Recaps

Nicole told the Cunning Hares about her family, including her five uncles and her adoption, then went to retrieve a photo revealing her former identity. When Nekomata learned that Nicole’s father was a Void Hunter, Nicole returned with an old newspaper, leaving the others stunned by what it showed.

• Nicole explained that she chose Hollow Raiding for its low entry barrier and fast money, and she described her father and five uncles.
• Nicole said she had been adopted from an orphanage at about seven or eight and promised to fetch a picture of her other identity.
• Nicole went to her room while Billy told Nekomata that Nicole’s father was a Void Hunter.
• Nicole found the old Insurance Ball, which secretly transformed and resumed spying after she left the room.
• Nicole brought out an old newspaper and showed it to the others, who reacted with disbelief.

Nicole and the Cunning Hares discussed an old newspaper photo and Nicole’s secretive father before Billy invited everyone to dinner. Billy later admitted in private that he had been paid by Huojin to question Nicole, while a shipment of gifts from Billy arrived for the Sons of Calydon in Blazewood.

• Nekomata read a faded newspaper article featuring a younger Nicole, and Nicole said the photo had been taken at a press conference she attended with her father.
• Nicole explained that her father was the CEO of TOPS and a Void Hunter whose identity and photographs remained hidden from the public.
• Billy offered to take the group to a Starlight Knight-themed restaurant, and Anby noticed his behavior seemed unusual.
• Billy privately told Huojin that he had failed to get information from Nicole, accepted payment, and promised to keep their transaction secret from her.
• In Blazewood, Lucy watched Burnice, Piper, Lighter, and Caesar examine the supplies and money delivered in a shipping container; she panicked when Caesar nearly bent a black bearer debit card.

Huojin considered how to learn Nicole’s true feelings about their strained relationship and decided to seek help from Phaethon. Meanwhile, Heili stopped a thief in the street and attracted the attention of an older woman who began following him, leaving her younger sister waiting alone.

• Huojin reviewed possible undercover agents and ruled out Anby and Nekomata as poor choices.
• Huojin chose Phaethon as a potential helper and planned to visit them.
• Heili bought supplies and walked through the busy street in disguise.
• Heili knocked a fleeing thief down with a flicked Denny coin, allowing Public Security officers to arrest him.
• An older woman watched Heili’s actions, became fascinated by his technology, and followed him.
• The older woman’s younger sister waited with shopping and melting ice cream, annoyed that she had disappeared.

Heili tried to escape Grace, who was pursuing him to study his machinery, but the chase drew in Public Security officers Seth and Officer Mewmew. Heili finally stopped when Officer Qingyi arrived, though Grace’s intense attention seemed to turn toward Qingyi.

• Heili ordered milk tea from Lixing Milk Tea Shop and left before it was ready when an urgent matter arose.
• Grace chased Heili through Lumina Square, while Heili sped up after she called him a young lady.
• Seth arrived to help Officer Mewmew stop the chase, but Heili leaped over Seth and continued running with Grace close behind.
• Seth radioed Public Security for assistance as he and Grace pursued Heili.
• Heili explained internally that he had learned Grace only wanted to study him, but he was late and had failed to shake her off.
• Qingyi blocked Heili’s path, and Heili hid behind her and asked her to stop Grace, whose gaze then seemed to fix on Qingyi.

Koleda searched for Grace and learned she had been detained at Public Security after losing control during an incident involving Heili. Heili apologized to Qingyi, met Zhu Yuan, then left as his outing ended and secretly read the magical-girl comics he had bought on the ride back to his manor.

• Koleda searched local shops for Grace, then found out by phone that Grace was at the Lumina Square Public Security branch.
• Seth apologized to Heili for mistaking him for a thief, while Qingyi explained how Grace had dragged her into the incident and pursued Heili.
• Zhu Yuan returned to the office, met Heili, and heard Qingyi summarize what had happened.
• Heili left abruptly when Qingyi asked about the books in his shopping bag, then opened them in his car and revealed they were pink-covered comics titled "The Magical Girl's Hollow Legend."

