Chapter 118: That Wonderful Relationship

Sixteen-year-old Hong Siyu was still a girl unwilling to believe in miracles.

She had always believed her mother's teachings, upholding the principles that "no pies fall from the sky" and "those who do not labor shall not eat," insisting that all gains are the result of effort and sacrifice.

Even though she had encountered a beast attack in her third year of junior high and met a magical girl, she always felt it was merely a coincidence; her future life would no longer be entangled with such supernatural matters, and she would continue her ordinary life.

Precisely because of this, after studying hard, she was admitted to Fang Ting City's best high school with extremely excellent grades.

Everything seemed to have returned to the right track; following such a path, she would surely continue as an honor student. She would enter a better higher education institution, obtain better education and a diploma there, then find a well-paid job and become a mature member of society.

Most children her age always hoped their futures could be different, hoped they could become special, and did not want to become ordinary members of the masses. But Hong Siyu did not think this way; a determined life plan gave her a sense of security grounded in reality.

She never expected, however, that fate played a joke on her at this turning point. No matter how much she disbelieved it, something equivalent to a "miracle" for her still happened.

She became a magical girl.

In her first year of high school, when she encountered a beast attack again, she was chosen by a mysterious rabbit demon and became a magical girl.

Was this "luck" or "misfortune"? Hong Siyu could no longer figure it out.

If speaking of luck, it was not entirely so. She had never thought of becoming a magical girl; such a scene did not exist in her fantasies, and such an identity and responsibility were not what she wanted.

But if speaking of misfortune, it was not really that either. Because after becoming a magical girl, she met the other magical girls of this city and suddenly gained many friends.

She only knew that her ordinary life plan had all turned into empty talk the moment she became a magical girl, because a magical girl is destined to be extraordinary.

And the thinking about whether all this was luck or misfortune was ended on a particular afternoon.

"Come to think of it, Senior Cuique, you haven't shown our little junior your true form yet, have you?"

It was an ordinary evening. After school, the five-person magical girl team of Fang Ting City gathered together. Among them, the magical girl with the codename Margaret suddenly spoke up:

"The rest of us have already shared everything with her; shouldn't you also show some sincerity?"

"Hmm..."

The blue-haired girl sitting nearby, silently drinking a beverage, twitched her shoulder, then raised her head and looked at Margaret with an annoyed expression: "What kind of provocation is this?"

"How can you call it provocation? This is my sincere wish."

Margaret rested her chin on her hand, a teasing smile on her face: "I've been looking forward to this scene for a long time. Anyway, since we're bored today, let's treat it as an entertainment show?"

"How can you take a companion's embarrassment for fun just because you're 'bored'?"

Senior Cuique rolled her eyes at her: "Rejected. I'm not willing."

"That's really harsh of you."

Margaret sounded unhappy, but wore an indifferent smile on her face and shrugged: "I don't have such sinister motives, sister. Relax a bit."

The conversation here couldn't continue, but it caught Hong Siyu's attention; she noticed that the two's conversation seemed to have hidden meanings.

Should she speak up and ask?

She pondered and deliberated in her heart, but ultimately couldn't make up her mind, so she didn't speak.

However, just because she didn't speak didn't mean the others present had no thoughts of their own.

— "What? What are you guys talking about?"

A gentle yet light girl's voice came from the side. A girl with long hair suddenly popped out from the side and leaned on Senior Cuique's shoulder: "Let Ah Yun show Xiao Hong her true form?"

"Didn't you just hear it?"

Senior Cuique glanced at her: "Also, don't call our real names or nicknames; call us by our magical girl codenames."

"What's the difference? Anyway, there's no one else here."

The girl held Senior Cuique's shoulder and leaned closer: "So, will you transform or not? I want to see it too! Just do it today!"

"I won't transform."

"Transform."

"I won't transform!"

"Transform!"

"I said I won't transform, so I won't transform!"

Senior Cuique reached out, cupped the girl's chin, and pushed her aside: "Also, stay away from me; you're too close!"

"Mmm mmm mmm! I want to see!"

The girl clung to Senior Cuique's arm like a sloth, refusing to let go: "It's been so long since I've seen Ah Yun transform right in front of me!"

"It's precisely because you treat it like watching a circus performance every time that I'm unwilling!" Senior Cuique gritted her teeth.

— "You guys, shouldn't you consider the wishes of the person involved in such matters?"

The last to speak was a girl who had been sitting at the very edge, holding a book in her hands. She stopped the argument between Senior Cuique and the other girl, raised her head, and looked at Hong Siyu: "What do you think, newbie? Do you think it's necessary to confirm everyone's true forms with each other?"

This sentence seemed to remind everyone present; whether it was the two girls currently pulling and tugging at each other or Margaret, who had originally given up on the matter, all turned their gaze toward Hong Siyu.

