Chapter 384: For the Glory of the Cunning Hares (Wallet)
The careful staff of Victoria Housekeeping and the burly crews of Belobog Heavy Industries had already commenced their operations with clockwork efficiency. They moved in perfect, orderly synchronization, beginning the delicate process of transferring the highly volatile Aether fuel canisters from the two medium-sized storage points.
Guided by Belobog's seasoned technicians, the crews focused on the canisters that bore the brunt of the Hollow's corruption—those with cracked casings or fluctuating energy readings. They deployed heavy-duty, professional-grade sealing equipment, stabilizing the erratic Aether energy to prevent any catastrophic secondary leaks. The hum of stabilizing machinery filled the cavernous space.
Koleda Belobog stood at the forefront, her fiery gaze sweeping over the site. She personally barked out commands, her authoritative voice cutting through the industrial noise to ensure the extraction operation remained absolutely foolproof.
Yet, among all the assembled factions, absolutely no one was more hyperactive, frantic, or terrifyingly motivated than the Cunning Hares.
"Quick, quick, quick! Move it, people!" Nicole Demara's voice echoed sharply through the twisting, crystalline passages of the Hollow. "That canister on the left is tilting! Anby, get under there and support it! Nekomata, check the pressure valve before it blows us all to kingdom come! Billy, for the love of money, go secure the transport cart!"
Nicole didn't just shout orders; she led by example. Grunting with exertion, she hoisted a heavy, standard-issue Aether fuel canister onto the temporarily erected transport rack. Her movements were blindingly fast and agile, completely shedding her usual image of a thrifty, corner-cutting boss. Right now, she was a woman on a mission.
It was no mystery why the Hares were working themselves to the bone. For them, this high-risk operation wasn't merely a favor to help out their favorite Proxies, Wise and Belle.
These intact, high-purity Aether fuel canisters were strictly controlled, military-and-research-grade supplies. On the underground gray markets of New Eridu, their street value was nothing short of astronomical.
Every single canister they safely transferred and "processed" translated directly into a massive influx of "activity funding" and "reasonable commission fees." For the Cunning Hares, whose financial situation was perpetually teetering on the edge of utter bankruptcy, this was the motherlode.
"Hehe... this one canister alone should be enough to upgrade our meal plan for at least a few weeks, right?" Anby murmured softly to Nekomata as she braced her shoulder against the heavy metal casing. Her deadpan eyes suddenly seemed to sparkle, reflecting the glorious, greasy illusion of triple-patty cheeseburgers.
"Less talking, more lifting! Move fast, we can still beat the others to the next extraction point!" Nicole, possessing the sharp ears of a seasoned debt-dodger, immediately snapped at them. Meanwhile, a metaphorical golden abacus was furiously clicking away inside her head, calculating their impending fortune.
After rapidly stripping the first target storage point bare and ensuring its structural safety, the Cunning Hares quartet didn't pause for a single breath. They immediately bolted down the corridor, rushing frantically toward the second coordinate point Wise had assigned to them.
However, their mad dash came to a screeching halt. Just as they handled through a relatively wide, cavernous passage cluttered with rusted, discarded shipping containers, they approached the second storage point. The bizarre scene unfolding in the clearing ahead made all four of them freeze in unison, their jaws practically hitting the floor.
In the small freight yard clearing, a handful of flickering emergency lights that hadn't been completely shattered by Hollow corruption cast a dim, eerie, neon glow over the concrete.
A swarming pack of low-level Ethereals—hulking, ape-like brutes and nimble, satyr-legged stalkers—were currently engaged in a ferocious, chaotic firefight with two lone figures.
The Hares squinted through the gloom. Those were two figures they were intimately familiar with. It was Wise and Belle.
But the duo standing in the freight yard was completely unrecognizable from the laid-back video store managers they knew. These were supposed to be the vulnerable, behind-the-scenes Proxies who always needed armed escorts.
Instead, Wise was currently wielding a heavy, formidable-looking tactical shotgun. His face was a mask of cold concentration. He cleverly used the stacked shipping containers as hard cover, smoothly popping out to deliver a thunderous blast of buckshot that sent a leaping satyr-class Ethereal spinning violently through the air. The wide, devastating spread of his shotgun effectively shredded the frontline, completely curbing the aggressive charge of the heavier ape-class monsters.
He didn't just shoot; he moved with tactical precision. Whenever an Ethereal lunged too close, Wise shifted rapidly, his footwork crisp and deliberate, sliding out of the danger zone while keeping the smoking muzzle of his weapon locked onto the highest-priority threat.
His gaze was razor-sharp. The mechanical rhythm of pumping the action, ejecting spent shells, firing, and dodging flowed together in a deadly dance. While his posture was still slightly stiff compared to a seasoned mercenary, he undeniably carried the lethal aura of a highly trained soldier.
On the opposite flank, Belle was armed with a sleek, semi-automatic assault rifle. She had scrambled up a slightly higher stack of rusted cargo containers, establishing a commanding overwatch position.
Her shooting rhythm was terrifyingly steady. Crack. Crack. Crack. She fired in controlled bursts, specifically targeting the armored joints of the ape-brutes or the exposed, glowing weak points of the satyr-stalkers. She provided flawless mid-range fire support, her precision strikes keeping the pressure entirely off her brother.
