"Senior, think about it—doesn't what I said make perfect sense?"
Zhu Yuan looked serious. She was now completely convinced.
It had to be Zane!
"You've got a point. We didn't think of him when it came to the Cretan Hollow, or the Mars District Defense Forces incident, or even the Dead End Hollow. But this time…"
Qingyi's expression stiffened slightly. She furrowed her brows.
"It's probably him."
What puzzled her, though, was why Zane needed so much electricity. Wasn't he able to generate Ether energy manually?
Granted, she wasn't sure if that could be used like regular electricity, but she'd even considered having him try charging devices with it…
"So, Senior… what now?"
Zhu Yuan pressed her lips together, deep in thought.
"Do we just brush it off and pretend it never happened? Or do we try to clear his name somehow? I mean, it's just high electricity usage—technically not illegal…"
And being a Fire Picker was a far more serious matter than a power bill.
"Hm… I'll find time to ask him directly what's going on. Then we'll decide."
...
Meanwhile, listening to his admired superior and respected senior quickly come to a decision, Seth—also a member of the Criminal Investigation Special Task Force—glanced at the notice posted on the corner of the desk and fell silent.
New Eridu Public Security Bureau Headquarters:
Strictly investigate all "protection rackets." Public security officers must not collude with others in illegal activity. Concealment, deception, or misuse of authority is strictly prohibited...
Seth looked away from the notice, his ears twitching slightly, a confused look in his eyes.
Why did this all feel… kind of off?
He shook his head and got back to work.
No point overthinking it.
Zane wasn't that kind of person. His superiors must have their reasons...
...
"Pretty sure it's him…"
At the corner of Sixth Street, Belle peeked out from behind a wall while talking on the phone, her eyes locked on the man standing not far away.
Why was this suspicious guy talking to himself...?
But if this was the place her brother mentioned, and that man was here, then it had to be him, right?
"Zane, should we sneak closer and eavesdrop on what he's saying...?"
She turned to whisper to Zane—only to find the space behind her empty. She blinked in confusion, then looked ahead and realized Zane had already brushed past her and was walking straight toward the suspicious man.
"Wait—Zane, you..."
She reached out, but he was already out of range. Worry and panic flashed across Belle's face.
Not because she was worried about Zane—but because the man seemed really weird. What if he clashed with Zane?
She thought about the Fire Picker's massive, heavy fists and shook her head quickly, muttered something into the phone to Wise, and rushed after him.
As they got closer, the man's muttering reached their ears.
"...Ah, my brother's not here. Can I really handle this on my own...?"
"No, no! In a real man's dictionary, there's only one word—'charge ahead'!"
"...Wait, wouldn't that make for a pretty short dictionary?"
"Whatever! When they show up, I'll attack straight on! My brother would totally back me up..."
...
Hearing that, Belle, who had planned to come forward nicely, instantly shrank behind Zane and kept the phone pressed to her ear.
She didn't want to end up in one of those creepy old horror movies her brother refused to watch...
A story about a split-personality criminal who lures victims by pretending to need help...
Belle clung to Zane's clothes, then cautiously peeked around him to watch the man.
Why was she feeling so nervous and excited? Scared and curious at the same time?
"What's wrong?"
Zane turned to look at her, sensing her movement—startling Belle just as she was intensely focused on spying.
At that moment, Anton noticed the two of them—and on the phone, Fairy's electronic voice dropped its final line.
"When the victim is completely cornered, the killer always delivers that one chilling line..."
"Oh, there you are!"
Anton turned to them, wearing what looked like a fierce expression—but in truth, he was relieved.
Belle instinctively flinched and reached for her pocket stun gun, but suddenly remembered—she had a bigger, stronger, more reliable human stun gun. She shoved Zane forward.
"Zane, go!"
"Use your signature move—lightning strike!"
Anton was momentarily stunned by her actions, not quite grasping what was going on. Zane, meanwhile, had a few veins pop on his forehead.
He'd forgotten how Belle could be...
Seeing her still holding the phone, Anton scratched his head and said sheepishly,
"Sorry, sorry—I shouldn't have interrupted your call. But you're Phaethon, right?"
"You're the brother, and she's the sister…"
He glanced between Zane and Belle. A boy and girl, around the same age—exactly as described. This had to be the Phaethon siblings!
Zane and Belle hadn't reacted yet, but on the other end of the line, Wise slammed his hand on the desk and shot to his feet. Anton hadn't been quiet, so he'd heard everything.
Of all the possibilities he'd imagined, he never thought someone else would be mistaken for him—as Belle's brother!
Unacceptable!
"Belle, let me talk to him."
Wise's voice came through, and Belle blinked, sensing something off in his tone. Still, she put the call on speaker.
From the looks of it, things weren't going terribly.
Soon enough, once everything was cleared up, Anton apologized repeatedly for the mix-up and got straight to the point. Zane listened quietly on the side.
He already knew the gist of things, but going over the details again was fine—he might catch something new. After all, the Dead End Hollows had changed quite a bit... and that was thanks to him.
Because of certain special circumstances, Wise decided to handle the negotiations himself, and Belle handed the phone over to Anton.
As they talked, Belle moved next to Zane to listen in. She frowned slightly and whispered,
"Zane, how did he recognize us so quickly? Do we look that obvious or something...?"
Zane folded his arms and replied calmly,
"Nothing obvious about it. He definitely had intel on you from Phaethon. And as for why…"
"Well, obviously—Nicole took a bribe."
Right as Zane said that, Wise proved it with his own smooth words.
"Wow, I guess I totally misjudged the Shepherd..."
Belle gave a sheepish laugh. She'd thought that guy had broken confidentiality and leaked their identities…