Wise and Belle struggled with the video store’s electricity bill and dwindling food, but their breakfast was interrupted when Huojin arrived with Butler. Huojin entered the store and confronted the siblings with an intimidating presence.

• Belle argued with Fairy over its electricity consumption, but Fairy refused to reduce it further and threatened to wake her early.
• Wise and Belle worried about their finances, considered updating the store’s videotapes, and decided to eat their last two cups of instant noodles.
• Fairy detected two unidentified visitors outside the store, and Belle went to answer the door.
• Belle recognized Huojin as Nicole’s adoptive father and let him and Butler into the store.
• Wise joined Belle to meet Huojin, who sat down and scrutinized the siblings with an overpowering aura.

Huojin offered Wise and Belle a large gold deposit to secretly obtain information from a target, promising that the commission carried no danger. The siblings learned that the target was Huojin’s daughter, Nicole, and that he wanted their help with family business.

• Fairy warned Wise that his heart rate was rising as Huojin introduced himself and his personal Butler to Wise and Belle.
• Huojin presented Wise and Belle with gold bars as a deposit and gave them a black metal business card containing his contact information and access to his security company.
• Butler explained that the commission was to approach a target, discreetly draw out information, and keep the commission secret for life.
• Wise and Belle questioned whether Huojin had hired the wrong people, but he showed them a photograph of the target.
• Huojin revealed that the target was his daughter, Nicole, and told Wise and Belle that she was fine and he needed their help with family business.

Huojin asked Wise and Belle to help him understand why Nicole kept her distance from her family, but they suspected he was misreading her desire for independence and poor communication. Belle proposed coaching him through a phone call, and she and Wise asked Fairy to prepare a script.

• Butler explained that Huojin believed Nicole wanted to cut ties with him and asked Wise and Belle to investigate her feelings.
• Huojin became agitated while describing how Nicole avoided his help, then took his medication and asked them to keep getting close to her.
• Wise and Belle suggested Nicole might simply value being self-reliant, and Huojin admitted he might be overthinking the situation.
• Belle learned Huojin's conversations with Nicole focused on topics such as biology, the estate, and her creditors, and proposed helping him call her.
• Belle and Wise went into the workroom, discussed Huojin's poor communication, and asked Fairy to prepare a phone-call script.

Huojin followed Belle and Wise’s advice to call Nicole and discovered that she understood his worries about their relationship. After rewarding them by covering their electricity bills for life and their commission, he vanished just before Nicole arrived at the video store.

• Belle and Wise coached Huojin through a call to Nicole, who reassured him that she was not distancing herself and told him to let her live as she chose.
• Nicole ended the call after exchanging affectionate words with Huojin, then invited Nekomata to eat at General Chop.
• Huojin thanked Wise and Belle by offering to pay their electricity bills for life and cover their prepared commission fee.
• Huojin warned Wise and Belle to keep his visit and the call secret, then vanished with Butler as Nicole entered the video store.
• Wise and Belle concealed their surprise and greeted Nicole, who noticed they seemed unusually friendly.

Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three sneaked into Huojin’s laboratory and discovered his experiments on an embryo and a project labeled “Offspring Cultivation.” As the Partner Project reached completion, a nutrient chamber opened to reveal a cloned Silver Army weapon, leaving the three Bangboo watching its release.

• Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three grew bored during their punishment and decided to investigate Huojin’s laboratory.
• The three Bangboo found Huojin working at a console beside two cultivation tanks, one containing a failed specimen and the other an embryo.
• Blue Two spotted the Offspring Cultivation Project on the console and guessed that Huojin was trying to make a child.
• Yellow Three saw the Partner Project reach 100 percent and read that it involved a modified clone from the Defense Force’s Silver Army project.
• A nutrient chamber rose from the floor and began to open as Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three gathered around it.

