Since yesterday, Wu Duola had been patiently and persistently waiting for a chance when Su Nuannuan would be alone.
After much waiting, finally she saw Su Nuannuan come out of the office, walking alone down the corridor—truly a godsend opportunity!
Seeing that Wu Duola’s emotions weren’t as intense as before, Su Nuannuan calmed down a bit.
She carefully pointed to her own covered mouth with a finger, signaling silently with her eyes.
Wu Duola stared at her hand for a moment, seemingly trying to judge whether she would scream. Seeing Su Nuannuan’s reddened eyes, she hesitated before saying, “Then… I’ll let go, but you’re not allowed to scream.”
Su Nuannuan quickly nodded vigorously, mentally complaining, Why does this guy always like to cover people’s mouths…
Wu Duola slowly loosened her grip, but her body still maintained a close, oppressive presence. Her big eyes blinked not once as she stared at Su Nuannuan, waiting for her response.
Su Nuannuan felt completely uneasy under that gaze, her eyes darting around everywhere, daring not to meet Wu Duola’s stare.
This distance is really too close, seriously!
“I… I didn’t mean to trick you…” Su Nuannuan whispered in defense.
She couldn’t be blamed entirely, right? Anyone trapped like that in a bathroom would be scared and want to hide.
“I just… got scared by you last time…”
Wu Duola still said nothing, only fixed her eyes on Su Nuannuan, as if pondering the truthfulness of her words.
“Um… could you please get up first?” Su Nuannuan, feeling a bit suffocated, quietly asked, trying to gently push Wu Duola.
“In that case, you have to promise to join my Magic Club.” Wu Duola not only didn’t get up, but audaciously reached out her other hand and pinched Su Nuannuan’s soft cheek. The movement was a little clumsy, as if unsure how to express both threat and affection.
Startled by the sudden gesture, Su Nuannuan shivered, fearing she might do something even stranger. She hurriedly agreed, “O-okay… I promise, I’ll join!” Get out first, then talk!
Only then did Wu Duola release her grip, stand up from the mat, clearly satisfied.
Su Nuannuan exhaled deeply, quickly sat up as well, rubbing the pinched cheek, thinking finally she could leave.
However, just as she was about to stand, Wu Duola stepped forward again, blocking the way between her and the door.
“Is… is there something else?” Su Nuannuan’s heart skipped a beat, unsure what this “magical girl” had in mind.
Wu Duola solemnly took a folded piece of paper out of her pocket and unfolded it right in front of Su Nuannuan, her tone serious: “Then sign your name here.”
Su Nuannuan’s mind filled with question marks.
She instinctively leaned in a bit, using the dim light to see the handwritten text on the paper, the handwriting somewhat childish but very earnest.
Magic Club Rules:
Leader: Wu Duola
- Those who quit the club will be forever shunned by all members.
Note: Currently, the guild consists only of the leader.
- Club members must unite and love each other; internal conflicts are forbidden.
- Uphold justice; magic must not be used to harm others unless absolutely necessary.
- Maintain virtue; no bad deeds allowed.
- If others don’t offend me, I don’t offend them. If they offend me, I give three chances. If they offend me again, I retaliate once. If they offend me yet again, I will eradicate them completely!
(A small skull drawing is next to this…)
- Those who quit may never rejoin.
- Regular attendance at club activities is mandatory; deliberate refusal is forbidden.
- Absolutely no betrayal of members; club secrets must be kept.
…
There were a few more points below, but the text was too small for Su Nuannuan to make out.
Su Nuannuan: “…………”
She lifted her face and looked again at the solemn Wu Duola in front of her.
So formal? Rules too? This club… sounds like playing house, but with a strange chūnibyō vibe?
She looked doubtful, unconsciously resting her chin on her hand while staring at the handwritten rules, a ridiculous thought popping into her mind!
Could it be… this Magic Club… is real? Is magic actually real in this world?
She felt like at any second Wu Duola would shout some incantation like “the key hidden with dark power!”
But this isn’t a school story, nor a magic story—would real magic not throw everything into chaos?
Seeing Su Nuannuan daydreaming, Wu Duola pushed the paper forward again and pulled out a pen from somewhere, eyes full of expectation: “Sign it, or you can press your fingerprint. I even brought ink.”
“Ink… inkpad?” Su Nuannuan was utterly speechless. This person… is serious!
Wu Duola saw Su Nuannuan’s incredulous expression and pouted even more.
“Don’t you believe me?” Wu Duola stepped closer, her tone carrying a wounded innocence.
