"I'm so stupid. Truly."
Belle lifted her lifeless eyes and went on.
"I only knew that Chiya had connections with Cunning Hares, with the Outer Ring, and with Victoria Housekeeping… but I didn't know Belobog Heavy Industries also had Chiya's people. I got up early this morning, went out, ran into Anton, accepted a commission, and came to the Black Goose construction site."
"But—why is it that even here there's another bad woman trying to get her hands on Chiya?!"
She kept going, but now she was half-sobbing, unable to form a proper sentence. Chiya, standing right in front of her, looked utterly done with this.
"Belle, didn't I tell you? Sometimes I go to construction sites to do acupuncture for the workers."
"Shut up! Then why didn't you tell me earlier it was Belobog? I get it now! That woman Grace is definitely another bad woman trying to make a move on you! Chiya, you're always flirting around! Two-timing Chiya!"
"Hey! Belle!" Anton snapped. "Don't you trash-talk my bro! He's a pure-love warrior!"
"Anton, you don't understand! A pure-love warrior is, by definition, a warrior of pure love! It never said he only loves one!"
"…NANI?!!"
Chiya looked at: Belle's fake crying, Anton's shock, Grace's inexplicable blush, Ben's total confusion behind them, Koleda sinking into thought… and the entire crowd of construction buddies hanging around outside, eating popcorn with their eyes.
He could only force a bitter smile.
"So… can you tell me, Belle, why are you here?"
"Well… it's a long story…"
"Then tell the long story short."
"You don't understand people's hearts, Chiya!!!"
Belobog's Break Room
Belobog's break room felt like a mechanical stomach-sac the world had forgotten.
Thick engine oil stank up the air, cold metal bit at the nose, and old leather and sweat clung to everything—heavy and oppressive.
Light struggled through a few high windows filmed with dust and grease, slicing trembling patches across a metal workbench piled with blueprints, worn parts, and empty energy drink cans.
In the corner leaned several thick metal pipes of unknown purpose. Tool racks held wrenches and pliers; screws and nuts of every size spilled everywhere. A few oil-blackened work uniforms were draped over chair backs or tossed on the floor, silently testifying to hard labor. A half-disassembled small engine component lay on canvas in the corner—proof of what kind of people lived here.
"Got it," Chiya said after hearing Belle's rambling explanation. "So you came for the dennies?"
"What do you mean, 'for the dennies'? Vulgar! Chiya, so vulgar! That advance deposit—worth 1.1 times our total commission income last month—is not the main reason!"
After Belle's lecture, Chiya paused, then delivered an answer so flat it made her start hopping mad.
Belle puffed her cheeks, reached out, and started kneading Chiya's round face like she was testing premium elastic—while also stirring up his signature cowlick until it looked like a bird's nest after a hurricane.
Once she was satisfied, she jolted awake from that familiar, intimate playfulness—
and realized everyone was staring like searchlights:
Anton's rough face was frozen in open-mouthed disbelief.
Big Ben had just dug his glasses out of a drawer and blinked in confusion behind the lenses.
Grace propped her cheek on one hand, casually twirling a small precision steel wrench between slender fingers. Her orange eyes sparkled with amused interest, lips curling in a "I see everything" smirk.
And worst of all… President Koleda's crimson eyes were trying to hold onto "boss authority," but couldn't hide the curiosity—and a faint trace of… envy?
In an instant, heat surged like molten iron up Belle's neck to her ears and spread across her face, brighter than New Eridu's most dazzling neon.
"S-sorry… I'm sorry. I showed you an embarrassing side of myself."
Her voice was mosquito-soft, and she twisted the hem of her clothes like she wanted the floor to swallow her.
"It's fine, Phaethon," Koleda cleared her throat and slapped a grease-speckled tabletop, trying to drag everyone back to business—and crush that inconvenient envy at the same time.
She straightened her tiny back, forcing the oversized work jacket to look more "President-like," and swept her red eyes over Belle and Chiya. Under the forced maturity, her gaze still ran with childlike clarity.
"But after learning that Miss Phaethon and Doctor Chiya already know each other—especially after seeing how easily you joke around together…"
She paused, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help lifting, leaking a bit of her real feelings.
"…we instantly felt a lot more at ease."
