Chapter 38: A Grandfather’s Plea and a Desperate Hope

After a moment of contemplation, Ye Yunchu finally lowered the Jade Spirit Tree from her forehead.

She dared not gamble.

Dying herself was one thing, but if her selfish desire to live were to bring harm to her grandparents, then she would truly regret it beyond measure.

Lost in thought, Ye Yunchu found herself back inside the hospital.

To spare her companions any worry, she rinsed the mud from her body at a hospital faucet. She also washed her face, hoping to conceal any traces of tears, before finally heading to Mona and Ling Ling’s room.

Both had suffered severe food poisoning from consuming too much of Leila’s cooking, leading to intense vomiting, diarrhea, and debilitating weakness. They were now confined to their hospital beds.

Fortunately, protected by their Sacred Relics, they had both managed to regain consciousness, albeit weakly.

Due to the corrosion marks on her body, Ye Yunchu hadn’t had much of an appetite, so she hadn’t eaten much of Leila’s food. This proved to be a blessing in disguise.

Aside from Ila, who had long developed an immunity to the cooking, Ye Yunchu experienced the mildest backlash. Perhaps it was for other reasons, but while her two companions remained bedridden, Ye Yunchu was already able to get up and dig holes.

Even Ila, when speaking with her, expressed immense surprise that Ye Yunchu could move freely in less than half a day after eating Leila’s Underworld Fruit dishes.

“Little Yezi, where did you go just now?”

Mona, who was closer to the door, was the first to spot her, her voice sounding somewhat hoarse. Ling Ling also noticed the movement at the doorway and struggled to turn and look at Ye Yunchu.

Though they appeared to be on the mend and full of vigor, both were still very weak and needed at least a week of proper bed rest.

“Yun Chu, you… you dug another hole?”

Ling Ling’s bed was in the innermost part of the room. Having known Ye Yunchu the longest, and unlike Mona, she wasn’t so carefree. She immediately noticed the water stains and unwashed mud on her friend’s body.

From her understanding of Ye Yunchu, she was certain her friend had gone to dig a hole and seclude herself again.

Stare.

Caught red-handed, Ye Yunchu timidly lowered her head, too flustered and embarrassed to meet Ling Ling’s scrutinizing gaze.

“It does seem like it, doesn’t it? Little Yezi, did something happen outside?”

Stare.

Mona also inquired, her eyes fixed on Ye Yunchu.

“No, no, no, no…”

Under their intense stares, Ye Yunchu felt her entire body tingle, and she shook her head frantically like a rattle-drum.

“That’s good. After all, we’re a team, all Magical Girls. As companions, we must support and help each other.”

All Magical Girls, huh…

Ye Yunchu’s most painful point was instantly touched, but she didn’t let it show. Instead, she offered Mona and Ling Ling a faint smile.

Ling Ling glanced at Ye Yunchu’s constantly rubbing fingers and immediately understood something, but chose not to voice it.

Some things were better left unsaid. Knowing was enough. Having grown up together since childhood, they shared that unspoken understanding. Mona, too, must have realized that Ye Yunchu still couldn’t transform.

“Oh, right! Since you, Little Yezi, can transform under hypnosis, does that mean our three-person team is officially assembled?”

Ling Ling rolled her eyes, letting out a dry chuckle. *Heh, she shouldn’t have overestimated Mona’s emotional intelligence or IQ.*

Mona reached out from her cup, grasping Ye Yunchu’s damp arm, and spoke with excited anticipation in her eyes.

“Before, since you couldn’t transform, Little Yezi, we hadn’t decided on our battle chants. Now, the three of us can discuss it properly.”

*Um…*

Ye Yunchu lowered her head, trying to pull her arm free from Mona’s grasp.

“After all, the three of us made a promise.”

*Don’t say any more. The current me…*

“To become Magical Girls who protect the world together, and be comrades who never part for life!”

*I’m not worthy of being a Magical Girl at all right now…*

“Before that, Little Yezi, you can’t fall behind!”

*I don’t even have the right to live right now…*

“And my chant…”

Ye Yunchu abruptly pulled her arm from Mona’s hand, looking somewhat meekly at the bewildered Mona.

“I’m sorry!”

Ye Yunchu didn’t know how to respond to her friend’s expectations, so she could only give a soft bow of apology before scurrying out of the ward, leaving Mona still somewhat confused.

However, despite her low IQ, Mona realized from her companion’s reaction that she might have said something wrong. Just as she was about to get out of bed to comfort her, a pang of pain threatened her, forcing her to lie back down securely.

“Little Ling, did I say something wrong?”

“It’s alright. Let Yun Chu think things through on her own.”

