Chapter 249: The Dreamer

At the same moment Mo He asked this question, the car started moving.

She pressed the accelerator, placed her hand on the steering wheel, paused for a few seconds, received no answer from Senior Cuique, and continued on her own: "For me, no matter what happens, I still consider the Captain a comrade. So, I want to help you."

"You have said this word several times already."

Senior Cuique fastened the seatbelt on her side, a safety belt that was better than nothing; the sound of the metal buckle clicking shut mingled with her words: "But I do not feel I need help, and I also do not think you need to help me..."

"You do need it."

Mo He suddenly interrupted Senior Cuique's words and said very solemnly: "For me, this is very necessary."

"... Alright, then let's just say our past friendship makes this favor of yours worth it."

Senior Cuique sighed, not intending to continue arguing about this matter with Mo He: "Exactly what makes you think I need help? And how do you plan to help me? Do you intend to tell me you know who killed Miss Ying?"

If she were to analyze it herself: what on her own person required help, and that the other party could possibly know, then the only thing was Anya's death.

She had never forgotten this sorrow, nor the hatred and anger atop that sorrow; it was just that previously she bore severe injuries and still had to consider her daughter's future life, so she had been unable to put this matter into practice.

Now, having healed her injuries to a certain extent, and with Lin Xiaolu's magical girl career having safely entered the right track despite some scares, the thought of revenge had become somewhat more active in her mind.

It was not that she would set out immediately, recklessly seeking the killer to make him pay with blood for his blood debt, but rather that she was considering making some preliminary plans.

"I'm sorry, I don't know."

However, Mo He shook her head quite straightforwardly: "I know the Captain will one day seek revenge for Miss Ying's sake, and at that time, I will definitely help you. But what I want to say now is not about that matter."

Her words made Senior Cuique sigh; she didn't know if it was disappointment or the relief of "just as expected."

"Then what do you want to talk about?" Realizing the help the other party spoke of had nothing to do with her future revenge, the few remaining sparks of interest in Senior Cuique's heart were on the verge of fading away.

"The Captain's magic armor has only one piece left, right?" Mo He said softly, her voice almost indistinct amidst the wind of the moving car.

But Senior Cuique still heard clearly what she was saying.

This sentence made her suddenly widen her eyes.

"... This does not seem to be something you would know."

She looked at Mo He; even though the Mo He before her now was a completely different person from twenty years ago, she had never felt the person before her was so strange as in this very moment: "In this world, there should not be too many people who know this matter."

"'Bloom' is not a secret in our legion; the Legion Commander taught this technique to everyone she felt was 'going to die for it,' although few people mastered it."

Mo He's expression remained calm: "But, Captain, you should remember, I mastered it too."

"I know, but you shouldn't know to this extent." Senior Cuique did not express conviction in this answer.

"Because I have my own team, capable of gathering a lot of information from the Material World."

Mo He explained further: "You have used 'Bloom' three times already... Last year was the third time."

Senior Cuique did not reply immediately.

She leaned slightly against the seat behind her, closed her eyes and thought for a while, then reopened them and spoke: "Continue."

"If the Captain can join our team, I, we are confident we can restore your magic armor."

Realizing Senior Cuique was acknowledging her statement, Mo He continued: "Although, technically, it might not be exactly the same as before; the form and abilities of the magic armor might all undergo some changes..."

"What are the conditions?"

Senior Cuique was expressionless, seeming completely unjoyful at Mo He's proposal that "the magic armor could be restored": "Or rather, what exactly does your team do? This kind of technique is something even the Research Institute does not have."

"... Because we also have our own independent technical team, containing very capable members from the Research Institute."

Mo He answered honestly, like a recruiter facing a key talent at a job fair: "As for what we do... at least according to my understanding, we want to build a home."

By this point, Mo He's car had gradually left the most bustling city district and entered the expressway connecting the neighborhoods, so the speed began to increase further.

"A home?" Senior Cuique, in the car, raised her eyebrows.

"Yes, a home."

Mo He nodded: "A home that can accommodate guests coming from anywhere, carrying any experiences... Of course, currently, the majority are still abandoned magical girls, and homeless humans."

"Abandoned magical girls?" Senior Cuique seized on the key phrase in her words.

