Chapter 25: Unexpected Delays and a Fortuitous Find

In the early morning, when specks of sunlight pierced through the curtain gaps and streamed into the room, Su Xinxin awoke.

It was half past six.

For her, this was considered a late start to the day. She had likely thought too much the previous night, preventing her from a restful sleep.

Still, it was quite early. Jasmine had mentioned that arriving by nine was fine, even specifically advising against showing up too soon, as the library only opened at half past eight.

If she took the bus and subway, the journey would take approximately an hour. Leaving at half past seven, grabbing breakfast, and arriving a little after eight…

As she swiftly calculated in her mind, a sudden thought struck her: ‘Was time a bit tight?’

This realization immediately brought a touch of panic. She nudged Xiao Ming, who was still soundly asleep, then rose to wash up.

Returning to the bedroom, she picked up the light blue and white tiered dress she had chosen the night before—

‘Still… I really don’t want to wear this. It’s too cute, truly unsuitable.’

She glanced into the wardrobe again, hoping to find something more appealing. However, the wardrobe seemed like a bottomless pit, crammed with all sorts of clothing.

Having been ‘Su Xinxin’ for so long, she always felt an unreality about the items inside, like a thief who had stumbled into someone else’s room and secretly borrowed their clothes.

Thus, she only ever dared to pick from the few items on the surface, never venturing deeper—she didn’t want to know too much, fearing that the sense of unfamiliarity would overwhelm her.

Previously, she had those two dresses to rotate, so she hadn’t felt this way. But the recent days of continuous rain meant neither had dried completely, leaving her no choice but to find something else.

Fortunately, she hadn’t searched for long before discovering a suitable outfit.

It was a retro plaid academic style ensemble: an off-white puff-sleeved shirt paired with a dark brown plaid suspender skirt.

The shirt featured a polo collar, beneath which a layer of ruffles gracefully blossomed outwards, tied in the center with a dark brown satin bow. The suspender skirt’s straps were also adorned with playful brown ruffles, mirroring those on the collar.

A matching plaid fabric bow belt cinched her waist, while the skirt itself was a high-waisted A-line style. Its wide, flowing hem was edged with an off-white ruffle, giving it a fluffy and soft appearance.

The entire outfit looked like something a quiet, well-behaved, and somewhat studious girl would wear.

She held it up for a closer look, her fingers tracing the seam where the collar met the skirt. Only then did she realize it was actually a faux two-piece.

However, that didn’t matter. What was important was that it didn’t expose her shoulders or arms, and the skirt length was ample.

She held it against herself—the hem comfortably fell below her knees.

She leaned in to sniff it, detecting the faint, elegant floral scent of a lingering sachet from the wardrobe. It was pleasant to the nose.

Su Xinxin suddenly felt a sense of ‘regret at not having met sooner’ for this outfit. Her heart, which had been slightly flustered by the rush, seemed to lighten with this unexpected discovery.

‘Hmm… I should try it on quickly. I’m going to be late.’

When the outfit was finally neatly on her, she felt a subtle, almost girlish thrill—for a moment, she even wanted to lightly bounce in place.

Of course, she didn’t. Instead, she was surprised by her own sudden impulse. Now was not the time for such thoughts; she needed to hurry!

She picked up her phone, intending to review the map navigation usage Xiao Ming had taught her. The screen lit up, but she first saw a message from Jasmine.

It was from yesterday… no, it should have been two o’clock this morning. Two o’clock in the morning?

Su Xinxin let out an almost imperceptible ‘tsk,’ her expression strikingly similar to how she used to scold her grandchildren for staying up late on their phones.

[Oh dear! I forgot to tell you! Tomorrow, no, today. Anyway, on this Sunday when we go to the library, I forgot to mention the specific time! We’ll go in the afternoon, around one or two o’clock! Don’t get it wrong! Remember to reply after you see the message~]

Looking at the message, Su Xinxin’s previously flustered heart suddenly calmed.

‘So, no need to go in the morning? Is the library closed in the morning, or have other magical girls already taken care of things?’

