“Who? Little Red Riding Hood?!”
“She’s just a provisional member of the Ten Seats, isn’t she? She’s totally not up to standard!”
As expected, this move drew immediate objections from Xing Yu and the others.
How could they send a rising star who hadn’t yet matured into a certain death?
To put it bluntly, if anyone on their side were to fall, Little Red Riding Hood would be the pillar meant to take their place.
How could she die in a place like this?
Manjusaka Hua remained firm in her stance and said, “She possesses Divinity Particles, which have an extremely strong attraction to existences like the Black Prison Colossus. This is our only breakthrough point.” “That’s not what I’m asking. I’m asking whether she can survive or not.”
Li Yun shook her head. “She hasn’t even experienced a real life-and-death crisis. Suddenly being thrown in here, her chances of surviving are very slim.”
Manjusaka Hua gave her an odd look. “A magical girl, afraid of danger?” “Ugh—!” Li Yun had no words to reply.
“This is an opportunity for her as well. As long as she gets through this, there’ll hardly be anything that can stop her in the future.”
“..So what do you plan to do?”
Jiuming Sea.
“Huh? They want you to go?!”
“A-Auntie! Don’t shout so loud!”
Luo Zining’s mind was almost in chaos.
She never imagined she would actually receive a summons to the front line against a Light-Harvester class Dimensional Beast.
Should she be happy, or terrified?
“No way, it’s too dangerous. I don’t agree.” Ji Yue rejected her decisively.
“Auntie!”
Although she didn’t know why she was being called over, Luo Zining realized that this was an opportunity for her to prove herself.
And opportunities are always for those who are prepared.
If she could perform well this time, she could officially become a member of the Ten Seats—one step ahead of Jin Lin.
Luo Zining tried to reassure her. “I’m fine, Auntie. I’ve fought alongside the team in subjugating Dragon-class Dimensional Beasts twice already. It’ll be fine.”
“You’ve never even seen a Light-Harvester class Dimensional Beast. Stop talking like you’re all talk and no bite,” Ji Yue growled sternly.
“.!”
The force of her words made Luo Zining’s pupils shrink in shock.
It was harsh, but even so, Ji Yue had to say it.
“Do you know what kind of monster a Light-Harvester class is? You have zero margin for error—none! Not even a little! The moment you slip up, the Black Prison Colossus can kill you hundreds of times over!” Ji Yue’s neck veins stood out as she gripped Luo Zining’s shoulders tightly, speaking once more with words that cut to the core.
“Up until now, you haven’t shown any particularly outstanding results. You can’t even defeat a single Dragon-class Dimensional Beast alone. Now tell me—how can you guarantee you won’t make a mistake against a Light-Harvester class?”
“…Even so, I still want to go.”
Luo Zining could only smile understandingly. “Besides, I’m also a magical girl, Auntie.”
“Magical girls have the right to choose to survive.” “Then I choose to follow my heart.”
There was only ever one answer from start to finish.
“Plus, Auntie, think about it. Do you think they’re asking me to go because of my combat strength? Wanting me to fight the Black Prison Colossus head-on? Of course not. Like you said, I can’t even deal with a Dragon-class Dimensional Beast on my own—I’m just a small fry.”
Ji Yue frowned. “I never said you were that bad.”
“Well, well, that’s basically the logic. They probably just want me to assist from the side. I won’t face the Black Prison Colossus head-on, so don’t worry, Auntie. If anything, I’m more worried about you.”
Luo Zining said gravely, “If I leave too, what if the enemy takes advantage of the gap? Auntie, you’re not bad-looking yourself. If someone with evil intent gets a hold of you, your limbs…”
Then Luo Zining got kicked straight into the teleportation magic array.
By the time she was gone, her right cheek was red.
[Auntie, thank you…]
Luo Zining knew that Ji Yue was still trapped in the shadow cast by the Black Candle Colossus in the past.
As her niece, and as the magical girl junior, it was her role to sing a song of courage and lead Auntie out of the shadows.
“Auntie… Mengmeng, Sister Qiu Yu, Mu Shui… and Old Man… sss—”
Luo Zining silently recited the names of her friends and family, then took a deep breath.
[I’m no longer that helpless weakling who trembled before a single King-class Dimensional Beast.]
She repeated this silently in her heart.
That experience was her greatest humiliation, but also the turning point when she started to grow stronger. Ever since then, she had been growing at her own pace, becoming who she was today.
It was also then that she came to admire Herrera’s strength.
With just a single glance, Herrera could make a King-class Dimensional Beast flee like a beaten dog. Back then, that kind of strength seemed completely out of reach to her.
Now, although Luo Zining still felt far from reaching that level, compared to when she couldn’t even see Herrera’s shadow, at least now she could chase after it.
She had already stepped into the teleportation magic. There was no turning back.
She knew full well she was not capable enough to face a Light-Harvester class Dimensional Beast. But if she couldn’t even serve as support for the Ten Seats, how could she ever aspire to that kind of strength?
A radiant sense of excitement welled up within Luo Zining. “The me now… isn’t inferior to anyone!”
The teleportation magic array blazed to its peak—
Whoosh!
The world spun. When her feet felt solid ground again, Luo Zining had already arrived at her destination.
She stepped out, pumping herself up as she went.
“Alright! Time to show what I can do… huh?”
The instant she breathed in the air here, her body began to tremble instinctively. With a plop, she fell right onto her butt.
…Eh?
She made a noise even she didn’t recognize.
Following the overwhelming presence radiating from afar, Luo Zining forced her trembling neck to turn and look. There she saw the very source that awakened the primal instincts of her humanity.
“No, no way… What… what is that? Is that a Light-Harvester class?”
Her pupils quivered, nearly scattering apart, and even breathing was tinged with terror.
It was as if her entire understanding of the world exploded in her mind—a universe-sized shock that pressed down on her, making her body respond with instinctive fear.
“This is just absurd, isn’t it?! Is this really the same kind of beast I’ve hunted before?!”
Half-collapsing, Luo Zining shouted, trying to delay the terror rising from her heart with loud complaints.
It didn’t look like anything humans could ever defeat!
Even with Aurora Witch Herrera, she had never felt such oppressive force.
Was this the kind of monster Jin Lin once faced in Flower Sea City??
“Little Red Riding Hood.”
The one who came to greet her was Xing Yu.
Luo Zining blushed and scrambled to her feet, trying to explain her embarrassing show. “Ah, sorry! I, I just fell!”
Seeing Luo Zining’s flustered reaction, Xing Yu didn’t find it funny at all.
“There’s nothing to hide. In fact, when the power gap gets this huge, if you don’t feel fear, you’re not far from death.”
Luo Zining mumbled, thinking Xing Yu was just comforting her, “I really just tripped…”
“Little Red Riding Hood!”
“Here!”
Xing Yu scolded her sternly, “Don’t treat my words as a joke. I’m telling you seriously—if you want to survive, remember this fear.”
“Yes!”
Luo Zining took a tense, deep breath.
Once she felt her emotions settle down, she asked, “Senior Xing Yu, what do you need me to do?”