Chapter 212: What I Saw in My Dream

“When did something this big happen in Huahai City?”

Luo Zining shot upright from the bath in a flash.

It was no surprise she didn’t know—she’d been so busy the last four days, working herself to death.

The other construction teams were working round the clock in shifts, everyone so busy that even meals were squeezed into five minutes.

Under these circumstances, just picking up her phone for a moment left her feeling immensely guilty.

If this had been before, she would’ve rushed back to check things out.

But now, she already knew that Old Deng was Herrera.

There really was nothing to worry about.

With Old Deng’s strength, even if she got trampled by a Dragon-class Dimensional Beast, Luo Zining would be more concerned about whether the Dimensional Beast was okay.

“Hm…? Little Red Riding Hood, did you get bigger or something?”

With just one sentence from her teammate, Luo Zining immediately tossed all thoughts of Old Deng’s safety aside.

“Where?! Where did I get bigger?”

“Uh, just… behind you…”

Huahua was so startled by her slightly manic attitude that she stumbled back.

“Behin—”

The joy on Luo Zining’s lips slowly faded.

Tch, and here she’d thought her heart had grown bigger.

“Hm? What’s wrong? Shouldn’t you be happy? Ah, it’s not just bigger, it’s really perky too!”

Huahua didn’t understand her reaction and continued, “There’s a saying—having big thunder doesn’t mean you’re mature, but if your hips are perky, you definitely are! There’s a real market for that, you know. People have all sorts of kinks—ear holes, thighs, feet… a ton of stuff. But thunder and hip lovers take up half the pie! Half the pie!”

“Emmm…”

Luo Zining’s lips moved, feeling somewhat uneasy.

Mature… huh?

Without big thunder, could she still count as a mature woman?

Without big thunder, could she still catch Old Deng’s attention?

Ah, no, no, I can’t look at Old Deng that way! I’m so cheap!

Luo Zining slapped herself.

***

Huahai City—

“Ah… feels like I should quit. What Magical Girl stuff, I’m not doing it, not doing it.”

Luo You lounged sideways on the sofa, slumping just like a certain famous physics master.

Recently it was disaster relief, then missions, then PR events… so much trouble!

The Magical Girl life she imagined was nothing like this.

Shouldn’t a Magical Girl be out forming bonds all day, or at least on her way to forming bonds, and once the bonds are formed, just poking around with her finger?!

Why is she doing disaster relief, PR, or fighting Dimensional Beasts—what kind of twisted work is that!?

Even Zhizhi hadn’t come over lately!

She hadn’t interacted with the Magical Girl big sisters she admired at all.

After venting, Luo You’s thoughts wandered.

Speaking of which, could she try developing a new kink herself?

If she always picks Magical Girls based on whether they have big thunder, she’ll miss out on a lot of good encounters.

“Well, not like I have time for that right now.”

Luo You got up from the sofa.

Part of her identity had already been exposed—people now knew that Magical Girl Golden Scale was actually the Gloomy Witch Ariel.

As long as that group ‘exposed’ her, her Magical Girl job could be over at any moment.

But it’s already been four days, and this secret still hadn’t been revealed.

“Most likely they still want to make a move against me, but don’t want someone else to get in first.”

In just a few moments, Luo You pieced together the most logical conclusion.

Will there be another assassination attempt?

Luo You didn’t really care about attempts on her own life, but the existence of Xue…

She’d already set Xue up with a temporary rental out of town, guessing she was probably gaming away at the computer right now.

“After all that happened, she can still play games peacefully—she’s really no different from a cow or horse that only knows how to graze.”

Luo You sighed.

What expectations could she possibly have for this thing.

At this point, it just felt like a hot potato.

The more Luo You thought about it, the more uneasy she felt.

So she made a special trip out of town to find that kid still gaming away.

“Well, aren’t you nice and relaxed? Still playing games, huh?”

“You!”

“You, my ass!”

Unable to hold back her anger, Luo You grabbed the kid and gave her a good thrashing, complete with crashes and bangs.

Utterly baffled at being beaten, Xue could only hunker down, hands over her head, sneaking glances every so often at the ongoing game on the computer desk.

