After tossing and turning for nearly one hour, Hoshino Hikari finally saw that it was about time and bid farewell to the fans.
Afterward, the group used magic to lower their presence and alter the perception of the ordinary people before they were able to leave.
Lin Lu leaned against the railing by the roadside, feeling as if all the strength had been drained from her body.
Her hands were still shaking.
Between the signing, the handshakes, and the photos, they had treated her exactly like a Japanese idol.
“Yuki! How are you feeling?” Lin Qingqing bounced over and asked with a grin.
Lin Lu gave her a listless look and said, “I’m exhausted. I just want to go home and lie down.”
“Don’t be like that!” Lin Qingqing pulled at her arm and said, “This is just the beginning! We haven’t even gone shopping yet!”
“More shopping?!”
“Of course!” Lin Qingqing said it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“A fan meeting is a fan meeting, and shopping is shopping. They’re two different things! Besides, we haven’t even had dinner yet.”
“Um… Sister Yuki, I’m sorry. I forgot to remind everyone to use magic to change the commoners’ perception,” Hoshino Hikari added, looking a bit embarrassed.
Minazuki walked over and spoke comfortingly, “You’ll get used to it. There will be even more activities after your debut, including dedicated fan meetings. It’s not a bad thing to adapt in advance.”
Lin Lu let out a long sigh.
Then, she suddenly remembered something.
She pulled out her phone and opened the pink app, Cilicili, to check the official account of the Beijiang Magical Girl Headquarters.
While she was signing autographs, she had overheard fans mentioning something about her debut teaser PV…
When did she ever have such a thing?
Sure enough, the official account had already posted several videos and updates about her.
They had been posted for several days now, and she was the only one kept in the dark.
The photos attached to the posts were all of her — some taken during training, others captured in the moment while she was deep in thought at various crime scenes.
There were photos of every kind of scene and style.
There was even a promotional video:
[Starlight Magical Girl Group × Xingyao Entertainment Joint Production]
[A New Idol Project Begins! Mysterious Newcomer Chiyoyuki — Idol Debut Countdown: 3 Months
We’ll see you there!]
The photo accompanying the video was of Lin Lu in her pure white combat suit — the one taken during her very first transformation.
There were already over 10,000 comments under the video, and the numbers were still climbing.
Lin Lu skimmed through a few of them-
[Holy crap, this newcomer is way too beautiful!]
[Silver hair and red eyes! She’s totally my type!]
[I watched the combat video; she’s super cool!]
[Three minutes. I want her entire profile on my desk right now.]
Lin Lu even saw a photo of her earlier group shot with fans in the comments section — except it had already been turned into an emoji!
[Hahaha, I just got a photo with Sister Chiyoyuki! (Chiyoyuki’s Robotic Heart)]
[This expression is way too robotic, isn’t it? Bro, you’re a legend, hahaha. Image stolen. (Chiyoyuki’s Robotic Heart)]
[(Chiyoyuki’s Robotic Heart) +114514]
She was furious!
To think that she, Lin Lu, who had maintained her brilliant reputation for a lifetime, had been turned into an internet emoji!
These magical girls had ruined her!!
Lin Lu stared at the comment section, her face flushing a deep red.
Seeing Lin Lu suddenly staring at her phone in silence, Hoshino Hikari and the others leaned in to take a look at the screen.
They laughed, “Oh, this? Headquarters is pretty efficient. They just took those photos last week and they’re already up, plus a promo video.”
“You guys knew about this already?” Lin Lu looked at them in disbelief.
“Of course,” Hoshino Hikari said matter-of-factly, “The official accounts always post promotional videos and stuff to build hype before a debut. Didn’t you follow them, Sister Yuki? Also, I expect you’ll have to do some live streams to interact with fans in a few days.”
Lin Lu felt her blood pressure soaring.
Live streaming and fan interaction?
“Um… can I skip the live streaming?” Lin Lu asked cautiously.
“You can’t,” Minazuki said, pushing up her glasses.
Her tone was as calm as if she were stating a simple fact, “Article 7, Clause 3 of the contract: Party B must cooperate with Party A in necessary promotional activities, including but not limited to public performances, media interviews, merchandise shoots, and fan meetings. Live streaming is one of the early stage promotional methods. You need to build your own fan base online.”
“Sigh… fine.” Lin Lu sighed.
It looked like she would have to think about what to stream.
She still didn’t know how to sing or dance.
Was she supposed to… stream herself playing video games?
“Alright, alright, stop thinking about that.” Lin Qingqing grabbed her arm.
“Let’s go, let’s go! After shopping, we’ll eat! I know a barbecue place nearby that’s super delicious!”
As Lin Lu was dragged forward, she glanced back at her phone screen one last time.
The comment section was still being flooded with her emoji.
She took a deep breath and shut off the phone.
‘Out of sight, out of mind.’
Under the leadership of the two bundles of energy, Hoshino Hikari and Lin Qingqing, Lin Lu spent the rest of the evening eating snacks and buying small toys.
