“Miss Xingge wouldn’t want her two adorable juniors to get hurt, would she?”
Xingge never expected the Association’s plan to be leaked, or perhaps this entire Black Market investigation was a trap from the start?
Right now, Xingge could easily subdue Scar-Eye, but she dared not act rashly.
Therefore, Scar-Eye showed no fear of the looming Xingge, boldly placing a recorder on the table.
“Hello there, esteemed Miss Xingge.”
A woman’s lazy voice came from the recorder.
“I’m glad you listened to the recording, which proves the Association isn’t useless—they managed to trace the Black Market through the clues I left behind. What a joyous occasion, congratulations on falling into my trap.”
“I want to consult you on something. How do you like the news headline: ‘Xiahai City Magic Girl Association—All Show, No Power to Handle Magical Creature Disasters’?”
“Just imagine—if an A+ Rank Monster suddenly appears in Xiahai City, and the city’s strongest combatant, the Bailing Songstress, who should be controlling the situation, doesn’t show up, what do you think will happen?”
“Alright, I guess you’re anxious now, but don’t be. I’ve provided Scar-Eye with plenty of C-rank Monsters as security guards. I know these Monsters are nothing to Miss Xingge, but for your two adorable juniors… tsk tsk tsk.”
“Now you can make a choice—sacrifice your two juniors by sending them out to help, or obediently wait in the Black Market while that A+ Rank Monster wreaks havoc in Xiahai City.”
“Lastly, I hope you’ll pass a message to your good teammate, Eternal Star. Tell her… I’m very curious about her, the strongest Magic Girl, and I’d love to meet her someday.”
“That’s all. I hope you won’t make a decision you’ll regret~”
When the recording ended, Xingge’s expression had grown grim.
There was no signal inside the Black Market, so she couldn’t contact the outside world and had no way to verify the recording’s truth.
But if it was true, with an S-Rank Magic Girl like herself unable to intervene, even if the other Magic Girls managed to control the situation, an A+ Rank Monster alone could cause immense chaos in Xiahai City!
With that thought, Xingge’s gaze darkened as she stared at Scar-Eye.
“Hehehe! Don’t look at me with such scary eyes. Calm down, your two adorable juniors are still in my hands…”
Before Scar-Eye could finish, the heavy doors of the Reception Room were suddenly blasted open with a loud crash, and a dazed waiter was thrown in front of Scar-Eye.
“Senior, are you alright?”
Scar-Eye’s eyes nearly popped out of his skull at the sight of two Magic Girls standing at the doorway.
Impossible!
According to the original plan, after Xingge entered the underground Reception Room, those left upstairs were supposed to deal with these two Magic Girls—tied up and delivered right to him!
Damn it, did Black Rose send him idiots?
Weren’t they supposed to be at least C-rank Monsters?
How could they fail to handle two D-Rank rookie Magic Girls?
“Senior, this is the mastermind behind everything, right?”
Xiaoxi flicked her wrist and strode toward Scar-Eye.
Honestly, since noon her mood hadn’t been great, so when those waiters suddenly attacked earlier, Xiaoxi hadn’t held back at all—she really enjoyed beating them up.
Though she wasn’t violent by nature, when someone hands her a chance to vent, she was happy to take it.
Now, she hoped Scar-Eye would put up a fight at least.
“Oh oh oh! Friend, let’s talk this through nicely!”
Scar-Eye was starting to panic. Earlier, he had been so brazen because Black Rose promised him that as long as he controlled Xingge’s two teammates, this job would be safe.
Scar-Eye was a businessman; no businessman wants to risk his life for a deal. Seeing Xiaoxi steadily approaching, he immediately decided to back down.
“Listen, listen! We can negotiate everything—I’m just doing someone else’s bidding.”
“Girls shouldn’t be so fierce. Too fierce and you might never find a boyfriend…”
Scar-Eye’s words were cut off as Xiaoxi’s fist landed squarely on his face, knocking him out cold with lightning speed, even Xingge hadn’t reacted fast enough.