“Stop, stop! Any more and I’ll die!”

“Huh?”

Luo You paused, confused.

“Did you get hit by the Anger-Eater Titan’s shockwave before?”

“No, I mean my Invincible Warrior is about to die! It takes a 15-kill streak to get this high-level unit!”

Luo You followed her finger to the computer screen.

Damn it!

She started beating her even harder.

Not stopping there, she dragged the kid to the desk, making her watch as her 15-kill Invincible Warrior was mercilessly slain.

Bang!

“I’m heading back. Remember—without my permission, you’re not allowed to step out of this room!”

With the door slammed shut, Xue returned to her solo gaming session.

“Wuwuwu, my Invincible Warrior…”

Xue banged her head against the desk in anguish.

She’d played so many rounds, and this was the first time she’d summoned an Invincible Warrior…

Forget it, I’ll just sleep.

Ever since that thing happened four days ago, she hadn’t slept at all—now it was finally time for a long-awaited nap.

“…Hmph, at least she’s behaving.”

Outside the door, Luo You, who had been eavesdropping, finally left with some peace of mind.

***

In her dream—

Xue was gaming.

After playing, she ate.

After eating, she drank.

After drinking, she gamed some more.

“Nice! Got the Airship Gunship!”

Excited, Xue shook her hands and used the gunship to take down… zero enemies—her gunship was shot down by a missile as soon as it took to the skies.

“What the heck! Who the hell saved a cruise missile just to use it now?”

She glanced at the kill feed—her gunship was shot down by someone named “Youyou.”

“You!”

“You, my ass! I told you not to call me that, die!”

Luo You suddenly appeared, yanking out the power cord.

In the next instant, the scene shifted outside.

Ahead was a giant shopping mall, beside it an enormous amusement park, next to that an even bigger…

“You!”

“You, my ass! I told you not to call me that, die!”

A giant You swung a fist the size of a sandbag.

Xue stood dumbly, making no attempt to dodge, letting the fist flatten her.

That punch sent Xue flying off to who-knows-where again.

The mall disappeared—now it seemed she was inside the mall.

“Yay? So much tasty-looking food!”

Her mood shifted instantly as she swept up goods in the supermarket.

Then, at an ice cream display case, she spotted a little demon girl in white stockings, swinging her white-socked, ice-cream-like little feet atop the counter.

“You!”

“You, my ass! I told you not to call me that, die!”

The white-socked ice cream foot kicked her right in the face, and the scene changed again—to a game exhibition center.

When Xue saw the banner on the game display, she couldn’t help but exclaim:

“Whoa! The newest COD21?!”

At some point, she found herself in a demo seat, matched up with players for a battle.

Her aim was sharp—ten minutes in, she’d already racked up a 20-kill streak and summoned both a gunship and an Invincible Warrior.

Now, the only thing left was to reach the ultimate goal—30 kills: a nuke reward.

“Hah! Bunch of noobs, is that all?”

With one C4, she blew up five enemies, then ran over four more with a vehicle—now at 29 kills!

The fight, the thrill!

Xue focused all her attention, hiding in the dark like a rat, sniper scope trained on someone’s back—here it is! As long as she clicks the mouse, she’ll get her nuke—30 kills! Come on!

Bang!

She was headshotted, stuck at 29.

“Aaaaaarghhhh!”

Xue let out a wail of anguish, glancing left at the kill feed—her killer’s player ID:

“You!”

Hmm? Something wasn’t right.

Looking around, Xue saw that at some point, everyone around the booth had started staring at her, eyes that weren’t human—no whites, only giant, oval pupils locked on her.

Xue held her breath.

Someone was standing up…

“You…?”

The person standing from the next demo seat, voice drawing Xue’s gaze—she froze mid-sentence.

Same as always…

You, and all the people around…

This time, they were closer than ever before, closer than any time before.

As if just a few steps more, those hands could reach out and strangle her.

“Hu—?!”

Xue jolted awake from the dream.

She stared blankly at the bedding, head drooping.

“Being watched again…”