Chapter 56: Part (4): Uneasy Leisure

Sunlight poured through the tall glass windows of the cafeteria, spilling across the tiled floor. Xia Kexin, Luo Anying, and Lu Qisi had come straight here after the morning session, taking seats by the window. They’d just finished a hearty lunch.

After all, Kexin hadn’t eaten much that morning—though unlike Luo Anying, she didn’t openly admit it.

The three of them lingered at the table, savoring the aftertaste of their meal as they chatted in low voices.

“Gotta say, the food here is really good. It’s been ages since I ate this much,” Qisi said with a satisfied grin, even letting out a small burp.

“Seriously? I think it’s pretty standard. You probably just eat too much weird stuff normally. And don’t forget—this afternoon’s all practical training.”

If Kexin didn’t cook at the apartment, Qisi’s diet would mostly consist of those bland, “high-protein fitness meal” recipes she found online. Sometimes she even relied on energy bars as meals.

“Don’t worry, I’ll burn it all off soon enough.” Qisi waved off Kexin’s concern and patted her slightly rounded stomach.

“You better,” Kexin sighed, wiping the corner of her mouth with a napkin, still sounding unconvinced.

Just then, Luo Anying set down her chopsticks.

“Satisfied~,” she murmured, stretching lazily before standing up and heading for the exit.

“Senior Luo, where are you going?”

“Back to my room. Nap.”

Eat and sleep, huh… Kexin watched her senior’s retreating back, puzzled, then nodded to herself. Maybe that was perfectly normal after all.

“So… there’s something I’m not sure if I should say.”

“Hmm? To me?”

Kexin turned back to find Qisi fidgeting, her expression caught somewhere between hesitation and curiosity. She glanced at Kexin, then quickly turned her gaze toward the window.

“I mean, maybe I’m overthinking it, but—wait, Kexin, are you nervous right now?”

“Me? Nervous? How’d you figure that?”

Kexin didn’t feel nervous at all—or so she thought.

“Because usually you’re not the type to think too much about things. You don’t really go out of your way to talk to people either. But right now, you’re acting kind of… different. So I thought maybe something’s bothering you.”

“That’s how you think of me?”

That sounded like she was describing someone totally antisocial.

“Hard to explain, it’s just a gut feeling. Like something’s throwing you off-balance—making you restless.”

Kexin was silent for a moment, then sighed.

“Well… yeah, there is something that’s been bugging me.”
After a short pause, she decided she might as well ask while the topic was open.
“Can you tell me what really happened last time? When the Corpse Mother appeared?”

“That question, huh… To be honest, I don’t know that much either. But I can tell you what I do know.”

“Go ahead.”

From Qisi’s perspective, everything had begun without warning. She’d been about to go to bed when she suddenly got an emergency order to deploy.

By the time she reached the battle zone, she realized that the number and strength of the monsters were far beyond usual. Practically every magical girl in Muzhou City had been mobilized.

At first, Qisi thought it was a monster tide, but something about it didn’t quite fit.

When her area was finally cleared, her radio crackled—she was ordered to support Silver Squad. But on the way there, even more monsters appeared, forcing her to stop and fight several times.

By the time she finally arrived, all she found was devastation. Reinforcements were just arriving from other directions, and together they discovered the bodies of three Silver Squad members.

One was missing—never found, not even a trace.

“Silver Squad?” Kexin tried to recall the name, but it didn’t ring any bells.

“Their files were sealed after that incident. Anyone who joined the Bureau afterward wouldn’t know about them.”

“That’s… odd. Normally, even with casualties, they wouldn’t lock the records. Unless—”

Kexin cut herself off before finishing that thought. Better not say too much. Someone might be listening.

“Anyway, I never saw the Corpse Mother myself,” Qisi continued. “But from the traces left at the scene, the investigators concluded she was the cause. The report said her appearance stirred up the other monsters, making them unusually active.”

“Hmm…”

That matched the official files Kexin had seen—but that was exactly what bothered her. Every magical girl’s transformation gear automatically recorded combat footage, like a body cam. There should have been solid video evidence.

So why only traces? Did every recorder just ‘malfunction’? That’s too much of a coincidence.

“By the way,” Qisi added, “one freelance magical girl got caught in the aftermath. She ran into a monster way above her level—ended up in a coma. Still hasn’t woken up.”

“Really?” Kexin feigned surprise, but deep down, she knew exactly who that was.

“No one knows where all those monsters came from. It’s like they just appeared on command, all at once.”

“On command? Monsters aren’t an army. Who’d be giving them orders?”

And if they did have that level of organization, humanity would’ve been wiped out centuries ago.

“Fair point.”

“Anyway, it’s almost time. Let’s go—we’ve been sitting here long enough, and I’d rather not be late.”

Kexin looked around the cafeteria. Only a few people remained, mostly regular Bureau staff. The magical girls, with their distinctive uniforms and cute accessories, stood out easily.

She stood, leading the way toward the exit. A short nap before afternoon training didn’t sound bad at all.

---

Break time flew by. After waking a deeply sleeping Luo Anying, Kexin set off for the training field. The walkways were full of magical girls heading the same way.

Just as they neared the shooting range, Kexin spotted two familiar figures in the crowd — Ye Ziyue and Gu Yanhán. They’d just stepped down from a jeep and were heading her way.

As always, Gu Yanhán stayed glued to Ye Ziyue’s side.

“Good afternoon, Xia Kexin,” Ye Ziyue greeted first, spotting her immediately.

“Oh, it is you! Didn’t even see you there just now,” Gu Yanhán said cheerfully.

Maybe try looking where you’re walking next time, Kexin thought, suppressing the urge to comment. She simply nodded.

