The 30-Year-Old Magical Girl - Chapter 4
“…Don’t worry. Bubble Person is only classified as a D-Rank Aberration, making it the perfect opponent for your first solo mission.”
The gentle voice on the other end of the phone paused before continuing.
“It’s not that I’m nagging, but I deliberately didn’t assign a senior magical girl to accompany you this time. You need to get used to handling missions on your own.”
“O-Okay.”
You Xi took a deep breath.
“I’ll do my best.”
“I’m sending you Bubble Person’s file now. Read through it carefully before you engage.”
“Understood.”
Standing alone in a dim, deserted alley, You Xi held her phone tightly with both hands as she spoke.
“There’s really no need to be nervous, Raging Flame.”
The familiar voice sounded as patient as ever.
“You still want to defeat the A-Rank Aberration known as the Sky Person, don’t you?”
“Then every battle from now on is an opportunity.”
“Gain experience.”
“Sharpen your skills.”
“As your Connector, I’ll help you grow into a magical girl powerful enough to achieve that goal.”
“…Thank you.”
“You don’t need to thank me.”
The voice chuckled softly.
“It’s not that I’m nagging, but we should be the ones thanking you.”
The call ended.
Only a few seconds later, Bubble Person’s complete profile appeared on You Xi’s phone.
She carefully read every word.
The image displayed a humanoid creature standing over three meters tall.
Its body was long and unnaturally thin.
Its skin was pale blue.
Its limbs resembled elongated sticks.
It wore no clothing, and its smooth body showed no visible signs of gender.
Bubble Person
Disaster Classification: D-Rank
Special Ability: Bubble Mist
Bubble Person continuously generated enormous quantities of soap bubbles.
Anyone who came into contact with those bubbles would immediately become overwhelmed by intense fatigue before eventually falling asleep.
Its last recorded appearance had occurred during an outdoor music festival.
The bubbles it released caused more than four hundred audience members and staff to collapse into sudden sleep.
Many people were injured during the resulting panic.
Several victims even suffered broken bones after falling.
“…”
You Xi blinked.
This thing… actually looks kind of weak.
Honestly, she couldn’t imagine losing against an opponent like this.
Her confidence quickly replaced the nervousness she’d been feeling moments earlier.
Now…
It was time.
She slowly reached into her school bag and removed a delicate crystal ornament.
The prism-shaped crystal shimmered with countless colors beneath the fading sunlight.
Holding it carefully, she gently pressed it against the center of her chest.
At once…
Magic responded.
Radiant light burst from the crystal, scattering the darkness surrounding her.
Streams of brilliant energy flowed toward the prism from every direction.
As the crystal filled with light, a crimson flame ignited deep within its core.
Since ancient times…
Fire had represented both creation…
And destruction.
It burned everything without mercy, reducing all things to ashes.
Yet at the same time, it had guided humanity out of primitive darkness and into civilization.
Now…
That same primordial power, combined with the Soul Gem, would become the weapon wielded by the magical girl—
Raging Flame.
No one knew exactly when Aberrations first appeared in this world.
Likewise…
No one knew when the first magical girl was born.
Ordinary girls, each carrying their own wishes and regrets, accepted contracts that transformed them into humanity’s guardians.
They fought.
They protected.
They sacrificed.
And now…
One more girl had joined their ranks.
“I’ll defeat the Sky Person…”
You Xi tightened her grip around the Soul Gem.
“No…”
“I’ll defeat every Aberration.”
“I’ll drive every last one of them out of this world.”
Those words were the promise she had made to her Connector on the day she signed the contract.
The pain of losing both parents.
The loneliness of being left behind.
The anger buried deep inside her heart.
The longing she could never let go.
All of it would become strength.
All of it would become justice.
Holding the Soul Gem tightly in both hands, the girl shouted the miraculous incantation.
“Magical Girl…”
“…Raging Flame—”
“Transform!”
…Am I spoiling that child too much?
Meanwhile…
You Dong sat alone on a bench inside the hospital’s designated smoking area.
A cigarette rested between his fingers while his thoughts drifted elsewhere.
At his feet sat an impressive collection of gifts.
Fruit baskets.
Fresh flowers.
Gift boxes.
Nutritional supplements.
Practically everything sold near the hospital entrance.
Having never visited someone in the hospital under these circumstances before, You Dong simply bought one of everything.
At the very least…
He wanted to show his sincerity.
Unfortunately…
He had arrived too late.
Just as he finished carrying everything inside and called Mo Li’s parents to ask for the hospital room number, they informed him that the injuries weren’t serious.
After the examination, they had already gone home.
