Chapter 96: Secret Base (4k)

"Secret base?"

After dropping Bai Jingxuan off at home, Senior Cuique, who had arrived at Xia Liang's house, looked somewhat surprised by the two girls' proposal: "Why did you suddenly think of this?"

"Well, since our team has so many members now, and everyone has different things to keep them busy, wouldn't it be better to unify our activity location... or something like that?"

Lin Xiaolu nervously tugged at her sleeve, forcing herself not to avert her gaze or act guilty: "You see, right now it's still summer break, but once we start school later, wouldn't it be better to meet at a fixed location? Always being outdoors feels a bit..."

Her performance was riddled with suspicious points in Senior Cuique's eyes, but she couldn't think of a reason immediately. So she crossed her arms and turned her gaze toward Xia Liang beside her.

Seeing Senior Cuique's inquisitive expression, Xia Liang couldn't help but twitch the corner of her mouth, instinctively glancing at Lin Xiaolu. However, upon seeing Lin Xiaolu's shrinking demeanor, she knew she couldn't count on the other party at all.

Retracting her line of sight, Xia Liang could only strive to compose her expression, pretending to be calm as she said:

"It's just that, moving around to different places like this now, we waste a lot of time every day just traveling. Xiaolu and I feel it affects our efficiency."

"If we had a secret base, everyone could even live there together. Whether it's special training or tutoring, it would be more convenient, right?"

Although the reason was made up on the spot, she was actually right.

Like during summer break, special training at Lin Xiaolu's house during the day, tutoring at Xia Liang's house at night, with Senior Cuique occasionally picking up and dropping off Bai Jingxuan in between, and the group frequently having to mobilize on short notice to subdue residual beasts... With so many activities piled up, all the magical girls spent a huge amount of time traveling.

It was manageable during the holidays, but once school started, such a schedule would become a major problem.

Senior Cuique was actually considering this aspect as well, but she hadn't expected that before she could formulate a plan, the two newcomers had already proactively proposed one.

"A secret base, huh..."

Tentatively accepting Xia Liang's explanation and thinking seriously, Senior Cuique rubbed her smooth chin with one hand, glancing upward: "It's not impossible, but can't we just set the location at one of your homes?"

This statement caused the two girls to turn their faces away in opposite directions simultaneously.

"... What's wrong?" Their strange reaction made Senior Cuique raise her eyelids slightly.

"Actually, we've already discussed it, but, well, hahaha..."

Xia Liang smiled somewhat awkwardly: "We couldn't reach a consensus on this matter."

Lin Xiaolu beside her nodded with an almost imperceptible motion, indirectly corroborating her statement.

Regarding whether this "secret base" should be set up in someone's home or if they should go out and find a separate place, the two of them had already gone through a round of argument.

Lin Xiaolu felt her home was larger and, with some accommodation, could definitely sleep more people; Xia Liang, however, emphasized that her home had no one else, making it more free for semi-secret activities like those of magical girls.

However, although Lin Xiaolu's home was larger, she lived with her father, so Bai Jingxuan might feel constrained; Xia Liang's home, while almost empty, was very small, and housing four people would seem somewhat cramped.

Both stuck to their own views, arguing without yielding, fighting from the dining table all the way out of the house, then from the halfway point to Xia Liang's home, and finally arguing right in front of Senior Cuique.

In the end, it became the Current situation: laying the problem before Senior Cuique and letting her make the decision.

"By the way, where does Junior Senior live now?"

Xia Liang asked with some curiosity: "I remember Xiaolu saying you came from out of town, but you should be living in Fang Ting City now, right?"

This statement also sparked Lin Xiaolu's interest.

"Oh right! Does Senior Cuique's place have enough space?"

For some reason, Lin Xiaolu showed abnormal enthusiasm for the idea of "living at Senior Cuique's house," even more so than having the secret base set up at her own home: "I haven't been to Senior Cuique's house yet!"

"The place I live..."

Senior Cuique's expression stiffened somewhat, and she couldn't help but drag out her voice.

That kind of place naturally didn't exist; after all, "Senior Cuique" originally didn't need to live anywhere, and "Lin Yun" only needed to return to his own home.

