Chapter 190: Rule Change

"In short, based on what we discussed this morning, the previous agreement is temporarily void."

That evening, at the base's dining table, after finishing dinner, the magical girls gathered together. After a brief preamble, Asou Enka announced to everyone: "Even if you lose the contest, neither side will be bound by any restrictions. Winning doesn't mean you must take the exam, and losing doesn't mean you can't. Take the exam if you're supposed to, go home if you're supposed to. Yes, changing the rules so abruptly is sorry, but that's how it's been changed."

No one responded to her immediately.

Not to mention the Fang Ting City team, even the Bai'an City team, her own teammates, looked at her with confusion, seemingly unable to figure out what medicine Asou Enka was selling from her gourd.

But even if they didn't understand, someone still had to take up the thread. In the end, Xia Liang took the initiative to speak, shouldering this responsibility:

"Then... may I ask, if there is no restriction requiring us to defeat your team to take the exam, is there still a need to continue the contest?"

"Yes."

Cuique, who had been silent until now, replied: "Consider it a way to recognize the intensity of the exam and understand the strength of your peer magical girls. The magical girls you have encountered so far are too few; this opportunity for actual combat must not be missed."

"An opportunity for actual combat... hmm."

Xia Liang looked thoughtfully in the direction of the Bai'an City team, then nodded at Cuique: "I understand. I will prepare seriously."

"Mm." Cuique nodded at her in return, then scanned the others: "That's about the conclusion. Others need not be so restrained; if you have any questions, feel free to ask."

As soon as the words fell, Mu Baihe raised her hand.

"Speak." Cuique gestured to her.

"Then can I specify my opponent myself?" Mu Baihe blinked her eyes.

Cuique gave no definite answer, asking calmly in return: "Theoretically, I have no standing to force you to fight anyone, but may I ask for the reason?"

"Because I have a conflict with that person." Mu Baihe tilted her head slightly, glancing in the direction of the Fang Ting City team.

Following her line of sight, Cuique easily found the "conflict target" she was referring to—her own daughter, Lin Xiaolu.

Her expression froze slightly, but this anomaly was quickly covered up. She looked at Lin Xiaolu again, hoping these were just one-sided misunderstandings, but as soon as her gaze turned, she saw her daughter glaring back at Mu Baihe with equal intensity.

It seems it really wasn't any misunderstanding.

After confirming that Mu Baihe was telling the truth, Cuique involuntarily twitched the corner of her mouth.

Although she had felt this way before, was her daughter's interpersonal skills really too poor? Not to mention making friends, managing to turn two out of three strangers into enemies in just a few days was truly beyond the norm.

Unfortunately, these thoughts could only be kept in her heart; there was absolutely no way to say them out loud at the moment. So she could only look at Asou Enka, hoping to get some effective advice from that side.

"No."

Asou Enka's advice was also very straightforward; two words rejected Mu Baihe's proposal.

"Why?" Mu Baihe immediately puffed out her cheeks in dissatisfaction.

"Because that would be too rude, idiot."

Asou Enka sighed: "The specific contest opponents will be decided by drawing lots when the time comes. Picking opponents is not up for discussion. Next."

Mu Baihe was easily vetoed by a single vote. The next questioner was Bai Ji. This magical girl, once designated as the future captain of the Bai'an City team, had also half-raised her hand, obviously having her own views on this arrangement.

"May I ask why the previous agreement was canceled? According to the instructor's previous proposal, if next year's assessment is indeed very dangerous, verifying strength beforehand should be necessary."

After being signaled by Cuique to speak, she also put forward her doubts: "Of course, I will obey the instructor's arrangements. The current issue is merely my personal curiosity."

After two days of adjustment, compared to that night when she first arrived in Fang Ting City, Bai Ji had also reined in her emotions, once again showing her steady side.

If it weren't for the fact that she and Lin Xiaolu still had not exchanged a single word, and both were too lazy to even look at each other, Cuique might have thought the conflict between the two had ended.

"Because I discussed it with your teacher, and ultimately we believe that respecting the personal wishes of the team members is more important for something like an assessment."

As for the question Bai Ji raised, Cuique had expected it long ago and had prepared a draft in her mind, so she answered fluently: "As long as you are prepared with the resolve to deal with danger, we have no reason to stop you. As for the issue of the assessment's danger... next year, I will accompany those taking the exam, so there is no need to worry too much about that aspect."

Cuique actually didn't finish this sentence. For instance, why she had to accompany them to the Realm, and how she would guarantee their safety, she actually found it inconvenient to explain.