The reason remained unknown to her, and Jasmine hadn’t elaborated. Thinking about it, this Teacher Jasmine was indeed a bit careless.

‘Perhaps her true form really is a young person, just as I suspected?’

Oh, in Su Xinxin’s eyes, everyone was ‘young’—so perhaps Jasmine was a ‘particularly young young person’?

She smiled faintly and replied with a simple, ‘Okay.’

‘Alright, now there’s no need to rush.’

Looking at Xiao Ming, who was still mumbling ‘getting up now’ on the bed, the urgency that had almost flared up earlier dissipated.

‘Never mind, let them snooze a bit longer.’

After all, breakfast still had to be eaten, so a little more sleep wouldn’t hurt.

She stood before the newly added full-length mirror, examining her outfit. She even… couldn’t help but quietly turn a small half-circle.

‘Ahem! This was merely to check the effect from behind, definitely not a happy twirl like a young girl!’

But truly, the more she looked at this outfit, the more pleasing it became. It really was quite beautiful…

‘Hmm… I’ll call it ‘Brown Plaid Scholarly Charm.’ I’ll probably wear it often in the future.’

****

By noon.

After finishing her meal, Su Xinxin prepared to leave for the library.

Chutian Province Library and Star River Pedestrian Street, where the incident occurred last time, were not far from each other, both located near Cuihu Lake in Wenchang District, Jiangcheng City.

With Xiao Ming’s guidance as her ‘modern life instructor,’ Su Xinxin pondered while looking at the map navigation on her phone.

“Could it be… that the monster from Star River Pedestrian Street, the ‘Corrosion,’ ran over there?” she asked Xiao Ming.

“No way! Last time, everything should have been cleared. At most, there might be some residual N-grade ‘dust,’ but it won’t amount to anything significant.”

“Oh…” Su Xinxin’s finger slid across the screen, stopping on the taxi icon. “Then this… is it reimbursable?”

“Oh, didn’t I tell you already!” Xiao Ming exclaimed, with a look that seemed to say, ‘How could you forget again?’ “All your reasonable expenses are reimbursable now. Even your current body is considered organizational assets! Stop hesitating!”

Su Xinxin recalled her last trip to Star River Pedestrian Street. That day, she had woken up early for a walk, spending nearly two hours getting from her residence to Cuihu Park. It was only because an incident coincidentally occurred in a nearby district that she was able to arrive in time.

Perhaps… it was precisely because she happened to be nearby that she was included in the mission notification range? Otherwise, as an intern, she likely wouldn’t have been asked to rush from afar to provide support.

As for who sent that mission notification, she wasn’t sure. Xiao Ming had mentioned it was probably ‘Dìtīng’—the department within the organization responsible for comprehensive monitoring and real-time dispatch. She would likely interact with them frequently once she became a full-fledged member.

“Haven’t you figured out the navigation yet? You’ve been studying it for ages!” Xiao Ming hopped onto her shoulder, peering at the phone screen.

“I’m wondering… is it better to take a taxi, or the bus and subway? Or… walk? But walking would definitely take too long…”

“If you ask me, there’s only one principle: don’t save the organization money!” Xiao Ming said, looking shrewd. “Go with whatever’s fastest—take a taxi! It’s reimbursable, so you don’t have to pay. Why squeeze onto a bus or subway? It’s Sunday today, there are tons of people! Not to mention summer vacation is almost here. Time is money, efficiency first!”

It seemed to anticipate Su Xinxin’s impending ‘saving money’ lecture, preemptively presenting this theory.

“Taking a taxi… is fast.” Su Xinxin paused, her voice a little lower. “But then I won’t be able to slowly enjoy the scenery along the way. And… and…”

“And what? You can only see scenery on the bus, right? This subway line is underground, so you can’t see anything!”

“I mean… I, I’m a little afraid I get carsick,” she whispered, a trace of an elderly person’s helplessness towards specific discomforts crossing her face.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ming froze instantly. Looking at her blushing, shy face, it found itself at a loss for words.

Indeed! To an outsider, Su Xinxin at that moment appeared as a shy, quiet girl, utterly adorable!

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