While her marksmanship wasn't exactly god-like, the sheer, icy calmness she displayed in the face of a swarming Ethereal horde was jarring. This lethal sniper was a far cry from the lively, cheerful girl who spent her afternoons lounging in the video store, munching on popcorn and bickering with her brother over movie choices.
The siblings—one holding the vanguard with devastating close-range blasts, the other raining down precise, covering fire from above—coordinated with methodical, brutal efficiency. It wasn't entirely seamless, but it was more than enough. Together, they were actively suppressing the massive swarm of Ethereals, pinning the monsters down and preventing them from closing the distance. The shattered, dissolving remains of over a dozen Ethereals already littered the concrete around them.
Nicole, Anby, Nekomata, and Billy remained huddled in the shadows of the passage entrance. They watched this utterly bizarre, reality-breaking scene unfold, the expressions on their faces shifting through a highly colorful spectrum of shock, disbelief, and existential dread.
They had, of course, been briefed about the siblings' new "toys" beforehand. They knew that the two figures fighting in the clearing weren't the original Wise and Belle, but highly advanced, remote-controlled mechanical avatars acting as their physical proxies in the Hollow.
But knowing the theory was one thing; witnessing it with their own eyes was entirely different. Seeing the fragile, backline technical partners they had always treated as VIPs requiring constant, careful protection suddenly pick up heavy firearms and go toe-to-toe with a horde of Ethereals in the middle of a crisis-ridden Hollow... The sheer cognitive dissonance of the sight left the Cunning Hares completely stunned.
Especially Nicole.
She watched as the mechanical avatar of Wise brutally smashed an approaching ape-class Ethereal across the jaw with the heavy steel butt of his shotgun, then nimbly racked another shell into the chamber. Nicole's pink eyes grew incredibly complex.
A very cold, very subtle sense of professional crisis began to silently creep into her heart.
She elbowed Anby in the ribs, lowering her voice to a frantic whisper that only her squad could hear. "Hey, look at that... Since when did our favorite Proxies become so... terrifyingly capable of fighting?"
Anby scratched her white hair, her usual stoic expression cracking slightly. "Yeah... Even though I know those are just mechanical bodies, seeing the Proxies dual-wielding firearms and executing tactical reloads... it feels incredibly weird."
Nekomata leaned forward, her twin tails twitching nervously behind her. "Nya... If even their remote-controlled puppets can fight this well... what happens if the originals start training? Or what if they build even more advanced combat avatars?"
A deep, existential dread washed over Billy's metallic face. He clutched his custom revolvers tightly. "Wait... Does that mean... in future Hollow explorations, they won't need the Starlight Knight's help to fight anymore?"
This was exactly the panic Nicole was looking for! She immediately struck while the iron was hot. Slapping on an expression of extreme, exaggerated seriousness and deep "worry," she pitched her voice into a tone of pure, unadulterated incitement.
"Exactly! Think about it, guys!" Nicole hissed, gesturing wildly at the clearing. "If the Proxies can handle most of the combat problems in the Hollows entirely by themselves, then won't our greatest value as the Cunning Hares—our premium armed protection and top-tier combat assistance—be completely rendered obsolete?! When that time comes, will they start slashing our commission fees? Will they stop hiring us altogether?!"
She swept her intense, calculating gaze over her three teammates, ruthlessly targeting each of their greatest weaknesses.
"In the long run, what happens to our income stream? Anby, will you ever be able to afford your beloved double-cheese giant burgers again? Nekomata, what about your top-tier, premium imported canned mackerel? Billy, will your sacred display cabinet ever see a new Starlight Knight limited-edition figure?!"
This vicious, soul-searching interrogation from Nicole struck the absolute softest underbellies of the Cunning Hares.
Anby's eyes widened in horror as she hallucinated a majestic, greasy burger growing wings and flying away into the abyss. Nekomata's tails puffed up, flicking in sheer, unadulterated panic. Billy hugged his revolvers to his chest, trembling as if he were already mourning the loss of a pristine, mint-condition action figure.
"S—o—!" Nicole dragged out the word, seeing that her psychological warfare had achieved maximum effectiveness. Her voice rose sharply, vibrating with explosive, desperate energy.
"We must get down there and help them immediately! Right this second! We cannot wait until they finish fighting just to clean up the scraps! We have to dive in there and aggressively demonstrate our irreplaceable combat value, our flawless collaborative efficiency, and our elite crisis-handling abilities as the Cunning Hares!"
"We have to make them realize that while their little mechanical toys are cute, having us around is infinitely better, safer, and completely worry-free! It is the only way we can protect our commissions! The only way we can secure our income! We must fight to keep your burgers, your mackerel, and your action figures safe!"
"YEAH!!!" The previous confusion and existential dread in the eyes of Anby, Nekomata, and Billy vanished, instantly replaced by a raging, apocalyptic fighting spirit.
For the burgers!
For the mackerel!
For the Starlight Knights!
For the eternal glory of the Cunning Hares' wallet!
"Charge!" At Nicole's roaring command, the four mercenaries exploded from their hiding place like starving tigers released from a cage. Waving their respective weapons and screaming battle cries fueled by pure financial desperation, they launched themselves headfirst into the chaotic fray of the freight yard.
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]