Crisis Resolved

When Larkspur rushed anxiously to the location marked at the end of the positioning Spell Formula, the people on site had already been evacuated.

Without their leader, the remaining black-robed figures were almost no match for the magical girls. Realizing that all was lost, they scattered like birds and beasts. Apart from a few hotheads, no one chose to resist; they either fled or surrendered.

Apart from their leader, whom they called "Bing Chu Three," the man in black robes, the rest of them were just Mage. Everyone knew that Mage had no chance against magical girls.

Most of the elderly and children in the welfare home were rescued, but a few caregivers and security personnel were killed in the struggle, and the atmosphere at the scene was rather somber.

The Larkspur descended from the sky to the entrance of the orphanage, focusing its attention on its Mana Perception, and quickly discovered the remnants of the previous battle.

Indeed, it's not hard to see that the ground is covered with broken walls and ruins, and the cracked road surface is almost unrecognizable. The surrounding area is full of traces of being bombarded by magic.

Then, she saw three magical girls gathered together.

To be precise, Xia Liang deactivated her transformation and lay on the ground, while another green-haired magical girl she had never seen before enveloped her in her magic, while Lin Xiaolu sat slumped to the side watching.

This scene startled her, and she quickly landed, running to the girls' side.

"I'm late, what happened?" She hurriedly looked at Xia Liang lying on the ground, only to see that Xia Liang was shrouded in green magical light, his eyes were closed, and his face was peaceful.

"Ah, Larkspur, you've come! Have you defeated your enemies?"

Lin Xiaolu, who was slumped on the ground, lit up with surprise when she saw her. But then she lowered her head dejectedly, saying, "I'm sorry, I made a mistake halfway through, and Xia Liang tried to protect me..."

She couldn't continue speaking.

Xia Liang's injury was indeed due to her carelessness. If she hadn't used that unknown White Magic Power afterward, the magical girls present would probably have been wiped out because of that mistake.

Although she was mentally prepared, she still didn't want to see the disappointment in Larkspur's eyes.

"How could this be...?"

On the other side, after hearing Lin Xiaolu's words, Larkspur's eyes widened in disbelief.

She never expected that even after she dealt with the enemy as quickly as possible after receiving the news and rushed to the scene, such an accident would still occur.

Xia Liang actually sacrificed herself like that.

Not knowing what she should do, she could only kneel down gently, sadly take Xia Liang's hand in her hands, and look down at Xia Liang's calm face, speechless for a moment.

She recalled the girl's usual smile, the story of her past that the girl had told her, and the girl's longing for love that she had once expressed.

But now she's dead here, and everything she once dreamed of is now irrelevant to her.

He had once accepted her as a magical girl because he saw her talent, and was full of confidence that he could protect this gifted seedling. But just one crisis led to this unexpected turn of events.

"I'm sorry, if only I had realized something was wrong sooner, if only I had gotten here sooner..." She closed her eyes, her voice heavy with sorrow.

"Um... junior? What are you talking about?"

However, she was interrupted halfway through her sentence by a familiar voice coming from the ground.

Larkspur opened her eyes in a daze, only to see Xia Liang looking at her with a puzzled expression and an awkward smile on her face, "I'm sorry to interrupt you, but I have to explain, I'm not dead yet, you know?"

The Larkspur was stunned.

She stared blankly at Xia Liang for a few seconds; then turned her head to look at Lin Xiaolu, who also looked embarrassed; finally, she looked at the newcomer who was still confused about what was going on because of the suddenness of the situation.

"... If I had arrived sooner, so many innocent people wouldn't have sacrificed their lives."

She recited the sentence dryly, as if reciting a memorized text, devoid of any emotion.

After saying that, he put on a stern face and tried to stand up. "I'll go check out the welfare home area over there, take stock of the victims and the remaining injuries, and then notify the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau."

"We've already informed the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau."

To their surprise, even this path was blocked. Xia Liang said in the calmest and most flippant tone, "The battle here is over. We notified the Anomaly Countermeasures Bureau first. We couldn't get through to your phone, Junior Senior. We were planning to look for you later."

"On the contrary, it's more like..."

She squinted her eyes with a hint of mockery and curled the corners of her lips. "Senior, did you think I was dead just now? Were you very sad? Are you feeling sorry for me?"

This statement immediately caused an uproar at the scene.

"Hey? Larkspur, did you think Xia Liang was dead?"

Lin Xiaolu, standing to the side, finally understood what had been going on with that inexplicable conversation and exclaimed in surprise. Then, she saw Larkspur staring at her expressionlessly, realizing she had said the wrong thing again, and hurriedly waved her hands, explaining:

"No, I didn't say that! I just meant that she got hurt protecting me and is already reflecting on her actions!"

She was completely unaware that her words, which absolved her of all responsibility, had utterly destroyed the last step that had been taken by the Larkspur.

Hearing her words, Bai Jingxuan finally realized what she meant. She looked at Larkspur, who had just arrived at the scene, her hair slightly disheveled and looking travel-worn, and her expression became somewhat subtle.

She wanted to laugh, but the people in front of her were all her seniors, and she shouldn't be so rude.

In her eyes, this child, who seemed to be younger than her and who got the situation wrong as soon as he arrived at the scene, almost started crying on the spot for his teammate who was still being treated, looked rather cute.

Although she appears somewhat aloof and difficult to approach, she's quite different when she starts talking.

She thought to herself.

"... It's good that you're alright."

On the other hand, knowing that she couldn't wash away the embarrassment she had made, Larkspur could only nod helplessly and give a dry response.

Then he couldn't help but glance at Lin Xiaolu again.

"Isn't that the point of this statement?"

Xia Liang, lying on the ground, shook her head and looked at Larkspur with clear eyes. "Little senior, didn't you notice? Xiao Lu was a great contributor in this battle."

These words enlightened the Larkspur.

She then realized that the battle had ended before she even arrived.

Xia Liang was clearly unable to fight due to serious injuries; the green-haired newcomer next to her also seemed to be in poor condition; only Lin Xiaolu, apart from looking a little tired, was completely unharmed.

Without a doubt, Xia Liang was right. In this battle, the three newcomers defeated an enemy that Larkspur thought was invincible; and the key player in this victory was none other than her own daughter.

After looking at the chaotic landscape around her and guessing what kind of fierce battle had taken place there, she turned to look at Lin Xiaolu.

Hearing Xia Liang mention her name and seeing Larkspur looking at her, Lin Xiaolu realized that she had forgotten to take credit because she was afraid of being blamed.

She wanted to say more, but after recalling her thoughts during the battle, her ears suddenly felt hot.

Finally, under Larkspur's gaze, she simply nodded somewhat reservedly. "Yes, we won against that enemy."

Upon hearing her daughter's affirmation, Larkspur's gaze softened.

She had been overly protective of the newcomers, so she really hadn't expected that they would be able to defeat such an enemy after leaving her.

Perhaps her ideas were indeed too conservative in this matter. However, she only felt relieved that her conservative ideas were being refuted in this way.

The slight embarrassment from before seemed less important. She recalled the severely Aberrant Beast she had casually dealt with on her way here, and then glanced at the three girls present, a clear understanding dawning on her:

"Great job, you did a fantastic job, I'm so proud of you!"