Chapter 21

Part．12［Throne Succession？］

Senior, are you safe now?

Don't rush, wait a few more minutes.

Clang—clang—bang—

In a street near King Jie Temple, a sewer cover suddenly emitted a metallic clanging sound in the quiet night and was pushed aside by a force from below.

A black, fluorescent‑striped sphere‑like object protruded from the sewer opening; it was Xin's hooded head.

When Magicaloid44 said, 'Because I'm a robot, I can easily recognize myself,' Xin thought that the robot's tracking ability would surely cause trouble for them. In fact, even the sewer that Xin dug was something Xin had noted down while going to the library to look for possibly useful knowledge; the walls of the tunnel have many cables, which might interfere with devices such as radar.

Moreover, after successfully escaping, Xin immediately sent Magicaloid44 an email containing magic candy to 'persuade' her not to assist Disaster Mary.

This is double insurance.

After looking around, Xin cautiously crawled out. Nanger followed closely behind.

Pap—pu—pu—pu.

Xin, upon standing, hastily patted the cloak draped over them, and Nanger beside them imitated the action.

After feeling they had brushed off the dirt, Xin took out their terminal and tapped Nanger.

Huh?

'I can return the sugar I secretly transferred to you earlier.' Xin lit up their terminal and waved it at Nanger.

'Huh? This… when did you do this, senior?'

Upon hearing this, Nanger hurriedly pulled out their terminal to check. Sure enough, the warehouse now had over thirty thousand magic candies.

This is the third layer of insurance. Even if Magicaloid44 took the benefit and still didn't want to let Xin go, stealing Xin's terminal wouldn't yield many candies.

As a newly promoted magical girl, Nanger's candy count, by conventional thinking, wouldn't be considered large, so it's natural to let them off.

During the transfer, Xin glanced at the time briefly.

9:10 PM

'Now, we should make it in time…' Xin turned their head toward the ruined King Jie Temple.

Inside King Jie Temple.

'Yongyong, how much magic candy did we seize this time?'

Just as they returned to the base, Wang Quan struck the ground with their scepter and asked.

'Altogether, seventeen thousand four hundred thirty‑two.'

'What?!'

Yongyong had just finished speaking when Wang Quan suddenly shouted, their voice even distorting a bit.

Looking at Yongyong, their face burned with anger.

'Bai Xue used magic candy to buy in‑game items.' Yongyong's voice was utterly steady, and they lifted their head to stare at Wang Quan.

Seeing this, Wang Quan snatched the terminal from Yongyong's hand, looking at it in disbelief.

'In the previous rankings, Bai Xue had a candy count far ahead of third place!' Wang Quan's mind mixed incomprehension with the feeling of being deceived.

'Let Fabu answer this question, ping.' Suddenly, Fabu darted out from the screen of Yongyong's terminal.

'Huh? What?' Wang Quan was somewhat surprised.

This is because of a recently added feature, ping. In response to some magical girls' requests, the server, after the last update, added another patch.

Its function is to let the magic candy earned by magical girls through deeds be used as a premium currency similar to other games in the 'Magical Girl Cultivation Plan' game, ping, to purchase virtual items, ping.

"It can also be considered giving the magic candy, which is only used for counting, some other uses, peng~." Saying that, Fabu spun around on the spot.

"Hoh……" Wang Quan's expression was surprised, his slightly open mouth unconsciously making some sounds.

She already understood what was going on.

"You idiot!! Magic candy, something related to life, actually isn't as important as a virtual string of code!? Those guys, bah! Bah——bah——!!"

Wang Quan's face twisted, he vigorously stomped stomped on the floor.

Yongyong and the others lowered their heads.

For some reason, Xiao Yu's body kept trembling, a movement that never happened even when Wang Quan previously scolded her alone, but now it appeared.

However, no one noticed these things.

"Ee~uh~. Ha~~~~."

"Forget it, this much is enough. Since Bai Xue has spent it, we still managed to grab a considerable amount of candy."

"Then let's start distributing."

"Eh? Dividing this magic candy among five people wouldn't be even, right?" "Exactly exactly."