Of course, preparations for such a situation weren't lacking; Senior Cuique quickly produced a script prepared earlier: "That probably won't work, because I rented a very small single-person apartment; it definitely can't fit four people."

Although this statement was a lie, Senior Cuique had indeed once had such a plan.

Back when she first formed a team with Lin Xiaolu, Lin Yun, who still held various worries about the future, had considered renting a small apartment to create a fake "Senior Cuique's residence" to deal with any potential suspicion Lin Xiaolu might develop.

However, as time passed, Lin Xiaolu never brought it up once, and as for the emotion of "suspicion," there wasn't even a shadow of it. This plan remained at the level of an idea and was shelved.

"I see." Hearing Senior Cuique's answer, Lin Xiaolu visibly lost her enthusiasm.

"Hmm..."

Xia Liang beside her tapped her chin and said with a somewhat subtle attitude: "In that case, we'd have to find a venue specifically then?"

"Yes, if we really want to set up a secret base, we might need a dedicated venue."

Seamlessly shifting the topic by following the step Xia Liang offered, Senior Cuique secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "If we follow your previous requirements and consider the needs of special training, it might have to be a detached building; that environment would be more suitable."

Her proposal left the two newcomers speechless for a moment.

"Detached..." Lin Xiaolu blinked dazedly, "Wouldn't that be a bit too luxurious?"

"It must be very expensive, right?"

Xia Liang said with some concern: "It's just for an activity venue; do we really need to choose a place like that? Besides, we don't have money..."

"You guys, are you underestimating the value of being a magical girl?"

Senior Cuique raised an eyebrow: "Setting aside other things, just the Egg-class residual beasts you've defeated over these past few months; if you took all those Echoes to the Realm to exchange for money, how much do you think it would be?"

"Uh... fifty thousand?" Lin Xiaolu said uncertainly, "I don't have much concept of these things."

"Is it ten thousand?" Xia Liang's estimate was obviously more optimistic, "I remember seeing rumors online that magical materials are very valuable."

"You're both wrong."

Releasing her arms crossed over her chest, Senior Cuique spread her palms in front of the two girls and made a gesture: "The answer is, calculating only Egg-class residual beasts, over 300,000."

"In other words, if we go to the Realm to exchange these Echoes for money, we could rent a villa in a not-too-remote area for an entire year."

"Eh!"

"Really?"

This answer obviously exceeded the two girls' expectations.

"However, I don't recommend doing that."

Narrowing her eyes slightly, Senior Cuique shook her head: "As Junior Jin said earlier, the price of magical materials is quite high, and using Echoes to exchange for materials at the Realm is the most cost-effective method; no channel is cheaper than exchanging contribution points at the Realm."

"If a magical girl wants to quickly improve her mana, resources can help; if she wants to research and develop spells, she needs to consume a large amount of magical materials; and if she wants to craft equipment or conduct experiments, she needs an even greater volume of materials."

"No magical girl in a period of rising strength would exchange Echoes for money; at most, they would take a small portion to cover daily expenses, but the majority must be used to improve their own strength."

"So I'm merely telling you the value of the Echo. As for the location of the secret base, we can choose another path—request it from the Anomaly Strategy Bureau."

This is also the safest approach.

If we privately rent or purchase a venue to set up a secret base, various problems might arise. Renovations, daily utility bills, and surrounding security would all cause more or less trouble.

With the Anomaly Strategy Bureau's help and background, this matter becomes much easier to handle. The location selection will also be more concealed, better preventing discovery by ordinary people.

Although doing so means the Anomaly Strategy Bureau will know the secret base's location, making it no longer so "secret," sometimes coordinating in advance with local official agencies is the only way to avoid further disturbances.

"The Anomaly Strategy Bureau can even do this?" Lin Xiaolu seemed to have opened a door to a new world, sounding somewhat surprised. "Wait, can we even make such a request to the Anomaly Strategy Bureau?"

"Of course we can. In fact, such a request is considered a reasonable official duty."

Senior Cuique raised her chin slightly: "Providing activity venues for Magical Girls is the most normal thing for the Anomaly Strategy Bureau. Don't get it wrong; by facilitating this, their gains are actually greater than ours."

"Because this means our cooperation with the Anomaly Strategy Bureau is deeper, and we have established an initial exchange of interests."

