Magical Girls Exposed! Chapter 32

Fang Ming steeled himself.

The barrage, however, was jubilant.

(It's here, it's here! The final magical girl, Xiao Bai's transformation! We finally get to see it!)

(It took until episode eight to see Xiao Bai transform. Sure enough, Xiao Bai is the second female lead.)

(So cool!! Xiao Bai, step on me!!)

(Bro M is here again lol)

Who wanted to step on you?! If you liked getting stepped on that much, couldn't you just lie down somewhere crowded?!

Fang Ming grumbled internally, then took deep breaths over and over.

It was fine. There was no need to panic, because panicking would not help anyway.

Besides, Xiao Bai was Xiao Bai, and Fang Ming was Fang Ming. What did Xiao Bai's transformation have to do with Fang Ming?

As long as he did not expose his relationship with Xiao Bai, he would be fine!

That was right, exactly!

Fang Ming forcibly convinced himself, forcibly forgot the transformation scene from earlier, and continued watching the plot unfold on the Sky Screen.

[Xiao Bai had transformed, and Yu Muqiu had finished transforming as well.

The two magical girls looked at the aquarium, which had suddenly changed, and ran toward the source of the magical power eruption.

With the birth of the Nightmare Barrier, the aquarium had already become something entirely different.

Countless cartoonish fish swam around them. The boundary between the tanks and reality seemed to have vanished completely, making the two of them feel as though they were underwater.

Breathing became difficult, and they seemingly could not even speak. Fortunately, they were both magical girls. They could use magical power in place of breathing and communicate through magical power, so they were not entirely unable to communicate.

Only—

"Why are you still here?"

Xiao Bai looked coldly at Yu Muqiu.

Yu Muqiu met her gaze without backing down. "Because I'm a magical girl!"

"Are you an idiot?! You'll die!"

Xiao Bai cursed Yu Muqiu without holding back.

Yu Muqiu shrank back in fright, then puffed out her chest and said, "If something really happens, I'll run away beforehand! I'm not stupid. Of course I'll run when I'm in danger!"

"You'd better!"

Xiao Bai glared at Yu Muqiu.

It looked like she wanted to beat Yu Muqiu out of the barrier right there, but with the enemy before them, even though Xiao Bai had a strong sense of territory, she could only let Yu Muqiu follow for now.

Xiao Bai could still distinguish priorities.

And besides the two of them, the other magical girl in the aquarium also caught up at that moment.

"Xiao Qiu! I think I can sense... Hey! Why are you here?!"

The moment Chen Xiaoxia arrived, she saw Xiao Bai there and made no effort to hide her dislike for her.

Xiao Bai shot back without yielding, "That's my question! What is an idiot like you doing here? Aren't you afraid of drowning?"

"...!"

At the mention of that, Chen Xiaoxia's momentum immediately weakened.

After all, she still had not learned how to swim. Though she had learned how to exert force underwater, she could only do so with the aid of magical power.

So when faced with Xiao Bai's question, Chen Xiaoxia really could not hold her head up.

But then Chen Xiaoxia realized something was wrong.

"Wait, how do you know I can't swim?"

"..."

Xiao Bai said nothing and turned her gaze aside.

Yu Muqiu looked Xiao Bai over curiously. Watched by the two of them, Xiao Bai's expression did not change in the slightest, not even her complexion.

She looked straight ahead and said:

"...The Fish Monster Demon is here."

"Hey! Don't change the subject!"

Chen Xiaoxia refused to let it go, but Xiao Bai truly was not changing the subject this time, because the Fish Monster Demon had indeed arrived before the three of them.

"You... again..."

The Fish Monster Demon looked at Xiao Bai first.

It had clearly recognized Xiao Bai, and compared to when it had first been born, it seemed to possess more self-awareness and intelligence now.

Xiao Bai's heart sank. She swung her scythe and taunted the Fish Monster Demon:

"What? Are you going to tuck your tail and run away like a stray dog again?"

"I... won't run... this time... I... want to receive... praise...!"

The Fish Monster Demon spoke in a strange, grating voice.

Hearing those words, Xiao Bai could not help frowning tightly.

Receive praise?

Praise from whom?

Xiao Bai was still thinking when Chen Xiaoxia could no longer hold back and raised her greatsword.

"You won't run? Perfect!"

Magical light flashed around Chen Xiaoxia's feet as she used enhancement magic. Underwater, she was like a torpedo, launching herself fiercely toward the Fish Monster Demon!

"Wait, idiot!"

Xiao Bai warned Chen Xiaoxia, "Watch out for its—"

Before Xiao Bai could finish, Chen Xiaoxia felt her feet tighten. Two solidified water tentacles seized her ankles and, amid her scream, smashed her into a floating transparent tank nearby.

Bang!!!

After Chen Xiaoxia crashed into the tank and sent the fish inside scattering everywhere, Xiao Bai finally finished her sentence slowly:

"...Water tentacles."

