"Uh, Proxy?"
"..."
"Does your friend live in a fortress or something??"
"..."
The trip to Illya's apartment complex hadn't taken that much longer, merely a couple of minutes if you exclude the occasional intrusion of a rogue ethereal, but when they caught a glimpse of the building, something didn't feel quite right.
"... It's... completely intact."
Unlike the ruins they had seen around the Hollow, Illya's apartment was practically spotless- Not a single hint of damage marring its construction.
Unfortunately, however-
The buildings that usually surrounded it were not subject to the same soundness.
Around Illya's apartment lay a ring of craters, the bona fide moat serving as a sort of physical barrier preventing any Ethereals from getting too close.
Belle and the Cunning Hares exchanged looks as they surveyed the unlikely bastion.
Nicole broke out into a grin.
"Proxy, if your friend's in there, I bet he's just fine~"
Lifting Eous into her arms, Nicole gestured for Anby and Billy to follow.
Crossing the ring with quick acrobatic movements, the Cunning Hares bridged the gap effortlessly and stood before the entrance of the apartment building.
Nicole then dropped Eous and motioned for the door, strutting into the building's lobby with Anby and Billy following closely behind.
And,
For once-
It seemed like they weren't alone.
"Huh? Who are you guys?"
A bright, innocent voice echoed in the air as the face of a young child peeked behind a nearby corner, their expression carrying none of the tension one would associate with the current situation.
"Souta! Where are you going?!"
Another voice carried through the air, one holding a far more mature tone.
The child, Souta, gave the Cunning Hares a sheepish look before turning to face his mother.
"Mom, look! More visitors!"
"Mm~? Really?"
A middle-aged woman rounded the corner, her expression carrying a hint of curiosity.
Nicole stepped forward and greeted the woman, flashing her a businesslike smile as she took out a beat-up badge.
"Hi, I'm Nicole, an investigator from the HIA, and these are my companions."
She gestured towards Anby and Billy, tactically stashing away the expired Hollow investigator license she had just used to feign legitmacy before the woman could question her.
The woman broke out into a smile.
"Really?! Does that mean we'll be getting out of here soon?"
Nicole paused for a second, glancing at Belle.
Understanding what she was asking, the Proxy nodded.
"I'll have Wise send the Carrot data to the HIA anonymously."
Turning her attention back to the mother and son, Nicole flashed them a pleasant smile.
"The HIA will be here within a few more hours. Right now, my associates are still in the process of gathering the right Carrot data."
Hugging her child close, the woman let out a relieved sigh.
"You hear that, Souta? We'll be out of here soon~"
Souta, however, did not seem as pleased.
"Do we have to leave, Mom? It's so much fun here! This place has a fooseball table, an arcade, and a whole bunch of-"
The child was interrupted rather abruptly by his mother's chiding voice.
"Souta, we shouldn't take advantage of the owner's kindness, especially since they saved us."
"But big brother said he was fine with it!"
"Hah~ You're as shameless as your father..."
"Dad said it was a good thing, though."
The mother let out a slightly somber sigh as she chopped her son on the head.
"I apologize, since my husband isn't... with us, my son's been a little restless."
Her gaze turned slightly complex as she looked up.
Nicole and the others flashed the family a sympathetic look.
"... I see. I'm sorry for your loss."
Blinking, the woman shot them a confused look.
"Loss...? No, sorry, I think I might've given you the wrong idea."
Her face contorted slightly with resignation as she pointed up.
"My husband left us behind to play chess with a couple of his friends on the second floor."
The child let out a giggle.
"Mhm~! Dad's not dead, he's just a deadbeat-"
SLAP
"OW!"
"Souta... How many times have I told you to stop calling your dad those things?"
Craddling the back of his head, Souta flashed his mother a slightly resentful look.
Watching this all unfold, the Cunning Hares and Belle had no idea what to think.
Nicole coughed into her fist.
"Ahem- Sorry to interrupt your... lesson, but I heard you mention other survivors? How many are currently in the building?"
The woman thought for a moment.
"I don't know the exact number, but from what I've heard, there's at least one family in every room."
The woman quickly explained the situation to the Cunning Hares.
"Wait... so you're saying that the owner of this building saved everyone here?"
The woman nodded.
"Yes. I know it might be hard to believe, but I, alongside the other survivors, can personally attest to this."
