"My sister is the absolute worst!!!"
Sulina ran ahead, crying, while Susanna chased after her cheerfully, showing no signs of remorse.
The two of them circled around Andrew and Caesar like two planets orbiting a sun, spinning continuously, but without affecting Andrew and Caesar's path forward.
After running for a while, Susanna, who had only just recovered from extreme exhaustion, quickly ran out of steam.
But after she plopped down on the ground, Sulina actually ran back to her.
Although her eyes were still shimmering with tears from the earlier scare, she was already grumpily wiping her sister's sweat.
"Seriously, what kind of sister scares her little sister like that? You're too much!"
But Susanna just chuckled, patting her little sister's head without saying another word.
Regardless, just being able to survive a situation like that was the greatest miracle in itself.
They learned from the two sisters that this Hollow had erupted suddenly. Because of the abrupt appearance of rifts, their parents had been completely separated from them.
But Andrew hadn't forgotten his main objective for coming into this Hollow: the Hollow boss.
However, the sisters didn't have a clear concept of such a thing. To them, that Level 3 Ethereal from before was already the most terrifying existence in this Hollow.
It made sense, though. With the sisters' small frames, they would have been long gone if they'd encountered a high-risk Ethereal.
This nascent Hollow wasn't like Hollow Zero, where Level 4s roamed everywhere and Level 3s were a dime a dozen. Encountering this one Level 3 Ethereal was already the limit of their bad luck.
Andrew and Caesar led the two little ones, clearing out the Ethereal grunts in the Hollow. Although each wave wasn't large, or particularly dangerous, they just kept coming endlessly.
With the help of these cannon fodder, Andrew's tachi managed to maintain its yellow-edged glow. He could occasionally build up enough energy for a red-bladed aura, but there were no worthy targets for a finishing blow. Plus, the red aura faded so quickly that it was basically of little use.
As they explored further, Andrew also began to understand the threat Hollow disasters posed to ordinary investigators.
Although the individual waves weren't strong, their sheer numbers and frequency were overwhelming.
As ordinary humans facing a relentless stream of Ethereals, there would inevitably come a time when their stamina gave out. And that was when the Hollow would bare its vicious fangs.
These things, filled with malice for everything in the world, made Andrew, as a hunter, feel a visceral sense of repulsion whenever he saw them.
His Felyne habits made Andrew's teeth itch with irritation every time he saw this kind of disaster.
"Hmph, you pieces of crap. Sooner or later, I'll wipe every last one of you out."
Leading the two little ones, Andrew and Caesar cleared out every Ethereal they encountered while searching for tracks.
Perhaps because they hadn't reached the more active areas, Andrew found many Level 3 and 4 Ethereals, but his most important target was nowhere to be found.
No, that wasn't entirely true.
Through Andrew and Caesar's efforts along the way, they found over twenty survivors hiding in various places in less than twenty minutes.
But what made the sisters increasingly disheartened was that their missing parents weren't among them.
When the Hollow disaster struck and they were forced apart, the constant threat of the Ethereals left them no time to think, but now that they were safe, they couldn't help but start to worry.
As more and more survivors were found, the worry on the sisters' faces grew deeper. But at least Lady Luck hadn't completely abandoned them. Or rather, meeting Andrew and Caesar was their greatest fortune.
Around a corner, a unique guide marker pointed the way for human survivors. Caesar immediately realized it was a sign left by other survivors.
Ethereals weren't smart enough to make something like this. Following the guide, Andrew and Caesar soon led the group to a stable area.
It was a place like a Dark Souls bonfire, a safe zone that existed in every Hollow.
In this area, the Hollow's spatial activity was very stable, sometimes almost indistinguishable from the space outside the Hollow.
Although there were no rifts or Ethereals that could appear at any moment, this didn't mean it was completely safe.
The spatial stability here didn't mean the Ether corrosion would stop. This constant corruption of the human body was like a maggot clinging to a bone, impossible to escape.
But no matter what, compared to dying instantly under an Ethereal's claws, the victims trapped in the Hollow were willing to choose this place that turned an immediate death sentence into a stay of execution.
While the safe zone was a place where humans could catch their breath, it also had some less-than-desirable aspects.
If this were one of the large, permanent Hollows, this is also where various Hollow prospectors and gangs would be most active.
So for most people, the sudden appearance of a safe zone wasn't always a good thing. Fortunately, here, as a nascent Hollow, there was no need to worry about that.
Perhaps after an unknown period of evolution, this safe zone would disappear, and a new one would generate in another location. But regardless, for the humans who survived this Hollow disaster, this was the best temporary shelter.
After passing a few more signs, the group soon arrived at an open area, where many people who were clearly factory workers were sitting around in small groups.
Children like Susanna and Sulina were extremely rare in a Hollow, as almost no adult would willingly bring their child to a factory to play.
The reason Susanna and Sulina were here was because both sisters were still young, and their parents were naturally worried about leaving them home alone.
At the same time, the sisters didn't want to be separated from their parents. Thanks to Susanna's coaxing and Sulina's desperate pleading, they successfully convinced their parents to relent and bring them here.
And as a result, right after their parents agreed to bring them, the Hollow disaster erupted.
When the people sitting on the ground saw so many people arriving at once, they stood up in surprise and joy.
Seeing that they were fellow workers also trapped here, they welcomed them with beaming smiles.
Every reunion with a familiar face was met with a small burst of emotional sighs.
But no matter what, they all kept their voices down, careful not to make too much noise.
After all, while Ethereals didn't spawn here, it didn't mean they couldn't enter, and many Ethereals were like zombies, drawn to the sounds of the living.
And Lady Luck's favor, after their narrow escape from death, was finally bestowed upon the sisters, Susanna and Sulina.
The newcomers were none other than their missing parents.
An adult man and woman, who each bore a different resemblance to one of the sisters, were looking on with excitement at the two girls trailing behind Caesar.
The weariness on the parents' faces suggested they had likely just found this place as well. The battle marks on the bat in their hands showed just how perilous their journey had been.
Fortunately, just as they reached the safe zone, they ran into their daughters, who had also been brought here by Andrew, finally reuniting the family.
_____
🔥 The latest chapters are being posted! 🔥
🪦 Join the community on P... with a 25% discount!
✅ Read up to 40 chapters in advance (all stories)!
✅ Access exclusive posts and updates first!
Let's achieve our community goals:
🎯 100 Powerstones = +1 extra chapter for everybody
🚀 80 MEMBERS = +5 additional chapters on ALL STORIES!
👻 P - Walnutchan