–+–
Her voice stayed calm.
“This price is very fair… In fact, it’s a little above market.”
Sandrone raised a brow.
She looked at Belle holding Nicole down, then at Nicole’s face, which seemed caught between wanting to speak, aching like she’d been stabbed in the heart, and wishing she could go back in time to name a higher price.
It seemed Moonfall Silver was worth even more in this world than Sandrone had thought.
But so what?
She thought of the mechanical puppet that still hadn’t been assembled, its parts still scattered across the Hollows.
Compared to Pulonia, what were a few pieces of Moonfall Silver?
“Good.”
Sandrone gave a satisfied nod.
“Efficiency comes first. Let’s leave now.”
Belle kept one hand on Nicole and gave Wise a small signal.
Wise nodded.
“Give me a moment. Eous should be fully charged by now. I’ll bring him down.”
Wise turned and walked up the stairs to the second floor.
Before long, he came back with a Bangboo in his arms.
It was the little one who had guided them through the Hollow yesterday.
Right now, it hung from Belle’s hands without a fuss, its orange scarf neat and tidy.
“Is this the Bangboo you used yesterday?” Sandrone asked.
“Yeah. This little guy is Eous.” Belle set the Bangboo down.
“Ehn-nah!”
Eous raised its short little arms and waved at the two new faces, letting out a bright electronic chirp.
Columbina let go of Sandrone’s hand, crouched down, and reached out with a slender finger to poke its round belly.
“Cute,” she said.
Eous blinked its big eyes and gave a happy, “Ehn-nah~”
“S-since we’re all heading to the Hollow…”
Nicole, who had at last recovered from the shock, slipped free from Belle’s hands and sprang up.
“How are you two planning to get there? Take a cab?”
Sandrone looked at Nicole’s eager face and understood at once.
“Could we trouble you to drive us there?” Sandrone said, following her lead.
“We’ll pay you.”
After all, taking the bus and walking couldn’t compare with the speed of driving.
They had no car and no driver’s license.
Forget a license.
Sandrone had only skimmed a few of this world’s traffic rules last night.
“No need, no need!”
Nicole waved both hands and put on a bright smile, so warm that no one would guess she had looked like she was having chest pains a moment ago.
“We happen to have business on Fourteenth Street anyway, so it’s on the way! We’ll waive the fee! We’re all friends here~”
Sandrone fell silent for a second.
“Then thank you.”
The window was half open, and Billy’s red head stuck out of it as he scrolled through his phone out of boredom.
Anby sat quietly in the back seat with headphones on, her head bobbing to the music.
“Oh! There you are!” Billy’s sharp eyes spotted the group coming out of the shop, and he shoved his phone into his pocket.
Full of energy, he waved.
“Miss Sandrone! Miss Columbina! Good morning!”
“Good morning.” Sandrone gave a faint nod and led Columbina into the back seat.
Nicole slowed on purpose and leaned close to Belle and Wise.
Lowering her voice, she rubbed her fingers together like mad.
“So? Phaethon! I wasn’t lying, was I? This is a huge job! About all those tabs of mine…”
Belle sighed, then smiled in defeat.
“Fine, fine. Thank you for the referral, Boss Nicole. Out of the kindness of our hearts, we’ll wipe out those old debts of yours.”
“Yes!!”
“But let’s be clear, Nicole,” Wise reminded her at the right time.
“When we get the Moonfall Silver, you’re responsible for helping us exchange it for Dennies.”
“Leave it to me!” Nicole gave them a thumbs-up and winked hard.
“Then we’re off! See you later!”
She slipped into the driver’s seat, fastened her seat belt, started the engine, and shifted gears in one smooth motion.
“Let’s go, let’s go!”
The engine gave a low roar.
The white car slid out of Sixth Street with a clean drift and merged onto the main road.
Three seconds later, the speedometer needle had already crossed the speed limit.
The street outside the window flew backward so fast it turned hard to see.
Sandrone leaned back in her seat.
Her gaze swept over the speedometer needle as it climbed at a steady pace with no sign of stopping, and she fell silent for several seconds.
“Nicole,” she said.
“Yeah?”
“If I wanted to get a driver’s license, do you have a driving school you recommend?”
Nicole glanced at her through the rearview mirror, a little surprised.
“Driving school? Sandrone, you don’t have a license yet?”
She paused, then her face shifted into an “I get it” look.
That made sense.
Young ladies like them must have grown up with private drivers.
Why would they need to get licenses themselves?
“I’ll send you my instructor’s Knock Knock number later,” Nicole said with ease.
“Don’t worry. It’s a real driving school. They’ll teach you until you pass, and the price is fair!”
Sandrone nodded.
Ten seconds passed.
“…Did we just run a red light?” she asked.
“Doesn’t that take points off your license?”
If her memory was right, that color of signal meant “stop.” Find the original chapter at g.com.
At this rate, even a license with a hundred points wouldn’t be enough.
Come to think of it, Nicole had driven like this yesterday when they went to Sixth Street too.
“Oh, that.”
Nicole’s tone stayed light.
She didn’t care at all.
“It’s fine. I took the license plate off ahead of time!”
Billy added at just the right moment, “And Boss Nicole hasn’t even gotten her license yet, so even if they take points, they can’t take them from her! So smart! Boss Nicole!”
“…”
Sandrone said nothing.
She just reached for the seat belt in silence, without drawing attention, and pressed the metal tongue into the buckle with perfect aim.
Click.
Then she turned to the side and pulled over Columbina’s seat belt.
The girl was focused on the street rushing past outside and showed no sign of doing it herself, so Sandrone buckled it for her.
The same click rang out.
Columbina looked down at the seat belt across her chest, puzzled.
“Sandrone?”
“Sit still.” Sandrone shook her head with a blank face.
“Hold the handle. Don’t talk.”
–+–
Screech!
With the sharp sound of tires grinding against the road, the car made a beautiful drift and came to a steady stop.
“Whew! All right, we’re at Cretan Hollow!”
Nicole’s exhaustion from staying up all night had vanished.
Bright-eyed and refreshed, she waved.
“Well? I told you my driving’s pretty good! Even without a license, I’m road queen level!”
Sandrone opened the door and stepped onto the ground.
Columbina followed her out, still holding the round little Eous in her arms.
“We’ll head off first! Good luck with the treasure hunt!”
Nicole leaned on the car window and waved goodbye.
“Bye-bye, ladies!” Billy stuck his head out from the passenger seat and waved with full warmth.
“See you.” Anby gave a small nod, her headphones still hanging around her neck.
Sandrone watched the white car vanish in a cloud of dust, then let out a long breath.
She had never missed Morax so much, or the feeling of standing on solid rock.
The weight of stone brought peace.
Columbina looked down at the Bangboo, then at the Hollow entrance not far away, where the air warped in a faint, visible way that was clearly wrong.
“All right, Columbina.” Sandrone held out a hand.
“Put Eous down. It’s time to go.”
“Mm.”
Columbina set the Bangboo down with care.
“Ehn-nah!” Eous landed on its feet.
Its big eyes blinked, then lit up with a deep blue glow.