Before the Exam
The busy schedule of the Larkspur, which was obvious to anyone with eyes, naturally did not escape the notice of the younger generation.
In the past, when they were in Fangting City, if the Larkspur were to go out early and return late within a certain period of time, the other birds would show some curiosity and concern. But this time, they unexpectedly remained quiet.
Undoubtedly, one reason for this was that Larkspur proactively revealed "what she's been busy with lately."
Striving to become the Gem Scepter is a goal that most magical girls find too righteous and lofty to object to.
In the first few days after this fact was made public, Larkspur could feel that Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan were afraid that she would run away one day. Whenever they had a chance to be with her, Lin Xiaolu would always hold on tightly to the corner of her clothes, while Bai Jingxuan would try her best to be intimate with her.
This strange atmosphere naturally made Larkspur somewhat amused and exasperated. She repeatedly explained that becoming the Gem Scepter would not affect her continued presence in the Fangting City Squad, which finally allowed the younger members to relax a bit.
Even so, for the next period of time, the younger generation were excessively well-behaved.
Whenever Larkspur returned to Rainbow Cloud Wetlands near nightfall to check on their review progress, he would always find that all three of them were able to complete the tasks he had given them, and when he corrected certain problems, he would quickly receive the correct feedback.
But correspondingly, the Larkspur's bed became increasingly cramped.
Their room was quite spacious, with four single beds, and for the first few days after arriving at Rainbow Cloud Wetlands, everyone slept properly in their own beds. But for some reason, after the initial adjustment period, things changed.
At first, Bai Jingxuan would pitifully beg to sleep with Larkspur. Considering that the child was still young and this was not the first time, Larkspur agreed.
A few days later, Lin Xiaolu and Xia Liang naturally discovered this. At first, Lin Xiaolu righteously reprimanded Bai Jingxuan, saying that she shouldn't disturb Larkspur's sleep late at night. But after only two days, she followed suit, squeezing into Larkspur and Bai Jingxuan's bed with her pillow, and began to take over each other's sleeping space in the middle of the night.
At this point, there was practically no room left for anyone else to lie on Larkspur's single bed.
At this moment, Xia Liang put her intelligence to good use. When the other three were already crammed together, she took the initiative to push her bed over and put it next to Larkspur's bed, which immediately freed up space.
In return for her "compensation," Xia Liang joined in at night.
At this point, the original arrangement of four single beds had become completely useless.
To be honest, by now, Larkspur had become somewhat resigned to this level of intimacy, after all, she was essentially playing the role of a parent to these children. Their willingness to be closer to her showed their trust, which was actually a good thing. The daily fatigue of the past two weeks also allowed her to fall asleep easily, without being unable to sleep due to the crowded conditions.
The problem is that these children's sleeping postures are anything but pleasant.
Bai Jingxuan is alright; most of the time she sleeps quietly in her own spot and doesn't bother others too much. But Xia Liang and Lin Xiaolu are really quite troublesome, one more so than the other.
Xia Liang's sleeping posture needs no further explanation. Larkspur has accompanied her to sleep before, but once she falls asleep, she likes to find something to hug and won't let go, a posture that's almost like being naked and choked, which is truly unappealing. As for Lin Xiaolu, she is the most exaggerated of the three. Her sleeping posture includes everything from pulling on people to somersaulting, from biting hair to drooling.
Every morning when Larkspur woke up, she often found herself unable to move. One of her arms was being held by Xia Liang, while the other side of her body was firmly pinned down by Lin Xiaolu, who was sleeping almost sideways. Lin Xiaolu often had a few strands of Larkspur's hair in her mouth, so soaked with saliva that they were practically dripping wet...
This indirectly led to Larkspur having to wash his hair every morning, and the smell of the shampoo on his head couldn't escape the noses of the Magic Affairs Institute's employees. After a few days, the employees of the Magic Affairs Institute seemed to have developed a strange misunderstanding that "Cornflower is a clean freak, to the point of showering several times a day," and they put extra effort into cleaning the office. It wasn't until Larkspur declared several times that he wasn't a clean freak that things gradually calmed down.
As for whether or not to send the younger generation back to their own beds to sleep, Larkspur had considered it, but ultimately gave up.
She knew very well that the younger generation's behavior was largely due to her own actions.
She said she "intended to become the Sapphire Scepter," and even though she declared she wouldn't leave the team, it probably still made the children feel a sense of uncontrollable alienation.
To dispel this sense of alienation, the younger generation would finish their studies as early as possible and spend as much time with Larkspur as possible when she returned to Rainbow Cloud Wetlands. Clearly, they didn't want to waste their time on lessons and teaching, but rather wanted to chat with Larkspur more, spend more time together intimately, and enjoy some tender moments, even if it was late.
If she were to reject them, she would undoubtedly be hurting their feelings and deliberately creating a rift in their relationship, something that Larkspur did not want to see.
