“Ah? Me?” Luo Shuangyue was momentarily stunned. She hadn’t expected the Soul Summoner Princess to say such things to her.
Right now, she had the distinct feeling of, ‘It’s already been decided from above—you’re to become the strongest Magical Girl.’
“There are so many powerful Full Bloom-class seniors. I don’t think I have the ability for that, do I?”
Currently, there were about three Full Bloom-class Magical Girls in the world, and even more First Bloom-class Magical Girls. Luo Shuangyue didn’t understand why the Soul Summoner Princess had singled her out.
I’m just a First Bloom, senior. Shouldn’t you be discussing the upcoming crisis with other Full Bloom-class Magical Girls instead?
You want to train me now, but how long will it take before I become strong?
“As far as I know, the Magic Department is also cultivating their own ultimate weapon. I can’t interfere with that. Among the Magical Girls who haven’t joined the Magic Department, your talent is the greatest. In you, I see the future of humanity.”
The Soul Summoner Princess spoke frankly, making it clear that she had recognized Luo Shuangyue’s talent.
A genius Magical Girl outside the Magic Department was a rare sight, and naturally, she wouldn’t hold back her care.
“So, what do you say?”
“Was the reason you asked me to help with my Mental Power just now because of this?” Luo Shuangyue twirled her hair with her finger, not answering the Soul Summoner Princess’s question directly.
“That’s right.”
“Did Monice agree to this too?”
“She has no objections.”
That answer was very straightforward.
No objections meant Monice didn’t oppose it, but the Soul Summoner Princess probably hadn’t received explicit consent from her.
Monice always behaved this way when it came to matters unrelated to her own research.
You could say she didn’t care about Luo Shuangyue, but still helped when she ran into trouble.
However, if you said Monice truly cared—she wouldn’t meddle in matters like this.
“Then I have no objections either.” Luo Shuangyue took a deep breath and replied solemnly.
She had no reason to refuse.
This senior had traveled a great distance just to help her enhance her combat ability, to make her stronger to face formidable enemies.
What reason did she have to reject such kindness?
“Good. Next, I will contact some of my friends and make you the second White Night!” The Soul Summoner Princess narrowed her eyes and warned with a slightly intimidating tone, “If you’re afraid of hardship or exhaustion, it’s still not too late to quit now.”
“That’s exactly what I’m least afraid of.”
“All right!”
Then, Luo Shuangyue was dragged by the Soul Summoner Princess to train her Mental Power all afternoon.
“Face the flames head-on! Running away or being afraid only leads to failure. Courage is the only path to victory!”
The Soul Summoner Princess swung a blade of fire toward Luo Shuangyue, shouting loudly.
Her flames wouldn’t harm physical objects, only burning the soul.
At this precise intensity, it tempered the soul of the person engulfed by the fire.
Luo Shuangyue already felt burning heat and dizziness.
Each time the Soul Summoner Princess’s fiery blade struck, it was like her head was hit hard by a heavy hammer.
Right now, she was like a piece of iron, constantly hammered by this Forgemaster, bit by bit stripping away the impurities deep within her soul, making it tougher and strengthening the quality of her Mental Power.
Not far away, in the Surveillance Room, Feiqin watched Luo Shuangyue standing unmoving amidst the flames with a complicated expression—something unspeakably melancholy.
“Feiqin senior, what are you looking at?” Xia Mo stood beside Feiqin, sharing the same complicated expression.
She understood very well that the Soul Summoner Princess wouldn’t do anything to harm Luo Shuangyue.
Luo Shuangyue was undergoing training to gain greater power.
But seeing the tense, strained expression on Luo Shuangyue’s face, enduring the pain so hard, Xia Mo couldn’t help but feel an unavoidable pang of heartache.
Plus, having just seen Yi and Xixi hugging each other and crying their eyes out, Xia Mo’s dark emotions had reached a peak.
“I regret that Dark Moth was taken away by Monice.” Feiqin’s lips curled downward.
As a true elder sister who had lost her own sibling, her mood was heavy.
Very heavy.
That was why, despite having received the mission to investigate Yi’s situation, she wasn’t at Yi’s side but here watching Luo Shuangyue being pounded.
Watching a sister say farewell to her own sibling was like rubbing salt into Feiqin’s wounds.
