Chapter 49: An Unexpected Visitor

This awkward reaction made Hong Siyu laugh even more: "Just a joke, no need to be so tense."

Having said that, she leaned back slightly to increase the distance between them appropriately, demonstrating her friendly attitude.

Seeing her behavior, Lin Xiaolu finally relaxed a bit, though her expression still held vigilance. She did not sit beside Hong Siyu but remained standing, saying, "So, what is Cuique's contact doing at my house?"

"Not just Cuique's contact, but also a former Magical Girl."

Hong Siyu wagged her finger to correct her: "The distinction is quite large!"

"Specifically?" Lin Xiaolu raised an eyebrow, quite skeptical. "After a Magical Girl retires, isn't she just an ordinary person?"

"In terms of magical power, indeed so; I am now just a weak woman with a relatively healthy constitution."

Unshaken by Lin Xiaolu's doubts, and showing no reaction even to the term "ordinary person," Hong Siyu said with a self-satisfied expression, "However, my understanding and knowledge of the magical side surpass yours."

"At least it won't be more than Cuique's, right?" Lin Xiaolu said gloomily.

"Ahem... don't say such things, or you'll make yourself un-cute."

Choked for a moment by Lin Xiaolu's words, Hong Siyu clapped her hands together slightly awkwardly: "Anyway, I happened to take leave today, so I volunteered to come over and check on you. I heard you are now studying under the Sower?"

"Following it? It's just a sycophant borrowing another's might," Lin Xiaolu scoffed.

— "I am a fairy; even by appearance, I am a cat. Calling me a sycophant is slander!" Moko protested sternly from the side.

"I think you've been so arrogant lately you're just one bark away!" Lin Xiaolu glared at it.

"What's wrong with barking? Anyway, some people can't even be such a sycophant."

Moko's whiskers on its face twitched as it opened its mouth to retort. Having been in high spirits these past few days, it paid no mind to Lin Xiaolu's slander: "With your rate of progress, you'll be a junior for the rest of your life, changing from an active junior to a retired junior; that will forever be the only relationship you have!"

"What did you say!" Lin Xiaolu was instantly choked with anger and was about to explode, but suddenly glanced at Hong Siyu sitting nearby, forcing the words on her lips to swallow back down.

Changing from an active junior to a retired junior, and then forever having only that level of interaction; if what Hong Siyu said was true, then she herself seemed to be a living example.

With such a "typical case" sitting before her, she found herself at a loss for words.

Fortunately, ordinary people with scarce magical power cannot see fairies, nor can they hear what fairies say, so Hong Siyu merely tilted her head up, asking curiously:

"Is your Sower right here? Are you two arguing?"

"Ah... um, nothing much," Lin Xiaolu awkwardly fumbled her way through it.

Shortly after, Xia Liang, who had gone to the kitchen, returned carrying several cups of tea. Seeing the two talking, she set down the teacups and asked, "What are you two talking about?"

"Just chatting, just chatting."

Hong Siyu lifted the shoulder bag from her lap, placed it aside, and waved at Xia Liang: "I mean, I wanted to come see how you are doing. After all, I heard from Cuique that you plan to participate in next year's certification test?"

"That's right. Do you have any advice?"

Xia Liang understood Hong Siyu's meaning and obediently sat beside her: "And you said you are a Magical Girl who retired ten years ago. How do you prove your identity?"

"That is naturally done with this!"

Reaching into the bag beside her, Hong Siyu pulled out an item and held it before the two of them.

In her hand was a badge with a purple-red background, with the number "" written in the center, surrounded by numerous indistinct small Favo runes. Above the number, a name was also inscribed in runes, though neither Lin Xiaolu nor Xia Liang could read it.

They had seen Cuique's certification badge before. Compared to Cuique's, the badge Hong Siyu produced lacked some of the complex and gorgeous decorations, but had one major difference: its surface was dull and lifeless, gray and drab, unlike Cuique's, which often had flowing magical power and appeared radiant.

"This is the certification badge I had when I was a Magical Girl. How to say it, it was at least a character badge. Although it was cancelled after retirement, it is now just a decoration."

Hong Siyu carelessly stuffed the badge into Xia Liang's hand: "Look, everyone look!"

So the two girls leaned in closely to examine it carefully.

This was the first time since becoming Magical Girls that they had observed a certification badge this closely. Although Cuique had shown it to them before, she had never been willing to display it extensively.

Xia Liang poked the badge in her hand with her index finger and asked curiously, "Speaking of which, everyone says the certification badge is a symbol evaluating a Magical Girl's strength. What is the difference between them and the Bloom Rank?"

"Does having one's abilities Bloom to the Flower Rank mean becoming a Flower Badge?" Lin Xiaolu added from the side.

— "Of course!"

"Actually, that is not the case."

As her words fell, two voices sounded simultaneously, but the answers were completely different.

Moko, who had suddenly interjected with "Of course," immediately covered its mouth as if it had caused trouble; Hong Siyu, being an ordinary person, had no reason to hear Moko's voice, so she continued speaking on her own: "To put it simply, Flower Badges are combat elites among the Flower Ranks, as well as a small number of Magical Girls who have not reached the Flower Rank but have made significant contributions."

"The evaluation of a Flower Badge is subjective, based on the Wang Ting's level of recognition of a Magical Girl, so situations can occur where a very powerful Magical Girl holds only a Character Badge. This is called the corruption of my lord."

Taking back the certification badge from Xia Liang, Hong Siyu, now in high spirits, casually set it aside: "But overall, just think of Flower Badges as the most successful group among Magical Girls; they can be called 'big shots'."

Taking the certification token returned by Xia Liang, Hong Siyu, in high spirits, casually set it aside: "But overall, just think of the Flower Tokens as the most successful group among the Magical Girls; they can be called 'my lords'."

Lin Xiaolu belatedly glanced at Xia Liang, found no expression of surprise on the other's face, and could only exclaim herself: "Cuique is actually a big shot?"

"Haha, you only realized that now?" Xia Liang said helplessly.

"Cuique must have told you she is an 'Inspector,' right? That is her official post as a big shot. In fact, most Flower Badge Magical Girls hold nominal positions in the Five Great Academies."

Talking about these things, Hong Siyu spoke as if reciting from her own family's inventory: "The five major power organs under the Wang Ting are the Investigation Bureau, the Finance Bureau, the Research Bureau, the Civil Administration Bureau, and the Magical Affairs Bureau. The entire operation of the magical nation functions under this system."

Speaking of these matters, Hong Siyu recited them like a family heirloom: "The five major power organs under Wang Ting are the Investigation Bureau, the Treasury, the Research Bureau, the Civil Administration Bureau, and the Demon Affairs Bureau; the entire operation of the magical nation functions under this system."