Xia Liang's Doubt

"It's really still there..."

Speechless with emotions she couldn't even discern herself, Larkspur stopped in front of the sign.

"Is this the place?"

Xia Liang, standing beside her, looked up at the second floor of the building but saw nothing. She could only lower her head again and ask, "Why is the coffee shop on the second floor?"

"It's probably a rent issue."

Larkspur briefly stated her guess, then led Xia Liang a short distance into the first floor before stepping onto the stairs. "Anyway, let's go up and take a look first."

Xia Liang stopped talking and looked around with curiosity as she walked up the stairs with Larkspur.

As they descended the stairs to the second floor, the two could already smell a faint aroma of coffee just standing at the top of the stairs. Looking ahead, they could see an open door.

At this point, however, the Larkspur felt a sense of trepidation, as if she were returning home.

If the information is correct, then this coffee shop should be the one that the old squad from Fangting City frequented. However, how much does it still resemble what I remember?

I didn't even know it had changed its address and moved once. In that sense, the coffee shop I remembered no longer existed.

"What's wrong?" Xia Liang asked curiously, seeing Larkspur's somewhat dazed expression.

"... No, it's nothing." Snapping out of her thoughts, Larkspur gently shook her head. "It's just that the scene touched my heart a little."

Without thinking further, she led Xia Liang into the coffee shop.

The first thing you see is a long bar counter, behind which are various coffee-making machines. When you walk up to the bar, Larkspur will see an old man working hard behind the counter.

The old man looked to be in his sixties, with slightly graying hair, but overall he was in good spirits and did not appear too old.

Most importantly, although his appearance is very different from Larkspur remembers, many of his features are enough to prove one thing—he is the boss from twenty years ago.

She could still recall the scenes of going to the coffee shop with her old squad back then. The owner, who was in his forties and just a middle-aged man, would stand behind the bar and personally serve the customers coming and going.

When the magical girls, who had concealed their identities, burst in from outside the door, chatting and laughing, he would jokingly scold them to be quiet, and then ask, "The usual?"

Although he would say discouraging things like "middle school students should go home and study" every day, he would still reserve the table where the girls often sat, leaving a special seat for these "little regulars".

He and the magical girls were never very familiar with each other, nor did they ever try to understand one another, but as the owner and customer of the café, they shared an unspoken understanding.

However, after Larkspur left the magical girl team, she never came here with the team members again, and in her memory, the owner's appearance remained frozen at over forty years old.

Even now, when I see the old man behind the bar, that face that had long become blurred in my memory becomes clear again, but everything has changed.

Upon seeing someone approaching, the old man looked up from his busy work. Seeing that it was two very young girls, he first raised an eyebrow in surprise, then quickly smoothed it out, and, true to his business acumen, began to speak:

"Welcome, young ladies. What would you like to order?"

"It's nothing, I just came to take a look," Larkspur said truthfully.

"Take a look? Heh, little girl, we don't have any interesting toys here."

With a somewhat helpless smile, the old man initially thought it was just a joke or a prank, but when his gaze fell upon the blue hair of the Larkspur, he suddenly froze.

Blue hair is not a very common hair color.

Although it is rumored that some Outer Domain have blue hair, Fangting City, being a relatively remote city in the Eastern Hua Prefecture, does not attract many Outer Domain to stay for long.

In fact, based on the old man's many years of life experience, he had only personally seen a handful of people with blue hair.

Of all the customers I've ever dealt with in this cafe I run, only one has this particular hair color; in my memory, that's the only one.

"You... could it be...?"

He first rubbed his glasses, squinted, and looked carefully. He spoke in a tone that seemed uncertain to himself, but then gradually became more certain. "Did your mother send you here?"

His question instantly turned the Larkspur's previously somewhat melancholic eyes into a deathly stillness.

"... I guess so."

However, she also knew that such a misunderstanding wouldn't do her any harm—she couldn't explain to an ordinary person that she was a magical girl and that her appearance wouldn't change over time after transforming—going along with what the other person said was the more rational choice.

