“Warning! Warning! The East District of City A is under monster attack. All citizens are urged to leave buildings immediately, follow the Monster Response Department staff’s instructions, proceed to the nearest Shelter, avoid crowding and panic, and prevent trampling injuries.”
“Repeating once more, this area is under monster attack. Please leave buildings promptly, obey Monster Response Department personnel, head to the nearest Shelter, avoid crowding and panic, and stay safe.”
“Warning! This is not a drill! All citizens must evacuate buildings immediately!”
In the Commercial Zone of City A’s East District, the Black Giant Wolf, towering as high as a two-story building, let out a low growl directed at a skyscraper, then suddenly rammed its massive body against it.
With a deafening crash, the towering commercial building was smashed to ruins by the Black Giant Wolf, reduced to scattered debris like a small car hit by an out-of-control truck.
Countless storefront signs under the wolf’s feet turned to twisted scrap metal.
The Black Giant Wolf stood atop the steel wreckage and howled mournfully at the sky, its piercing howl chilling to the bone.
Its blood-red eyes then shifted toward the distant Broadcast Tower.
It charged forward, smashing through barricades in its path, heading straight for the towering loudspeaker tower.
It seemed the creature intended to destroy this noisy Broadcast Tower before wreaking havoc on other nearby buildings.
But just as the Black Giant Wolf ran to within several dozen meters of the Broadcast Tower, a column of crimson energy suddenly descended from the sky, erupting into a blazing red light that exploded in front of the wolf, blocking its path.
Forced to halt, the Black Giant Wolf growled lowly and watched the fierce red light warily, as if sensing danger from the dazzling glow.
As the explosive light pillar slowly faded, red specks began to scatter in the air, revealing the figure concealed within: the Red-Haired Girl.
She was petite, dressed in a crimson off-shoulder sleeveless dress.
Her short red hair fluttered in the wind, while countless sparkling red light particles gathered on the great sword held in her right hand.
The pure black wristband on her arm displayed a full battery icon.
“So the monster this time is the Shadow Wolf? Then I’ll purify you before the other Magic Girls arrive.”
“It’s time, Blazing Flame!”
The Red-Haired Girl raised her hand, pointing the sword’s tip at the wolf, her youthful face brimming with confident smile.
* * *
“Ren, did you watch the news today?”
“No, why?”
On the campus path of University No. 3 in City A, a young man wearing a black short-sleeve shirt raised an eyebrow, looking curiously at his glasses-wearing companion.
“You didn’t? Do you know that the Red-Haired Magic Girl appeared again this morning?! The one you think is so mysterious!” The other student pushed up his glasses, his face lighting up with excitement. “And this time she showed up near Blue Cloud District—Blue Cloud District!”
“So what if it’s Blue Cloud District? What’s so special about that?” Lu Ren didn’t understand why his roommate was so excited.
“Ren, Blue Cloud District is close to us! It’s only a half-hour taxi ride!” the glasses-wearing student quickly explained. “And she appeared especially fast this time—faster than those two Magic Girls, Sapphire and Meteor. This means she probably lives near Blue Cloud District, maybe even attends our school…”
“You don’t seriously want to dig up her real identity, do you, Xu Wenxing? Are you some kind of virtual streamer fan?” Lu Ren stopped walking, feigning suspicion.
“No way, I just didn’t expect this new Magic Girl to be so close to us. It’s hard to believe,” Xu Wenxing sighed, “Turns out Magic Girls are human too.”
“That’s a given. What else could they be? Some otherworldly witches? That’s just a dark joke. Feels more believable to have them be Ancient Warriors sealing Kurol Cards.”
Lu Ren chuckled and shook his head, teasing his friend’s weird theories.
“Actually, the witch idea isn’t so bad. I thought about it and it sounds pretty cool,” Xu Wenxing said thoughtfully, suddenly considering Lu Ren’s suggestion seriously.
“Cool my foot. Magic Girls and witches are totally different,” Lu Ren smirked, “Magic Girls represent love and justice. Witches don’t. If Magic Girls were just short for witches, then this world might as well be done for, waiting for the Machine God Advent’s BadEnd.”
“Ren, come on, I was joking. Why take it so seriously?” Xu Wenxing shrugged. “You know, our Magic Girls here are different from the anime ones. The transformants are all good people, no dark turns or loss of control. No tragic scenes of a rampaging Magic Girl destroying the entire city.”
“So here’s the question…” Lu Ren grinned, imitating a classic cutscene voice, speaking in a mock serious tone, “But, my friend, what’s the price to pay?”
Xu Wenxing immediately perked up, clearing his throat twice before answering slowly, “The price is… everything you have. Okay Ren, now go buy me a green drink.”
“Get lost. You’re the one who doesn’t wear a hoodie to look cool,” Lu Ren nudged Xu Wenxing gently. “Come on, hurry up. No classes this afternoon, I’m heading back to game.”
Xu Wenxing pushed up his glasses with a smile. “Ren, you signed up for the English Level Four Test with me just yesterday, and you were swearing you’d pass it. Now you’re already talking about gaming? Aren’t you worried you’ll fail?”
“Trust me, I’ve got this. Four-level test is a breeze. Don’t stress,” Lu Ren grinned. “If I fail, I’ll just call it charity. No big deal.”
“Ren, your attitude is unbeatable. I feel like I’m seeing a preview of a college slacker’s four-year career,” Xu Wenxing joked freely.
Lu Ren smiled faintly and nodded. “Then let’s hope I can coast through all four years without trouble.”
With that, Lu Ren stretched his neck and resumed reading his novel, planning to wait until they returned to the dorm before continuing the conversation with Xu Wenxing.
Seeing Lu Ren uninterested in chatting further, Xu Wenxing fell silent as well, taking out his phone and skillfully opening the forum app to look for the latest news on Magic Girls.
Soon enough, scrolling through posts, Xu Wenxing found photos of Magic Girls taken from various angles by photographers.
With a critical yet curious mindset, he clicked into the threads. Suddenly, a mysterious smile appeared on his face as his right index finger tapped the screen repeatedly, downloading and saving every picture from the posts.
After saving all the images, Xu Wenxing exhaled contentedly, about to wish the thread starter health and happiness.
But just as he typed, something struck him. He quickly added another reply:
“Good people live long and well.”
“By the way, in the City A Magic Girl collection, besides Sapphire and Meteor, are there any other Magic Girls? Like the recently famous Blazing Flame.”
Seeing the “Reply Sent” notification on the app, a faint sense of anticipation stirred in Xu Wenxing’s chest.
Meanwhile, Lu Ren, still reading his novel, suddenly felt a chill sweep over him, like a cold draft brushing past.
He looked around, puzzled, but saw no sign of a breeze.
“Is it just my imagination? Why do I feel so cold…”
Lu Ren frowned slightly and muttered to himself.
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Your “good brother” wants to crack you, that’s what bro(sis)