“Hey, Ruibi, are you listening?” Entering Binhai Park, Wuhua walked along the familiar cobblestone path deeper inside.
“I’m always here, whenever you call me.” Ruibi appeared from the pocket, its voice arriving before its form. “Long time no see, Wuhua.”
“Mm… Sorry, I was busy yesterday. And there was no situation that required transformation.” Wuhua had spent the whole day playing and completely forgotten about Ruibi.
“It’s fine. Peace is also a good thing.” Ruibi’s expression was as expressionless as ever, making it hard to tell whether it was being polite or sincere.
“So, what’s the situation now?” Ruibi floated to the side, looking around. “I remember this is—”
“Mm. The place where I first defeated an Anomaly. And also where I met another Magical Girl.” Wuhua nodded, adding, “I actually agreed to meet Qianhan today. Before, she said she wanted me to guide her in being a Magical Girl.”
“Helping fellow companions is a good thing.” Ruibi was very satisfied with Wuhua’s performance.
“Ahaha… But first, I need to find her.” Wuhua walked while looking around, trying to spot anyone who could be Qianhan among the crowd, excluding males.
“I’ve only seen her transformed form, and she’s only seen mine. So…”
Adding to the fact that it was a weekend holiday, the park was livelier than expected. Girls around Wuhua’s age, couples in groups, adults having outdoor meals, etc.
Just as Wuhua was at a loss, not knowing where to start—
“Um, little, little girl.”
Suddenly, someone gently patted her shoulder. The tone of the address was full of shyness and lack of confidence.
‘That way of speaking…’
With an inexplicable premonition, Wuhua turned around—
Before her stood a woman at least a head taller than herself. She wore a loose, somewhat mature khaki gauze skirt, paired with a white blouse and shawl, and her long, deep purple hair cascaded smoothly.
“Excuse me, excuse me.”
As if a sheltered young lady from a wealthy family had lost her way, her face was full of worry and hesitation.
“You… are a Magical Girl, right?”
Then she asked.
035. Weekend Invitation with the Young Lady
Sunday morning. The weather was clear and cloudless, another fine day. Since moving into Lianying’s home, Wuhua’s daily routine had gradually shifted toward the healthier side of the scale.
“By the way, Sister Lianying,” Wuhua said while enjoying the breakfast Lianying had brought back from outside—a classic combination of baozi and soy milk. “Later, I’m going to Binhai Park. I have a meeting with a friend there.”
“Oh? Wuhua’s friend… Is it Anna and Jasmine I saw yesterday?” Lianying asked curiously, leaning on the table.
“No, I met this one a few days ago. Hmm… I think she’s a bit older than me.” Wuhua recalled the friend’s appearance and attire. “Ah, but she seems younger than you, Sister Lianying.”
“I see—Male or female? Where does she live? Is she in school?” Lianying’s eyes turned wary, her tone carrying a warning. “She can’t be a delinquent, right? I won’t allow you to play with some stranger from who knows where who might teach you bad habits.”
“No, no, she’s not. She’s… I don’t know how to describe it.” Although the friend sometimes did strange things, Wuhua firmly believed she was someone worth befriending.
“…” Lianying lowered her head in thought, as if deciding whether to trust Wuhua’s one-sided account.
“Haa, fine. After all, it’s your freedom, Xiaohua.” She finally relented, standing up from her chair and nodding at Wuhua with a reluctant expression. “As a guardian, I can’t interfere too much. But—I’ll keep an eye out. You be careful too, Wuhua.”
“I know.”
At that moment, Wuhua casually dismissed the words, treating them as ordinary advice.
*
“By the way, Xiaohua. Come here for a second.” As Wuhua was about to leave, having changed clothes and slipped on a jacket, Lianying called out from behind while tidying up her pajamas.
“Yesterday I thought about it, and this really is more convenient.” When Wuhua approached, Lianying took out a phone from her pocket and handed it to Wuhua.
“Sister Lianying, this is…” Wuhua recognized it, but wondered why Lianying was giving it to her now.
“It’s an old backup phone I had. It has my secondary card inside—that means it can access the internet and make calls.” Lianying explained specially, worried Wuhua might not understand. “I was planning to buy you a new one another day, but for now… I’ll let you use this in advance.” She twirled the ends of her hair, not saying it outright.
But Wuhua knew she was worried and wanted at least a way to contact her.
“Mm! Thank you, Sister Lianying!” Wuhua showed a joy as if she had found a treasure, as happy as a primitive person discovering fire for the first time.
“Hey, hey.” She waved her hand, signaling Lianying to crouch down.
“What is it? Got a little secret to tell?” Lianying smiled, thinking she understood the little scheme, and turned one ear toward her.
“Smooch.” Wuhua gently kissed her on the cheek, imitating exactly what Lianying had done to her before leaving.
“Then I’ll be off now. Bye, Sister Lianying.” Wuhua waved shyly in farewell, and before Lianying could respond, she walked to the elevator and waited.
