"Had your fill?"
An icy voice rang out. Even Keke's heart skipped a beat, and her whole body went stiff.
It felt rather like the panic of being caught cheating by an exam proctor.
Although they thought they had kept a decent distance, given Shion's abilities, it was hardly surprising that she would notice someone watching her...
Only Yinlian stepped forward, shielding everyone behind her. She raised her chin and bravely met Shion's gaze. "We were only worried about Jiang Si's safety."
"Interrupting someone else's date."
Shion tilted her head slightly, and her presence alone forced Yinlian a step back. But as captain of the Magic Combat Team, the girl stubbornly kept her chin raised, refusing to bow her head.
"Don't you think you've gone too far?"
Faced with Shion's question, the girls all turned their heads away in embarrassment.
As girls themselves, they could more or less imagine how angry they would be if their own dates were interrupted.
Peony, in particular, did not even dare look up.
Still, they had never interfered the entire time-although she had wanted to earlier, she had never actually dared...
Surely she wouldn't actually attack us, right?
"That's why we only watched the whole time without approaching," Yinlian argued. "Your Azure Cloud Sect has always called itself the leader of the righteous path. Surely you wouldn't refuse to listen to reason over something this small."
In fact, the one controlling the Shion Magic Puppet now was naturally not Jiang Si, but Bingtang.
Once the date ended, Jiang Si had simply left. Although his injuries were not serious, he still intended to go back early and rest.
He had beaten himself into that state. The Azure Cloud Sect disciples who had watched the entire affair through the Magic Puppet's eyes could not help marveling at their sect leader's ruthlessness. He did not even hold back against himself...
Bingtang, who had already won control of the Magic Puppet, naturally took over after Jiang Si left.
She was ready to carry out the planned task.
She had practiced in front of a mirror many times yesterday. Mimicking Shion's expressions was not difficult.
Especially since Shion wore an icy poker face most of the time, making her quite easy to impersonate.
"This date was fairly enjoyable."
The Magic Puppet maintained her usual indifferent tone. "So I won't pursue this matter with you."
Peony instantly beamed. "The boss of the Azure Cloud Sect really is magnanimous, truly worthy of being called the leader of Beihai's righteous path."
Beside her, Yinlian also breathed a sigh of relief, but immediately shot Peony a glare, making her teammate shut her mouth.
The others relaxed to varying degrees as well.
Although Susan knew she was an Azure Cloud Sect disciple and Shion would never attack her, her earlier desire to interfere with the date had been real, so she naturally felt somewhat guilty.
"If you dare follow Jiang Si again, don't blame me for showing no mercy."
At those words, Peony immediately nodded like she was pounding garlic. "Of course, of course. Now that we know the Azure Cloud Sect is behind Jiang Si, we can rest easy. We were only worried that the Witch Association had bewitched him. Please rest assured, Miss Shion."
"He has little to do with the Azure Cloud Sect," the Magic Puppet said slowly. "He merely has a personal relationship with me."
"Understood, understood."
Susan's somewhat guilty expression returned to its usual solemn seriousness. She merely asked, "Did you come all the way here just to say that?"
She could not conveniently contact the Azure Cloud Sect right now. This was a good opportunity.
What was the next move?
Yet Shion did not even look at her, only gazing at Yinlian and Peony:
"You said Jiang Si was suspected of colluding with the Witch Association. But as far as I'm concerned, all of you are also suspected of colluding with the Witch Association."
The suffocating feeling spread again.
This time, even Yinlian felt somewhat panicked.
Because that tone and phrasing really sounded as if they had angered Shion by provoking Jiang Si, and now she wanted revenge.
The Magic Puppet tilted her head, her long purple hair flowing like water over her shoulders. "Even if only for the future stability of BH City, I hope you can purge the Witch Association members within the bureau yourselves as soon as possible."
As she spoke, her gaze swept over Yinluo among the five.
Instinctively adjusting her glasses, Yinluo asked, "Do you have any evidence? The Disaster Countermeasures Bureau isn't the Azure Cloud Sect, free to act as it pleases. Without conclusive evidence, we can't arrest anyone."
"You need to understand your place."
