Compared to the boss’s office, which was crowded with filing cabinets, the research lab was significantly larger.
It was even built in a tiered structure—the foundation sank more than five meters into the ground, making the already sizable space feel even more expansive.
But that wasn’t the main point.
What truly stunned the two of them was the fact that the so-called research lab had hundreds of posters hanging on the walls—large and small—featuring girls dressed in various cute outfits.
And aside from a few posters that were clearly from anime or other 2D franchises, most were photographed from real-life perspectives, clearly customized using actual photos.
“…I think I understand now why the previous head of R&D didn’t allow anyone else in here,” Luo Shiyin muttered after a moment of silence. She tilted her head to look at Mitsuba Ren, who still hadn’t fully processed the scene.
“So, is your team under a lot of pressure? Or… was the last head of the R&D department actually a yandere?”
“I-I have no idea!”
Her body trembled slightly as she responded in a stiff tone—like someone who had just discovered her best friend of ten years was actually a die-hard fujoshi.
Hearing that, Luo Shiyin gave her a helpless glance.
Still, remembering how that armored guy had made such a lavish investment, she suppressed the strange feeling in her heart and started walking down the metal spiral staircase near the entrance.
“All the real people in those posters—are they magical girls?”
“Mm, they are. But a lot of them have already retired.”
Shifting her gaze away from a magical girl with pink hair and a pure, innocent smile, Mitsuba Ren braced herself and followed Luo Shiyin down the stairs.
Standing on the lab floor, surrounded by this sea of magical girl posters, the visual impact hit them even harder.
It made them seriously question whether anyone could actually stay focused and work in a place like this.
Fortunately, aside from the posters, the other equipment in the lab seemed perfectly normal.
At least, there weren’t piles of related merchandise lying around—yet.
Of course, that could just mean they hadn’t found them…Yet.
[Hmm? A letter?]
Just then, Luo Shiyin noticed a fairly normal-looking envelope sitting on the desk.
On the front, written in Chinese characters, were the words: “To the Next Head of the Research Lab.”
She hesitated for a moment, then picked it up, opened the seal, and began reading the letter inside.
“Hellooo to the super, super, suuuuper cute successor! If you’re reading this, that means I’ve already left the organization to take care of other things. So, I’m leaving everything about this lab in your hands now.”
How is it?
Aren’t those magical girl posters just super cute?
I spent a long time collecting them as a special surprise just for you~ Are you so touched that you’re about to cry? Hehe~ Actually, you don’t need to thank me too much.
([The following 1,500 words of dangerous remarks describing how cute magical girls are have been omitted])
By the way, I’ve saved all the instructions for using the equipment, the methods for producing monsters, and other relevant knowledge in the terminal.
You can study them anytime if needed.
Also, the monster inside the cultivation chamber is already complete.
You just need to activate it to wake it up—consider it a little bonus gift~—Magical Girl Enthusiast “Hmm… That signature really suits the personality,” Luo Shiyin muttered, rubbing her temples in slight exasperation as she took her eyes off the letter.
Meanwhile, the pink-haired girl finally broke free from the overwhelming atmosphere of being “surrounded by magical girls.”
She glanced at the black-haired girl standing in front of the desk with her back turned: “Um… senpai, is there anything else you need help with? If not, I’ll head out and wait for you outside…”“Mm, thank you.”
As soon as she got permission, Mitsuba Ren bolted up the stairs like she had just received a royal pardon.
Her long legs carried her swiftly, disappearing from the lab entrance in just a few strides.
Seeing her react like that, Luo Shiyin couldn’t help but smile and shake her head.
However, when she turned back again, her pupils suddenly shrank in shock—the letter and envelope she had just been holding had vanished without a trace.
“I mean, I already knew magical girls existed and that was plenty unreasonable… but experiencing it firsthand? This is just ridiculous.”
Muttering inwardly, Luo Shiyin looked again at the magical girl posters surrounding her.
She quietly gave up her initial plan to clean them up and toss them out, deciding instead to just pile them somewhere out of the way.
“Well… for now, let’s check out this so-called ‘monster.’”
At the same time, Mitsuba Ren—who had just escaped the over-saturated magical girl room—shut the lab door as fast as she could, completely sealing off that danger zone.
Only after that did she slump onto the sofa outside with a long, relieved sigh, as though she’d just escaped from a tentacle monster.
But just as she lay down and pulled out her phone to play a quick game to calm her nerves, Wansui silently approached and informed her that there was monster activity detected inthe suburbs.
He added that he was preparing to take Luo Shiyin out to handle a routine response, and asked if Mitsuba wanted to come along.
“Routine work, huh…? That sounds like fun! Of course I’m going!”
