That Special Girl

At 15, Hong Siyu, now a year older, is a girl who enjoys daydreaming.

Rather, it's precisely because she rarely interacts with others and spends most of her time immersed in her own world that she subconsciously indulges in fantasies.

Since a certain event in her second year of junior high school, the image of a certain boy began to frequently appear in her fantasies.

At first, the other person just appeared inexplicably in various story scenarios in her mind, Hong Siyu didn't think too much about it; but as time went by, his image not only did not fade with time, but became more profound.

Hong Siyu and she were well aware of why things had turned out this way—because she had used that boy's textbook.

She was in the second year of junior high when she secretly kept the textbook, but now she is in the third year. The textbook left behind by that boy has become the material she studies now. Whenever she opens those old pages and reads the handwriting he left in the textbook, Hong Siyu is inexplicably moved by his words.

That boy named Lin Yun is very handsome, has a cool personality, and his handwriting is so beautiful. I feel like we would get along very well.

Such thoughts often arise in her mind, then gradually expand, and after expanding to a certain point, she would blush at her somewhat indecent fantasies.

This can't go on, Hong Siyu. She's constantly worrying about a boy she barely knows and will almost never see again. Her emotions are all over the place. Where's the behavior of a good student? If this continues, she won't be able to study, she won't be able to make friends, and she'll be lost in her daydreams. What kind of behavior is this?

She admonished herself in this way and tried to put away the textbook she had been keeping and never look at it again. But this perseverance only lasted for a few weeks before she took the book out again due to some irresistible urge.

It's a ready-made set of study notes, so it would be a shame not to use it.

She carefully and furtively turned the pages of her textbook, as if she were doing something wrong, deceiving herself into believing it.

What she never expected was that, even though she had fantasized about many scenarios of reuniting with that boy, in the end, when she actually met him again, it was in a situation she had never anticipated before.

During her junior high school's cultural festival, her school was attacked by Aberrant Beast.

Suddenly, Aberrant Beast appeared out of nowhere and rushed into the school, launching an indiscriminate attack on the people who were immersed in a joyful atmosphere, plunging the crowd into panic in an instant.

Hong Siyu saw the Aberrant Beast's gaping maw open before her, with every single fang clearly visible, she froze, completely forgetting any thought of running away.

But then, at that critical moment, a hand reached out from nowhere and grabbed her sleeve.

"Don't just stand there, start running!"

A voice that sounded somewhat familiar yet also strange rang in her ears. Immediately afterward, she was grabbed tightly by a hand and pulled along, unconsciously starting to run. Then, she followed the person into an empty classroom in the teaching building.

As the screams outside the door gradually subsided, and the crisis seemed to have passed briefly, she looked at the boy in front of her and, somewhat uncontrollably, called out the name that had been on her mind:

-- "Lin Yun"?

"Do you know me?"

The boy who was standing by the classroom door lowered his head and looked at her with some surprise.

"Ah, no, I..."

Faced with the other party's doubts, Hong Siyu had no idea how to explain.

If I tell the other person that I met them twice at school and we only exchanged two sentences, will they think I'm a stalker?

Or, to be honest, you could say, "Senior, you lost a textbook on campus before graduation, and I secretly kept it?" That sounds even more suspicious, doesn't it?

"I used to... see you often in the library."

After thinking for a long time, she finally managed to squeeze out an answer, then tried to change the subject. "Didn't you graduate? Why did you suddenly come back?"

"I was invited back to visit for the cultural festival."

Lin Yun casually explained why she was there, then turned her gaze back to the classroom door. "I just didn't expect to encounter something like this so soon after I got back."

"Such a thing?"

"Aberrant Beast."

"Um, Lin Yun... aren't you scared, senior?"

Do I look scared?

"Well, rather than saying it seems like they're quite used to it."

"... I'm just more calm."

Lin Yun held the classroom door shut, glanced outside, then turned back to look at Hong Siyu: "I'm leaving. Remember, if you don't want to die, lock the doors and windows in any enclosed space and keep quiet. If the Aberrant Beast tries to attack the doors or windows, try to hide in a closet or under a table to conceal your presence."

"Huh?"

Hong Siyu exclaim in surprise, "Leave? Now? Why?"

"... Sitting here and waiting to die is not a solution."

Lin Yun paused slightly, then said expressionlessly, "Let me see if I can go out and rescue two more people."