Belle slapped Nicole's leg and gave her a hard glare.
Remembering her commission, the Leader of the Cunning Hares cleared her throat.
"If that's the case, would you happen to have seen a young man with brown hair among the survivors?"
The woman scratched the back of her head.
"... I've seen a few people that match that description, why?"
Being completely fluent in bullshit, Nicole spun a story without even blinking.
"He's the son of one of the higher-ups in the HIA, and we were sent into the hollow to locate and ensure his safety."
Billy and Anby, used to adapting on the fly, positioned themselves behind Nicole authoritatively.
The woman nodded slowly.
"While I might not be able to help you... The owner might know who you are talking about."
Nicole took another step forward, her eyes gleaming.
"Then, would you be able to bring us to them? We're in a bit of a hurry, you see."
Not thinking much of it, the woman agreed.
"Souta, how about you go spend some time with Daddy while Mommy brings these nice investigators to the owner? What do you say~?"
Souta nodded vigorously and dashed off, happy to be free of the boring interaction.
With the responsibility of overseeing her child now handed off to her bum of a husband, the woman turned her attention back to the Cunning Hares and gestured for them to follow.
"The owner is currently on the roof and the elevators are down, so we have a bit of a climb ahead of us."
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True to the woman's word, the ascent to the building's roof had taken a rather long time since they had to climb up 18 flights of stairs.
In the end, only the Cunning Hares were left relatively unaffected- As the woman who had guided them was left huffing and puffing, she wasn't exactly at the peak of human performance, after all.
Of course, Belle, being in Eous's body, was completely fine.
"He's... Right up there..."
Inhaling and exhaling deeply, the woman pointed at a metal door to their left.
"*Gasp* I-If you... Need me, I'll just b-be taking a break over... Here."
Casting a sympathetic look in the woman's direction, Nicole gave her an appreciative nod, though the woman waved off her gratitude as she leaned weakly against the railing, shooing the Cunning Hares off.
Not bothering to linger any longer, Nicole chuckled and gestured for Anby and Billy to follow as she scooped up Eous.
Walking over to the metal door, Nicole pulled on the door handle and realized that it was locked.
Letting out a small sigh, Nicole rapped her knuckles firmly on the steel, knocking with mock professionalism.
Unfortunately, she was met with no reply.
She repeated her action once more, knocking on the door to no avail.
Quickly concluding that knocking was pointless, Nicole quickly dropped all the polite pretenses she had conveniently adopted and opted for her usual approach.
And thus, the metal door unceremoniously flew off its hinges as the Leader of the Cunning Hares broke it down.
Walking through the now cleared up doorway, Nicole cleared her throat.
"Hi, we're investigators from the HIA and-"
Unfortunately, as Nicole's face was brushed by the air blanketing the apartment's roof, an overwhelming smell filled her nostrils, causing her to recoil in disgust.
Following closely behind, Anby showed a similar reaction.
Only Billy and Belle, who both currently lacked a sense of smell, remained unfazed.
"Nicole? Anby? What is it?"
Oblivious to his boss's plight, he gave his team members a confused look.
"Ugh, it reeks of alcohol."
Covering her nose with her hand, Nicole's eyes eventually drifted to an individual sitting quietly on a wooden platform overlooking the western edge of the apartment building, surrounded by a sea of Beer cans and sake bottles.
They wore rather simple clothes, just a plain white T-shirt and black sweat pants, and were leaning back, presumably staring at the sky.
A pair of retro, pitch-black wired headphones stood in contrast with their honey brown hair, the audio ringing in their ears seemingly preventing them from noticing the large commotion happening behind them.
Wise and Belle's eyes trembled as they stared at the familiar figure on the screen, split between confusion and relief at his apparent safety.
The Cunning Hares and Belle, who was synced with Eous, stood frozen- Stuck, as they tried to comprehend the sight in front of them.
And-
While they were still gathering their thoughts, the brown haired man turned his head absentmindedly as he drained the last dregs of fluid filling the bottle in his hand.
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(A/N: Typed this chapter on my phone, which was lwk a pain in the ass, so I hope you guys enjoyed it.
I'll keep the note short so I can avoid having my thumbs cramp again, but leave a comment and a review if you're enjoying the fic, and add it to your collection if you wanna read more.
See you guys in the next chapter!)