Xiaoxi exhaled deeply. She was definitely just trying to quickly deal with the enemy, not because Scar-Eye’s words had suddenly angered her. After all, she and Ye Xinglan were only pretending to be a couple, so her moving away didn’t really matter.
Xingge frowned, having no time to worry about Sirius’s strength. She grabbed the unconscious Scar-Eye by the collar and motioned for the two to follow her.
“Let’s leave the Black Market first—time for the Distraction Strategy!”
After they quickly exited the Black Market, their phones and Communicators regained signal almost simultaneously, and all three devices suddenly blared with the Association’s Safety Alarm.
This alarm was sent to every Magic Girl in the city during major crises, meaning the current emergency threatened all of Xiahai City!
Xingge’s face darkened. How could this be? Even with an A+ Rank Monster in the city, it shouldn’t threaten the entire city; the remaining Magic Girls should be able to handle it together!
Could it be… there was a higher-ranked Monster in the city, maybe even an S-Rank?
Before Xingge could confirm, Miss L’s voice rang out simultaneously from all their Communicators.
“Great, finally got through to you! I’ll keep it brief—North Avenue is in trouble!”
“Is it a Monster attack? I’m heading there now!” Xingge said as she took to the air, ready to support.
“No, it’s worse… Ten minutes ago, the escaped Blood Moon Witch appeared on North Avenue.”
“She’s on the run now, and all Magic Girls in Xiahai City have been dispatched to track her down!”
Blood Moon Witch? Xingge was stunned; the situation was far beyond what she had expected.
Just as Xingge prepared to instruct the others to escort Scar-Eye back to the Association, she turned and realized Sirius had vanished without a trace.
Xingge gazed toward North Avenue—under the vast clear sky, Xiahai City looked nothing like a place hit by an A+ Rank Monster.
……
Not long before, on the bustling commercial street of North Avenue.
The commercial district of North Avenue was one of the busiest areas in Xiahai City.
Ye Xinglan sat chatting and laughing with a few girls at a snack stall.
“Xinglan, I didn’t expect you to be so elegant in person. I was shocked when I first met you.”
“What? What did you expect me to look like?”
“It’s not about looks. We always thought you’d be the gaming otaku type because you get so intense when playing games. People would think you really hated Magic Girls with how aggressively you play!”
Ye Xinglan chuckled softly, offering no explanation.
As they chatted, Ye Xinglan suddenly paused.
In that moment, an uncomfortable feeling spread from the soles of her feet through her whole body.
She frowned and looked toward the source of the feeling, spotting a stylishly dressed woman with dark skin and striking tattoos of thorns and roses crawling up her entire arm.
But in the next instant, the woman vanished into the crowd, and Ye Xinglan lost sight of her.
“Xinglan? Xinglan? Are you listening?”
It wasn’t until someone waved a hand in front of her face that Ye Xinglan snapped back to reality.
“Hm? Sorry, I was distracted. What did you say?”
“Sister Tianxin said she’s going to buy some milk tea over there. What flavor do you want?”
The girl named Jie Tianxin grinned when Ye Xinglan looked at her.
“Wait a sec, let me think…”
The three or four girls sitting with Ye Xinglan were online friends she had met through gaming recently.
Before this, she had almost no normal social interactions, so discovering the joy of hanging out with friends was new to her.
But she hadn’t expected to meet them in person. And she hadn’t realized those friends she often teamed up with in the guild were all from Xiahai City.
“Oh, by the way, I heard there was a Monster Attack incident this morning at the Commercial Plaza on North Avenue.”
“Wow, what a coincidence. Didn’t Jie Tianxin say she was shopping with her mom at the plaza this morning? I’ll ask her about it later…”
Ye Xinglan’s words suddenly trailed off as the uneasy feeling returned, even stronger this time.