In the hospital corridor, Ye Yunchu, overcome with emotion, fled Mona’s ward. She felt it best to return to the hole where she had hidden earlier; at least that place was suitable for someone as useless as herself.

Her mind a jumble, Ye Yunchu wasn’t paying attention and collided with someone.

“Ouch.”

“I’m so sorry, I…”

Ye Yunchu instinctively apologized. As she helped the person up, she recognized the elderly woman.

“Grandma?”

Wasn’t this the grandmother who had painstakingly raised her? Why was she at the hospital? And at such a late hour?

“Oh? Little Yunchu, what are you doing here? And why are you covered in mud?”

Little Yunchu was Ye Yunchu’s nickname. Generally, she should have been called Little Yun’er, but due to her maternal grandfather’s principle that his naming rights could not be infringed upon, everyone, out of respect for his authority, chose to use the last two characters of Ye Yunchu’s name.

Seeing her grandmother suddenly come to the hospital late at night without a word, Ye Yunchu instinctively grew worried. An elderly family member suddenly appearing at the hospital in the middle of the night often brought an ominous premonition. Connecting this with not having seen her grandfather much these past few days, Ye Yunchu immediately panicked.

Under Ye Yunchu’s repeated questioning, her grandmother finally sighed and led Ye Yunchu to a ward on the same floor.

“Grandpa!”

Seeing her emaciated grandfather in the ward, hooked up to a respirator, Ye Yunchu’s mind went blank. Just as she was about to shout, her rational grandmother quickly pulled her back.

This was a hospital; loud shouting was not allowed.

Ye Yunchu understood this; she couldn’t cause trouble for other patients. Yet, she couldn’t control herself, only able to cover her mouth, sobbing with tears streaming down her face.

This was the first time Ye Yunchu had ever cried in front of her family.

According to what her grandmother said on the way, her grandfather was old and had never rested in his later years, always striving to give his granddaughter, Ye Yunchu, the hope of becoming a Magical Girl.

His granddaughter had been chosen by a Sacred Relic but had been unable to transform into a Magical Girl, thus unable to escape the fate of dying at sixteen from the corrosion marks.

The Magical Girls in the city said Ye Yunchu was scared, which made the two elderly people wonder if they had pushed her too hard in the past, causing her to fear it, and thus preventing her transformation.

Over time, they had fallen into deep self-reproach. The best way for the elderly to alleviate self-reproach was through labor, and working even harder could provide better conditions for their beloved granddaughter.

Their idea was simple: provide everything good for their granddaughter, and then she wouldn’t be scared. They worked even harder in the fields. Slowly, their bodies deteriorated. Finally, while working in the fields, he collapsed.

“The doctor said… your grandpa… he’s not going to make it.”

Her grandmother’s swollen eyes confirmed that her inner sorrow was no less than Ye Yunchu’s, yet she forcefully held back her tears, speaking to Ye Yunchu with a feigned calmness. *At least, she couldn’t show weakness in front of her precious granddaughter.*

“No, Grandma, absolutely not. Grandpa has always been strong, hasn’t he?”

Ye Yunchu gasped, shaking her head in disbelief. She couldn’t bear to imagine any of this happening, instinctively deceiving herself.

“Little Yunchu, these things…” Tears flowed uncontrollably from her grandmother’s eyes. “What you need to do now is transform into a Magical Girl, so that you won’t…”

The elderly woman didn’t dare utter the rest of the sentence. Her husband was dying, her children were far away and unreachable, and her only beloved granddaughter suffered from a terminal illness.

This series of successive blows left the old woman breathless. She only wished to pray to the Great Spirit Tree to bless her granddaughter, so she could truly transform into a Magical Girl and survive. Even if it meant taking her own old life, she would accept it.

Magical Girl.

Yes, there were still Magical Girls.

Her grandmother’s words suddenly enlightened Ye Yunchu. Teacher Bele was a Magical Girl; wasn’t she in this very hospital? If she could just find Teacher Bele, she could surely save her grandfather.

Like someone clutching at a final straw, Ye Yunchu ran like mad towards Teacher Bele’s room.

The room door was practically slammed open by Ye Yunchu. However, what greeted her eyes was only an empty ward and the summer breeze blowing on her face.

The window was open.

Teacher Bele… she left?

Ye Yunchu’s eyes widened, her legs uncontrollably giving way, and she collapsed to the ground.

The Jade Spirit Tree Sacred Relic fell from her pocket, rolling to a stop right in front of Ye Yunchu.

Within her green pupils, the crystalline, dark red hope of the Sacred Relic was reflected.

When a Sacred Relic descends upon you, it is destiny that has chosen you.

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