Whatever she had just thought of, the girl who had moments ago flopped on the couch like a salted fish suddenly sprang up, her eyes sparkling with excitement “When that little girl gets so scared she’s teary-eyed, I have to snap the perfect photo from the best angle—then make her call me senpai!~”
“Oh? I’m really looking forward to that.”
At that moment, a calm voice suddenly sounded from behind, instantly freezing the pink-haired gyaru in place, still immersed in her mischievous fantasy.
Like a rusted machine that hadn’t been oiled in years, Mitsuba Ren slowly turned her head—only to see the black-haired, long-straight-haired loli silently standing behind the couch, squinting at her with a distinctly unreadable expression.
“Se-Senpai! Let me—let me explain! That’s not what I meant!”
Seeing the lab door wide open behind her, seemingly ready to swallow her whole for a deep “research session,” and facing that meaningful gaze from the petite, black-haired girl, Mitsuba immediately broke into a cold sweat.
But just as she was desperately trying to come up with a reasonable excuse, a fluffy, snow-white creature—elliptical in shape, with pointed beast-like ears on its head and fur covering its whole body—suddenly bounced out of the lab and hopped over to Luo Shiyin’s feet.
“A monster? You already made one that fast?”
Somehow identifying the fluffy creature’s identity, Wansui’s usually lifeless, expressionless face actually showed a hint of surprise—for the first time.
Though only for a brief moment.
“It wasn’t me who made it. The previous head of the research lab had already completed this little guy. I just activated it,” Luo Shiyin explained casually, not at all interested in claiming credit.
Hearing that, Mitsuba Ren immediately seized the chance to change the subject—desperate for a way out.
“So that means you named this little guy, senpai? What’s its name? It looks as cute as you!”
She was tempted to point out that using the word “cute” under the “senpai” label was highly inappropriate behavior.
But seeing how hard the girl was trying to steer the conversation elsewhere, Luo Shiyin held back her comment.
She figured it would be more satisfying to let her keep acting—then crush her at the end with a dramatic reveal.
“Comprehensive Plush Insurance Semi-Trailer.”
“Uh… Th-That’s… such an amazing name… Not surprising at all coming from senpai.”
Mitsuba’s face went stiff again.
She mentally flipped through her entire academic vocabulary and squeezed every last brain cell—but all she could manage to say was three awkward “good”s.
Because she realized: with a name like that, any form of praise would inevitably sound like sarcasm.
She was starting to suspect that the research lab covered in magical girl posters might actually be hiding some sort of magic circle—that anyone who stayed in there too long would have their mind altered somehow.
Mitsuba Ren looked down at the creature beside the black-haired girl’s feet with a complicated expression.
Quietly “standing?”
“lying?”
“Sitting?”
—whatever its posture, the small creature just sat there calmly.
It was about the size of two basketballs, like a sentient plush pillow, radiating cuteness.
After hesitating for a full half-minute, Mitsuba finally couldn’t hold back her curiosity: “Um… can I ask, senpai, why you chose that name? I mean, something like ‘Snow Fluff’ would’ve sounded much cuter, don’t you think?”
Luo Shiyin fell silent for a brief moment, then finally replied with a faint sigh: “After activating this little thing, I received its full set of data. If we say the average adult’s strength stat is a 1, then this creature’s strength… is 13. If it hit a person head-on, the impact wouldn’t be much different from getting run over by an actual dump truck.”
In addition to that, this little creature had a kind of supernatural talent—it could apply a random curse to either a living or non-living target.
If cast on a non-living object, the curse would activate on the first living thing that touched it.
If cast on a living target, it would take effect immediately.
At its strongest, the curse could make a person grow cat ears, with their behavior gradually becoming more feline.
At its weakest…it just ensured that drinking cold water would always result in biting your tongue.
But Luo Shiyin hadn’t mentioned any of that—not because the ability was useless (though it kind of was), but for another, much more important reason.
After successfully activating the creature, she herself had suddenly acquired a related power.
Her physical strength began to increase—slowly but noticeably.
In just the few minutes it took to walk from the lab to here, she’d already reached the level of a healthy adult.
Since this was something that directly affected her body, she felt it was best to keep it hidden for now.
Not because she didn’t trust the others.
Strange as it sounded to describe members of an “evil organization”
This way, even though she’d only known them for less than an hour, Luo Shiyin could tell that everyone around her—including the boss—were actually good people.
And it was precisely because they were good people that she needed to be careful.
Things like this—things that could lead to huge power shifts or attract unwanted attention—were better kept under wraps until she had time to fully research and understand them. With that thought, Luo Shiyin took her eyes off the fuzzy little creature and turned her head toward the dead-eyed middle-aged man nearby.
But her gaze didn’t stay there—it shifted back to the pink-haired girl: “So, when are we heading out? I’m actually kind of curious to see what kind of monster could supposedly scare me until I cry.”