The Magic Puppet's tone remained utterly flat. "We have no obligation to provide you with evidence. The Witch Association infiltrating the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau is your problem. Find the evidence yourselves."
Yinluo pressed her lips together and said nothing more.
Although Susan put on an unhappy expression beside her, inwardly she understood.
The Azure Cloud Sect still lacked sufficient evidence. They probably needed her to find more.
If they could not retain evidence identifying the Witch Association members, the Azure Cloud Sect would lose its justification for killing them. Once the Beihai Disaster Countermeasures Bureau reported it to headquarters, it would bring a great deal of additional trouble their way.
Their target was the Miracle Seed. Bingtang had already told her the full plan: let the Witch Association members take the Miracle Seed out, then seize it from the Witch Association.
Turning the loss of the Miracle Seed into an untraceable mess.
That was her task.
Now she also had to find evidence of the Witch Association members' identities. It seemed the sect was preparing to kill...
Now that they had already pinpointed the Witch Association members' identities, that would not be difficult.
Her gaze landed on Yinluo, and Susan declared, "Of course we'll investigate the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau thoroughly. We'll dig three feet into the ground if we have to find the Witch Association members. The Disaster Countermeasures Bureau will never let a single Witch Association member escape! On this point, our views align with those of your Azure Cloud Sect."
Yinluo naturally noticed the gazes from both sides. Inadvertently, the hand adjusting her glasses trembled slightly.
The Shion Magic Puppet nodded lightly. "Then I'll await your good news. Don't disappoint me. If the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau can't manage it, don't blame our Azure Cloud Sect for lending a hand."
Susan also raised her chin. "The Disaster Countermeasures Bureau's internal affairs require neither your Azure Cloud Sect's concern nor your interference. You should worry more about whether the Witch Association might infiltrate you."
Peony immediately raised an admiring thumb beside her.
As expected of Susan-reckless, afraid of neither heaven nor earth. Even before BH City's most terrifying purple magical girl, she still held her head high and chest out, without the slightest fear.
Whether she could win a fight was beside the point. She could not lose in presence!
In reality, Susan already felt like crying.
She had finally managed to meet her and speak with her, yet she had no choice but to adopt this attitude and use such an aggressive, even somewhat provocative tone.
It was sheer torment. The thought that Shion might be displeased made her all the more uneasy.
All she could do was pray over and over in her heart, hoping Lady Shion would not dislike her...
Fortunately, the Shion Magic Puppet had no interest in discussing anything else afterward, nor did she show any annoyance or disgust. She merely turned calmly to leave.
The pressure that had nearly solidified the air dissipated with her departure.
The weight on Susan's heart eased slightly. She turned and was just about to say something to Yinlian when she suddenly saw Keke stand up.
"Shion, Miss Shion!"
Her voice was rather loud. That shout seemed to use up all her strength. She drew a breath, looked at Shion as she turned back, and continued, "Will... will we have another chance to meet?"
"Hmm." The Magic Puppet struck a thoughtful pose, looking somewhat cute. "Perhaps we'll have plenty of chances, if your brother is willing."
Yinlian looked at Keke worriedly, only to find that the girl did not react much to this. She merely continued, "I know. Even so, even so, I still want to be friends with you, Miss Shion. Nothing to do with Jiang Si. Just you and me, Miss Shion, becoming friends."
Bingtang suddenly had no idea how to respond.
Although she did not know how little sister Keke's train of thought had suddenly veered in this direction, becoming friends with her own brother's lover-however she looked at it, that was strange, wasn't it?
They were already family. Did it still matter whether they were friends?
She did not dare answer rashly. A careless response to this sort of question could easily expose a flaw.
After thinking it over, she could only turn to Jiang Si and ask him. In the end, she simply handed control back to him as well.
She was afraid it would be bad if she said the wrong thing and exposed herself.
It was better to let the person himself answer this sort of thing.
Once Jiang Si regained control of the Magic Puppet, a hint of languor and weariness appeared on her face.
Peony immediately exchanged a glance with Susan. Both noticed the change in Shion's gaze at the same time.
It was as if she had become a different person.
