The following afternoon.
In the hallway outside the Omniscient Wish Society's classroom.
"Um, An Xia, could I talk to you for a moment?"
Feeling nervous, Zhao Qiao quietly approached An Xia.
An Xia looked at Zhao Qiao curiously and saw her point behind herself, motioning for An Xia to follow.
In the stairwell, An Xia and Zhao Qiao stood facing each other.
"Did something happen?"
Looking at the hesitant girl before her, An Xia was the first to ask.
Zhao Qiao pressed her lips together and looked up at An Xia. After a moment's hesitation, she spoke.
"Senior Xia Ya."
Hearing Zhao Qiao address her by her Magical Girl name, An Xia raised an eyebrow slightly. She had a pretty good idea that this was about Magical Girls.
"Mm, I'm listening."
An Xia answered in a gentler voice.
Hearing that tone, the kind a senior would use with a junior, Zhao Qiao felt momentarily dazed.
She took a deep breath and spoke as if she had finally made up her mind.
"The truth is..."
Over the next little while, Zhao Qiao told An Xia about her recent troubles.
An Xia listened patiently with a serious expression. Once Zhao Qiao finished, she fell into thought.
Zhao Qiao had been affected by the recent rise of Independent Streamer Magical Girls. That was something An Xia genuinely hadn't considered.
As a Magical Girl with a Fairy at her side, An Xia hadn't felt much of an impact. After all, Har kept an eye on her usual commercial activities and Monster subjugation missions.
Only after hearing Zhao Qiao explain did she realize how serious the problem was for most Magical Girls.
The girl was silent for a moment, then her expression dimmed, and she spoke softly.
"I'm sorry, Shan Que. I didn't think things