Zenless Zone Zero: Gacha Master

The day the cooperation was finalized passed in a lazy haze.

At night, Sol lay on the bed holding the soft Baal.

"Baal, be good. I know you're afraid of the dark, but if you hold me, you won't need to be scared."

No one could tell exactly what material Baal was made of. Though she was a mechanical construct, holding her felt just like hugging a soft pet—and she was extremely cute.

So small, just right for a pillow.

"I'm not afraid of the dark at all. Can you put me down and let me sleep alone?"

Baal put on the serious expression of the Raiden Shogun, speaking solemnly to Sol.

This man was just too much, always forcing strange settings onto her.

Being hugged by a grown man to sleep—what kind of propriety was that!

If Ei saw her like this, she would laugh herself to death.

Sol only hugged Baal tighter, speaking shamelessly.

"No. If you're not afraid of the dark, I am."

He didn't care about anything else. He unilaterally declared that Baal was now his personal pillow for life.

"As you wish, Master."

Baal could only sigh helplessly.

Sol had bound her with top-level authority. Not to mention hugging her to sleep—even if he ordered her to self-destruct, she would have to obey.

"Good night, Raiden Shogun."

Sol patted Baal's head and closed his eyes.

Baal's violet eyes stayed open. Her body in Sol's embrace felt extremely uncomfortable, utterly unsettled.

In the blink of an eye, night passed. A new sunny day arrived.

But Sol's luck wasn't so bright. He only drew an ordinary white card, earning one ton of bottled mineral water.

"Maybe I used up my luck yesterday drawing Baal?"

Sol rubbed Baal's violet hair, not at all upset about pulling a white card.

Pulling a few whites before a gold, or after a gold—that was all perfectly normal.

After breakfast with Nicole and the others, Sol squeezed onto the sofa with them to watch television.

The task of clearing the Cretan Companion Hollow had already concluded. He no longer needed to check in at a Hollow.

And recently, the Cunning Hares hadn't received any commissions either. It seemed their earlier advertising hadn't worked.

Then again, what was never in doubt was their ability—it was their terrifying reputation that chilled clients' hearts.

Only defense battles or gang fights—jobs that required fighting but didn't involve valuables—would anyone entrust to the Cunning Hares.

No, that wasn't even true.

Not even gang fights were entrusted to them.

Because the Cunning Hares had once accepted commissions from both sides of a gang battle—then staged a clash of Starlight Knights against the green-headphones, while the pink demon fanned the flames demanding more money.

With achievements like that, it was no wonder the Cunning Hares were notorious.

…

[Vision Corporation CEO Perlman has pledged to complete the upcoming Old Subway project in a more efficient and energy-saving manner.]

[According to reports, Vision Corporation has already evacuated all residents and plans to carry out demolition blasting across the entire area.]

A female reporter thrust her microphone at Perlman, asking enthusiastically:

"Mr. Perlman, what price did you offer to convince the residents near the Old Subway to evacuate so quickly? How much of the project budget will the relocation compensation take up? Will it exceed costs?"

Perlman, a short, stumpy man, coughed once.

"That's a business secret. I'm afraid I can't disclose it…"

Hilarious. There wasn't even a budget.

…

"So, this is the Vision Corporation that stole Belobog Heavy Industries' big contract? That old man doesn't look like the generous type who'd pay full relocation compensation."

Nicole watched the television with a thoughtful expression.

Anby nodded.

"True. That guy looks stingier than you, Nicole. Doesn't seem like someone who'd play by the book."

"I can't just ignore that comment."

Nicole shot Anby an annoyed look, then said, "Still, to make those residents voluntarily move out, he must have some incredible business technique."

"Mm. Quite incredible indeed."

Sol nodded in agreement.

The province-born way of saving money was simple—skip compensation, and just blow up the houses with the people still inside.

He glanced at the time. Only two days left until the demolition blast.

But this wasn't something he knew how to intervene in. Better to let professionals handle it.

Thinking so, Sol picked up his phone and sent a message to Zhu Yuan and Qingyi.

Come to think of it, since the Bangboo Boo-Nappers incident, aside from group goodnight messages, he hadn't had a proper conversation with either of them.

Beep beep!

While patrolling with Qingyi, Zhu Yuan glanced down at her phone.

[Sol Mercer: Vision Corporation hasn't evacuated the residents of Canvas Street. They're planning to blow them up along with the buildings to save on relocation fees.]

"What?!"

Zhu Yuan froze in shock, immediately searching for information on her phone.

Vision Corporation had announced plans to reach the TOPS Alliance within three years. They had beaten Belobog Heavy Industries with a more efficient, energy-saving budget to win the Old Subway project. In two days, they would carry out demolition blasting of the site…

She didn't know exactly how many people lived in Canvas Street, but even an old community had at least a few hundred residents.

If Sol's words were true, this would be an earth-shattering case.

Zhu Yuan hurriedly messaged back.

[Zhu Yuan: Sol, are you certain of this information?]

[Sol Mercer: Of course. This isn't something to joke about. I don't have hard evidence on hand, but I absolutely guarantee it's true.]

[Zhu Yuan: Understood. Please wait a moment, I'll discuss with Senior Qingyi.]

"Senior Qingyi, Sol just sent word—Vision Corporation hasn't evacuated the people. They plan to blow up the buildings with the residents still inside."

Zhu Yuan spoke gravely.

"Sol messaged me as well."

Qingyi tapped her temple with a finger.

She didn't need a phone. With her mind, she could access the net directly.

"What do you think, Senior Qingyi?"

Zhu Yuan asked.

"If it's true, then this is extremely serious—an especially major criminal case."

Qingyi rubbed her chin, thinking.

"And judging from Vision Corporation' bid amount, Sol's intel is very likely accurate."

"Belobog Heavy Industries promised to complete the project with 30 billion denny, while Vision Corporation bid only 20 billion. That's a whole 10 billion difference—there has to be something fishy there."

"After all, Vision Corporation and Belobog Heavy Industries are companies of the same level. There's no reason for such a huge gap in budget."