Chapter 225: Dr. Reed’s Advice

Stepping once again into the park that resembled a paradise hidden from the world, Lin Yu’s state of mind was completely different from last time.

She felt like she was sitting on pins and needles.

Because these clothes were really uncomfortable.

The slightly tight white shirt made her breathing feel restricted.

And that discomfort reminded her of that power from not long ago.

“Phew…”

She took a deep breath, clearing her mind.

Maybe now was the right time…

Under the guidance of a staff member, she arrived at the second floor of the research institute’s internal cafeteria.

This was clearly not a place for ordinary researchers to grab meals, but rather a highly private VIP dining room.

The moment she entered, Lin Yu saw the blonde, blue-eyed German female doctor.

Evelyn Reed sat at a pure white dining table, holding a cup of black coffee in her hand.

Those deep blue eyes, as vast as the Arctic Ocean, swept over Lin Yu as she walked in, and a playful curve appeared at the corner of the powerful woman’s lips.

“Oh?”

“Mr. Lin, why are you dressed so formally today?”

She rested her chin on one hand.

“What, couldn’t keep your job as a magical girl anymore, so you’re planning to apply to be my personal secretary?”

“N-no, that’s not it!”

Lin Yu tugged awkwardly at her clothes, stammering as she explained,

“I-it’s just that my usual clothes were washed and not dry yet. And since I was coming to see you today, I thought I should dress a bit… a bit more formally.”

“Hehe… I see.”

Dr. Reed didn’t press further. Her gaze shifted, landing on the tall man behind her.

“Then, who might this be?”

Sensing the probing look, Luo Shaotian calmly stepped half a step forward.

“Hello, Dr. Reed.”

He gave a slight bow and extended his hand.

“I’m Lin Yu’s friend—and also her colleague.”

“Oh?”

Dr. Reed lightly shook his hand.

At the moment their fingertips touched, both of them were silently evaluating each other.

“That order of introduction… is rather interesting.”

Dr. Reed withdrew her hand, looking at Luo Shaotian with a faint smile.

Normally, in a workplace, one would say colleague first, then friend.

But from Luo Shaotian’s phrasing, she quickly judged that their relationship was not so simple.

Still, she didn’t point it out—she wasn’t the type to pry.

“By the way, Lin Yu should have already told you about my identity, as well as her own special condition?”

Luo Shaotian nodded.

“Yes. Ah Yu has already introduced you to me. I’m also fully aware of her physical condition.”

“Good. In that case, I won’t bother with formalities. I’ll be taking a nap later, so you only have half an hour today.”

“Let’s talk while we eat.”

Dr. Reed lightly swiped her fingers across the table’s virtual interface, ordering herself a simple light meal. Then she pushed the holographic menu toward them, gesturing for them to order.

But how could Lin Yu have any appetite for fine dining right now?

There was only one thing on her mind—

Turning back into a man!

“Dr. Reed, let’s skip the meal for now, I have something extremely urgent!”

A few minutes later.

“In other words…”

Dr. Reed lifted her coffee cup, blew on it, and summarized leisurely,

“You can’t change back right now, so you think there’s something wrong with the medicine I gave you—and you want my help?”

Lin Yu nodded frantically like a pecking woodpecker.

“Heh…”

Dr. Reed let out a soft chuckle, set down her cup, and looked at Lin Yu as if she were a foolish student.

“Mr. Lin, aren’t you mistaken about something? Before, you were tortured by that toxin to the point you couldn’t even maintain your transformed state for three minutes, rolling on the ground in pain at any moment.”

“And now, you’re standing here completely unharmed. Doesn’t that prove that my medicine works exceptionally well?”

“But I can’t change back!”

Lin Yu stomped her foot anxiously, her eyes reddening.

“And my body is all soft and weak now, I don’t have any strength at all, and I can’t use any spiritual energy! How is that any different from being useless?”

“Let’s set aside the suppression of spiritual energy—I’m mainly worried about changing back!”

Her voice carried a pleading, tearful tone.

“The day after tomorrow my parents are coming from my hometown to Xinhai City for the New Year! How am I supposed to pick them up at the train station like this?!”

“I can’t just meet them and say, ‘Mom, Dad, I turned into a girl, so stop urging me to get married—give me some time and I’ll just have a grandchild for you instead!’”

Dr. Reed, however, remained extremely calm.

“How long has it been since you took the special medicine I gave you?”

Lin Yu froze for a moment, then quickly checked her wrist device.

“I took it yesterday afternoon… so about twenty hours now.”

“Then that makes sense.”

Dr. Reed leaned back in her chair casually.

“Wait another four hours. Once the drug passes its half-life, try解除 your transformation again.”

“Huh? You mean… I just need to wait?”

“Of course. This is just a normal side effect. Once the effect wears off, you’ll be fine.”

“Phew—!”

The heart that had been hanging in her throat for an entire day and night finally dropped back down heavily.

“That’s great… there’s hope…”

She collapsed weakly into her chair, letting out a long breath.

As long as she could change back, as long as she didn’t have to face her old-fashioned father in this female body, there was still a way out.

…

Beside her, Luo Shaotian also let out an almost imperceptible sigh of relief.

And yet, a faint sense of regret lingered like a tiny thorn in his heart.

“However, Mr. Lin, speaking of which…”

Dr. Reed stirred her black coffee with a spoon, the crisp clinking sound echoing softly.

“You mentioned just now that you currently can’t use even the slightest bit of spiritual energy, correct?”

“Huh? Ah… yes.”

Lin Yu came back to her senses, clenching her fist slightly.

She felt the emptiness inside this small body, her cute face filled with distress.

“Although after taking the medicine it doesn’t hurt anymore, and I can maintain the transformed state… this body has no strength at all, let alone use magic. It feels like… I’ve become a completely ordinary girl.”

“Then that proves my previous deduction was entirely correct.”

Dr. Reed stopped stirring, her gaze turning deep and sharp.

“External medicine alone cannot completely sever the fusion between the Nurgle toxin and your nervous system. Medicine treats the symptoms, not the root.”

“If you want to truly solve this, you must rely on yourself—on what you call your ‘immunity.’”

“It’s been so many days. