Chapter 23: A Rebellious Resolve and a Swimsuit Predicament

Su Qianyu was certain her memory served her well.

What’s more, the incident had clearly transpired only a short while ago.

Hurriedly picking up the crystal from the ground, she found it was still emitting waves of heat and vibration.

‘Peculiar… rather suggestive?’

A certain four-character, white-haired divine being couldn’t help but spring to mind.

The one facing the table corner, 0721.

With two swift shakes, Su Qianyu hastily banished those ‘dirty thoughts’ from her mind.

‘Haha, what am I even thinking?’

‘How could a magical girl possibly have such things?’

‘Besides, I’m not even a magical girl myself.’

With that, Su Qianyu once again immersed herself in the feast.

Of course, beyond simply eating, Su Qianyu’s attention remained keenly fixed on the conversations of those around her.

To put it bluntly, she was eavesdropping.

Knowing that Qincai hailed from an influential family, it stood to reason that those attending this banquet were far from ordinary.

Perhaps a snippet of their casual chatter could provide the leverage she needed to bring down Illo.

Unfortunately, Su Qianyu had grossly overestimated these individuals.

The information she gleaned wasn’t entirely useless; it was just that not a single piece of it proved applicable.

Worse yet, some, upon noticing her, even approached specifically to inquire whose ‘plaything’ she might be.

Hearing their ‘compliments,’ Su Qianyu’s face darkened considerably.

‘Tsk, this fellow truly lacks discernment.’

‘Collar or no collar, must I automatically be someone’s pet?’

‘It’s an insult, a profound insult.’

Realizing there was genuinely no useful information to be gleaned anytime soon, Su Qianyu reluctantly gave up, redirecting her attention to the exquisite dishes before her.

As the old adage goes, a thief never leaves empty-handed.

If she couldn’t gather useful intelligence, then at least she could fill her stomach—that much was perfectly acceptable.

As she surveyed the bustling banquet hall, Su Qianyu suddenly recalled that she still hadn’t responded to the Sub-Moderator.

Staring at the glowing screen, Su Qianyu drew a deep breath.

As if having finally reached a momentous decision, the little fox girl resolutely placed her fingers upon the keyboard.

She typed, then sent!

“I accept.”

“However, I’ll need to pick the date myself.”

As mere online acquaintances, an impulsive offline meeting was clearly ill-advised.

Yet, given her current predicament, how much worse could things possibly become?

Rather than confronting unknown dangers, Su Qianyu was more inclined to believe that the other party truly could offer her assistance.

At the very least, it offered her a glimmer of hope.

Not far away, Illo, in the midst of congratulating Qincai, felt her phone vibrate and promptly retrieved it.

“Hold on, I need to send a reply.”

Qincai, glancing at the anonymous netizen’s avatar, looked quite surprised.

“Who is that? How does this person have compromising information on you?”

Illo, however, merely let out a dismissive snort, then continued to type her reply.

“Her? Just a mere fool.”

Shortly thereafter, Su Qianyu received a response.

Reading the ‘little essay’ (TL Note: A Chinese slang term referring to a long, detailed message, often implying a complaint or detailed explanation, sometimes used sarcastically) displayed on the screen, Su Qianyu’s resolve to rebel solidified even further.

‘Between people, there are no eternal friends, only eternal interests.’

Letting out a long breath, the little fox girl popped a piece of fruit into her mouth.

In retrospect, the other party’s actions were, in fact, quite logical.

Since she could offer compromising information about magical girls, it was only natural that the other party would be willing to assist her.

If there was anything truly illogical about the situation, it was the sheer scale of the other party’s operation.

To maintain such a vast scale while remaining perfectly clandestine—Su Qianyu hadn’t encountered many organizations like it, even before her rebirth.

****

The banquet concluded, and everyone dispersed to their respective homes.

Tonight, her nascent rebellion remained, once again, undetected.

However, when Qincai offered to drive them both home, Illo simply waved her hand, politely declining Qincai’s kind offer.

“There’s no need. I’ll just fly back myself.”

“Ahaha, I almost forgot you were a magical girl.”

Yet, glancing at Su Qianyu standing quietly beside them, Qincai’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“Then… what about her?”

“Oh, her? I’ll simply carry her back with me.”

With that, Illo reached out and took hold of Qincai.

“So, would it be convenient for you to take me to your rooftop?”

****

Under the suburban night sky, stars twinkled profusely, and the moon hung, still brilliantly luminous.