Although they agreed to let him visit another day to apologize in person…
He suddenly found himself with absolutely nothing to do.
His first instinct was to call You Xi.
He wanted to ask where she was.
What she was doing.
Whether she’d gotten into more trouble.
But…
He hesitated.
He was afraid she’d find him annoying.
Afraid she’d reject him again.
It had happened so many times over the years that even dialing her number had become something he feared.
Beep. Beep.
A notification sounded.
It was from V-Chat.
The sender was…
Chen Xi.
His girlfriend—
No.
His ex-girlfriend.
Nowadays, most couples blocked each other immediately after breaking up.
You Dong never liked that idea.
Even if they couldn’t remain lovers…
He still hoped they could someday become ordinary friends.
If she ever needed help, he would gladly lend her a hand.
A message appeared.
I forgot something earlier.
You Dong immediately opened the chat.
What is i—
He hadn’t even finished typing when another message arrived.
It wasn’t text.
It was a sticker.
A giant yellow bean-shaped cartoon character appeared on the screen…
Raising its middle finger directly at him.
Below it were two simple words.
Feels great!
“…”
Without saying a word, You Dong deleted the unfinished message.
Then he quietly exited V-Chat.
He had once heard people say that boys around seven or eight years old reached the age where even dogs disliked them.
Apparently…
Turning thirty wasn’t much different.
“We interrupt this program with breaking news.”
The television hanging inside the smoking area suddenly switched away from its endless anti-smoking advertisements.
A live news broadcast appeared.
“The suspect responsible for the mass sleep incident at the Watermelon Music Festival four months ago—Bubble Person—has been confirmed to appear at approximately 4:20 this afternoon inside Sunshine Shopping Plaza, Xiapu District, Shangjing City.”
“Our reporter is currently on scene…”
Everyone in the smoking lounge instinctively looked up.
The live footage showed the entire shopping plaza already under emergency lockdown.
Crowds fled in panic.
Store shutters slammed closed.
Only one figure remained standing calmly in the middle of the street.
A tall…
Thin…
Pale-blue humanoid.
Rainbow-colored bubbles continuously drifted from its body as it slowly approached the camera.
“Hah.”
One middle-aged man snorted.
“This ugly thing looks weak. I’d take it down with one slide tackle.”
Another scoffed.
“It’s only D-Rank.”
“Give me a sniper rifle.”
“I’d finish it with one shot.”
The smoking room instantly filled with self-proclaimed experts.
You Dong couldn’t help smiling bitterly.
People can always sound fearless…
…when they’re watching from somewhere safe.
The next instant—
A crimson beam of light tore through the sky.
Boom!!
It crashed directly into Bubble Person’s location.
Flames exploded outward.
The camera lens blurred from the heat.
When the image finally came back into focus…
Bubble Person was gone.
Standing proudly where it once had been was a girl.
She rested an enormous greatsword casually on one shoulder while twin blades hung at her sides.
Everything about her was red.
A crimson dress.
Crimson eyes.
Crimson ribbons.
Crimson twin ponytails dancing wildly in the scorching air.
That overwhelming unity of color…
Had become the unmistakable trademark of magical girls.
Magical Girl Raging Flame.
A newcomer who had only debuted two months earlier.
The crowd erupted into thunderous applause.
Even the television reporter hurried forward.
After all…
Interviewing a magical girl in person was an incredibly rare opportunity.
Unfortunately…
Like nearly every magical girl before her…
Raging Flame had absolutely no interest in facing cameras.
After ending the battle with a single overwhelming strike, she effortlessly lifted the massive sword onto her shoulder.
Her knees bent slightly.
Then—
Whoosh!
Without relying on any visible magic circles or machinery, she launched herself skyward through sheer physical strength alone.
In a blink…
She vanished into the sky.
That was the terrifying power possessed by magical girls.
Bodies that appeared delicate…
Yet contained enough explosive force to rival rockets.
The crisis ended almost as quickly as it began.
Peace gradually returned to Shangjing City.
With nothing left to report, the news station replayed footage captured from several different camera angles.
One close-up lingered on Raging Flame’s face.
The instant it appeared…
You Dong shot to his feet.
The burning cigarette slipped from his fingers and landed on his suit pants, scorching a black mark into the fabric.
“H-How…”
His pupils contracted violently.
Although the girl’s hairstyle was different.
Although she was slightly shorter.
Although her hair color had changed completely…
There was no possibility he could mistake her.
Not someone so precious.
People who truly mattered…
Didn’t need appearances to recognize one another.
They recognized each other by instinct.
“…You…”
His voice trembled.
“You Xi?!”
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