Whir whir whir
Youzi sat in the pilot’s seat, skillfully pulling the control lever.
Looking at the Anning City branch building growing smaller and smaller below, Su Xiaocheng finally understood why such an important institution as the Magical Girl Alliance branch was established on the city’s outskirts.
The Anning City branch even had a helicopter hidden away.
With the helicopter, Magical Girls could reach any corner of Anning City within an hour without expending any magic power.
Youzi had a lollipop in her mouth. She reminded them, “Sit tight. I’m accelerating.”
Under her control, the helicopter sped up dramatically and soon vanished into the night sky.
***
Qinghe Town, once a peaceful little town, had now become a hunting ground for Witches.
To maximize her gains, Pride had not opted for a swift massacre of everyone.
A Witch’s magic power recovery relied on absorbing negative emotions.
Pure slaughter provided little in the way of negative emotions.
Indiscriminate killing held no meaning for her. She bore the sin of Pride.
Hysterical slaughter had nothing to do with pride.
The survivors trembled under the deliberate searches and captures by the lesser Witches.
From time to time, one of the lesser Witches would drag a survivor out from their hiding spot and bring them before other hiding places to be slowly tortured.
The people’s fear and despair transformed into strands of magic power, which the Shadow Queen absorbed.
The foundation she had lost in the previous battle recovered rapidly.
In the small square at the center of Qinghe Town, Pride sat elegantly on a luxurious chair manifested from her magic power.
She quietly appreciated the scene before her. She seemed to have regained her former state of mind.
“That’s right. Just like this.”
Pride toyed with the bell in her hand, gazing at the sight before her.
She gradually recalled the true essence of the sin of Pride.
Her magic power recovery speed finally returned to normal.
The cracks on the bell in her hand were slowly mending.
***
A Witch paced back and forth outside a dilapidated little house in a showy manner.
She would leave a distance only to turn back again.
Each return made the hearts of the two people hiding inside the house race.
A little girl fearfully huddled in her grandmother’s embrace.
Her whole body trembled uncontrollably as she tried hard to hold back her tears.
As the pair gradually grew numb, the Witch stopped her act.
The fragile wooden door was smashed to pieces in an instant.
The Witch’s scarlet eyes fixed on her prey, a human-like teasing glint in her gaze.
“Qiao’er, you must live on.”
The grandmother set her granddaughter aside, propped up her frail aged body, grabbed a hoe, and charged toward the Witch.
“Grandma!”
The despairing emotions of the two were the greatest delicacy to the Witch.
She guarded the doorway, casually dodging the attacks.
Her sharp nails sliced across the frail old woman’s body, drawing wound after wound as she slowly extracted the last bit of value from them.
“Enough of this!”
A pink magic beam descended from the sky, piercing straight through the Witch’s body with precision.
Su Xiaocheng jumped directly down from the helicopter, landing beside the blood-soaked grandmother.
She wanted to heal her, but the old woman waved her hand in refusal.
The elder knew her time had come.
As long as her granddaughter could live safely, she had no regrets left.
After one final look at her granddaughter, the grandmother closed her eyes with a smile on her face.
“Sister, are you the Magical Girl here to save me?”
Tears brimmed at the corners of Qiao’er’s eyes. Her trembling voice pierced Su Xiaocheng’s heart deeply.
“I’m sorry. We arrived too late.”
“Grandma always said that Magical Girls are good people. Once a Magical Girl comes, there won’t be any more danger.”
Qiao’er paused, then added, “If only I could be a Magical Girl too. Then nothing would have happened to Grandma.”
But neither of them truly understood what magic was.
Xiaobai stepped forward. She took out a red bottle and poured it down the grandmother’s throat.
A few minutes later, the grandmother opened her eyes in confusion.
“You two hide well for now. Xiaobai, let’s head to other places.”
Su Xiaocheng and Xiaobai left, giving the grandmother and granddaughter some space.
The main battlefield was too dangerous for Su Xiaocheng and Xiaobai.
Their mission tonight was to eliminate the scattered Shadow Swarms and protect as many ordinary people as possible.
Magical Girl…
Su Xiaocheng thought silently.
For the first time, she truly understood the weight of responsibility that came with this identity.
The battle had only just begun. There was no time to ponder further.
Su Xiaocheng transformed into a streak of light and flew toward the nearest Witch.
***
In the central square of Qinghe Town, Youzi forced the helicopter into a landing.
Countless tentacles swept through the air, attempting to intercept the helicopter mid-flight. They were all deflected one by one by the musical notes circling the aircraft.
Lu Yinxi, Su Xiaowei, and Youzi jumped down from the helicopter.
They faced Pride and the Shadow Queen directly.
When enemies meet, their eyes blaze with extra hatred.
Pride, who had maintained her pose all day, saw her facade shatter instantly upon seeing the trio.
“Seriously, you lot show up everywhere,” Pride said through gritted teeth.
The instruments returned to their positions.
The stage rose.
Lu Yinxi stood under the spotlight.
Her concert tour was now underway right at this moment.
Brilliant lights illuminated half the town.
Wherever the music reached, the Witches still on the hunt were assimilated into the domain, becoming part of the audience of fans.
The positive emotions Magical Girls experienced when fulfilling their contracts were the source of their magic power.
Compared to her usual concerts, performing one under the gaze of her beloved filled Lu Yinxi with exceptional satisfaction.
This overflowing sense of joy brought forth an immensely vast amount of magic power.
Azure light fell silently upon everyone.
Even the distant Su Xiaocheng and Xiaobai received this protection.
Behind Su Xiaowei, a cozy little home manifested, shielding all from any storm.
Feeling the pressure brought by the concert tour, Pride began to falter.
She struggled to maintain her seated posture on the chair.
No good. I can’t win this.
I need to retreat for today. Once the Shadow Queen and I advance further, I can return for revenge later.
It’s not too late.
While Pride was still pondering, the shotgun in Youzi’s hands reconfigured its shape.
A compact rocket launcher was now resting on her shoulder.
Bang!
The candy cannon shell streaked across the night sky, flying straight toward Pride.
The Shadow Queen summoned tentacles to block it, but Lu Yinxi intercepted her.
Boom!
The candy cannon shell exploded. Colorful little candies mixed with ribbons of all hues bloomed outward.
Pride dodged the attack at the very last moment, but her chair was reduced to a pile of debris in the blast.
Pride slowed her tone. “Good. Very good.”
Though her mind was already racing with eight different escape routes and she was panicking inside, she refused to lose momentum verbally.
Guitar and bass played in unison.
Wind fueled the flames, and the flames empowered the wind.
The two elements intertwined, forming a massive wind-fire tornado.
“Useless!”
Pride rang her bell. The wind-fire tornado stopped spinning and collapsed naturally.
Youzi’s expression grew solemn.
“The deacons of the Witch Church have no domains of their own. They can only cast special magic through magic tools. Pride’s magic specializes in control, and the medium is the sound of the bell.”
Lu Yinxi removed her microphone.
“If it controls everything through bell sounds, then we’ll make sure your bell sounds can’t transmit.”
[Melody · Concerto]
Intense accompaniment began to play. Lu Yinxi selected a fast-paced song.
Accompanied by her singing voice, the fans projected within the domain sang along with her. The atmosphere surged to its peak.
Under the pressure of the concert tour, the Shadow Queen’s domain continued to shrink further.
Her abilities leaned toward creating clones, making her slightly weaker in direct confrontations.
However, cloning was merely her method for efficient hunting.
If the Shadow Queen only possessed the power of division, she wouldn’t be worthy of her A-rank status as a Witch at all.