"Huh? Why?" Belle blinked, the heat ebbing to a faint pink.
"Because anyone who gets along with Doctor Chiya this well has a 99% chance of not being a bad person," Big Ben said at last, finally getting his battered silver-frame glasses stable on his wide nose.
He turned awkwardly, wiped his thick "bear paws" on dusty work pants, and spoke with a bear-thiren's straightforward seriousness—like he was stating an absolute law.
"Miss Phaethon might not know this, but Doctor Chiya has… enormous influence here."
He held his big palm out, gesturing as if drawing a huge set of concentric circles.
"Everyone at Belobog trusts him."
He glanced at Koleda. She immediately coughed—just a bit too deliberately—face slightly reddening as her fingers tightened on the table edge.
"President even gives Doctor Chiya an extra stipend," Ben added, sounding like he fully approved.
"Every month, Doctor Chiya makes time to come to our sites. He does acupuncture for the crew, and uses special techniques to help us relax—especially his partner, Xugeya's—"
Ben suddenly slapped his own furry head with a heavy THUMP, knocking his glasses slightly askew.
"I kept thinking I forgot something today. I even thought I'd messed up the bookkeeping."
He stared at Chiya with wide, confused eyes.
"Doctor Chiya… where's your Bangboo?"
He looked around the cluttered break room like a round little Bangboo might pop out from behind a pile of parts.
That question detonated the room.
Everyone's eyes snapped onto Chiya:
Anton's probing concern—bro, why'd you forget your partner?
Grace's thoughtful stare—and a flicker of disappointment in her orange eyes.
Koleda's curious head tilt.
Belle's puzzled look, temporarily forgetting her embarrassment.
And outside the door, more workers craning their necks with shameless gossip energy.
Anton rubbed his strong jaw, thick arms folded across his chest, work vest stretched tight over muscle.
"Yeah," he boomed. "I was wondering what felt off. Chiya, why didn't you bring your Bangboo today?"
Grace lounged back, rotating the steel wrench in her fingertips like a living butterfly of cold metal.
"Mm-hm. I'm curious too." Her voice was lazy, her smile knowing. "When I saw Xugeya wasn't coming, I was actually a little disappointed."
Her eyes lingered on Chiya with a faintly sulky complaint.
"Eh? Sis, you noticed that early?" Koleda snapped onto the key detail like a wary little beast, glaring at Grace with pure suspicion. "Then why didn't you look disappointed at all?!"
Grace let out a short, charming laugh and naturally reached up to ruffle Koleda's fluffy, flame-red hair—half indulgent, half mischievous.
"That's because, little one…"
Her voice dropped—low, magnetic, like high-grade lubricant sliding through precision gears. Her gaze, however, hooked subtly toward Chiya.
"…as long as I can see Chiya, my 'steel heart' feels like it's been injected with the finest high-purity synthetic fuel."
She tapped a finger lightly over her left chest, where the edge of a gear tattoo was faintly visible.
"Tense… but happy."
A faint blush—like molten metal—crept up her pale cheeks. She even pressed the back of her hand to her face dramatically.
"Just suppressing my blush takes almost all my strength."
"Eww! That's so cringe! And take your hand off!" Koleda exploded like a tiny machine flea hit with high voltage. Her face turned tomato-red. "I'll stop growing!"
"Ugh—can't pry it off! Ben! Anton! Help!"
"President! I'm coming!" Ben charged in like a heavy truck starting up, carefully inserting himself between them like a moving wall of flesh, trying to separate the "war" without getting crushed by social landmines.
For a moment, the little break room became a full-contact brawl: Anton's deep buzzing "stop fighting!" voice, Koleda's shrill protests, Grace's playful teasing, Ben's loud but increasingly helpless mediation—plus tools clattering, chair legs scraping, and metallic echoes turning it all into a construction-site symphony.
Eventually, under the physical barrier of "human wall" and Ben's peacekeeping, the chaos calmed.
Koleda panted, fixed her chicken-nest hair and crooked collar, inhaled sharply, and planted both hands hard on the cold metal table—trying to make her 150cm height produce a 2.8m aura.
"Anyway, Belle—you've explained how you got the commission. Now it's our turn, as the client—Belobog Heavy Industries—to explain what the commission actually is."