The Twin Angels were puzzled.

"Huh? Who said we should split evenly? Seventeen thousand three hundred forty-two, as the leader of you losers, taking half is only right." Wang Quan's tone was flat.

"……"

For a moment, the expressions on everyone's faces changed variously.

Yongyong, however, remained expressionless.

"Hmm~, taking one-third of the remaining eight thousand six hundred seventy-one doesn't divide evenly? Forget it, it's just one anyway. Then Yongyong, as my past assistant that I've looked at, will take two thousand eight hundred ninety-one!"

Before the displeased Twin Angels could even voice their objection, Wang Quan, whose mental math was extremely quick, immediately issued the second distribution.

"As for the rest~, we'll just each take one-third of what's left. The extra one just happens to go to Xiao Yu!"

"!!!"

Upon hearing that, the Twin Angels immediately turned toward Xiao Yu, who sat on the ground with her arms wrapped around her legs.

"Ugh..." Feeling the gazes of the other two, Xiao Yu instinctively shrank her body.

"Tsk" Upon seeing Xiao Yu's reaction, Wang Quan furrowed his brow.

"Heh~, Xiao Yu at least normally honestly stuffs useful things into her head. As for you two…" Wang Quan paused slightly.

"Besides echoing, what else can you do?! You can't even do a simple stalling job!"

Hearing this, Mi Nai'er lifted her head, the hand behind her back clenching into a fist. Younai'er gripped her sister's hand. But after just a few breaths, she returned to normal.

"Heh, actually it doesn't matter whether you split or not. Anyway, Bai Xue has already been completely taken, and in a few hours the ranking will be announced, at which point Bai Xue will be eliminated." Looking at everyone's silent agreement with no objections, and Yongyong's actions on the terminal, Wang Quan nodded satisfactorily, turned his back, and gripped the scepter horizontally behind him as he spoke.

In the flickering, uncertain candlelight of the ruined Wang Jie Temple, Yongyong's eyes flashed with a somewhat different spirit.

……………………

"I don't know why, but ten thousand magic candies suddenly appeared in the terminal, and the terminal in Winter Prison is in a similar state. What happened? —Sister Nana"

After glancing at the terminal, Xin shut it down.

Afterwards, she clenched the syringe in her hand. She looked toward the not‑far Wang Jie Temple, where firelight flickered. Beside her stood Nan Ge'er, eyes wide open.

The developments of the Magical Girl Raising Project will here undergo a major deviation.

……………………

"That's right, pon~ As things stand now, the Holy Girl, Weiss of Winter Prison, Ripple, and Calamity Mary—these four magical girls have combat power and willpower that are passable for this batch, pon. The other magical girls all have some big or small problems, pon."

On the pristine piano, a disc‑shaped device unlike those held by other magical girls lay open.

Fab floated above the device, swaying her body as she spoke.

Before it, Kulan Bei Li lowered her eyelids slightly, her fingers wandering and tapping across the keys.

But after Fab finished speaking, she stopped playing.

She slowly rose to her feet.

Amazingly, even after her hands left the keys, the melody did not stop.

That was her magic—sound control.

In the tranquil mountain forest, the lumberjack's cottage emitted calm, elegant vocal music.

Gradually, it dissipated into the air.

——Theater Divider——

"Coconut sugar? Buy it! I want this fruit candy too. Mmm~, this, this, and that—buy a catty of each!"

Looking at the various sweets on the shopping website, Xin kept clicking the screen.

Fortunately, although this world's year is a bit early, there still are shopping websites.

And spending the money she had "picked up", Xin felt no psychological burden. Basically, she bought anything that looked good in one go.

Besides all kinds of sweets, such as wolf‑deterrent tasters or a whole set of tools, Xin placed orders for them. Even to prepare for possible combat, she herself bought a large quantity of arrows and special arrowheads, along with some high‑end accessories, and prepared to go to the city's archery hall to have professionals "upgrade a level".

Fortunately, after transforming, aside from her hair being a bit conspicuous and her clothes a little unconventional, everything else was not a big problem.

