“Huh? Sister Xiao Yuan, now isn’t the time for this. Someone fainted…”
Luo Tianyou was a bit confused.
“They just overexerted their mental strength. They’ll be fine after a nap. I just checked; there’s nothing seriously wrong.”
Xiao Yuan interrupted her with a smile, gently patting Luo Tianyou’s back before looking at Tsukishita Ruri again.
“Now that Flora is gone, as an older sister, I have to care more about our little Tianyou’s love life. A magical girl’s lifespan is much longer than a normal person’s. Emptiness, loneliness, and coldness are emotions almost every magical girl must experience, so having an emotional anchor is very important.”
Tsukishita Ruri stood with her arms crossed, leaning against a concrete pillar as a quiet observer.
Xiao Yuan withdrew her gaze and continued, “Besides, our little Tianyou is so beautiful, so cute, has inherited Flora’s power, and is so kind and brave. Surely many people like you? Have you met anyone who makes you feel special?”
“No.”
She had only recently become a magical girl—and recently become a girl at all.
She didn’t like men in the first place.
Why was Sister Xiao Yuan asking such a thing out of the blue? Did a magical girl absolutely have to fall in love?
Luo Tianyou nestled into Xiao Yuan’s embrace.
The soft, warm chest made her feel very secure.
“Really no one?”
“Really no one.”
Luo Tianyou couldn’t understand.
Sister Xiao Yuan said herself that a magical girl’s lifespan exceeds that of a normal person, so why should she bother looking for…
Wait.
Luo Tianyou raised her head and blinked.
Was Sister Xiao Yuan hinting that she should find a partner who was also a magical girl?
But how many magical girls did she even know?
Her mother, Flora—that woman who always loved playing pranks but had prepared everything for her—would probably clap her hands and say, “That’s right, that’s right! The ones Mommy found for you are all good girls!”
Then there was Sister Xiao Yuan, currently holding her tenderly—mature, powerful, and tolerant, as comforting as a safe harbor.
Then Tsukishita Ruri’s mature, wicked face forced its way into her mind.
“I’m sorry, Luo Tianyou…”
Pah!
Stinky dog!
I’ll kick you with my big feet.
Luo Tianyou shook her head vigorously, tossing that figure out of her mind.
She still hated Tsukishita Ruri.
That feeling of being controlled like a piece of property was something she never wanted to experience again.
Besides, so what if Tsukishita Ruri apologized? She didn’t go around biting others; she only bit me.
She was specifically targeting me.
Who knows if she’s just being deceptive?
Who’s going to give her a ‘non-biting’ certification?
“What’s wrong?” Xiao Yuan noticed the sudden shift in Luo Tianyou’s emotions and looked down at her.
“It’s nothing,” Luo Tianyou said gloomily, burying her face further into Xiao Yuan’s embrace.
“Sister Xiao Yuan, I don’t want to think about these things right now.”
Xiao Yuan’s fingers brushed through Luo Tianyou’s slightly messy hair.
…Forget it.
Xiao Yuan didn’t push further, only hugging her more gently.
“If you don’t want to talk about it, then don’t. But little Tianyou, can Sister give you a suggestion?”
“Hmm?” Luo Tianyou looked up.
“The Magical Girl Selection and Training Event in half a month is essentially designed to bring scattered, untrained magical girls into the management system, and also to discover talent. But for you, it’s also a very good opportunity.”
“First, you can systematically learn the basic knowledge of a magical girl: combat techniques, mana usage, barrier theory, monster identification… these are the things you lack most right now. The power Flora left you is very strong, but do you know how to use it?”
Xiao Yuan tapped Luo Tianyou’s forehead.
Luo Tianyou blushed, unable to argue.
“Second, after the selection ends, those with excellent grades can enter the Starry Vault Academy’s Special Advanced Class. That is a special internal academy for magical girls. Only those with certain qualifications and potential can enter. There, you can interact with more magical girls of your age and see a wider world, rather than…”
Xiao Yuan didn’t finish, but Luo Tianyou understood.
Rather than leaving, which had been her previous plan.
“The academy has all kinds of people. There are those who simply want to become stronger, those burdened with missions, and those who, like you, are lost and searching for a direction.”
Xiao Yuan’s voice was very gentle.
“Go and see, little Tianyou. At least give yourself one more choice, one more path.”
Luo Tianyou was silent for a while, then slowly nodded.
“I’ll think about it.”
“Good.”
Xiao Yuan smiled.
Just as she was about to say something else, the sound of approaching vehicles came from the distance.
Several black off-road vehicles bearing the Bureau’s logo pulled to a stop.
The doors opened, and Zhou Zheng and Lin Weiwei walked over quickly.
Neither of them looked very well.
“Lord Xiao Yuan, Lord Tsukishita!”
Zhou Zheng trotted over, his expression serious and conflicted.
“We have a preliminary understanding of the situation here…”
He hesitated, so Lin Weiwei picked up the thread.
“Such a large residential area was controlled by the Kyriel’s residual power for possibly over 48 hours. During this period, no abnormality reports were uploaded. The Bureau’s routine patrol records show that everything in this area was normal.”
“We pulled the internal communication records and found that the three team leaders responsible for this area, as well as their superiors, reported ‘no abnormalities’ for the past two days. We just contacted them; they were all in the East City Entertainment District.”
Zhou Zheng’s face darkened further.
“After the Kyriel incident, nearly half of the members of the two squads sent here to assist in cordoning off the scene took temporary leave and have not yet returned.”
The implication couldn’t be clearer—inside the Bureau, someone had been bribed, or from the very beginning, they were in league with those controlled by the Kyriel.
Tsukishita Ruri stepped out from behind the concrete pillar, standing in the shadows a few paces away, her face expressionless.
“Process everyone who needs to be processed.”
“Yes!” Zhou Zheng responded immediately.
“I’ll leave the aftermath to you. Handle the residents’ medical care, relocation, and the purification of barrier residue according to standard procedures. If anyone asks about tonight…”
Xiao Yuan glanced at Lin Weiwei.
“Understood. We will say it was an undisclosed joint exercise to test new barrier-countering technology,” Lin Weiwei reacted quickly.
Xiao Yuan nodded and turned to look at Luo Tianyou.
“Little Tianyou, you take them back to rest first. Leave things here to us.”
Li Huayu, Sister Chen, and Chen Xiaoyu were taken to a car.
Luo Tianyou sat in the passenger seat.
While Tsukishita Ruri stayed behind to talk with Xiao Yuan and Zhou Zheng, it was Lin Weiwei who escorted her back.
Luo Tianyou wasn’t sure if it was an illusion, but Lin Weiwei felt that this successor to the former Starry Witch currently gave off a very special vibe.
Even though she looked like a young girl, one would hallucinate her as a mature woman.
‘She’s a child who could be my mother.’
The phrase frequently used in recent magical girl circles popped into Lin Weiwei’s mind.
“Miss Tianyou, are we going back to the hotel in the city?”
Having become more familiar, Lin Weiwei changed her address to Miss Tianyou to sound more intimate.
“No, let’s change to a different hotel. Somewhere cheaper.”
“In that case, I can arrange accommodations next to the Bureau. If you stay next to me, I can properly protect you, Miss Tianyou.”
“…Okay, let’s do that for now.”
Luo Tianyou leaned her head and looked out the window.
Tsukishita Ruri wanted her to participate in the selection, and Sister Xiao Yuan also wanted her to participate. Was this magical girl selection really that important?
She decided to agree to Xiao Yuan’s suggestion.
The car window reflected a body of mature beauty and grace, its eyes closed.
This was the second body.
A thought suddenly occurred to Luo Tianyou.