Into the Game: Belle I (Ea)

Today went from fun to totally crazy. Just this morning I was waking up with my friend Axel and getting into our cosplays to go walk around the biggest video game convention of the year, and the next I’m running around as a tiny little robot.

Something happened at the convention that caused Axel and me to be separated. I think he got pulled out to the hallway while I was slammed into a wall. I ended up going into the fetal position and covering my head so I didn’t get hurt by the people trying to run over me.

A few moments later something exploded, and I felt like some sort of electricity passed through me. Once it did, the sounds of panicked people passed, and I heard what sounded like people fighting. I open my eyes and look around.

I find people who look just like Lycaon, Rina, Corin, and Ellen Joe from Zenless Zone Zero. Lycaon and Corin seemed to be in combat, while Rina was handing Ellen a lollipop. I was confused about what was going on, and I think Ellen was as well, as she wasn’t moving.

I wanted to know what was going on, but before I had the chance to process anything, I saw an Ethereal jump towards Ellen. Without thinking about it, I ran and jumped forward, knocking her over but managing to keep her from getting hurt.

She then snapped out of it and started to fight, while I just sat up and looked at myself. Running and jumping felt weird, like I was some tiny creature, which was true. I was a Bangboo, and from the looks of it, I was inside Eous.

I was starting to freak out about it. I had no idea what happened to me, but if this was all real, I didn’t want to be trapped as a Bangboo, no matter how cute they are. Luckily that turned out not to be the case. As Fairy told me, my heart rate was suddenly spiking.

So that meant I wasn’t Eous, but someone was controlling it. That meant I ended up in this dream or alternate world as Belle or Wise, which, if I had to guess, would probably be Belle since I was dressed up as her, and being here felt too good to be just a coincidence.

I wasn’t sure how to process the thought of being a girl now, but clearly I had bigger problems to deal with, like the impending doom these people and Eous will face if I don’t do my sudden new job well. So I fully calm down and respond to Lycaon, who was talking to me.

I then, with the help of Fairy, pinpointed the location of the item they were here to retrieve for their master. I then lead the way by running up the stairs. Once we were up, we had to stop because Ellen was moving sort of slow and being quiet, so the others wanted to make sure she was okay.

She turned bright red for some reason, like she was embarrassed, and she grabbed her tail and started messing with it. It was out of character for her, but she started to follow close behind us without any problem from then on.

We go through the building we were in, and the members of Victoria Housekeeping fight off the ethereals that blocked our path. Everyone seemed like a natural and like they do this all the time, and I was kind of jealous that I ended up here as the proxy and not one of them.

At the same time, I don’t have the courage to be like them. I’d probably be shaking and crying if I actually had to go into a hollow. I still have no idea if this is real, but if it is, at least I have the reassurance of being outside the hollow if anything happens.

That being said, real or not, I’m their proxy and I’m not going to let them down or abandon them. I’m going to do my best to help them complete their mission and get out safely. We continued through the building and found a fissure that led us to the floor above us.

That was lucky for us, as the way to get up had been completely destroyed. We walk into a big open room, and Corin, Rina, and Lycaon start looking around, while Ellen stays next to me in order to protect me and Eous from any harm.

Well, danger’s ugly head is always right around the corner and a boss-level ethereal came crashing through the ceiling. It sent large rocks everywhere, one right at me, but Ellen started spinning her weapon and sliced it right in half.

She turned her head to look at me and told me to get to safety so she could fight it. I nodded and ran off as fast as my little legs could take me. I left the room but stayed at the doorway to watch. Everyone then engaged with the ethereal and started trying to kill it.

I felt bad just watching, but there was nothing I could do, at least I thought at first, but after speaking with Wise and Fairy, we calculated another fissure was about to open, one that would lead into the sky next to the building.

I immediately came up with a plan. I ran out into the fighting area and got next to Lycaon, who looked nervous that I was there. He told me to go run, but I told him the plan I had, which was to push the ethereal through the fissure. 

I told him I’d tell Ellen to get ready to hit it with all her might; that way it gets pushed through the fissure. All he had to do was get its attention and lead it to where I’ll be standing. Lycaon nodded and said it was a wonderful play.

He then yelled at Rina and Corin to fall back, then delivered a hefty blow to the ethereal’s head, which didn’t kill it but got its attention. While that happened, I ran over to Ellen and told her the plan. She seemed hesitant and unsure she could do it, but I assured her she could.

I told her we were counting on her, then ran off to the spot where Fairy said the fissure would open up. I stood there watching the ethereal chase Lycaon around. Then I felt extremely nervous when Lycaon started running towards me.

He stops running and turns around when he gets next to me and the two of us watch as the ethereal runs at us but stops when the fissure opens up. It clearly knew it was a trap, and was about to go around it, but right on cue, Ellen came in.

She ran behind it and with all the power she could muster, she swung her weapon into his back and pushed it forward. It got sucked up by the fissure, and immediately afterward the fissure closed. Everyone then ran over to the windows and watched the ethereal fall down to the ground.

I let out a sigh and slid down the wall to relax a bit. Everyone else started to praise me for a plan well executed. I let out a laugh and told them it was nothing, but it was; it was a lot. I think my real body is even shaking from it all.

Everyone takes a minute to catch their breath, and as was to be expected when Ellen used too much energy, she passed out. Lycaon picked her up and said it would be okay; their mission was almost complete. 

We looked around and found the item they were here for. Corin packed it up in a case they brought and everyone prepared to leave, which meant it was up to me to find the exit to the hollow in order to do that.

That wasn’t that hard, thanks to Fairy and Wise, and once everyone was out, I was finally allowed to disconnect from Eous’ tiny body. The first thing I did was stretch; the second thing I did was look at myself. Sure enough, I wasn’t just cosplaying Belle, but now I was here. 

Which honestly wasn't so bad. She’s a girl, but not as busty as some of the other characters. I couldn’t imagine being someone like Yanagi. As I looked at myself, I noticed the room was quite silent. I looked up to find Wise looking at me with a serious look. 

His staring made me feel a bit nervous. I asked him if everything was okay, and he didn’t respond. He just got up and walked over to the door. He closed it and locked it, then turned to look at me. Then in a serious tone, he asked me who I was and what I did with Belle. 

I felt my heart drop; somehow he already figured out that I’m not the real Belle. What’s worse than that, he seems to want an answer to his questions, which I don’t have. I don’t even know how I got here. What am I going to do now?