Zenless Zone Zero: I'am a Dullahan!

"See? I told you I was right!"

Belle turned to Wise, then continued questioning Zane.

"Zane, you're super fast, right? And strong too? I saw you kick the Dead End Butcher into submission with one blow!"

"And your combat skills—they're getting sharper and sharper, aren't they? I know about your connection with Qingyi!"

"And your tactical sense is off the charts. Everything I said checks out, doesn't it?"

Zane looked even more confused. He nodded and asked,

"Uh… what's going on? Is something wrong?"

Belle didn't answer his question. Instead, she crossed her arms, grinned proudly, and looked at Wise.

"See! I told you the club settings were spot-on!"

Wise shook his head in exasperation.

"Belle, that Fire Picker in the club sim is just there to boost hype and draw players in. They made it intentionally hard."

"Sure, you know the real deal because you've seen Zane in action. But most players haven't. The difficulty spike says it all."

"Come on, think about it—how could someone like Phaethon, a legendary Proxy, keep losing in the club's sim battles?"

"No one's ever cleared it. That alone should tell you something."

Belle disagreed and shook her head.

"What are you talking about? They're just faithfully replicating Zane's power! The only reason I can't beat him is because I'm not strong enough…"

"Look at the forums—people are saying, 'As expected of the Fire Picker!' No one's complaining about the difficulty!"

Wise folded his arms, unsure how to respond.

"Still, you don't need to keep grinding it day and night. You've been challenging it over and over… how many times has it been now?"

"I just want to be the first to beat Zane! Imagine how cool that sounds…"

"And not just beat him—I want to do a solo clear! No damage!"

Belle was brimming with determination, showing no signs of frustration despite her string of losses.

Wise sighed, pressing a hand to his forehead.

Sister… it's just a simulation. Not the real Zane…

She was completely hooked on the Fire Picker. At this point, it hurt more than when Zane "stole" her away.

That Fire Picker—just data on a screen!

Zane listened in and finally understood the situation.

"Uh, Belle, I…"

"Zane!"

Belle suddenly lit up with an idea, turned to Zane, and gave an awkward smile.

"Hey, could you teach me how to beat the Fire Picker? I mean, who knows you better than you?"

With that pleading look—and even throwing in some deliberate cuteness—Zane started to feel just as speechless as Wise.

"That thing's just a virtual sim, you know…"

"Oh come on, even if there are some differences, the core should be the same, right? You could definitely give me some insight!"

Before Zane could protest, Belle had already dragged him to the couch. In the corner, Panta, who had been playing "Pat-a-cake" with Eous, glanced over before resuming play.

Wise watched and just spread his hands.

His only hope now was that Zane's "charm" could snap Belle out of her obsession with all this virtual nonsense.

"Zane, let me show you my notes. They're based on everything I've learned from fighting him again and again..."

Belle pulled out a small notebook, plopped down beside Zane, and excitedly launched into discussion.

...

Time flew by—half an hour passed in a blink.

"No no, you can't attack like that. Phase two's attack range is huge. We need to time our damage carefully!"

"And you can't get greedy here—one combo and you're out…"

Zane looked at Belle, deep in tactical thought, and offered,

"I think we should take the fight head-on. Melee range is probably easier than trying to keep your distance…"

"Nope!"

Belle slapped the table and shook her head.

"I'm telling you, that's not gonna work!"

Zane raised his hands in a shrug.

Given his low durability, going in close to leverage power attacks seemed like the better option.

"I said no!"

"You can't fight up close!"

Seeing Zane about to argue, Belle snapped,

"Who understands the Fire Picker better, you or me?"

"Trust me, you can't go melee!"

Zane's forehead twitched. A few dark lines practically popped up.

What in the backwards logic is this…

He glanced at Wise, who met his gaze with a helpless shrug, as if saying, You deal with this.

Zane gave a small nod, grinned, then stood and moved beside Belle, who was still deep in tactical analysis.

"Belle, I don't know how the club's Fire Picker fights…"

"But I do know how the real one fights."

"Huh?"

Belle looked up in confusion. Her eyes landed on the crackling elemental energy forming in Zane's hand—and her expression changed.

"Wait—hold on—!"

She froze, but before she could say another word, a surge of electric energy surged from Zane's palm.

...

"Wise, what's the status on the Net contact?"

Zane leaned back on the couch, eyes fixed on Wise at the HDD system console.

This was the real reason he'd come.

"The location is set. The time's up to you."

Wise gave a concise report. After all the back and forth, they'd finally locked things in.

"Great. I've got plenty of time. Go ahead and confirm it on your end. Oh—and I've got something else to discuss with you later."

Zane intended to bring up the Lamia Hollow incident. Among his current allies, the Belle-Wise siblings were the most reliable.

Wise's eyes flickered with curiosity but didn't press for details, choosing to wrap up his task first.

On the couch, Belle—now zapped into submission—was lying face-down, completely lifeless, as if she'd just suffered something soul-crushing.

"Hang in there, Belle."

Zane turned around, leaned over the couch, and gave her a playful smile.

Belle looked like a short-circuited android. She stayed still and muttered faintly,

"I don't want it…"

"Zane, I hate you."

"I hate you, hate you, hate you…"

Suddenly, a piercing eagle cry echoed through the room. A white beam of light illuminated Belle's face as electric arcs danced before her eyes.

Her pupils shrank.

"Snap out of it, Belle."

Zane gave a mischievous grin.

"Ha! Nothing can stop me—I'm back at full health!"

"Hey? Zane, what are you doing? The room's already lit, no need for that. Put it away, I'll turn on the light…"

With a bright smile, Belle walked toward the switch.

Clearly, she had been swayed by Zane's "charm."

Totally not giving in from the heart.

"All right. Time's confirmed."

"Tomorrow morning."

Wise swiveled his chair toward Zane—who was now deactivating his elemental energy—and then gave Belle a glance, smiling softly.