Besides, Xin never intended to stay long in N City.

She had an almost absolute intuitive premonition.

She does not belong here.

She will eventually leave.

——Theater Divider——

"What you gain you must give something for, pon—the great power of magical girls naturally comes with a price, pon. Haven't I made that clear, pon? Bai Xue keeps asking the same questions; she'd be better off doing more good deeds to have a better chance of surviving, pon~." The black‑and‑white "elf" floated on the terminal, and in its unchanging lively tone it once again spoke those despairing words.

"Really, really, is there no way for both sides to be at peace without trouble?" The voice of Bai Xue, kneeling on the floor, trembled.

Because she feared being discovered by her parents downstairs, Bai Xue didn't dare raise her voice even when questioning.

After receiving the same answer yet again, she could bear it no longer, clutching her head and sobbing softly.

"My magic has zero combat ability. Once robbed, there will be a second, a third… No amount of candy helps. What to do? What to do? Who, who can save me…? Ugh……."

"Pat‑splat—." The terminal fell to the ground, and the screen's interface returned to standby. The alarm clock on the bedside table was slowly advancing toward ten o'clock……………………

……………………………………

"The time is almost here." Looking at the terminal already set to mute, the chat room also had everyone gathered.

Everyone was waiting for this week's results.

And Xin began aiming at Wang Quan, who was looking down at the terminal inside Wang Jie Temple.

"Tsk~, this damned kindness of mine. Even though I'm struggling myself, I still think about saving people. Pah!" With the keen eyesight of a magical girl, Xin gazed at Wang Quan and the others, thinking.

Earlier, although she had once cleaned the disease stored in the syringe at the hospital, because Calamity Mary suddenly appeared midway, Nan Ge'er's syringe still contained some illness.

Although, based on the anime plot, one might guess that Fab's way of bypassing the rules to kill a character could be through an outbreak of disease or something.

The three He Huan died of cardiac arrest but only fell ill after midnight; when Wang Quan died he spat blood, and something happened right after Fab's verdict.

"From these two points, it's likely that in the animation Wang Quan didn't truly die after collapsing…" Thinking this, Xin suddenly wanted to slap herself.

Clearly she could have waited for Yongyong to move Wang Quan's "corpse" out and then secretly treat him. Why wait outside Wang Jie Temple?

"Ah! My intellect." Mutely complaining, Xin slipped away with Nan Ge'er to a more distant place, being careful.

At this moment, the final settlement finally began.

………………………………

In the chat room, a cheerful tune similar to RPG game music began to play.

A rectangular box gradually shifted from faint to conspicuous, resembling gilt‑edged paper.

Inside Wang Jie Temple, Wang Quan's face showed a look of joy.

Yongyong remained expressionless, her eyes somewhat vacant as she gazed at the ground.

Xiao Yu's face bore a hint of guilt and unease as she lowered her head deeply.

The Twin Angels' faces bore an inexplicable smile as they turned their backs on Wang Quan.

This week's ranking has just come out thump~. It's really concerning thump~. Second-place magical girl Bai Xue became first this week thump~, while the originally advantaged magical girl Jing Po actually fell to third place thump~. And second place was snatched by magical girl Sheng Shao Nü thump~. Really surprising thump~.

Looking at this, Wang Quan's face face showed an expression of disbelief so clear that even Xin in the distance could see it.

However, immediately after, Fa Bu announced the last place.

It's really regrettable thump. The magical girl who first took such action was instead the first to be eliminated thump. The last place in this week's settlement ranking is magical girl Wang Quan thump. So according to the rules, Wang Quan will be eliminated thump. Then, please the remaining magical girls continue to strive thump. This week's meeting ends here thump, before twelve o'clock the magical girls can still stay in the chat room thump~. Her tone was devoid of fluctuation, yet she spoke words that made people feel chillingly cold.

When the eliminated one was announced, Sister Nana immediately burst out a crying expression.

And after a brief calm, the chat room was filled with various text bubbles, just like a soda bottle opened.

