Half an hour later...
Outside the Hollows.
Anby and Billy had been waiting for a while. There was still no sign of Nicole or Sam Li, and even Nekomatahadn't shown up.
Suddenly!
The sound of a car echoed from the distance.
Billy jumped onto an abandoned container and spotted the Hare's House car.
"It's Boss Nicole and Sam Li—they're finally here! Boss Nicole, over here! Anby and I are over here!"
Soon after, the off-road vehicle pulled up by the roadside.
Before Nicole and Sam Li could even get out, Billy ran over excitedly.
"Boss Nicole, where'd you guys go? Were you getting some heavy-duty weapons?"
Nicole nodded.
"Something like that!"
Billy lit up with excitement. After all this time, they were finally getting stronger firepower.
"7.62 enhanced rounds? Or titanium alloy bullets?"
Nicole shot him a glare.
"What are you thinking? Even the Public Security Forces can't afford titanium alloy bullets—how could we? We went to buy Sam Li a W-Engine. I spent all the Dennies we just received. I regret it now. Should've gotten him a B-Class—an A-Class is such a waste."
Sam Li was speechless.
"..."
Now he got it—Nicole was the textbook definition of a stingy softie.
She pinched every Dennies like she wanted to split one into two. But despite all her penny-pinching, she genuinely cared about her team's safety—and still shoved an A-Class W-Engine into his hands.
Now she was saying she regretted it?
Classic stingy talk, soft-hearted core.
At the same time, Nicole explained the features and skills of the W-Engine.
Billy was amazed.
"All of its traits are focused on defense? There's a W-Engine like that? Actually... yeah, that's kind of perfect for Sam Li."
Anby nodded.
"Especially the skill—it can protect Sam Li once."
Nicole sighed.
"Alright, alright, let's drop the sad talk. Let's get back to the commission. Why isn't Nekomatahere yet?"
Just as she mentioned Nekomata, a voice called out from nearby.
"I'm here, everyone! Sorry to keep you waiting. Shall we start the mission now?"
"You're the client—whenever you say go, we go."
"Then let's head out. I'll lead the way to the first outpost."
No sooner had Nekomata finished speaking than she dashed ahead, eager to move.
The Red Fang Gang's first outpost wasn't far. The group set off from the edge of the Hollows and reached it in about ten minutes on foot.
Outside the warehouse, they spotted two Red Fang guards chatting casually.
They hid in the shadows to observe.
"Neko, Neko, Neko..." Nicole called out repeatedly.
"Meow—wha, what is it?"
"I called you five times and you didn't even react. What's with the personality switch the moment we set foot in Red Fang territory?"
Anby looked thoughtful.
"Is there a specific reason? Like... do you know those two guards?"
Nekomataquickly denied it.
"No, no special reason! Nekomians are always like this. Every time we go somewhere new, we get distracted by everything around us. You seriously didn't know?"
As the conversation started drifting off track again, Billy cut in.
"Hold on, let's focus. Before the guards notice us, who's coming with me to take them down?"
Anby stepped up.
"I'm in."
Nicole smiled.
"Let's go together. It'll be faster."
Three against two—an absolute steamroll.
They took the guards down in just a few moves.
The group entered the warehouse, only to find that the so-called "stash" was nothing but junk.
Rusty flashlights, damp old magazines, secondhand rice cookers...
There was even an entire box of socks—not new ones, but clearly used and unwashed.
"Nekomata, are you sure this is the right place? This isn't a warehouse—it's a recycling dump. Seriously, why is the Red Fang Gang hoarding so much garbage?"
"Keep looking. If we really can't find anything, I'll take you to the next outpost."
"If I'd known we'd be digging through piles of junk, I definitely would've borrowed Belle's Bangboo to help..."
"..."
Everyone had been searching for a long time,
but there was no sign of the so-called family heirloom—not even a clue as to what it might be.
They asked Nekomata,
but she refused to answer and instead questioned the credibility and professionalism of the Hare's House.
That was the last straw.
Nicole wiped her hands on Billy's shirt.
"Let's go. Next outpost."
Originally,
Nicole had thought this would be a simple job. Just another routine lost-item commission—something Hare's House had handled so many times they could do it with their eyes closed.
But after coming up empty at the first outpost, they moved on to the second.
Still nothing. No trace of the heirloom Nekomata mentioned.
Nicole was clearly annoyed.
"There's only one outpost left. Let me make this clear—you refused to give us information about the item. If this commission fails, we're not refunding the advance."
Nekomata nodded.
"Of course. I know your rules. Let's go—off to the Red Fang Gang's final outpost, meow."
With that,
Nekomata moved to the front, followed by Nicole, Anby, Billy, and Sam Li.
Soon after,
Nicole noticed something was off.
"Wait a second. Nekomata, are you sure you're going the right way? That path leads straight into the Dead End Hollows."
Nekomata Nodded.
"No mistake, meow. The Red Fang Gang's last outpost is inside the Dead End Hollows. I've heard there's a powerful Ethereal in there, but we can just avoid it."
Nicole was not pleased.
"Easy for you to say—that's the infamous Ethereal, the Butcher of the Dead End. Even if we go in, we have to consider Sam Li's safety. He's not suited for combat."
Nekomata Replied seriously,
"You're underestimating Sam Li. He's way faster than you think, meow."
Just like their first meeting last night—
before Nekomatacould even react, Sam Li had vanished from his spot and reappeared right behind her.
That kind of speed and reaction time was faster than any Nekomian.
And they still claimed Sam Li wasn't good at combat? Who were they trying to fool?
Not to mention, they'd already said Sam Li was the ace of Hare's House—
and now they were pretending he wasn't good in a fight? Not a word from Hare's House could be trusted.
Nekomata Sighed.
"You just want to raise the price, right? I get it. How much more do you want, meow?"
It didn't matter anyway.
Sooner or later, the whole Hare's House would be wiped out. This debt would be meaningless by then.
However!
Contrary to Nekomata's expectations,
Nicole firmly shook her head.
"No. I said Sam Li's not suited for combat. If we run into the Butcher, it's over."
Nekomata Tried again.
"After the commission's done, I'll give you another 100,000 Dennies."
Nicole shook her head.
"No."
"200,000?"
Still, Nicole shook her head.
"No means no."