She really found it hard to just tell the children in front of her that she was going to the Realm only because she needed a fake identity as an examinee, and in the end, she would have to use this fake identity to take the exam with them...

It wasn't that she was worried about these children leaking secrets; it was simply that she felt they couldn't help with her healing anyway. Bringing it up at this critical juncture would only add unnecessary worries.

However, even without explaining these things, just saying "I will go" was enough to dispel the juniors' doubts. Not to mention the magical girls of Bai'an City who were not very familiar with her, even the three members of the Fang Ting City team raised no objections to this.

Thus, this question was also passed over.

The last person to raise her hand was Lin Xiaolu.

Saying she raised her hand was a bit of a stretch, because her entire forearm was lying flat on the table; only one palm was raised vertically. Obviously, she herself was doubtful about whether to make this movement.

And when Cuique's gaze turned to her, Lin Xiaolu's half-raised hand even collapsed. She averted her gaze, trying to pretend nothing had happened.

"Is there anything you want to ask?" However, Cuique's gaze did not miss her small movement; she keenly noticed Lin Xiaolu's intention to say something at the very first moment.

Being called by name, Lin Xiaolu was stunned for a moment, opened her mouth, and after a long pause, squeezed out a voice as faint as a mosquito's hum: "... Is the reason for canceling the previous agreement because..."

"Sorry, I didn't hear clearly." Cuique, who only understood a few words, couldn't help but frown.

"... Nothing."

Lin Xiaolu's voice paused slightly, and finally she shook her head: "It's just some unimportant things. I have no other questions."

Saying this, she lowered her head and stared at the dining table, not knowing what she was thinking.

Only Cuique sat opposite, wanting to speak but holding back, wanting to persuade but not knowing where to start. Seeing that no one else around was raising their hand, she assumed all questions had been asked and felt it was inappropriate to drag out the time any longer, so she had to sigh lightly:

"Then let's disperse."

The night grew deeper, the moon hung high.

It was already ten o'clock at night. The magical girls in the base had gradually finished their daily activities, washed up, returned to their rooms, and fallen asleep.

For most magical girls, going to sleep on time is a very good habit, because the Remnant Beasts often appear at night, or even in the late night. If one stays up too late, when the Remnant Beasts appear, one often hasn't experienced a complete sleep cycle and will be forced to fight in a groggy state, which is quite disadvantageous for combat.

Among these magical girls lying in bed, although many harbored concerns and remained gloomy until they fell asleep, ultimately, exhausted from the day, they succumbed to sleepiness and closed their eyes between the quilts.

Only two rooms were still lit at this time.

One of them was Cuique's room. The reason she hadn't fallen asleep was nothing else; the work wasn't finished yet.

Managing such a huge Special Strategy Bureau, even though Lin Yun had delegated power as much as possible, dumping trivial and miscellaneous matters to relatively trustworthy employees, there was still a large amount of coordination, approval, and decision-making work to be done.

Much of this work couldn't be finished during the day. At night, Lin Yun didn't dare to work overtime at the Special Strategy Bureau, so he could only bring it back to the base and do it alone after the night grew quiet.

The good news is that since Hong Siyu returned, the workload has decreased significantly because documents reaching his hands have already undergone a layer of screening.

And now, Senior Cuique is reviewing the last document of the day.

This document was submitted by the Logistics Department regarding the usage and wear of the Magic Armaments; as the direct provider of the Magic Armaments, she needs to verify this report before applying to the Investigation Bureau for repairs and replenishment.

Since the Magic Armaments enable Magicians to face Egg-class Remnant Beasts single-handedly, they are of critical importance to the Anomaly Strategy Bureau, so Senior Cuique needs to carefully audit every single data point to ensure there are no oversights.

Perhaps because she was so engrossed in reading the documents, she completely failed to notice that someone had appeared beside her desk.

She sensed no hostility at all, nor any fluctuation of mana, so Senior Cuique subconsciously ignored this person's existence. Only when the presence of this shadow in her peripheral vision grew stronger did she belatedly shift her gaze from the document and look to the side.

Standing there was someone entirely unexpected—Xia Liang.

Since the night of the Full Moon Festival, after assuming the post of Director of the Anomaly Strategy Bureau, Lin Yun, or rather the matters Senior Cuique had to handle, were truly too many, so the time spent with the girls inevitably decreased somewhat.

And Xia Liang, though not intentionally, was indeed the child with whom she had spent the least time alone recently.

