Chapter 41: Victory Banquet

“W-What is that…”

Hui Jin curled up in the back seat of the car, her gaze occasionally darting to the front passenger seat—

Specifically, Xia Che’s casual pants.

Even though it was just a glance, there was no doubt…

The scale was impressive.

She never would have guessed.

He looked like the delicate type, but who knew…

“Hui Jin.”

Xia Che suddenly spoke, making her flinch.

“W-What is it?”

“Just now… I’m sorry. I told you to restrain yourself, but I lost control a bit too. So, sorry.”

From this angle, she couldn’t quite see Xia Che’s expression.

Hui Jin turned her head, propping her cheek on her hand, watching the rapidly retreating street scenes outside the window, and said quietly:

“…It’s fine. It was my fault to begin with…”

“Hui Jin? Are you that magical girl, Hui Jin!”

The harmonious atmosphere inside the car was shattered by the driver.

He slid his sunglasses up with his hand, peered through the rearview mirror at the bewildered girl in the back seat, and immediately got excited:

“Wow, it really is you!”

When they arrived, Hui Jin had to take a photo with him and sign an autograph—

Though her signature came out all crooked—

Before she could get out of the car.

It was only then that she finally felt a real sense of having become a big star.

Xia Che asked curiously:

“I thought magical girls all had spells like cognitive distortion?”

“If I could use one, I would have long ago,” Hui Jin said, annoyed.

I’ve definitely got to learn cognitive distortion magic first!

The celebratory feast was organized by Jiang Yiyun to commend the magical girls for their contributions in battle, and also as a get-well celebration for their discharge from the hospital.

The venue was a mid-to-high-end Japanese yakiniku place near the Special Operations Bureau, called “Totoro Grilled Meat.”

As soon as they entered, a waitress dressed in a kimono greeted them:

“Welcome! Do you have a reservation?”

“Otaru,” Xia Che said.

“Very well. This way, please.”

Led by the waitress, the two took the elevator to the third floor and stopped in front of a shoji door painted with several little sparrows.

Inside, it was lively—

Ye Xiao Chi’s voice was especially noticeable.

The two exchanged glances.

Xia Che raised his hand and slid the door open, saying with a smile:

“Sorry, everyone—we’re late.”

The private room went quiet for a moment.

He could feel several pairs of eyes fall on him.

Jiang Yiyun waved at the two of them:

“You’re not late at all. Come on in, hurry.”

“Xia Che! Senior Hui Jin!”

Ye Xiao Chi called out to them.

“Come sit!”

The girl’s face was flushed, clearly excited to be sitting next to Candy.

“Sorry for disturbing.”

Hui Jin gave a perfunctory greeting and followed Xia Che into the room.

What she didn’t notice was Ye Xiao Chi’s burning gaze, fixed entirely on her.

Now, think about it—

Seven people at a celebratory feast, sitting around a square table.

How could they sit closer together?

Side by side? Dead wrong!

That would at most let their shoulders brush occasionally, without much more contact.

The real answer… is to sit at the two corners of the same side, of course!

At that distance, the two would be at the corners of an isosceles triangle.

Slightly crossing that boundary would “accidentally” touch each other’s shins.

Then she’d get to see Senior Hui Jin’s little red face and enjoy her warning glare—

Because Senior Hui Jin’s glare was adorable too…

Ah, bliss!

So Senior Candy was just a decoy.

My real target is you, Senior Hui Jin!

“Here, Senior Hui Jin, sit here!”

Ye Xiao Chi wore a big smile and patted the tatami mat next to her.

Come on, Senior Hui Jin!

“Mm.”

Hui Jin responded and walked over to the seat Ye Xiao Chi had prepared.

One more step and she would fall into the trap!

But just as she lifted her foot, she slowly pulled it back.

“Huh… why won’t you sit? Senior Hui Jin, sit down!”

Ye Xiao Chi grew anxious.

Hui Jin glanced at Ye Xiao Chi, and under her mournful gaze, silently sat down on the other side.

Even though Xia Che kept insisting that his and Xiao Chi’s couple act was fake, judging by how things were going, even if it was fake, it was about to become real.

As a father figure, shouldn’t she give them a push?

—The old father, completely oblivious to Ye Xiao Chi’s true intentions, magical girl Hui Jin thought so.

For her daughter’s happiness, she was really putting in the effort.

Xiao Chi, you better be grateful…

Huh? Why are you making such a pained expression?

For the first half of the celebratory feast, Ye Xiao Chi’s mood remained low.

Hui Jin was completely baffled.

…

“To Sakura Blizzard, Jie Geng, and Miss Hui Jin’s discharge—cheers!”

Candy raised her glass, and the others followed suit.

The glass clinked together with a crisp sound, beer and cola sloshing as warm yellow light refracted within.

“Cheers!!!”

After saying that, Candy downed her full glass of alcohol in one go, gulping loudly.

When the drink was finished, she slammed the beer glass on the table with a thump, quite boldly:

“Whoa—refreshing!”

This whole performance left Ye Xiao Chi, who was sipping her cola daintily beside her, completely stunned:

“I feel like… Senior Candy gives a bit of a different impression in person than on TV?”

Candy smiled slightly.

As she gently shook her head, her twin pink ponytails bounced along:

“Work is work; life is life. Only by living well can you do your job well. That’s my motto, you know?”

“I don’t really get it, but it sounds impressive!”

