Chapter 12: So, Senpai, Did You Spend Money on That Outfit?

That afternoon, Lin Yu endured a “workday” in the office that could only be described as pure torture.
On paper, his job was to “familiarize himself with business procedures.”
In reality, it meant sitting at his desk and scrolling through the company intranet’s heavily redacted, mind-numbingly dull “case reports from the past.”

Meanwhile, his senior—and the root of his current troubles—Ye Ye Ying, spent the entire time with her headphones on.
She was either immersed in some hardcore mecha game or fiddling with weapon parameters that Lin Yu couldn’t begin to understand.

The two exchanged not a single word.
The silence was so oppressive it felt like he could hear the dust settling.

Finally, six o’clock came, and Lin Yu practically fled the company.
Back in his cramped ten-square-meter “hive” apartment, he wolfed down a perfunctory dinner.
Yet, a restless agitation lingered in his chest.

Tonight at eleven, he would face his first real mission.
Live rounds. No simulations.
To say he wasn’t nervous would be a lie.
He had already “died” 457 times in the simulator.
But that was just training.
In the real world, there was no such thing as a “safety threshold.”

“Ding-dong—”

His phone terminal chimed.
It was his younger sister, Lin Xue, calling for a video chat.

Lin Yu hesitated for a moment before answering.
On the screen appeared a face that resembled his by seven or eight parts, but was far more delicate and lively.
She wore a white research coat, and her background seemed to be a university laboratory.

“Ge, Mom said you found a really amazing job, with a high salary? So? How was your first day—are you used to it?” Lin Xue’s tone brimmed with curiosity.

“It’s fine. Just a regular tech post, the kind that does collaboration projects with [Sky Dome Group].”
Lin Yu lied without batting an eye.

“What kind of tech post pays twenty thousand a month?”
Suspicion crept into her voice.
“Ge, did you get scammed by some shady company? I’m telling you, there are tons of outfits these days using high-tech as a front, preying on people like you who don’t have much—”

(Lacking social experience? Damn it… as if I don’t want to have social experience!)

Lin Yu felt like he’d taken an arrow to the knee.

“Relax, it’s a proper company. Full benefits, everything by the book.”
He forcibly shifted the topic.
“What about you? How’s your project over at [Ruikang]?”

At the mention of her field, Lin Xue’s eyes lit up with pride.
“Mm! We’ve reached a critical phase recently. Dr. Reed is leading us on a major breakthrough.
To put it simply, it’s about directed cultivation and application of new bio-proteins.
If successful, the synthetic food produced by [New Agricultural Union] will have even better taste and nutrition!
It’s a tough process—we’ve burned through a lot of culture medium—but today, we finally made a breakthrough!”

(Bio-proteins… directed cultivation? Sounds pretty advanced.)

Lin Yu didn’t understand a word of the technical jargon.
All he could grasp was that his sister was engaged in work so meaningful it could change the world.
That thought filled him with genuine pride for her.
At the same time, it cast his own shadowy, unmentionable job in a dim and bitter light.

“Xiaoxue,” he couldn’t help but remind her, “no matter how important the project, don’t push yourself too hard. Take care of your health.”

“Don’t worry, Ge!”
Lin Xue’s reply was matter-of-fact.
“All our experiments are carried out in top-grade bio-containment labs. Security’s stricter than the mayor’s office.
Stop worrying about me. You, on the other hand—just don’t let anyone scam you.”

“Do I look like the type who’s easy to scam?” Lin Yu chuckled.

The siblings exchanged a few more casual words before Lin Xue was called away by her professor.
The room fell silent once more.
He sighed, opened his messages, and double-checked the night’s mission briefing.

[Mission ID: C-0734]
[Operation Time: 23:00]
[Client: Xinhai City Emergency Management Bureau – Special Disaster Response Unit]
[Objective: Purify the single contamination source at Line 7’s abandoned B7 station, collect an energy sample. Site damage must remain minimal.]
[Enemy Type: Energy fluctuations suggest a single [Naku] lineage, D-class “Primordial.”]
[Personnel: [Obsidian] (lead), [Gray Crystal] (support)]
[Recommended Armaments: D-class mission standard, use of [Standard-Issue Psionic Armament] only.]

Everything looked straightforward.
Almost like a beginner’s tutorial.

(Single target, D-class… Deep night op. Shouldn’t be anyone else around, right?)

