You Look So Cute When You're Serious

Seeing the sincerity in Huang Xing's eyes, Huali hesitated slightly, but still accepted the Black Crystal.

Huang Xing smiled faintly, then went to the other magical girls and distributed the Black Crystals to every magical girl present. One was left over, and at Huali's and the two young magical girls' insistence, Huang Xing kept it.

Huang Xing was the captain of the magical girl squad, while Green Yi, Lan Lu, and Honglian were all members of her team. This Black Crystal was therefore considered shared property of their squad.

Setting Fu You aside, the only ones who had truly dealt damage to the witch were the four of them.

The witch had completely vanished, and the campus had returned to peace, but the Dead Zone had yet to disappear. It was not yet time to resume classes.

The Special Incident Response Department sent quite a few people to begin clearing the campus.

Black Crystals were vital tools for eliminating Dead Zones. The Special Incident Response Department had developed a device much like a robot vacuum; once it traveled through a Dead Zone, the Dead Zone would gradually disappear and return to normal within half an hour. During that time, they only needed to ensure that no one recklessly entered the Dead Zone.

The magical girls' battle was over, and all seven of them gathered before Sun Feiliu.

"You all worked hard. Well done." Sun Feiliu patted Huang Xing on the shoulder. "This incident is provisionally classified as S-rank. If there are any later adjustments, I'll notify you again.

"Huang Xing and Green Yi, the two of you contributed the most and arrived in time, keeping the damage to a minimum. However, there were some minor lapses, so your provisional action score is 90 points.

"Lan Lu and Honglian, your combat performance was good. Your provisional action score is 60 points.

"Lan Xiaohuan, Huang Ying, and Pink Huali, as newly promoted magical girls, the three of you bravely stepped forward to stop the witch. Although you were a little reckless, your courage is commendable. Your provisional score is 40 points."

Seeing that Huali seemed somewhat confused, Sun Feiliu explained further,

"Operations ranked A and above all receive action scores, which will serve as an important basis for evaluating your future magical girl careers. The more scores you earn and the higher your total score, the more priority you will receive in resources and benefits. Don't underestimate those 40 points. Forty points from an S-rank operation are nearly equivalent to getting close to full marks in three A-rank operations."

Huang Xing looked at everyone and smiled. "We're magical girls who defeated a witch. From now on, whenever you meet other magical girls, you can brag about this victory."

Sun Feiliu waved a hand. "Go get some rest. I'm heading back to the department. Contact me if anything comes up."

After Sun Feiliu left, Huang Xing waved to the group again. "It's not often that we get to defeat a witch together. Want to go out and do something?"

"Yes!!" Lan Xiaohuan and Huang Ying both raised their hands.

As they spoke, Huang Xing undid her transformation.

As the yellow glow faded, the golden-clad Huang Xing transformed before Huali into a rather mature young woman.

Then Green Yi, Lan Lu, and the others also undid their transformations.

As magical girls, they had all been dazzling. Once they returned to normal, they did not look all that different from ordinary students. Lan Xiaohuan and Huang Ying, the two young magical girls, were the exception—their figures, posture, and even hairstyles were not much different from when they were transformed.

Lan Xiaohuan and Huang Ying were both still first-year middle school students. Girls who could become magical girls at such a young age were relatively rare.

Once everyone else had undone their transformations, all eyes fell on Huali.

Green Yi hugged Huang Xing's arm and looked at Huali with a grin. "Little Pink Hair, are you embarrassed? Look, when we're not magical girls, we're all ordinary people too."

As the captain, Huang Xing still carried a faintly authoritative air. With her capable bearing and confident expression, she was reassuring to be around even without transforming into a magical girl.

Green Yi wore a green dress. As a magical girl, she was like an elf—elegant enough to seem slightly difficult to approach. But after becoming an ordinary girl again, her openly lively aura made her feel naturally approachable.

Lan Lu had short hair and said nothing. Wearing her school uniform, she was very short and kept her head slightly lowered, clearly unwilling to let others see the acne on her face. She was vastly different from the dashing magical girl she had been moments ago.

Honglian crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her sneaker-clad toes against the ground. In shorts and athletic shoes, she looked like a girl who exercised often.

"Um... as long as you don't laugh at me," Huali said.

"We won't laugh at you." Lan Lu's voice was soft as well.

Huali closed his eyes and undid his transformation.

When a blond-haired man appeared before them, everyone sucked in a breath.

Huang Ying craned her head upward. Being barely over four feet tall, she had to tilt her head very high.

"Wow!! Big brother!!!"

Huali scratched his head awkwardly. "I'm a guy."

With everyone staring at him in utter shock, he became genuinely nervous.

Huali, who had originally been half a head shorter than Huang Xing, suddenly became the towering giant of the group.

Huang Xing looked up at his face and smiled. "Isn't he quite handsome?"

"Whoa! Little Pink Hair turned out to be a big blondie." Green Yi covered her mouth and blinked repeatedly.

Huali said, "This... I never expected that I'd have a day when I became a magical girl."

Huang Xing smiled. "Then we'll keep calling you Huali. Would you mind?"

Huali hurriedly waved his hands. "Not at all."

"Wouldn't you be embarrassed if outsiders heard such a girly name?" Huang Xing asked.

"It's just a name... Um, how about you call me Liu Rui instead?" Huali said.

"There's no need to be so formal with us. We're all magical girls, and we're classmates too. Of course we won't be biased against you just because you're a boy. We'll have plenty of chances to fight together in the future, and you're a healer. From now on, our safety will be in your hands." Huang Xing said.

"I'll do my best."

"Maybe we'll be one big family someday," Green Yi said with a smile.

"Who wants to be family with a man?" Honglian suddenly said. "Before you turn into a girl, if you dare enter my room, I'll rip off your balls."

"I wasn't planning to go in," Huali said, somewhat intimidated.

Honglian suddenly smiled faintly. "Once you turn into a girl, you'll come even if you don't want to. I like soft, pink girls the most."

Green Yi said, "Huali, don't mind her. Luckily you aren't a girl. Being liked by her isn't a good thing."

Honglian said, "How can you say that about me?!"

Huali clapped his hands. "It's so hot today. Let me treat you all to ice cream!"

Huang Xing said, "You don't need to treat us. I'm your senior, after all, so this one's on me. Let's go."

Huali said, "No, no, no. I have money."

Not far away, Sun Feiliu had not returned to the Magical Girl Division. Instead, he stood on the second floor of the teaching building, watching the magical girls leave from afar.

Seeing how close the magical girls were, he took out a cigarette and put it between his lips. "Being young is great."

Suddenly, two fingers snatched the cigarette from his mouth and casually tossed it downstairs.

He looked surprised, but did not look at the person beside him who had taken the cigarette. Instead, he leaned over the railing, his eyes fixed on the falling cigarette as he confirmed where it would land.

"Want to die?" Fu You said coldly.

"Isn't killing a witch a big deal? Shouldn't a big deal be celebrated?" Sun Feiliu said.

Fu You withdrew his hand, slipped it into his pocket, leaned against the railing, and glanced at him. "Cut the crap. Did the investigation turn up any leads?"

Sun Feiliu laughed. "You look so cute when you're serious."

Fu You said, "Fuck off."