"Mm, that's right."
"It's me. What, is it different from what you imagined?"
Ling pondered.
"Well, I thought it would be some gloomy-looking fellow."
"It seems I guessed wrong."
Ellen chewed on the candy stick in her mouth, swaying it back and forth.
While Ling was chatting with Ellen, Hoshimi Aya had been looking for an opportunity to sneak a touch of Ellen's tail.
However, since she thought she had asked directly just now, it seemed like a switch had been flipped, and Ellen remained wary of her.
"You accepted my gift, and you won't even let me touch your tail."
"Tsk!"
Hoshimi Aya turned her head away, a wave of frustration rising within her.
"You think one piece of candy can buy me off?"
"You must be dreaming too much."
Ellen rolled her eyes speechlessly.
"Aya, Thiren generally do not allow others to touch their tails."
"It's like letting someone touch your private parts."
"For you, it's like never letting anyone touch your ears."
"Besides, saying it so directly is rather rude."
Ling reminded her softly.
All of Ling's words fell into Ellen's ears.
"See? This one beside you has a much better attitude than you."
Ellen spat out the finished candy stick.
"Do you have any more candy? I can buy some from you with currency."
Ellen licked her lips, looking as if the taste of that candy had greatly suited her palate.
"... I don't want currency, I want to touch your tail."
After saying that, Hoshimi Aya pulled out seven or eight candies from her pocket.
"Tsk!"
In the end, Ellen succumbed to the overwhelming pressure of the lollipops and snatched the candies from Hoshimi Aya's hand.
She then extended her tail in front of Hoshimi Aya.
"Let's agree beforehand, I'll only allow you to touch it once."
Ellen unwrapped a candy and put it in her mouth.
Seeing this, Hoshimi Aya placed her hand on the tail and stroked it. The texture was indeed soft and smooth, giving a very good feeling. Finally, Hoshimi Aya squeezed it a little.
But after the first squeeze, Ellen immediately pulled her tail back.
"I never agreed to let you squeeze it!"
Ellen protected her tail.
Not long after, Zhe's call came through.
He notified them that the situation had been resolved.
They could now proceed to The Hollow.
Seeing this, Ling said her goodbyes and left.
After all, she needed to return to control Eous.
After waiting for half an hour, they waited until Eous arrived, and then the group headed towards The Hollow.
Following the previous route, the group advanced quickly.
All the Etheralss along the way were dealt with by Hoshimi Aya as easily as chopping vegetables.
However, a few surprise attackers were taken care of by the people from Victoria Housekeeping.
The group proceeded unimpeded towards the rooftop.
They barely paused because of the Etheralss.
It was as if there were no obstacles.
However, what Hoshimi Aya failed to notice was that her combat footage was being recorded by Lina's two Bangboo.
Finally, the group arrived at a dead end.
"It's regrettable, but we might be a step too late."
"The automated isolation layer seems to have been shut down by someone."
Lykann stroked the massive iron door.
"Tsk, I can cut this door open."
"You guys move aside."
After speaking, Hoshimi Aya stood directly opposite the iron door.
But just as Hoshimi Aya was about to draw her sword, she was stopped by Fairy.
"The atrium, as the only physical connecting structure between the two buildings, is in an extremely unstable state under the influence of The Hollow."
"Any strong impact could cause structural changes in the nearby areas."
Fairy reminded them.
Lykann, who had returned from investigating nearby, informed the group that there was a manual switch on the other side of the corridor.
However, they had no way to get there.
So, for the time being, they could only leave.
...Sixth Street Video Store
Hoshimi Aya returned to the Video Store with Eous.
"What a hassle."
"I wonder which bastard shut that door."
Hoshimi Aya complained. The game plot wasn't supposed to be like this.
Moreover, their speed was clearly faster than the original plot; they shouldn't have found it closed.
But by the time they arrived, it was already shut.
"Can't be helped, it was probably caused by a power outage."
"We can only wait to see how Victoria Housekeeping explains it tomorrow."
"A building this size should have backup storage capabilities."
"The people from Victoria Housekeeping should be able to find it tomorrow."
Ling pondered.
Meanwhile, Zhe was inspecting and maintaining Eous nearby.
"So troublesome."
Hoshimi Aya lay on Ling's lap and complained.
"Oh, right, Aya."
"Didn't we say we were going to ask the upper-class society about you?"
Ling suddenly remembered something and reminded her.
Upon hearing this, Hoshimi Aya took out her phone and tapped on Soichiro's chat window.
Most of the content was Soichiro's daily greetings and concerns, such as whether she ate well today, whether she slept well, and so on.
Hoshimi Aya: 'Father, I want to ask what's going on with the recent rumors about me in upper-class society?'
After a long silence, Hoshimi Aya finally typed and sent the message.
However, there was no reply from the other side.
It seemed he was still busy and didn't have time to reply to the message.
After waiting for about ten or twenty minutes, the other side finally responded.
Soichiro: 'Mm, I also don't know who leaked the news.'
'But Aya, don't worry, it's all unimportant news.'
'It won't have a very big impact on you.'
'It's mainly a discussion about your origins. If you mind, you can come to the Hoshimi Family. I can specifically hold a press conference for you to clarify your identity.'
Hoshimi Aya: '...'
'I wasn't talking about that.'
'I'm talking about the news that I possess Void Hunter Level strength.'
'Will this have any special impact on me?'
'Or will it affect the balance between the major powers?'
Hoshimi Aya directly asked the question she wanted to inquire about. After all, social unrest could easily cause unnecessary trouble.
The current stable state of society was already very good, and wouldn't it be a huge headache if someone foolishly targeted the power of the Demonic Sword?!
Speaking of which, she and Hoshimi Miyabi each possessed a Demonic Sword. She wondered if that would affect the upcoming events?
Soichiro: 'That part.'
'That's even less to worry about.'
'They cannot openly target someone with Void Hunter Level strength.'
'Not to mention two of them. Don't forget that you have the Hoshimi Family behind you.'
'No matter who wants to move against you, they have to weigh their own strength first.'
'Currently, no faction should be foolish enough to dare move against you.'
'Even if there are, I will handle it on my end and won't put too much pressure on you.'
'So, you two should relax and not worry about these things. I will handle them properly.'
Hoshimi Aya: '... Understood, thank you.'
'When I have a chance, I'll come over to stay for a while.'
Hoshimi Aya was silent for a while before responding.
Soichiro: 'Good, as long as Aya wants to come.'
'The doors of the Hoshimi Family are always open for you.'
...
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