Red Sea City Magic Association, Training Room.
A fiery red figure was attacking a pure white silhouette inside the Training Room.
“Lieyang Impact!”
Poppy’s Magic Cannon floated behind her, its barrel bursting with flames as it blasted toward Mu Yurou!
Mu Yurou struggled to defend herself with her Long Spear.
Just as Mu Yurou was about to give in, a voice rang out.
“Stop!”
Wuwangwo’s voice sounded from outside the field, halting the two.
“Whew~”
Mu Yurou wiped away her sweat and collapsed onto the ground.
Poppy took a sip of water handed over by Wuwangwo, then walked back toward Mu Yurou.
“Haha, junior, you’re about to become a full-fledged Magical Girl. You have to work harder~”
She said, handing over a bottle of water.
“Mm… Thank you, Senior.”
Mu Yurou twisted open the cap and poured the water into her mouth.
The coolness washed away some of the exhaustion from training.
She put down the bottle, which was still damp with condensation. For some reason, during training earlier, Mu Yurou found herself thinking again about that golden figure from today.
“Lily of the Valley, what’s going on with you today? You seem so distracted. Is something bothering you?”
Poppy sat down beside Mu Yurou, her tone full of concern for her future comrade.
“No, nothing’s wrong~”
Mu Yurou scratched her head shyly.
“How can it be nothing? You were out of it the whole training session. Normally you’d have blocked those attacks easily, but today you got hit several times. You’re still in school, right? Tell me, is someone bullying you? I’ll deal with them for you.”
As she spoke, Poppy clenched her fist, her knuckles cracking crisply.
“It’s not that, it’s just… Today, I made a friend…”
“A friend?”
“Yeah. She’s very pretty, and her voice is nice. She asked me to tutor her, then treated me to food…”
For some reason, Mu Yurou’s face grew redder as she spoke!
“A normal friend?”
Poppy asked suspiciously.
“A normal friend… I think?”
Poppy thought to herself: Is this really a normal friend? Is this how someone looks when talking about a normal friend?
Who blushes thinking about a normal friend?!
“Really?”
“Really!”
“Mm…”
Something felt off. At least nine out of ten points off.
That night, Mu Yurou lay on her bed, face buried deep in her pillow like a girl in love, agonizing over how to confess.
What does it feel like to like someone?
Why does my heart race every time I think of Huang Xi?
What if… she doesn’t like me…
She tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
She didn’t know how many cicadas she heard singing through the night before finally drifting off.
The next day, Mu Yurou and Huang Xi were back on the school rooftop for their study session, growing closer with every meeting and gradually becoming good friends.
Yet Mu Yurou couldn’t take the first step.
What if this was just a beautiful misunderstanding?
We’re both girls.
This is weird.
But the feeling of liking someone can’t lie…
Troubled by unease, Mu Yurou made a decision.
She would only look at Huang Xi as a friend.
Ever since she decided to see Huang Xi as just a friend, that anxious feeling of affection began to fade.
As long as she didn’t let herself like her, that unease would disappear.
But that was just a way to avoid her own heart.
“Xiao Rou, Xiao Rou, what do you think of Magical Girls?”
Golden sunlight streamed into the Coffee Shop that afternoon, illuminating the two sitting by the window.
“Magical Girls? They’re strong. Beautiful. Why?”
Mu Yurou stirred her coffee with a small spoon and took a sip.
“Magical Girls are so cool! If I could, I’d want to be a Magical Girl too! What about you, Xiao Rou?”
“Me…”
Mu Yurou wanted to tell Huang Xi she was a Magical Girl, but the Association forbade Magical Girls from revealing their identity to those around them.
“They are cool, but… It’s also tough for them.”
“It really is hard. They’re about the same age as us, but so many have lost their lives.”
Lost their lives…
Will I one day sacrifice myself to protect something, too?
“But thanks to Crystal Orchid! She defeated the Disaster-Class Broodmother! The Abyssal Beasts suffered a heavy blow! Ever since that creature died, news of Magical Girl sacrifices has become less and less!”
Huang Xi’s tone shifted, turning to her most admired Magical Girl.
“Do you admire Crystal Orchid a lot?”
“Of course! I love her pure white hair! Those golden eyes are as dazzling as the sun! Most importantly, she’s the strongest Magical Girl!”