The reason was simple: because she was worry-free.

Compared to Lin Xiaolu, who always created various disturbances to draw attention, and Bai Jingxuan, whose lack of disturbances made people worry even more, Xia Liang had indeed been too worry-free recently.

Although she occasionally played small, harmless pranks, compared to the other two team members, this level of prank really amounted to nothing.

Furthermore, whether in studies, the blossoming of abilities, or cultivation as a Magical Girl, Xia Liang demonstrated considerable talent and comprehension, so much so that Senior Cuique did not need to spend much time teaching her. Unknowingly, the time Senior Cuique spent with her became much scarcer.

At this moment, Xia Liang suddenly running over like this made Senior Cuique feel a bit nostalgic.

"Is there something you need?" So she put down the document in her hand and said with a more solemn attitude: "And you could have said something when you came."

"Here." Saying this, Xia Liang suddenly pushed forward with both hands, offering a teacup: "Just brewed with boiling water, it might take a while before it's drinkable."

Only then did Senior Cuique notice that the other person had brewed a cup of tea when they arrived.

"Thank you."

Taking the teacup, Senior Cuique gently rubbed the rim of the cup, confirming that the water inside was indeed very hot: "Did you encounter some problem with your cultivation?"

"Nope."

To this, Xia Liang only shook her head: "I just suddenly wanted to come and see."

"See what?"

"I don't know; must I bring some purpose?"

"... Not really."

Xia Liang's somewhat wavering attitude made Senior Cuique somewhat puzzled, but she still, as usual, pulled out another chair from beside the desk: "Sit down."

This chair was originally used for study meetings, but since the Bai'an City Team arrived, there were more occasions to entertain guests, so it hadn't been used for nearly a week.

Xia Liang silently took the chair, sat down beside the desk, and then just silently watched Senior Cuique, making the atmosphere rather strange for a moment.

"Doesn't Little Senior have to continue working?"

After a while, she spoke: "You don't need to mind me; just continue doing your own things."

"... How can one work peacefully with someone staring at you constantly?"

Senior Cuique tapped her fingers on the teacup, her eyelids drooping: "It's so late; don't you need to go to sleep?"

"Not sleepy yet."

Propping her cheeks with both hands, Xia Liang murmured softly: "Actually, Little Senior, you, the three words 'I am very tired' feel like they are written all over your face."

"... Really?"

Senior Cuique subconsciously touched her own face; however, a Magical Girl's body does not produce real sweat, so what she touched was still smooth skin: "I think it hasn't reached that extent yet."

"The number of sighs has increased too; recently, you look like your mood is very bad."

"That is indeed the truth."

Regarding the situation reflected by Xia Liang, Senior Cuique found it hard to deny: "Thank you for your concern, but rest assured, I am actually not in low spirits; many times I just do it subconsciously."

Suddenly, there was silence in the room again.

The two looked at each other, one slightly lowering her head; neither was doing anything, yet neither said a word.

"Is there no problem over at Xiaolu's end? I saw her sneaking around to find Miss Asou for several days."

After several minutes, Xia Liang suddenly asked, "Little Senior, you should know, right?"

"No problem; I discussed this matter with Asou."

Gazing at the teacup in her hand, looking at the blurry reflection on the porcelain surface, Senior Cuique said softly: "In this matter, I indeed need to learn to let go, not to hold on so tightly."

"What about Xiaoxuan? Suddenly making her spar with other Magical Girls; her Magic Armor is actually not suitable for one-on-one combat."

"Bai Jingxuan... no need to worry about her strength; just focus on her performance." Senior Cuique said calmly.

"I feel like Little Senior secretly gave Xiaoxuan extra tutoring?"

"... That's not the case."

"Then, why are you so confident in her abilities?"

"I just exchanged some things with her and discovered some special talents; you will know soon too." Senior Cuique spoke vaguely.

"Hmm? Oh." Knowing Senior Cuique was just brushing her off, Xia Liang responded noncommittally.

The sound of tapping on the teacup continued, but the intensity was uneven; the withered trees outside the window swayed slightly in the cold wind, emitting a faint crisp sound.

Xia Liang still propped her cheeks, a faint smile on her face, looking at Senior Cuique, and then asked softly:

"Then... what about me?"

The fingers tapping on the teacup paused.

The wall clock continued to make a crisp sound of its gears turning, yet in the seemingly stagnant air, it sounded somewhat discordant.

Senior Cuique finally shifted her gaze from the desk.

Now, she had to face the young girl before her.

(End of this chapter)