Lin Yu comforted himself.
With that pitiful bit of self-hypnosis, he set his alarm and forced himself to nap.

***

10:45 p.m.
Xinhai City, District B, Hive Zone outskirts.

A black, unmarked van ghosted to a halt outside a massive, fenced-off abandoned subway entrance, plastered with “Do Not Enter” signs.
Inside, the air was stifling.

Manager Qian sat in the passenger seat, sipping goji tea from a thermos, checking data on his terminal. He looked every bit the ordinary overworked middle manager.

Lin Yu and Ye Ye Ying sat in the back, separated by just enough space for a third passenger.
Lin Yu fidgeted, visibly ill at ease.
Ye Ye Ying, however, had her noise-canceling headphones on, eyes closed, as if the person beside her were not human but a bag of potatoes fresh from the supermarket.

(This is so damn awkward… way too awkward…)

Lin Yu felt like a nervous son-in-law meeting his mafia father-in-law for the first time.
And the girl beside him was that mafia father-in-law.

“Uh… Senpai…”
Unable to hold back, he finally spoke.
“Where… where are you from?”

The second the words left his mouth, he wanted to slap himself.
Manager Qian had already told him earlier: she was a foreign recruit from Japan.

Sure enough, Ye Ye Ying gave no response.
Whether the headphones were too loud or she simply didn’t care, he couldn’t tell.

Thinking better of it, Lin Yu decided silence wasn’t an option.
Building rapport with his senior was crucial.

“Uh… sennpai?” he raised his voice.

At last, Ye Ye Ying impatiently pulled off one side of her headset and glanced at him with deep sapphire-blue eyes.
“What?”

“I… I just wanted to ask… what music are you listening to?”

(Damn it, Lin Yu, you idiot! What a stupid question!)
He wanted to slap himself again.

Her gaze sharpened, carrying an unmistakable “are you stupid” vibe.
Rather than waste words, she simply tilted her terminal screen toward him.

Displayed in bold letters: [HeavenEveryDayHellCountry].

(What… the hell is that?)

Lin Yu wasn’t much into music, but judging by the cover art, it was definitely some anime stuff. Cute, at least.

(Suits her age, I guess. Little girls like this kind of thing, right? Xue seems to like that two-dimensional stuff too…)

He was about to say more when Manager Qian’s voice drifted from the front seat.

“Alright, you two.”
Setting down his thermos, he turned, his smile oddly inscrutable in the dim cabin light.
“You know the mission details. Remember, [Gray Crystal], this is your first real deployment. Follow [Obsidian]’s lead in everything. Your role is to observe, learn, and provide covering fire if needed.”

Ye Ye Ying nodded faintly.
But Lin Yu raised a hand: “Um, Manager Qian… what if we run into human enemies? I read in the manual there’s special equipment for that…”

Qian chuckled. “Oh, so you did study the manual, huh?
Relax. The company allows you to carry a 9mm [Physical Firearm] for self-defense.
After all, our [Standard Psionic Armament]’s bullets only cause severe mental shock against ordinary humans with no psionic resistance. Basically, it knocks them out. Fatal damage is unlikely, and psionic rounds are expensive—wasting them on regular people is pointless.

On the other hand, physical guns do little against [Contaminants]. You can hurt them, sure, but it’s like stabbing a tire with a toothpick. Inefficient. Professional tools for professional jobs, got it? Cost reduction, efficiency increase!”

(Cost reduction, efficiency increase… again! That phrase is carved into this guy’s DNA! Wait… does that mean we’ll have to buy our own bullets someday?!)

Lin Yu inwardly grimaced.
(No way… right?)

Qian then turned to Ye Ye Ying, pulling a black gun case from beneath the seat.
“Here, Xiaoying, your backup tool. Gun control’s tight in Xinhai. Normally it’s nearly impossible to get this [firearm permit]. Only because tonight’s mission site is remote and might need physical obstacle clearing did we get it approved. Use it, then return it to Logistics for sealing.”

Wordlessly, she accepted the case, opened it, and checked the compact pistol and three magazines inside.

Lin Yu’s eyes burned with envy.
He recognized it instantly—a Glock 43X.

(Physical firearm… only A-rank elites get to carry them? That’s so unfair! I want to try it too…)

“Quick in, quick out. Logistics is waiting two kilometers away.” Qian gave his final reminder.

