Chapter 12: The Peach-Patting Prank

At the edge of the abandoned industrial zone, broken walls and crumbling ruins cast grotesque shadows under the crisp moonlight.

The air hung thick with the stale scent of rust and dust.

Xia Yue, pushing the specialized “safe transport unit”—a metal baby carriage containing Kazami Jin—came to a halt in a relatively intact corner of the factory building.

Lin Wan followed closely, her gaze warily sweeping their surroundings.

“We’ll prepare for battle here,” Xia Yue stated succinctly, releasing the stroller’s handle.

Turning to Jin, her voice utterly calm, she added, “Stay inside; the energy shield will protect you.”

Kazami Jin, curled up in the cold “seat,” could only gaze longingly out through the metal mesh.

A complex swirl of emotions, of being both a “burden” and a “prisoner,” churned within her.

Then, she witnessed a sight that made her pupils dilate in shock.

Xia Yue showed no hesitation or shyness whatsoever; she merely closed her eyes for a moment and drew a deep breath.

The next instant, a soft, pure, ice-blue light emanated from within her, flowing over her entire body like rippling water.

Wherever the light touched, her comfortable casual attire seemed to unravel and reconfigure as if by an unseen hand.

In its place appeared an elegantly designed battle skirt-armor, predominantly silver-white and ice-blue.

The armor boasted fluid lines, adorned with delicate, fragmented ice-crystal patterns.

A chain-like belt, gleaming with a cold radiance, cinched her waist.

In her hand, the light coalesced, forming the slender longsword Jin had seen before, forged from pure ice crystals.

The entire transformation took no more than two or three seconds, silent, swift, and imbued with an awe-inspiring, inviolable beauty.

The transformed Xia Yue radiated an even more potent, chilling aura than usual, her gaze as sharp as a drawn ice blade.

Jin stared, utterly transfixed.

‘This is… a magical girl’s official transformation?’

‘So… utterly natural.’

Her gaze involuntarily shifted to Lin Wan.

This person, usually so boisterous and thick-skinned that they could deflect bullets, now seemed… rather awkward?

Lin Wan did not transform directly like Xia Yue.

She glanced left and right, her cheeks sporting an almost unnatural blush.

She muttered softly, “Uh… hey… A-Yue, could you turn around for a moment?”

Xia Yue, seemingly accustomed to this, merely gave her a faint glance upon hearing the request.

She then turned her back, ice sword in hand, facing outwards to maintain vigilance.

Only then did Lin Wan let out a sigh of relief.

She then stealthily scurried behind a pile of discarded mechanical parts.

After confirming that both Xia Yue’s and Jin’s line of sight (she presumed Jin couldn’t see clearly from inside the carriage) were obstructed, she began to rustle and move.

Inside the “baby carriage,” Jin couldn’t see clearly due to the angle and the metal mesh.

Yet, she could vaguely discern Lin Wan seemingly… undressing?

‘She’s actually shy?’

‘Lin Wan, who dared to pin her on her lap and play games in front of everyone, who dared to make all sorts of outrageous “intimate requests,” is actually embarrassed by changing into a battle suit?!’

This discovery struck Jin as incredibly novel, even mitigating some of the gloom she felt as a “prisoner.”

She couldn’t help but try to adjust her angle, hoping to get a clearer view.

Lin Wan quickly shed her outer hoodie and trousers, revealing underneath… a black base layer that exuded a high-tech feel and appeared quite elastic?

Then, like a thief, she pulled out piece after piece of form-fitting, intricate components, shimmering with faint blue electric arcs, from her small bag.

She fumbled to put them on.

‘That must be her battle suit,’ Jin thought, ‘the futuristic, skin-tight suit I saw in the abandoned factory last time.’

Observing Lin Wan’s cautious demeanor, as if terrified of being seen, a daring idea, tinged with both revenge and mischief, suddenly sprouted from Jin’s heart, like a vine accelerated by magic.

‘Before, she was always the one being “bullied” and “teased” by these two.’

‘Now… it seems an opportunity has presented itself?’

As Lin Wan bent over, painstakingly pulling up a pant leg that tightly hugged her thigh, outlining a surprisingly full curve, her entire body was turned away from the carriage.

Her perky, rounded bottom, like a ripe peach, was utterly defenseless and facing directly towards Jin.

Kazami Jin, the former witch who had always presented herself as a “weakling” and “patient” individual, executed a move that even she would later find incredible.

Quietly, and as silently as possible, she extended one hand through a gap in the “baby carriage’s” mesh.

Thanks to the “cage” not being completely airtight, her arm could just barely reach out a short distance.

‘Target acquired.’

‘Strike!’

Her fingertips, with a barely perceptible tremor that even she didn’t realize, swiftly and gently brushed against that “peach-like” bottom, so close, tightly encased in high-tech fabric, and possessing a breathtaking curve—she gave it a pat!

The sensation… firm, elastic, and warm with Lin Wan’s body heat.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment.

Lin Wan’s motion of pulling up her pant leg abruptly froze; her entire body seemed to have hit a pause button.

The next second, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, she let out a short, sharp yelp, “Kyaaa!”

She sprang up, her hands instinctively clutching the “assaulted” area.

Her cheeks instantly flared crimson, the blush spreading all the way to her earlobes.

She whirled around, her gaze, a mix of shock, embarrassment, and fury, fixed on the culprit—Kazami Jin, who was trying to retract her hand, her face adorned with a mischievous grin of success and a hint of guilt.

“J-J-Jin! Wh-wh-what are you doing?!”

Lin Wan’s voice was utterly distorted, stammering.

All her usual arrogance had vanished.