She simply couldn’t bear to see it.
Or rather, no Magical Girl could maintain her original state of mind in such a situation—except for Monice, the heartless bastard.
“But if she can become stronger, it’s no harm to anyone. I believe she won’t oppose the Magic Department,” Feiqin said softly.
She hadn’t interacted with Luo Shuangyue much, but those few encounters had been enough for a Magical Girl to sense each other’s true nature.
Luo Shuangyue’s nature wasn’t as bright and warm as other Magical Girls’.
There were many things hidden in her heart, but that didn’t diminish her kindness.
“Ha… I was supposed to focus on monitoring Yi’s movements, yet here I am slacking off. If the seniors at Headquarters knew, I’d definitely get scolded.”
Feiqin looked up at the ceiling and let out a long sigh.
“The seniors probably aren’t that heartless. This matter could’ve been handled by some regular members. Feiqin senior didn’t need to come personally, right?”
Xia Mo was determined to be wherever Luo Shuangyue was.
With her here and a few trustworthy researchers brought over from the Magic Department, it would be enough to ensure Eternal Night’s research on Yi didn’t cross any lines.
Feiqin really didn’t need to be here.
“I don’t trust Monice. I know I’m taking it out on her, but I just can’t control this impulse.” Feiqin continued staring at the ceiling.
The image of that young girl sobbing over her sister in the cold, desolate room reminded her of herself many years ago.
That day, she too had held her sister, crying as she felt life slip away bit by bit from her body.
Monice sat nearby just like today, cold and indifferent, silently taking notes.
From start to finish, Monice showed no emotion.
Only after Feiqin’s sister had completely passed did Monice close the notebook and let out a sigh.
“I failed again,” she had said.
“As if my sister’s life was nothing more than one failure after another to her.”
“I can’t accept it. I can’t accept her coldness, her ruthlessness!”
Feiqin clenched her fists. Today’s scene had torn open old wounds in her heart once more.
Faced with this, Xia Mo didn’t know what to say.
After all, she wasn’t directly involved in these matters, and saying anything might seem insensitive.
Perhaps it was better to say nothing at all.
“What worries me more now is that child’s already fragile mental state, and now she’s suffering such a huge blow. I’m afraid she won’t make it through,” Xia Mo changed the subject.
Yi had already been pushed to the brink by the Demons’ influence over her Mental Power.
Now, having to watch her sister pass away was like hammering a fragile, cracked glass.
Xia Mo worried Yi might not survive this ordeal.
Though she wasn’t sure if extraterrestrial emotions were the same as humans’, seeing Yi clutch her weakened sister and cry so bitterly made her feel the gap between the two species might not be that great after all.
“Yes, after suffering such a heavy blow, her mental state is bound to be greatly affected. At this time, relying on her alone to walk out of the psychological shadow is very difficult. She needs others to help lead her out of the darkness.”
Feiqin, speaking from experience, put forward her suggestion. After all, they couldn’t just leave Yi to bear everything alone. This unique alien couldn’t be allowed to break down.
Monice definitely wouldn’t care about Yi’s mental state, so it was up to them in the Magic Department to show some concern.
Honestly, if it weren’t for the fact that Monice was unbeatable, Feiqin really wanted to just snatch Yi back immediately.
“Does she have any acquaintances or friends she’s close with?” Feiqin asked.
The two of them stared at each other for a moment, and Feiqin suddenly realized her question sounded a bit foolish.
Who was Yi? She was an alien orphan who had just gone through the pain of her entire clan being wiped out, coming here all alone.
Anyone she cared about had died at the hands of the Demons.
And her only remaining relative was on the brink of death, soon to pass away in her arms.
Good grief, she was completely alone with no one to turn to.
Back then, Feiqin still had comrades who helped pull her out of her shadow, but Yi… it seemed she didn’t have any friends who could help her through this.
“Hmm, I can’t exactly say she doesn’t have any,” Xia Mo thought for a moment, biting her nails as she spoke softly.
Yi’s relationships in Xinghai City were all built through the pendant’s mind control abilities, but there was one exception.
Luo Shuangxing! She was the one who had spent the longest time with Yi, and Yi was the one who actively tried to befriend her.
