Zenless Zone Zero: The Almighty Incubus of Sixth Street

”BOOOM!”

With a deafening blast, the explosion made the ground tremble slightly. Fortunately, it was only a single bomb, not enough to bring the mountain down.

Not far from the blast, Fairy lay in Wise’s arms. Her small face was smeared with dust, clearly from being caught too close to the explosion.

”|Cough, cough... I’m truly sorry, Master. I miscalculated. I didn’t expect the bomb to be this delicate. The disposal techniques I learned weren’t enough to fully disarm it. But if you could give me another chance...|”

”That’s alright, Fairy. You did your best,” Wise replied gently. ”But the explosion will have drawn attention. We can’t afford more trial and error right now. We’ll leave it for next time.”

He softly patted her head, offering reassurance. Fairy puffed her cheeks slightly, clearly dissatisfied with herself.

Even so, she understood the urgency. Though a trace of stubbornness lingered in her heart, she still nodded obediently.

Earlier, Fairy had been confident that she could disarm the bomb, which was why Wise allowed her to try. Now that it had failed, he didn’t hesitate any longer.

Stepping forward, he grabbed one of the planted bombs and instantly absorbed it into his system space. Under its suppression, even if the bombs were triggered, they wouldn’t be able to detonate.

Moving swiftly, Wise gathered all the bombs Fairy had located and stored them away. As for how to handle them later, that was something to worry about later.

Meanwhile, Caesar and the others had already drawn close to the area and naturally heard the explosion.

”That didn’t sound right... Why would there be an explosion here? Did something happen?” Lucy asked, her tone sharp with concern.

Wise shifted his consciousness back to Eous, who was resting in Caesar’s arms. This time, he didn’t bother hiding anything and told them directly about the bombs.

The three of them were stunned by the revelation. Relief soon followed, but it was quickly replaced by concern for Wise.

After all, based on what he had said, he should have already been inside the Hollow. Yet he urged them to stay focused on the competition, assuring them he would be fine while calmly explaining the situation.

When Caesar heard that Lucius might pose a serious threat to Cinder Lake, she immediately decided to pick up the pace and head there at once.

Elsewhere, Pompey and his group had also heard the explosion, and their unease deepened.

Not long ago, Pompey had received a message from an unknown sender detailing Lucius’s schemes and the harm he had inflicted on him.

Rage surged through Pompey almost instantly. He recalled how his body had been growing weaker lately. He had assumed it was simply age catching up to him, never imagining that it was the result of Lucius’s underhanded tricks.

Even so, he didn’t act recklessly. The source of the message was still unknown, and he needed to confirm its authenticity.

Although the message included a video of Lucius poisoning him, with current technology, it wasn’t difficult for someone with malicious intent to fabricate such evidence.

He couldn’t accept it so easily. With the Tour de Inferno just around the corner and full confidence in his own strength, Pompey chose to wait and observe. At the same time, he raised his guard against Lucius, quietly beginning an investigation while keeping him under constant watch.

Unfortunately, Lucius was extremely cautious. For reasons unknown, he stopped poisoning him in the days that followed.

Even after the Tour de Inferno had begun, Pompey still hadn’t managed to catch him in the act.

Not long after, when Pompey and Lucius arrived at Cinder Lake, they saw Caesar just as she tossed the Flint into the lake. She turned and glanced their way.

”Yo, Overlord Uncle! Looks like this round’s ours!” Caesar called out with a grin, though her eyes were locked onto Lucius behind him.

Lucius, however, reacted first, unable to hide his shock.

”What? How is that possible?”

His eyes widened in disbelief. The bombs had clearly been planted and detonated. By all logic, the Sons of Calydon shouldn’t have made it here.

Pompey didn’t respond to the outcome of the competition. Instead, he slowly turned his head and fixed his gaze on Lucius.

”You seem quite surprised,” he said calmly, his voice low but firm. ”Did you expect them not to be here?”

”No, not at all,” Lucius replied quickly, forcing a stiff smile. ”I just thought... with your strength, how could you possibly fall behind the Sons of Calydon?”

The unexpected turn of events had clearly unsettled him, but he couldn’t afford to reveal any weakness. However, Pompey’s next words made his expression collapse entirely.

”My strength... heh.” Pompey let out a low, cold laugh. ”If I hadn’t been poisoned and weakened by some rat, the outcome might’ve been very different... wouldn’t you agree, Lucius?”

Before the words had fully settled, Pompey swung his weapon without hesitation, smashing it into Lucius’s left hand. A sharp cry rang out as the object slipped from his grasp and hit the ground.

It resembled a Flint, but inside was an Ether Polymerization Catalyst, a substance capable of accelerating the crystallization of free Ether particles.

Originally developed by a city enterprise to boost Ether production, it would yield extraordinary results within the unique environment of Cinder Lake.

Lucius had intended to secretly swap it with the Flint Pompey carried. But ever since Pompey had grown wary of him, he hadn’t found a single chance to make the exchange.

At first, Lucius thought it was because of the Sons of Calydon incident, but now it was clear that there had been another reason all along.

Clutching his injured arm, he tried to reach for the item again. But Pompey had been waiting for exactly that.

With a heavy step, he crushed Lucius’s outstretched hand under his foot. His jaw tightened as anger surged through his voice.

”I placed so much trust in you... and this is how you repay me? It seems my judgment of people has truly gotten worse!”

As he spoke, Pompey bent down and picked up the Flint-shaped object. He didn’t know its exact function, but if Lucius had been desperate to use it, then it was nothing good.

He then lifted his gaze toward Caesar and the others, who stood ready not far ahead.

In truth, they had intended to warn him the moment they saw Lucius make a move. But Pompey had acted even faster than they could react.

Before long, Lucius was bound and thrown into a car. Mors, who had mysteriously fainted on the way back, was placed inside as well.

Caesar and the others knew that was Wise’s doing. Pompey didn’t know for certain, but he had his suspicions. As they headed back, he suddenly spoke.

”Sons of Calydon, you have my thanks. Without you, Cinder Lake might have fallen into danger.”

By now, Pompey had already realized that the one who sent him the earlier message was Wise. Although the idea of someone monitoring his camp left a bitter taste, it no longer mattered in the face of the bigger picture.

”No need to thank us. Protecting Cinder Lake is something we all share,” Caesar replied casually, then flashed a grin. ”Still, Overlord Uncle, that move earlier? Clean and decisive. You didn’t hesitate for a second.”

”Haha...” Pompey chuckled, some of the tension easing from his expression. ”Well, the new Overlord is you now, isn’t it?”

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