Fangting City's downtown was always brightly lit at night. Looking down from above, the interwoven neon signs and streetlights formed a river of light.
Larkspur leaned against the safety fence on a high-rise rooftop, staring blankly at the incomplete blue disc in her hand.
After several days of investigation, she had more or less confirmed that this thing was some kind of pipe valve from the sewers. Without a doubt, since it had been found inside the Cavity-Melting Aberrant Beast, it meant that the creature had once lived in this city's sewers.
But under normal circumstances, that should have been impossible. Given the Cavity-Melting Aberrant Beast's enormous size, there were not many sections of the city sewers it could pass through smoothly. Finding food there would clearly have been quite difficult for it, let alone hiding there indefinitely without attracting anyone's notice.
Unless there was something in the sewers that could provide it with food while concealing its tracks.
Such as a Pupa Stage Aberrant Beast.
What exactly had happened in Fangting City during the two years since Tea Rose and the others left, for even Pupa Stage Aberrant Beasts to be able to take root and build nests here?
Larkspur had no choice but to take this matter seriously. Coupled with the urban legend of "Sewer Song" that she had found online before, she had spent the past several nights searching everywhere for that possibly existing Pupa Stage Aberrant Beast.
Unfortunately, there were still no results.
"Larkspur?"
A girl's voice came from nearby.
Larkspur raised her head and saw Lin Xiaolu and Xia Liang watching her from the side. Only then did she realize that she had apparently drifted off. It was already time for class.
The same rooftop and terrace had practically become her regular teaching spot. All she needed to do was send a notification on her phone after work, and once both "students" arrived, that day's lesson could begin.
"It's nothing. I was thinking about something."
After briefly explaining why she had been distracted, Larkspur straightened up and walked toward the middle of the rooftop. "Since you're both here, let's begin. Tonight, I'll teach you something more advanced."
"Advanced?" Lin Xiaolu looked interested. "Are you going to talk about how to deal with Loopers?"
"I think your idea of advanced is a little too ambitious," Xia Liang said with a helpless smile.
"What I think has nothing to do with you, does it?" Lin Xiaolu pouted.
The two of them started bickering the moment they met. After following Larkspur for a short distance while continuing their pointless squabble, they saw her turn around, scan them both, and clear her throat twice to signal them to stop and get to the point.
"Let's begin directly. What we're discussing tonight is an ability that is extremely important to every magical girl: Magic Construct, or Magic Armament for short."
"Oh!" The two magical girls reacted enthusiastically, each applauding amid supportive remarks like "Finally!" and "So it's this!"
Larkspur paused until their applause ended before continuing. "I've given you a brief introduction to Magic Armaments before, but this time, I'll explain them in greater detail."
"First, let me review something. Every magical girl gains her own Magic Armament when her Blossoming reaches Bud Rank. A Magic Armament is the manifestation of a magical girl's True Form, so everyone's Magic Armament is different and unique. You should both remember that."
"As for the True Form, it is the union of a magical girl's magic power and soul. You improve your magic power through training, strengthen your inspiration through Soul Meditation, and finally develop the Heart Seed to merge the two into one, forming your True Form."
"When a magical girl forms her True Form, her Blossoming reaches Bud Rank. From that stage onward, her appearance in magical girl form becomes permanently fixed and will never change again. At the same time, her magic power experiences explosive growth. That is why Bud Rank is such an important step for magical girls. Once Blossoming reaches Bud Rank, their combat strength is worlds apart from before."
At this point, Xia Liang could not help but raise her eyes in thought. Then, displaying considerable initiative, she raised a hand to indicate that she wanted to ask a question.
"Ask away." Larkspur had a feeling Xia Liang was up to no good, but she still gestured for her to continue.
Having received permission, Xia Liang immediately asked with a grin, "So, Senior, did you reach Bud Rank when you were ten?"
Of course.
Larkspur could not help lowering her eyelids. She felt that she had already grown accustomed to Xia Liang's style.
"What kind of weird question is that during class?"
Before Larkspur could answer, Lin Xiaolu stepped forward first. "Show some respect for Senior Larkspur!"
"Is that question really so weird?" Xia Liang looked innocent.
"You're obviously making fun of her height..."
Lin Xiaolu wanted to expose Xia Liang's act, but halfway through speaking, she realized something was wrong. She turned to look at Larkspur and found that Larkspur was indeed staring at her expressionlessly as well.
For a moment, she could neither advance nor retreat. She actually did not know what to say.
"Hm? Sorry, I didn't mean it that way. I was just curious."
Xia Liang squeezed her eyes and smiled apologetically. "After all, if someone really reached Bud Rank at ten, wouldn't she be an incredibly talented genius?"
"Ah, now that you mention it..." Lin Xiaolu, who had originally frozen up, finally realized it too and looked at Larkspur curiously.
"No. It's just that my transformed appearance makes me look young."
Facing their questions, Larkspur remained expressionless and answered in a rigidly matter-of-fact tone. "As for the age when I became a magical girl, I was actually about the same as you two."
Such a rather cold response clearly did not satisfy the other two magical girls, but Larkspur ignored the disappointment on their faces and brought the topic of age and height to an end.
"Back to Magic Armaments."
She clapped her hands to signal a return to the topic. "Once a magical girl has a True Form, a Magic Armament will naturally be born as its manifestation. It becomes the weapon best suited to you, even if you do not know how to use it when you first obtain it."
"There are differences in the innate potential of Magic Armaments. Some magical girls' Magic Armaments are naturally stronger than others'. There is a dedicated assessment for that during the Kingdom Assessment, but we won't go into it here."
"But even if one is lacking in innate potential, a Magic Armament can still grow through a magical girl's own efforts."
"When the magic power and soul composing your True Form are greatly enhanced, your Magic Armament will evolve with them and become stronger than it was at the beginning. Ultimately, its power is determined by magic power, soul, and mastery. Those three are the fundamentals of using a Magic Armament."
"Next, I'll demonstrate using my own Magic Armament..."
The lesson proceeded as usual.
Two weeks had passed since Lin Xiaolu became a magical girl, while Xia Liang had been one for more than a week. The foundational knowledge Larkspur poured into them grew by the day.
From basic common knowledge at first, to combat techniques afterward, and now to advanced abilities.
Lin Xiaolu's talent was neither good nor bad, but fortunately, her attitude was fairly serious, and she had at least remembered everything she learned.
Xia Liang, on the other hand, was a true genius. Although she always seemed somewhat absent-minded, she could actually master everything Larkspur taught her very quickly.
In the past, Larkspur had not really mentored newcomers. Before retiring, the only younger magical girl she had ever worked with was codenamed Morning Glory—Hong Siyu—and in reality, they had worked together for less than half a year.
Now, watching the two newcomers grow little by little under her personal guidance, with one of them being her own daughter, filled her with an indescribable sense of gratification.
Thus, after roughly two hours, Larkspur finished explaining all kinds of miscellaneous knowledge and stood on the rooftop, watching the two magical girls leave after saying goodbye.
I need to give them a safer environment to grow in.
The image of that shattered blue disc flashed through her mind. Larkspur calmly waved goodbye, while silently making up her mind.
Before you continue