Locating a secluded corner out of Qincai’s sight, Illo transformed into her Monstrous Strength Witch state.

“So, how exactly do magical girls transform?”

Qincai remarked, her gaze fixed on the transformed Illo.

No matter how closely she observed, she still found it incredibly difficult to fathom how magical girls achieved such instantaneous costume changes.

“You’ll know once you become a magical girl yourself.”

“Such a perilous profession? No thank you.”

Upon seeing Qincai’s reaction, Illo refrained from further idle chatter and simply waved her hand.

“Alright, if there’s nothing else, I’ll be taking my leave now?”

A moment later, Illo, quite literally, hoisted Su Qianyu into the air and soared into the night sky.

The night wind remained quite cold.

Still, she had grown somewhat accustomed to it.

Shrinking her neck, which was being held aloft, Su Qianyu dangled from Illo’s hand like a *teru teru bozu* (TL Note: A traditional Japanese doll made of white paper or cloth, hung by a string to pray for good weather).

The moon was exceptionally bright, yet its light felt piercingly cold.

Logically, creatures such as foxes shouldn’t be particularly susceptible to the cold.

After all, with a thick coat of fur, how cold could they truly get?

Fox girls, however, were different; fox girls had no fur.

Yet, Su Qianyu reconsidered, realizing that assertion was, in fact, incorrect.

She still possessed fur.

Lost in her whimsical thoughts, Illo gradually began to descend.

However, as she observed their flight path leading not homeward but towards the commercial district, a silent question mark formed in Su Qianyu’s mind.

“Um, aren’t we heading back?”

As Illo slowly descended, Su Qianyu ventured to ask.

Illo, however, did not immediately reply. Instead, she sought out a deserted area and dispelled her transformation.

“Have you forgotten that there’s swimming class tomorrow?”

“Wait, you aren’t suggesting…?”

Staring at Illo, the expression on Su Qianyu’s face slowly morphed into one of abject terror.

“You aren’t planning to wear *my* swimsuit, are you?”

With a mischievous grin spreading across her face, Illo deposited Su Qianyu onto the bustling main street.

“Alright, come on. Do you want to pick a store yourself, or should I choose one for you?”

The street teemed with a kaleidoscope of shop signs, and Su Qianyu cast another hopeful glance at Illo, but met only with her unwavering coercion.

Left with no other recourse, Su Qianyu simply closed her eyes and arbitrarily stepped into the nearest shop.

A familiar electronic chime announced her arrival, followed by a cheerful “Welcome!” and Illo trailing closely behind.

Upon noticing Su Qianyu’s pair of fox ears, the shop assistant initially appeared somewhat flustered.

However, the sight of the collar around Su Qianyu’s neck, coupled with Illo’s composed demeanor behind her, quickly brought a look of relief back to their face.

“Welcome! Please tell me… what may I help you two with?”

The assistant addressed the two individuals before them, but despite saying “you two,” even they understood that the one truly in charge was the person standing behind.

“Find her a swimsuit. Do you have any?”

Her words remained terse and forceful.

The assistant, understanding immediately, quickly led the two deeper into the shop.

Yet, upon seeing the garments displayed within, Su Qianyu couldn’t help but frown.

‘Are these swimsuits… even *proper* swimsuits?!’

She knew that women’s swimsuits tended to be rather ‘suggestive.’

‘But what the hell are these clearly lingerie-style clothes?’

As they walked further down the corridor, the swimsuits displayed seemed to use less and less fabric.

“Um, do you have any more… normal ones?”

Grabbing one at random and seeing the deliberately cut-out private areas, Su Qianyu hastily held it further away.

It wasn’t for any other reason than that she had seen such things before.

This was practically screaming, ‘For filming purposes only.’

As an experienced former pilot, Su Qianyu prided herself on her extensive knowledge.

She absolutely refused to wear something like this!

Humans are creatures of compromise, and Su Qianyu was no different.

Soon, Su Qianyu promptly selected a swimsuit with the most fabric she could find.

She would rather wear this than any of the bizarre alternatives.

However, Illo merely looked at Su Qianyu with a wicked smirk, silently plucking the chosen swimsuit from Su Qianyu’s arms and tossing it to the ground.

“Hello, please bring me one of every swimsuit type, excluding this one.”

As if fearing Su Qianyu might still resist, Illo added, “And, of course, don’t bring any with too much fabric.”