“Necessary sacrifice”—how noble that sounds!
The words echoed incessantly in Luo Zhizhou’s mind, refusing to let him forget.
After sharing the intelligence he had discovered with Ma Xinyin, she decided to accelerate the squad’s training starting tomorrow and set the hypothetical enemy as the “Tianlang” Luo Zhizhou had mentioned.
Who was she? Where did she come from? Luo Zhizhou asked Ma Xinyin, but after searching through the records, she found nothing.
Tianlang was undoubtedly an unregistered magical girl, and the organization behind her remained a complete mystery.
“Around 5 p.m. today, a minor Small Extradimensional Beast disaster occurred in the city’s old district. Fortunately, there were no casualties…”
The temporary news bulletin played on a large screen on a building across the street. Luo Zhizhou knew full well that this so-called beast disaster was actually the battle between him and Tianlang.
Back in the heart of Jing’an City once more, Luo Zhizhou felt an unprecedented weariness.
He had arranged to meet Li Zhiqiang at a food stall on Food Street for dinner.
“Li Zhiqiang, tell me, is it ridiculous for someone like me—who’s served in the military or is still serving—to sacrifice themselves fighting against aberrant beasts?”
“What are you saying? Of course not ridiculous. Without people like you, this land would have been ravaged long ago.”
“You’re right, but… what if, I mean what if, I actually don’t want to go to the battlefield? Sometimes, I just have no choice but to fight…”
Li Zhiqiang patted Luo Zhizhou on the shoulder. “Xiao Luo, I get it. In real life, many are forced into acts of heroism, but that doesn’t stop others from looking up to them as examples.”
Luo Zhizhou still frowned deeply as he opened a can of beer and drained it in one gulp.
“Do you think those magical girls are the same?” he asked.
“I’m not a magical girl, how would I know? But I guess magical girls have it much better than ordinary people like us. It’s a peaceful era now; their casualty rates must be low. They probably don’t worry about these things.”
“You might be right.”
Luo Zhizhou decided not to dwell on these thoughts any longer.
“By the way, weren’t you scolded by your supervisor a few days ago?”
Li Zhiqiang frowned, recalling last week’s incident.
“That damn Lin Shen! Didn’t have anything for me to do but still found ways to bother me! Saw me spacing out in the office and sent me to work on the first floor. What a jerk.”
Luo Zhizhou laughed after a long time.
“Hahaha, I heard you bragged about seeing that legendary Porcelain Moon a few days ago. Is that true?”
“Absolutely! It was on the day Lin Shen sent me to work. Embarrassingly, while I was cursing Lin Shen, she walked by and overheard me.”
“Maybe because she saw Lin Shen coming, she gave me a heads-up. Without her, I’d have gotten another round of scolding!”
“She’s pretty nice, unlike that other S-Class Magical Girl Luo Xi with the poker face. I think she might be easy to get along with.”
“Really? That sounds pretty good.”
“I feel there’s always a gap between magical girls and us ordinary people. Many magical girls look down on us, but Porcelain Moon is special. I can’t quite put my finger on why.”
Li Zhiqiang took a big bite of stir-fried rice noodles, savoring the taste.
Luo Zhizhou had little appetite. He gazed up at the moon hanging in the sky—hidden behind shimmering city lights, peeking between skyscrapers, silently watching him.
“Hmm, these rice noodles are pretty good. I’ll come again.”
“Hey, Xiao Luo, where do you live?”
“I rented a place near the Magic Control Bureau. My real home is in He Ping County, quite far from here.”
“I’m curious, what do you folks in the countryside usually eat? That place is pretty poor, right?”
“Not much, we grow what we eat. Usually, I go to town to buy vegetables and meat. The food’s simple.”
“I want to spend a few days there, experience the fresh countryside air and local life again.”
“Don’t believe what those marketing accounts say…”
As the two left Food Street, ready to part ways, the unexpected happened.
Luo Zhizhou never imagined that in the very center of Jing’an City—one of all Huaguo’s most prosperous and safest places—an aberrant beast attack would occur.
