The sound of the school bell, carrying the coolness of the evening breeze, washed over the hallway of the teaching building.
Ye Ning, holding the pale blue letter, walked towards the club activity room.
The golden glow of the setting sun filtered through the glass windows, casting mottled shadows on the floor.
The door to the activity room was slightly ajar, and inside stood the boy from the neighboring class.
He wore a clean white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, his hair neatly combed.
The moment he saw Ye Ning enter, his already flushed cheeks turned beet red.
His fingers nervously twisted the hem of his shirt, and he didn’t even dare to look her in the eye.
“Ye… Ye Ning.”
The boy’s voice trembled noticeably, as if he had mustered immense courage to stammer out the words.
“…”
His confession was simple and naive, every word tinged with sincere nervousness.
Ye Ning listened quietly.
Only after he finished did she gently step forward and return the letter to his hand.
The corners of her eyes crinkled, her tone still gentle but carrying an undeniable firmness:
“Thank you for liking me, I truly appreciate it. But I’m sorry, I can’t respond to your feelings right now. I have a dream I really want to achieve, and I can’t spare the energy for other things at the moment.”
The boy’s hand trembled slightly as he took the letter back, the light in his eyes dimming a little.
Yet, he still forced a smile:
“I-It’s okay, I understand. Sorry to bother you, Ye Ning.”
“Not at all.”
Ye Ning curved her lips, “Your feelings are precious. Thank you for telling me.”
After bidding farewell to the boy, Ye Ning left the activity room.
Just as she turned the corner of the hallway, she saw Hua Niao leaning against the wall.
The light of the setting sun fell perfectly upon her, gilding her gray-purple gradient hair with a hazy golden edge.
The purple at the tips of her hair bled into the twilight, like crushed evening clouds.
She was still wearing that blue and white school uniform, but it made her figure appear even more slender and graceful.
Her hands were in her pockets, and a hint of lazy amusement played in her eyes.
‘She’s really beautiful.’
Ye Ning was momentarily stunned, asking subconsciously:
“Miss Hua Niao? Why aren’t you going home yet?”
Hua Niao straightened up, took two steps closer, and chuckled softly, her voice tinged with a teasing note:
“I was curious about how such a gentle person like you would respond to a confession, so I followed.”
Ye Ning’s brow furrowed slightly.
Her cheeks still held a faint, lingering blush.
The frown didn’t make her look stern at all; instead, she resembled a kitten that had been provoked, exuding a childish kind of cuteness.
“That’s not very nice.”
She looked at Hua Niao seriously, her tone carrying a hint of reproach.
“That’s someone else’s private matter. Sneaking around to watch is very rude.”
Seeing her like this, the amusement in Hua Niao’s eyes deepened.
She suddenly raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, a smile curving her lips.
“Alright, alright, I admit I was wrong. It’s just that I’m new here and curious about everything in the school. Speaking of which, Miss Ye Ning, could I trouble you to show me around the school? I’m still very unfamiliar with this place.”
Ye Ning, however, shook her head, which was unusual for her.
She looked at Hua Niao, her gaze holding a serious, distant quality:
“The classmates in our class are all very helpful. You can ask anyone, and they’d be willing to help.”
She paused, then added another sentence, her voice soft yet exceptionally clear.
“Besides, Miss Hua Niao, you’re acting a bit too frivolous.”
The smile on Hua Niao’s face stiffened for a moment, her eyes flickering slightly.
After saying this, Ye Ning didn’t linger.
She turned and walked towards the stairwell.
Her back was slender, her long, straight black hair hanging down her back, swaying gently with her steps.
Hua Niao stood in place, watching her figure disappear around the corner, then slowly lowered her raised hands.
The sunset gradually sank, and twilight crept up the walls, enveloping her figure in shadow, making the expression on her face unclear.
Only her gray-purple gradient hair glimmered with a cold luster in the dim light.
Ye Ning walked slowly along the sidewalk, her schoolbag on her back.