In an instant, Hong Siyu became the focal point of the entire team's gaze. This made her feel extremely uncomfortable.

Hong Siyu was never used to other people's gaze; especially when stared at by many people, she would feel even speaking became very difficult.

So when everyone was watching her, waiting for her answer, she couldn't utter a single word for a while.

She could only open and close her mouth, constantly trying to spit out a few words from her mouth. But even until her face turned red from holding her breath, she made no sound, like a fish out of water.

This made Senior Cuique, who had been frowning and looking unwilling, calm her expression.

"Don't be nervous; just say what you think."

She released the hand pushing against the girl's face beside her, rolled her eyes at the other person again, and turned back to Hong Siyu to say: "This isn't actually such a serious matter; it's just that you might find it a bit hard to accept after learning the truth."

"H-hard to accept?" Hong Siyu finally caught her breath and stammered along.

"Yes, because I have concealed something from you regarding this matter."

Senior Cuique shook her head and looked at her calmly: "Actually, you should have seen my true form before."

"S-seen it before?"

Hong Siyu felt a bit dizzy again: "Where?"

A magical girl's appearance originates from her true form, and part of the true form is born from the soul, so it will be quite similar to the person's own appearance. In other words, Senior Cuique's true form should also be an exquisite and beautiful girl, like a Princess.

But no matter how hard Hong Siyu searched her memory, she could not find a single girl who resembled Senior Cuique in appearance.

"That depends on whether you want to know or not."

Senior Cuique sighed: "If you want to know, then I have no reason to hide it from you."

Did she want to know?

Hong Siyu couldn't help but ask herself in her heart.

Her first meeting with Senior Cuique was at Bing Chu San's campus cultural festival, where the other party descended from the sky and saved her from being attacked by a ferocious beast. Before that, Hong Siyu had never come into such close contact with a magical girl.

On that day, she lost the boy she cared about, but she met Senior Cuique.

Later, because of a twist of fate, she became a magical girl and saw Senior Cuique again, but not as a savior, but as a junior magical girl. This once made her feel somewhat happy.

From the moment she first saw Senior Cuique, the other party had always faced her in the guise of a magical girl; the Senior Cuique in her mind had always been that magical girl who made a dazzling entrance through the window and would say to her, "The magical girl has arrived."

Did she really want, or was it really necessary, to confirm Senior Cuique's true appearance?

"I, perhaps..."

She hesitated as she spoke, but after opening her mouth, she gradually made up her mind: "I don't need to... right?"

This answer made the magical girls present, who had been watching her all along, widen their eyes.

Senior Cuique was no exception; she was obviously very surprised by Hong Siyu's answer, but she asked as if confirming: "Why?"

"Because, Senior Cuique, just being Senior Cuique is enough."

Unable to bear these gazes, Hong Siyu lowered her head and answered in a small voice: "Even if I don't know what kind of person you originally were, I absolutely trust you. So, I even more do not want you to feel troubled because of this matter."

This answer once again plunged the other team members into silence. After a moment, they all looked at Senior Cuique in unison.

A gentle smile, a teasing smile, an interested smile; everyone's expression was different, but the meaning they wanted to express in that silence was consistent.

Senior Cuique understood this point as well. So she glanced around, finally stood up from her chair, and said to Hong Siyu: "Follow me."

"Eh? What?" Hong Siyu asked in confusion, unable to understand the situation.

"Don't ask, just come."

"Ah, oh."

Finally understanding her intention from Senior Cuique's strangely somewhat shy expression, Hong Siyu felt a thump in her heart, and then stood up as well.

The two found a secluded corner with no one around, and after confirming there were no surveillance devices or the like nearby, Senior Cuique finally let out a breath, feigning calmness as she said: "Don't shout out loud later."

"Why?"

"Ask again and I won't transform."

"Oh."

Hong Siyu instinctively swallowed her saliva, then closed her mouth.

But she was still somewhat confused; why was the atmosphere so strange?

No matter what, this was just confirming one's true form among magical girl comrades; she didn't have so many reservations with the other seniors, so why, when it came to Senior Cuique, did it feel like something very private? Even, it made her feel a subtle sense of excitement?

If one didn't know the inside story, it was almost as if she was forcing someone to take off their clothes.

Such a terrible association arose in her heart, but Hong Siyu did not speak up to ask again, because she could feel that Senior Cuique was willing to do this only after making a firm decision; if she said even one more word casually, it might cause the other party to stop.

Just like that, under the mutual gaze of the two, Senior Cuique reached out and touched the Heart Gem on her chest, then, whispered a sentence in a low voice.

