When Su Mu stood in the Dream World, it was already so unbearably hot that she couldn’t help but tug at the thin yet annoyingly cumbersome layer of fabric on her body.
Every time she appeared in the Dream World, she would be dressed in the same pale purple ceremonial dress identical to Irina’s.
Of course, the most eye-catching part was the pointed witch hat.
She had once felt uncomfortable wearing it, but later, she inexplicably grew used to this outfit—so much so that she could deftly adjust every strap on it with her eyes closed.
This feeling was truly unexpected.
But this also meant that, by now, she could easily take off her clothes.
After entering the Dream World, one’s sense of shame became extremely weak, and any absurd thing became possible—let alone the minor act of undressing.
Underneath was a close-fitting corset in pink and white, with no extra decoration.
Yet the result was far from plain, for this color scheme clung closely to Su Mu’s skin tone and, with her hair falling messily over it, gave off a faint, elusive allure.
In short, wearing it was almost like wearing nothing at all; it was the ultimate seductive look.
But the only audience here was herself.
The Su Mu who once clung to her “little Chu Nan” mentality had long since lost her fascination with this alluring body.
At the very least, she didn’t feel much interest anymore—just like before she became a Magical Girl.
That’s what happens after you experience enough.
Lost in her random thoughts, Su Mu absently squeezed the dumpling in her hand, pulling at the corners of her mouth, and immediately felt that inexplicable heat subside a little.
She quietly tightened her clothes, covering herself once more, then walked toward the starting point of the second layer of the Dream World.
The Rental Apartment.
Crossing the familiar threshold, the shaky security door flickered from time to time, overlapping with the scene of it being smashed to pieces.
This made Su Mu recall once again the day when fate changed.
Though, admittedly, her way of entering had been rather violent.
The gray, shabby setting and the noisy hum of cars were as before, as if nothing had changed.
But just as Su Mu was about to step inside, something slightly out of place caught her attention.
The floor by the door was very clean, and two pairs of slippers were neatly placed side by side.
One pair was pink, and the other pair… was also pink.
Same size, same style, as intimate as two sisters leaning on each other.
Su Mu had lived alone at the time.
Aside from her own slippers, she hadn’t bought any extras—after all, the landlord’s shoe covers were right there in the shoe cabinet by the door, just in case she had visitors.
So whose slippers were these, exactly?
What a puzzle.
Narrowing her eyes, Su Mu slipped her foot out of her little boots.
Her small, black-stockinged feet hovered hesitantly in front of the two pairs of slippers.
‘So, which one is mine?’
After a moment, she simply stopped hesitating and stepped in wearing her socks.
The coolness instantly clung to her soles, bringing an odd sense of comfort.
The owner of the slippers wasn’t home, so Su Mu actually had little reason to linger.
It was only her sentimentality that made her pause here.
Besides, Su Ya often entered without taking off her shoes—or rather, she’d stride in wearing high heels, leaving dirty tracks all over the floor, leading straight to the sofa, where Su Ya would collapse in a drunken stupor.
But the rental apartment was fresh and tidy, with not the slightest trace of alcohol.
At a glance, it looked even cleaner than when Su Mu had lived there herself, as if someone was constantly tidying up.
Su Mu was always the type to neglect housework, and her room was rarely tidy.
Still, she always seemed to meet people even messier than her (certain red-haired girls), so there was no doubt: someone else had definitely been to the rental apartment.
But this was worlds apart from Su Ya, giving Su Mu a strange sense of dissonance.
In her memory, Su Ya’s style was chaotic and unruly, barely held together by carefully applied makeup—a fragile bubble that no one had the heart to pierce.
Maybe there was a tragic beauty about her, worthy of artistic transformation.
Yet, she was also Su Mu’s only family, her only mother.
How could life ever become happy?
Though she often thought like this, Su Mu never blamed Su Ya, for she knew she didn’t truly understand her.
She didn’t understand, but just from the time they spent together, she could feel Su Ya’s exhaustion.
So what Su Mu buried deep inside was more like suppressed complaints.
‘Mom, just how many things are you still hiding from me?’
This time, as she passed by the school, Su Mu didn’t even glance at it.
After all, that place held no happy memories for her, so there was no point in looking again.
Now, with two areas illuminated, taking up a total of three Memory Points, Su Mu didn’t feel that this brought her any improvement.
But Irina said that lighting up all the areas would grant her the qualification to enter C-Rank.
Did that mean she was only two steps away from taking off?
Su Mu’s weakness was simply a result of limited Magic Power.
If she reached C-Rank and her Magic Power skyrocketed, she’d probably be able to display all sorts of incredible abilities.
‘Yes, I’ll win.’
Su Mu turned to look at the other side.
The area behind her instantly collapsed into a pitch-black void; the only place she could go now was through the mist before her eyes.
Without hesitation, she took a gentle step forward.
In an instant, the previously clear sky was suddenly replaced by an inky black curtain.
The temperature plummeted below freezing, turning her breath into white mist, and the only warm light was the yellowish halo cast by the streetlamp.
This is what winter in the south is like.
There’s no snow and ice, but every breath feels like it chills you to the bone.
As for why Su Ya still went to the bar on such a night—Su Mu couldn’t understand.
Is alcohol really that great?
Can it really drive away the cold?
Can it even make you forget loneliness?
Su Mu couldn’t suppress her worry.
She truly couldn’t sleep and, in the end, secretly followed along.
Of course, she didn’t go out dressed as lightly as Su Ya.
She was afraid of the cold, after all, and wrapped herself tightly in a cotton coat, looking like a little Kirby squirming along.
Not agile at all; her arms and legs seemed bound.
It wasn’t just the clothes—her body seemed shorter, even though she’d grown more than ten centimeters taller than last year.
Why was that?
She couldn’t figure it out.
Standing on tiptoe, Su Mu barely managed to grab the key from the shoe cabinet and stuff it into her pocket.
After carefully locking the door behind her, she fixed her gaze on the thin figure in the distance.
But just as she was about to follow, Su Mu’s foot slipped and she nearly took a nasty spill.
There was no snow, but the frozen weather had made the ground extremely slippery.
What surprised her even more was that Su Ya simply strode off in high heels, heading straight for the bus stop without even pausing, leaving behind only a receding silhouette.
Su Mu grew anxious.
Clambering to her feet with arms and legs flailing, she hurried after her with her little short legs—but this only kept the distance between her and Su Ya from widening.
She wanted to call out, but just then, a bus roared by.
It drowned out her childish voice and took Su Ya away with it.
Su Ya turned back, but she didn’t look at Su Mu.
It seemed she only wanted to reveal those eyes of hers, glowing with a pale gray light.