Eventually, Lin Qingqing led them to a barbecue restaurant for dinner.
Lin Qingqing was clearly a regular.
As soon as she walked in, she skillfully asked for a private room.
“The owner of this place is a fan of magical girls, and he especially likes our Starlight Magical Girl Group,” Lin Qingqing explained, “So I used my autograph and stuff to get on his good side. We get discounts and a private booth!”
“You really are a genius…”
Hoshino Hikari was a bit speechless seeing Lin Qingqing looking so proud, waiting for everyone to praise her cleverness.
Lin Lu looked around the private room. It wasn’t large, but it was very clean.
Signed posters of the Starlight Magical Girl Group hung on the walls.
“This is…”
“The owner put them up,” Lin Qingqing said, scratching her head, “He’s a fan, you know. Just understand him, hehehe…”
Lin Lu nodded and sat down.
They ordered, the food arrived, and the meat began to sizzle.
Lin Qingqing took charge of the entire process, grilling and distributing the meat to everyone, looking quite busy and happy.
“Sister Yuki, try this!” She placed a perfectly grilled piece of beef tongue into Lin Lu’s bowl.
“The beef tongue is their specialty!”
Lin Lu took a bite, and her eyes lit up.
It was delicious.
Truly delicious.
“How is it?” Lin Qingqing looked at her expectantly.
“It’s good,” Lin Lu said honestly.
“Hehe~” Lin Qingqing smiled with satisfaction and gave her a few more pieces.
Hoshino Hikari was already buried in her food, her mouth stuffed full like a hamster.
Minazuki ate gracefully, but her speed was not slow either.
Looking at them, Lin Lu suddenly felt a bit dazed.
“What are you thinking about?” Minazuki’s voice pulled her back to reality.
Lin Lu snapped out of it and shook her head, “Nothing. I just feel like… the atmosphere with everyone like this is really nice.”
Minazuki glanced at her and simply smiled, “We’re all friends, aren’t we?”
Lin Lu looked at Lin Qingqing and Hoshino Hikari, who were still fighting over the grilled meat, smiled and said, “Yes. We’re all friends.”
***
By the time they finished dinner, it was nearly 9:00 PM.
The four of them walked out of the barbecue restaurant.
The night breeze blew past, carrying a hint of chill.
Lin Lu took a deep breath, feeling as though she had finally come back to life.
“Sister Yuki, where do you live? Should we see you home?” Hoshino Hikari asked.
“No need, no need.” Lin Lu waved her hand, “I don’t live far. I can get back on my own.”
“Alright then. Be careful on the way,” Minazuki nodded.
“See you tomorrow, Yuki!” Lin Qingqing waved.
“See you tomorrow.”
Lin Lu watched them walk away before turning to head toward her home.
Upon arriving home, Lin Lu kicked off her shoes and collapsed onto the sofa.
“I’m exhausted…”
She stared at the ceiling, dazed for a while.
Lilith floated out from the bracelet and landed on Lin Lu’s head.
“How was your day?”
“Don’t ask.” Lin Lu closed her eyes and said, “I’m dead tired.”
Lilith tilted her head, “You looked like you were having a lot of fun to me.”
Lin Lu opened her eyes and looked at her.
“How could you tell?”
“During dinner,” Lilith said, “You smiled like an idiot several times.”
Lin Lu turned her head away.
“That wasn’t…” she paused, “That was because the barbecue was good.”
“Oh~” Lilith dragged out the word. “The barbecue was good~”
“What’s with that tone!”
“Nothing, nothing.” Lilith waved her wings and said, “As long as you’re happy.”
Lin Lu glared at her.
“Ding-dong!”
Lin Lu checked her phone for messages.
It was a text from Shimotsuki.
[Shimotsuki: Yuki, these are your official media accounts. When it comes time for live streaming and such, use your personal official accounts.]
Lin Lu looked at the message.
Shimotsuki had sent her the login details for her official accounts on several major platforms.
Feeling a bit curious, she logged into her account on the pink app.
Surprisingly, she already had 1,000,000 followers…
As for the video comments section… the emoji was still spreading.
[(Chiyoyuki’s Robotic Heart)]
[(Chiyoyuki’s Robotic Heart) +1]
[Brothers, stop spamming it. Give the girl some dignity. (Chiyoyuki’s Robotic Heart)]
Staring at those comments, Lin Lu actually felt like laughing.
She thought about it and posted a comment using her official account: [Chiyoyuki: That emoji… can you guys please stop using it? It’s a bit embarrassing.]
The moment she posted it, the comment section exploded.
[Holy crap, the real deal appeared!]
[A wild Chiyoyuki caught in the act!]
[Family, there’s a Chiyoyuki here, and she wants to go home with me~ (Holding hands)]
[Yuki, look over here! I’m your fan!]
[Yuki, that expression is way too cute! We HAVE to spam it!]
Then, a perfectly neat row of [(Chiyoyuki’s Robotic Heart)] followed.
Lin Lu covered her face and thought, ‘Fine, forget it. These netizens are just too much…’
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