[To be safe, Leon and you return to the Goethe Hotel to confirm March 7th is sleeping soundly before heading out to search for medicine.]
From the Goethe Hotel, they headed north. At the entrance, they spotted an unexpected small figure. "That's… Hook." Ah Xian was a bit surprised.
"So Hook shows up in Leon's storyline here. I thought she'd barely get a cameo in the main plot."
Hook: "Who goes there? Hurry up and report your name to the great Dark Hook!"
Seeing a kid barely waist-high, standing with hands on hips and acting all grown-up, Leon and Stelle exchanged a smile.
① "Just a passing, kind-hearted Nameless. Better remember that."
② "Little one, it's time for bed."
Ah Xian meant to pick option one but accidentally clicked option two.
To her surprise, Hook's eyes widened.
"You calling who a little one?!"
Stelle: "You're pretty cute, kid. Of course I mean you."
Hook: "The great Dark Hook isn't a little one! I'm super strong—beating Fragmentum monsters up top and bad guys down below!"
The Trailblaze duo couldn't help but chuckle. Seemingly provoked by their expressions, Hook's little face grew anxious.
"You think Hook's easy to bully? I'm the infamous leader of the Moles!"
"A lot of places in Boulder Town are under our Moles' protection!"
"Besides me, the great Dark Hook, the Moles have Iron-Arm Luka, Thousand-Face Julian, and a bunch of sly kids as top lieutenants!"
Stelle squinted, mimicking Leon's expression, nodding repeatedly.
She was clearly humoring a child.
"So you're the great Dark Hook of the Moles. My apologies, my apologies."
Hearing this, Hook puffed up her nose proudly. "You still haven't told Hook your names."
① "We're the Dark Night Heroes, Stelle and Leon."
② "Since you asked so sincerely, I'll…"
"Good grief, both options are meme references."
From the chat, Ah Xian learned not only were they memes, but the second option even came with suppressed laughter in the voice acting, completing the full quote.
Leon smiled and waved.
"Great Dark Hook, we're heading out of Boulder Town for serious business. See ya."
Hook: "That direction's Rivet Town, right? Perfect chance to show you the Moles' awesomeness."
"Hook's coming with you. With Hook around, no one can bully you!"
Seeing Hook tilt her little face up proudly, acting like she could handle any trouble, Ah Xian couldn't help but laugh.
"This kid's still such a big personality in a tiny package."
Stelle: "Hmm? Even more of a big personality than March?"
Leon: "Saying that about March… careful she doesn't hear and elbow you."
Stelle shivered, sneaking a guilty glance around before patting her chest in relief.
"Scared me to death—good thing she didn't hear."
Hook: "What're you two whispering about? Let's get going!"
Leon: "Hook, you didn't ask what we're doing in Rivet Town?"
Hook grabbed the nearby drilling machine, starting it with a rumbling roar.
"It's just scavenging supplies, right? The Moles are pros at this. Hook's protected tons of adults going in for supplies!"
"Perfect timing—Hook was thinking it's time to grab some supplies too, so I'll protect you for free along the way."
Oh?
Stelle looked Hook over with surprise.
That claw was bigger than Hook herself—don't judge a book by its cover.
"Hook's been to Rivet Town multiple times and knows the place well. Whatever you're looking for, I can help."
Stelle glanced at Leon.
Leon gave an imperceptible nod, signaling it was fine.
"Let's go then. Stay close… and don't go too fast, or we might not keep up with the great Dark Hook."
Stelle said with a grin.
[Stelle's actually great with kids.]
"Exactly. Using words kids love to hear to boost their pride while keeping her from running off and staying safe."
"Warm-hearted Hook's pretty cute, huh?"
[How could my wife not be cute? Tiny Hook, so soft and sweet…]
[??]
[That's criminal!]
[That's against the rules—three years minimum, death penalty max, you good with that?]
[Born yesterday, huh? Someone's actually simping for Hook.]
Hook flashed a pure smile. "Of course! Stick with Hook, and you'll get the good stuff. I won't leave you behind!"
After about twenty minutes of walking from Pelaam Town, the trio officially entered Rivet Town.
Hook led Leon and Stelle through twists and turns, weaving straight and curving paths through the lifeless town.
It was clear she really knew the area well.
Hook: "The supplies that dropped in this part of Rivet Town have mostly been cleared out. No need to linger."
Leon had been keeping track of the paths they took and the areas they covered.
Faint, invisible winds spread out from him, probing for movement in blind spots.
Sometimes he sensed Fragmentum monsters, but they didn't notice the group.
"Careful around the next corner," Leon warned.
Stelle's eyes sharpened, gripping her bat.
"Enemies?"
"Yeah. Comrade Miyazaki got spooked a few times as a kid rounding corners—it's his favorite thing."
"Who's Comrade Miyazaki? Your friend?"
"Not a friend. Strictly speaking, he's an arch-nemesis of chaos."
Stelle scratched her head, not quite getting Leon's meaning.
Players, though, were different.
If they weren't already used to Leon's meme-filled antics, even pulling out a white plastic chair, his words would've had them snorting like pigs.
[Got it—there's an ambusher around the corner.]
[No way it just jumps you the second you get there, right?]
[Shouldn't happen. Open-world monsters have attack wind-ups.]
But reality proved some worries were valid.
Ah Xian wasn't deep into single-player games, mostly just drawing refined Tifa artwork in her spare time.
She had no clue about Comrade Miyazaki's favorite tricks.
Eagerly striding toward the corner Leon warned about, she didn't expect a beam of light to flash right in her face.
[Ambush!]
"Holy—!!"
Ah Xian got a small scare, her twitch nearly enough to make the stream mods leap from their coffins with a ban hammer.
"Which dog-brained level designer puts this kind of trick at a corner?"
[Haha, Leon warned you—who's to blame?]
[Get spooked more—chat loves it.]
[Something's off up there. You love 8K-sis's scared face or the jiggle?]
[Getting a bit crude here… Boob-prise… down low, you know…]
Pressing V for auto-battle, Ah Xian glanced at the chat and rolled her eyes.
These gleeful trolls…
Stelle: "I got careless and didn't dodge. No honor, sneaking up on an innocent little comrade like me."
Hook: "Don't be scared! The great Dark Hook's got this!"
Leon: "…Alright, so what should I do?"
Stelle: "Take a breather. These lowlife Fragmentum monsters? I'll take ten with one hand."
By the second sentence Stelle spoke, Ah Xian had already turned off auto-battle.
Otherwise, her maxed-out Seele might shred the enemies too fast, cutting off the battle dialogue.
Skipping it was fine, but hearing it now had her laughing again.