Bronya cleared her throat a few times and comforted her:
"Seele, the Executor is fine. This kind of thing happened among the Silvermane Guards before too. Let him vent a bit and he'll be okay."
Seele stared at the fragments of those monsters and said wide-eyed:
"Are you sure? I didn't read many books, so don't trick me!"
Bronya nodded and continued staring at the crates:
"Trust him. Let's check these supplies first—after all, recovering them is the main task tonight."
Seeing Bronya so calm, Seele couldn't help but wonder.
Was there something wrong with her?
Could it be that Zeig acting like this was normal, and the abnormal one was actually herself?
No way.
She might not be highly educated, but she wasn't an idiot either.
After calming down a little, Seele came to Bronya's side and sighed:
"Sigh, let's just grab the stuff quickly and head back. If we let Zeig keep killing like this, Rivet Town might actually become livable again."
Bronya looked up:
"That won't work. Fragmentum creatures reappear periodically. Even if the Executor stationed himself here and kept clearing them, there would always be some that slip through. Those hidden ones would still pose a threat to residents."
Seele pressed her lips together:
"I was just saying it casually. It's only the Fragmentum—who's acting like they don't understand?"
While chatting with Bronya, she opened the crates containing the supplies.
Suddenly, her brows furrowed:
"Huh? This one's empty!"
Seele's expression grew serious.
Bronya stood up and comforted her:
"There are many more crates nearby. Let's check the others. Maybe this one was empty to begin with."
So Seele and Bronya went in different directions, opening the crates one by one.
All of them were completely empty.
Seele frowned:
"Damn it, how are they all empty? Do monsters rummage through crates now?"
Bronya looked at the empty crates and grew serious as well:
"Fragmentum creatures don't need human supplies. Even if they robbed things, they wouldn't be this… polite."
Seele raised an eyebrow:
"You mean someone got here before us?"
Bronya crouched down, pinched some soil, and analyzed:
"It's just a guess. Look—there are footprints on the ground here. The Executor was just straddling his way through, so these tracks are normal, but they should be from someone else. The soil smells fresh—the other party probably hasn't been gone long."
Hearing this, Seele no longer had the mood to worry about Zeig's state and said gravely:
"Let's go. Even if we have to turn this place upside down, we're finding the stuff."
Following the tracks, the two searched through the market. Finally, amid the intermittent chainsaw noises, they found a small figure in a corner.
Seele's gaze sharpened like a hawk. Upon spotting the figure, she immediately approached.
But after clearly seeing the person, she couldn't help but freeze:
"You… Eric?"
Hiding in the corner was a little boy.
At this distance, Seele was certain he had definitely overheard the conversation among the three of them. It was clearly safe now, yet he still didn't come out.
Something was off.
Seele immediately said sternly:
"Hey, kid! What are you doing here all alone? Don't you know how dangerous this place is?"
With Zeig's lawnmower-like slaughter, the Fragmentum creature corpses were piled everywhere.
It showed just how severe the Fragmentum erosion in Rivet Town was.
Faced with Seele's questioning, the little boy named Eric talked back:
"S-Seele? Y-you mind your own business! I-I can go wherever I want—it's none of your concern!"
Seele couldn't help frowning as she looked toward the nearby hiding spot:
"Fine. So you hid all the supplies here? Pretty capable, huh."
She was now certain—this kid was deliberately avoiding them.
Even after seeing Zeig turn the Fragmentum creatures into minced meat, he still didn't come out. No matter how you looked at it, something was wrong.
Seele said gravely:
"If Zeig hadn't dealt with the roaming monsters, what were you planning to do? Hide in this corner shivering forever?"
But even faced with Seele's questioning, the little boy remained stubborn:
"W-who asked you to meddle? I was about to escape anyway—I don't need help from adults!"
"Still so stubborn." Seele crossed her arms, her delicate brows slightly furrowed:
"Then tell me—how were you planning to carry several large bundles of steel plates past the monsters?"
"T-that… there-there's always a way…"
At this point, Zeig poked his head out from the darkness and asked with great interest:
"So, little friend, can you share some supplies with us? It's for saving people! Kiehehehehe!!"
Seele turned to Zeig and said:
"No need to be polite with him. This kid is a notorious little thief. If I remember right, those clothes were stolen from other children too."
Zeig pursed his lips. It seemed Seele already had an idea for handling the kid, so he retreated back into the darkness.
Eric grew very uneasy but still tried to make excuses: "T-that's…"
Seele stared into Eric's eyes:
"Be honest—what do you need steel plates and bandages for? We're taking them to save people."
But who would have thought—after thinking for a moment, Eric lifted his head, choked up, and said:
"…Two hundred…"
Hearing this, Seele froze: "Huh?"
Eric's gaze grew resolute, his voice no longer trembling as he puffed out his chest and met Seele's eyes:
"Two hundred Winter City Shields…"
This development couldn't help but amuse Seele. She said to Eric:
"Did I hear that right? You actually want to negotiate?"
Zeig poked his head out from the darkness again: "So?"
Seele said helplessly:
"It's Winter City Shields. This kid took our stuff and now has the nerve to ask us for money."
Bronya stood to the side, taking everything in. She stepped forward and advised:
"If it's two hundred Winter City Shields, I happen to have them on me. We can…"
Those Winter City Shields had naturally been stuffed into her pocket by Zeig.
But at this moment, Seele stopped her:
"No—are you really going to give him money? I told you, this is his usual trick… Don't go soft and get scammed by him."
Eric immediately spoke up:
"I-it's not! This time is different! I need the money because my dad, he…"
Seele helplessly rubbed her forehead and sighed:
"Pulling out your dad as a shield again… If he finds out you keep doing this, you're definitely in for it."
But who would have thought—after Seele finished speaking, the little boy actually started crying aggrievedly.
He lowered his head, crystalline tears overflowing from his eyes and dripping onto his shoes.
"Wah… wah…"
Zeig walked over from the darkness: "Hey, big sis Seele, go easy on him… The kid's probably telling the truth this time."
When Zeig was cutting down Fragmentum creatures earlier, he had already noticed a little boy hiding.
Bronya added:
"The Fragmentum is very dangerous. Since Eric came here as a last resort, his father probably really needs this money…"
Seele thought about it and suddenly felt the two had a point, so she stayed silent and let them take the lead.
Bronya bent down and said softly to Eric:
"Your name is Eric… right? Here, take these."
As she spoke, she pulled handful after handful of Winter City Shields from her pocket and placed them in Eric's hands.
She continued gently:
"You need the money because of your family, right? I think this should solve your urgent problem."
After receiving the Winter City Shields, Eric could no longer control his emotions—snot bubbles even formed as he wiped his tears and said gratefully:
"Wah… Th-thank you, big sister! I…"
Bronya added:
"…But you have to promise me one thing—you must never steal from others again. Can you do that?"
…
"Wah wah wah wah, I… I… heh, hilarious."
"???"
Bronya froze for a moment before realizing that last line came from Zeig behind her.
Seele rolled her eyes speechlessly at Zeig in the back:
"Big bro, can you not ruin the moment?"
Zeig stood with his hands in his pockets, innocently whistling: "~~~~~"
Eric's crying stopped abruptly:
"…"
…