Seeing Soldier 11 struggling in battle,
Billy lay on a rock, wishing he could instantly repair his damaged components and jump in to fight the Notoriety Ethereal.
"Nicole, Boss, Soldier 11 can't hold on much longer. What should we do?"
Nicole didn't need Billy's reminder.
She could see it clearly herself.
Their client was fighting a powerful Notoriety Ethereal just to protect them.
Nicole staggered to her feet. "Soldier 11 is buying us time. If we retreat now, sure, we might have a chance to escape..."
Everyone looked at her, waiting.
Nicole continued, "But she's our client. If we leave her here, who's going to pay our commission? Anby, Nekomata, have you recovered yet?"
Hearing that,
Anby struggled to her feet, using her knife for support. "I can fight..."
Nekomata let out a weak meow,
then slowly climbed up and stretched, trembling. "A cat's recovery speed is seven times that of a human, so... I should be good now..."
But judging by how slowly they got up,
it was clear they hadn't recovered at all.
Forget fighting—running away properly would already be hard.
Right after,
Nicole bent down and picked up the suitcase from the ground. "Since you're up, let's go together."
"Yeah..."
"Meow, let's go..."
Even though they said they were ready,
their steps toward the battlefield were slow. It wasn't that they were stalling—it was that they genuinely had no strength left.
As they approached,
Nicole hugged the suitcase tightly. "Soldier 11, move aside! I'm about to fire!"
The moment she finished speaking,
she pressed a switch on the suitcase.
In an instant,
a blast of energy shot out, forming a massive energy field around the Notoriety Ethereal.
It generated a force like a magnet, dragging the Ethereal forcibly to the center of the field.
At the same time,
the huge recoil from the energy blast knocked Nicole to the ground.
"Ouch... damn Ethereal... Sam Li, please hurry back..."
Before Nicole could get up,
Billy suddenly shouted, "Boss Nicole! Boss Nicole, look!"
Nicole grumbled, "What now? If you can't move, just stay put and stop making noise."
Billy shouted, "Boss! A shooting star is flying toward us! It's golden! It's gonna crash! Help me move out of the way!"
Hearing Billy's yelling,
Nicole felt like marching over just to flick his forehead.
He couldn't even move—could he not stay quiet?
Besides,
where would a shooting star come from in broad daylight, much less a golden one?
Golden shooting stars? Maybe Billy had watched too many Star Crest Knight movies and, like Anby, couldn't tell fantasy from reality anymore.
But—
The next second,
Nekomata cried out, "Meow! It's true! A cat's vision is seven times better than a human's! I see it clearly! Someone's standing on the shooting star! Let me look... Meow, it's Sam Li! He's back, Nicole, we're saved!"
Anby also raised her head.
When she looked up at the sky, she froze on the spot.
Listening to everyone talking nonstop,
Nicole snapped impatiently, "You guys didn't just lose your strength—did you lose your eyesight too? Let me see what's going on!"
She looked up.
A point of golden light appeared, growing bigger and closer with each passing second.
Finally, Nicole saw clearly—
it wasn't a shooting star at all.
It was a massive golden pillar flying through the sky, heading straight for them.
And what shocked her even more—
someone was standing on it.
Though she couldn't see the figure's face clearly, the silhouette looked just like Sam Li.
Nicole pinched her own arm.
It hurt.
She wasn't dreaming.
Sam Li was actually flying through the sky!
Nicole quickly shouted, "Soldier 11, move! Get out of the way! Sam Li is flying over—no, a giant stone pillar is flying over! Careful, you'll get crushed!"
Hearing her shout,
Soldier 11 quickly looked back.
The moment she saw the giant stone pillar, only one thought filled her mind—
Move or be flattened.
But it was already too late.
The pillar was almost upon them.
There was no time to dodge.
Before Soldier 11 could react,
the giant stone pillar slammed down—
—but not on her.
It smashed directly into the Notoriety Ethereal nearby.
Boom!
As the massive pillar hit, a violent explosion erupted, centered on the Ethereal, and a golden shockwave swept across the entire battlefield.
Soldier 11, Anby, Nekomata, and Nicole—all engulfed in the golden light.
Even Billy, who was farther away, wasn't spared.
"Boss Nicole, I'm dying! Save me... It's so unfair... I haven't even been to Big Sister Monica's meet-and-greet yet..."
Billy looked like he was on his last breath.
But soon, he noticed something strange.
What's going on?
His body felt warm, and even his damaged neural units started recovering.
And it wasn't just Billy—
Nicole, Anby, Nekomata, and even Soldier 11 felt the same way.
Nekomata recognized the feeling instantly.
"Just like last time... that comforting golden light. Sam Li's here to save us again!"
As the explosion died down,
the golden light quickly faded.
Nicole, Anby, Nekomata, and Soldier 11 all turned to look at the Notoriety Ethereal.
They saw it—
A towering, square stone pillar, covered in golden patterns, had pinned the terrifying Ethereal firmly to the ground, like a giant nail.
No matter how much the Ethereal roared and struggled,
the pillar didn't budge an inch.
Everyone on the field widened their eyes.
They couldn't believe it—
they had defeated the Ethereal like this.
Billy cheered loudly, "Yo! I don't know where Sam Li got that pillar, but it's awesome! Totally epic—just like a Star Crest Knight making an entrance!"
Nicole grinned from ear to ear. "It was Sam Li who defeated the Ethereal. He really is the ace of Hare's House. Well, Soldier 11, do you believe in our strength now? Five hundred thousand Dennies for this commission was a bargain!"
Even Anby, usually the calmest,
showed an expression of pure shock.
Off to the side,
Nekomata beamed. "Meow! So this is how you make an entrance. Sam Li, you came just in time!"
She had always known Sam Li was strong.
Back in the Dead End Hollow, he had pierced a train with a single spear and saved her and Belle.
But even now, seeing it again,
she couldn't hold back her amazement.
Compared to last time's sudden shot from the sky,
this descending rock pillar was even more astonishing.
...