A completely black cocoon was quietly hovering in midair, directly above the crowded North Avenue.
This was… a Monster Cocoon?
The strange phenomenon happened almost instantly. As the Monster’s roar echoed through the commercial street, everyone froze in place.
From the cocoon, several pitch-black tentacles erupted, thick black viscous fluid coating it as it expanded rapidly.
Within moments, a Monster nearly five or six meters tall crashed down onto the Fountain Plaza.
The Monster had no fixed form—its entire body was covered in fleshy tumors, constantly shifting, with countless tentacles emerging from its ever-changing form, slamming hard into the surrounding streets.
This Tentacle Monster… at least had A-level magical energy? Impossible! How could such a high-level Monster appear in the city without warning?
Ye Xinglan’s eyes widened in shock, but she had no time to dwell on it. One of her friends grabbed her arm and started running, chaos erupting across the commercial street.
No worries—the tentacle Monster’s large size made it slow. They were far enough away to avoid injury.
Ye Xinglan steeled herself. The Association’s Magic Girls would arrive soon to save the day. This Monster’s appearance wasn’t the Blood Moon Witch’s doing, and her friends were safe.
Sure enough, several Magic Girls arrived quickly from different directions and engaged the massive Monster. But from a distance, Ye Xinglan frowned.
The Association’s support was fast, but with a Monster of this level, what good was sending only C and B-rank Magic Girls?
Shouldn’t the first to show up be the S-Rank Bailing Songstress?
“Wait, look! That Monster grabbed Tianxin!”
The shout from nearby drew Ye Xinglan’s attention. Following the pointing finger, she saw a figure caught in the Monster’s tentacles.
Though far away, Ye Xinglan recognized the trapped person—it was Da Tianxin!
Though several Magic Girls surrounded the Monster, the tentacles’ overwhelming numbers pinned each one in a fierce fight. None could come to Da Tianxin’s aid.
Ye Xinglan watched helplessly as the tentacle holding Da Tianxin retracted, about to swallow her whole.
Ye Xinglan clenched her fists, nails digging into her flesh.
She hesitated. Since escaping the Hidden Bone Hall, she hadn’t transformed once—not only to avoid the Association, but because her form was unstable.
The Divine Summon Order’s control left aftereffects.
But if she did nothing, Da Tianxin would be devoured by the Monster.
She wasn’t a saint, but she couldn’t stand by and watch her friend get eaten.
Damn it… she always knew the Association and Magic Girls were useless—all just a bunch of incompetents!
And what about Eternal Star? Isn’t she the one who loves to meddle the most?
She handled even those weak Monsters on South Avenue before; why isn’t she here today?
“Hu…”
“Death. Crimson. The Blood Moon hanging high.”
“Mourn—it’s the end of eternal night. None shall find release.”
Ye Xinglan’s friends didn’t notice her quietly disappearing.
In front of the Monster, a crimson flower quietly bloomed.
From the flower emerged an imposing figure. The enormous Monster even paused briefly, instinctively fearing the small silhouette before it.
“You are…”
The Magic Girls nearby were momentarily stunned.
Her long black hair tipped with red dye, the simple black-and-red dress, bare feet, and that terrifying scythe—was there such a Magic Girl in the Association?
A savage glint flickered in Ye Lilan’s crimson eyes. The aftereffects left by the Divine Summon Order made each transformation painful, with fragmented dark memories flashing through her mind.
The battle ended almost instantly—a flash of crimson light split the Monster cleanly in two. Ye Lilan caught Jie Tianxin mid-air and slowly descended.
“Are you alright?”
What was meant as a casual concern quickly turned into shock—her friends, who had been chatting moments ago, now stared at her in terror.
“You… you are—”
“Blood Moon Witch! Let go of that girl!”
Ye Lilan froze.
No one cheered for her saving a girl or defeating a Monster.
All the surrounding Magic Girls were even more tense than before; in an instant, all weapons were aimed at Ye Xinglan.