Huang Yi was fully aware of what they were doing. He needed to ensure these people wouldn’t do anything unnecessary, while also observing whether the other side had increased surveillance on the mother and child—he had to prevent any accidents.
Huang Yi contacted the person in charge of surveillance again, confirming they had obtained the “Life and Death Permission.”
In case of danger, they could shoot the mother and child on the spot.
He also repeatedly warned them not to hesitate, and to act when necessary.
He put down the phone and took a few deep breaths. Suddenly, someone tapped him on the shoulder, giving him a start.
Turning around, he saw a security guard holding an umbrella.
He took the umbrella, thanked him, and left the Forensic Identification Center under the umbrella.
He walked a long way to the parking spot. After getting in the car, he drove slowly through the rainy night.
The car had only been driving for a few minutes when suddenly there was a “bang”—
“Damn, again?!”
Something fell from the sky, crashing onto the hood.
Looking closely, this time it wasn’t a pair of long legs, but a cute little animal.
It was slightly larger than an adult cat, with a fluffy body and a long furry tail. It looked like a cat, a mink, and a squirrel all at once—a mix of features that made it hard to identify.
It also had a patch of differently colored hair on its forehead in the shape of the character king like a tiger, making it even harder to determine what kind of creature it was.
It held an ancient-looking short rod in its mouth, standing on the hood, staring at Huang Yi through the windshield.
Keep in mind, the car had been moving just moments ago, yet this creature fell from a height and still landed steadily.
Huang Yi stopped the car, got out with his umbrella, and looked at the hood, now dented a little more. His heart ached.
“I haven’t even fixed yesterday’s dent, and now it’s deeper…”
That bizarre little creature opened its mouth, letting the ancient short rod drop onto the hood.
“You’re the one I’m looking for… or maybe not.”
This little creature could actually speak.
Huang Yi frowned.
“Contract Beast? A Magical Girl’s Contract Beast, right?”
The Contract Beast retorted.
“You know about us?”
“We have quite a bit of information about Contract Beasts here. You’re not exactly a secret. Most of the time you’re invisible, and humans can’t see you,” Huang Yi said.
“Since I can see you, did you come looking for me specifically?”
“Then let me ask you,” the Contract Beast replied.
“Are you Huang Yi?”
“Yes.”
“Are you an official from the Eastern Alliance Countermeasure Center? Are you with the Witch Faction? Is today Friday? Is it currently 22:35 at night?”
Huang Yi found it strange, but he glanced at his phone.
“You’re mostly right, but it’s currently 22:36.”
The Contract Beast jumped off the hood, circled around Huang Yi, sizing him up. Then it leaped back onto the hood.
“Human, then let me ask you—do you want the power to change the world?”
“Yes,” Huang Yi replied bluntly.
“What is your goal?”
The Contract Beast pointed its claw at the ancient black short rod.
“Pick it up, and you can have the power to change the world.”
Huang Yi took a look.
It was nothing more than a short rod about thirty centimeters long, but he knew clearly—this was a Magic Wand.
The surface of the Magic Wand showed clear signs of use, its outer layer polished to a shine.
“What is this?”
Huang Yi asked knowingly.
“A Magic Wand that can transform you into a Magical Girl.”
The Contract Beast’s answer was within his expectations.
“You mean, let me take this thing, sign a contract with you, and become a Magical… Uncle?”
Huang Yi couldn’t help but complain.
“No, human,” the Contract Beast stared at him.
“You don’t have the qualifications to sign a contract with me. You’re just a talentless Muggle.”
Huang Yi was stunned.
“What do you mean?”
In a calm tone, the Contract Beast said something unsettling:
“This city no longer has anyone who can become a Magical Girl. Becoming a Magical Girl requires extraordinary talent, and such people are extremely rare across the entire planet. You, however, are just an ordinary, unremarkable person.”
Huang Yi felt a bit deflated.
“Since I’m not qualified, why are you looking for me?”
“Although you aren’t qualified to sign a contract with me, you can still use this special Magic Wand to become a Magical Girl,” the Contract Beast said.
“At what cost?”
Huang Yi asked.
“It can only be used once. Your body will continuously break down, and you will die within an hour. That is the price for a mortal body forcibly touching power that doesn’t belong to it.”
***
The next day, Saturday.
Song Wuli went to work on time, and everyone from the Second Wenan Group was there.
The atmosphere today was a bit strange. For some reason, the Supervisor called Old Song into the office for a chat.
First they talked about work, then about personal matters.
“Hiss… this Supervisor couldn’t actually have some connection to the Board of Directors, could he? Recruiting confidants, ready to skyrocket?”
As they talked, the topic turned to Bianju Biaoji, and the Supervisor asked for his opinion on that person.
Old Song spoke bluntly. The Supervisor was silent for a moment, then scratched his cheek.
“I don’t really like that person either.”
Then he changed the subject and asked how he viewed the Producer.
Old Song was still blunt.
“Mediocre in both virtue and talent.”
The Supervisor was silent again, scratching his face vigorously.
“It’s like this, Little Song. The Producer suddenly got curious about you. Probably that Bianju Biaoji said something on the side. You need to be careful.”
“It’s fine to say those things to me, but don’t tell anyone else.”
“Then what should I do?”
Song Wuli asked.
The Supervisor waved his hand.
“No need to do anything special. Just keep working at your usual pace. The Producer doesn’t necessarily believe one-sided stories, or else he wouldn’t have come to me to ask about you. Just stay as you are.”
“Alright.”
Song Wuli nodded.
After chatting a bit more, he left the office and went back to work.
Since Bianju Biaoji was mentioned, perfect—
He picked up his phone and sent a message:
[By the way, give me the revision comments within five minutes. Don’t delay. The deadline is tight now.]
The Bianju Biaoji who received the message was furious. He put his phone in front of the Producer:
“Look at this! How does he talk to me now? He doesn’t even respect me! Is this acceptable? He’s just a group leader, and he dares to act like this!”
The Producer just smiled, said nothing, and continued working with his head down.
Seeing that the other person ignored him, Bianju Biaoji complained a few more times, then left resentfully to revise the draft.
After a while, Song Wuli’s phone vibrated.
Out of habit, he picked up his work phone, but there were no new messages.
He had to secretly take out that Silver Phone and glance at it—it was a message from Jin Luan.
She said they were meeting tonight, and Huan Hong would be there too. Old Wang was back, and they wanted to welcome him.
“Old Wang? Who’s that?”
Song Wuli’s curiosity was piqued.
At 21:00 in the evening, overtime ended.
He found a place to transform into a Magical Girl, without putting on any special makeup, and set off directly as Yin Lin.
Arriving at the Little Room in the building, soft ambient lights were already on, and the food was set out, waiting for Yin Lin’s arrival.
“Where’s Old Wang? Why don’t I see him?”
“Are you the newbie? Your Mana is really terrifying!”
The voice came from underfoot.
Looking down, it was a strange little creature.
Jin Luan pointed at it and said,
“Let me introduce you. This is Old Wang, our Contract Beast.”
Song Wuli was stunned.
“Huh? This is Old Wang? Just because it has a patch of fur shaped like the character ‘King’ on its head?”
No matter how hard he thought, he never imagined—Old Wang came to be like this.