Chapter 185: Casual Chat

The weekend passed quickly.

Even though the increasingly cold weather made people less willing to go out, most still had to step out of their homes to continue their work due to the need to make a living.

Lin Yun was naturally one of those who had to go to work.

Although he, having once again become a Magical Girl, faced no pressure regarding his livelihood, as the Director of the Anomaly Bureau in Fang Ting City, at this time of crisis and turbulent situation, he was bound to take charge of the overall situation.

— "Then, we shall set off first."

At the entrance of the villa, Senior Cuique and Asano Madoka stood together, instructing the girls behind them: "Hakuyuki, remember to treat the guests well. Xiaojin and Bai Mei still have to attend class, so I'm entrusting this place to you. If you have any questions you don't know the answer to, you can call me."

"Okay." Bai Jingxuan nodded.

"Bai Ji, Wood Lily, Mimosa."

Senior Cuique called out the names of several Magical Girls in Bai'an City, tilting her head to the side: "I have already given you the spare keys to this base; you may come and go as you please. I hope you enjoy your time in this city. We do not force you to undertake missions to drive away the Feral Beasts, but we welcome any assistance you can offer."

Seeing the girls all nod in agreement, Senior Cuique said no more and left the place together with Asano Madoka.

Today, she had to take her old teammate to the Anomaly Bureau, and for the girls' questions, she gave the reason of "going out to handle business together."

Obviously, this answer could not convince the group of Magical Girls, but they had no standing to continue pressing the matter, so they let it slide.

Since the destination was the Anomaly Bureau, both of them dressed very formally. Lin Yun himself needed no mention; his attire on workdays was always appropriate. As for Asano Madoka, she had put on a women's suit, wore a pair of sunglasses, and tied her conspicuous long hair into a bun, looking very much like a powerful career woman.

To prevent any slip-ups in concealing their identities, Senior Cuique had long ago transformed into Lin Yun's appearance, and the vehicle driven was not the one assigned to "Senior Cuique" by the Anomaly Bureau, but Asano Madoka's car, ensuring no one would suspect anything.

— "So, Little Lulu agreed?"

On the drive, seeing that the traffic ahead had not moved an inch for a long time, obviously a traffic jam, Lin Yun took the initiative to start a conversation and asked Asano Madoka: "I noticed her mood was significantly better this morning."

"Friend, it seems you do not understand my communication skills. With me taking charge, does such a thing even need to be discussed?"

Asano Madoka yawned: "Rest assured, she agreed. When I have some free time tonight, I will go teach her."

She looked half-asleep, appearing ready to fall asleep at any moment; it was unknown whether it was because she had slept too late the previous night or simply because she was not used to the morning schedule.

"What about her Ability Awakening? Did you notice anything?"

Lin Yun frowned slightly: "Is there a possibility of a solution in the short term?"

"I don't know."

Asano Madoka raised her hand to wipe the corner of her eye: "I already said, what I excel at is only combat techniques; I am not an expert in ability development. If we're talking about true experts, if you can't see it, how could I possibly see it?"

"... After all, I have been retired for nineteen years."

Lin Yun shook his head: "You also know that the research content of the Realm changes with each passing day; nineteen years is enough time for some latest achievements unknown to me to emerge."

"Then why not go ask the Prime Minister?"

Asano Madoka looked at him: "The Prime Minister is here, right?"

"Emerald... huh." Lin Yun fell silent.

Actually, he had not failed to consider this option; in fact, he had a hunch that if he went to see the Emerald, this matter would likely receive a solution.

However, this would also mean having the Daughter meet the Gem Scepter, which would inevitably be accompanied by more unstable factors.

He had always tried his best to avoid involving Lin Xiaolu in the affairs of the Realm, but facts were always difficult to go as wished; it seemed that as the Daughter walked deeper and deeper on the path of a Magical Girl, some invisible force was pushing everything, causing her to become associated with more people and matters of the Realm.

Should he continue to stop it, or let it take its course? Lin Yun had not yet figured it out clearly until now.

"You, just like before, are still overly protective..."

Seeing Lin Yun remain silent for a long time, Asano Madoka, who had roughly guessed what he was thinking, sighed: "Although I am not very familiar with the Prime Minister, based on my understanding of her, she should be the easiest person to deal with among the Gem Scepters. Is it necessary to be so excessively cautious?"

"I cannot give a definitive conclusion on what kind of person she is, but when dealing with the Gem Scepter, I cannot help but overthink." Lin Yun said in a low voice.

"Just because you were supposed to be the Sapphire?" Asano Madoka asked abruptly.

Lin Yun fell silent once again.

He could not help but fall silent, because Asano Madoka's words indeed hit a sore spot.

"... Anyway, I will consider this matter, but unless absolutely necessary, I still hope we can solve it ourselves."

After a long pause, he finally spoke again, shifting the topic rather stiffly: "I will try some other methods in a few days. Until then, I'll have to trouble you to teach her more. After all, if we speak purely of combat techniques, you are probably the most outstanding one in our squad."

"So you don't want to talk about this? Even flattering me won't make me forget the topic just now."

Asano Madoka smiled mischievously: "But since you rarely compliment people, I will accept your praise."

This was not flattery. Lin Yun thought to himself.

Because the fact was exactly so; Asano Madoka was the one in the old Fang Ting City squad who had delved the deepest into the study of combat techniques.

Although, in her own words, this was not some talent, but a "helpless move due to lack of talent."

Among the few members of the old squad, Cornflower's progress in Ability Awakening was absurdly far ahead of everyone else, Sakura's ability itself was extremely powerful, and as for Orchid, she was even a research-type genius comparable to an "Encyclopedia of Spell Forms."

Only Margaret, that is, Asano Madoka, was merely at the standard of an ordinary Magical Girl in everything; her mana was not outstanding, her ability was not overwhelmingly strong, and her talent for learning spell forms was just average.

Under such circumstances, the path she ultimately chose was "technique."

This was destined to be a very difficult path to walk; therefore, until Lin Yun retired, Asano Madoka's achievements as a Magical Girl were not considered outstanding. Most people, when mentioning the codename "Margaret," would only think, "This is Sakura and Cornflower's teammate."

However, just as she had resolutely chosen to leave Fang Ting back then to become a singer, Asano Madoka's persistence and perseverance in a matter were unimaginable to ordinary people.

The fact was, at the end of this persistence, Asano Madoka eventually obtained her own Flower Card.

It was not derived from military merit, nor from research, but merely a posthumous title awarded after reaching the extreme in a certain field.

A Flower Card that merely symbolized "mastery of skill."

(End of Chapter)