"Also, if you miss me, just send me a message. I'll definitely come see you."
Before leaving, Jane made sure to say it aloud.
Hearing her words, Wise nodded before replying, "Alright, Jane. And if you ever get tired, you can always come rest at the video store."
"Oh... I know. It's one of the few places where I can actually relax."
As Jane spoke, memories of that dangerous day resurfaced—the moment she had nearly lost her life to the Mountain Lion Gang before Wise suddenly appeared to save her.
That's right.
She already knew the truth about what happened back then.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have thanked him again just now.
In reality, that had been a subtle test. Jane never intended to expose Wise's identity. After all, even the closest people had secrets, and she herself had things she still couldn't tell him.
So, this was the only way she could confirm it. And with Wise's intelligence, there was no way he wouldn't understand what she meant.
Even though he never gave her a direct answer, his silence alone was enough.
"Oh my, has Jane already left? What a shame. I was hoping to chat with that energetic girl a little longer."
Belle walked over with a disappointed expression. The two of them had gotten along surprisingly well earlier, to the point where they almost felt like sisters already.
Well... thanks to Wise, in a sense, they practically were.
Speaking of that...
"Brother, Jane doesn't seem to know about us yet, does she? Haven't you told her?"
"Uh... yeah, not yet..."
"Brother, you're way too careless. If this keeps going, something like the Carnival incident is bound to happen again. And what if we aren't lucky enough to get through it next time?"
Belle spoke with complete seriousness, genuinely worried that one day her brother would push things too far and end up with several girls turning against him at once.
At that point, even she wouldn't be able to defend him.
"Ahem... don't worry. After what happened last time, I'll definitely be more careful."
While replying to Belle, Wise shifted his attention toward the reward Jane had brought him.
[Fully Captured Target: Jane]
[Reward Generated ⭢ Safety by Intuition (S): Allows the Host to sense the condition of affinity targets he cares about, instantly travel to their side when necessary, and even take damage in their place.]
[Note: Both teleportation and damage transfer are controlled by the Host. The minimum injury threshold can be adjusted to something as minor as a scratch.]
Receiving this ability from Jane felt incredibly fitting. With it, many of the things Wise worried about could finally be prevented.
However, just as he finished reading the description, a strange sensation suddenly washed over him. The newly acquired ability activated on its own.
Among the many girls displayed on the system panel, Qingyi's avatar abruptly lit up. Beside it were statuses like "uncomfortable" and "irritable."
'Qingyi's in danger? Did something happen during a Public Security mission? No, I need to get there immediately!'
The moment the thought crossed his mind, Wise suddenly realized something else.
Qingyi was incredibly close to him. Barely a dozen meters away.
Without hesitation, he pushed open the door and hurried outside. Sure enough, Qingyi was standing right in front of the shop.
Wise immediately hurried over, supporting her while anxiously checking her condition.
But before he could ask anything else, Qingyi spoke first.
"Wise... I feel awful..."
Her voice sounded unusually soft, almost clingy. Then, without warning, she buried herself in Wise's arms, looking small, vulnerable, and completely helpless.
"Qingyi, what happened? Are you hurt?"
Wise instinctively wrapped his arms around her, already considering whether he should use his ability to help her recover.
Although Qingyi was an Intelligent Construct, she was still recognized by the system as an affinity target, so there shouldn't be any problems.
Only then did Qingyi finally explain what was wrong.
"No internet..."
Wise blinked before letting out a helpless sigh.
"...Come inside and rest for now, alright?" he said gently while stroking her hair.
Carefully supporting Qingyi's frail body, Wise guided her toward the video store. Qingyi didn't resist at all and obediently nodded.
"Mm... that works too. Even if this is basically me walking straight into a tiger's den, at least it'll distract me from the agony of being offline."
"Please. I wouldn't take advantage of you without thinking about your feelings first," Wise replied with a tired smile.
"Really?"
"...Yeah. If you genuinely didn't want it, I would never force you."
Hearing his answer, Qingyi nodded thoughtfully, as though she had suddenly understood something profound.
"I see... So if the resistance isn't strong enough, it might be mistaken for playing hard to get. Then I need to properly control the intensity of my resistance..."
"...What?"
"Nothing. Let's go inside first."
Qingyi immediately acted as though she hadn't said anything strange at all, allowing Wise to help her back into the shop.
Meanwhile, Belle, who had been secretly watching them through the glass door the entire time, silently opened it with an oddly understanding expression.
After bringing Qingyi upstairs to his room, Wise watched as she immediately grabbed several cups of tea and drank them one after another.
Only then did she recover slightly.
"Withdrawal symptoms... ugh... this is torture... Humans are incredible... dealing with something like this every day..."
Qingyi slumped weakly against the bed as though some essential support holding her together had vanished, leaving her limp and completely drained.
After hearing her words and remembering her earlier complaint about having "no internet," Wise finally pieced everything together.
"Qingyi... are you trying to stay offline?"
He asked the question cautiously.
Qingyi weakly nodded.
"Mm... I'm attempting a twenty-four-hour no-internet challenge..." she muttered tiredly. "No real-time data access... wandering around the city alone... only to realize I never downloaded an offline map..."
Her expression became even more miserable.
"I got even more lost than I do inside a Hollow... and the only places my body still remembers how to reach are Public Security... and here..."
As she spoke, Qingyi quietly lifted her eyes toward Wise again.
Her weakened appearance made her seem completely defenseless, almost like she was silently telling him, 'If you wanted to do something right now, I wouldn't even have the strength to stop you.'
Unfortunately for her, Wise didn't react the way she seemed to expect.
"Well, this place might not have as much equipment as Public Security, but you can come here whenever you want."
Instead, while Qingyi lacked the energy to resist, he simply reached out and gently patted her head.
The moment he did, Qingyi immediately gritted her teeth and slapped his hand aside.
"For some reason... whenever I feel like this..." she muttered softly, "I always want to hide somewhere quiet and dark..."
Her voice gradually weakened.
"If I went back to Public Security like this... I'd still have to act like a reliable senior officer in front of everyone... letting them see me this pathetic would be humiliating..."
She buried half her face into the blanket before groaning again.
"Ah... internet... I need internet... no... not yet... just a little longer..."
As Qingyi mumbled weakly, her hand slowly reached toward Wise and rested lightly against his chest, almost unconsciously seeking comfort.
But when she noticed he still wasn't reacting, she quietly withdrew her hand, frustration flashing across her face.
A moment later, seemingly embarrassed and annoyed with herself, she abruptly turned around and buried herself completely under the blankets.
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Zenless Zone Zero: The Almighty Incubus of Sixth Street
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