“I-I-I really messed up.”
Wearing her fake cat ears, the non-inserted pendant-style tail swinging behind her, tightly clutching the skirt of her catgirl maid outfit, Magical Girl Aurora had, once again in transformation mode, layered herself with a normal-person outfit—
She changed her pink hair to a light brownish black, tied it up into twin tails, removed the sparkling magical effects, and most importantly, suppressed the magical girl filter to the absolute minimum.
This move added a layer of “ordinary person” disguise on top of her magical girl form, a common tactic among past magical girls whenever they needed to blend into crowds unnoticed.
For Jiang Lingwei, it was only that if she acted alone, she’d have one extra transformation step compared to others.
This was necessary for her work—if any normal person glanced at her and then turned away under the filter’s effect, it would all be for nothing, or worse, cause side effects.
Seated before the vanity, Wen Yanquan gave her a simple, cute-style light makeup.
Jiang Lingwei looked into the mirror, seeing little difference in herself, then tilted her head and glanced at the person behind her:
“I feel more and more uncertain about this.”
“Go for it, go for it. Didn’t I tell you about that catgirl game, Chocolate and Vanillan?”
Wen Yanquan smiled and grabbed Jiang Lingwei’s shoulders:
“Anyway, this is just a trial run. If we can draw some crowds, great. Even if it doesn’t work, I have other plans, so don’t stress too much.”
“My stress isn’t because of that! And what’s the difference with gal games?”
Jiang Lingwei pointed at her outfit and complained, “Usually, a mascot girl’s character is designed first, then they go and perform it, or at worst, they work at the place for a long time and only become mascots after gaining fame.”
“But now you’re telling me to drop in out of nowhere as this, so how exactly am I supposed to do it?”
“Eh~ Show some initiative, showcase your creativity! This is the test the boss is giving you, do well and there’s a reward~”
“I feel like you’re getting more and more unreliable.”
“Hey hey~”
“…Wait a minute.”
Jiang Lingwei raised her hand to block the lens of the high-end camera Wen Yanquan held.
“Where did you pull this out from… never mind, I just want to ask, what’s this for?”
“Of course, to take pictures of you.”
Wen Yanquan blinked and shook the expensive device in her hands: “Don’t worry, I have a professional photography license. I’ll make sure you look beautiful.”
“That’s not what I asked!”
Jiang Lingwei blushed, tugging her skirt down a bit.
Even by the standards from twenty years ago, the skirt on this maid outfit wasn’t particularly short.
Besides the stockings, Wen Yanquan thoughtfully prepared safety shorts as well.
Not only was Jiang Lingwei’s current youthful figure safe from exposure, but even her mid-twenties original adult body would be fine.
Still, the current situation made her feel deeply embarrassed.
Maid cafes, cat cafes—Jiang Lingwei had done many part-time jobs like those, earning money, nothing shameful about that.
But that was when no one knew.
Her workplace was so secret even the North Wind didn’t know, and she had carefully chosen a place where she was unlikely to run into anyone familiar.
Now, standing before Wen Yanquan, an old friend, wearing this outfit, she simply couldn’t quickly slip into the sales mode.
“When we discussed this before, didn’t you say you could accept the photo sessions?”
“Yes… yes, but that was at work…”
“Well, I’m the boss, just pretend you don’t know me.”
“That’s cheating!”
Jiang Lingwei really didn’t know what to say.
In work mode, she could accept this as part of the job, especially since her current look wasn’t her everyday appearance.
“No one else will recognize me.”
In the past, and even now, she gave herself this mental assurance to build confidence.
But once you add “someone who knows you” into the mix—
It’s like pretending to be aloof outside, then when the homebound second illness kicks in, Spider-Man breaks through the window, striking an Ultraman pose, frozen in place, watching Spider-Man and his nemesis fight it out in your room—an awkward and shameful moment full of absurd realism.
Finally, after careful thought, Jiang Lingwei concluded that aside from those mascots with special characters, most of the rest were basically just slightly famous café waitresses.
She had plenty of experience with that from her part-time jobs before.
Now she just needed to be… a bit more lively?
“Ding dong.”
Right then, her phone buzzed—a message from her daughter saying she wouldn’t be home for dinner today and would hang out with friends for a while.
That meant Jiang Lingwei didn’t need to inform her daughter first.
She sent a quick message to Jiang Yao, reminding her to be safe outside, then tucked the phone back into her pocket.
Taking a deep breath, she tried again.
Wen Yanquan, who had sneakily hidden the camera behind her back while boasting “I’ve got three more of these!” was left with no choice but to take a few photos.
Jiang Lingwei, under the expectant gaze of an old friend, then descended the stairs.
As she reached the second floor, she saw a familiar face—a store clerk who had helped her with a card swipe earlier, already waiting.
“The boss’s taste is impeccable. You should have told me there was such a cute girl.”
The clerk looked to be more friendly because of Wen Yanquan, maybe they were coworkers.
(Thank goodness I’m not in my original body right now—if I were recognized, it’d be over.)
Feeling relieved, she carefully checked her body condition.
Mentally calculating, Jiang Lingwei roughly estimated:
In this ultra-low power state, even though mana was continuously draining, she could hold out for several hours.
Finally some good news—comforted, she followed the clerk.
“Almost forgot to introduce myself.”
In a small corner on the second floor, the clerk smiled:
“My name’s Liu Xiaoqing, I’m the manager here. Just call me Sister Xiao Qing.”
“Okay, Sister Xiao Qing.”
(She’s not just a regular clerk after all… and…)
At this moment, Jiang Lingwei oddly missed her twenty-something self.
At least then she could act like someone’s older sister.
