"What the heck is this?"
A damaged train carriage appeared before the two of them, embedded there at a very bizarre angle.
"Eh? Um, is there anyone outside?"
"Meow!!! The carriage spoke, meow!"
The sudden voice startled Nekomata, causing her tail to stand straight up. She hurriedly hid behind Geno, finally finding a bit of a sense of security.
"No matter how you look at it, that's a person talking..." Geno's mouth twitched. This girl really was a cat; she got scared like this over the slightest movement.
"Um, excuse me, are you Hollow Investigators? I... accidentally got separated from my companions."
The voice inside the carriage was soft and weak; it seemed to be just a lost little girl.
"Ah, right, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Corin, and I am an employee of a Housekeeping Company. Gemini, Rh-negative blood type, I enjoy cleaning, my Citizen ID number is..."
"Stop! Stop! Stop! Miss Corin, there is no need to be so detailed!"
Geno felt his trigeminal nerve starting to throb with pain. Was the girl across from them a bit of a natural airhead? She just casually spilled all her information like that.
"Anyway, let's get you out of there first. Please step back a bit."
"Oh, oh, okay."
After waiting a moment to confirm that Corin had truly moved away from the carriage door, Geno slowly walked forward and condensed a cross-shaped sword out of thin air.
"Meow? Magic?!"
"How did he do that?"
Geno only made a slight move, but it was enough to make the jaws of the two little ones beside him drop in shock.
Then, Geno simply turned his right wrist, waving the cross-sword in his hand to slash twice at the carriage.
A moment later, the sturdy metal carriage instantly shattered into several pieces and fell to the ground.
"Meow! What terrifying power, meow!"
Nekomata subconsciously swallowed her saliva. She shouldn't be held a grudge against for badmouthing him earlier, right?
Meanwhile, inside the carriage, Corin, seeing the light of day again, happily hopped out and jumped in front of Geno.
"Thank you, Mr. Investigator, I... Whoa-wa-wa-wa!"
Just as Corin was thinking of thanking Geno, a sword tip glistening with a cold light suddenly appeared before her eyes, forcing her to swallow the rest of her words.
Geno, who had made this dangerous move, seemed to be confirming something, and only then did he put away the cross-sword.
"Apologies, Miss Corin. This is just a little bit of vigilance. If I have offended you, please forgive my rudeness."
After all, this was a Hollow; no amount of caution was strange. Corin didn't mind it much; that was just her personality.
"N-No, it's okay, Mr. Investigator. I can understand."
Although the person involved didn't mind, the two companions behind Geno, who had also been badly scared, voiced their condemnation.
"Geno, aren't you going a bit too far with this?"
"That's right, meow! How could you make a move against such a cute girl!"
Faced with their lack of understanding, Geno had to give his reason.
"It's really not me being overly cautious, it's just that I've encountered a similar situation in a Hollow before."
He recalled an event from a year ago and continued, "Back then, a Doppelganger disguised itself as a human to call for help. It was quite dark, making it hard to identify the other party's identity. If I didn't tentatively have some strength, something bad probably would have happened."
Hearing him say this, Nekomata and Eous were instantly rendered speechless.
Indeed, if one had experienced such a thing, it would certainly leave a significant shadow. It was no wonder Geno reacted that way.
"Alright, let's continue our conversation, Miss Corin."
"O-Okay."
Next, Corin explained to Geno and the others how she had gotten separated from her companions and hidden inside the carriage.
"I see. However, we also have very urgent matters to attend to. How about you follow us for now, and leave once we get near the exit?"
"O-Okay, no problem. Many thanks, Mr. Investigator."
This girl still seemed to treat them as Investigators, but Geno didn't offer much explanation. After all, compared to Hollow Raiders, the identity of an Investigator was a bit more reasonable.
With the addition of a traveling companion, the group continued their advance on the road leading to Canvas Alley.
They encountered several waves of Ethereals along the way, but the group solved them easily and cleanly.
What surprised everyone was that Corin, this soft and weak little maid, was actually so formidable. The chainsaw in her hands was like a murder weapon from a horror movie, tearing the victims into a thousand pieces.
Though, the ones being torn into pieces were Ethereals.
"I didn't expect Little Corin to be so amazing! You really can't judge a book by its cover."
"Um, you flatter me, Miss Nekomata."
"Corin doesn't need to be modest. Appropriate confidence is very necessary."
The girls quickly hit it off; friendship between women sometimes happened just that fast.
Since their journey was smooth, they soon arrived at their destination—Canvas Alley.
"We're here. This is where Nicole and the others are trapped."
Because they had Corin with them, it wasn't convenient to act directly. They circled around to reach Canvas Alley first, and then prepared to deal with the train problem.
"Nekomata, you take Corin to find Nicole first. Eous and I will go handle the train matter."
"Meow~ Will it really be okay?"
Nekomata was still a bit worried. If they failed, then this place would...
"Don't worry. Along the way, you've seen my strength. Dealing with an unmanned train is more than within my capabilities."
Recalling Geno's outrageous combat power along the way, she figured there shouldn't be any problem. After all, they just needed to get the Proxy onto the train.
"Then, we'll wait for you right here."
Nekomata obediently said goodbye to Geno and Eous, turned around, and led Corin to find Nicole's group.
Subsequently, Geno also set off quickly and soon arrived in the tunnel through which the train was about to pass.
"This is the spot. The train will be coming very soon."
Belle was monitoring the train's movement trajectory via Fairy; it would pass through this tunnel very soon.
"Alright, I'll count on you when the time comes, Belle."
"Leave it to me, rest assured. I am a professional."
She controlled Eous's body to pat its small hand on its chest, putting on a look of utter confidence. Anyone who saw it would think it was cute.
Geno was no exception. He subconsciously placed his hand on top of Eous's head and rubbed those soft ears.
Who researched this little thing called a Bangboo? It was damn cute!
"Um, Geno, don't do that."
Belle, who shared senses with Eous, was incredibly shy at this moment. Although she couldn't completely feel Eous's tactile sensations, with Geno sticking so close, she felt more or less bashful.
"Ah, sorry. It's just because it was so cute, so I just..."
Geno realized only then that beneath this cute rabbit exterior was a lovely girl. His behavior just now was somewhat rude.
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What? How did you guys know I picked Ambassador Jimi in the Monetary War yesterday and got a full board of 3-star 5-costs? (Laughs)
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