"Those were black!! You said that so slowly on purpose, didn't you?!"

"You charged too far ahead! Idiot!!"

Xiao Bai cursed Chen Xiaoxia mercilessly.

But at the same time, her heart grew more solemn.

Because compared to the Fish Monster Demon's moves last time, its techniques this time were much more concealed.

At the very least, before the water tentacles wrapped around Chen Xiaoxia's feet, Xiao Bai had not sensed them at all!]

Analysis of the Barrage

(There was a lot of information in those few minutes.)

(Huh? Information? Where was the information?)

(First, Xiao Bai knew Chen Xiaoxia couldn't swim. That means Xiao Bai's true identity must be familiar with Chen Xiaoxia, or at the very least, she must have seen Chen Xiaoxia swimming before.)

(But wasn't the swimming pool last time booked out by Xiao Chun? There shouldn't have been anyone else there, right?)

(Yeah, that's why it's strange.)

(And there's also the Fish Monster Demon talking about "praise"... "Praise" usually comes from a superior to a subordinate, or an elder to a junior. The Fish Monster Demon saying that suggests there may be someone even stronger above it.)

With only a few scenes and a few lines of conversation, people in the barrage had already analyzed some key information.

Fang Ming nodded as he watched the barrage.

That was right. Xiao Bai knew Chen Xiaoxia could not swim because Fang Ming had been with them at the time and had seen Xiaoxia flailing around in the water.

Back then, Fang Ming had only casually said it to mock Chen Xiaoxia. Chen Xiaoxia and Yu Muqiu had forgotten about it after the battle, but he had not expected the Sky Screen to bring it up again now.

As for the Fish Monster Demon, the Sky Screen's guess was also correct.

And it was not something worth hiding.

Behind the Demons with four Nightmare Seeds stood a Demon with six Nightmare Seeds.

That Demon had actually been born even earlier than the Fish Monster Demon. It was also smarter and knew magical girls were not to be provoked, so it had been trying to recruit subordinates.

The Fish Monster Demon was the first subordinate it found, and also the last.

After all, aside from the Fish Monster Demon, Nino had already collected the remaining Nightmare Seeds. Before the Demon headquarters locked onto this world, that level-six Demon could not find any other Demons.

And after that, Fang Ming found its trail. Going by the order, that should have been the plot of episode eleven?

[Chen Xiaoxia was sent flying by the Fish Monster Demon's water whip. Xiao Bai narrowed her eyes and instructed Yu Muqiu:

"Stay here!"

"But I—"

"Stay!"

Xiao Bai sternly barked at Yu Muqiu. Yu Muqiu stopped, looking rather aggrievedly at Xiao Bai.

But Xiao Bai ignored her. Only after confirming that Yu Muqiu had no intention of fighting did she create Chains, surrounding the Fish Monster Demon completely.

The Chains moved through the water, weaving across every direction and forming a dense network of chains.

The underwater space was constrained by the Chains, and even the Fish Monster Demon's room to move gradually shrank. Amid the layered Chains, Xiao Bai ran across them, charging straight toward the Fish Monster Demon!

But suddenly, from Yu Muqiu's perspective, Xiao Bai dodged backward without any warning.

She leaned back, leaped down from the Chains, then grabbed one with one hand, turned in midair, and jumped onto another chain.

Then Xiao Bai swung her scythe. It danced impenetrably around her, and every flash of white light caused an unnatural disturbance beneath the water.

"What was that—?" Yu Muqiu widened her eyes and looked carefully, but she could not see anything.

But if one got close to Xiao Bai, one could see the water tentacles that had almost merged with the water itself, too indistinct to be seen, being severed one after another by Xiao Bai!

Seeing this, the Fish Monster Demon's lidless eyeballs rolled, as if expressing shock.

"How... can you see...?"

Splash—

Xiao Bai did not respond. The sound of Chains was her answer to the Fish Monster Demon.

Xiao Bai had not actually seen them, and her combat instincts were not that strong either.

But Xiao Bai had spread Chains throughout the surrounding area, turning the entire space into the domain of her Chains.

And she could sense the vibrations of the Chains!

Although the water tentacles had merged with the water, they were still physical objects. Since they were physical objects, moving them would stir the water around them.

Though the tentacles moved quickly, and often arrived the moment she sensed the disturbance in the water.

But if she added a "sensing chain" before that, Xiao Bai could predict the direction the tentacles would move in ahead of time!]

The images on the Sky Screen switched back and forth, allowing the viewers to understand how Xiao Bai sensed the tentacles' movements even without an explanation.

The barrage also began discussing Xiao Bai's response.

(As expected of a veteran magical girl. She has plenty of experience.)

(Come to think of it, we still don't know how Xiao Bai became a magical girl. She doesn't have a magical creature like Nino by her side either.)

(And she seems to be a resident of Rock City, right?)

Fang Ming: "..."

Stop it, stop it!

If you keep guessing, you'll strip away even my underwear!