After Lunch

Lin Yun never imagined that her wedding anniversary, which she had planned to spend alone with nostalgia and sadness, would end up being a noisy family trip with her two children.

What started as a solitary conversation at the counter, listening to the shop assistant's endless explanation, turned into a lively chat between the three of them and the shop assistant.

Although Lin Yun is not good at communication, she can accurately convey her requirements; Lin Xiaolu doesn't like to communicate with people, but her cute appearance and easily provoked personality make people want to tease her; Xia Liang is the most talkative one, and can always make the shop assistants happy, thus making them quickly become friends.

The shopping process became easy and enjoyable.

During this time, some people misunderstood and thought they were a family, praising Lin Yun, "Your two daughters are both very cute." Lin Yun had to make a simple explanation for this. Xia Liang seemed quite happy, while Lin Xiaolu had a stern face. She didn't seem angry, and it was hard to tell what her true feelings were.

They visited many stores and finally found a suitable gift in a jewelry store called "Shikuiqi Jewelry Store".

It was a crystal necklace with a silver chain and a pink quartz pendant. The pink quartz was cut into a shape resembling a cherry blossom and surrounded by a gold border, giving it a fresh and beautiful look.

Lin Xiaolu quite liked the jewelry, but couldn't explain why; Xia Liang thought the style was a bit old-fashioned, but remained silent given the atmosphere. In the end, Lin Yun made the decision himself and bought the item.

There was no other reason; it was simply because of the cherry blossom on the pendant.

Such a crystal cherry blossom made him feel as if a voice in his heart was telling him when he saw the necklace: This is it.

So, having decided on their gifts, the three of them went to browse other floors. Lin Yun suggested buying clothes for Lin Xiaolu, but Lin Xiaolu refused. In the end, they went along with Xia Liang's suggestion and the three of them went to the movie theater together.

After watching a popcorn movie, it was almost 1 p. m. when we left the theater. The three of us chose a trendy tea restaurant as our lunch spot.

Lin Yun pretends to be an ordinary parent, while Xia Liang pretends to be Lin Xiaolu's good student classmate. The two of them clearly know that the other is hiding something, but they each maintain their own persona and have a conversation that is half true and half false, making Lin Xiaolu doze off.

Halfway through lunch, and with the time approaching two o'clock, just as the three people in the restaurant were in a state of extreme relaxation, they suddenly heard a roar in the distance.

"Thump!"

The sound of a heavy object crashing to the ground, like a building collapsing, drowned out the hustle and bustle of the entire shopping mall.

The loud noise initially silenced people, then they became confused, and finally, panic ensued.

The customers in the restaurant were in an uproar; some took out their phones to try and contact the outside world, while others immediately went outside to find out where the sound was coming from.

Amid the riot, only the table where the man and the two girls were sitting remained unusually calm.

"Xiao Lu, Xiao Liang, we need to get moving!"

From a perspective imperceptible to ordinary people, Moko shouted with a serious expression, "I can sense that there are Aberrant Beast nearby!"

Its supposedly discreet shouts were actually heard clearly by the other three people present.

In fact, even if it didn't say anything, the three of them had similar guesses about the cause of the roar—it must be the Aberrant Beast.

But at this critical juncture, none of them were able to express their true thoughts.

Lin Xiaolu and Xia Liang both still believed that Lin Yun was just an ordinary person, at least without magic power; at most, they guessed that he knew something about the Magic Side, and even knew that their daughter was a magical girl. However, this unspoken understanding between them had not yet been broken, and now that the matter of the Magic Side was suddenly brought up, they were still somewhat uncomfortable.

Lin Yun's silence was for a simpler reason: he was pondering how much someone with the identity of "Lin Yun" should actually know about magical girls.

Time is of the essence. Although their arrival was somewhat suspicious, the Aberrant Beast has already appeared. It's definitely not acceptable for all three magical girls in Fangting City to be sitting around this dining table.

Next, not only will the two newcomers in front of me need to fight, but I also need to find a reason to escape, transform into Larkspur and go to the scene to cover them and prevent the attacking Aberrant Beast from being too powerful.

So, should I bring this up myself?

Looking at the two girls in front of him, who were also hesitant to speak, he had to make a decision.

From the moment he discovered Lin Xiaolu following him that morning, he realized that at least some truths could no longer be hidden.

Since they already knew that Hong Siyu, it would be difficult for him to be unaware of the magical girl.

But shouldn't he admit here that he already knows his daughters' magical girl identities?

After thinking it over, he realized there was actually a better way.

But first, he needed to find a reason to explain why he knew it was Aberrant Beast attack.

Silently, he took his phone out of his pocket, pretended to fiddle with it for a bit, then opened the messaging app. After a short wait, sure enough, an evacuation notice from the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau was sent to his phone.

Because the Aberrant Beast attack occurred in a busy area with high foot traffic, such as a shopping mall, there were many witnesses, and the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau reacted quickly enough. Just tens of seconds after the loud noise, a notification was sent to the mobile phones of all citizens in the city, reminding them to avoid the location when going out, and those who were there to escape as soon as possible.

As a result, the other customers in the restaurant finally realized what had happened, and many people stood up in panic and began to run out of the restaurant.

"There's Aberrant Beast? How dangerous!"

He frowned, handed the notification on his phone to the girls, and pretended to be nervous. "Looks like we can't stay here any longer, let's leave right away!"

To show he was genuinely nervous, he didn't give the two girls a chance to reply. He grabbed his coat from his chair, stood up along the edge of the table, and waved, "Ask the staff if there's any other exit. The main entrance is blocked!"

His acting was actually quite exaggerated; if it weren't for the chaotic situation with the surrounding crowd, it would have been easy for the truth to be seen through.

His plan was actually quite simple: take the two girls and rush into the crowd outside, then pretend to get separated, thus giving them enough space to move around, while he could find a place to secretly transform.

First, use Lin Yun's phone to call Lin Xiaolu's number twice to show concern and prevent being exposed. After dealing with the Aberrant Beast, contact them again: say that you got separated and agree to meet at a certain place.

In this way, neither party needs to reveal their identities, leaving enough room for maneuver, and any problems that arise afterward can be explained.

However, the two girls were unaware of his plans.

Although the details differ, their thoughts are actually the same: as magical girls, they should not choose to run away when faced with attacks from Aberrant Beast and the suffering of innocent people.

So even after hearing his words, they remained seated, their expressions somewhat complicated.