A Duke-Class Beast suddenly emerged from somewhere, its roar shaking the entire downtown.
The fleeing crowd quickly filled the streets, traffic came to a halt, and screams echoed from all around.
“It’s only two or three streets away! Xiao Luo, we have to get out of here!”
“That’s definitely a Duke-Class. If left unchecked, thousands could die or be injured.”
“With the Magic Administration Bureau’s usual response speed, those streets would already be littered with bodies. I can’t ignore this!”
“You’re crazy!”
“I’m not… Li Zhiqiang, run! Save yourself! I’m going to the scene.”
“You really are insane…”
Li Zhiqiang watched helplessly as Luo Zhizhou’s determined figure disappeared against the surging crowd.
“You were just saying you didn’t want to fight, and now look at you… hopeless,” Li Zhiqiang muttered, then ran with the crowd.
***
The closer Luo Zhizhou got to the source of the roar, the fewer people there were. Eventually, the streets were empty.
Only a few abandoned cars remained on the road, trash scattered by the roadside.
“I need to find a corner to transform,” Luo Zhizhou muttered to himself.
But it was too late.
The Duke-Class Beast appeared at the corner. It turned its massive head and spotted Luo Zhizhou standing alone in the middle of the road.
Its huge frame was around thirty to forty meters tall, a humanoid bipedal aberrant beast.
“Damn it, have to transform here…”
It strode toward Luo Zhizhou with heavy steps.
“Then so be it!”
Just as Luo Zhizhou was about to transform, a blue Magic Cannon fired vertically from the sky, instantly vaporizing the Duke-Class Beast.
The cannon’s power was expertly controlled—no large shockwave, just a scorched crater on the road, leaving the surroundings intact.
A black-haired girl descended from the top of a building, the Magic Cannon’s vertical trail forming a heavenly ladder beneath her.
She wore a flowing, shimmering blue gown and held a sharp spear in her right hand.
Luo Zhizhou recognized her—Luo Xi.
Luo Xi landed in front of the charred crater and walked toward him.
“You are… brother?”
“Uh, can I explain?”
She clenched her fists.
“Is explanation even needed?”
Luo Xi slapped him.
“I… I was wrong.”
“Some habits are hard to change. I shouldn’t have expected much from you.”
She turned her back, no longer facing Luo Zhizhou.
“Do you really think an unarmed ordinary person like you can withstand a Duke-Class Beast? You’d just add to the casualties. If you’re determined to die, I won’t stop you, but—dying like this is just stupid, isn’t it?”
Luo Zhizhou remained silent.
“Huh? That familiar silence again. I’m not bothering with you anymore.”
Luo Xi flew back into the sky, disappearing beyond the horizon.
“Damn it!”
Kicking aside a pile of rubble, Luo Zhizhou hugged his head and dropped to his knees.
Then, he pounded the ground with his fists, venting his grief.
“I shouldn’t have, shouldn’t have joined the army! Shouldn’t have…”
He hurriedly swallowed the next thought—“shouldn’t have become a magical girl”—back down.
Words could be swallowed, but tears could not be hidden.
Luo Zhizhou recalled his sister’s past smiles, her once lively and cheerful nature—whenever despair gripped him on the battlefield, her smile was what lifted him, helping him face setbacks.
And now?
“It’s all my fault…”
“I’ve failed her…”
Footsteps approached.
Luo Zhizhou quickly wiped his tears and looked up.
“Bai Lingluo?”
“It’s me. I didn’t expect Luo Xi to be your sister. I’ve seen everything… about your sister. I’m sorry.” Bai Lingluo said gently.
She helped the dejected Luo Zhizhou to his feet. “Crying like this in broad daylight… Let’s find a corner to talk.”
“Sorry you had to see me like this.”
“It’s okay. We’re even now.”
Bai Lingluo took out a handkerchief and wiped Luo Zhizhou’s face, erasing the tear stains.
She whispered softly, “Now, it’s my turn to comfort you.”
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