Lin Guanqi naturally didn’t believe it. If information could really be passed along that quickly, would he have ended up in this predicament? He couldn’t trust anyone—not even the System.
“If I believed you, I feel like I’d never be able to straighten my back for the rest of my life!”
Lin Guanqi said irritably.
At that moment, the Rock Guardian had already shaken off its stiffness and started moving forward. To stop its advance, Lin Guanqi tossed another flashbang.
There were only 6 tries left—that meant 12 seconds. If no one arrived within those 12 seconds, he could just declare the game over.
“Lin Guanqi, you ran so fast. I thought you already had a solution, but it seems you’re out of options?”
Bai Ningbing appeared at Lin Guanqi’s side just then. She had taken on a pure white appearance, now in her Magical Girl form.
With Bai Ningbing’s help, he could solve this problem quickly.
But Bai Ningbing would never help so easily.
There had to be a condition.
“Since you’re here, then hurry and help! If the Rock Guardian gets into the residential area, it’ll be too late!”
Bai Ningbing wore a look of indifference, as if to say, what did the Rock Guardian’s progress have to do with her?
She had always used her powers only to protect those she wished to protect. After all, the stronger someone was, the harder it was to live at ease!
“I have conditions. I can step in and help them—but I need you to accompany me for one night. Otherwise, there’s nothing to discuss.”
After speaking, Bai Ningbing turned her head away, looking utterly reluctant.
Why, as a Magical Girl, was she so unwilling to help? Lin Guanqi couldn’t understand.
Aren’t Magical Girls supposed to use their power to do what they can? Why did she find it so difficult to do even that?
“Why don’t you want to help? You’re so strong, why are you so fixated on me?”
Bai Ningbing fell silent for a moment before finally replying, “I became strong because of you. It’s to protect you that I’ve gotten this strong. My power exists for your sake, not to save others.”
She spoke logically and clearly. Lin Guanqi could be sure of one thing: aside from their last encounter, this was only their first real meeting. He had no memories of meeting her before. So just whose obsession was this? Or had she mistaken him for someone else?
She wasn’t a woman through and through, at least not in her heart, but she couldn’t accept being someone’s substitute either. Even when she was still a guy, she would have made the same choice.
“Roar!”
The Rock Guardian began to accelerate. If he didn’t stop it now, the mission would really fail!
“Fine, I promise! I’ll accompany you for one night, just hurry and handle it!”
After this incident, Lin Guanqi fully understood: if you’re not strong enough, you’ll always be the one getting squeezed.
Upon receiving confirmation, Bai Ningbing acted immediately. Drawing the long blade at her waist, she struck downward. A huge icicle burst from beneath the monster’s feet.
Just like last time, it managed to halt the beast.
But the problem wasn’t completely solved.
Lin Guanqi became anxious.
“You should finish it off! You stopped it from moving, but it’s still here. The threat isn’t gone.”
“Eliminating it is another matter. I only promised to stop it.”
Wasn’t this just her openly raising the price?
If Lin Guanqi agreed now, there would be endless requests in the future. He mustn’t keep compromising!
So Lin Guanqi retorted, “If I agree to you today, there’ll just be a flood of demands in the future. I’ll handle this myself!”
With that, Lin Guanqi prepared to face the monster alone. But just how difficult was that?
He didn’t have the power to truly fight the Rock Guardian; all he could do was slow its advance.
Fireballs crashed down again and again on the Rock Guardian.
[Magicka depleted. If Host continues, there is a risk of going into shock!]
Shock? Even so, she had to fulfill her duty. She was a Magical Girl—not only did she have to bear the responsibilities that came with that title, she also had to complete her mission.
Each step weighed her down until she could barely breathe.
[Host, please stop immediately!!!]
[Activating forced protection measures!!]
Suddenly, Lin Guanqi’s vision went black. Her strength gave out, and she fell backward. Bai Ningbing caught her from behind.
Her expression hardly changed, but inside, she was deeply worried for Lin Guanqi.
“I must owe you from a previous life… Is it really that hard to agree to be mine?”
As soon as she finished, a cold flash shot out, and a deep sword mark was carved into the Rock Guardian’s center.
One minute later, the Rock Guardian split in two.
At last, the trouble was thoroughly resolved.
When the other Magical Girls, who’d gotten word, rushed over, all they saw was the dismantled Rock Guardian. They looked utterly bewildered.
Was there any need for them to show up? With a single strike, the Rock Guardian had been split in half, and there weren’t even signs of a real battle at the scene.
Just how overwhelming was the other side’s strength?
Xingye Villa.
Lin Guanqi woke up on a large bed, staring at an unfamiliar ceiling. On reflex, she checked her clothes—fortunately, they were tidy.
But where exactly was this place?
She started recalling what happened before she blacked out. It turned out the System had forcibly put her into dormancy.
Otherwise, would her life have been at risk?
“Looks like you’re not completely heartless after all, System! You knew that if your Host died, you’d lose out on your own evaluation, so you forced me into sleep? So, is the Rock Guardian dead?”
[It’s dead, alright. Host, you’re not trying to claim credit, are you? You didn’t do a thing—you just fell down and it was all over.]
Lin Guanqi was immediately disgruntled. Was it her fault she’d run out of Magicka and couldn’t defeat the enemy? She’d done her best, okay!
Lin Guanqi was thoroughly displeased.
[Fine, Host did put in effort. For this task, this System will take the liberty of marking it as completed for you!]
[Congratulations, Host, mission accomplished! 50,000 yuan reward has been credited!]
[Popularity +10]
Her Popularity was still increasing at a snail’s pace. The main reason was that Lin Guanqi hadn’t made a name for herself, so she always played a supporting role. Most of the Popularity inevitably went to Bai Ningbing.
That was hardly surprising. In fact, it was already extremely lucky that Lin Guanqi could get a little of the leftovers.
Lin Guanqi rubbed her forehead. Why had Bai Ningbing stepped in at the end yesterday? That was something he’d never figured out.
If she was going to act, why wait until he’d passed out before making her move?
Too many questions. Lin Guanqi had no idea where to begin.