She could sense the impact her revelation of the facts had on the younger colleagues, and she even reflected on whether she shouldn't have told them so soon. But no matter how much she reviewed it, she felt that revealing the truth half a month ago was not a wrong decision.
Larkspur knew that Lin Xiaolu's idea of a magical girl was one that should be full of fairytale charm. If possible, she also wanted her daughter to be able to immerse herself in this beautiful dream for as long as possible. This dream was free from the complicated calculations of adults, and free from sad separations and changes... But unfortunately, magical girls in reality are not fairytales.
As the younger generation of magical girls develop more comprehensive abilities and become more reliable in combat, they are destined to gradually become more independent individuals.
I had previously taken on too many things myself, even from discovering problems to solving them, without ever revealing them to the children. This wasn't a problem in the early stages of their magical girl journey, as they were too delicate to face risks. However, now that they've grown to their current level, it's necessary for me to selectively reveal some truths to them and cultivate their ability to think independently.
At this stage, Larkspur has only revealed relatively neutral information such as "she may become the Gem Scepter," but in the future, as the younger generation grows to the Senior Leaf Stage, or even the Blossom Rank... the news related to Black Ash Dawn and Claw Mark, as well as the secrets of the Kingdom, will inevitably be gradually revealed to them.
Furthermore, when the younger generation has grown up to be completely independent and can survive well in this world even without him, the question of Larkspur and Lin Yun's disguised identities will finally come to an end.
And all of this will depend on the upcoming exam.
If the younger girls can successfully pass this test and obtain their Certification Card and magical girl numbers, it will mean their official independence, Larkspur should let go more. Conversely, if they fail to obtain their Certification Card, Larkspur has every reason to continue the current way of getting along for a little longer...
"Time's up! Examiners, the examination room is now open!"
The shouts coming from ahead interrupted the Larkspur's thoughts.
Coming to her senses, the Larkspur, standing in the crowd, quietly used her flight ability to raise her gaze and pass through the wall of people in front of her. She looked towards the Silver Gallery gate not far away, where the proctors were slowly opening the gate to reveal the magnificent building behind it.
The candidates became somewhat noisy, clearly anxious from the long wait. However, the crowd did not move forward an inch, as the examiners at the door were still verifying the identities of each candidate.
Holding specialized testing equipment, they not only verified the authenticity of the candidates' admission tickets but also checked their magical fluctuations and pre-reserved files. They also verified various physiological characteristics to ensure everything was perfect before letting anyone pass.
Perhaps because of the long period of silence, the crowd around Larkspur became much noisier when the gates opened and the examination hall began to allow people to enter.
Suddenly, Larkspur subconsciously recalled the scene of her taking a qualification certification exam when she was young.
Among the surrounding crowd, some people stare longingly at the examination hall, wishing they could immediately squeeze through the crowd and into it; some clutch their books tightly, silently reciting words, trying to memorize as much as possible until the very last moment; and some friends huddle together, lamenting how inadequate their preparation was: perhaps some of this is true, but most are using words to lower their own expectations and alleviate their nervousness.
Some will be brimming with confidence, as if the Certification Card is already theirs for the taking; others will be cautious and discreet, observing the candidates around them while mentally devising their strategies for the upcoming assessment; there will be the carefree; there will be the earnest; there will be the seemingly foolish but actually wise; and there will be the calculating.
Without a doubt, almost all the most outstanding young magical girls of this generation have gathered here, and from now on, this is their stage.
The Larkspur released the magic that had been lifting it from its feet and fell back into the crowd, like a drop of water entering the sea, without causing the slightest ripple.
I have no need to, nor should I, be the protagonist of this grand event.
What she should do is protect this youthful hope, this spirited dream, and witness its sprouting, branching, and blossoming.
Thinking of this, she suddenly felt that all her hard work these past few days had finally come to an end. A subtle sense of refreshment made her let out a long breath, and she felt inexplicably gratified.
Perhaps both the Queen attending the ceremony and the Gem Scepter accompanying her shared this sentiment: witnessing the debut of the nation's next generation, and then looking forward to their future?
Let me take a good look at the magical girls of this generation.
That's what she thought to herself.
No need to hide your talent, no need to be polite or decline, no need to follow the rules. Give it your all, show everything, and fight for those limited spots, fight for the possibility of becoming the center of the stage.
Only that honor can truly be considered a testament to hard work and dedication.
This concludes the final section before the exam.
This also means that the creation progress of Part 2 of Volume 2 is already one-third, or even two-fifths, over. The daily life content of the Kingdom arc in Volume 2 is basically finished, and what follows is the story of the assessment arc.
I originally thought it would take me a long time to write Part 2, but after resuming daily updates, I didn't expect to get this far in less than two months. This unexpectedly gave me a lot more confidence to continue creating.
However, after writing for so many days, my sleep schedule has become a bit messed up, and my drafts are basically completely exhausted, so I'll probably have to take a day off tomorrow.
The next update should be on the evening of the 29th. I apologize for that.