Her affirmation made the old man look enlightened.

"I knew it!"

As if remembering something, he suddenly tapped the table lightly and pointed at the Larkspur, saying, "I remember, about ten years ago, a group of girls often came to my shop. There was a short girl with blue hair just like you, and... well, I've forgotten what she looked like, but she did look quite similar?"

After saying that, he couldn't help but look at Xia Liang, scrutinizing her face carefully. "You... you're also the daughter of one of those girls? But you don't seem to resemble them that much?"

"My mom has never been here before, I guess."

Xia Liang smiled politely and waved her hand, saying, "I just came here with a friend to take a look."

"Haha, it seems my memory is still pretty good."

The old man laughed heartily, "So what do you want to see? There should be photos of your mother and her friends from back then on that wall over there. Would you like me to take you to see them?"

"...Thank you, we'll go in a bit." Larkspur gave a very polite bow. "We'll just wander around on our own, no need for you to trouble yourself."

"Alright then, since your mother and the others were my regular customers back then and patronized my business quite a bit, I won't let you spend any more money. Just go in."

The old man chuckled and said, "I have some things to take care of. If you change your mind and want coffee, I'm right here. Just let me know."

He gave a friendly explanation and then went back to work behind the bar.

Without exchanging further pleasantries, Larkspur led Xia Liang inside.

As they rounded a corner, a spacious and quaint café came into view. The interior design was very old-fashioned, making one feel as if they had stepped back in time.

The café is made entirely of wood, not just on the floor but also on the walls. The walls are adorned with old photos and posters, many of which date back 30 or 40 years, evoking a strong sense of nostalgia. Further inside, you can see an area with several old carpets, creating a tranquil and comfortable atmosphere.

The round coffee table, the exquisite little ornaments, and the tall wooden chairs—these pieces of furniture, though weathered by time, possess a unique charm.

The café is filled with a rich, roasted aroma. If someone knowledgeable about coffee were standing here, they would likely be able to quickly identify that these aromas come from high-quality beans. This shows that this café is not just for show; the owner has indeed put a lot of effort into the quality of the coffee.

Unfortunately, perhaps because the second floor was in such a remote location, business was rather slow. Only a few locals were sitting there, chatting quietly and enjoying their coffee.

The Larkspur didn't speak, but simply walked slowly among the furnishings in the room.

This is no longer the coffee shop she remembered. It has moved from its original location and undergone a new round of renovations, so the interior is quite different from what she recalls.

However, even though their appearances are completely different, she can still find a faint sense of nostalgia here.

It wasn't just the identical decorating style, but also the fact that many of the interior furnishings felt familiar to her.

During this time, they passed by a photo wall, which displayed pictures of all sorts of customers who had left their photos in the café.

One of the paintings depicts four girls with different expressions.

Xia Liang noticed the photo. She didn't recognize the three girls in it, but the blue-haired figure was undoubtedly the one standing next to her.

"Speaking of which... junior."

She suddenly spoke, then quietly lowered her voice and whispered in the Larkspur's ear, "What kind of people were the people in your previous team?"

Her voice was very low, but the question was still heard clearly by the Larkspur.

Larkspur, who had been looking up at the old photos, lowered her head upon hearing Xia Liang's words. After a brief silence, she gestured to the chair next to her and said, "Let's sit down and talk."

Xia Liang understood and didn't ask any more questions. Instead, she obediently followed Larkspur to the corner booth. The two sat down on the sofa-style chairs and were immersed in a quiet and peaceful atmosphere.

"This is where our team used to be. Well, the location has changed."

With a hint of nostalgia, Larkspur gently polished the wooden tabletop in front of her. "But the things haven't changed. It looked like a brand new round table back then, but now it's quite old."

Xia Liang, filled with curiosity, asked, "Why did you want to come to a coffee shop in the first place?"

"It was because of someone's strong request, or rather, it was the most troublesome person in the team who made the strong request."