"The Anomaly Strategy Bureau has no right to command or manage Magical Girls, but favors and interests can achieve this. With an exchange of interests, the Anomaly Strategy Bureau will know what conditions are needed to make a Magical Girl act on their behalf."

"So they are not afraid of Magical Girls making demands of them. In fact, they expect you to ask them for something more than anyone else."

"I actually hope you won't rely on this mutually beneficial relationship. After all, we are ultimately people living in a material society; favors will bind our actions. The more you reach out to the Anomaly Strategy Bureau, the harder it becomes to refuse their requests."

"Of course, there are Magical Girls who treat the Anomaly Strategy Bureau like servants, making them do all the hard work while only taking benefits and never helping. While this is certainly possible, over time it will damage the cooperative relationship between both parties."

"The Anomaly Strategy Bureau has no authority or ability to do anything to you regarding major issues. But they are an official agency, representing the government to a certain extent, with sufficient power in the city. If they want to annoy you or cause trouble over trivial matters, there is no problem with that."

Her words made Lin Xiaolu suddenly realize: "Ah, so that's why the Anomaly Strategy Bureau's liaison always asks me if I need any help?"

"So Senior Xia, you told me to establish contact with the Anomaly Strategy Bureau as late as possible?" Xia Liang thought more deeply. "I still haven't confirmed a liaison with the Anomaly Strategy Bureau; actually, are they more anxious?"

"The Anomaly Strategy Bureau is a partner, but they can only ever be your partner."

Nodding to affirm the reactions of the two, Senior Cuique spoke with grave seriousness: "Do not underestimate the intricate power dynamics within the city government, or even the interest entanglements between cities."

"If you get too close to the Anomaly Strategy Bureau, or even the government, many times you will be forced to devote your energy to very troublesome matters. I do not wish that for you."

"We eliminate the Remnant Beasts and do our job; the Anomaly Strategy Bureau handles the aftermath, maintains city stability, and does their job. Everyone performing their own duties is the best and healthiest relationship."

"Appropriate mystery and distance, on the contrary, allow us to retain enough goodwill and tacit understanding between each other."

"Of course, merely requesting an activity venue is a trivial matter for the Anomaly Strategy Bureau, so we must also project this attitude, treating it as a 'trivial matter.' Even if you think it's a huge sum of money and internally consider it a major issue, you must force yourself to appear indifferent."

"If both sides believe this is just a small matter, then it truly is just 'a small matter,' and the favor exchanged is only a 'small favor.' It can only lubricate our relationship, without worrying about the Anomaly Strategy Bureau making any requests of you."

After saying such a long string of words, to ensure the two girls could follow and understand, she paused and asked Lin Xiaolu for confirmation: "Can you understand the logic I just explained?"

She did not ask Xia Liang, because she knew Xia Liang's sensitivity regarding these matters was sufficient for her to quickly grasp what was said.

"Probably... I can understand?"

Lin Xiaolu was clearly feeling guilty, only able to stammer: "Anyway, asking the Anomaly Strategy Bureau for help requires thinking about many things? It's just... uh, my lord's thoughts are so complicated."

Obviously, she hadn't understood.

Senior Cuique sighed inwardly.

Although she knew her daughter was probably at this level, and the other's performance did not deviate from her expectations, her mood was still somewhat complex.

Parents always hope their children are simple and innocent, preserving their purity and goodness. But they also genuinely worry: if you really raise a child to be a naive fool, what will happen if they get deceived when they go out?

"Forget it. Just remember one thing: try to solve things yourself whenever possible; if you ask the Anomaly Strategy Bureau for help, you must appear righteous and confident, and never feel embarrassed."

She lowered her eyelids, raised her index finger, and said: "So if we want a secret base, we should naturally demand it from the Anomaly Strategy Bureau, and act as if we don't care."

Clap, clap.

"Only at times like this do I feel that Senior Xia is indeed my lord," Xia Liang gently applauded from the side.

"Hmm... Anyway, Senior Cuique is very amazing!" Lin Xiaolu belatedly clapped her hands.

"Ahem, enough of the idle talk."

Feeling slightly embarrassed by the praise from the two children, Senior Cuique frowned and coughed lightly twice: "Now it's time for serious business. Take out your textbooks; we are starting class!"

(End of this chapter)