A few days had passed since Fairy was handed over to the siblings Belle and Wise.
During these days, Zhong Yan continued living his calm and uneventful life. Occasionally, he would follow Eous who was controlled by the siblings and act as an agent and explore the Hollows.
After each expedition, he would receive a generous payment. Fairy's overwhelming strength gradually became more apparent as time passed, leaving the siblings amazed time and again.
However, blessings like this usually came at unexpected costs. In their case, the price came in the form of a skyrocketing electricity meter—and the equally alarming electricity bills that came with it.
In less than a week, Fairy had consumed more electricity than they did the entire previous month combined. It was hard to imagine how high their expenses would get if Fairy were to run twenty-four hours a day without rest.
Fortunately, they hadn't lost access to their Phaeton account like in the game. Their overall income was still decent, so covering the bill shouldn't be a major issue.
Still, that rapidly climbing meter was truly something they didn't want to look at directly.
...
Another boring day began with morning classes.
In the classroom, Zhong Yan rested his chin on one hand, his gaze aimlessly fixed outside the window. On the empty school path, the cherry blossom trees on either side continued shedding their petals.
On the podium, the balding teacher was passionately lecturing on the principles of how Ether matter was converted into energy in New Eridu.
Not many in the classroom were listening. But those who could understand the material even without paying attention... were often the ones destined to rise to the top.
Back to Zhong Yan—his boredom today stemmed from one clear reason.
Ellen wasn't at school.
He didn't even need to think about it. Her absence was definitely because of her work with Victoria Housekeeping Co. If she were in her seat now, Zhong Yan probably would've already found an excuse to mess with her tail for fun.
Of course, doing that might result in him being slammed into the wall with said tail, left hanging there like a stuck sticker.
Aside from perfect phasing, Zhong Yan honestly had no idea how to react to Ellen's tail at such close range.
In the end, having nothing else to do, Zhong Yan quietly took out his phone and sent Ellen a message.
At that exact moment, on the other side of New Eridu...
"Take them out—quickly!"
A fierce battle was raging in a lesser-known corner of the city.
A group of heavily armed soldiers—no, they were more accurately described as ninjas—were launching a frenzied assault on four figures.
Among those four was Ellen, though unlike her usual appearance in a school uniform, she was now clad in her Victoria Housekeeping combat gear—her in-game battle form.
Her weapon was a long blade capable of channeling ice-type attacks. When needed, it could transform into garden shears, perfectly suiting her gardening maintenance role at Victoria.
As over a dozen shuriken flew at her, she yawned lazily. Then her form blurred as she dashed forward like a mirage, deflecting each incoming shuriken with her blade spinning like a windmill.
The watching ninjas froze in shock, but before they could respond, Ellen was already upon them—slashing down several foes with swift, decisive strikes.
Just as the remaining ninjas prepared to counterattack, a ghost-like figure suddenly appeared behind them.
It was the head maid of Victoria Housekeeping—Rina.
"Disobedient children need to be properly punished, you know."
The next second, her twin Bangboos—Drusilla and Anastella—emitted powerful bursts of electricity, electrocuting several enemies instantly.
As screams filled the air, the remaining few collapsed in defeat.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, things were unfolding in a very different tone.
"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!"
Victoria's fellow maid, the chainsaw-wielding Corin, was hysterically cutting into her enemies with her comically oversized weapon. The ninjas facing her were terrified—none of them dared to approach the seemingly innocent girl now turned terror incarnate.
And just as they were contemplating how to deal with this tiny menace, a foot smashed into them.
A surge of icy air exploded in the atmosphere, dispersing like their very souls fleeing in terror.
The one responsible was none other than Victoria's highest-ranking butler—Lycaon.
"Mr. Lycaon, all the Nin-Village grunts have been dealt with." Rina floated to Lycaon's side, her tone relaxed as she reported the situation.
Among the Victoria Housekeeping crew of four, the only damage done was from Corin's chainsaw, which had gouged a crack into the ground—but otherwise, they were completely unscathed.
Leaning against the wall, Ellen had just begun to relax when she received Zhong Yan's message.
Sleep or Zhong Yan? Obviously, the latter took priority. So, she started chatting with him.
On the other side, Lycaon looked around at the devastated surroundings, a slight frown forming on his brow.
"These small fry are no threat to us, but what worries me is that the nine Shadows of Nin-Village haven't shown up yet. They're our real problem."
Rina's expression also turned more serious—she clearly understood the gravity of the situation.
Nin-Village was a group that had become active after New Eridu's founding. Its members were elite ninjas who combined traditional techniques with advanced technology to form a unique kind of ninjutsu.
In essence, Nin-Village functioned much like Victoria Housekeeping Co.—mercenaries for hire who worked for pay.
However, when it came to raw strength, there was no comparison. Nin-Village far outclassed them.
Within Nin-Village were nine exceptional individuals known as the Shadows—the organization's backbone.
It was said that the nine of them, working together, had once taken down a massive Corrupted Entity in the Hollow that had troubled even the Hollow Investigation Association for months.
As luck would have it, during a previous mission involving the Red Fang Gang, Victoria Housekeeping had accidentally crossed paths with Nin-Village—and just like that, hostilities began.
Vengeful and unrelenting—that was Nin-Village's reputation. And that was why Lycaon was feeling the pressure.
That organization was not one to be trifled with.