Even Xia Yue, who had been facing away, maintaining vigilance, was startled by the commotion.

She turned her head sideways, looking over with an inquisitive expression.

Kazami Jin watched Lin Wan’s flustered, embarrassed, and furious demeanor, her heart practically blooming with glee.

It was as if all the “humiliation” she had endured before was being unleashed at this very moment.

Suppressing the urge to burst out laughing, she deliberately blinked, speaking in a tone that was both innocently naive and subtly teasing: “Oh dear, my apologies, my hand slipped.”

She paused, gazing at Lin Wan’s face, which was red enough to drip blood.

Then, slowly, she added, mimicking Lin Wan’s usual teasing tone: “Though… it felt quite nice, Wanwan~”

“BOOM—!”

Lin Wan’s face turned utterly scarlet, practically steaming.

She pointed at Jin, stammering “you” for what felt like an eternity, unable to form a complete sentence.

Finally, she could only stomp her foot in exasperation, hastily put on the remaining battle suit components, and zip it all the way up.

She wished she could hide her entire self within that technological armor.

The instigator, Kazami Jin, meanwhile, contentedly retreated into the “baby carriage.”

She savored the lingering, subtle sensation of successful revenge on her fingertips.

A long-unseen, slightly impish curve played on her lips.

Lin Wan’s shriek still faintly echoed in the cavernous space of the abandoned factory.

Her entire being resembled a cooked shrimp, an unnatural blush spreading from her cheeks to her neck.

She fumbled to snap the last few clasps of her battle suit shut with a “click.”

Zipping it all the way up, it completely covered her chin.

As if this could somehow block out the “scandalous” sensation she had just experienced.

She spun around, glaring with a mix of shame and fury at Kazami Jin, who was still huddled in the “baby carriage,” a hateful smile playing on her lips.

Her finger trembled as she pointed, her voice rising due to agitation and embarrassment, yet simultaneously sounding exasperated from her attempt to keep it low: “Jin! You—you… you just wait! When we get back… when we get back, I’ll deal with you!”

She tried to adopt a fierce expression, but her flushed face and flickering eyes rendered the threat utterly harmless.

Instead, she resembled a kitten baring its claws, yet posing no real danger.

Kazami Jin watched her, the feeling of successful mischief practically overflowing in her heart.

Even the frustration of being confined in the “baby carriage” dissipated considerably.

She couldn’t help but roll her eyes, retorting with a tone of extreme speechlessness mixed with a touch of exasperated disappointment: “Seriously, Miss Lin Wan? When you were clamoring for us to bathe together, wasn’t your skin thick enough to deflect missiles? How is it that changing into a battle suit makes you act like your tail was stepped on? It was just a touch, why such a huge reaction?”

She scrutinized Lin Wan, now fully clad in the futuristic, skin-tight battle suit that accentuated her graceful figure, and continued her verbal assault: “With your psychological fortitude, scared of being seen even while changing clothes, how did you ever become a magical girl? Do you have to sneak off to a deserted corner for every transformation? By then, the enemy would have long vanished!”

This barrage of words, like rapid-fire cannon shots, precisely struck Lin Wan’s points of shame and professional integrity.

Lin Wan’s face grew even redder, practically smoking.

She retorted, her neck stiff, “Th-that’s not the same! Bathing is bathing! Transformation is transformation! This battle suit… it’s—it’s too form-fitting! And… and…”

She “and”-ed for a long time, yet couldn’t articulate a clear reason.

She couldn’t possibly say it was because the suit was too figure-hugging, and she felt embarrassed wearing it, could she?

‘Especially in front of Jin…’

“Pfft.”

Xia Yue, who had been maintaining vigilance but also taking in the entire farce, finally couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.

She shook her head, her ice-blue eyes holding a hint of helplessness and an understanding of everything.

She timely interrupted the childish argument: “Alright, Wanwan, prepare for action. Jin, stay quiet.”

Her words, like cold water, instantly doused Lin Wan’s momentum to continue arguing.

They also made Jin rein in the playful mockery on her face.

Lin Wan took several deep breaths, striving to calm her agitated blood and the heat in her cheeks.

She glared fiercely at Jin, her eyes clearly saying, “I’ll settle this with you later.”

Only then did she walk over to Xia Yue’s side and begin inspecting her energy gun, which shimmered with electric arcs.

However, her slightly red earlobes and the occasional glances she cast towards the carriage, filled with complex emotions—shame, surprise, and perhaps a flicker of panic at having her thoughts exposed—betrayed her far from calm inner state.

Kazami Jin watched Lin Wan’s attempt to appear composed, which was clearly a facade of strength, and found herself feeling both exasperated and amused.

This person, who usually acted fearless and dared to do anything, apparently had such a pure and awkward side to her?

‘Still…’

She touched her fingertips, recalling that brief, elastic sensation.

‘Hmm, the feel was indeed quite nice. She had to admit that.’

However, seeing Lin Wan and Xia Yue rapidly enter battle mode, and sensing the grave atmosphere descend once more, Jin put away her playful thoughts.

Curled up in her cold “seat,” she gazed into the deeper darkness of the factory building, where some ominous energy seemed to be gathering.

The remnants of the “Shadow of the End”… they didn’t sound like easy opponents.

As a weakling witch whose magic had only recovered to the level of a marble, and who had just patted a magical girl’s butt, all she could do now was obediently stay in this “safe cage” and pray that these two magical girls were competent enough, so that she, the “hostage” and “spectator,” wouldn’t come to any harm.

As for Lin Wan’s “dealing with her” later… Jin merely pursed her lips.

‘We’ll see then. After all, a debtor isn’t burdened by many debts, and haven’t I suffered enough “humiliation”?’