The 30-Year-Old Magical Girl - Chapter 35
“Hey.”
“Just making sure…”
“You’re with Raging Flame right now, aren’t you?”
Lao Lin’s voice came through Tidal’s phone.
Tidal glanced sideways.
Nearby…
Raging Flame was holding her own phone high in the air, waving it around as though trying to find a better signal.
“…Yeah.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I’ve successfully signed a contract with the second magical girl.”
“…”
Tidal paused for a moment.
Then quietly asked,
“…What’s she like?”
“Her aptitude is excellent.”
“I handpicked her myself.”
“As for her personality…”
Lao Lin chuckled.
“She’s a lot like your niece.”
“Strong-willed.”
“Always does things her own way.”
“You’ll probably have your hands full.”
“As long as she can fight…”
“I don’t really care.”
“So…”
“When are we meeting?”
“Right now.”
“I’ve assigned her an easy mission.”
“It’ll help her get used to how things work.”
“You and Raging Flame head to the designated location first.”
“I’ll bring her over.”
“…Understood.”
After hanging up…
Tidal called toward the girl still waving her phone around.
“Raging Flame, just—”
“Senior!”
Raging Flame interrupted excitedly before she could finish.
“I told you!”
“The app really glitched this afternoon!”
“Look!”
“We came all the way back here…”
“And there’s still no reaction at all.”
“It really was a false alarm.”
“…Yeah.”
Tidal nodded.
“Perhaps I really was overthinking it.”
“But…”
“It’s always better to be cautious.”
They were currently standing in the neighborhood where Bai Mian lived.
The Magic Kingdom app remained completely silent.
Everything seemed to support Raging Flame’s conclusion.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of the Nightmare Fiend.
Even so…
Tidal couldn’t shake her unease.
Whether it was experience…
Or simple intuition…
Something about the entire situation still felt wrong.
…Forget it.
We’ll leave it for today.
With that thought…
She briefly explained Lao Lin’s phone call.
The moment Raging Flame heard there would be another teammate…
Her eyes immediately lit up.
“A new teammate?!”
“Seriously?!”
“What’s she like?”
“I don’t know.”
“We’ll find out once we meet her.”
“…Ah!”
Suddenly…
As if remembering something unpleasant…
Raging Flame’s cheerful expression stiffened.
“…It can’t be…”
“…Her…”
Tidal looked at her knowingly.
“I remember.”
“When we were at headquarters…”
“You secretly peeked at Lao Lin’s candidate files.”
“You made exactly the same face.”
“…What’s wrong?”
“Do you know someone on the list?”
Of course…
Tidal already knew the answer.
She simply had to pretend she didn’t.
“…Senior.”
“You remember what I told you before?”
“The reason I got suspended…”
“Was because I hit someone while standing up for my friend.”
“…I remember.”
“And?”
“…The girl I hit…”
“Is one of the candidates.”
Raging Flame pouted.
“…I see.”
“What a coincidence.”
“But…”
“How can you be sure it’ll be her?”
“There are dozens of candidates.”
“Everyone has an equal chance.”
Tidal tried to reassure her.
Truthfully…
She was silently praying.
Please don’t let it be Mo Li.
Because if it really was…
The instant those two met…
The atmosphere would explode.
Forget working together.
It would already be a miracle…
If they didn’t start fighting each other.
“…That’s true.”
Raging Flame nodded.
“With so many candidates…”
“What are the odds?”
“I guess I was worrying too much.”
“Hehe.”
Teenagers were emotional by nature.
And You Xi…
Was especially so.
Only moments earlier…
She’d been worried sick.
Now…
Her imagination had already taken over.
Her eyes sparkled with excitement.
“Senior!”
“Senior!”
“Do you think she’ll be older than me?”
“…No idea.”
“Senior!”
“I just thought of something really important!”
“I’m technically her senior as a magical girl.”
“But…”
“What if she’s older than me in real life?”
“Should she still call me ‘Senior’?”
“Wouldn’t that be super awkward?”
“…Whatever.”
“Senior!”
“What if we stop by the shopping district first?”
“We could buy her a welcome gift.”
“I think that’d be really meaningful.”
“…No need.”
The two continued flying through the evening sky.
Almost the entire journey…
Was filled with Raging Flame’s nonstop chatter.
She hardly noticed Tidal’s quiet responses.
It was obvious…
She had always wanted a magical girl companion.
And today…
That wish was finally coming true.
“…We’re here.”
Tidal slowly came to a stop above a wetland park.
“Today’s target…”
“Is an Aberration known as the Mole Men.”
“There.”
She pointed toward the open field below.
Bathed in the pale moonlight…
Several strange creatures could be seen huddled together.
Sneaking cautiously across the grass.
“…Those are Aberrations?”
Raging Flame blinked.
“They look more like wild animals.”
The Mole Men resembled oversized moles.
Round.
Stubby.
And surprisingly clumsy-looking.
Compared with the grotesque monsters they had fought before…
These creatures actually looked…
Rather cute.
At least…
Ninety percent cute.
“…Do we really have to fight them?”
“They don’t look dangerous.”
“Is it really necessary?”
Tidal sighed.
“…I’m guessing…”
“You didn’t read a single page…”
“Of the material I sent you.”
“…Hehe.”
Raging Flame laughed awkwardly.
Seeing her pretending to be innocent…
Tidal continued explaining.
“Think about the Arm Monster…”
“And the Shadow Hunter.”
“Even combined…”
“The damage they cause to society…”
“Is less than one percent…”
“Maybe even one-thousandth…”
“Of what the Mole Men can do.”
“…Do you know why?”
“…Because they’re hardworking?”
“…Idiot.”
Tidal shot her a flat look.
“Underneath this city…”
“There are countless water pipes.”
“Gas lines.”
“Power cables.”
“Fiber-optic cables.”
“The Mole Men spend their entire lives digging tunnels.”
“If they accidentally tear through those underground systems…”
“The damage…”
“Would be impossible to calculate.”
“…Understand now?”
“…Ah!”
Raging Flame suddenly snapped her fingers.
“I remember now!”
“A few months ago…”
“Our internet was down for almost an entire week.”
“Because a fiber-optic cable got damaged.”
“…Was that their fault?”
“…Very likely.”
Tidal nodded.
She remembered the incident well.
Their entire neighborhood had lost internet service for nearly a week.
Personally…
She hadn’t minded very much.
Mobile data had been enough.
But You Xi…
A devoted online FPS player…
Had practically fallen into despair.
Unable to play her favorite game.
“…Senior.”
“Don’t interfere.”
While Tidal was lost in thought…
Raging Flame had already drawn her massive greatsword from her Soul Gem.
She pointed it toward the Mole Men below.
“This battle…”
“Is mine.”
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