Although Shion had been oppressive earlier, that somewhat inhuman chill had not actually been very strong.
But now, a single glance chilled them to the bottom of their hearts.
That gaze, as though she were looking at a pile of trash, without any unnecessary emotion-now that felt right...
Turning sideways, she rested her gaze on the apprehensive Keke. A single sentence froze the air again and made Keke lower her head:
"What matters most right now is that you go back to class."
After parting with Shion, Yinluo drove Keke to school herself.
Although, in the end, she still did not make it in time and missed a class.
Once Keke left, Yinluo looked at Susan and Peony in the rearview mirror.
Neither had driven over, so they had hitched a ride with her. Peony was already somewhat tired, leaning against the window and dozing off.
Only Susan kept staring at her with that same scrutinizing gaze.
She started the car, preparing to take Yinlian to school next. Yinlian's high school was not far from here.
Only now did Yinluo speak. "About Jiang Si..."
Her younger sister beside her also turned to look at her, seemingly somewhat surprised that she had brought this up again.
"I don't think we can just leave it at that." Drawing a breath, Yinluo continued, "It's still too dangerous to let him interact with Shion like this. Perhaps we should increase our surveillance and be more discreet..."
"You mean, when the entire Disaster Countermeasures Bureau can do nothing about Shion, and Shion has already personally warned us not to keep watching Jiang Si, we should intensify surveillance on him and do everything we can to anger Shion and the Azure Cloud Sect behind her?"
Susan spoke with amusement. "Is that it, Miss Yinluo? Are you afraid the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau and the Azure Cloud Sect won't fight?"
Before Yinluo could speak, Yinlian said unhappily, "Miss Susan, although my sister's remark wasn't well considered, I believe she doesn't mean what you said. Please don't assume malicious intentions."
Susan snorted without arguing.
As she drove, Yinluo drew a deep breath. "I know. That's why we can request assistance from headquarters first. Isn't the Azure Cloud Sect throwing its weight around Beihai because it has a Full Blossom-level leader? We only need to invite a Full Blossom magical girl from headquarters, and they'll have to hesitate before throwing stones for fear of breaking the vase."
The atmosphere grew somewhat stiff.
Susan looked as though she had been angered into laughter. "Wonderful. You really are a genius, Yinluo. You want to apply to headquarters for a Full Blossom magical girl's assistance because you want to closely monitor Shion's boyfriend, Jiang Si. Don't you laugh when you say that yourself?"
"This is to deter the Azure Cloud Sect, not for something so superficial."
"Not something so superficial? If it isn't something so superficial, why didn't you apply before?"
"Because I didn't apply before, I can't apply now?"
"So how long do you intend to wait? Six months? A year?"
Even Yinlian, who always went along with her sister, hesitated. "Sis, every Full Blossom magical girl has to guard a city or region where A-rank Calamity Beasts appear. Headquarters just reported that after the Full Blossom magical girl stationed in South China was reassigned, an A-rank Calamity Beast trampled the area, causing enormous losses. Without a threat like an A-rank Calamity Beast, it's generally better not to apply..."
Yinluo's expression darkened. "Is the Azure Cloud Sect any less dangerous than an A-rank Calamity Beast? Shion is a Full Blossom magical girl. If she loses control, she'll be more dangerous than an A-rank Calamity Beast!"
"The problem is that she hasn't lost control," Susan countered methodically. "Nor has she shown any signs of it. On the contrary, because of her activities, Beihai has no soil in which an A-rank Calamity Beast could arise. Otherwise, it wouldn't be your turn to request a Full Blossom magical girl's assistance from headquarters."
"I think you're just afraid of Shion and the Azure Cloud Sect!"
"Aren't you the one who's afraid?" Susan demanded sharply. "What exactly are you afraid of, Yinluo? The Azure Cloud Sect and the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau have coexisted for three years. You weren't afraid before, yet you just happen to be afraid now! I'm starting to suspect you're involved in the theft of the Miracle Seed."
