Testing

Larkspur looked at the girl before her, her heart stirring slightly.

It was not because of how the other girl was dressed. She did not like judging people by their appearance.

Rather, the "kitty" the girl had mentioned was clearly Moko, who had been following them all along.

Ordinary people could not see Fairies like Moko. Under normal circumstances, they could not even sense a Fairy's presence at all. Clearly, the girl before them was no ordinary person.

Combined with her question and Lin Xiaolu's reaction behind her, it was not difficult to determine that she was the girl with "magical talent," the target their group had been seeking.

"Y-you! When did you even circle around to this place?"

At some point, Lin Xiaolu had already hidden behind Larkspur. Facing the girl, she asked with more bluster than courage, "I clearly saw your whole group walking ahead!"

"Walking ahead... ah, I just found an excuse to split off from them."

The girl blinked and smiled. "I saw you following behind me the whole time, so I wanted to ask what you were doing."

"You saw me? Impossible!"

Lin Xiaolu shook her head and pointed at the girl. "There were so many people on the street! I was hiding in the crowd the whole time, so how could you have noticed I was following you?"

"But you're wearing the uniform of my school."

As she spoke, the girl tilted her head. "You're the only student from my school I could see around here, so you stood out a lot to me."

"Same school? Don't try to use an excuse like that..."

Halfway through her sentence, Lin Xiaolu seemed to realize something. She carefully examined the girl's appearance, then suddenly remembered something and cried out in shock, "Ah, I remember now! That little group of delinquent gyarus in our grade—you're one of them!"

The term "delinquent gyarus" caught Larkspur's attention, and she could not help glancing at the girl again.

Makeup, dyed highlights, pierced ears—among middle schoolers, that appearance could indeed be considered "gyaru." But there was not much about her that suggested "delinquent."

"Delinquent gyaru group... hahaha."

The girl did not show any obvious displeasure at the term. Instead, she laughed as though she had heard something amusing. "Is that what people at school call us? Or did you come up with that yourself?"

Lin Xiaolu did not answer. Instead, she took two steps back and grabbed Larkspur. "Larkspur, this girl is very dangerous!"

"Dangerous?" The girl looked somewhat confused by that assessment.

Lin Xiaolu spoke righteously. "I've seen it before! Gyaru groups like hers bully other girls!"

"But I've never bullied anyone."

The girl retorted, "That's slander!"

"Even if you haven't bullied anyone, dressing like that is still disgraceful!"

"This is just normal self-styling."

The girl puffed out her cheeks. "Isn't it good for girls to make themselves look a little more fashionable?"

"Because it's way too shameless!"

Lin Xiaolu shook her head repeatedly. "Dressing like that is bad enough, but that bunch flirts with boys every day! One of them was even suspended before, because she and a boy in an empty classroom..."

"Had sex with her boyfriend? That wasn't me either."

The girl raised an eyebrow, sounding somewhat helpless. "And I don't flirt with boys either. I think dating is troublesome, so I properly turn down any confessions I need to reject."

"Sex... Why would you just say that word out loud? Are you some kind of pervert?"

Lin Xiaolu's cheeks reddened, her face full of embarrassed anger. "Even if you haven't done that sort of thing, you dress like that because you want to attract boys' attention, right?"

"Mm, that part is true."

The girl admitted it openly, though her smile remained calm and sweet, making her look rather well-behaved. "But don't you think boys' reactions are funny? The way they want to look but don't dare to is so amusing."

"You... you..." Lin Xiaolu was genuinely confused now.

Seeing the topic of their conversation drifting further and further off course, Larkspur finally had no choice but to step in. With a sigh, she interrupted them. "You two, could you stop for a moment?"

She pointed to the side as she explained, "Setting aside whatever issues there are between you two, it is not appropriate to make such a scene in the street. Look, people are already gathering to watch."

Only then did Lin Xiaolu and the girl stop and look around. Sure enough, quite a few people were watching them, and some were even taking pictures with their phones.

It was not difficult to understand why. Three girls who all looked quite young, one of them even somewhat childish, were standing together. They were each youthful and cute enough to look like idols, yet they were arguing in the middle of the street. It was hard not to suspect they were some new idol group filming a variety show or an online video.

If they kept drawing attention, there would be many topics they could not discuss. So Larkspur took the lead in steering their increasingly absurd conversation elsewhere. "Have you considered changing locations and having a proper talk?"

The girl froze for a moment at that, then smiled in confusion. "Huh? But I still have no idea what you people do. Why should I go with you?"

"We were following you."

Larkspur said expressionlessly, "Because you are special, and we need to speak with you."

"Following me?"

The girl immediately covered her mouth and put on a somewhat frightened expression. "How awful, you were following me? Do you want something from me? I'm so uneasy and confused. If I give you money, will you let me go?"

"Since you came over to approach us yourself, you must actually be very interested, right?"

Larkspur made no comment on her exaggerated performance and merely continued in an even tone. "Even now, you are still curious about that pink cat flying in the air over there, aren't you?"

"Mm... perhaps?" The girl's attitude remained ambiguous.

When Moko heard Larkspur mention her, she flapped her wings and flew over, wanting to say something and make an impression. But Larkspur stopped her with a look. Intimidated by her authority, Moko could only wait obediently and continue playing the mute.

"I can tell you that all those vague feelings of yours are correct. Every one of them is real."

After keeping Moko in check, Larkspur looked at the girl again, one hand on her hip. "Whether it is the attraction you felt from that pink cat or that inexplicable sense of danger you felt upon seeing me, they are both real."

"If you want to know why, then come with me."

At last, a hint of astonishment appeared on the girl's face. Larkspur could tell that her words had struck at what the girl was feeling inside. She felt the timing was about right—it was time to play hard to get. So she raised her chin, her expression becoming somewhat haughty. "I will not force you. You may refuse and leave right now, but I will not offer this invitation a second time."

After saying that, she turned and walked away, leaving the girl behind to stare at her retreating figure.

Moko and Lin Xiaolu quickly reacted as well. Moko immediately flapped after her, while Lin Xiaolu turned back and shot the girl a fierce glare before jogging after Larkspur.

"...Ah, I guess I'm the one who got hooked in the end."

After pausing for a moment, the girl finally smiled helplessly, then stepped forward to follow the people ahead of her.