The evening breeze brushed her cheeks, carrying the fresh scent of the camphor trees lining the road.
Her mind was still preoccupied with thoughts of being a Magical Girl, and she couldn’t help but sigh softly.
For some reason, she felt a bit irritable today.
She had accidentally spoken a bit harshly to Hua Niao just now.
‘Would she start to dislike me?’
The young girl’s face scrunched up like a little bitter melon.
As she passed by a quiet alley, a strange sound suddenly reached her ears.
It was a crackling, sizzling noise, like shattering glass, mixed with a low, guttural moan.
It sounded extremely eerie.
Ye Ning’s steps halted.
Curiosity (or perhaps a death wish) drove her to cautiously peer into the alley.
The alley was empty, save for a rift emitting an eerie blue light, floating in mid-air.
The edges of the rift twisted, like a shattered mirror, constantly leaking fine points of light.
“A Space Rift?”
Ye Ning’s pupils contracted sharply.
A chill instantly shot up from the soles of her feet to the top of her head.
She suddenly realized something was wrong—Space Rifts only appeared when Disaster Beasts emerged!
“Oh no!”
Almost simultaneously, her phone in her pocket let out a piercing alarm.
An emergency notification flashed on the screen, the red text glaringly conspicuous:
Space Rift fluctuations detected nearby.
Fluctuation level:
C. C-class Disaster Beast confirmed. Please evacuate the area immediately!
Ye Ning’s heart pounded wildly. She turned to run.
But at that moment, the eerie blue rift suddenly expanded, and a foul-smelling wind rushed towards her.
A Disaster Beast erupted from the rift.
Its body resembled a giant toad, but it had three pairs of spiky, jointed limbs.
Its skin was dark green, covered in festering sores.
Its head had no eyes, only a gaping maw filled with jagged, serrated fangs, constantly emitting a grating, screeching roar.
The Disaster Beast wildly swung its limbs, smashing them against the surrounding walls.
Bricks and stones flew, fragments clattering to the ground.
Its attack didn’t directly hit Ye Ning, but a piece of flying debris struck her ankle squarely.
Ye Ning grunted in pain, her leg giving way as she fell to the ground.
A sharp, drilling pain shot from her ankle, making her grimace tightly.
The Disaster Beast heard the noise and abruptly turned its head.
Its eyeless face pointed towards Ye Ning’s direction, drool dripping from its massive maw.
It took heavy steps, closing in on her step by step.
It raised a hoof covered in sharp spikes, preparing to stomp down on her.
Ye Ning’s face instantly turned as pale as paper, her mind a complete blank.
‘Is this… the end?’
‘I haven’t even become a Magical Girl yet…’
‘I haven’t had the chance to protect the people I want to protect…’
Despair surged in her heart, tears uncontrollably welling up in her eyes.
At that moment, a warm current suddenly surged from deep within her body, as if something was breaking free from its shackles.
‘Could it be?!’
Ye Ning’s eyes suddenly lit up, as if she had grabbed onto a final lifeline.
She took a deep breath and, mustering all her strength, shouted the common transformation phrase of all Magical Girls:
“MAGICAL GIRL, TRANSFORM!”
The moment the words left her lips, the power within her body surged like a tide.
A warm light began to glow from her fingertips!
And then!
Then it went out.
Ye Ning: “???”
‘I’m done for!’
Watching the hoof getting closer and closer, Ye Ning’s tears finally overflowed, swirling in her eyes. Her breathing grew rapid.
“Look out!”
At this critical juncture, a familiar, lazy voice suddenly rang out.
Immediately after, a black schoolbag flew through the air and slammed into the Disaster Beast’s head.
The schoolbag didn’t cause any real damage to the beast, but it made its movements hesitate for a second.
A figure shot past like lightning.
A slender arm wrapped around Ye Ning’s waist, pulling her swiftly out from under the Disaster Beast’s descending hoof.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.