“Probably those magical girls from out of town,” Huanhong judged the recent explosion.
Jinluan lowered her head in thought, then looked at Yinlin and asked, “What do you think?”
Yinlin: “Big sisters who’ve been debuting for years don’t even know about this. You want to ask me, a rookie who just debuted half a month ago?”
Jinluan sighed.
Sometimes talking with Yinlin was really exhausting—she was easily angered.
But Huanhong suddenly asked, “Do you have an older or younger sister?”
Yinlin: “Not that I know of.”
This wasn’t a good topic.
Jinluan gave Huanhong a sharp look.
What Huanhong was thinking was nothing more than that the one who fired the railgun might be Yinlin’s relative, which is why they had similar moves.
There were very few people who could become magical girls; even fewer had sisters who both became magical girls.
So this was just Huanhong’s guess.
Just as Huanhong was about to continue questioning, Jinluan shot her another glare.
Huanhong pouted in dissatisfaction and stopped.
Jinluan thought that constantly probing a young girl—an orphan, no less—about family matters was like picking at an old wound.
She pushed Huanhong’s wheelchair and left, leaving Yinlin alone.
“You focus on your work. We’re leaving first to continue investigating that explosion,” Jinluan said as she closed the door.
In the corridor, Jinluan tapped Huanhong’s head again.
“When you ask questions, you have to read the atmosphere,” Jinluan scolded.
“Ouch! So protective now, your elbows are sticking out. After years fighting side by side, you treat me like a stranger,” Huanhong teased with a smirk.
Jinluan tapped her head once more.
After sending Huanhong back to her ward, Jinluan was alone.
Suddenly, she did something unexpected—she took off her magical girl uniform, leaving not a trace of magical power on her, completely naked.
She changed into an ill-fitting nurse’s uniform she had borrowed and tiptoed back, hiding outside Yinlin’s room.
It wasn’t that she didn’t trust the cute, beautiful, soft, and fresh Yinlin, but rather that she deeply distrusted her and wanted to see what secrets this little troublemaker was hiding.
This time, Yinlin truly felt no magic.
If Jinluan had dared to wear any magic-related clothing here, Yinlin would have sensed it.
Not even wearing panties—going to such lengths—Yinlin couldn’t help but feel powerless.
She hadn’t expected Jinluan’s suspicion to run this deep.
Originally, she thought that when entering the false space, she’d have to use magic, and Jinluan would sense it, so she hadn’t bothered hiding much.
But Jinluan had already begun actively spying on her secrets.
As usual, Diamond took charge of guidance, and Yinlin focused on perception.
Quickly, a crack opened, and her soul was drawn out of her body, sucked into that place.
At this moment, Jinluan outside sensed the magic inside but had no idea what exactly was happening.
She anxiously waited, pressing her ear to the door for sounds, but heard nothing except Diamond’s cough.
Something was off.
She gently pushed the door open a crack and looked inside.
Yinlin was lying there peacefully, as quiet as a statue—a true static beauty.
What was going on?
Just lying there was enough?
No next move?
At this moment, Yinlin was, of course, already inside that false space.
Once inside, she shouted loudly, “Come out, your grandfather is here.”
She watched warily at the towering ancient tree dripping black sap.
No matter how many times she saw it, that thing looked ominous and wrong.
No response.
Yinlin shouted again, “If you don’t come out, I’ll come to you.”
Still no reply.
She had no choice but to walk toward the World Tree.
When she got within five meters, finally, the woman appeared.
“Even if you refuse, today you must resolve your doubts in your heart, right?” The Contract Goddess’s deliberately disguised voice sounded.
“Good, today no matter what you say, I want to know your secret.” Yinlin stepped closer, less than three meters from the World Tree.
Contract Goddess: “Ask, ask whatever you want. It’s better to say it directly; otherwise, it’s kind of awkward.”
“Fine.” Yinlin thought for a moment and asked her first question, “You had me use my physical body to fish, luring Huanhong and Jinluan here to deal with Lightning Man. You predicted we’d get thoroughly taught a lesson, that Diamond would intervene, and that Diamond and I would barely manage to drive off Lightning Man. You anticipated all of that, didn’t you?”
Contract Goddess: “Yes, I knew the outcome before you acted.”