"Is she Xiao Lu's mother?"

"No, it's another troublesome fellow." Larkspur couldn't help but lower his eyelids. "He's several times more troublesome than you are now."

"I've been a good boy, I'll do whatever you want me to do, senior."

"Then I'll have you delete all the photos on your phone."

"Don't want."

After these words were spoken, the two stared at each other in silence for a while. Larkspur looked indifferent, while Xia Liang smiled charmingly.

"... Never mind, let's get back to the topic."

After a while, Larkspur sighed, "That's actually why I brought you here. Some stories would be difficult to explain to White Rose, but since you already know some of the truth about me, I can tell you."

"For example?"

"For example, what kind of people are in the Old Fangting City Squad, as you asked?"

Lifting her hand from the table, Larkspur slowly looked up at Xia Liang: "To be honest, there were only four people gathered in this cafe at the beginning."

"And the most self-centered one of them, named Su Shengzi, insisted on choosing this coffee shop as the meeting place based on her own preferences..."

She began to softly tell Xia Liang stories about the old team members.

Anya, a magical girl codenamed Sakura, is the center of the team and the most enthusiastic member. Although she is somewhat careless, lazy, and even a little clumsy, she has the most steadfast heart and fighting spirit, and always manages to infect everyone with her positive emotions.

Asō Madoka, codenamed Margaret, is a magical girl from the Eastern Isles Region. She is a senior member of the team and a year older than the others. Although she has a very flamboyant and confident personality, she does not treat others with an arrogant attitude. At the same time, her fighting style is the boldest and most unrestrained in the team.

Su Shengzi, codenamed Lanxiang, is a magical girl with a mysterious background and a maverick genius. She has a very self-centered but also very clear standard of understanding things, so she often makes statements that seem normal from her perspective but are nonsense to others.

In that now-defunct café, at a corner table, four young girls sat, each with a different personality and expression, occasionally chatting, sometimes playfully fighting, sometimes bickering.

There, four girls grew from their initial naivety and immaturity step by step. They entered the most beautiful years of their youth, and their expressions, in addition to the vitality of youth, also contained many other things.

Later, the four people became five.

The girl who joined the team was a quiet girl named Hong Siyu.

She was a girl who wore glasses and seemed rather quiet, even a little dull and wooden. She always spoke very softly and timidly, and if someone showed even the slightest impatience, she would start to stutter or even become speechless.

When Hong Siyu joined them, the members of the Fangting City Squad were all high school students, and Hong Siyu a first-year student at the same school as three of them.

She was rescued by Cornflower during the Beast Disaster, and later discovered to possess the talent of a magical girl, thus joining the Magical Girl Squad of Fangting City.

That's why she always followed Cornflower's lead, acting like a little follower.

The girls chatted and talked about everything under the sun, dreaming about the future and describing their youth.

Until one day... the magical girl named Cornflower announced her retirement.

The story is like a piece of music that has been abruptly interrupted; even though it seems there is a sequel, it is abruptly stopped.

"Junior?"

The call beside her brought the Larkspur back to reality.

She then realized that she had finished telling the story she wanted to tell, but she was still lost in her own thoughts and didn't speak again for a long time.

"Feel sorry."

Clearing her throat lightly, Larkspur said softly, "As you get older, you tend to unconsciously drift into memories."

"It's nothing, no need to be so polite."

Xia Liang shook her head, rested her elbows on the table, and propped her chin up with her hands. "However, after hearing so much from you, senior, there's still one question that hasn't been answered."

"What's the problem?"

The Larkspur countered, "Did I forget something?"

"Well... this time I should be the one apologizing first."

Xia Liang smiled sheepishly and continued in a low voice, "I know this question might be a personal matter, but I've been curious about it for a long time. If you don't want to answer, that's fine."

"Because I haven't systematically studied Spell Formula, I don't know if such a technique exists. Is there really magic that can change a person's gender?"

"So, young senior... how exactly did you manage to transform your appearance into that of a man?"