“Mm.” Ye Ye Ying exhaled a single nasal syllable, pushed the door open, and stepped out.

Lin Yu hurriedly shouldered his tactical pouch and followed.

The abandoned subway entrance loomed like a ravenous beast, mouth yawning wide.
Cold wind gusted from within, reeking of rust, mold, and rotting unknowns.

“Prepare.”
Ye Ye Ying’s voice cut through the night.

She unfastened her black hoodie’s collar, revealing an obsidian pin that shimmered like midnight stars.
With slender fingers, she tapped it and whispered: “[Obsidian], activate.”

In the next instant, deep-blue light blossomed like a rose around her.
When it faded, her casual clothes were gone, replaced by a combat dress that merged cuteness and cool in perfect balance.

A fitted black cavalry jacket trimmed with silver epaulets and cords.
A flared Gothic skirt of layered deep-blue lace embroidered with golden star-trails.
Over-the-knee black stockings and neat officer’s boots completed the look.

Chic and sweet, powerful and unfairly adorable.

Lin Yu stared, dumbfounded.
(This transformation is way too cool! Why her?!)

Drawing a deep breath, he pressed his own [Gray Crystal] pin, awkwardly murmuring in his head: “Uh… Gray Crystal?”

Nothing.

“Activate?”

A faint pink glow enveloped him.
This time was different from the simulator.
His senses sharpened to an unbearable degree.
He could hear the creak of his bones compressing.
He could smell rust and mold magnified a hundredfold.
He could feel every inch of his skin raw and hypersensitive.

When the glow dissipated, he was clad in the same generic mass-produced blue schoolgirl uniform.
But everything felt different.
His balance had shifted, his height lowered.
A soft weight pressed against his chest, impossible to ignore.

And then—
A cold, damp gust from the tunnel swept straight between his legs.
A chilling, utterly defenseless sensation rushed upward.
His cheeks flushed crimson, sweat standing on end.

His body tensed, legs clamping together.
Instinctively, his right hand shot back, pressing down hard on the flimsy blue pleated skirt.

(So this is what it feels like to wear a skirt outside?! There’s no security! What if someone sees?! Wait—only this girl is here… That’s even worse! She’ll see me and—argh!!!)

Shame, awkwardness, and primal fear of the dark overwhelmed him like a wave.
He felt like a plucked chicken dumped into icy water, every inch of skin screaming danger and hide.

Just then, his earpiece crackled with Manager Qian’s genial voice.
“[Gray Crystal], don’t be nervous. First missions are always awkward. Think of that uniform as your battle robe, a symbol of honor. Tell me, how many men in this company get to wear it? You’re one of a kind! It’s the director’s trust, the company’s expectations!”

(Expectations?! Expectations for me to fight monsters in a skirt?! What kind of BS expectation is that?!)

Far from comfort, Qian’s words only made his face burn hotter.

“And remember, Xiao Lin,” Qian’s tone grew earnest,
“we call you [Magical Girls] not just for the nature of the work. It’s a powerful psychological suggestion.
Truly believe you are a cute girl protecting the city, and your mental fortitude strengthens. That belief shields you from subspace erosion. It’s wisdom written in blood and tears, meant for your own good.”

(…A cute girl protecting the city?)

Lin Yu wanted to crush the damn earpiece.

“What are you doing?”
A cold voice snapped him back.

He looked up.
Ye Ye Ying stood a few steps down, turning back to fix him with those unfeeling sapphire eyes.
There was no ridicule in them—only the disdain reserved for observing lower lifeforms.

“Can’t even stabilize your psionic field to keep your skirt down?”
Her voice echoed in the cavernous station.
“Excess shame only creates fatal openings. Keep up.”

With that, she turned away, her petite figure blending into the darkness like a night owl.

Lin Yu looked from her fading silhouette to his own pitiful state, his face flushing hot then pale.
Grinding his teeth, he released his grip on the skirt and let the cold wind whip through.

(Damn it! Whatever. I’m already here… so what if it’s chilly? I’ll endure!)

Muttering through clenched teeth, he forced his slender, unsteady legs into motion and chased after her.

One behind the other, their figures vanished into the depths of black.

In his earpiece, Manager Qian’s warm voice droned on:
“That’s the spirit. Look at [Obsidian], such a fine example. Learn from her, adjust your mindset, and soon enough you’ll be an outstanding Magical Girl who brings real value to the company. I believe in you!”