Trigger awoke in a laboratory beneath Huojin’s estate with new cybernetic limbs and a prosthetic spine, and Huojin restored the memories he had sealed. After learning she had been bought on the black market and made his subordinate, Trigger grieved for her fallen squad and tried to kill herself.

• Trigger awoke in a nutrient pod and discovered that Huojin had replaced her limbs and spine with cybernetics.
• Huojin tested Trigger’s cybernetics and confirmed that his memory-sealing experiment had worked when she could not recall her identity.
• Huojin restored Trigger’s memories, and she remembered her name, her place in the Defense Force’s Silver Squad, and the squad’s destruction.
• Huojin identified himself as Hawking Hongke, CEO of TOPS, and ordered Trigger to serve him as his subordinate.
• Trigger accused Huojin of wanting to reverse-engineer the Silver Army, and he caused her pain through the device in her brain.
• Trigger mourned her fallen captain and squadmates, tried to shoot herself in the temple, and Huojin remotely locked her hand in place.

Huojin convinced Trigger that her captain was alive and secured her service as his personal bodyguard for five years. After Butler took Trigger to get settled, Huojin offered Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three a chance to leave prison if they completed an upcoming mission.

• Huojin showed Trigger a live feed of Anby praying with Nicole at the Sixth Street café, and Trigger recognized her captain.
• Trigger cried with relief after Huojin confirmed the captain was alive, then signed a five-year bodyguard contract with him.
• Huojin explained that Trigger's former Silver Army project had been purged and told her the contract included wages, supplies, and protection.
• Trigger signed the contract, called Huojin Master, and followed Butler to get settled.
• Huojin confronted Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three, then offered them freedom if they completed a mission in a few days.

Koleda and the executives of Belobog Heavy Industries waited for TOPS investors to arrive, then watched the visitors’ grand entrance collapse into bickering and flirting. Grace eagerly examined Blue Two, and the chapter ended with Koleda trying to separate her from the arguing constructs.

• Koleda asked Ben why TOPS wanted to invest, and Ben recalled that the caller had bluntly offered to invest before arranging an assessment.
• A convoy arrived at Black Eagle Construction Site, and Iron Guards rolled out a red carpet for the visitors.
• Red One and Blue Two argued as they stepped out of the limousine, while Yellow Three tried to calm them.
• Grace slipped past the Iron Guards and began feeling Blue Two’s neck, prompting him and the other constructs to compete for her attention.
• Koleda called Ben and Anton over to separate Grace and the constructs.

Koleda welcomed Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three as representatives of TOPS, who brought an investment contract and requested a tour of Belobog Heavy Industries. Meanwhile, Ben kept Grace in her workshop, unaware that an unknown signal from a nearby Hollow was activating the three children she had developed.

• Ben carried Grace away from the three machines while Koleda and Anton held them back, and the Iron Guards departed, leaving the investment contract behind.
• Koleda introduced herself and Anton to Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three, then agreed to show them around while Ben reviewed the contract.
• Anton took the contract to Ben, and Koleda led the three TOPS representatives on a tour of the company.
• Ben warned Grace to stay away from the representatives, and she stayed in her workshop after admitting she had wanted to inspect them.
• An unknown signal from the nearby Hollow reached Grace's three children and started their startup programs.

Koleda showed the three TOPS brothers around the construction site, but Grace’s heavy machines went out of control and rampaged through it. Anton held off the tunneling machine until Big Ben arrived, while Grace chased after the three escaped machines to prevent further damage.

• Koleda showed Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three around the construction site and told them Grace loved studying machinery.
• A commotion broke out near Grace’s parked machines, and Koleda realized Grace was involved before taking a call.
• Grace’s tunneling machine charged through the site, crushing a truck and smashing through a wall as workers fled.
• Anton confronted the tunneling machine with his impact hammer and stopped its charge, then forced its demolition saw upward.
• Big Ben arrived as Anton prepared to fight the machine again.
• Grace discovered that all three of her machines had escaped after she updated their programs, grabbed equipment, and went after them.

