Zenless Zone Zero: I'am a Dullahan!

Listening to Koleda's explanation, Belle suddenly understood.

So she was the spiritual pillar of Belobog Heavy Industries. Belle remembered watching a really old movie once—there was a term for people like that...

Something... something-spirational?

She shook her head, giving up on the memory, and shifted her focus to Fairy's instructions.

Zane had told her earlier to keep an eye on the road, and she really should. The last thing she wanted was to accidentally lead everyone into some dead-end corner...

...

Venturing deeper into the Dead End Hollows wasn't difficult. The fighters from Belobog Heavy Industries were plenty strong, and any Ethereals that got in the way were swiftly dealt with—Zane didn't even need to step in.

As he observed their surroundings, a strange feeling crept up on him.

"The number and distribution of Ethereals in the Hollow are recovering, but very slowly—nowhere near what the Dead End Hollows used to be."

"It's like... someone is intentionally keeping it this way. Not so chaotic it draws attention, but just stable enough to do something behind the scenes..."

Zane's eyes flickered with interest. The setup reeked of a trap—but what intrigued him was what those behind it were planning.

Was that Sacrificial Ghost deep within the Hollow really that special?

As they pressed on, the number of Ethereals steadily increased. Aside from familiar ones, they started seeing mechanical variants like mixer-types and drill-types.

Before long, they ran into a small cluster of Ethereals.

Behind a pile of rubble, Koleda was surveying the area ahead. After a quick glance, she turned to Eous and asked in a low voice,

"Proxy, is there no way to go around?"

To conserve their fighting strength, she preferred avoiding unnecessary combat.

Classic leader's judgment.

"Nope. According to the map, the other two paths are blocked by spatial rifts. The teleport points aren't any closer, either. So going straight through is the best option."

Hearing that, Koleda nodded reluctantly. As the roars of Ethereals echoed in the distance and she was about to issue a command—

Anton had already charged out.

His drill was spinning faster and faster, crackling with blue electricity. With a toothy grin, he shouted,

"Hahaha! Brother! Let's do this!"

"Straight to the Earth's core!!!"

Koleda smacked her forehead with a sigh and turned to Zane.

"Zane, I don't know why you're so calm, but just stay here. Leave this to us!"

"Grace, keep him safe!"

Even with Grace's "reminder," Koleda still couldn't fully trust Zane. He just looked too... fragile.

Sure, healthier than a normal guy—but compared to someone like Anton, it wasn't even close.

Grace blinked and pointed at herself.

Me? Protect him?

Uh... alright...

With that, Koleda and Ben rushed in to support Anton, leaving the ruins quiet and peaceful—completely opposite the chaos ahead.

"Hehe, Zane... just the two of us now, huh..."

Grace had long since forgotten her mission to protect him. Her eyes locked onto Zane—with a big grin—and more importantly, onto Eous in his arms.

"Zane, hand her over, okay? I promise I'll take very good care of her..."

At the HDD system, the chair suddenly shifted. Wise, who had been talking to Fairy, looked over in confusion—Belle looked like she was desperately trying to flee from something.

"Belle, what's going on with you...?"

He tried asking, but Belle wasn't listening. She was too focused on steering Eous deeper into Zane's arms.

Mechanical research? No thanks!

If it were just Eous or her brother linked up, fine—but right now, she was the one connected to Bangboo!

Images of Grace twirling her hands and pulling out a dozen cold, sharp tools flashed through Belle's mind, sending chills down her spine.

Worse yet, she realized—she was getting farther from Zane!

She wasn't being pulled away—Zane was handing her over!

"Zane, what do you think you're doing?!"

"Didn't you say you'd protect me?!"

In the Hollow, Zane lifted Eous with both hands and blinked.

Handing her to a teammate was still protecting her... right?

Shaking his head, he looked at Grace and smiled.

"Now that I've handed Eous over to you, the deal about Panta's off the table."

With that, he held out the flailing Eous with one hand, passed her to Grace, and extended his other hand.

"Pleasure doing business."

Yeah—rather than stalling and hoping Grace would forget the deal, it was easier just to cancel it directly.

Grace beamed.

Totally worth it!

She reached out and shook his hand.

"Pleasure doing business!"

She took Eous from him, while on the other end, Belle watched as Grace filled her view—overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness.

She sighed. So weak... so powerless!

One day... one day she would take her revenge!

...

"Hehehe..."

Belle's voice came from Eous's body as Grace cuddled her in her arms, gently petting her and curiously muttering,

"This connection tech is amazing. Miss Proxy, how did you guys pull this off?"

"Oh—Grace, no need to call me Miss Proxy. Just call me Belle. And... I actually don't really understand the tech myself..."

Grace's eyes widened slightly at that. She nodded with a soft smile.

"Okay then, Belle it is. We haven't talked much before, but I didn't realize you were this cute. Mhm, Bangboo's cute too..."

"Mm-hmm... hehe..."

There was no trace left of the Belle from just moments ago. She'd completely fallen into the embrace of her big sister.

Zane, watching from the side, wasn't surprised. Sure, Grace might tear down Bangboo someday—but she'd never do that to Eous.

Well... unless they got really close...

Bang!

With the final blast, the battle came to an end. Seeing that, Grace quickly grabbed Zane and ran to join the others.

Koleda and Ben looked over at them, while Anton was off praising his dear brother. Once everyone regrouped, they continued on toward their destination under Belle's direction.

Meanwhile...

...

"Hey, are you sure this plan's reliable? Because honestly, it's looking sketchy as hell."

Sarah glanced at the file in her hand and the footage playing on the large screen in front of her, her brow furrowing slightly.

"And what about the Masked Fool? Still no word from him? It's been ages. Your capabilities are way below what I expected..."

She set the file down, turned her gaze to the side, and spoke again—voice tinged with clear dissatisfaction.