A vicious edge abruptly entered Yinluo's gaze. "You suspect me? Aren't you the most suspicious one? You used to act as if you couldn't live under the same sky as the Witch Association and the Azure Cloud Sect, but when you met Shion, didn't you bend over backward to accommodate her? You even made excuses for the Azure Cloud Sect. I strongly suspect you're the Azure Cloud Sect's mole, Miss Susan!"
"You've got some nerve, you Witch Association collaborator..."
"Enough!"
Yinlian suddenly shouted, even transforming on the spot to suppress both their presences.
Her immense magical power even made the car falter for a moment.
The pink magical girl wore a stern expression, anger in her eyes. "Argue if you must, but don't sling mud at your colleagues. Neither of you used to be this out of line. What is wrong with you today? Did one warning from Shion scare you so badly that you've started attacking your own companions?"
Susan sneered. "She started it."
"Shall we go back over who suspected the other first?"
Yinlian immediately pressed her sister's shoulder. "All right, stop talking."
Although she was still angry, Yinluo ultimately took a deep breath and let her anger dissipate.
Then she slammed on the brakes. Susan, who was not wearing a seat belt in the back, crashed headfirst into the seat.
Even Peony, who had already fallen asleep, was thrown into the seat ahead by the sudden braking. Clutching her head, she cried, "Ow!" and opened her eyes groggily. "What happened? What happened? Did we run into a Calamity Beast?"
Yinlian had intended to keep a stern face, but Peony's silly appearance left her not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
Yinluo unlocked the doors. "Get out yourselves. I can't be bothered driving you."
"Fine, we'll get out. As if anyone wants to ride in your car." Susan immediately opened the door and stepped out.
Peony beside her still looked utterly bewildered. "What happened? What happened? I didn't do anything! Don't drag me into this..."
After dragging her out, Susan rapped her hard on the head. "Stop yelling. Have some backbone."
Watching the car drive away, Peony looked helplessly at her friend. "Why are you so angry?"
"Don't you think she's strange?" Susan said gravely. "Yinluo has really been far too suspicious lately."
Peony rubbed her forehead and sighed. "But she is Yinlian's sister, after all..."
"It wouldn't matter if she were the director's mother." Susan raised a hand to hail a taxi. "I'm investigating her."
The car soon reached the high school gates, just as the bell rang to end the first class.
Yinlian had already undone her transformation.
She cautiously glanced at her sister's expression, then bumped her head against her arm. "Still angry, Sis?"
"I wouldn't waste my anger on an idiot like that."
"Hehe, exactly. Don't bother with that old hag, Sis. She's just here to make herself a nuisance anyway."
Looking at her grinning younger sister, Yinluo's expression gradually softened. "About Jiang Si, I still think..."
"It's fine." Yinlian suddenly patted her chest. "Leave it to me. Although... although I probably can't date him, I'll talk to him properly as a friend. Don't worry about it, Sis."
Hearing her sister's words, Yinluo finally could not help smiling. Seeing her sister smile, Yinlian also quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Ever since she was little, Yinlian had feared her sister getting angry more than anything.
"If you're too shy to confess, I'll teach you a trick, Yiyi. Write him a love letter and slip it to him. You know his little sister anyway, so just ask Keke to pass it along. Boys really fall for this sort of thing."
"Really?" After asking, Yinlian immediately shook her head. "I'm not trying to confess. Why would I write a love letter?"
"Then you can write a letter saying things you don't dare say out loud and get to know each other better, right? It's easier to open your heart in a letter than in conversation, and easier to grow closer."
Yinlian gave her sister a doubtful look. "Really?"
"When have I ever lied to you, my silly little sister?"
Yinlian rubbed her forehead and pushed open the car door, preparing to get out. "Then I'll try."
"Remember to use pink paper for the love letter."
"It's not a love letter!"
Yinluo watched with a chuckle as her younger sister jogged into the school, and only then did her smile slowly fade.
She reached inside her clothes and took out the vial of medicine, watching the liquid slosh inside.
Looks like I can't put it off any longer.
I'd wanted to wait a little longer...
Taking a deep breath, Yinluo looked at herself in the car mirror.
Truly hideous beyond measure.
"Goodbye, Yinlian."
Murmuring those words, she drove toward the Disaster Countermeasures Bureau.