If one were to talk about the relationship between Xu Yinsheng and “Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng,” there was quite a lot to say.
Was it the past and the future? Two points on a timeline? Or perhaps two identical snowflakes?
But no matter how the two of them had mocked and schemed against each other before, they could not change the fact that they shared the same source, their blood was thicker than water, they knew each other inside out, and their hearts were connected. After all, they were the same person.
The only difference was their life experience.
Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng had twenty more years of life experience than the current Xu Yinsheng.
And this was exactly why Xu Yinsheng was questioning her.
‘Since you are my future self, then you must have experienced everything that is happening to me now.’
Therefore.
“What is going on with my Ever-Changing this time?”
A crisp, pleasant female voice rang out in the quiet, cozy bedroom, tinged with doubt.
When Xu Yinsheng asked if Ever-Changing was malfunctioning, Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng cracked her neck and sat up. With a casual wave of her hand, a Water Mirror manifested in front of them.
“You still haven’t noticed the changes in yourself?”
As she spoke, Xu Yinsheng had already passively completed her transformation. The hem of a pure white priestess Spirit Dress trailed on the floor. She crossed her arms and followed the other’s gaze to her reflection in the mirror.
White thigh-high stockings, long legs, and the priestess outfit — nothing had changed.
She turned her head to look at the busty assassin girl beside her, the meaning in her eyes clear.
‘Don’t play riddles with me. I’m not falling for it.’
“At least take a guess. Just being direct is so boring,” Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng said with a smile.
Xu Yinsheng: …
“Stop, stop, stop, stop!” Seeing a cluster of cherry-red flames sprout from the girl’s palm, the previously smiling assassin girl quickly raised her hands in surrender.
She raised her right hand, revealing a brass ring on her middle finger. After lightly stroking the band with her fair finger, she spoke slowly.
“Dreams Come True: At the cost of not eating candy for five days, let my past self see through the disguise.”
As soon as the words fell, Xu Yinsheng felt a surge of heat pass through her eyes. It felt as if the corners of her eyes were being scorched. She subconsciously rubbed them with the back of her finger, but out of the corner of her eye, she accidentally glimpsed pitch-black bandages wrapped around her body.
She snapped her head up and looked at the reflection in the mirror.
Where was the white-haired girl in the pure white priestess combat Spirit Dress? There was only a mummy girl wrapped in bandages, radiating an aura of evil from head to toe.
“I am… this?”
“Your new form.”
“Why didn’t I notice before?”
“Because you were blinded by extreme emotions.”
Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng stroked the ring again, and a cup of steaming milk appeared out of thin air, landing in her hand.
Seeing that Xu Yinsheng was still completely dazed and confused, the assassin girl pressed a hand to her forehead, looking helpless as if she were dealing with someone of low intelligence.
She pulled a pair of gold-rimmed glasses from the void and perched them on her nose. Her explosive figure, youthful face, and the gold-rimmed glasses added a touch of intellectual beauty to her appearance.
A small blackboard timely emerged from the void behind her. Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng transformed into a teacher. She stood up, adjusted her gold-rimmed glasses, and tapped the blackboard to signal the other to look. A glint of knowledge flashed in her eyes.
“Now for a little Ever-Changing trivia.”
“As we all know, Ever-Changing grants us a form every two months. You are no exception, and neither am I. However, sometimes the forms granted by Ever-Changing are influenced by our subjective initiative — like your current form.”
“Magical girls, as products of idealism in fantasy works, derive most of their power from the heart. Some of the emotions in your heart were too extreme. In the real world, you would be a psychiatric patient at most.”
“However, it is different for a magical girl whose power stems from the heart. Extreme emotions stimulate the heart, leading to a new form derived from the foundation of a magical girl. In fantasy works, this is called an E-duo.”
“Cough, cough, don’t look at me like that. I am not specifically cursing you; I am just telling the truth based on the facts.”
“Back to the point. This Ever-Changing form is a new transformation derived from the stimulation of extreme emotions on your magical girl foundation.”
“As for why you could not perceive it… let us just say you could not see the true face of Mount Lu because you were standing right in the middle of it.”
“In other words, the power alienated from extreme emotions blinded your senses.”
It had to be said that the person who understood Xu Yinsheng best in this world was Xu Yinsheng herself. After this explanation, Xu Yinsheng understood instantly.
“So, there is nothing wrong with me at all. I was just worrying over nothing, right?”
The only response she received was a look like she was an idiot and a flick to the forehead.
Having resolved Xu Yinsheng’s doubts, the assassin girl stroked the brass ring again. The small blackboard and gold-rimmed glasses behind her vanished instantly.
This action naturally piqued Xu Yinsheng’s interest.
Seeing the other staring curiously at the ring in her hand, Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng smiled and spread her fingers, purposefully waving the brass ring with its mysterious patterns in front of her.
“Want to know what this is?”
Xu Yinsheng nodded like a perfect straight man.
Seeing her being so cooperative, Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng did not intend to keep it a secret. She immediately explained the name and function of the ring on her middle finger.
“The Ring of the Nibelung. It was an item that came with an Ever-Changing form from the future. Its function? Pay a price, and you can get what you want.”
“Um… do not overthink it. It is not the World-destroying Black Dragon that bit off the World Tree. It is a cute dragon girl, probably from some fan-made work. Even the setting of this ring has been modified a bit.”
“With that small brain of yours, you definitely will not understand if I just say it. I will demonstrate it for you.”
Xu Yinsheng saw the other pull back her right hand and stroke the ring for a moment. Then, a female voice echoed in her ears: “Dreams Come True: At the cost of not eating candy for two days, I want two Häagen-Dazs.”
As soon as she finished speaking, two Häagen-Dazs bars — strawberry flavored, no less — fell from the void.
Assassin Girl Xu Yinsheng caught the two ice cream bars with lightning speed. She handed one to Xu Yinsheng and unwrapped the other to start eating.
As she ate, she said, “First, the price paid must be something you own. For example, I cannot make a wish and pay with broccoli or bitter gourd, since I do not like eating them.”
“Second, the wish and the price must be of equal value. You cannot say you will trade not eating candy for one day for over 100 tons of gold. That is absolutely impossible. And do not ask me why candy is comparable to Häagen-Dazs. Look at me — for a rich young lady like myself, the candy I eat is definitely expensive.”
“Third, the price paid must absolutely, absolutely, absolutely, absolutely never be violated. Otherwise, you will suffer a forced backlash. Believe me, you will not want to experience what that feels like.”
After speaking, she stuffed the remaining piece of ice cream into her mouth.
Noticing the other’s longing gaze, the assassin girl took off the ring from her middle finger and waved it in front of her again, her lips curving slightly.
“Little Sheng, do you want it?”
“I do.” Xu Yinsheng immediately nodded like a woodpecker.
“Then it’s yours.”
With a casual flick of her wrist, she threw the Ring of the Nibelung to Xu Yinsheng.
Xu Yinsheng caught the brass ring and smiled as she put it on her ring finger. Just as she was about to imitate the other and try a Dreams Come True of her own, a voice suddenly rang in her ear.
“Consider this as the rent for these two months.”
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