The evening wind swept by, like an invisible and razor-sharp dagger, slicing greedily through the feathers, sleeves, and collar, piercing into that pure, white flesh.
On the rooftop of the building, Lu Xiaoling drew her calves inward, suddenly feeling that tonight’s wind was a bit rowdy and somewhat chilly.
“Black Account! Why didn’t you tell me?”
She exclaimed in shock.
“You never asked me, though.”
Bini Ke tilted her head, wearing an innocent expression.
“Eh, then…”
Lu Xiaoling hugged the great katana that was nearly as tall as she was, her face filled with worry:
“What would happen if the Magical Girl Association caught me?”
This was the question she was most worried about.
“Given our identities, things would definitely get really bad for us.” Bini Ke put her tiny hands on her waist, Cat-Pride.jpg.
“If we’re caught, not only would I be sent back to the Magical Realm, but you’d also have to pay a huge fine, Xiaoling. Anyway, the outcome would be really, really terrible.”
Bini Ke didn’t clarify just how terrible “really bad” could be, but the Magical Girl Association’s attitude toward unlicensed Magical Girls was not much different from their attitude toward Monsters.
In the past, the Association had even issued wanted orders for unlicensed Magical Girls, which made major news headlines and sparked public protests.
But in the end, the protests were in vain, and news of those unlicensed Magical Girls simply vanished without a trace.
From this, one could see just how the Association regarded unlicensed Magical Girls.
Being wanted was a minor issue; what Lu Xiaoling cared about most was something else:
“The fine.”
Whispering that vicious word, Lu Xiaoling’s face turned pale.
Getting fined was basically a critical hit for the Lu family!
“It’s too late to regret now.” Bini Ke flapped her black feathered wings, seeming to sense Lu Xiaoling’s regret, and said with a hint of unease:
“I already chose you, Xiaoling. We even signed a contract at the time. If you regret it now and don’t want to be a Magical Girl, you’ll have to pay a huge sum in liquidated damages.”
Seeing the little cat head actually start to threaten her, Lu Xiaoling frowned slightly:
“That contract doesn’t even have any legal effect. I’m still a minor. According to the Minor Protection Law, Bini Ke, strictly speaking, you’re employing child labor right now!”
“?”
Realizing she couldn’t outmaneuver Lu Xiaoling, Bini Ke gave up altogether, hiding her cat face behind her tiny wings and putting on a pitiful expression, as if about to burst into tears:
“Xiaoling, you’re a once-in-a-century genius, born to become a Magical Girl. Please, don’t give up over a tiny setback! I beg you!”
Clenching her little pink fists, even though she was upset at having been tricked, Lu Xiaoling still said,
“Don’t worry, even if I’m a Black Account, I won’t give up on being a Magical Girl.”
Although being an unlicensed Magical Girl wasn’t officially recognized by the Association, she still had real Miracle Power she could use to fight Monsters, and Monster Remains could be sold for money.
In other words, being a Magical Girl = making money.
Fortune favors the bold—Lu Xiaoling couldn’t wait until she graduated from Magical Girl University.
She wanted to earn lots and lots of money to help out her family—not just for herself, but also for her brother, Lu Liang:
“Bini Ke, don’t underestimate my resolve! I’m definitely going to make a ton of money!”
“Eh? Xiaoling, I’m really glad you’ve changed your mind, but isn’t the usual thing to say ‘I’ll definitely become a Magical Girl!’?”
Bini Ke felt like something was a little off.
“Of course money is more important! Otherwise, why be a Magical Girl? To protect the world or something?”
As a member of the Lu family, Lu Xiaoling didn’t feel she was wrong at all.
Bini Ke thought about it and actually felt that Lu Xiaoling had a point.
No money to earn, who the heck would be a Magical Girl?
Suddenly, Bini Ke sensed a strong wave of magic and urgently shouted to Lu Xiaoling:
“Xiaoling! A Monster is here! I can sense Miracle Power moving nearby—right… over there!”