"No, no, no, I'll die, won't I?"

Seeing that he was about to open the classroom door, Hong Siyu quickly rushed to the door and held it shut. "Don't do anything foolish! If you go out now, you'll be killed by the Aberrant Beast!"

"I've been observing, and the Aberrant Beast has gone somewhere else."

Lin Yun said calmly, "It's alright. Even if we're seen, as long as we're quick enough, we can find a place to hide."

"Huh?" Hong Siyu felt that the other party's remarks were so unreasonable.

Rather, this was the first time she had realized that Lin Yun had this side to her.

Previously, based on the fragmented information she had gathered and various external factors, she had always assumed that Lin Yun would be a quiet and reserved boy, much like herself.

Although his reputation at school wasn't good—many people seemed to gossip behind his back that he was two-timing, a scumbag who dated young and cheated— Hong Siyu always felt that the Lin Yun she knew wouldn't do such a thing.

How could someone so meticulous, serious, independent, aloof, and handsome possibly toy with a girl's feelings?

But now, Lin Yun's personality is shattering Hong Siyu's previous expectations.

Hong Siyu realized once again that she had truly been immersed in her imagination all along, without ever really getting to know him. But before her girlish feelings could even stir, another roar from outside the door interrupted her thoughts.

--"Roar! Ro...

As the roar thundered, the door in front of the two shook violently, and then an incredibly sharp claw pierced through the classroom door from the outside, reaching out in front of them.

Upon seeing the purplish-black claws tinged with blood, Hong Siyu almost screamed, forcing her to cover her mouth to barely suppress any sound. Then, she looked pleadingly at the calm boy in front of her.

Lin Yun didn't say anything, but simply gestured for her to be quiet. He then dodged the claws reaching into the classroom and continued to press himself against the classroom door, peering through the crack into the corridor.

His audacious behavior sent Hong Siyu's heart leaping into her throat.

The two remained in an eerie silence. Lin Yun frowned, watching the situation outside the door, while Hong Siyu stood slightly back, waiting for the Aberrant Beast's next move. A strange balance was maintained between the inside and outside of the door.

The fragile balance could not last, and soon after, another crashing sound came from outside the classroom.

Thump!

The classroom door was torn open again by the Aberrant Beast.

"Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!"

Clearly, the Aberrant Beast was certain that someone was in the room.

"What... what do we do?!" Hong Siyu, backing away in a state of utter panic. "It's coming in!"

"Yes, it's coming in." Lin Yun nodded calmly.

"This isn't the time to repeat what I said, is it?" Hong Siyu's eyes widened, feeling like she was about to collapse. "If this continues, we'll die!"

"It's okay, we won't die."

"Huh? Do you have any ideas?"

"I... have no choice, but someone will come to stop it."

"Who?" Hong Siyu asked expectantly.

"A magical girl," Lin Yun answered confidently.

The classroom fell silent. Even though the Aberrant Beast outside had almost torn half of the door apart and had most of its claws sticking out, it did nothing to ease the awkward atmosphere.

"... Senior, are you kidding me?" Hong Siyu tried to make her tone sound less like she was trying to fool someone. "Hoping for magical girls at a time like this? That kind of vague and unreal thing?"

"Is it strange?" Lin Yun glanced at her. "Where there are Aberrant Beast, there will be magical girls. Isn't that just a matter of course?"

"What kind of self-evident right is this?"

Hong Siyu pointed at the Aberrant Beast at the door, but her fingers trembled like a leaf. "This isn't a cartoon on TV, that thing is about to come in, can you stop joking!"

"It's alright, the magical girl will come."

"Why does he have this inexplicable confidence!"

"Wait a moment, I'll be right back." Without answering her question, Lin Yun walked straight to the classroom window and opened the window facing outwards.

"Huh?" Seeing his inexplicable behavior, Hong Siyu felt increasingly out of her depth. "Wait, this is the fifth floor. Where are you going?"

"Go outside for a bit," Lin Yun said, pointing out the window.

"... oh."

That's it, he's going to jump off a building and commit suicide.

This was Hong Siyu's immediate thought.

The other person had been rambling incoherently ever since they dragged him into the classroom. Presumably, the mental stress from the Aberrant Beast attack had reached its limit, and they were now on the verge of a breakdown, which explained their abnormal behavior.

