After the Rain

It was nearly noon when I left the arcade.

The rain had weakened considerably, but it still hadn't stopped.

The sky was shrouded in gloomy clouds, as if covered by a gray veil. The pedestrian street was sparsely populated, with only a few umbrellas visible moving through the water curtain. The air was damp and filled with the smell of dust, bringing a slight chill to the air.

Raindrops cascaded down the roadside trees, their leaves rustling softly in the breeze, like whispers. Shop signs were streaked with rain, the lamplight casting a hazy, gentle glow on the rain-soaked curtain.

Two umbrellas, one tall and one short, walked side by side down the street. Larkspur and Xia Liang walked under the umbrellas, and were silent for a moment.

In the end, it was Larkspur who spoke first, "Is this really a good idea?"

"How was it?" Xia Liang asked with a light laugh.

"You know that."

I don't know.

"... Why should we plead for them?"

Larkspur sighed, "Back then, when you winked at me, wasn't that what you meant? To tell me not to go too far with my methods?"

To be honest, when she first saw Xia Liang being harassed by shady characters, including some of her former "friends" who had almost harmed Xia Liang, her first reaction was to call the police immediately.

Magical girls are not police officers, nor do they have the obligation or need to punish ordinary people. However, calling the police is something anyone can do.

Even if the other party is just a group of minors, Fangting City has a special Youth Guidance Squad responsible for punishing and supervising young people who have violated the rules.

However, Xia Liang didn't seem to want to do that, which is why she repeatedly hinted at it to Larkspur at that time.

Larkspur chose to respect the wishes of the person involved, and in the end only forced the other party to apologize. As a result, the slap and warning were only carried out when Xia Liang was not watching, simply because she couldn't stand it anymore.

The arcade was crowded and noisy, so she didn't ask Xia Liang for her reasons for making that choice at the time, but now she had to find out.

"That's not what I meant. I'm just looking forward to seeing you display your amazing skills, senior."

When faced with Larkspur's question, Xia Liang jokingly opened her mouth, but after seeing the calm and serious look in the eyes opposite her, she gradually shut her mouth and the smile on her lips disappeared.

The sound of ankle boots tapping crisply on the puddle ground; for a moment, only the sounds of footsteps and breathing could be heard under the umbrella.

"... If I had to say, it's because we're actually the same kind of people."

She said softly, "Those who are not loved by their families and not accepted by their communities eventually come together, wanting to appear stronger."

"Some people gradually went astray, and some gradually gave up trying. But everyone had already been abandoned by the group, or even by their own family, and they were terrified of being abandoned again, so they began their shared fall."

"Sometimes, when I look at them, it's like looking at another version of myself. If I hadn't met Xiao Lu, Xiaoxianbei, Moko, or any of you, I would have become like them someday."

"Isn't this a strange mentality? It's like seeing another version of yourself who couldn't be redeemed. Even knowing it's futile, you still can't bring yourself to do it."

Two umbrellas drifted past the street corner, raindrops sliding off their surfaces and splashing onto the concrete curb of the sidewalk.

"But they're trying to harm you."

The Larkspur calmly replied, "In the face of others' malice, excessive kindness will only harm yourself."

"Even so, I choose to give them a chance. Because even if it was brief, Li Yaqing had shown me kindness."

Xia Liang said just as earnestly, "When I was all alone, surrounded by rumors, and ridiculed and isolated by other classmates, she told me, 'That's cool,' and wanted to be my friend."

"If it weren't for her back then, I might not even be alive today. I might have done something even more impulsive. After all, when I first lost my parents, I even considered suicide."

"If I had taken my own life back then, I wouldn't be able to meet you now, senior."

"So, this is actually a bit of a selfish sentiment on my part, but I just wishfully hope that she can get better."

"Because we were once 'friends' and once pursued 'love' together, I hope her ending will also be one where she recognizes right from wrong, moves on, and finds happiness. But if she's targeted by the Youth Guidance Squad, then only punishment remains."

Xia Liang's words seemed somewhat ethereal in the rain, accompanied by a continuous stream of thoughts, intricately interwoven, leaving behind only...

"So I agreed, but I'll only give them one chance."

With a stern face, Larkspur gazed at the gradually weakening rain. "I also hope that the words I left for her will make her realize what brings rewards and what brings punishment."

"If they've learned their lesson and seen the rewards, but still can't move on, then we can't blame external factors anymore. At that point, human nature is the hardest thing to change."

"Just like magical girls, each magical girl is initially chosen with a pure heart. However, when a magical girl begins to do evil and commits sins, we cannot excuse her by saying 'she was originally a good child.'"

"Doing good deeds should be rewarded, and doing bad deeds should be punished. Even though the world is not always like this, we should still hold onto this principle."

Finally, the two stopped at an intersection, which was the middle of the pedestrian shopping street where a traffic light stood, stopping them in their tracks.

"Really, you're being too serious, junior."

Xia Liang suddenly smiled and said, "Today is our date, so let's just let this little incident pass. If it spoils our good mood, that would be what really makes me sad."

"It's not a 'date', is it?"

Hearing her words, Larkspur forced herself to relax her eyebrows, let out a long breath, and glanced up at Xia Liang: "It's just a casual outing; that's a bit inappropriate for the occasion."

"Huh? But I genuinely feel like we're on a date."

As Xia Liang spoke, she moved closer to Larkspur, bringing the two of them even closer together. "Look, going out with someone you like, visiting places that hold memories, and even having a hero save the damsel in distress—isn't this the perfect date script?"

"Every word matches up, but every specific concept has been subtly changed."

With her eyelids drooping, Larkspur commented, "What do you mean by 'someone you like'? Wouldn't 'friend' or 'partner' be more accurate?"

"Hehe, isn't it more romantic to say it like that?"

Xia Liang chuckled softly, but then suddenly seemed to realize something and looked up at the sky. "Ah, has the rain stopped?"

The Larkspur also looked up, gazing at the horizon where the umbrella met the sky. There, she saw that the dark clouds had parted, and a few rays of sunlight pierced through the clouds, illuminating the originally gloomy street.

"Let's go have lunch before the second half."

Putting away her umbrella, Xia Liang smiled and said to Larkspur, "Our date today is far from over, isn't it?"