“…..”
“Lady Mingdie, are you upset? Is it because of that rosemary girl again?”
The black-haired cat-eared girl pushed a glass of bubbling transparent drink toward Luo Shuangyue with a hint of concern.
Luo Shuangyue took the drink and finished it in one gulp, “It has nothing to do with her.”
“Oh.”
Jiu Ye blinked.
After glancing at the cat-girl, Luo Shuangyue suddenly felt an urge to confide in her.
After all, this little silly cat didn’t serve much purpose elsewhere, so why not use her as a sounding board?
“I have a friend, and her friend is doing something very dangerous. My friend wants her friend to give it up, but she doesn’t know how to bring it up.”
Luo Shuangyue fiddled with the empty glass, looking frustrated as she spoke.
Jiu Ye obediently sat on the chair.
Though she hadn’t won many fights, her mind was still sharp.
Luo Shuangyue’s words, as they reached Jiu Ye’s ears, were seamlessly translated into:
‘I have a friend doing something dangerous, and I don’t know how to advise her.’
“Lady Mingdie, is your friend doing the right thing?”
“It’s my friend’s friend, not mine.”
Luo Shuangyue corrected Jiu Ye’s words, then nodded.
“What Xiamo is doing is definitely the right thing. As a magical girl, she’s protecting this world. No matter what, it can’t be considered wrong.”
“The one who’s wrong isn’t her, but… my friend… she’s too selfish. She doesn’t want to see her friend living in danger, always on edge…”
“She’s thought of many ways to make her friend give up, but every time she almost succeeds, seeing her friend’s disappointed face, she just can’t bring herself to continue.”
“Lady Mingdie, you’re really speaking from the heart,” Jiu Ye said, her cat ears standing up.
She felt like she’d just gotten a huge, sweet bite of gossip.
And she had pretty much figured out the situation. Lady Mingdie’s friend was doing dangerous work, and Lady Mingdie wanted her to give it up, but that friend really loved the job, which put Lady Mingdie in a dilemma.
She didn’t want her friend to face danger, but at the same time, she didn’t want to see her friend sad.
Lady Mingdie was in a tough spot.
“Jiu Ye, what do your family and friends think of you now?”
Unlike Luo Shuangyue, who could transform, Jiu Ye’s cat ears and tail weren’t part of a transformation.
They were physical modifications, made from the defeated monsters’ parts, carrying a heavy demonic aura.
This meant Jiu Ye could rarely walk under the sunlight and couldn’t even return home.
Luo Shuangyue was curious—what did Jiu Ye’s family and friends think of her now?
This question made Jiu Ye’s ears droop. She lowered her head and stared at the counter, speaking softly:
“I don’t have family or friends.”
“It was Lady Monis who saved me from the ruins when I was about to die. My parents were killed by monsters.”
Jiu Ye lightly scratched the table with her sharp nails.
“I didn’t have the talent to become a magical girl, but I still wanted to fight monsters, so I asked Lady Monis to give me the power to fight them.”
“Up until now, I’ve killed eleven soldier-level monsters. I believe my parents would be proud of who I’ve become.”
“Sorry, I made you think of sad things.”
Luo Shuangyue knew most of the members of Eternal Night were orphans, but she hadn’t expected such a tragic backstory.
Jiu Ye shook her head vigorously.
She had long moved past that shadow.
One can’t stay stuck in the past forever.
“Those magical girls have such good resources, but their work is so sloppy. They’re just a bunch of minnows!”
Jiu Ye’s tone shifted abruptly as she began to criticize magical girls.
Though they all fought monsters, the members of Eternal Night faced far more pain and danger than the magical girls.
This had caused quite a bit of resentment toward the magical girls from many of Eternal Night’s members.
“Why are we suffering so much, while those magical girls can be so happy? Is it because our resolve isn’t strong enough compared to theirs?”
Jiu Ye was one of those people, and her attitude toward the magical girls was even relatively mild.
“No, no, we were talking about Lady Mingdie’s friend, how did it end up about me?”
Jiu Ye realized the topic had shifted too much and quickly steered it back.
“Anyway, Lady Mingdie’s friend just can’t bring herself to make her friend give up, right?”
Luo Shuangyue nodded.
“Can’t just turn a blind eye to it, right?”
“Exactly.”
“Since she can’t bear to make her friend give up, and can’t ignore it either, the only choice left is to try to make her friend’s actions less dangerous,” Jiu Ye said, stroking her chin as she spoke to Luo Shuangyue.
Luo Shuangyue had basically boxed herself into a corner, leaving her with few options.
“But danger can appear at any time, and my friend can’t always be there to protect that person.”
“Lady Mingdie, you’ve probably heard the saying, ‘Relying on others is worse than relying on yourself,’ right?”
Jiu Ye noticed that Lady Mingdie’s thinking seemed a bit rigid.
Since it’s impossible to eliminate the danger, then the next best thing is to minimize the harm it can cause.
“Since Lady Mingdie can’t be by her friend’s side all the time, why not make her friend capable of facing danger alone?”
“In other words, make her stronger, so Lady Mingdie won’t have to worry anymore?”
Jiu Ye put her hands on her hips, wearing a confident expression.
She felt that her solution was brilliant, perfectly solving the problem Lady Mingdie faced.
Danger, in the end, was just a result of insufficient strength.
As long as you have enough power, there’s no such thing as danger!
“You mean… make her stronger?”
Luo Shuangyue asked.
“Mm-hmm. Since Lady Mingdie can’t make her give up and can’t always protect her, the best solution is to give her enough strength to protect herself, right?”
Luo Shuangyue remained silent for a while, then slammed the glass cup onto the counter.
Jiu Ye was right!
The biggest problem now was that Xiao Mo’s strength wasn’t enough.
As long as Xiamo became stronger, she wouldn’t have to keep worrying about her.
“Thank you, Jiu Ye, I get it now!”
With a swift motion, Luo Shuangyue stood up, heading toward the exit of the Eternal Night base without looking back.
“I’m off!”
Watching Luo Shuangyue’s back disappear into the mechanical corridor, Jiu Ye’s ears twitched, and she happily leaned on the table, purring contentedly.
“Lady Mingdie praised me, hehe…”