws.
Whether they could track them down was uncertain, but locking down their identities? The authorities could manage that much.
But Belle's approach—attacking their hearts—had swept away those risks. That was why Wise praised her.
"New Eridu belongs to all its citizens. And the authorities know exactly who they serve. Those masks already proved everything."
Belle recalled the footage Fairy had pulled up earlier and sighed softly.
"The chase was their way of fulfilling the law. Stopping the chase was their way of fulfilling their duty to the people."
"This way, the authorities no longer need to press the pursuit. Pushing further would only backfire. Better to go with the flow, blur the issue. A conviction will be declared, sure—but whether they'll be arrested is another matter..."
"Even handling those already convicted is no small task for the authorities."
"And this way, future troubles are cut off at the root."
Belle shook her head with a small laugh. Truthfully, beyond the excitement of the plan's success, she was impressed by how it had all played out.
At the start, even she hadn't been sure it would work.
"There are always more good people than bad, more good deeds than evil ones... But bad people stand out too sharply, and bad deeds echo too loudly."
"The good is like a passing breeze, the bad like a knife's edge—deep and unforgettable. That's just the way it is."
Wise, listening, nodded thoughtfully. After a pause, he added quietly,
"There's actually another reason this plan succeeded."
"What is it?"
Belle blinked in curiosity.
"Zane erased every single person he judged. No survivors. And no one else knew that Hare's House still had people tied up in their truck."
"The authorities will assume those missing ones died through other causes—accidents, or secret trials. Either way, they'll count them as already gone."
"That's why the authorities' stance wasn't so hardline."
Belle raised her eyebrows, then quickly understood. Meeting Wise's gaze, she said softly,
"Dead pawns hold no value. Spending time on them is a waste. Dividing up the spoils—that's what really matters now."
"Exactly." Wise nodded.
"But there's one more key factor."
Not to be outdone, Belle spoke again, which left Wise puzzled.
With a smile, Belle turned her gaze to the screen beside them. It was showing the scene from the banquet hall—now filled by a vast pitch-black Hollow that nearly swallowed the frame.
"Zane's deterrence... I think that's the real reason this plan worked. He didn't hurt anyone—just flexed his power. And it's already thrown them into chaos."
Like detonating a nuke in the outskirts of a major city—not devastating in damage, but overwhelming in threat.
The fear isn't in the sword that's already fallen.
It's in the one hanging above your head.
With so many tangled factors, that was the real key to the plan's success.
Just as Belle was reflecting, a familiar voice came from the door.
"Who thought this up? Pretty clever... I'd guess Wise, since Belle..."
No. 6 pushed the door open, and Zane stepped inside, his gaze flicking between Belle and Wise as a faint smile tugged at his lips.
"It was me! Me!"
Belle puffed up instantly, blurting out the truth before he could finish. Finally, she'd earned Zane's praise—she wasn't about to let anyone else take it!
"You?"
Zane's smile faded. He arched an eyebrow, studying her with open doubt.
"It was me!"
Belle grit her teeth. It was clearly her idea—why did he look so unconvinced? How infuriating!
"Brother! Tell him it was me!"
Unable to prove it herself, Belle turned to Wise.
Wise spread his hands helplessly, then nodded.
Belle, too focused on proving herself, didn't notice the amused gleam in Zane's eyes. Wise, however, did—and knew he was only teasing.
"Alright, alright, it was you... Wise, you really shouldn't spoil Belle like this."
Zane waved dismissively, as if Belle had stolen the credit and Wise was just humoring her.
"Ahhh! It really was me!"
Belle stomped her foot, glaring at Zane, who had already turned to discuss something with Wise. She marched toward him.
No—she wasn't letting this go!
Moments later—
"I told you it was me! You still don't believe me!"
"Then say it a hundred times—no, a thousand times! Say Belle's the best!"
"Alright, alright, just move—I can't see the TV."
Belle wrinkled her nose in frustration but stepped aside.
"Then say it now!"
"I'll owe you one."
Zane waved her off. With luck, she'd forget about it soon enough.
His focus stayed on the TV, ignoring Belle's sulking. Wise also turned his attention to the broadcast.
Their part was over. Fairy had already shut down the live feeds, but under so much public attention, the authorities had been forced to make an appearance.
The channel now showed their emergency press conference.
"Tch. They make it sound so righteous. If they'd punished those criminals from the start, none of this would've happened."
"And now, all fiery speeches—as if they really hate evil. It's laughable."
Wise shook his head at the speeches and the crowd's applause.
Reluctant as it was, it was the only emergency measure available. More announcements would surely follow—but whether the citizens of New Eridu would buy it was another question.
Zane chuckled softly.
"Of course. A speech isn't just words—it's performance. Calm the people first... though I doubt it'll last."
"Hm? What do you mean?"
Wise asked. Behind him, Belle leaned over the sofa, resting her hands on Zane's shoulders, also curious.
"I was with Qingyi and the others earlier, but they left soon after—something important came up."
Zane's eyes remained calm, though a flicker of reflection passed deep within them.
"This whole mess has stirred up more than they expected."
"Residents from six districts have already filed lawsuits against their local municipal governments. The Janus District is one of them. And a joint association is suing the central New Eridu government for negligence, incompetence, dereliction of duty..."
Belle's eyes lit up at that.
This kind of thing sounded fun!