Now, looking so young and short, she was still adjusting to the lowered perspective after having gotten used to a taller viewpoint.
(Wait, I was always young!)
“What do I do next?”
“Here.”
Liu Xiaoqing handed her a small stack of promotional flyers:
“The boss told me she mainly wants to create a ‘mascot girl.’ I think you should first hand out these flyers outside and mention we have a storewide 20% discount and a free gift of millets. Me and a few others will manage inside, and you can take it from there.”
“Handing out flyers? Got it.”
Jiang Lingwei nodded.
Compared to vague mascot duties, this direct, concrete task made her feel more grounded.
The manager was truly a manager, definitely more authoritative than Xiao Quan in this regard.
As for what the millet was… she hadn’t quite caught that part.
An image of some kind of plant popped into her head.
(She thought it was some kind of coffee seedling? Are people into that now?)
(Never mind, not important. Just say this when the time comes.)
Then the “reliable” manager continued:
“Don’t be nervous. The boss told me to let you do whatever you want. If the store closes down, she’ll pay me ten years’ salary at once.”
Liu Xiaoqing blinked, giving off the vibe of “Just do your thing, boldly and confidently!”
Jiang Lingwei almost nodded and left, but stumbled slightly, nearly tripping over herself.
No wonder she trusts her so much!
Now she seriously suspected this manager was just as unreliable as Wen Yanquan—maybe this person was secretly hoping the store would fail.
Taking a deep breath, Jiang Lingwei took the flyers.
Under Liu Xiaoqing’s inexplicably expectant gaze, she walked straight through the eyes of the first-floor customers toward the door.
Opening it, she was met with a bustling pedestrian street.
It was still early, with some time before nightfall.
The busy street was full of people coming and going—perfectly normal for a commercial area.
Only, everyone’s outfits looked a bit… unconventional.
There were hair colors of every shade.
Many were dressed as characters Jiang Lingwei didn’t recognize.
Except for a few customers heading toward her who glanced up a few times, most people didn’t pay attention.
(Is this a convention? That’s rare.)
After all, conventions were still somewhat niche.
Gathering this many people was even rarer. (2012)
Such thoughts flickered through her mind, but Jiang Lingwei didn’t dwell on it; that wasn’t her concern.
For now, as the start of her job, she had to find a way to break the ice.
How to make herself noticed amid the crowd? It really wasn’t that difficult.
All it took was the courage to start, and everything else would naturally follow.
She put on her sales smile, holding the flyers against her stomach, raising her voice slightly as she addressed the passing crowd:
“Dear young gentlemen and ladies, welcome to Yaoguang Café. From today onward, Yaoguang Café is offering…”
(Something’s off. This isn’t right.)
Reciting her prepared script, Jiang Lingwei noticed many passersby had stopped.
Some were even holding cameras, seemingly trying to make out something.
From her experience, whether they ended up buying or leaving, potential customers would either take a flyer or ask to come inside.
Standing there staring made no sense.
“Uh… hello everyone?”
Jiang Lingwei waved at them.
Then—
She was surrounded by a crowd.
“Whoa, is that Chocolate?! Chocolate escaped from the game?!”
“An ancient classic! There are still cosplayers now? I’m tearing up!”
“Rous, Rous, you’re a soft, sweet, pretty little cake ahhh!”
“Where’s Vanillan? Where’d Vanillan go?”
“Can I collect Rous stickers?!”
“Please add me, Rous!”
“Everyone—everyone—”
Jiang Lingwei really wanted to ask, were these people speaking Chinese?
Because she couldn’t understand a word.
Amidst the crowd, she could only imitate the Statue of Liberty, holding up the flyer, forcing herself to mentally translate, then said:
“Everyone! Is… this for photos? If it’s photos, we can do that later. I’m still working… Our Yaoguang Café…”
“Let me see.” “Give me one—”
Before she could finish, hands reached out for the flyers.
At that moment, Liu Xiaoqing and a few staff pushed the door open and stepped out.
The manager loudly announced:
“Dear customers—feel free to take photos, but if you purchase a set inside, there will be a photo-op event!” Then turning toward Jiang Lingwei, who was stretching out her small hands:
“Right~”
Looking at the manager’s eyes and seeing Wen Yanquan mingling in the crowd, holding a black bean and waving her paw, Jiang Lingwei realized she’d been set up by Ziben.
(Ah, Ziben, you’re so mean!)
Even worse, Wen Yanquan was egging on the crowd:
“Can you imitate that one! That one!”
“Uh…”
Jiang Lingwei looked at the pose Wen Yanquan’s black bean was making, stiffly raised her arm, clenched her fist into a claw, and said:
“Meow~”
“Wow!! Rous, Rous, you really—”
“Amazing, my god, Rous nee—”
“Waaaahhh—”
(Okay, that’s enough to get the atmosphere going.)
Amid a flurry of shutter clicks and praise, Jiang Lingwei, dizzy from the new generation’s hype, didn’t forget her job.
Though unexpected, she remained professional and posed with a sales smile.
“20% off event, meow.” “Follow Yaoguang Café, thank you, meow!”
Until—
“Aurora…?”
From somewhere outside the store came a puzzled call.
Hearing the familiar voice while still doing catpaw punches, Jiang Lingwei trembled all over.
She turned and saw two schoolgirls standing just a few meters away, backpacks on.
One of them was staring at her in stunned silence.
“…..”
Jiang Lingwei’s mind froze for a few seconds.
Then she slowly raised her hand, forcing out a smile and said:
“…H-hello.”
At this moment, she felt her perspective rising, as if her soul was leaving her body, soaring into the sky.
Then she clutched her head and made the same gesture as the famous painting The Scream.
(“Good girl!!! Why are you here ahhhhhhh!”)