Immediately, deep blue magical light scattered, and Senior Cuique's appearance gradually became illusory within the light, revealing the face of a brand new human form emerging from it.

And when she clearly saw the face within the light, Hong Siyu experienced the sensation of her brain short-circuiting for the first time in a long while.

Because, within the light was no one other than the boy she had always been thinking of, the one she had mourned a few days ago—Lin Yun.

Twenty-year-old Hong Siyu began to believe in miracles a little.

Her life had become much more colorful than before.

Becoming a magical girl meant not only coming into contact with the extraordinary magical world, but also meeting people from all over the world.

Before stepping into this world, she had never thought the world of magic would be so vast and magnificent; countless things that ordinary people would never know were hidden beneath the surface, and only after obtaining the power of magic could one catch a glimpse of the truth.

Time passed quickly; she continued her studies while working as a magical girl in her spare time. Although the process was very hard, she ultimately persevered. As a magical girl of the Rank of Nameplate Lei, she was active in Fang Ting City and was admitted to a local prestigious university.

The only thing that was somewhat regrettable was that the person she liked stopped being a magical girl because of an injury.

Yes, the person she liked.

When she first discovered that the boy she cared about and the girl she had a slight crush on were the same person, Hong Siyu indeed took a long time to accept this fact.

But after that, she also clarified her feelings; she felt that she indeed liked Lin Yun, or rather, Senior Cuique.

This liking was not simply the liking of a friend, but a real, genuine liking as a member of the opposite sex; she liked Lin Yun and held special feelings for him.

Unfortunately, she and Lin Yun were not able to work together for long, because in the same year she became a magical girl, a wave of ferocious beasts that swept across the entire world erupted.

That year, countless ferocious beasts appeared from somewhere unknown, and not only in numbers, but the strength of individuals was also very terrifying, a huge catastrophe for the entire world. Reading books.

That year was later called by people the "Great Calamity" year.

Countless magical girls, and even magicians, went forward one after another, sacrificing their money, power, and even their lives for this catastrophe, finally surviving the disaster and securing a future for human civilization.

Countless magical girls and humans sacrificed themselves in this disaster.

And Senior Cuique, in a battle that was nearly desperate, used power that should not have been used, causing irreversible damage to her Heart Gem and her source of magic, losing the vast majority of her strength.

This was not even the first time Senior Cuique had done so.

Hong Siyu heard from other seniors that even a year before that year, a war of unparalleled cruelty had broken out in the Magical Kingdom; Senior Cuique had also used methods that drained her own vitality in that war, and had already suffered hidden injuries at that time.

Rather, the fact that she had drained herself twice like this and still did not die, but only suffered heavy injuries, was already something incredibly unbelievable.

Regarding Senior Cuique's retirement, although Hong Siyu felt very regretful, she was also helpless. She knew that Senior Cuique now had almost no strength left; forcing the other party to return to the battlefield would be irresponsible behavior.

Let it be; the senior has already given too much to protect everyone, and he should also enjoy a stable life properly.

Hong Siyu thought this way.

Once I graduate and find a job, I will confess my feelings to him then. If he agrees to marry me, I will step down from my position as a Magical Girl sooner and spend the rest of my life with him in peace.

These plans are all proceeding step by step without any issues. The only possible problem is that I still haven't mustered the courage to express my feelings to Lin Yun.

But it doesn't matter. On the day of graduation, even if I have to force myself, I will take that step. Hong Siyu believed this.

Just like that, she continued her life as a university student and a Magical Girl. Until one day, while chatting with her teammates, her senior Anya said something somewhat surprising:

"Ah, by the way, we are getting engaged in a few days!"

Her words caused the previously lively atmosphere to fall silent at once.

Hong Siyu could feel that Su Shengzi and Asano Enka, who had been talking enthusiastically just moments ago, suddenly fell silent, and their expressions were far from happy.

Is Senior Anya really getting married at such a young age?

That was her first thought.

Who is her fiancé? Is he terrible? Why do the other seniors look so unwilling?

That was her second confusion.

... Come to think of it, why does everyone look at me with such pity?

That was her third trouble.

"Se-Senior Anya, you've actually been dating?"

Fortunately, facing familiar companions, she was able to speak properly, so she asked directly: "I actually didn't know before, and how did it suddenly become an engagement? Who is it with?"

She could feel that after saying this, everyone was looking at her again, all at once.

Did I say something wrong? Hong Siyu didn't understand.

"Xiao Hong, I'm sorry!"

And Anya, contrary to her usual boisterous manner, suddenly clapped her hands together very solemnly and clearly before her.

Why is the senior apologizing to me? Hong Siyu remained completely bewildered.

This confusion did not last long, because soon, what Anya said gave her the answer:

— "I am getting engaged to Lin Yun in a few days!"

(End of this chapter)