The Grabber ran amok at Belobog Heavy Industries, and Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three discovered that it had found them after they sent their system logs to their master. Koleda fought the machine while the three watched, then they decided to support her just as another rumble sounded behind them.

• The Grabber damaged company property and attacked an ordinary excavator while Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three watched from behind a crate.
• Yellow Three confirmed that they had sent their system logs to their master after the trio received the signal that had affected the construction machines.
• The Grabber discovered Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three and knocked away their hiding place, prompting them to prepare to fight.
• Koleda arrived with a sledgehammer and pincers, struck the Grabber, and began fighting it as the trio watched from cover.
• After Blue Two estimated that Koleda might need help as the fight wore her down, Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three prepared to join her, but another rumble sounded behind them.

Anton and Ben fought the tunneling machine while Grace tried to hack its system and shut it down. Her attempt disrupted it, but the machine escaped toward Red One and his companions.

• Anton and Ben worked together to damage the tunneling machine’s legs and keep its attacks away from the company.
• As Ben tired, Grace arrived and used battery grenades to paralyze the machine, then climbed into its cockpit to hack it.
• Grace encountered repeated access errors but found a hidden intrusion in the system and tried to remove it.
• The tunneling machine briefly stopped, then sped toward the nearest Hollow before Anton and Ben could catch it.
• The tunneling machine headed directly toward Red One and his two companions, who had been watching from hiding.

Red One entered Overpower Mode and defeated the tunneling machine and grabber, but overheated and collapsed after the fight. Koleda and the others discovered Grace had been inside the tunneling machine, then saw her emerge injured but alive.

• The tunneling machine crashed through a wall, trampling Blue Two and Yellow Three and trapping Red One against its saw.
• Red One activated Overpower Mode, kicked the grabber aside, stopped the tunneling machine's saw, and used the machine to knock the grabber down.
• Red One was forced out of Overpower Mode by overheating and collapsed, then got back up while Blue Two and Yellow Three kept their distance from his heat.
• Anton and Big Ben arrived and reported that Grace had climbed into the tunneling machine's cab, prompting Koleda and the others to worry about her.
• Grace appeared atop the disabled tunneling machine, announced that it was taken care of, and revealed blood running down her face.

Grace discovered that a damaged key program, not a rival company’s virus, had caused the construction machines to go berserk. After repairing it enough to awaken the tunnel boring machine safely, she offered to repair Red One and his brothers.

• Ben reported that the accident had caused at least thirteen million Denny in damage, though no one had been injured.
• Grace showed Koleda and Ben the incomplete, virus-like program she had removed from the tunnel boring machine and ruled out the rival companies as its source.
• Grace explained that the program was a key that could start intelligent heavy construction machinery and give it instructions, and that its incomplete state had caused the machines to go out of control.
• Grace transmitted her repaired version of the key, briefly awakening the tunnel boring machine before soothing it and shutting it down again.
• Grace explained that the machines had souls housed in logic cores, then offered to repair Red One and his brothers.

Grace traced the signal to a missing Belobog Heavy Industries prototype inside a Hollow, prompting Koleda to plan its recovery. Ben then discovered that Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three’s investment contracts required them to work for free, but Butler intervened and made them agree to sign.

• Grace decoded the signal as BLG_prototype and told Koleda and Ben that the prototype was transmitting from inside a Hollow.
• Grace proposed retrieving the prototype and its valuable logic core, and Koleda agreed to find the pile driver and recover it.
• Ben apologized to Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three for the accident, but Red One insisted they had orders to get the contracts signed.
• Ben revealed that the contracts required the three machines to work without pay and gave Hawking Hongke control over their working hours.
• Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three protested until Butler connected, after which all three calmly agreed to sign.

