"Th... what is this situation?"
"I don't know either."
The trio from the Cunning Hares stared at the strange Ethereal that had popped out of nowhere. At first, they thought it was a companion of the Ethereals besieging them.
But not only did the other party not attack them, he actually delivered Nicole back to them.
Immediately after, he charged straight into the pack of Ethereals and began slaughtering them in all directions.
This Ethereal was naturally Geno. With a dull thud, he casually swatted away the last Hati. The only two Ethereals left on the field were him and the Dullahan opposite him.
'What are these three guys waiting for? Why aren't they running while they have the chance...'
Geno glanced back at the trio, who were dumbfounded by the sight, his mind full of confusion.
When he and Twiggy saw the critical situation, they immediately decided to rush out and save them.
Since his Ethereal form was beneficial for concealing his identity, he didn't let Twiggy follow him.
The result? After saving Nicole, these three guys just stood there foolishly watching him fight, showing absolutely no intention of escaping.
In reality, the Cunning Hares trio didn't lack the desire to run; they were simply held back because the situation was unclear, making them unwilling to act rashly.
"Boss, do you have connections inside the Hollow too?"
"How is that possible! I've never made friends with an Ethereal."
Faced with Billy's outrageous comment, Nicole flatly denied it. Although her friends (creditors) were everywhere under the sun, her network didn't extend that wide.
"Anyway, it looks like it has no hostility toward us. Let's be careful and find a chance to slip away."
Nicole rubbed her ankle; that lunging save just now had aggravated her injury quite a bit.
"Nicole is right. Billy, you take Nicole and retreat first. I'll cover the rear."
Anby added. She found this strange Ethereal somewhat familiar, yet she couldn't recall where she had seen it. At the same time, she wanted to stay behind to prevent the entity from chasing them after it finished off the Dullahan.
"Got it. Be extra careful."
Billy didn't waste words. He directly scooped Nicole up onto his shoulder, his legs exerting force as he launched forward with a whoosh, heading straight for the Hollow exit.
Still locked in combat with the Dullahan, Geno saw that Nicole and Billy had already left, leaving only Anby behind. Seeing this, he stopped prolonging the fight.
Shifting his momentum, he slammed a fist into the Dullahan's massive shield, knocking it into the air. Immediately closing the distance, he clasped his hands together and hammered down onto the Dullahan's core—a fatal strike.
The sudden change in rhythm caused Anby's pupils to contract. The strength of this Ethereal was far greater than she had imagined. And, although she didn't know if it was an illusion, she constantly felt as if someone else was watching her from the shadows.
If there were still Ethereals lying in ambush, she would likely find it difficult to escape danger.
A drop of cold sweat slowly slid down Anby's forehead.
If it were just fighting this strange Ethereal, perhaps there would be a glimmer of hope. But if she had to also be vigilant against an enemy hiding who-knows-where, it would be very hard for her to extricate herself.
However, to her surprise, after resolving the Dullahan, Geno merely spared her a glance before leaving in a direction opposite to where Nicole and the others had gone.
After another moment, the sensation of being watched by someone in the dark also gradually dissipated.
Only then did Anby heave a sigh of relief. Opening the hand that had been gripping her blade handle, she found it was already soaked with sweat.
After recovering her state, she immediately followed in the direction Billy had left.
On the other side, Geno found Twiggy after leaving. Her condition right now wasn't very good; the expression on her face was as complex as a watercolor painting.
"Twiggy, what's wrong with you?"
The reason Geno had left was that Twiggy had signaled him from the shadows. He had intended for the three of them to have a good talk after he dealt with the Dullahan, but he hadn't expected Twiggy to drop the ball at this moment.
"I... wasn't quite ready."
Twiggy leaned against the wall to give herself a bit of confidence, then continued.
"I haven't prepared myself to face all of this yet."
Twiggy's hands were trembling slightly. She actually wasn't strong; on the contrary, she was extremely cowardly.
During her training with the Silver forces, she could never pass the combat capability tests. And the research aspect she excelled in wasn't valued by the Silver forces.
What they needed were combat weapons, handy tools—not soldiers who could think.
These external factors made her feel extremely inferior among her sisters.
And among these members of the Silver forces, Anby was always the most dazzling one. So, naturally, she became the captain, the idol, and the object of following for all Silver Squad members.
But that night, when they fell into comas one by one, and Twiggy's fading consciousness saw this figure she admired leaving them behind, her mental state had long since collapsed.
How she wished, at that time, that the Captain could have taken her along. Even if... even if the fate awaiting her after returning was still death.
Later, when she received news of the other's death, although Twiggy didn't show it, she was still very lost.
Now, regaining what was lost had happened too suddenly. At the moment of the imminent meeting, Twiggy realized she wasn't prepared to meet Anby at all.
"She... with what kind of mindset did she abandon us back then? And why is she standing here alive and kicking when she has a death record left in the base? I want to ask her, but I..."
Twiggy cursed her own lack of resolve, dropping the ball at such a critical moment.
The other party was clearly so close. If she missed this chance, next time would be...
"If you haven't prepared well, then continue to prepare."
Geno spoke up, trying his best to soothe Twiggy's emotions with a very gentle volume.
"We still have plenty of time to wait. You still have plenty of preparation time to get ready to face her, and to face your past."
Geno reverted to his human form and crouched down, bringing his line of sight level with hers.
Then, he used his hand to gently brush past the corner of Twiggy's eye.
Only then did Twiggy notice that, at some point, she had already shed tears.
"And until then, you still have me by your side. I will face all of this together with you."
Seeing Geno smiling as he wiped her tears, Twiggy only felt her heart convulse violently. Immediately after, it reacted intensely, like sodium metal coming into contact with water.
"I... I know. Let go first."
Her heartbeat was accelerating, her body temperature rising. Twiggy's face looked as if it had been flushed with blood, turning beat-red in an instant.
Geno also sensed the atmosphere was off. Just as he wanted to say something, he was interrupted again.
"Big Brother! I found one! She actually has an accomplice!"
It was those three gangster petty leaders; they had actually chased them into the Hollow.
They had obviously mistaken Twiggy for Anby—after all, their faces were exactly the same.
And Twiggy also recovered from that state of a fawn bumping around in her heart, reverting to the calm and rational Twiggy of usual days.
"Let's go. Let's deal with them in passing."
"And after dealing with them?"
"Throw them back to wherever they came from."
"You got it~"
Seeing the two of them completely disregarding the three brothers, the gangsters were instantly furious.
"Do you take us three brothers for air?! Watch us teach you a lesson!"
As they spoke, the three petty leaders pulled out their pistols, preparing to shoot.
But suddenly, they only felt their vision go black, and then they knew nothing.
Geno, having effortlessly dealt with the three, clapped his hands. These guys were much easier to deal with than the Hati.
Subsequently, dragging the three by their legs, he threw them out through the Fissure they had come from.
As for their fate afterwards, perhaps one could go look for them at some underground concert.
-----------------
Good morning~ Meow good afternoon~ Meow good night~ Meow~
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