The helicopter landed on the rooftop of an unremarkable office building in the city center. Lu Yuan peered through the window, gazing at the bustling city nightscape below, unable to associate this ordinary office building with the Magical Girl Headquarters.
“It’s hard to believe this is the Magical Girl Headquarters, isn’t it?” Su Li unbuckled her seatbelt. “The real headquarters is underground.”
The cabin door slid open, and several medical personnel in white uniforms hurried in, carrying unconscious Magical Girls on stretchers.
Su Li was the first to step off the helicopter, her white combat suit strikingly prominent against the night. Tian Aixing leaned against the entrance, her face as pale as paper. From overusing the Ability of the Underworld Serpent, she looked utterly drained.
“Won’t you rest properly?” Su Li asked.
“Just a minor issue…” Tian Aixing forced herself upright and noticed Lu Yuan peeking around the cabin door.
The Black Cat, after confirming no one was watching, dashed behind Su Li, swaying her twin ponytails.
Tian Aixing had been puzzled by Lu Yuan’s furtive behavior, but upon seeing Lu Yuan’s shattered combat suit, she relaxed.
“Aren’t you going to prepare some clothes for her?” Tian Aixing smiled weakly.
“Already arranged…” Su Li rubbed her forehead.
***
Five minutes later, in front of the headquarters changing room.
“This is… women’s clothing?”
Lu Yuan stared intensely at the outfit Su Li handed her.
It was clearly a girl’s JK uniform—a white blouse, a deep blue pleated skirt, and even matching accessories like a bow tie and knee-high socks.
“This is the standard uniform for Temporary Operatives, designed to blend into the crowd and avoid attention,” Su Li said matter-of-factly. “The headquarters doesn’t have a male version.”
“I’m a proud man!” Lu Yuan took a step back, gritting her teeth.
“Then let me ask you—when you kissed Lin Wan, did you do it as a boy or a girl?” Su Li asked.
“Uh…” Lu Yuan’s mind went blank. “You saw that?”
“Everyone at headquarters saw it.”
“What?!”
Lu Yuan rubbed her forehead, never expecting her first kiss to have been witnessed by so many.
“Of course, I kissed her as a girl. I have no physical desire for her!” Lu Yuan argued.
Kissing as a boy felt strange somehow.
“See? That’s perfect. You’re a girl now.” Su Li pushed the JK uniform back in front of Lu Yuan.
“I! Refuse! I’d rather starve! Die outside! Jump off from here! But I will never wear a JK uniform!”
Su Li sighed and gave a glance to two women in suits nearby.
The next second, Lu Yuan was pushed into the changing room by the three of them, the uniform forcibly shoved into her arms.
“Either you change yourself, or we’ll help you change,” Su Li’s voice came through the door, resolute and unyielding. “You have three minutes.”
***
Lu Yuan stared at the clothes in her hands; the soft fabric stirred a strange feeling in her heart.
“Damn it…”
She hesitated for a full two minutes until Su Li started counting down from outside: “Ten, nine, eight…”
Reluctantly, she deactivated her transformation.
Seeing her new body without the transformation for the first time, Lu Yuan stood in front of the full-length mirror. Her fingers trembled as they touched the glass.
The girl in the reflection had soft features, a slender neckline, and eyes that were unfamiliar to her—tinged with unease.
Is this… really me?
Her skin was pale and smooth, her formerly flat chest now held gentle curves, a slim waistline, and even her collarbones looked more delicate.
She instinctively reached up to touch her cheek; the girl in the mirror mirrored the motion.
So strange…
It should feel off, but the body was oddly familiar.
Her fingers slid down her neck, stopping at the transparent Crystal on her chest, where the black ink-like strands inside the Crystal slowly drifted.
“Had enough of looking?”
The sudden voice made Lu Yuan snap her head around. Su Li was perched on the high ventilation window of the changing room, watching the completely naked Lu Yuan.
That window was so high up; Lu Yuan had no idea how Su Li had managed to hang there.
“Su Li?! You pervert!”
“I was just wondering why you hadn’t moved for so long…”
“Then you’re still a pervert! Get lost!”
Lu Yuan grabbed a piece of clothing and flung it at Su Li’s face.
Su Li made a muffled sound and fell off the window.
“Idiot! Lustful pervert! Huge pervert!” Lu Yuan kept attacking.
Putting on the blouse went relatively smoothly. Although the tailored waist made her uncomfortable, the real challenge was yet to come…
“How the hell do you fasten this skirt’s belt?”
Lu Yuan fumbled with the adjustment buckle on the skirt’s side, almost pinching her fingers several times. The pleated fabric was so light it sent shivers down her spine the moment she wore it.
Isn’t this just hanging a piece of cloth around my waist?!
“Next are the white stockings…” Lu Yuan stood on one foot, trying to pull the stockings up, but nearly knocked over a stool in the changing room.
The lace trim at the sock opening rubbed against her calf, making her skin crawl.
***
Finally, the last piece of clothing…
Lu Yuan’s hand suddenly froze mid-air.
Nothing. The chair was completely empty.
The most important thing! The one piece she hadn’t put on! Gone!
The air fell silent.
Lu Yuan desperately tried to recall which clothing she had thrown at Su Li’s face.
No way… It can’t be.
“Ahem, ahem.” Su Li coughed twice at the door.
Lu Yuan cracked the changing room door open just a bit and forced a smile.
“Um… my underwear? Can I have it back?”
At that moment, Su Li was holding the pair of bear-patterned underwear.
“I’ll give it back…” Su Li’s face was flushed as red as an apple. She turned her head away, unable to meet Lu Yuan’s eyes.
***
Moments later, Lu Yuan awkwardly stepped out of the changing room.
Su Li was trying hard not to laugh.
“Laugh all you want,” Lu Yuan said, despairingly tugging at her skirt hem. “My heroic reputation is already ruined anyway.”
Unexpectedly, Su Li stepped forward and reached out to straighten the crooked bow tie.
“Lift your hand.”
Lu Yuan obeyed instinctively, allowing Su Li to button the cuffs on her blouse.
At this close distance, she could smell the faint strawberry scent in the girl’s hair.
“Actually…” Su Li took a step back and appraised Lu Yuan, her gaze subtle. “It suits you pretty well.”
“Suits my ass!”
The full-length mirror near the changing room door honestly reflected her current appearance: a girl who looked like a freshman in high school, her long black hair tousled from earlier struggles, cheeks still flushed.
The blouse fit snugly, outlining her figure. The skirt’s length was just above her knees. Even the stockings she’d struggled so hard to wear now hugged her calves perfectly.
If one ignored her tone, she looked exactly like a somewhat spirited high school girl.
“Don’t forget this.” A staff member suddenly handed her a pair of black leather shoes. “Standard issue.”
“Fine, fine…” Lu Yuan felt utterly resigned but took the shoes anyway.
After all, since she was wearing the skirt, a pair of shoes wouldn’t hurt.
“Let’s go.” Su Li turned away, trying to hide the smile she couldn’t suppress. “First, we’ll send you for a medical checkup.”
Lu Yuan stomped forward, every step making the skirt sway embarrassingly.
She glared fiercely at Su Li. “What are you laughing at? It’s all your fault!”