"You... Fine."
With matters having come to this, Ellen had little left to say. Sighing, she ruffled Ruby's hair and murmured, "We've been through Hollow Zero. Let's head back."
"Mhm. We achieved our main objective."
Phaga gave a faint, weak smile. Seeing this, Ellen immediately wrapped her arm around his waist, letting him lean against her shoulder. She furrowed her brow and asked softly, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, just a bit dizzy. Ruby, will you be okay driving later?"
As he spoke, Phaga struggled to break free from Ellen's embrace. Unexpectedly, Ellen suddenly dug her nails into his waist.
As if pierced by a shark's fangs, Phaga's eyes widened instantly. He tried to turn his head to argue with Ellen, but the moment he glanced back, he met Ellen's dangerous glare. Instinctively, he chose to obey his inner voice.
Yeah, obey his inner voice... Coward!
"Driving's no problem for me—I can handle the school bus, so your pickup's a piece of cake!"
Ruby stood with her hands on her hips, her little face beaming with pride. She spun around briskly and strode forward in long strides.
The task was done. Whether she passed the aptitude test or not, Ruby no longer cared. She'd come here just to get a feel for the Junior Investigator exam anyway.
Instead of finding that sense of accomplishment, she got a full dose of the thrill of running for her life. If only Ruby hadn't been too flustered to pull out her phone and snap a photo—otherwise, she could've bragged about this for years.
"Come on, hop in! Today, let the rope-crafting bus driver who led the whole class out of the [Doppelgänger Hollow] show you how to drive out of Scott Outpost!"
Ruby yanked open the door, gesturing for Ellen and Phaga to climb aboard.
The two exchanged smiles, pulled open the rear door, and hopped in.
Ignition. Gear shift.
The pickup's engine roared to life, spewing a plume of black smoke as it surged forward!
...
Soon, Ruby glanced up at the rearview mirror and noticed movement from the backseat. Ellen was removing her maid's hairband and neck ornament, while Phaga took off his monocle, pinched it between his fingers, and flicked it onto the passenger seat.
"Where are we headed next?"
Ruby stared at the road ahead, suddenly realizing she had no sense of direction and no idea what to do next. So she asked Ellen and Phaga in the backseat, her gaze involuntarily drifting toward the rearview mirror.
Instantly, Ruby gasped in shock. Seeing what the two behind her were doing, her eyes widened in disbelief as she stammered, "What... what are you two doing in the car? And right in front of Ruby!"
"Of course we're going to find a restaurant at Lumina Square! ...And what do you mean 'doing what'? We're just treating Phaga's injuries normally. Haven't you seen this before?"
Ellen leaned her back against the car door, sitting sideways on the backseat with one shoe kicked off, half her calf resting on the chair.
Not only that, but Phaga was also in a reclined position, his right arm wrapped around the seat cushion, his left hand propped against the window, supporting Ellen's head while partially covering her face. He let Ellen's delicate fingers wrap around his neck, her breath tickling his hair.
Phaga buried his face in Ellen's neck, his four sharp fangs gently sinking in. Ruby clearly saw Ellen's five adorable toes curl up beneath her stockings, a blush instantly spreading across her face.
Yet that was all. Ellen made no further advances.
But in Ruby's eyes, Ellen was biting her lower lip fiercely, her gaze hazy, utterly lost in the exquisite pleasure the vampire had crafted just for her.
Without realizing it, the little shark's tail curled instinctively.
Weak from the sudden rush, she clung to the vampire's waist, as if afraid he might pull away.
Unnoticed, the air had grown thick with a sensual fragrance.
Though Ellen's original intention was merely to steady herself against the road's jolts, Phaga had accidentally toppled over.
"Seen it? Back then, I only saw a craving for Dennies in that pink-haired girl—not a hint of anything suggestive!"
"Now look at you, Ellen. Money really is the purest relationship after all. Ah! My eyes are defiled!"
Ruby hastily averted her gaze, focusing on the road ahead—but her mind was already flooded with impure thoughts, conjuring bizarre fantasies she couldn't quite suppress.
Woo-woo-woo!
A vampire was being stalked by a shark, demanding all sorts of things!
"Ruby, what on earth is your mind wandering off to all day?"
Ellen couldn't help but roll her eyes.
The light was reversible, so Ruby could see the blush on Ellen's cheeks. Naturally, Ellen could also see Ruby's flushed face through the rearview mirror, her tense expression clearly not normal.
Quickly, Ellen flicked her own tail to activate the autopilot. Otherwise, with her current state, keeping her hands on the wheel would've been a guaranteed crash.
"It's not me overthinking! There's definitely something off about your relationship!"
Ruby's face flushed crimson as she shouted excitedly.
"No, our relationship is pure. We're inseparable family."
Ellen wrapped her arms around Phaga's neck as she declared.
Meanwhile, Ruby, seated in the driver's seat, was already deep in a whirlwind of thoughts. All sorts of scenarios played out in her mind.
Family?
When?
Did these two get married?
But Ellen only started seeing Phaga differently in the last few weeks, right?
Could it be a whirlwind marriage?
But the only time they were out of my sight was those three days of exams!
One day tying red strings around wrists, two days of the Magpie Bridge Festival, three days chanting "mountains crumble, rivers run dry"...
No way...
No way...
No way...
Ruby's eyes clouded over. She clearly believed in unconventional approaches—otherwise, why would she have invested all her God-given talent into tracking down oddities?
Now, her mental processor couldn't handle the problem before her. Steam curled from her head, just one step away from overheating.
"Oh, right. Phaga's staying with me now. Ruby, I'm telling you—Phaga's an amazing cook. Why don't you come over early one day and join us for breakfast?"
