“What are you thinking? Being one of the Seven Swords isn’t some grueling chore. The benefits are much better than those of an ordinary magical girl. Your salary doubles, your vacation time doubles, and there’s dedicated cultivation resources and equipment support.” Hong Huang paused to take a bite of an apple.
“Besides, you’ve only just joined. They won’t make you take office immediately. Just focus on recovering first. Also, I heard… you haven’t made your idol debut yet. So, there’s no rush.”
Lin Lu breathed a sigh of relief.
Hong Huang stood up and tossed the apple core into the trash can.
“Alright, I’m heading out. I still have a mission to investigate. For Changmeng to appear in a small place like Beijiang, there might be some kind of conspiracy afoot.”
She looked back from the doorway and said, “Recover well. Once you’re better, I’ll teach you a few moves.”
The door clicked shut.
The room fell silent again.
She reached out to grab her phone from the nightstand, intending to scroll through some videos to pass the time.
The screen lit up, and dense notifications crowded the entire page.
They were all messages from Cilicili.
She opened the app and saw that, wow, there were over 99+ comments and private messages.
The latest post was an update from the official account, posted this morning.
[Beijiang Magical Girl Headquarters: Last night, the Starlight Magical Girl Group successfully handled an S-rank Shadow Beast incident on Nantang Road. The magical girl Chiyoyuki was seriously injured in the battle and is currently receiving treatment in the hospital. There is currently no danger to her life. Thank you to all the fans for your concern and support; we will continue to monitor Chiyoyuki’s recovery.]
There were already over ten thousand comments below it.
Lin Lu casually scrolled through a few pages.
[Chiyoyuki is injured?! Is it serious?]
[Oh my god! An S-rank Shadow Beast? Chiyoyuki is way too amazing!]
[My heart aches for her. I hope she recovers soon.]
[Does anyone know which hospital she’s in? I want to visit her.]
[Forget it, the person above is dreaming. Magical girls won’t be in a normal hospital, and even if they were, it’s not somewhere you could just visit.]
[Chiyoyuki, you have to be okay! We’re waiting for your return!]
Seeing her fans so worried about her, Lin Lu opened the comment box and began to type.
[Chiyoyuki: Thanks for the concern, everyone. I’m fine. I just broke a few bones and had some internal bleeding. I’ll be back on my feet after resting for two weeks.]
[As expected of Chiyoyuki, she calls that ‘fine’?]
[Is that just a ‘minor’ fatal wound?]
After interacting casually with her fans for a while, Lin Lu’s eyelids began to droop.
She closed her eyes, listening to the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor as her consciousness slowly drifted away.
***
After a period of recuperation, Lin Lu was discharged from the hospital at full health.
Since an S-rank incident had just been resolved, the remaining minor Shadow Beast incursions in Beijiang City were handled by the other magical girls.
Lin Lu’s life slowly returned to its daily routine.
In the morning, she participated in idol training.
At noon and in the afternoon, she went to school.
After school, she headed to the music room to practice the piano.
Under Qin Lan’s special training, Lin Lu’s progress could be described as rapid.
While her knowledge and abilities in vocal music and dance weren’t top-tier yet, they were more than enough for an idol debut.
She could continue to refine them slowly in the future.
She had also joined a course for musical instruments so that she could perform alongside Hoshino Hikari and the others in the future.
On Wednesday afternoon, after the last class ended, Su Tang leaned over and rested her chin on Lin Lu’s desk.
“Xiao Lu, have you joined a club yet?”
Lin Lu blinked, startled.
“Huh? What club?”
“Didn’t the school send out a notice? Every student has to join at least one club, otherwise, you won’t have enough credits.” Su Tang winked.
“You didn’t miss the advisor’s notification, did you?”
Lin Lu indeed hadn’t seen it.
She had been quite busy lately; she hadn’t had the time to check any notifications.
“I haven’t joined one.” Lin Lu shook her head and answered honestly.
“Perfect then!” Su Tang slapped the table and said, “Join the Anime Club with me!”
“Anime Club?” Lin Lu frowned and thought for a moment.
Although she did enjoy watching anime, as for a club… she had never experienced one before and didn’t know what it would be like.
“I’ll consider it.”
“Aw… alright. If you want to join, tell me anytime,” Su Tang said expectantly.
“Sigh… I guess every college student can’t escape the struggle for credits…” Lin Lu sighed and complained.
“Hehe, it’s actually not that bad. Clubs are great, and they’re pretty fun.” Su Tang said, “By the way, I’m going shopping with Hoshino and the others. Do you want to come?”
“I’ll pass. I’m going to practice the piano.”
“Alright then. Be careful on your way home after practice.”