Bini Ke pointed her cat paw toward a very secluded spot, speaking excitedly:
“That nasty thing looks like it’s about to come out!”
“If I can finish the fight before an official Magical Girl arrives—!”
Lu Xiaoling pulled the black hood over her face, making herself look like a bank robber, then leapt down from several stories up, smashing straight toward the ground!
Boom!
The ground split open with a thunderous crash, caving in as a Hundred-legged Monster Centipede, resembling a giant centipede, roared and twisted its body, which was pinned by the great katana!
Boom!
What the heck was that noise?
Startled by the distant explosion, Lu Liang looked around and saw everyone else was just as baffled.
After a moment’s thought, Lu Liang pulled out his phone and opened a Mysterious Livestream App—using his experience as an adult, he knew that when something big happened nearby and you didn’t know what it was, opening up a livestream app and searching for people nearby could sometimes let you figure out what was going on.
After casually scrolling through a few videos, Lu Liang actually found what he was looking for.
Staring at the live video, he could tell the streamer was a newbie; the shooting angle was anything but professional, the picture was blurry as if covered in a mosaic, and the focus kept drifting.
But Lu Liang still managed to recognize what the video was showing:
“A livestream of a Magical Girl fighting a Monster?”
In the shot, a girl wearing a black hood and the feathered robe (Divine Miko Robe) symbolic of Magical Girls was fighting a centipede Monster over three meters long.
Being able to watch a livestream of a Magical Girl battling a Monster up close was a novelty for ordinary people.
A livestream account that was usually deserted soon showed 999+ viewers, with the chat scrolling non-stop:
“A Heavenly Demon Armored Form I’ve never seen before.”
“Just seeing something like this is worth dying for, honestly!”
“Can’t see her face—is she a new Magical Girl?”
Lu Liang watched the video intently, nodding to himself.
That Magical Girl’s legs weren’t bad—slender, powerful, almost comparable to Xiaoling’s.
And those socks weren’t bad either—knee-high, with little bear patterns on top, exactly like Xiaoling’s cute ones.
And the way this Magical Girl fought, there was a kind of adorable awkwardness that felt strangely familiar to Lu Liang—every night when he came home late, Lu Xiaoling would show that exact same look.
And this… could it actually be Lu Xiaoling?
A ridiculous thought suddenly popped into Lu Liang’s mind.
Though he found it hard to believe something as dramatic as his sister suddenly becoming a Magical Girl could really happen to him, there was just this strange, uncanny sense of familiarity no matter how he looked at it.
Especially as the Magical Girl fought the centipede Monster, Lu Liang inexplicably started to feel anxious.
After some thought, Lu Liang tipped the streamer 50 yuan, asking them to get closer with the camera.
Tempted by money, the streamer slowly inched forward, and the closer the camera got, the stronger Lu Liang’s sense of familiarity with the Magical Girl became.
The hand holding his phone began to shake uncontrollably.
Could it really… actually be Lu Xiaoling?
Feeling uncertain, Lu Liang quickly exited the stream and called Lu Xiaoling, trying to verify if they were the same person.
“Beep beep beep… Sorry, the number you dialed is unavailable.”
Hearing the automated message, Lu Liang’s sense of unease grew stronger.
Lu Xiaoling never forgot to answer her brother’s calls!
Could it be…
Lu Liang only had one little sister, Lu Xiaoling.
He couldn’t risk whether or not it was her, so he quickly jotted down the video’s location and raced toward the scene of the fight via a small alley.
All the way there, he kept his eyes glued to the livestream, terrified that the black-hooded Magical Girl might get hurt.
However, in the very next instant, a steel-forged great katana traced a beautiful arc and appeared on the livestream.
Before anyone could react, the livestream screen suddenly went pitch black.
“Crap! The stream got shut down for showing a weapon!”
Realizing what had happened, Lu Liang cursed under his breath, put away his phone, and sprinted full force.
At the same time, a thick black mist began to seep from within Lu Liang’s body, gradually enveloping him entirely.