A moment later, Louis was invited into the screening room on the first floor.
This was where the siblings usually watched videotapes, a private screening room of sorts.
It was stocked with snacks and drinks, along with a computer connected to a large array of monitors.
The place had the atmosphere of both a living space and a workspace.
Proxies are long-term targets for capture by Public Security.
They are skilled at using certain electronic devices to fish for benefits inside the Hollows and frequently cooperate with Hollow raiders.
They are one of the persistent problems plaguing New Eridu.
Louis took a sip of the tea Belle handed him.
The tea was excellent.
It was not the kind of quality he could normally afford.
This was clearly hush money, and he was happy to accept it.
“Louis, you don’t actually believe those official statements, do you?
Hahaha.”
Belle laughed with an awkward expression.
After all, this situation was the result of her slip of the tongue, and now she had to own up to it.
“My female superior really hates people like you.
If she were here, you’d already be in the back of a police car right now.”
Louis said this deliberately to scare Belle so she wouldn’t call him Video Guy in the future.
He really did not just watch videos.
“Since you didn’t arrest us, that means there’s still room for negotiation, right?”
Wise told his sister to step aside and spoke to Louis himself.
As the older brother, he was naturally the one in charge and knew better how to handle the situation.
“Negotiation for what?” Louis asked.
“Uh…
room for maneuver.”
Wise choked on his own words.
Faced with his sister’s curious gaze, he pressed down on her head and told her once again to go stand aside.
“I have only one question.
Have you ever harmed anyone?”
Louis was not actually interested in Belle and Wise’s side job, nor did he intend to arrest them and hand them over to Public Security.
However, some things had to be confirmed.
If they were the kind of proxies who harmed people, then he would have to bring them to justice.
“Of course not!
We’re good people.
We often help lost Hollow raiders find the exit of the Hollow.
How could we possibly harm anyone?”
Belle spoke with slight agitation.
She hated the proxies who did evil things the most.
They ruined the reputation of all proxies and turned every one of them into targets. Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
No matter whether their actions were good or evil, in the eyes of Public Security they were all labeled as criminals with one broad stroke.
“That’s good.
I believe you.”
Louis nodded.
Although there was no proof, they did not seem like bad people to him.
He was not a detective and could not always tell good from bad, so he made his decision based on his own principles.
“Eh?
Just like that?
You’re not arresting us?”
Belle had prepared a lot of arguments, but Louis had stopped right there, which left her feeling very uncomfortable.
“You haven’t broken any laws, so why would I arrest you?
I only want to catch the kind of proxies who exploit loopholes in the network and the Hollows to commit evil acts.”
Louis spoke calmly.
Stumbling upon the siblings’ secret had simply been a matter of luck.
He saw no need to drive them into a corner, and besides, he believed their story about helping Hollow raiders.
Hollow raiding was illegal, but Louis came from Earth and did not think every Hollow raider was a bad person.
Some people had to enter the Hollows just to survive.
You could not paint them all with the same brush.
The Hollows were simply there.
There was no rule saying who they belonged to.
He would only arrest those who harmed humans.
“No, no.
According to movie plots, at this point you should either demand hush money or kidnap me, a beautiful young lady, back to your place to ruthlessly humiliate me a hundred times, turning me into…
Mmph!
Mmph!”
Belle waved her hands as she spoke while Wise quickly covered her mouth, not letting her say anything too explicit.
For some reason, Louis felt that Belle seemed to be looking forward to such a turn of events.
This girl really seemed like a total masochist.
“My sister watches way too many movies.
Please forgive her.”
Wise said with a helpless expression.
Although there were no outright adult films in the store, there were plenty of suggestive ones.
Watching too many movies could twist your thinking, especially the more bizarre titles.
“Now one of my questions has been answered.
So the video store is just your side job, and you actually have a main occupation.
No wonder you haven’t starved to death yet.”
He spoke with a smile, looking quite pleased.
“Pfft!
Hey!
What do you mean by that?
Is our video store’s business really that bad?”
Belle pushed Wise’s hand away from her mouth and protested, looking unconvinced.
“Who was the last person to rent something from your store?” Louis asked.
“You.”
“And the one before that?”
“Still you.”
Belle’s confidence visibly weakened.
When she thought about it, Louis seemed to be the only person who had rented any videotapes from them in the past month.
Everyone else was like a ghost, nowhere to be seen.
“Actually, business is just a tiny bit slow.
Who told the people of Sixth Street not to watch movies?”
Belle raised her right hand somewhat awkwardly, leaving a tiny gap between her index finger and thumb.
This was her final stubbornness.
“Louis, I know you’re a good person, so please keep this matter a secret.
As thanks, if you run into trouble in the Hollow in the future, you can come to us for help anytime at a fifty percent discount.”
Wise knew that Louis truly intended to let the matter go, and he felt quite moved.
Aside from their rental transactions, they were not actually very close.
His silly sister was always bringing up Louis’s embarrassing moments whenever he came by to do business, so Wise was trying to be the sensible one.
“Hmm, I will.
I just didn’t expect the legendary Proxy Phaethon to be the two of you.
You’re like a stubborn stain on Public Security’s wanted list, the kind you just cannot scrape off.”
Louis calmly accepted the bribe.
Although Public Security’s Carrot program was well designed and helped prevent people from getting lost in the Hollows, no one was completely safe from the unexpected.
The title of legendary Proxy was not just for show.
If a problem that even Public Security could not solve ever arose, having them as an extra option would be useful.
“Eh?
Can I hit you?”
Belle said with a cute smile while waving her small fist.
Louis raised his right arm to show her the muscles under his tight-fitting combat suit.
Belle immediately gave up.
She felt that Louis could knock out two of her with a single punch.