Dispute

(Bai Ziye)

SpiCa is going to great lengths to recruit Ceruno into her "Global Action Team." If it were just to use the mobility of the wormhole to intercept Monster, that would be one thing, but her ultimate goal is to launch a counterattack against "the Other Side"!

This is too dangerous, I don't want Ceruno...

I don't want A-Yao to participate in such a dangerous plan. I can take good care of her when dealing with Monster or even witches, but if she goes to the Other Side...

Then everything is unknown.

"Miss Virgo, personally, I'm really happy to be of help."

But Ceruno didn't think that way, which I already knew. She had an excessively high sense of mission towards her identity as a magical girl, which even helped her overcome her own cowardice. The success of the Wormhole Interception Experiment also gave her more confidence.

She indeed played an irreplaceable role in SpiCa's plan, directly solving the logistical supply problem and possibly even launching the so-called "Second Counterattack Operation" ahead of schedule.

"But before I agree, I want to know... does my father, as the Association's chairman, know about and approve of your plan for a second counterattack?"

SpiCa immediately looked embarrassed and couldn't answer for a moment.

A-Yao rarely talks to me about his father, but from the few conversations we've had, I can tell that his father is a high-ranking member of the Magical Girl Association.

Judging from this conversation, the position seems to be even higher than SpiCa's?

Carrying a tray full of grilled skewers, Yin Wei reminded her, "Ceruno, Chairman Sun is mainly responsible for the Association's external affairs. He deals with the government, the United Nations, and various organizations to ensure that the Association's activities are not subject to political interference..."

A-Yao's father is actually the chairman.

Isn't that the Association's top leader?!

That's at least on the surface. Speaking of which, I have a vague recollection of it; I guess I've seen it on TV.

Yin Wei continued, "... As for the strategic deployment against the External Invader, it is all handled by the Tactical Division, which is led by SpiCa, so it is understandable that Chairman Sun is unaware of it."

That's just an excuse.

Even if it's not his job, it doesn't affect his right as chairman to be aware of these actions. Yin Wei is really good at flattering people. SpiCa hasn't even explained anything yet, and she's already impatiently finding excuses.

"Forget it, A-Ji won't agree."

Sirius took a few skewers from the tray in Yin Wei's hand and handed them to me, Ceruno, and... SpiCa.

"He lost too much in the previous wars, and now he has no courage to launch a counterattack. In his view, as long as the status quo of zero casualties can be maintained, humanity can coexist with this routine invasion..."

This was somewhat pathetic thinking, and Ceruno frowned, asking, "Is this Father's view?"

"You think he's a coward? Don't be so harsh on your own father, Ceruno. You should understand what he lost in Esperia, shouldn't you?"

He lost his beloved wife, and A-Yao lost his mother; both father and son suffered a heavy blow as a result.

"Yes, it's all my fault."

Seeing that this silly girl was getting depressed, I grabbed her wrist and stuffed the skewers into her mouth. As a result, the scalding oil dripped onto her chest, and the sudden heat made her let out a cute scream.

With puffed-out cheeks, she complained softly and coquettishly, "Wow! Really, Miss Miluno, what are you doing?"

It was a disaster.

I originally intended to use the kebabs to shut her up and stop her from thinking about those unpleasant things.

Just as the Amber barbecue sauce was about to fall into the deep trench along the hemisphere of her breasts, I reached out my finger to stop it, gently brushing my fingertip against Ceruno's softness, scooping the sauce onto my fingertip, and then putting it into my mouth.

Salty.

It's the saltiness of soy sauce, or perhaps the saltiness of sweat.

"Oh my, Miluno- chan, that's surprisingly bold~"

Sirius squinted, a sly look on his face, and asked, "How does Ceruno- chan's skin feel? Does it taste good?"

"It's a real hassle if colored sauce gets into a one-piece swimsuit."

"Eh, is that all the reason? That's great, I want to try Ceruno- chan's flavor too~"

The blonde idol lightly touched her lower lip, glancing at Ceruno with a predatory look in her eyes. Seruno quickly covered her chest and hid behind me.

"Miss Sirius, please don't joke around!"

"Hehe, I'm not joking."

Ceruno shrank further behind me, looking flustered.

I spoke up, "Stop fooling around, let's get back to the topic we were talking about. Ceruno, if your father objects, you're not planning to join SpiCa's team, right?"

Ceruno nodded behind me.

"Um."

SpiCa pressed further. "You dare not disobey your father's wishes?"

"... Um."

This time, I hesitated for quite a while before nodding.

SpiCa also fell silent, but a surge of energy seemed to be brewing behind that silence.

"Alright, then let's go ask him face to face, to confirm his intentions, and to ask him if he still has the courage to stand up if given the chance to win back his lost comrades! Sirius, you too! Why can you bury your heads in the sand and comfortably act like ostriches?"

An emotional SpiCa turned her anger towards Sirius, which in turn ignited the latter's temper.

"Shut up! What's with all this yelling from you, you usually so quiet? It's like you're the only one with feelings and righteousness, and we're all heartless! Who doesn't want to save them? But another reckless action? That will only increase our losses! We need time to build up our strength. As long as we wait for the stars to bring more magical girls, one day all our problems will be solved!"

"When is this 'someday' you're talking about? There are already 14,000 magical girls in the world! If we can organize them, we can definitely form a fighting force to fight 'the Other Side' head-on."

"I told you long ago, they are not your soldiers! Magical girls are free! The Association is not an organization to control magical girls. We only need to provide them with protection and assistance. Only by letting their talents blossom naturally will their abilities flourish. Control and dogma will only dim the Star Crystal!"

The two of them started arguing.

SpiCa didn't seem like an impatient person before; was it due to the influence of her youthful body?

Yin Wei sighed and rubbed her forehead. Both sides in the dispute were high-ranking members of the Association, and she dared not step in to mediate.

Ceruno, on the other hand, had an anxious little expression, but she was by nature a soft and gentle person, so asking her to mediate the fight was a bit of a stretch.

Is it true that I'm the only one who can be relied upon, since I can't be counted on by anyone else?

"Aww--"

An unexpected guy appeared.

UI-31 forcefully inserted itself between Sirius and SpiCa.

"Cough cough."

He somehow produced two roses and handed them to both of them, arms crossed.

He then playfully swept his bangs back, revealing a disgustingly handsome grin, before separating the two stunned people. He pushed Sirius onto me, then pushed SpiCa onto Yin Wei, before bowing and stepping aside, continuing to conceal his accomplishments.

In the end, it did stop the argument.

But this guy is still wearing my face...

To be honest, it's disgusting.