Chapter 13: The Date

After sending the two little ones back to the Magical Girl Division, satisfied and full, it was nearly time to get off work.

But Shui Hua wasn’t in a hurry to leave.

She found a quiet corner, leaned against the cold wall, and lit up her phone screen.

With practiced ease, she logged out of her usual social media accounts and switched to the one she used almost exclusively for Magical Girl business, the one with her Official Promo Picture as its avatar.

Sure enough, there was a new friend request clearly displayed in the notification bar.

The avatar was a silhouette of a blonde girl in profile, and the note was direct and simple—

“I’m Magical Girl Liu Jin.”

Shui Hua clicked accept.

Almost the instant the friend connection was established, the top of the chat box showed

“The other party is typing.”

Immediately after, several messages popped up one after another, so quickly that Shui Hua could almost feel the nervousness from the other side of the screen.

Liu Jin:

“Hi Shui Hua.”

Liu Jin:

“I got your contact info from your Minister, Xing Li. Hope you don’t mind. (>﹏<)”

Liu Jin:

“The Banner and Bonus before were official thanks and rewards. But I’ve always felt that wasn’t enough. I wanted to thank you properly, personally.”

Liu Jin:

“Are you free this weekend?”

The purpose of the string of messages was obvious. Shui Hua looked at the screen, thought to herself, “Just as I thought,” and replied crisply.

Shui Hua:

“I’m free all day Sunday.”

Liu Jin:

“Then how about Sunday noon? We can meet at Xingyue Plaza in the central district—there are a lot of restaurants there, plenty of choices.”

Shui Hua:

“Okay.”

After sending those two words, Shui Hua looked at her own reply, so succinct it bordered on cold, then glanced at the other party’s slightly cautious and enthusiastic tone.

A fleeting thought crossed her mind—

“Was that too cold?”

But she quickly squashed the hesitation.

No, better not give this kid any unrealistic fantasies.

Without further replies, she immediately switched her account back.

***

Thursday was, as usual, Yu Hua’s workday as a Magical Girl.

With no afternoon classes, he napped until one, and was about to head to the branch office when his phone vibrated in his pocket.

Taking it out, he saw a private message from Lin Ling on QQ:

“Yu Hua, brother, are you free right now? Could you wait for me for a bit on the Rooftop of the B6 Teaching Building?”

Yu Hua glanced over at Lin Ling’s seat.

That guy was sitting upright, a thick professional textbook open in front of him, but his fingers were flying across his phone screen, his expression calm and unreadable.

Yu Hua guessed that Lin Ling wanted to avoid their other two roommates.

Without giving anything away, he got up and left the room.

Only when he reached the hallway did he reply.

“What’s up? So secretive.”

“There’s something important I want to ask you face-to-face.”

Lin Ling replied quickly.

“Alright. I have something later this afternoon, so let’s make it quick.”

Yu Hua replied, already more than half guessing what this was about.

He headed to the Rooftop of the B6 Teaching Building.

The place was cluttered and completely empty.

With his years of experience transforming into a Magical Girl, Yu Hua guessed this was probably Lin Ling’s usual transformation spot.

He quietly made a note to keep his own transformations far away from here in the future.

After about two or three minutes, the Iron Door to the rooftop was pushed open.

Lin Ling ran up, a little out of breath.

“Yu Hua, brother, sorry for bothering you.”

He adjusted his glasses, his tone apologetic.

“What’s so important that you have to say it here?”

Yu Hua leaned against the railing.

Lin Ling glanced back at the firmly closed Iron Door, then lowered his voice.

“Because… there are some things I can’t let Old Wang and Little Liu overhear. It’s safer here.”

“Go on.”

Yu Hua gestured for him to continue.

Without another word, Lin Ling was suddenly surrounded by a golden glow, which enveloped his body from the ground up.

His figure gradually became slender, his black hair replaced by short, sleek golden locks, his plain clothes replaced by a dazzling white-gold battle dress—

Magical Girl Liu Jin appeared before Yu Hua.

“What the—can’t you just say what you want? Why’d you have to transform?”

Yu Hua was startled by the sudden display.

“Uh…”

Liu Jin was taken aback herself, glanced down at her outfit, then awkwardly explained, “I just thought… it might be easier to explain in this form.”

She took a deep breath, as if steeling herself.

“Actually, the one I said I fell in love with at first sight… is a Magical Girl. Magical Girl Shui Hua, from our Dongjiang District.”

“Oh!”

Yu Hua immediately put on a just-right expression of surprise and gossip.

“I saw her in the News, right? She’s the one who saved you last time? So what about it?”

“You know, when I met her, I was in my Magical Girl Liu Jin form. But…”

Liu Jin’s face was filled with anxiety.

“When I’m like this, I have no idea how to naturally get closer. Some things… are really hard to say between two girls. But if I show up as my real self, it’ll be super abrupt, and I don’t even know how to explain it… Yu Hua, brother, what should I do?”

“You’re asking me…”

Yu Hua shrugged helplessly, playing the part of an oblivious outsider.

“There’s nothing in my Database about a ‘Magical Girl with a crush on another Magical Girl.’ I really can’t give you a standard answer.”

But seeing how genuinely troubled Liu Jin looked, Yu Hua didn’t want to shoot her down directly.

Instead, he used a gently encouraging tone.

“Here’s what I think… You can try to feel things out as a Magical Girl first—see how she responds? If she’s interested and willing to develop something more than friendship, you can always come clean later. Of course—”

Yu Hua decided to throw in a dash of cold water ahead of time:

“But if she only sees you as a senior, don’t go overboard. It’d be bad to make her uncomfortable, right?”

“And besides, brother, First Love at First Sight is a beautiful phrase, but it’s got a fair bit of impulsiveness in it. Think about it—you’re so rich—uh, I mean, outstanding. Do you really need to hang yourself on one tree? Keep your eyes open and see the world, Lin bro.”

Liu Jin nodded thoughtfully, the confusion in her golden eyes fading a little.

“Yu Hua, brother, you’re right…”

“Don’t dwell on it too much. If it works, great; if it doesn’t, just part on good terms. No need for all this mental anguish.”

Yu Hua felt like a relationship guru.

Once he confirmed the plan was on track, Yu Hua remembered his shift and prepared to make his exit.

“Lin bro, you’re a big celebrity too, aren’t you busy? I’ve got something too, so I won’t hold you up. If you need more advice, just come find me.”

He was just turning to leave when Liu Jin called out, a hint of pleading in her tone.

“Yu Hua, brother, wait! Um… are you free Saturday during the day?”

“Uh… might be free in the evening, but during the day? Not likely.”

“That’s fine, the timing should work. Thing is,” Liu Jin rubbed her hands together, a bit embarrassed, “I… I really don’t know what to prepare for a date, or what I should be mindful of. You’re experienced, Yu Hua, brother—could you come check out the date spot with me on Saturday and give me some advice? Please!”

On the surface, Liu Jin’s request was perfectly normal, but to Yu Hua it felt a little odd—planning a strategy to chase himself, huh.

Still, using the time to optimize the plan and avoid any unexpected trouble wasn’t a bad idea.

“Alright, alright, seeing as you gave me 980,000 hush money, I’ll consider this after-sales service. Send me the place.”