Ye Xiao Chi’s eyes sparkled with stars.

After all, Senior Candy used to be her “first-favorite magical girl,” so she asked curiously:

“So how did Senior become so strong? I feel like every time you fight, you win without any suspense!”

“That…”

Candy winked at Ye Xiao Chi.

A heart-shaped magical effect seemed to flash at the corner of her eye, accompanied by a “moemoe” sound effect:

“It’s by ‘acting.’”

“Acting?”

Ye Xiao Chi wore the blank expression that should never appear on the face of the second-best student in the grade.

Candy refilled her glass, picked up the tongs to flip the A5 wagyu on the grill.

Icy oil beads burst on the beautiful marbling, filling the whole room with the aroma of fat.

She said with a smile:

“Simply put, if you want to become a strong magical girl, you have to act like a strong magical girl first. Once you become the image people have of a ‘strong magical girl,’ you can actually become a strong magical girl~”

“What… magical girl… Is this some kind of magical girl tongue twister?”

Ye Xiao Chi listened in a daze, but Xia Che and Hui Jin, sitting nearby, listened seriously.

This simple sentence from Candy gave them a lot of insight.

“Let it sink in, Feizuan. I believe you’ll definitely become a strong magical girl in the future. I believe in you!”

Candy said, placing a piece of meat on Ye Xiao Chi’s plate.

“Give it a try!”

When it came to eating, Ye Xiao Chi snapped out of her daze.

Her eyes lit up as she sent the charred-black wagyu into her mouth:

“It’s—chewy! And bitter!”

The girl who had been smiling moments ago suddenly wasn’t.

Her delicate face scrunched up.

“Oh, really?”

Candy looked surprised, clasping her hands together in apology.

“I thought I grilled it perfectly! So sorry~!”

“Hehe, it’s okay~”

Being apologized to like that by the strongest magical girl, Ye Xiao Chi felt a bit lightheaded.

But when Candy reached for the tongs again, looking eager, Ye Xiao Chi snatched them away and said sternly:

“But Senior is not allowed to grill anymore!”

“Mou~”

“No acting cute either. This affects my entire evening’s mood!”

With that, she turned her gaze to the young man quietly slurping noodles beside her.

Without saying a word, she just stared at him.

Unable to bear the girl’s expectant and pitiful look, Xia Che reluctantly put down his cold noodles and prepared to take the tongs:

“Alright, then I’ll…”

“I’ll do it.”

An unexpected voice rang out.

Then a slender, fair arm appeared in his field of vision, taking the tongs.

Xia Che turned his head.

Hui Jin was deftly picking up slices of meat and placing them on the grill.

Originally, the restaurant offered a grilling service, but these magical girls insisted that it wouldn’t taste the same if they didn’t grill it themselves, so they unanimously decided to decline.

But when it came time to eat, none of them wanted to move.

Only Candy, who could turn meat into charcoal, volunteered to grill.

Who knows how many unknown contaminants she had consumed from the start.

In the end, it fell to her to do the grilling.

Sigh, these young people today—

They don’t even have basic life skills…

Thinking this, the gray-haired girl lifted a corner of the golden-brown meat and flipped it over.

Because the edge of the table was a bit far from the grill, she had to stand up to grill properly.

A group of teenagers and young adults—

And even an older single woman—

Watching a little girl grill meat.

The scene was somewhat comical.

“This side is done too…”

Hui Jin poked the wagyu with the tongs, feeling a slight bounce, meaning it was medium-rare.

She skillfully picked it up and placed it on Ye Xiao Chi’s plate:

“There, you can eat now. Give it a try.”

“Thanks, Senior Hui Jin~”

Ye Xiao Chi immediately picked it up and put it in her mouth.

Even if it tasted awful, it was worth the price just to eat meat grilled by Senior Hui Jin…

“Mm!”

The girl froze.

Her pretty red eyes went wide.

“W-What’s wrong?”

Hui Jin, worried that she had grilled it wrong, asked nervously.

“It’s—so—delicious—!!!”

The meat was soft as a cloud, the fatty parts melting instantly under the slightest pressure from her teeth.

The middle was tender, the outside crispy and fragrant.

As it slid over her tongue and into her mouth, a hint of milky sweetness and nutty aroma lingered.

Rich but not greasy, with a sweet aftertaste—

She couldn’t help wanting more slices!

Ye Xiao Chi cupped her face, chewing blissfully, as if she might melt into a puddle of spring water and flow away at any moment.

“Really? Me too, me too!”

Candy immediately raised her hand like an elementary school student.

“One for me as well, please.”

Xia Che, who had eaten two bowls of cold noodles, really wanted something good.

“Seriously… I ate too much earlier; I can’t eat a single bite now…!”

Sakura Blizzard muttered quietly.

“One for me too, please.”

Jiang Yiyun, finally relieved of having to save face for Candy, requested.

“I—I also…”

Jie Geng mustered the courage to raise her hand.

It seemed Candy’s grilling skills were truly terrible.

“Alright, I got it. Don’t rush. One at a time.”

Hui Jin felt a bit helpless.

She had wanted to eat her own grilled meat, but seeing everyone’s expectant gazes, she could only pick up new slices of beef and place them on the grill.

The small private room buzzed with laughter, clinking glasses, and warmth.

The little girl flipped the wagyu, and amidst the cheerful voices of her new colleagues, she unconsciously let a faint smile appear.