“…” Lianying stood up, stunned, frozen in place. She reached up to touch her cheek, then looked at Wuhua in the distance.
As the elevator arrived at their floor, Lianying suppressed her pounding heart and shyness, softly speaking toward Wuhua:
“G-goodbye. Be safe, Xiaohua.”
When Wuhua stepped into the elevator and disappeared from sight…
“Grrrr, that was just too cute…” Lianying covered her face, unwilling to let anyone see her expression. She slowly crumpled down at the entrance.
Click. The neighbor’s door opened, and Qinglan came out to throw away trash.
“…What are you doing?” She noticed Lianying’s state and pulled out her phone. “Why do you look like you just got dumped?”
“…Leave me alone. And don’t take pictures!”
*
*
“Never thought I’d return to modern society so soon.” Inside the bus, Wuhua leaned back against the seat, holding the phone high up and examining it with great interest.
There was nothing particularly special about it—a model and style from a few years ago, more than enough for daily use. But for Wuhua now, it symbolized a significant step from zero to one.
‘I really have to thank Sister Lianying again.’ After silently expressing his gratitude, Wuhua first briefly checked the phone’s stored data and information.
Since it hadn’t been formatted or cleared, the content remained from before Lianying switched to a new phone. But there seemed to be nothing about Magical Girls. Perhaps she hadn’t awakened yet at that time.
“Hmm… This account must be Sister Lianying’s old one.” Opening a commonly used green messaging app, Wuhua could even find Qinglan, Xicheng, and many everyday friends.
There was even a note for Lianying—no, for herself—
*
“Xiaohua, it’s your sister here. Have you arrived at Binhai Park?” Suddenly, as if predicted in advance, a text from Lianying popped up in the chat window.
“No, not yet, sister. I’m still on the way.” Wuhua typed quickly, ready to send.
‘No, I should wait a bit here.’
She deliberately waited half a minute before sending the message. Then she resumed searching through Lianying’s contacts.
Even though the contact list wasn’t long, Wuhua scrolled back and forth for a long time. She felt something was off, as if she had missed something.
“Mom, Mom, are we there yet?”
“Sit still. One more stop and we’ll arrive.”
Just then, the conversation between a mother and child near the window reached her ears.
“R-right.” Wuhua suddenly thought of something. She checked each contact’s information, eliminating the irrelevant ones. Finally, she concluded—
The only ones missing from the contact list were Lianying’s parents. Wuhua assumed they were the aunt and uncle who would one day come back home in the near future.
“Hmm… Maybe she simply didn’t add them. Or she deleted them when she changed numbers.” Her plan to learn the other party’s background had failed, but Wuhua didn’t dwell on it.
“Families where parents work far away for long periods and only come back once or twice during the New Year are quite common.”
As a 7-year-old little girl, she expressed insights that didn’t match her age. She admired the scenery outside the window. Gradually, the destination came into view.
“Next stop, Binhai Park. Passengers, please exit through the rear door in an orderly fashion.”
…
…
“Hey, Ruibi, are you listening?” Entering Binhai Park, Wuhua walked along the familiar cobblestone path deeper inside.
“I’m always here, whenever you call me.” Ruibi appeared from the pocket, its voice arriving before its form. “Long time no see, Wuhua.”
“Mm… Sorry, I was busy yesterday. And there was no situation that required transformation.” Wuhua had spent the whole day playing and completely forgotten about Ruibi.
“It’s fine. Peace is also a good thing.” Ruibi’s expression was as expressionless as ever, making it hard to tell whether it was being polite or sincere.
“So, what’s the situation now?” Ruibi floated to the side, looking around. “I remember this is—”
“Mm. The place where I first defeated an Anomaly. And also where I met another Magical Girl.” Wuhua nodded, adding, “I actually agreed to meet Qianhan today. Before, she said she wanted me to guide her in being a Magical Girl.”
“Helping fellow companions is a good thing.” Ruibi was very satisfied with Wuhua’s performance.
“Ahaha… But first, I need to find her.” Wuhua walked while looking around, trying to spot anyone who could be Qianhan among the crowd, excluding males.
“I’ve only seen her transformed form, and she’s only seen mine. So…”
Adding to the fact that it was a weekend holiday, the park was livelier than expected. Girls around Wuhua’s age, couples in groups, adults having outdoor meals, etc.
Just as Wuhua was at a loss, not knowing where to start—
“Um, little, little girl.”
Suddenly, someone gently patted her shoulder. The tone of the address was full of shyness and lack of confidence.
‘That way of speaking…’
With an inexplicable premonition, Wuhua turned around—
Before her stood a woman at least a head taller than herself. She wore a loose, somewhat mature khaki gauze skirt, paired with a white blouse and shawl, and her long, deep purple hair cascaded smoothly.
“Excuse me, excuse me.”
As if a sheltered young lady from a wealthy family had lost her way, her face was full of worry and hesitation.
“You… are a Magical Girl, right?”
Then she asked.