Huojin considered his stalled biology research while Butler reported several matters, including an unusual signal tied to a likely target of the Order of the Condemned. The chapter ended with Butler telling him that Trigger needed weapons he would have to make himself.

• Butler told Huojin that Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three had signed contracts to work at Belobog Heavy Industries for a month.
• Huojin asked Butler about biological specimens because his research had stalled for lack of unusual samples.
• Butler reported that Phaethon's HDD system consumed at least 80,000 Denny of electricity per day, mostly because Fairy was running at high frequency.
• Butler said the signal from Red One, Blue Two, and Yellow Three came from Lumina Square and likely pointed to the Order of the Condemned's target.
• Huojin decided he could send Iron Guards to retrieve the suspected test subject covertly rather than go himself.
• Butler reported that Trigger had completed prosthetic adaptation training but needed Huojin to make suitable weapons and equipment.

Wise and Belle restocked the video store before Shepherd brought Wise a secret commission, but a companion Hollow disaster cut off Belle’s route home. Wise activated Fairy’s surveillance search and Hongke Unlimited Company’s rescue service to find her.

• Wise and Belle argued over their movie choices as they carried their purchases back to the video store.
• Belle took Wise’s car keys and left to choose movies from other suppliers while Wise stayed to meet Shepherd.
• Shepherd asked Wise to accept a secret commission to clear malfunctioning mechs from a Hollow, and Wise agreed to schedule it for later.
• Wise learned that a companion Hollow disaster had prompted Public Security to restrict roads Belle might have traveled.
• Fairy offered to search nearby surveillance footage and activate private security rescue services, and Wise authorized both.

Belle drove into a Hollow outbreak and was teleported to an unfinished building, where she spotted two girls being chased by Ethereals. Wise and the Iron Guards entered the Hollow, defeated the Ethereals, and began searching for Belle as Wise waited anxiously at the video store.

• Belle drove toward a videotape supplier, encountered fleeing pedestrians and Ethereals, and escaped in the family car.
• A spatial rift teleported Belle and her car to an unfinished building, where she saw two girls pursued by Ethereals.
• Two Iron Guards entered the Hollow and fought the Ethereals until reinforcements arrived and defeated the Alraune: Charged.
• Eous (Wise) entered the Hollow with Iron Guards and search-and-rescue supplies after Fairy identified several nearby life signs and selected a rescue plan.
• Wise monitored the search from the video store and hoped Belle was safe.

Iron Guards rescued civilians throughout the Hollow while searching for Belle, and Wise grew increasingly worried as Fairy reported their progress. A timid high school girl finally provided a lead on Belle, sending two Iron Guards toward the place she indicated.

• Iron Guard squads rescued trapped civilians, while one squad fought a Frenzied Thug and escaped through a spatial rift with two men.
• The rescued men could not identify Belle, and the Iron Guard squad escorted them toward the Hollow’s exit.
• Fairy reported that five squads had found eleven trapped people and that another squad was fighting an upper-tier Ethereal.
• Wise learned that an Iron Guard squad had found an important lead on Belle after choking on his coffee.
• A timid high school girl gave Belle’s location to an Iron Guard, and two others hurried toward it after defeating a Farbauti.

Iron Guard 813 found Belle while rescuing her from the out-of-control mech Guardian, and the arriving Iron Guards defeated the machine. Belle contacted Wise and learned that his commission was to clear out Guardian and possibly other rogue mechs.

• Iron Guard 813 was struck by Guardian but recovered and located Belle and another girl hiding in a narrow lane.
• Iron Guard 813 grabbed the girls and ran as Guardian landed, while reinforcements arrived and attacked the mech.
• The Iron Guards disabled Guardian’s weapons and leg, then destroyed it and recovered its intelligent core, which had been affected by Ether crystals.
• Eous arrived after the battle, and Belle contacted Wise through Fairy’s communications network to confirm that she was unharmed.
• Wise told Belle that he had taken a commission from Shepherd to clear out-of-control mechs and still had more work to do.