Pure white hair, huh…
Mu Yurou lifted a strand of white hair from her own shoulder.
“Come to think of it, Xiao Rou, you have white hair too! Maybe you’re Magical Girl Crystal Orchid!”
Huang Xi pointed at Mu Yurou, her eyes sparkling.
“How could that be~”
“But, now that you mention it, Crystal Orchid hasn’t been seen in years. I wonder why. Did she retire?”
Huang Xi sounded disappointed.
Mu Yurou knew why Crystal Orchid hadn’t appeared—three years ago, after defeating the Disaster-Class Broodmother, she slaughtered her own squad, possibly falling into corruption as a Witch, and never appeared again.
Should I tell her? She seems to really like Crystal Orchid Senior.
“She probably retired… After all, she took down one of humanity’s greatest enemies.”
“I hope so. But I still wish she could appear again.”
Huang Xi forked a piece of tiramisu into her mouth.
Time passed quietly, and before long it was getting late.
Mu Yurou checked her watch and stood up.
“It’s late. I have to go. Aren’t you leaving?”
“I haven’t finished eating. Go ahead. Bye bye.”
“Bye bye~”
Mu Yurou left the coffee shop and headed home.
As Mu Yurou walked down the street, suddenly, her watch emitted a piercing frequency only she could hear!
She quickly found a deserted alley and answered the call.
Zhang Xia’s voice came through:
“Lily of the Valley! Abyssal Beast attack! Very close to you! It crawled in from the underground pipeline—its strength isn’t great, only Bud-level. I believe you can handle it.”
As she finished, the Abyssal Beast’s location was projected from the watch.
Mu Yurou looked closely—it was the coffee shop from earlier!
No! Huang Xi is still there!
She quickly pulled a Pure White Crystal from her pocket and gripped it tightly.
“Transformation!”
The pure white light replaced her usual attire.
Light outlined a pure white dress, transforming into the Magic Attire of Magical Girl Lily of the Valley.
She flew toward the Coffee Shop.
***
Huang Xi was enjoying her tiramisu at the window table.
Suddenly, screams rang out from the street.
She looked in the direction of the noise and saw a giant crab crawling out of the sewer!
People scattered in all directions.
The crab stood on the road, pinching anything in sight.
The crab blocked the road, stopping several cars.
The car at the front was targeted—it raised its massive claw, ready to smash the vehicle and its occupants into scrap!
Seeing the descending claw, the people inside the car leaped out!
A split second after they jumped out, the car was crushed into twisted metal.
“My car loan still has thirty years left!”
The man who jumped out fell to his knees in despair.
The crab wasn’t satisfied, repeatedly smashing the car, venting its destructive urge.
Nearby, people helped the man up and fled the scene.
Only when the car was as flat as it could be did the crab stop its rampage.
It scanned the area, looking for something else to destroy—object or person.
Suddenly, it spotted Huang Xi inside the Coffee Shop, staring in terror through the glass.
The crab monster scuttled toward the shop!
It’s targeting me!
Huang Xi rushed for the exit, but the crab chased after her, relentless.
As the crab drew closer, Huang Xi tripped in panic.
She fell to the ground, the shadow of the giant claw looming over her!
Huang Xi fainted from fear.
At the very moment she was about to be crushed—
A pure white figure wielding a Pink Long Spear stood between her and the monster!
Mu Yurou blocked the claw, driving her spear through the crab’s pincer and pinning it to the ground.
The crab’s other claw wasn’t idle, swiping at Mu Yurou.
Mu Yurou leapt back, scooping up Huang Xi into her arms.
She carried the unconscious Huang Xi to safety, checked her for injuries, then turned to the crab still pinned in place.
She charged forward. The crab stretched its free claw to grab her.
Mu Yurou made a great leap, pulling her Long Spear from the pinned crab.
She landed behind it—the crab’s massive bulk kept it from turning.
Mu Yurou gripped her spear tightly and thrust with all her strength!
The Long Spear pierced the crab’s head from back to front!
The crab thrashed, then went still, its claws swinging weakly before its body crumbled into powder and scattered on the wind.
The crisis ended, Mu Yurou found an empty spot, deactivated her transformation, changed back into her uniform, and rushed to Huang Xi’s side.