"They are all children like us."

Speaking of this so-called "home," Mo He's tone had somehow acquired a touch of tenderness: "Because we are not accepted, everyone gathers together, like family, building together, farming together, slowly constructing the future together."

"We found a stable point in the wasteland of the Material World; there we prepared houses, farmland, energy... Then, if a magical girl cannot continue to survive in the Kingdom, she can come to us; everyone will welcome her, and then we will build the home together."

"For those humans who mistakenly entered the wasteland, or whom no city accepts, we will also let them join; of course, criminals might require stricter restrictions..."

The sky had already turned completely dark.

In the Kingdom's night, the sky was a very beautiful blue-purple; amidst the thick colors like an oil painting, stars were dotted, and starlight and moonlight shone together upon the two people's path ahead, gentle and tranquil.

In the evening wind, Mo He, with her not particularly outstanding expressive ability, described as best she could the "team" and "home" within her words; although often she did not speak quite well, the enthusiasm within her words was genuinely present.

The other party was not lying.

Senior Cuique could confirm this matter.

For Mo He, she was truly, from the bottom of her heart, even holding a very simple emotion, striving toward her dream; for the "team members" in her mouth, she also truly trusted and cared for them from the heart.

This caused Senior Cuique, who had once muttered to herself whether that "team" of the other party was a Claw Mark, to gradually push this suspicion aside.

For no other reason, it simply did not look like it.

She had already seen, or heard of, many members from the Claw Mark; among these people were pure villains like Sparrow; there were also those who did not care about right or wrong and had no taboos, like Oriole; and there were even former Diamond Scepters, schemers like Purple Diamond... But in any case, there was no reason for there to be a dreamer like Mo He.

Yes, the things Mo He spoke of were, in Senior Cuique's eyes, almost a "dream."

The other party's actions were infinitely close to digging out the Kingdom's cornerstones and establishing another "Magical Kingdom" on their own; such behavior, if on a small scale, perhaps the Kingdom could let it slide. But once it stood out, it would likely be stopped, absorbed, or even develop into something worse.

And besides that, the matter of "being abandoned by the Kingdom" that Mo He spoke of was also very concerning.

Senior Cuique herself was permanently confined, not allowed to enter the Kingdom; perhaps this could indeed be interpreted as "abandonment." But what about Mo He? She, and those "abandoned magical girls" in her mouth, exactly what had they encountered?

Regarding the existence of the Magical Kingdom itself, Senior Cuique's trust had always been very low; she believed in the conduct of most magical girls, and she believed the Magical Kingdom was already a paradise for most ordinary people. But she did not trust the Wang Ting that had dominated this country for a thousand years, which could be described as harsh, corrupt, and arrogant. So even if the Wang Ting had done something to oppress lower-level magical girls these years, Senior Cuique felt it was not at all surprising.

The current Senior Cuique could almost be certain that in the years since she left the Kingdom, Mo He definitely had certain experiences beyond her own imagination.

But to be honest, even if she wanted to know what Mo He had encountered, the current her found it somewhat difficult to ask.

Because she already carried many things on her back: Anya's hatred, the children's future, the safety of Fang Ting City, the transactions with Emerald and others... She did not know, or rather could not guarantee, that she still had the capacity to get involved in and bear more.

And if she were to ask Mo He here and receive an answer, she did not know whether she could simply ignore it.

She likely could not turn a blind eye to injustice, yet she equally could not deceive others by making promises she had no power to fulfill. She realized that the things Mo He had encountered over the years might involve depths far greater than imagined; if she meddled without authorization, she might find herself unable to withdraw.

— "So, it is not merely that I wish to help the Captain; I, too, need the Captain's help."

"Because the Captain is powerful and kind. Therefore, if it is you, you can surely join me in protecting those children and this home."

"That is how I believe."

And when Mo He finished speaking of those visions, looked at Senior Cuique with some expectation, and voiced her inquiry, Senior Cuique once again understood her own limitations.

I am, indeed, still not a hero.

Feeling that hesitation within her heart, Senior Cuique closed her eyes, then spoke somewhat bitterly:

"... I am sorry. I must consider it."

Those few words were all she could say.