On the other side of the Hollow—
Anby had followed Sam Li in a long circuit through the shifting space.
At first, she had doubted whether the Bangboo he carried was real. But the moment they stepped out of the Hollow, she was completely convinced.
At the same time, she realized—Sam Li was far from as simple as she had initially thought.
Together, they escorted the rescued girl back home.
"The Hollow was at Twelve Points Street. Right now, we're at Eleven Points Street. Keep going forward, and you'll reach Ten Points Street, then Eight Points Street, then Six…"
As they walked, Anby took the opportunity to introduce the nearby districts to Sam Li.
She noticed something strange.
Sam Li behaved like someone who had never set foot in New Eridu before. Every time they arrived at a new area, he bombarded her with questions, showing no familiarity with the streets whatsoever.
In fact, he didn't even recognize well-known locations—cafés, pet shops, burger joints, even the Public Security Bureau headquarters.
Anby couldn't help but wonder—
Had Sam Li been living in the outer ring all this time? Had he just arrived in New Eridu's urban district for the first time?
As she pondered this, they crossed another street, stopping in front of a burger joint.
"This is the place I mentioned," Anby said. "I always come here before and after a mission to recharge. Wait here, I'll grab us some food."
With that, she walked straight into the burger shop.
Moments later, she emerged carrying a large takeout bag filled with five or six neatly stacked burgers.
Anby took out two and handed one to Sam Li.
"Here. Burgers are a great way to get your energy back."
Sam Li took a seat on the bench outside the shop beside Anby. He accepted the burger, took a bite, and found that the taste wasn't much different from the burgers on earth.
He glanced at the burger in his hand, then at the bustling street.
Office workers in uniforms. Fashionable hip-hop youths. Students with backpacks. Armed security personnel patrolling the area.
For a moment, it felt just like earth.
The technology and culture of this world were vastly different from Teyvat's, yet strikingly similar to earth's. Phones, machines, firearms—
But in the next instant, Sam Li's gaze landed on a group of girls playing around.
One of them had a long, shark-like tail swaying behind her, standing out starkly amidst the crowd.
Sam Li narrowed his eyes. "Are they Adepti? Or demons?"
"Demons?" Anby blinked in surprise.
Following his gaze, she spotted the shark-tailed girl and quickly explained, "In the old era, people used to call them monsters. But in modern New Eridu, the official term is Xis—a new race that emerged alongside the Hollow outbreak."
Sam Li nodded thoughtfully. "I see."
His understanding of this world was still too shallow.
On the surface, its technological and cultural development mirrored that of earth. But in reality, it harbored many things that went far beyond—
And who knew what else?
Just as he was lost in thought, Anby handed him another burger.
"Here, have another."
Sam Li shook his head. "I'm full."
"Really? Alright then. Give me a sec—I'll go pay."
Anby walked into the burger shop, fast food bag in hand, ready to settle the bill.
She reached into her pockets—only to realize that all her Dennies were gone.
"They must've fallen into the Hollow. Great. Just great."
The cashier glanced at the register. "That'll be 7,000 Dennies. Cash, scan, or credit?"
"Uh… about that…" Anby hesitated. "I lost all my Dennies in the Hollow."
The cashier's expression didn't change. "Yeah, that's what everyone who doesn't want to pay says. Please contact a friend and have them send the payment over."
Clearly, this wasn't the first time they'd dealt with a situation . The cashier remained unfazed, fully confident that Anby wouldn't be able to skip out on the bill.
Anby quickly pulled out her phone. "Hold on, I'll call Nicole."
But the moment she tried turning it on—nothing.
Her battery had died back in the Hollow.
No way to contact Nicole.
She was completely stuck.
There was no way she could ask Sam Li to pay, right?
After all, he was the one who got her out of the Hollow. The burgers were supposed to be her way of thanking him. How could she make him foot the bill?
Just as she was panicking, a voice came from behind her.
She spun around, eyes lighting up as she saw Sam Li walking in.
Thank the heavens. If he hadn't shown up, she wouldn't have had the slightest clue what to do.
Still, she felt a little guilty. "Sorry… I was the one who invited you to eat, but now you're paying…"
Sam Li smiled. "Don't worry about it. I've got this. By the way, your agency—it's called Hare's House, right?"
Anby nodded. "Yeah, that's right."
Sam Li walked up to the counter and said with a completely straight face, "Please charge this to Hare's House and send them the bill."
The cashier looked just as surprised. "Charge it to an account? Sir… are you sure?"
Technically, it was possible.
But Hare's House didn't exactly have the best reputation lately. Rumor had it they were drowning in debt—so much so that they could shut down and disappear at any moment. The gossip had spread far and wide, even reaching the burger shop staff.
The cashier glanced between Sam Li and Anby, their gaze filled with pity.
These two couldn't even afford a meal.
"…Fine. I won't make things difficult for you. Just show me some ID proving you're actually from Hare's House, and I'll put it on the tab."
Sam Li turned to Anby.
She quickly snapped out of her daze and pulled out her employee ID, proving that she was, indeed, an official staff member of Hare's House.
"Alright, it's done! Come again soon!" The cashier's cheerful smile returned now that the bill was settled.
The moment the transaction went through—
A notification rang in Sam Li's mind.
[Ding! System alert: First charge account transaction completed.]
[Congratulations, Host! Reward: 1,000 system points. Role-play progression +3%.]
Receiving the reward, Sam Li felt utterly refreshed.
Anby, on the other hand, fell silent.
She could already imagine the look on Nicole's face when she saw the bill at Hare's House.
Outside the burger shop, just before parting ways, Anby turned to Sam Li.
"Thanks again for getting me out of the Hollow. If you ever need help, come find me at Hare's House anytime."
Sam Li remained as composed as ever. "Yeah, I will."
With that, he picked up his now-empty birdcage and strolled off into the city.
For now, he planned to explore New Eridu, familiarize himself with its streets, and gather more information before deciding on his next move.
Anby watched him disappear into the distance.
Then, hugging the fast food bag to her chest, she pulled out a burger and took a bite as she headed toward Hare's House.
She was nearly there when a sudden realization struck her.
She had forgotten to ask for the name of Sam Li's movie.
And she hadn't even gotten his address.
"Oh well. I'll just ask him next time."
Humming a battle tune, she tossed the empty food bag into a trash can and continued toward Hare's House.