"Lady Sarah, we have obtained the item."
At the exit of the Crete Hollow, the cultists of the Congregation stood respectfully before Sarah, handing her the documents they held.
"Very good."
Sarah revealed a satisfied smile; this document would add another brick to the foundation of her upcoming plans.
"My Lady, regarding the Silver Base..."
"As long as the item is in hand, leave the rest be."
"Yes."
Sarah had absolutely no interest in the future of the Silver Base. As long as what she wanted was in her hands, nothing else mattered.
-----------------
Back at the Silver Base, facing the countless Ethereals, Nicole and the others found themselves obstructed. At the same time, they noticed a bizarre dark cloud breeding in the sky above.
That color was exactly the same as the filth on the bodies of the Ethereals.
"What exactly is this situation?"
In just a short half-hour, the things that had appeared had already shattered the worldview of Belle, a seasoned veteran of the Inter-Knot. Every single thing appearing before her eyes was challenging her cognition.
"These things are the work of the Congregation. Those Ethereals are all Congregation cultists who were mutated by a substance called 'Filth'."
A familiar voice drifted into their ears. Several people turned back to look, and it was none other than Geno leading Twiggy and the rest toward them.
"Geno! Twiggy! It's great that you're safe!"
Eous happily pounced into Twiggy's embrace; thank goodness they were alright.
"You just said, the Congregation did this?"
Nicole seized upon the key information.
The name 'The Congregation' was not unfamiliar to her. In the Vision Corporation case, the interrogation of Perlman had revealed that the woman named Sarah who ordered the shooting was a member of the Congregation.
Vision Corporation had just had an incident, and now this place was suffering a massive attack by the Congregation immediately after—how could it be so coincidental?
"That's right! With so many Ethereals suddenly appearing in the Hollow, it's impossible for the Investigator Association and Public Security to be completely silent. But up until now, there hasn't been any news or reports leaking out."
Belle had Fairy search the internet for news regarding the Crete Hollow, but the results were completely tranquil. Even the scant intelligence on the Inter-Knot had been deleted by unknown parties.
"It seems the situation at Vision Corporation was bait released by the Congregation, and this place is the main target?"
But regardless of how much they discussed, it was all just speculation; they had no way of knowing the truth. Right now, the most important thing was to leave this place, otherwise, matters would likely become extremely tricky later on.
[Master, there is a piece of extremely important information requiring your confirmation. According to observations, the Crete Hollow's Celes Index is skyrocketing continuously and is about to breach the Celes Limit.]
"What?!"
The Celes Limit is the maximum threshold for Ether activity. When the Ether activity within a Hollow reaches this threshold, a new Companion Hollow will be generated externally.
In other words, the Crete Hollow was expanding continuously, and soon, a new Companion Hollow would be born outside of itself.
"Wait? A new Hollow... then where will this Hollow appear?!"
[According to calculations, based on the current expansion trend, in one hour, the majority of Fourteenth Street will be swallowed by the Crete Hollow. Subsequently, there is a massive probability that the new Companion Hollow will be born in Sixth Street.]
"Sixth Street!?"
Inside Random Play, Belle looked at the data on the screen in disbelief, while Wise stood dazed on the spot.
One had to know, a Hollow outbreak was no small matter. Yet up until now, the New Eridu officials had seemingly implemented no measures whatsoever; there hadn't even been a notice to evacuate the residents.
"Brother! We have to notify the neighbors! Let them evacuate as soon as possible!"
"Calm down, Belle! Even if we go tell them, a short hour isn't enough time for so many people to evacuate!"
Although Sixth Street was just a single block, it accommodated over a hundred households. All tallied up, that was well over a thousand people.
It didn't sound like a lot, but one had to remember, this was the post-apocalypse. With the already low total population, a thousand people was not a small number.
Wise continued speaking, trying his best to use the calmest tone to persuade his sister.
"Moreover, even if we go tell them, how many people will believe us? Even Public Security hasn't issued an evacuation notice; how are we supposed to convince them?"
Belle fell silent. People always harbored a psychological reliance on luck; if she were in their shoes, she would also find it hard to believe such a thing would happen to her.
What's more, their public identity was just that of ordinary video store owners. How many people would believe them?
"But... are we just going to stay here and do nothing, waiting to die?"
Belle bit her lip, her heart stuffed full of unwilling emotions.
While the siblings were arguing, the group inside the Hollow had already taken action.
"Geno, what are you doing?"
The group was instantly startled seeing Geno say nothing and simply raise his weapon, walking toward the swarm of Ethereals.
Geno, however, spoke to the crowd without any ripples of emotion.
"Isn't it very simple? Since there's no reaction from the outside, then we can only take action ourselves, can't we?"
Geno had thought it through very clearly. Since there was zero feedback from outside the Hollow, it meant someone was interfering. Since they couldn't count on outside help, they could only rely on their own power to stop this tragedy.
And the simplest method was to wipe out these Ethereals to let the Hollow's Ether activity return to a normal level.
Having said that, Geno took the lead in the charge, raising his cross-blade and killing his way into the pile of Ethereals.
"Hey! Don't be rash! Damn it!"
Seeing that Geno had already set off, Nicole stomped her foot in secret. Why was this guy so reckless!?
"Nicole, you can't dissuade him. He is a stubborn donkey; no one can pull him back."
As Twiggy spoke, she drew her military knife, clearly preparing to follow in Geno's footsteps.
"Silver Squad! Go and reclaim our home!"
At Twiggy's command, the members of the Silver Squad went forth joyfully.
As soldiers, protecting the populace was their duty; as compatriots, helping their companions was their wish.
There was no reason to let Geno go adventuring all by himself.
"Count me in."
A faint voice drifted over. All the Silver sisters froze for a moment, then looked at the owner of that voice with endless excitement.
"Of course, Captain Anby!"
Twiggy smiled. This was the Captain Anby they knew, the strongest of the Silver Squad in the old days, the leader that all of them had never forgotten.
"Anby..."
Nicole looked at Anby, who had already made her decision, her mood somewhat complex.
"I'm sorry, Nicole. I might... have to temporarily withdraw from the Cunning Hares."
"What are you saying? You signed a permanent contract with me; I haven't agreed to your resignation yet."
Saying so, Nicole also raised her weapon, her eyes looking at Anby with determination.
Seeing this, Anby's eyes were filled with emotion.
"Hey, hey, hey, did you guys forget me again? I'm also a member of the Cunning Hares!"
Billy, unwilling to fall behind, expressed his loyalty, feeling that if he didn't say a couple of sentences, these two would exclude him from the Cunning Hares.
"Meow~ This cat will certainly help too. I still owe Geno a favor. Besides..."
Nekomata lowered her brow, thinking of the matter with the Dullahan, and then shook her head. Now was not the time to talk about that.
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