At the same time, in New Eridu—
As the evening approached, Belle knew it was time for her to leave.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but glance at Zhong Yan, who was lounging on the couch playing with his phone.
For some reason, Zhong Yan felt off today. It was as if he'd turned into a saint with no desires or ambitions. No matter how she tried to catch his attention, he remained completely unmoved.
So, before she left, she planned to do something—at the very least, she needed to confirm their relationship. Otherwise, among the three of them fighting for him, she'd end up as nothing more than an outsider.
"Zhong Yan..." Belle, having made up her mind, gathered her courage to speak. But just as she uttered the first syllable, Zhong Yan suddenly sat up from the couch.
He turned to her and said calmly, "Belle, Wise just messaged me. He said the air conditioner at home has been fixed. He's asking if you want to head back now. If not, I can also have Pei prepare dinner for you."
Zhong Yan immediately relayed the message he had received from Wise.
Hearing this, Belle's expression stiffened. She had just gathered the courage to speak, and his sudden reply knocked the wind right out of her sails.
What now?
"Um... can you walk me to the station?" After a moment of mental scrambling, Belle blurted out something she instantly regretted.
I could've stayed for dinner! Why did I say I'd leave?!
Belle was inwardly frustrated, but since the words were already out, she could only go along with them.
"Of course, no problem. I'll walk you to the subway station." Zhong Yan agreed without hesitation. He had been lounging around all day anyway—it was time to get some fresh air.
However, he had no idea what was going on in Belle's mind—and he didn't want to know.
After yesterday's back-to-back battles with Anby and Ellen, he wasn't exactly burning with desire. He wasn't entirely out of commission, but... definitely not in the mood for anything romantic.
If yesterday hadn't happened, he probably would've asked Belle to stay. After all, she was a stunning girl.
Now, he simply walked beside a visibly disheartened Belle, heading to the subway station.
As for Pei, it was at home preparing dinner for Zhong Yan. That kind of thing had become a routine part of its daily tasks.
Meanwhile, on the way to the station, the two of them chatted back and forth.
Compared to Anby and Ellen, Zhong Yan and Belle clearly had way more common topics. Perhaps it was her lively personality, but they could talk about pretty much anything and hit it off.
Rather than a girlfriend, Zhong Yan felt Belle was more like a close older sister—but one who harbored special feelings for him.
By the way, Belle had deliberately slowed her pace so she could spend more time with him.
Zhong Yan noticed, of course. But he said nothing, simply walking quietly beside her as she shared amusing stories from recent days.
"It's just so fun being with you, Zhong Yan. How about this—you come stay at my place tonight? I can give you my room," Belle suddenly suggested, shifting the topic abruptly.
Zhong Yan paused for a second, then smiled and asked, "If you give me your room, where are you going to sleep?"
"Of course I'll sleep on the couch. I can fall asleep anywhere," Belle replied with a hint of pride in her tone.
Come to think of it... her in-game character was kind of like that too. Whether it was a bed or the couch in the archives, once she wanted to sleep, she'd be out like a light. Her sleep quality was something else.
"That might not be a great idea. Crashing at a girl's place could get me reported to the police. I don't exactly want to be having tea with Officer Zhu Yuan at the Public Security Bureau," Zhong Yan said as he scratched his head, clearly a bit uncomfortable with the idea.
Seeing his reaction, the previously serious-looking Belle burst into laughter.
Only then did Zhong Yan realize she was joking with him. Made sense—things weren't that close between them just yet.
If Anby or Ellen had suggested something like that, then it might've been serious.
"By the way, Zhong Yan, what are your plans next? Still going after the Exaltists, or continuing as a legendary Hollow Raider... You're not planning to just forget our agreement, right?" Belle asked.
The so-called "agreement" referred to the Private Agent arrangement. Now that Zhong Yan's true identity had been exposed, everything he'd tried to hide was laid bare. In a sense, it wasn't Zhong Yan who became their private agent—it was Uchiha.
Zhong Yan responded without hesitation: "Of course the agreement still stands. I'll keep interacting with them as Zhong Yan. As for Uchiha... too many people see that name as a threat. It's better if no one knows you have ties to me through that identity."
From the beginning, Zhong Yan had used a fake identity to protect Anby and the others. The attack by the Exaltists at the hotel had already proven this.
Right now, the only ones who knew Zhong Yan's true identity were the Victoria Housekeeping Co, the Cunning Hares, and the siblings from Phaethon. His relationships with those groups were solid—so exposure wasn't a big deal.
His top priority now was to keep that knowledge from spreading further, or he wouldn't even be able to live a normal life.
"Nice! That's a relief... Everyone knows how badass the legendary Hollow Raider Uchiha is." As she said the last part, Belle lowered her voice, worried that passersby might overhear.
At that moment, something seemed to come to Belle's mind. Her expression grew hesitant. After a long silence, she finally asked, "Zhong Yan... how much do you know about the Fall of the Old Capital?"
Her sudden question made Zhong Yan pause before he shook his head and said, "Just rumors, really. I was still a kid back then, didn't know what was going on. By the time I realized, everything I had was already swallowed by Hollow Zero."
That wasn't a lie. When he first crossed over, the game had just launched. Info was super scarce. The Fall of the Old Capital had only been briefly mentioned—no real explanation of what happened or why.
If he had to guess, the Sacrifice and Koleda's father might've been involved somehow.
But now, both of them were no longer in this world.