“Your assignment’s done already?”

The two were also listed among the trainees, but they’d been given extra fieldwork en route. Seeing them here now probably meant they’d wrapped things up.

“Yeah. We ran all over the place, but thanks to little Ye here, we dug up some useful leads.”

Gu Yanhán’s tone carried a note of pride whenever she mentioned Ye Ziyue.

Kexin had long stopped reacting to their couple-like dynamic. Honestly, they should just move in together and spare the rest of us their daily flirting.

“You don’t look too happy, Kexin.”

“Knowing that thing is out there… how could anyone be?” she said with a faint, strained smile.

Gu Yanhán, normally a bit dense, caught on immediately.

“Yeah… good point. Oh hey—this must be the famous sniper, Luo Anying, right? You two know each other?”

At the mention of her name, Luo Anying—already stepping through the range gates—turned, her eyes quickly scanning the pair.

“Met recently,” she said simply.

“Oh~ sounds like Muzhou’s been busy while we were away.”

“Busy, yeah,” Kexin replied. “But compared to what’s coming, that was nothing.”

The Spider Mutant she’d fought before had been tough—too tough for her at her current level. But that was only because her magic control was still crude. With higher-level spells, she could’ve handled it easily.

The Corpse Mother, however, was on an entirely different scale.

“Anyway, we should go report to Agent Guan,” Gu Yanhán said. “We found some… interesting stuff this time.”

“Interesting, huh…”

Kexin doubted anything related to the Corpse Mother could be “interesting.”

They parted ways soon after—Gu Yanhán and Ye Ziyue heading toward the Bureau offices, while Kexin and Luo Anying entered the shooting range.

The other trainees looked visibly excited; for most of them, this would be their first time firing real guns with live ammo.

Of course, before that, the safety officers and instructors would run a full briefing—these weren’t toys, after all.

Following the guide chart, Kexin reached a corner section separated from the main range. It wasn’t a typical open firing lane, but a maze of narrow wooden partitions.

As expected of the advanced training plan—this was CQB: Close Quarters Battle. For magical girls, most real combat happened in cities, and the goal was to eliminate monsters discreetly without public chaos.

Sure, a massive magic blast could solve things faster—but it would also give the PR department a heart attack.

The sight of the mock urban setup brought a small grin to Kexin’s lips. Finally, something more fun than lectures. The nearby counter was stocked with an impressive array of weapons and gear.

“This afternoon, we’ll be working on advanced firearm techniques and live simulation drills,” came a familiar voice from the entrance.

Kexin didn’t even have to look—she knew it was Instructor Jiang Xuelu. Wasn’t she the theory lecturer?

Well, considering she was a veteran magical girl, it made sense she’d handle combat training too.

And she was alone—meaning one instructor for over a dozen students.

“Most of you have handled weapons before,” Jiang began. “But before we start, I’ll review the basics.
First—whenever you pick up a gun, assume it’s loaded. If you’re not sure, check.”

She picked up a pistol as she spoke, removed the magazine, and racked the slide twice, showing the chamber was clear.

“Second, never rest your finger on the trigger unless you intend to fire. Accidental discharges happen when you forget that.”

“Third, never point the muzzle at anything you don’t plan to shoot. A gun is a weapon—its aim should always be deliberate. Now, everyone, grab a weapon and get a feel for it.”

The moment Jiang finished, Kexin was already at the counter, picking through the guns.

She knew firearms far better than most. Her hands moved fluidly as she selected a Glock 19X, identical to her magical weapon’s base form. Within seconds, she had disassembled and reassembled it with practiced ease.

“Group Leader Xia, you seem quite familiar with guns,” Tang Yu’an said beside her, curiosity glinting in her eyes.

It was true—magical weapons might resemble firearms, but their inner workings were entirely different. Most magical girls would never think to take theirs apart.

“Hmm? Oh, that?” Kexin smiled lightly, coming up with a lie on the spot. “My family’s from the countryside. We run a farm, so we keep a few guns around for wild boars and such. I just picked up a bit of knowledge that way.”

She placed the pistol back neatly. “And Glocks like this are pretty common models.”

Tang Yu’an nodded, a thoughtful glimmer flickering in her gaze.

“These here are AR-15 variants,” Kexin continued, gesturing to the rifles. “Different manufacturers, but same platform, same controls.”

She went on explaining, pointing out everything from lightweight assault rifles to full-power SCAR-Hs and .338-caliber sniper rifles like the AWM straight out of FPS games.

Of course, Jiang Xuelu noticed.

“You there—the one with pink hair. Yes, you. Come be my assistant.”

“Me?”

Not knowing what that entailed, Kexin hesitated, but still walked up. Jiang immediately strapped a tactical vest, helmet, and goggles onto her.

A bad feeling crept up Kexin’s spine.

“Can I, uh, opt out?”

“Nope. Go on—open that door.”

Dozens of eyes were watching her now; there was no way to back out without dying of embarrassment. Reluctantly, Kexin approached the wooden door Jiang pointed to.

The moment she pulled it open—

BANG-BANG-BANG!

A barrage of colorful paint rounds exploded across her body.

When she stumbled back out, she was splattered head to toe in neon blotches.

“And that,” Jiang said calmly, “is today’s first lesson—the funnel of death. When breaching a room, the doorway forms a deadly zone where all enemy fire converges. Always mind your position before you enter—otherwise…”

She gestured at Kexin’s paint-covered figure.

“…you end up like this.”

Through her paint-smeared goggles, Kexin glared murderously in Jiang’s direction. She couldn’t even see her properly.

So Qisi was right… this woman really is a demon incarnate.

“Told you so,” Qisi’s voice snickered from somewhere behind her.