Sparring

The three Magical Girls argued for a long time yet still failed to come up with a satisfactory team name.

Given enough time, they could chat until dawn the next day without resting in the middle.

However, there were still serious matters to attend to today, so Qingyin interrupted them.

She postponed the matter of team naming, telling them to slowly discuss it in the future.

Self-introduction was a small part of getting to know one another.

Knowing the strength of the three of them and making a qualified combat power evaluation was much more important.

Misjudging combat power and participating in missions beyond one's capabilities could be described as the worst-case scenario.

A peaceful era would not, and could not allow New-Generation Magical Girls to rush into dead ends wave after wave.

An excessive disparity in combat power against the enemy, deep self-blame, and a sense of powerlessness had a probability of shattering a Magical Girl's self-confidence and breeding inner demons.

They were Magical Girls who eagerly desired to accomplish a certain goal, born precisely out of powerlessness.

Becoming a Magical Girl yet still feeling helpless made their minds even more prone to shattering when facing extreme situations.

"I need to conduct a combat power evaluation for you," Qingyin said, pointing at herself:

"The three of you, fight me."

Actual combat experienced firsthand was more precise and efficient than analyzing it on paper.

The Magical Girls displayed varying reactions.

"Yay! I get to spar with Sister Qingyin!" Feiyan reacted with excitement.

Yalin made no reaction; she had never witnessed Qingyin's combat prowess nor had she ever sparred with Qingyin.

In her cognition, sparring practices between Magical Girls were very common, routine, and nothing out of the ordinary.

Only Yuyan was reluctant, tentatively asking: "Do we really have to fight Sister Qingyin?"

When Qingyin rescued them, she had forcefully punched straight through the earth.

The other party's formidable strength remained lodged in her mind, and a fight like this was akin to an egg striking a rock.

If the goal was to demonstrate combat power, wasn't sparring not the only way? It was going to hurt, you know.

"Yielding before the fight even starts is not what a qualified Magical Girl looks like," Youyue chimed in, offering a brief word of comfort:

"Don't worry, your Sister Qingyin knows how to pull her punches."

Magical Girls were idealist products and likewise idealist combat forces.

When a Magical Girl lost confidence and stopped believing she could do it, no miracles would happen.

Magical Girls were inherently the embodiment of miracles.

Yielding before fighting, falling into despair, and resigning oneself to fate were often absolute taboos for them.

"I can't wait!" Feiyan initiated a Magic Dress Fusion without another word.

It completely fit the label of battle maniac that Qingyin had slapped onto her.

All three Magical Girls had completed the initial-stage Magical Girl tutorial and were entirely capable of completing a simple Magic Dress Fusion.

Qingyin had long since seen Feiyan's fusion form, so she focused her attention on the other two Magical Girls.

Yalin's Magic Weapon was a melee weapon—a long spear—while her ears and tail changed color, making her beastman traits even more pronounced, though without losing human aesthetic appeal.

At least she wouldn't cover herself in dense fur and become too beast-like; Qingyin couldn't quite accept that.

Compared to Yalin, Qingyin couldn't quite make sense of Yuyan's Magic Dress Fusion.

Her fused magical dress looked as though it were wrapped in a heavy coat, hiding herself inside like a zongzi.

Was she suffering from social anxiety?

Not only that, but her hands were completely empty, lacking a Magic Weapon.

It didn't matter; once the fight was over, she would find out.

"Are you all done with your Magic Dress Fusions?" Qingyin held her materialized Magic Weapon like a brick, casually hefting it:

"Let's begin."

The battle wasn't intense.

Yet it was exceptionally tragic.

"Ow."

"Ow-oo."

"Ow, ow, ow."

The three Magical Girls lay sprawled on the ground in disorder, completely losing the glamorous posture of Magical Girls.

There was no need to worry about whether sparring outside would cause environmental damage.

Qingyin easily blocked all their attacks, solving the three of them with an overwhelming posture—as effortless as eating and drinking, without wasting the slightest bit of effort.

To her surprise, the composition of this Magical Girl team was unexpectedly good.

There was Feiyan's gun-lance for long-range, Yalin's long spear for mid-range, and Yuyan, who used her fists for both offense and defense, for close-range.

Long, mid, and close ranges were all covered with ample firepower; after some grinding, they truly were a good squad.

Moreover, Yuyan's defense was able to withstand one of Qingyin's casual slaps while remaining standing without falling over—a fully qualified vanguard.

"It hurts, it hurts so much." Yuyan curled up her body, enduring the physical pain.

Injuries were not uncommon in this world; on the contrary, they were routine occurrences experienced all the time.

Magical Girls, in particular, had to be forged through injuries.

Therefore, their bodily recovery speed was faster, they were more resistant to blows than ordinary people, and healing-type Magical Girls existed.

However, Qingyin's damned degree of force control caused the three of them to feel enough pain to lose their combat capability while leaving no visible wounds—just slow-fading bruises that would heal if they delayed calling a doctor.

"Sister Youyue, what happened to Sister Qingyin holding back?" Yuyan asked Youyue with a wronged expression.

"This is already the extent of holding back." Youyue refused to take the blame, pointing at Feiyan:

"If you don't believe me, ask Feiyan?"

Meeting Yuyan's watery eyes, Feiyan nodded:

"When she hit me before, it seemed even harder than this."

"Too mean, too mean..." Yuyan muttered incessantly.

"Bullying the weak with strength, auntie, auntie, bullying the weak with strength..." Yalin also kept venting her dissatisfaction.

Ignoring the three aggrieved Magical Girls, Qingyin turned to look at Youyue, taking the initiative to ask a question:

"Are there any recommended dinners in the Otherworld?"

"There's no difference between the food here and the outside world, but if you want a recommendation, I recommend barbecue," Youyue said with a grin.

"Is the barbecue here very good?" Qingyin asked next.

"No, it's because I want to eat barbecue." Youyue pointed at herself with a smile, showing no shame.

"It seems the taste won't be too bad." Qingyin nodded slightly.

She had a slight understanding of the basic logic of giving a carrot and a stick, employing both soft and hard tactics, and exercising both grace and authority.

It fell into the category of never having eaten pork, but having seen pigs run.

She walked up and squatted in front of the three Magical Girls, wanting to be as gentle as possible while maintaining her cold and detached expression as she said:

"Don't blame me anymore. You did very well. As a test reward, I'll treat you to barbecue."

The three Magical Girls turned their heads away one by one, not a single girl making eye contact with her.

Did she overdo it? Why were they so angry? Qingyin was puzzled.

"Barbecue! Thank you, Sister Qingyin!" Yuyan was the first to stand up.

"Thank you, Sister Qingyin!" *2

The remaining two Magical Girls stood up simultaneously alongside her, the three of them huddling together as they walked forward, seeming to cover up something.

They wanted to act as if they didn't know about a certain matter, but because of a certain awkwardness, they acted particularly clumsily.

Qingyin slowly stood up, tilting her head to look at Youyue.

Youyue pondered for a moment, slowly leaning in close to Qingyin's ear and smiling:

"I think the beauty trap works better than the grace trap."

"Huh?" Qingyin failed to understand.

"Even though Qingyin is a high-ranking executive with shrewd methods and definitely dislikes wearing skirts in daily life, you still need to pay a bit of attention when you're in your Magical Girl form," Youyue said with a wink.

"I have received this." Qingyin understood accordingly.

"Did you really receive it?" Doubts instantly arose in Youyue's heart.