"Ha?"
The elder sister had no idea what her younger sister was thinking, especially when she suddenly shouted so loudly.
If an ordinary person dared to do that inside the Hollow, it would probably attract a swarm of Ethereals.
But for these sisters, well, the Ethereals would be lucky if they didn't run into them.
The younger sister lifted the small Ethereal triumphantly, its large tail covered in ether crystals dangling in the air.
At that moment, she used a much gentler grip, seemingly realizing she had nearly strangled her future pet earlier.
"Sister, since we can leave the Hollow, if I share some of my ether energy with it, can it come with us?"
The elder sister cocked her head at the question, then gave a nod. After brief consideration, the method seemed plausible enough.
"But before that, we should find something else to test it on."
She glanced at the snake Ethereal in her hand, the same one she had nearly strangled to death earlier.
As the older sister, she had always spoiled her younger one, often doing her best to fulfill whatever requests she made.
And since her younger sister clearly liked that small Ethereal, she couldn't risk experimenting on it directly and upsetting her.
With that thought in mind, the elder sister gathered the ether energy within her body and carefully infused it into the snake Ethereal she was holding.
The moment the energy entered its body, the snake Ethereal, which had been wrapped around the girl's arm as if trying to please her, abruptly froze and turned completely rigid.
Seeing this, the younger sister's eyes widened. She looked at the small Ethereal in her arms, then at her elder sister, before finally shifting her gaze to the snake Ethereal.
"Sister, your snake seems to be dead..."
"..."
'Oh, my dear silly sister, did you really need to say that? I'm not blind or stupid—of course I can see it.'
The girl complained internally, but just then, something unexpected happened.
A bizarre purplish-black Ether light erupted from the snake Ethereal in her hand, forcing her to release it on instinct.
The creature fell to the ground, and with a sharp snap, the flickering light paused for a brief moment before continuing.
Shortly after, once the glow faded, a tiny white snake with gleaming scales and blood-red eyes materialized before the two sisters.
However, the little serpent seemed to have fainted already. Seeing this, the elder sister immediately reached down and picked it up.
Feeling the delicate, smooth scales beneath her fingers, the elder sister's eyes instantly lit up.
"It's decided. She will be my pet."
Without waiting for a reply, she wrapped the little snake around her neck like a scarf, clearly enjoying the cool, smooth sensation against her skin.
The younger sister said nothing. Instead, she channeled her own Ether energy directly into the small Ethereal in her arms.
The creature immediately let out a shriek in response and soon underwent the same transformation as the little snake, eventually turning into a small white fox covered in snow-white fur.
"From today onward, you'll be called Pepe. Nice to meet you."
As she spoke, she rubbed the soft fur on its body and gently stroked its large, fluffy tail.
The little white fox, now known as Pepe, let out a cheerful cry in response, happily allowing the girl to pet and cuddle her.
How could this little fox not be friendly? After all, the girl had just given her a new life.
On the other side, the little snake slowly woke up. When it opened its eyes and saw that delicate, adorable face that filled it with dread, its mouth widened in fright.
In doing so, it accidentally revealed its fangs and immediately met the girl's sharp gaze.
Terrified, the little snake quickly snapped its mouth shut and tried its best to look cute, innocent, and harmless.
After all, unlike the little fox who had nearly been suffocated by accident, the little snake had truly almost been killed on purpose.
Fortunately, the girl didn't seem to care about such details. Perhaps she felt the small serpent posed no real threat.
Either way, after giving the little snake the name Mumu, the two sisters continued their search, following the lingering scent deeper ahead.
<<>>
At this moment, Wise, in his Bangboo form, had already entered the Hollow with Koleda and the other members of Belobog Industries, and they had been exploring for quite some time.
Koleda was complaining about Principal Elton's behavior. After all, what kind of principal would allow a Hollow to exist right next to the school, not only refusing to deal with it but even trying to cover it up?
Of course, Koleda's dissatisfaction wasn't only because of that. She told Wise that she was terrible at dealing with adults who were full of "adult vibes."
"I seriously can't understand what those adults are thinking, and they never bother to say what's really on their minds to their families. It's a good thing you're not like that. That's why I like you so much."
When those words left her mouth, Koleda couldn't help but think of her father. He was exactly that type of adult.
"Being confessed to so suddenly... I'm really glad to hear that, Koleda, but..."
Wise trailed off before finishing his sentence. Ben and Anton, who had been quietly listening nearby, couldn't stop themselves from coughing awkwardly.
The sound made Koleda jump, her face flushing crimson. She quickly abandoned the topic entirely.
Afterward, the group kept moving forward and soon uncovered the secret hidden within the Hollow through various clues.
It turned out that the principal had struck an improper deal with certain people, illegally collecting Ether resources inside the Hollow.
This had caused the environment within the Hollow to deteriorate sharply and become extremely unstable, with the risk of expansion at any moment.
With such a dangerous situation right next to the school, Koleda and the others were naturally furious.
Not long after they continued forward, they ran into Principal Elton, who had returned with the bandits illegally mining ether resources.
Their attitude was incredibly arrogant. They even boldly told Koleda to go ahead and report it to the Hollow Investigation Association.
Ignoring the anger of the others, Wise could clearly feel that Koleda was like an overheated furnace, ready to erupt at any moment.
Principal Elton couldn't help but sigh when he saw this.
"Alas, not everything is black and white. I'm just trying to earn a little extra money in the gray area allowed by the rules. Do you really have to cause trouble for this old father who only wants to increase his income and provide better education and a better life for his children?"
The man spoke with a faint trace of sarcasm.
"You'd better apologize to all the fathers in the world for saying something like that!"
Koleda felt utterly indignant. Principal Elton's way of speaking was truly infuriating.
He even had the audacity to say things like, "Even if an unfortunate accident happens, it's not my responsibility."
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