Thinking about this, Hong Siyu felt a certain resonance with Lin Yun.

Should I jump with him? In a moment of mental lapse, Hong Siyu had a crazy idea. She figured if she was going to go crazy, at least she would end up with a boy she had some feelings for.

But just as she made up her mind and looked out the window again, wanting to express her feelings to the boy, she found that Lin Yun was no longer there by the open window.

He's already jumped out.

Hong Siyu looked at the wide-open window, and all the expressions she had prepared froze on her face.

Almost at the same moment, the shattered classroom door finally gave way to the Aberrant Beast's destruction, breaking apart and scattering into fragments. The Aberrant Beast's dark body peered into the classroom, its wide-open eyes staring straight at Hong Siyu before opening its mouth.

--"Roar! Ro...

It seemed quite pleased to have found its prey.

Having lost her only companion in the classroom, and facing the ferocious Aberrant Beast alone, Hong Siyu felt as if she had lost even the ability to scream, and could only slowly retreat.

She faced the Aberrant Beast, staring intently at it, and walked backward step by step. When she reached the window and felt the cold wind rushing in from outside, she realized that she had no way to retreat, yet the Aberrant Beast continued to press closer.

So, what exactly is the situation now?

Her gaze gradually became unfocused, Hong Siyu leaned against the window, slumping down helplessly.

The school's long-awaited cultural festival was attacked by Aberrant Beast, ruining their precious leisure time.

Despite the presence of so many people, the Aberrant Beast relentlessly pursued him, eventually following him all the way to a classroom in the teaching building.

She finally met a guy she was somewhat interested in, but amidst all this chaos, he even committed suicide due to a mental breakdown.

What's going on?

She couldn't help but speak, her voice trembling slightly. "Why am I the one who's so unlucky?"

They say that after the worst comes the best, but her life so far has been nothing but bad luck, and now she's destined to die young at the hands of Aberrant Beast. She still has so many things she wanted to do, and now all hope is gone?

She really had no other choice.

In such a small, enclosed space, there was no way she could escape from the claws of the Aberrant Beast; and such a monster as the Aberrant Beast obviously wouldn't reason with her or let her go so easily.

"Is the magical girl there?"

In the end, all she could do was raise her head and shout at the void with a hint of self-abandonment. But after saying that, she couldn't help but laugh out loud, "How come I'm starting to say such stupid things too?"

She watched as the Aberrant Beast walked up to her and, once again, opened its massive maw before her. She could even smell the stench emanating from its breath.

But this time, no one will hold her hand and help her escape.

"... Forget it, this is really boring, let's just end this already."

She closed her eyes helplessly. "Anyway, someone as unlucky as me has no chance of meeting a magical girl."

"That's not necessarily true."

A detached yet clear voice rang out from behind her.

The voice was incredibly melodious and pleasant, like the song of a nightingale, clear and melodious. Just hearing the voice made Hong Siyu and spirit instantly refreshed.

Then, she felt a blue light flow from the side of her face, and a petite figure brushed past her.

"Roar!"

The sudden appearance of the figure clearly startled the Aberrant Beast.

The Aberrant Beast seemed to sense a threat from the petite figure, so the moment it lunged forward, it raised its claws and launched a merciless attack on her.

Acting on instinct, its counterattack was swift. However, the petite figure remained unmoved amidst the azure light.

"Masterpiece, the third, the Sarisha of Piercing."

A crisp voice uttered a string of phrases as if reciting a mantra, and then a shimmering blue spear shot out from her hand, piercing straight into the Aberrant Beast's chest. The spear, carrying immense force and power, then sent the Aberrant Beast flying.

Thump!

With a speed that Hong Siyu couldn't even see clearly, the spear burst forth with dazzling light, then pierced through the classroom wall along with the Aberrant Beast, pinning it fiercely to the wall.

The battle ended in an instant. The seemingly large and ferocious Aberrant Beast was so vulnerable against the petite girl, and was killed in a single exchange.

Then, the girl landed lightly in front of Hong Siyu.

"It's all alright now."

She stopped, turned, and her navy blue dress billowed with her movement like a blooming Cornflower. The large Ponet on her head trembled slightly from the fighting, giving it a strangely dynamic quality. The girl's delicate and lovely face was turned to Hong Siyu, her calm expression carrying a hint of gentleness.

"Because, the magical girl has arrived."