Chiya spoke up at the right time, gentle and polite, leaning forward as if to stand.
"Should I step out?"
"No! Chiya, you don't need to leave! Stay here!"
Koleda blurted it out on reflex, even reaching a hand halfway as if to stop him—
then immediately felt the room's complicated stares gather again, especially Grace's "I knew it" smirk.
Koleda flinched like she'd been pricked. She grabbed the nearest thick book—Heavy Machinery Maintenance Manual (7th Edition)—and slapped it up to cover her burning face, leaving only her red eyes visible above the pages and a few stubborn antenna-like hairs sticking up.
From behind the book came a muffled, sulky voice:
"Anton probably told you some of this already. The truth is, even though our company won the metro project, enemies have been sabotaging us, so progress hasn't been smooth…"
"Uh, President…" Ben pushed up his slipping glasses, expression cautious. "Calling them 'enemies' in front of Miss Belle… isn't that a little rude?"
Anton slammed a fist into the table with a BANG, making a few tiny screws hop like startled fleas.
"Hah? Ben, you're way too soft! Those bastards pulled so many dirty tricks—why should we be polite?"
Then he turned to Belle, eyes sincere and eager in that straight-up worker way.
"Besides, Belle accepted the job, she's Chiya's partner, she's one of us. No need to hide things from our own!"
Ben still looked like he was mentally calculating risk, but Belle instantly seized the opening Anton created—perfect "guard break"—and chained into a combo.
She puffed out her chest (not exactly heroic), waved a hand, and declared with gusto:
"Anton's right! If we're working together, treat me like one of the guys—uh—girls!"
Her eyes sparkled with resolve and righteous "us versus them."
Ben finally relaxed. He picked up his well-worn calculator out of habit, pressed a few keys—beep, beep—and began, voice low and orderly, like an accountant laying out a ledger.
"We're a new mechanical manufacturing and construction company. Recently we've made progress in the industry, and we gained the construction rights for the metro renovation project."
He glanced toward the gold-embossed certificate on the wall: 'New Eridu Metro Phase III—Contractor'.
"But ever since we won the bid…"
His face tightened like he was looking at a mountain of bad debt.
"…a lot of wealthy legacy companies started treating us like a thorn in their eye. They'd love for us to 'have an incident' like Vision Industries, so they can take the project back."
He counted on his thick fingers.
"First they colluded with banks to deny us low-interest loans, trying to cut our cash flow. Then they sent punks to the site to cause trouble—smash equipment, intimidate workers."
He spoke with plain disgust.
"After that, they tried to block our construction and fire permits, nitpicked everything, and then pulled shady tricks on TV to twist the narrative."
Anton ground his teeth beside him, fists whitening with fury.
"But unfortunately," Ben's voice dropped even lower, heavy with a sigh, "right at this critical time… our site suffered an… internal incident."
Grace—who'd been lounging with that lazy smile—suddenly darkened. The usual playful curve of her lips vanished. She tightened her grip on the cold steel wrench until her knuckles paled.
Like she was suppressing something painful, her voice came out rough and heavy, like a rusted gear struggling to turn.
"Last week… three kids got lost in a Hollow!"
The moment she said it, a tear fell without warning, splashing on the back of her hand and blooming into a dark spot.
"Grace, wait." Ben cut in quickly, alarmed. "Don't say it like that—customers will misunderstand!"
He turned to Belle, straightened, and forced a professional explanation.
"Ahem. Rope-maker, you've heard of the intelligent heavy engineering machines our company developed for Hollow operations, right?"
"I've heard on TV," Belle nodded, posture sharpening. "Is it that serious?"
"Of course," Grace said instantly, firm as a bolt torqued to spec.
"Belobog's core competitiveness is these intelligent machines that can work safely in Hollows long-term."
Pride flashed through her voice—then got drowned by worry.
"They can resist Ether corrosion. Their intelligence is high. They can adapt to complex Hollow conditions autonomously…"
She softened slightly.
"And they have a custom language module. They can communicate by voice, too."
Her orange eyes carried something almost maternal—pride, affection, fear.
"I've always been the one taking care of them. I'm the one who improved them from… the prototype tech base, tuned them for each job type, and handled maintenance and upgrades."
A small hitch in her breath.
"They're as important to me as my children."