Thud!
Ellen's next words hit like a sledgehammer.
Ruby froze instantly, her eyes rolling back as she slumped forward onto the steering wheel, her cheek pressed against the center. The horn blared deafeningly across the highway.
"Hey, Ruby! We're on the highway! Stop leaning on the horn!"
"Hey! Hey!"
But Ruby wasn't responding at all.
Heh… My best friend found a great guy to live with… and now she's bragging to me about the breakfast her boyfriend—no, her partner—made for her...
"Hey, Ruby, wake up! Phaga, sit up for a sec! If Ruby startles other drivers, we're in trouble!"
"Ruby! Get your big face off the horn already!"
Heh… She found herself a husband and now she's ditching me...
Waaah, Ruby's not needed anymore...
Aah!!! Ow! Stop pulling Ruby's ear!
Damn shark! Ruby's going to eat every last bit of your dennies later! From now on, you and your vampire can go live off crumbs and water!
...
Four hours later, Ruby lay sprawled lifelessly on a long bench at the restaurant, clutching her belly that looked like she was ten months pregnant. Her tears soaked through her shirt.
Damn it, she still didn't eat them into poverty!
...
Meanwhile, inside the Doppelgänger Hollow—
Soukaku looked around nervously. A gust of wind blew through a hole in the school corridor, carrying with it a haunting melody that sounded as though it drifted straight out of hell. She shuddered, hunching her shoulders as she stammered,
"Section Chief, are we really out here looking for Black Phaga in the middle of the night? And this school… it's way too creepy!"
Hoshimi Miyabi didn't so much as pause at Soukaku's words. She didn't even bother to respond, her steps steady and unyielding.
Beside them, Harumasa chuckled, hands behind his head as he strode casually forward. But his sharp eyes never stopped scanning their surroundings, alert for any sign of the ethereal matter lurking nearby.
Only the ever-patient Tsukishiro Yanagi took the time to explain. "Because Black Phaga mimics Phaga. And Phaga's a vampire—he hates daylight and prefers the night. So, we're more likely to encounter it now."
"But there's something I don't quite get..."
Yanagi turned his gaze toward Hoshimi Miyabi's back. "Miyabi, why didn't you tell Phaga that Black Phaga already killed several soldiers? That kind of news could've influenced his decision."
Hoshimi Miyabi suddenly stopped walking. After a brief pause, she resumed her pace, her tone calm but cold.
"Because that's still a military matter."
"It's not Phaga's fault the plasma entity chose to imitate him. If we start forcing people to atone just because they've been copied, everything will spiral into chaos."
"And… wait!"
Mid-sentence, Hoshimi Miyabi abruptly raised her hand, signaling everyone to halt. Her body lowered into a crouch as her hand pressed against the hilt of her blade.
"There!"
A sharp gleam flashed through her eyes. Her feet shifted slightly, and an icy-blue streak flared across the darkness—then vanished.
A heartbeat later, she leapt through the air, her sword slicing through the fourth-floor security window as she cut down a dark Ethereal in one swift strike.
"Sshh~ Sshh~"
The dark Ethereal recoiled in fear, its crimson eyes widening as it stared at the terrifying ice fox that had just leapt from the ground to the fourth floor.
"So you're Black Phaga. You don't look all that strong."
Hoshimi Miyabi spoke coldly as she advanced, the ice-blue blade reflecting Black Phaga's trembling face.
"Sshh~ Sshh!"
Black Phaga backed away until it hit the classroom wall.
Seeing this, Hoshimi Miyabi raised her tachi slowly, her tone like frost.
"Stop hiding. You can't escape."
With that, she stepped forward—her speed like lightning—and slashed downward!
But Black Phaga reacted just as swiftly. With a single strike, it shattered the floor beneath it and dropped to the third floor, the blade grazing the top of its head as it fell.
Clang!
The icy blade carved a hole through the wall, then continued its path, piercing through one classroom after another until it tore clean through the building, vanishing into the black of night.
"Hmph."
Her strike missed. Hoshimi Miyabi snorted, then leapt down to the third floor. As she turned, she caught sight of Black Phaga spreading its wings in flight.
Rather than pursue immediately, she lifted her blade high.
The ice-blue glow along its edge grew brighter and sharper.
Swish!
Another slash tore through the air. The entire building groaned as hallways froze solid in an instant. Iron railings shuddered under the biting cold.
Realizing the danger, Black Phaga spun around, trying desperately to block.
But it was no match. The moment its body met the blade's edge, both its arms were severed cleanly—smooth as polished glass.
"Graaah!!"
Black Phaga screamed in pain and fury, yet didn't dare linger. It unfurled its wings and bolted like a wild beast fleeing death.
"With power like that, how did it kill those soldiers?"
Hoshimi Miyabi frowned, perplexed.
Even an ordinary soldier—though perhaps unable to defeat Black Phaga—shouldn't have been killed so easily.
Soon, she shook her head, her form flickering before disappearing from sight.
Talking was pointless. She had to catch it now.
This wasn't some detective game—Black Phaga's head was far more valuable than any explanation.
...
It didn't take long for Hoshimi Miyabi to catch up.
The creature had taken refuge in a classroom. When she found it, it had just knocked over an Ethereal and was crouched over it, gnawing viciously.
The Ethereal struggled weakly, but within seconds, it let out a faint whimper and dissolved into flickering purple motes.
Then, Black Phaga straightened, its severed arms fully restored—as if they had never been cut off at all.
Seeing this, Hoshimi Miyabi's expression hardened.
"I see… So that's how they died," she murmured coldly.