Although the image most people have of a Magic Girl is that of a beautiful girl in a pretty dress, holding a magical wand and floating midair, in truth not all Magic Girls can fly.
And even if they can, prolonged flight consumes a lot of magic power for an ordinary Magic Girl.
So, when it’s time to leave the city for a mission, taking a car is much more cost-effective—after all, Magic Girls are still regular people.
At this moment, looking at the minibus prepared to take the North Blossom City Magic Girls home, Xiaoxi felt as if she’d found her life-saving straw.
See, why do they have to take the high-speed rail? To get to North Blossom City. And what do they need to do in North Blossom City?
The first thing is to report to the Association in North Blossom City… but now, this minibus seems able to take them straight to the Association in one go.
With the high-speed rail shut down, leaving them stranded outside the city, it only made sense for them, as half-members of the North Blossom City Association, to hitch a ride on the Association’s minibus—didn’t it?
Of course, Xiaoxi’s real purpose was simply not to be caught by Xiao Keke.
If they stayed on the high-speed rail, they’d have nowhere to hide. The good news was, they had just the opportunity to slip away.
No sooner said than done. Seeing the minibus was about to leave, Xiaoxi hurriedly grabbed Ye Xinglan, picked up their luggage, and got off the train.
As for any procedural issues… the Association would help with that!
What Xiaoxi didn’t know was that, just as she got off, Xiao Keke arrived at their train car, hot on their heels.
After walking through the whole car and seeing no sign of the familiar faces, Xiao Keke frowned in confusion… Strange.
That person who looked like Xinglan-jie just got off here, so her seat should be nearby, right?
But after checking both the front and rear train cars, she still couldn’t find her sister.
It’s not like her sister could’ve hidden outside the train, right? That doesn’t make sense!
Meanwhile, after explaining their situation to the people on the minibus, Xiaoxi’s request to board was not rejected.
There were over a dozen seats on the bus, and taking on two more people was no problem.
The Magic Girls who had fought the Worm Monster were all sitting up front chatting; when the two boarded, they greeted them amicably.
However, since the two had things to discuss and didn’t want to sit with others, Xiaoxi led Xingdiao to the back row.
There, by the window in the very last row, sat Qiuli—the girl who’d greeted Xiaoxi earlier.
Qiuli sat alone at the back, gazing out the window. Compared to the lively chatter up front, she looked out of place, as if from another world.
When she saw Xiaoxi coming, Qiuli just nodded in greeting, not saying a word.
It wasn’t until the minibus slowly pulled away, leaving the high-speed rail behind, that Xiaoxi finally breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
It seemed Xiao Keke hadn’t noticed the minibus outside, so naturally she wouldn’t imagine her smart and cunning big sister could come up with such a top-level scheme, worthy of Zhongli’s feigned death.
In fact, since Xiao Keke had started searching every car the moment she got on, she never even noticed there was a minibus outside.
The two sat in the row in front of Qiuli.
Xingdiao lowered her voice and spoke softly: “So tell me, why are you so set on hiding your identity as a Magic Girl from Keke? Wouldn’t it be a good thing for you sisters to work together?”
Xingdiao truly hadn’t expected that there were so many Magic Girls hidden around her.
But honestly, for her—the grand Blood Moon Witch—to fall in love with a Magic Girl, it was still hard to believe.
Come to think of it, is it possible that Eternal Star, that bastard, is actually someone I already know?
The thought popped into Xingdiao’s mind without warning.
“You don’t understand, Xingdiao. It’s not that simple,” Xiaoxi sighed.
“I’m just afraid the kid will get mad. Maybe you don’t know, but she used to really hate me as her sister. There was a period where our relationship was really tense.”
Xingdiao honestly didn’t believe it. Judging from their personalities, Xiaoxi and Xiao Keke didn’t seem like the type of sisters who’d fight at home over little things.
“Didn’t I tell you before? Keke really admires Eternal Star, so being a Magic Girl has always been her dream. But that was during the Great Chaos Era! Can you imagine how dangerous that dream was back then?”
“That’s why I always opposed her dream, and kept criticizing Eternal Star in front of her… If Keke finds out Sirius is actually her big sister, she’d think I’m a hypocrite, right? Condemning her dream of becoming a Magic Girl, while secretly becoming one myself.”
“You, a die-hard fan, even trashed Eternal Star? How did you do it?” Xiaoxi’s words piqued Xinglan’s curiosity.
Xiaoxi looked away, a little guilty.
“Like… when Keke said Eternal Star was strong and righteous, I’d argue back that maybe that was all an act. Maybe Eternal Star was just a shut-in otaku in private, ha ha…”
“But after watching that kid join the Association and step by step make it this far, I started to wonder if I’d been wrong. She… really does have a talent for being a Magic Girl.”
Xiaoxi recalled Little Red Riding Hood’s silhouette during the recent fight.
For a moment, she was lost in thought.
It had only been a few months, but that newbie who didn’t even know how to use a Standard Magic Wand had already grown into a capable Magic Girl.
“If Keke really has this talent, and I kill her future in the name of ‘for her own good,’ how am I any different from those annoying parents? But I just can’t let go. No one knows how dangerous the Magic Girl profession is better than me…”
The words were barely out of her mouth when Xiaoxi realized she’d let her true feelings slip.
In Ye Xinglan’s eyes, she was just a C-rank Magical Girl—where did she get such an old-soul attitude?
Sure enough, Xinglan didn’t reply, and an awkward silence fell between them.
“Sorry, Xinglan, is this topic too heavy and boring? Let’s talk about something else.”
“No, not at all. Actually, I wanted to comfort you or give you some advice,” Xinglan patted Xiaoxi’s head.
“But issues of family are totally outside my area of expertise. Think about it—I don’t even have () myself, how could I possibly understand sisterly problems?”
Xiaoxi: “…”
Xiaoxi sighed, pulling out her phone, ready to gently remind Jie Tianxin not to use so much Network Jargon in front of her at night.
Rich Girl really is the type who comes from the mud and gets covered in it!
But just as she picked up her phone, she was bombarded with a flood of messages. Xiao Keke’s notifications were popping up nonstop.
“Big sis, you’re not dead, right? I have something important to tell you.”
“Where are you, are you there?”
“Answer me!”
Xiaoxi’s face changed. That brat was definitely suspicious now. Couldn’t find her, so she started probing like this, huh?
Just then, the video call ringtone sounded. Xiaoxi jumped in surprise and instinctively hit reject.
In this situation, picking up a video call would give her away!
She might even have to work with Xiao Keke in North Blossom City later—she couldn’t afford to sow seeds of suspicion now.
“I’m busy, can’t answer the phone right now. If it’s important, just send a message. I’ll check when I have time.”
Xiao Keke replied almost instantly:
“But sis, you don’t have any other proper job, and you don’t have to go to Miss Su Ying’s place at this hour. What could you possibly be so busy with in broad daylight that you can’t answer your phone?”
Before Xiaoxi could even process that message, another video call came in, the ringtone ringing like a death knell.
Xiaoxi sucked in a cold breath. It looked like this brat was determined to get to the bottom of things this time!