Su Tang waved at Lin Lu and skipped out of the classroom with Chen Xingye and the others.
The classroom was mostly empty, with only a few students on cleaning duty sweeping the floor.
Lin Lu put on her backpack and walked out slowly.
The corridor was quiet.
The setting sun shone through the windows, dyeing the floor a warm orange.
As she walked down the hall toward the Music Building, she thought about what club she should actually join.
The Anime Club sounded like it would have many people with similar interests, but she didn’t like making public appearances or participating in conventions.
As she was thinking, the sound of a piano drifted from the end of the hallway.
Lin Lu stopped in her tracks.
She hadn’t heard that piece before.
It wasn’t one of those overplayed pop songs or an exercise piece.
The melody was slow and gentle.
Although she hadn’t been studying the piano for long, she could tell the player’s skill level was quite high.
Following the sound, she stopped at the door of a practice room.
Lin Lu stood at the entrance and peeked inside.
Chen Yuwei was sitting at the piano.
Her fingers moved briskly across the keys, yet every note was pressed with precision.
The sunset glowed through the window, falling upon her and coating her in a layer of golden light.
Lin Lu was stunned, ‘Is it her? Chen Yuwei.’
The girl who had confessed to her on the rooftop before.
Since that day, Lin Lu had been so busy with magical girl duties that she hadn’t seen much of her.
She didn’t expect to run into her here so suddenly, and she didn’t quite know how to react.
‘Maybe… I should just skip today…’
Just as Lin Lu was hesitating and considering not practicing for the day, the music stopped.
Chen Yuwei turned her head and saw her.
She paused for a moment before smiling.
“Classmate Lin Lu.” She stood up, “It seems we are fated to meet.”
“Um… I was just passing by,” Lin Lu said, “I heard the piano and came to take a look.”
“Passing by?” Chen Yuwei looked at her with a playful tone and said, “School has been over for a long time… and you just happened to pass the practice rooms? This isn’t exactly on the way to the school gate.”
“Ah… that…”
Being called out to her face made Lin Lu’s cheeks flush with heat.
Chen Yuwei smiled and stood up from the piano, gesturing to the bench.
“You came to practice, didn’t you? Come, sit.”
“No, no need.” Lin Lu waved her hands quickly, “You keep playing. I’ll go to the room next door…”
“The piano next door is broken,” Chen Yuwei interrupted immediately, “It broke this afternoon, and they haven’t had time to fix it yet.”
Lin Lu was taken aback, ‘Broken?’
It was fine when she played there last week.
How could it be broken today?
She glanced at Chen Yuwei, but the other girl’s expression was natural, showing no sign of a lie.
“Then… I’ll come back another day!”
Lin Lu turned to leave.
“Classmate Lin Lu,” Chen Yuwei called out, her voice calm and steady, “Are you avoiding me? Am I that scary?”
‘You already confessed to me and are lusting after my body, how can I not hide from you?!’
Lin Lu complained internally, but her feet stopped, and she remained standing in the doorway.
“No… no way. How could I be afraid of you?” She turned around, trying her best to make her voice sound natural.
“Then come and practice.” Chen Yuwei stepped aside.
“I happen to have nothing to do, so I can help listen.”
Lin Lu hesitated for a moment but eventually walked in.
Hmph!
How could the great Lin Lu be afraid of Chen Yuwei?
It’s not like she could actually eat her!
Unbeknownst to her, a faint smile played on the corner of Chen Yuwei’s lips.
She had noticed long ago that Lin Lu frequently came here to practice, so she had specifically come early to wait for her.
She hadn’t expected Lin Lu to fall into her trap so easily.
‘You scheming lesbian!!!’
Lin Lu sat on the piano bench, her fingers resting on the keys.
She took a deep breath and began to play.
Because she was a beginner, Lin Lu’s technique wasn’t very good.
Whenever the tempo picked up, she would stumble, as if tripping over pebbles while walking, resulting in obvious pauses.
After finishing one pass, Lin Lu wasn’t satisfied herself and let out a sigh.
“Classmate Lin Lu, you’re a beginner, aren’t you?” Chen Yuwei spoke up, “Your wrists are too stiff…”
Before Lin Lu could react, Chen Yuwei sat down behind her.
Her arms reached around from both sides, pulling Lin Lu into an embrace as she gently took hold of her hands.
Lin Lu’s body stiffened.
Chen Yuwei’s lips parted slightly, and her warm breath brushed against Lin Lu’s neck.
Lin Lu could even feel the softness pressed against her back and the girl’s faint fragrance…
‘Eh? What is Chen Yuwei trying to do?!!’
“Come… relax. Just leave your body to me.”
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