At this point, they had no choice but to try everything, so Xia Mo decided to call Luo Shuangxing for help.
“Huh? You want Shuangxing—the one the Soul Summoner Princess beats up until she can barely walk—to come?” Luo Shuangyue, overhearing Xia Mo’s idea, immediately suspected she’d misheard.
She glanced around to make sure no one else was nearby before quietly saying to Xia Mo, “Isn’t that a bad idea?”
To be honest, Xia Mo’s suggestion was somewhat feasible, but Luo Shuangyue couldn’t shake the feeling that it was unreliable.
Luo Shuangxing hadn’t interacted much with Yi, and their affection level was only about twenty or thirty points at best.
They couldn’t just pick Shuangxing because everyone else was at zero, right?
“She’s the only one left. What, you want to go instead?” Xia Mo shrugged.
The only ones who had clear exchanges with Yi were Luo Shuangyue and Luo Shuangxing, and Yi obviously had higher feelings toward Luo Shuangxing.
“Besides, it’s not like we’re selling Shuangxing out. Just think of it as helping her make a new friend,” Xia Mo said, feeling Luo Shuangyue was overthinking it. These things were really not that big a deal.
Luo Shuangxing just needed to comfort Yi and keep her from breaking down, not heal her completely.
“Wouldn’t it be better to have Senior Bifang go? She’s a professional!”
“But she doesn’t have any emotional foundation with Xiao Yi. We can have her coach Shuangxing behind the scenes.”
“I can’t really comment on that. If Shuangxing agrees, then I don’t mind either.”
At that moment, Luo Shuangyue suddenly understood how Monice felt. No wonder the Soul Summoner Princess didn’t oppose Monice’s plan.
Right now, she and Xia Mo were like Monice and the Soul Summoner Princess, and Luo Shuangxing was in her old position.
These kinds of matters were hard to give a clear answer to.
Saying yes wasn’t right, and saying no wasn’t right either. It was better to leave the decision to the person involved.
After all, she was an adult now and should make such decisions herself.
“Alright! Let’s hurry up and go talk to Shuangxing.”
“Now?!”
“Of course. How much time do you think Xi has left? If we don’t pull Shuangxing over now, do you want Yi’s heart to break for another day or two?”
Grabbing Luo Shuangyue’s wrist, Xia Mo dragged her outside without waiting for a reply.
Once a decision was made, Xia Mo’s decisiveness showed. She quickly found the Soul Summoner Princess and Monice to tell them her plan.
Monice was indifferent about Xia Mo’s idea, as long as Yi stayed alive.
The Soul Summoner Princess admired Xia Mo and gave her a thumbs-up, saying she was a solid backing and could be consulted if Xia Mo ever had questions.
With the approval of these two seniors, Xia Mo immediately took Luo Shuangyue to Luo Shuangxing’s school and called her out by phone before class ended.
On the school’s Sky Terrace, after hearing Xia Mo’s explanation, Luo Shuangxing looked utterly bewildered.
Ah, why does this always fall on me?
I’m totally innocent with Yi! She even tried to hypnotize me with a pendant.
How is it that now, when she’s about to break down, I’m supposed to pull her out of it?
“Is this your idea, Lord Dark Moth?” Luo Shuangxing glared at Luo Shuangyue fiercely.
“Are you seriously going to sell me out like this?!”
She almost blurted out, “Are you seriously going to sell out your own sister?”
She was about to be mad to death.
But this time she really misunderstood. The idea wasn’t Luo Shuangyue’s; Xia Mo had thought of it first.
“It wasn’t her, I thought of it first,” Xia Mo said a bit shyly as she walked up to Luo Shuangxing and cupped her face.
“Huh?”
“Actually, I’m a very selfish person too. When I see others sad, I can’t help but want to wipe the sadness off their faces. But I don’t know Xiao Yi at all. On this planet, only you and Shuangyue have any bond with her.”
Luo Shuangyue’s role obviously couldn’t get involved in this, so the only choice was Luo Shuangxing.
“But… she tried to hypnotize me before!”
“If she wants to be friends with you, it means she really likes you. If you put in some effort, you’ll definitely be able to become true friends,” Luo Shuangyue added, egging her on from the side.
“Ugh, you two are unbearable! Fine, fine, I’ll go, alright?!”