Yinlin: “You knew Diamond was already failing and wouldn’t last long. You knew doing this would cause Diamond to die faster, yet you still had me do it?”
Her voice rose a bit; it was clearly anger.
Contract Goddess: “Yes. Only by doing this could you grow faster.”
Yinlin: “You piss me off. Although this also partly happened because of my stupidity, I’m still very upset with you. I even want to help the Otherworlders kill you and the World Tree.”
Contract Goddess: “I understand your feelings now, but this is the best way for you to grow…”
A brief pause, as if catching her breath; her tone changed slightly: “Do you know why magical girls are always young girls? Besides the main reasons, one secondary reason is that girls at that age haven’t fully formed their worldview. It’s much easier to educate them, to implant your own ideas.”
It was hard to imagine a boss character on the side of justice saying something like that.
Then she added, “They easily accept new ideas. But you—you’re a stubborn 34-year-old. Except for drastic measures, usual education methods basically don’t work on you.”
Yinlin ground her teeth, anger written all over her face: “Just to make me grow, just to feed me some messed-up knowledge—even at the cost of Diamond’s life, and even with the three of us gravely injured and nearly dead—you think that’s acceptable?”
The Contract Goddess answered firmly, “Yes. I know you won’t die.”
The blunt admission made Yinlin even angrier.
Yinlin shouted, “What do you take the familiar beasts for? Aren’t they your closest companions? They trusted you so much, treated you like a god.”
“Heh.”
The Contract Goddess chuckled.
“And you? Don’t you treat your familiar beasts like monsters? You’ve never truly respected them, have you?”
“I am me, you are you. The familiar beasts respect you, not me.”
Yinlin took a deep breath.
“You’ve made me very angry. And I know you have some foresight. What you’re doing is the optimal choice. Making me this mad is part of your plan?”
Contract Goddess: “No. If possible, I wish you could be calmer.”
Yinlin: “And then? I’m really mad right now and want to slap you. If you can foresee the future, you definitely have a way to calm my rage, make me submit, and keep serving you like a dog. Tell me, how would you do that?”
Even Yinlin was curious how the Contract Goddess, having made her so furious, planned to soothe her anger.
Contract Goddess: “Come over. I know what you’re waiting for. Today, this time, what must come, has come.”
Yes, Yinlin really wanted to see her.
She moved closer to the World Tree; the Contract Goddess’s voice became clearer.
The broadcast-like echo faded, and her real position became audible.
Circling around the massive trunk, behind it was a small hollow.
The voice came from there.
“What, you’ve come this far and still scared?” the Contract Goddess’s voice echoed inside.
Yinlin frowned; she was indeed a little scared.
The more she knew, the deeper she got caught.
In the end, she crawled inside.
The inside was hollowed out, seemingly eaten away.
Not sure if that was normal.
It was dark, hard to see what was inside.
Taking a few more steps, she heard breathing—soft and gentle.
“I’m a bit scared too,” the Contract Goddess suddenly mocked herself.
“I’ll give you one last chance. I look ugly right now. Are you sure you want to see? Your decision will change your life.”
Listening to the increasingly clear voice, Yinlin’s heartbeat quickened, and a guess formed in her mind: “I’ve decided. Show me.”
Suddenly, a blinding light appeared—Illumination Magic.
Yinlin covered her eyes, taking over ten seconds to gradually adjust.
She removed her hand from her face and stared in shock, mouth agape, pupils dilated.
What appeared before her eyes was definitely not for children.
It was a girl who looked exactly like Yinlin—familiar face, familiar hair, familiar figure.
Only, she was tightly bound by tree roots, tied up securely.
Maybe “tied” wasn’t the right word.
More accurately, those roots were like intravenous tubes, piercing her skin and greedily drinking from her, as if treating her for nourishment.
She had already fused with the World Tree, inseparable.
She couldn’t move a muscle—like a gem embedded in the tree.
“I… what the hell,” Yinlin murmured.
“This is the truth you wanted,” the girl in front spoke for the first time without hiding her voice.
The voice was identical to Yinlin’s but weaker and more world-weary.
MC could have said she have a older brother who would be her original self.
Her secret are her own, you don’t have anything to do with them b*tch