Her voice trembled. Nasal. Then—like a dam broke—several clear tears slid down her cheeks.
And in the instant her emotions collapsed, she moved almost on instinct—fast as a mechanical arm—and yanked Chiya, who'd been listening with concern on the sofa, straight into her arms.
Tight.
Unyielding.
As if he were the only anchor that could keep her from being swept away.
Her chin rested on his soft hair. Her shoulders trembled. The wrench slipped from her loosening fingers and landed on canvas with a dull thud.
Belle, who'd been frowning and analyzing—maybe Ether corrosion?—saw that scene and instantly exploded like a territorial kitten.
She jumped up, pointed at Grace, voice shooting up an octave:
"Hey! You shameless woman! Let go of my Chiya!"
Her face burned again—this time from pure anger and possessiveness.
Grace ignored her, still pouring out her grief.
"At the moment we don't know the cause. Whether it's a chip logic failure or sudden high-intensity Ether corrosion… those are common operational risks for companies doing long-term Hollow work."
"But this happened to Belobog."
Her eyes darted to the window. Outside, heavy machinery roared—yet it felt like everything was under a shadow.
"It'll give people ammunition. Those competitors will absolutely blow this up and smear us."
Belle stamped her foot, cheeks puffed like a pufferfish.
"Don't ignore me!"
Koleda crossed her arms, dissatisfaction written all over her small face, and shot a sharp look at Grace—still clinging to Chiya.
"Before this, the machines' performance was stable. There was no need for this update."
Then, with a clear note of accusation:
"If you hadn't insisted on forcing those… codes that guy left behind into the logic core, I don't think this would've happened."
The moment Koleda said "that guy," Grace's grief snapped into sharp defensiveness. She lifted her head, brows knit, orange eyes turning cuttingly precise—like a sensor flagging an error.
And her arms tightened around Chiya a fraction more, as if guarding a belief.
"Wait, little one. We can't confirm it's a chip problem yet."
"And besides—beautiful, powerful machines should have a matching, unique soul."
She stared Koleda down, voice challenging, stubborn fire burning even through tear tracks.
"As the president of an intelligent machinery company… don't you think so?"
"Soul or not is irrelevant!" Koleda shot back, slamming the table again.
"Because I'm the president, treating those machines as the company's critical assets is the correct approach! The rational approach!"
She spoke fast and clean, trying to crush emotion with responsibility.
"Even ignoring the enemy side—intelligent machines are extremely expensive to build. R&D is astronomical. Our finances can't absorb that kind of asset loss!"
Koleda took a breath, forced the argument back onto business, and looked directly at Belle.
"In short, Rope-maker, our commission is: we want you to lead us into the Hollow depths to recover the three missing machines. We've already tracked the rough location of one or two of them. If you have questions, you can talk to Grace or Anton privately afterward."
"Okay." Belle nodded immediately—then kept staring at Grace and Chiya like a searchlight, pointing at them with stubborn insistence and a little wounded pride.
"But can you first make Grace let go of my Chiya?"
She emphasized the word "my."
"Eh?!" Koleda blinked like she only just noticed Chiya was still trapped. "Sis, when did you even do that?!"
Then she snapped on her president mask and pointed at Grace, furious.
"Doing something like that in front of a client—how disrespectful!"
"Little one, you saw it the whole time!" Grace countered instantly, tear streaks still visible but her usual lazy, sharp-eyed smugness returning.
"You only bring it up now because you want to use the client to criticize me, and stand on the moral high ground!"
She lifted her chin slightly, voice edged with mockery.
"You were a silent spectator the whole time. That makes you an accomplice."
"W-what?!" Koleda's face turned red-hot again—hit dead center. She started flailing tiny fists, about to launch like a cannonball.
"Grace! Don't talk nonsense!"
"How is it nonsense?!"
"It is nonsense!"
"It's not!"
"It is!"
"Show me some respect!!!"
Nearby, Belobog's break room descended into chaos again.
Far away, the roar of heavy machinery continued—blending with the indoor shouting—creating Belobog Heavy Industries' signature background music…
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 175)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 119)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter79)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter125)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 60
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 40
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 73
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 55
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 66
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 64
The Way the Umamusume Look at 63
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 55
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 45
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 31
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 31
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 31
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin