"Aaaaaaaaah..." The tired sigh of a young, exhausted girl could be heard in an exclusive office parking lot.
It was Belle, whose chest was rising and falling quickly due to the intense tests she had undertaken. She had ran around the parking lot for fourty-five minutes, been tossed around by Nicole and finally, managed to impress them all with Ether energy attacks when taught by Billy. Nicole was busy looking over Anby's notebook, but Billy had gently helped Belle off the ground, while Anby gave her a bottle of water.
"Phew.. Thanks, guys." Belle said before chugging the water bottle.
"No problem, Manager! I was actually a bit impressed back there!" Billy pat Belle's back and assured.
"What do you mean?" Belle knew her performance was lacking.
She was stronger and faster than a human, sure. But that was pretty standard, even for F rank hunters. Any actual 'ability' she had shown, were those Ether energy bolts she shot out of her hand. But she wondered if just that was enough to warrant a surprise.
"Belle, are you aware of just how peculiar you are? Normal Hunters don't have the ability to improve beyond their rank. They can develop skills, but rising beyond? That just doesn't happen, normally. Second.." Nicole took a deep breath, but Eous, their Bangboo, cut in.
"You can directly fire out Ether without the use of special weaponry, like Nicole's." Wise said, with a hint of severity in his voice.
"Yes. Dangerous." Anby commented with her eyes closed, seeming to think about something.
"Ahem!" Nicole cleared her throat and grabbed Belle's hand, tracing her finger along her palm, almost drawing out a giggle from her.
"This kind of ability is unique. Not even full Thirens can do such a thing. And if you can further develop your abilities.. You might be able to directly interact with Ether more. Maybe even become immune to corruption." Nicole hummed, her interest in Belle piquing. Though while she thought of all the business opportunities that might pop up, Eous tapped Belle's leg, urging her to return home.
"Ah! It's gotten kinda late, huh? Thanks for testing me, guys! I'll text you tomorrow about the commissions, okay Nicole?" Belle understood Wise's intent, scooping up the Bangboo and quickly making her way out of the parking lot while waving at the pinkette.
"Ah- Damn it.. I started thinking about money again." Nicole pouted impishly.
"Cute.." Anby thoughtlessly muttered to herself.
-Back at the Random Play store-
Belle walked back inside with Eous in her arms, strutting into their workshop and plopping down on the couch with an exaggerated sigh.
"That was tiring.. But I'm guessing you want to talk about it now, right?" Belle laid back on the couch with a yawn, looking over at Wise, who sat in front of their HDD system.
"Yeah. Shooting Ether's more eye-catching than you think, Belle. I wouldn't suggest going out to get your Hunter's license yet. At least not until you develop your abilities to B rank. And even then.. don't list that as an ability." Wise warned.
'I at least know that much.. Might be able to reveal my ability to 'improve' my strength after Sung Jin-Woo goes into that dungeon though.' Belle thought, knowing how he would attract attention not long after he made his debut.
"I'm still apprehensive about letting you in a Hollow or Dungeon, but.. I know you." Wise sent his sister a knowing look.
"I'm pretty stubborn indeed~ But Wise, this is important. It can help us with our goal. That, and these Dungeons. I have a feeling things will get worse." Belle remarked, adding a heavier atmosphere to the room.
Wise sighed, internally debating whether it was worth it or not. He knew it was, but Belle was the only person he had left from the Helios Academy. She was his family. But this new possibility was too important. And she was never one to obediently stay put, especially when it concerned their past. Wise knew better than to stubbornly prohibit her from proceeding.
"Okay. In the future, we need to get you some sort of disguise though. You have a very.. eye catching appearance after all." Wise replied, his previously stern expression turning into a wry smile.
"You either called me weird looking or pretty.. I choose to believe it's the latter! Come, bruzzah. Let's grab some noodles and look at the Proxy request boards!" Belle returned a smug smile and hopped off the couch.
The day passed by, though more uneventful than it had been at the start of it. Belle was in her room, looking at the system app in her phone. More specifically, the gacha.
[Affection points: x10]
Belle took a deep breath and hit the 'x10 search' button on the gacha, hoping RNGesus would favor her.
[1- 5% on your template!
1- Task Master's Photographic Reflexes
1- Tamagachi
4- Random clothing sets from (Arknights, FGO, ZZZ and Honkai Star Rail)
5- Boxes of pizza bagels
1- Chainsword (WH40K)
1- Flying Raijin blueprint (Compatible with Ether energy!)
10- Ether batteries
1- Battle summon ticket! (Vargram the Raging Wolf. Elden Ring)
25- Coupons for Burger King]
It was a mixed bag. Though, mostly full of great stuff. The template progress was one of the best things there, but one could argue Task Master's ability might be even more valuable. Though, personally, Belle was excited about the chainsword, learning the Flying Raijin and summoning that one guy from Elden Ring.
She scored quite well this pull.
Belle looked within her inventory and saw four boxes, named after their respected series. She definitely wanted to try them on, though, after taking a shower. She was still a little sweaty from the exercise earlier, after all.
After a quick shower, Belle walked into her room with a towel wrapped around her body and pursed her lips.
"What do I try first..?" Belle muttered before closing her eyes and pressing one randomly.
[Arknights: Siege outfit acquired!]
Belle had never played Arknights in her past life, but the clothes that fell on her bed were familiar. A black, leather jacket with a white fur collar, a black studded choker, a white tanktop with a slash design in front, black short shorts and black sneakers.
"Oh! That Lion girl's clothes, I think. Gives me a punk kind of vibe." Belle noted before pressing the FGO box.
Another, different outfit came out next. One that belonged to a master of spears.
[FGO: Scathach outfit acquired!]
It even came with the veil and mask. So it could serve as a good disguise. Belle decided she would try it on later, to see if it would work as a sort of battle outfit. Then, she hit the Honkai Star Rail box. Quite a few pieces of clothing came out this time.
[Honkai Star Rail: Feixiao outfit acquired]
This one was really stylish. A white and black coat, blue Chinese-styled top, black shorts, straps, red and black gloves and high heeled black boots. Very stylish, but it looked complicated to put on. So Belle hit the last box.
[ZZZ: Zhu Yuan outfit (worn) acquired!]
"Wait, what?" Belle saw the N.E.P.S logo on the back of the Pubsec officer's uniform gracefully fall onto her bed. The 'worn' part worried and excited her though.
"I'm not a degenerate... But I have to check, right..?" Belle swallowed her saliva and took a sniff of the uniform.
Contrary to what she expected it to smell like. It smelled of bodywash and soap. Belle's eyes widened as she inhaled the scent of some brand of cherry blossom soap Zhu Yuan used. She became a little lost in it, until one crucial thought surfaced in her mind..
"Wait.. Did I just steal her uniform..?"