As for the party involved, Wang Quan, upon learning the result, her expression of disbelief turned into fear mixed with confusion.

She simply couldn't understand why, even though she had clearly taken everything from Bai Xue, Bai Xue not only didn't drop in rank but became first place.

And she herself had become the very last place she least wanted to be.

"Why..." Wang Quan was on the verge of collapse.

Her head moved stiffly.

When she lowered her head, her gaze met another person.

It was Yong Yong!

At some point, Yong Yong lifted her head and looked at Wang Quan.

Her face remained expressionless, her eyes flickered with a hint of sadness, her lips moved slightly, not knowing what she was saying.

Wang Quan looked at her, and in an instant, it was as if lightning flashed through her mind.

If one were to say who most likely tampered, it could only be Yong Yong.

She harbored such a thought. She wanted to do something, but it was already too late.

Clearly she should have been stripped of her status at 12 o'clock, but at this moment Wang Quan felt a sharp pain burst from within her, gnawing at her.

Goo—

A drop of blood seeped from Wang Quan's mouth corner, lingering, slowly condensing into a bead on her chin, then falling.

And Yong Yong, still stared blankly.

The Twin Angels' faces showed a gleeful smile.

And Xiao Yu lowly sobbed, burying her head deeply.

In the distance, Nan Ge Er wanted to rush in to save someone, but Xin grabbed her.

"She will only die at twelve, believe me, that guy Fa Bu can't get around the rules." Xin said lowly, without turning back.

"But senior..." Nan Ge Er wanted to speak but stopped.

"Even if we go in now, with just the two of us, could we both save people and block their attack?" Xin asked.

"They, they won't help us save people?!" Nan Ge Er's voice mixed with surprise and incomprehension.

"Think about what you saw before; if you're not afraid of being surrounded and getting dragged in too, then go. Otherwise, listen to me. I have a safe method, believe me." Xin said half-persuasively, half-forcefully, then quickened her steps.

She needed to quickly find a place convenient for tracking and relatively concealed.

Inside Wang Jie Temple, Wang Quan wanted to do something, but her body wouldn't obey.

Pa—Cha-

The trembling hand let the terminal slip, falling to the ground.

And Wang Quan, with difficulty, took a half step while trembling.

Then she lost balance and collapsed to the ground.

Before death, she noticed that Yong Yong's slightly moving mouth was saying 'Sorry'.

"Why...?" Wang Quan, filled with deep doubt, collapsed and the light in her eyes faded.

At this moment, Yong Yong slowly stood up and gently walked to Wang Quan's side.

She uttered an audible 'Sorry'.

It was as if a switch had been turned on.

Ugh…uh ah ah…

Xiao Yu, with her head buried between her legs, suddenly burst into loud sobs.

"Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh yeah!! Yong Yong's plan succeeded~~."

"Succeeded~~" Mi Na Er and Younai Er clapped, somewhat excited.

And Yong Yong bent down, embraced Wang Quan around the waist, and lifted her.

Because of death, Wang Quan had already left her transformed state. What appeared before everyone was a young professional woman wearing a suit, with her hair tied up.

Her face still bore bewilderment and disbelief.

"Sorry. Because Wang Quan said everyone must strive toward Wang Quan. Because Wang Quan is alive, I cannot become a magical girl like Wang Quan. Sorry."

Yong Yong spoke in a voice only she could hear.

Then she slowly walked toward the door.

"... Hey, Yong Yong, you, what are you going to do?" Noticing Yong Yong heading out, Xiao Yu asked softly.

"Dispose of the corpse." She paused for a moment, without turning back.

……

"From now on, let's keep meeting here. And now, I am the new leader. Now, you may all leave first." She lifted her head to gaze at the dark night sky, Yong Yong said calmly.

Then, she slowly walked out of Wang Jie Temple……

"Wang Quan said earlier, stay strong, don't let tears appear in front of subordinates…………

A faintly salty crystal liquid slid from Yong Yong's eye corner, gathered on her chin, and silently fell.

The flush spread over the already lifeless person's half-congealed ruddiness.

Wang Quan, eliminated.