Su Nuannuan instinctively took a step back, shaking her head weakly, then immediately thought that wasn’t right and hurriedly nodded.
Obviously not accepting half-hearted responses, Wu Duola took a deep breath and her expression became incredibly serious, even heroic:
“Since you don’t believe in the greatness of magic, I guess… I’ll have to personally show you. This spell is powerful and very impressive, but it also has a very high failure rate!”
Su Nuannuan’s heart tightened: “?”
What’s she going to do now?!
Wu Duola solemnly rummaged through her pocket and suddenly pulled out a… smartphone?!
She held the phone high like a holy relic and loudly declared: “Look! My Magic Book!”
Su Nuannuan stared at the phone, clearly a common brand, silent for a moment before muttering, “…That’s a phone.”
Wu Duola ignored her, opened a food delivery app, her fingers flying as she began chanting as if casting a spell: “Milk tea, extra ice! Milk tea, extra ice! Milk tea, extra extra ice!”
Su Nuannuan: “…” Umm… why does that spell sound so familiar?
Then came a long wait.
Wu Duola sat cross-legged on the mat, holding the phone with both hands, eyes closed, as if gathering magical power.
Su Nuannuan was restless.
Finally, there was a knock at the door!
Wu Duola opened her eyes, beaming with pride: “Magic succeeded.”
She carefully went to the door, cracked it open, and outside stood a delivery guy in a blue uniform.
He looked at Wu Duola, then glanced up at the storeroom sign, uncertainly reading the order note aloud: “Uh… Excuse me… is this the secret base of the Magic Club?”
Su Nuannuan: “!!!”
The delivery got sent to the school storeroom?! That can’t be right!
Wu Duola nodded eagerly, took the delivery bag, and quickly shut the door.
She proudly opened the bag, took out a cup of milk tea, inserted a straw, and handed it to Su Nuannuan. The cup was indeed packed with sparkling ice cubes!
“See!” Wu Duola raised her chin high. “This is my Extra Ice Summoning Spell! Magic worked!”
Su Nuannuan twitched her mouth, struggling to say: “Did… did you add a note on the order?”
“No way!” Wu Duola said firmly. To prove her “magic,” she even turned the phone screen toward Su Nuannuan. The order was listed as room temperature, and the note section was indeed blank!
Su Nuannuan stared at the blank note section, then at the extra-iced milk tea, her little mind in a whirl.
Could it be… she really has magic? Influencing the delivery guy with her mind?
Just as Su Nuannuan’s worldview was rocked and she began to question life itself—
Knock knock knock—the door was knocked on again.
Both froze. Wu Duola cautiously opened the door crack once more.
It was the same delivery guy, looking awkward, holding another cup of milk tea: “Sorry, miss, I grabbed the wrong one before. This room temperature one is yours. The extra ice belongs to the office next door…”
Wu Duola: “……”
Su Nuannuan: “……”
The atmosphere instantly froze.
The delivery guy swapped the milk teas and quickly left. The storeroom fell into complete silence.
Su Nuannuan looked awkwardly at Wu Duola, not knowing what to say.
Wu Duola’s face visibly reddened, but she quickly forced calm, cleared her throat, and explained with a mysterious tone: “Ahem, I told you the failure rate of this magic is very high… It’s also possible that the world’s rules self-corrected and interfered with my magic. Yes, that’s it!”
Su Nuannuan’s brain completely shut down.
She felt like this whole thing… somehow made sense but also didn’t.
Was the previous “success” just because the delivery guy delivered to the wrong place?
While Su Nuannuan was still stunned, Wu Duola pushed the Magic Club rules and pen back toward her, her tone leaving no room for refusal: “Since you’ve now witnessed the mysteries of magic and the truth of the world, come on, sign this magical contract! From now on, you’ll be a member of the Magic Club!”
Su Nuannuan looked at the handwritten rules, then at the extremely chūnibyō short-haired girl before her, and thought about her own situation…
Fine, whatever, real or not, better to just get this over with and leave!
Her trembling hand took the pen and signed her name in the blank space beneath the Magic Club rules: Su Nuannuan.
Wu Duola took back the contract, looked at the signature, and finally smiled with satisfaction.
“Excellent, Su Nuannuan, welcome to the Magic Club. From now on, we are partners who fight side by side!” She solemnly extended her hand, her eyes full of approval for the new member.
Su Nuannuan hesitated but stretched out her hand to shake… finally, can she leave now?