Wise handed over all the candies in his hand. Ellen nodded and took them without a word, unwrapping one before she started eating.
Seeing how quickly she was eating, Wise helped her by unwrapping the rest.
Ever since he first saw Ellen, she seemed to always be eating candy. She ate so much but never seemed to gain weight.
'Is this a special constitution of a Shark Thiren?' Wise wondered, and soon Ellen had devoured all the candies.
With a satisfied sigh, she finally got up from the bench.
"Ellen, how are you feeling now?"
At his question, Ellen yawned, her eyes drooping with exhaustion.
"I'm okay, just sleepy. The boss never mentioned anything about work this complicated before he left. I'll have to ask for overtime pay when this is done."
Looking at Ellen's drowsy state, Wise couldn't help but remember waking her earlier, and guilt crept into his chest.
"Sorry, Ellen, for waking you up before..." he said apologetically.
"Hmm? Don't worry about it. I'd be sleepy anyway, even with more rest. Besides, those candies you gave me were perfect, so we're even."
Ellen glanced away, her tone carrying a touch of sulkiness.
Wise stayed quiet, just smiling as his hand moved on its own. Under her curious stare, he gently patted her head. Before pulling away, he straightened her headscarf, which had come loose while she slept.
A faint blush crept across Ellen's face after what he'd done. She didn't say much, only lowered her head slightly.
Soon after, Lycaon's side was ready. Wise made a call, notifying Belle, who was still at the video store, to prepare. Once everything was set, the group set off for Ballet Twins once more.
Upon entering the building's vicinity, Lycaon and Rina conducted an observation first. Only after confirming that the enemy hadn't left did they proceed with the next step.
The enemy likely remained because their mission was incomplete. However, the loss of their perimeter personnel should have heightened their vigilance, so a forced entry was definitely out of the question.
Subsequently, the Victoria Housekeeping members and Wise began taking down the armed personnel one by one.
They also managed to seize a military-grade G03 multi-band signal transceiver with powerful capabilities from one of the teams.
At the same time, Ellen found a small booklet on one of these individuals. It contained photos of the Law Court's dedicated airship, complete with timetables, route maps, and even hardware schematics for the integrated control system.
It seemed almost certain that this group intended to target the airship.
Right then, Fairy told Belle she had a call from Billy. She picked up, and his panicked but kinda goofy voice came through right away.
"Hello? Is that Wise? This is bad, something big has happened on the airship!"
"Billy, calm down and tell me, what exactly happened on the airship?" Belle said, trying to calm him down.
"Oh, it's Belle... Wait, this isn't the time for that! The situation is actually like this..."
By what he said, around ten minutes earlier, Perlman requested to inspect the suit inside the box, and the guard allowed it. But as soon as the box was opened, thick fog sprayed out.
After that, everyone on the airship got knocked out, the pilot included. Billy was the only one still awake because his air intake broke or something.
"What?! Are Anby and Nekomata alright?"
Wise suddenly joined the call, his tone slightly tense, but Billy didn't find it strange, simply assuming it was concern.
He did wonder briefly why Boss Nicole wasn't mentioned, but he brushed it off and answered, "Wise, you don't need to worry. I've checked, and the gas only knocked them out. They're not in any real danger."
Billy wasn't the type to read between the lines, but someone nearby listening definitely was.
'Anby? Nekomata? Aren't those the two girls who had a meal with Wise before? He sounds pretty worried about them,' Ellen mused, her eyes fixed on Wise from behind.
He felt a chill run down his spine from her stare, so he quickly shifted topics. Only Corin beside him remained innocent and unaware of anything.
"That's good to hear. What's going on over there now? Who's flying the airship?"
At Wise's question, Billy hurried to the cockpit. It didn't take long before he found the issue.
The airship was running on autopilot, so it wasn't going to crash anytime soon. However, someone had messed with the planned route.
Now the airship was flying straight toward the Hollow where Ballet Twins was located, and it would likely plunge into the Hollow before long.
Upon hearing this news, everyone's hearts sank, and Billy grew even more flustered.
"What am I supposed to do? Should I call Public Security? Would they even believe me?" Billy said with a trembling voice.
"According to Mr. Billy, the airship's route was altered some time ago. Yet despite how serious this is, there's been no reaction from the outside world..."
Lycaon's calm observation made Wise and Belle both realize who was behind it.
"Looks like Rain is behind this."
The other party had not only successfully controlled the airship but also faked signals, making everyone believe the airship was still operating normally.
After hearing the explanation, Billy immediately clutched his head in extreme surprise, saying that if it was indeed the other party, then they were doomed, the kind that even Public Security couldn't save.
It was clear that Billy held Rain's skills in high regard.
"Billy, don't panic yet. We still have a chance. We just need to quickly rescue Rain. After all, the person who caused the problem is the only one who can fix it."
Wise's words seemed to ease Billy's nerves, and Lycaon gave a firm nod.
"Wise is right. We from Victoria Housekeeping will do everything we can to assist. Once Miss Rain is recovered, we'll have the ability to change the airship's course."
Hearing them both speak with such confidence, Billy managed to settle down.
Fairy chimed in with her analysis, stating that the airship would pass 15 meters above the Ballet Twins in 25 minutes and make contact with the Hollow 30 seconds later.
Time was running out, especially since many ordinary people on board didn't have high Ether aptitude.
"Everyone, let's go!"
Lycaon's tone was serious as the group immediately rushed toward the top of Building B. To reach it faster, they chose to clear a path and advance in a straight line.
- - - -
To gain access to more than 30+ chapters and more exclusive novels, go to:
[-p -a -t -r -e -o -n . com/DysFiction.]
To make a don@tion go to [ ko - fi .com /dysfiction ]
- - - -