Chapter 59: The Scent

Xingyue glanced at the pair of slightly damp white long socks piled on the table beside her.

They were trophies she had pulled off Erela.

Though time had passed, the water stains on them were almost dry, yet still retained their original purity, flawless and pristine white.

If she sold them, she might even fetch a million.

Throw them in front of that group of magic-obsessed women, and it would probably trigger a fierce scramble.

Of course, she wouldn’t do that—these were her spoils.

Knock knock—

“Xingyue, it’s me.”

“Xingyu, come in.”

Xingyue adjusted her sitting posture and tucked the trophies into the drawer.

Xingyu entered and sat opposite her.

“What did you call me for?”

“Hm, it’s about your sister. I’ve already arranged someone to handle it. Someone will go take care of it.”

“Who?!” Xingyu stood up.

“Someone who can persuade Erela. They contacted me just now and said Erela agreed.”

In other words, they had gone straight to Erela and forced her into a corner physically, leaving her no choice but to comply.

Of course, Xingyue wouldn’t say it so bluntly.

Anyway, it was enough that Xingyu accepted it.

“I see…”

Xingyu lowered her eyebrows, feeling somewhat relieved but still worried.

“Do you really think Erela will act?”

“Though she looks like that, once she agrees to something, she never backs down.”

Xingyue leaned forward slightly, her tone carrying authority: “So, don’t go looking for Erela on your own anymore.”

Xingyu’s hands trembled.

[How could she know that I…]

Knowing Xingyue’s character, she definitely wouldn’t stalk anyone, so it must have come from another source.

“That’s settled then. You can go back.”

Xingyue rubbed her aching waist.

“Alright, I’m leaving.”

Xingyu stood, then suddenly remembered something and called back:

“By the way, some time ago at the Huahai branch, a magical girl brought back a lot of divine particles. Why don’t you test if you’re compatible?”

“I’ve heard about it.”

Xingyue nodded calmly.

“I tested before; my compatibility was low, only 21%. I think you could reach between 40% and 60%.”

“Why do you think I could be that high?”

“That’s what everyone thinks.”

Xingyu replied.

Everyone recognized Xingyue, the First Seat, as immensely powerful and held high expectations for her.

Testing compatibility with divine particles was no challenge given Xingyue’s talent.

“You’re already strong enough. With the aid of divine particles, even if a Ravaging-Dimensional Beast invades again, you won’t have to suffer heavy casualties like last time.”

Xingyu smiled mysteriously at this.

“My situation is special… no need.”

“No need?”

“Mm, don’t ask too much. Dimensional Beast invasions have been frequent lately. You should get back to your post.”

Ten days later

Luo You was carrying groceries she had just bought from the supermarket, about to put them in her car when she noticed a crowd on the roadside taking pictures.

“What’s going on?”

Luo You climbed onto the roof of her car without any care.

On the street, a convoy of military vehicles passed in formation, massive and imposing, at least the size of a battalion.

Maybe even more.

At that moment, a news bulletin popped up on the supermarket’s plaza screen.

The news was the same—another Dimensional Beast appeared inland, but had been defeated by magical girls.

“Again…”

“How many is that now? Over twenty, right?”

“My hometown hasn’t seen a Dimensional Beast for four years, but recently they’ve been invaded three times!”

“Is something wrong at the border? What is the government hiding?”

“Speaking of which, there have been frequent local military deployments lately.”

The crowd murmured complaints about the situation.

The frequency of Dimensional Beast appearances inland was slowly rising—thirty-seven incidents in total, with sixteen Ghost-class, five King-class, and the rest Common-class.

Yet even so, hundreds of civilians had been killed or injured.

Luo You glanced over and ignored it.

“Maybe I’ll check on Xue… a few more hypnotic sessions should be enough.”

She drove to the building where Xue was staying.

The family that had previously occupied the place had disappeared without a trace.

Neighbors said that a few days ago, the entire family of over ten people had been scammed overseas by some kind of pyramid scheme, their fate unknown.

“The efficiency of the Inner World’s administration is reassuring.”

Satisfied, Luo You moved in with Xue.

Unlocking the door, the empty living room greeted them. Xue stood by the window, eyes closed, head slightly raised as if sensing something.

“Xue? What are you looking at?”

“…I don’t know.”

Xue ran up to her and said, “I keep feeling an indescribable aura in the outside air.”

“What kind of aura?”

“Uh… hard to explain…”

“Just tell me if it’s good or bad.”

“…Bad, I guess? Like rotten mud, a scent both familiar and strange!”

“What a weird comparison.”

Luo You sat on the sofa and beckoned Xue over.

Hypnosis! Hypnosis! Hypnosis!

After a full session, Luo You went to the window, closing her eyes to feel it like Xue did for a minute.

She sensed nothing.

[Is it that Xue’s innate senses from the Border Sea have detected something?]

Luo You wondered.

There was no reason to doubt Xue’s words. It was likely her reaction to the recent surge in Dimensional Beast invasions.

Well, it wasn’t a big deal.

With Xue in Huahai City, Dimensional Beasts wouldn’t cause trouble here.

Whatever happened elsewhere was none of her concern.

Lately, Luo You felt life was peaceful.

With nothing to do at the gym, An Jiu’er had reduced her appointment requests, Luo Zining rarely bothered her, and Ji Yue hadn’t shown up again.

Everything was going smoothly.

If there was one annoying thing, it was Li Yun.

“Xingyue that lunatic wants me to fix Li Yun’s problem, but she hasn’t even given me Li Yun’s address. I can’t find her, so how am I supposed to solve her inability to transform?”

To Luo You, the solution was simple.

Li Yun’s inability to transform was probably because she’d become infatuated with herself after being slept with seven years ago.

So all she had to do was sleep with her one more night, right?

That way, she’d have the upper hand and solve the problem—two birds with one stone!

Perfect! Am I really a genius?

…Actually, Luo You was troubled.

She wanted to resolve the tangled fate with Luo Zining’s family once and for all, but this would only make things messier.

“Annoying.”

Luo You slumped on the sofa as time slowly passed.

Suddenly, her hands trembled violently, and she sat upright.

“I smell it!”

A scent familiar yet strange, one that shouldn’t exist in this world—an overwhelmingly evil stench!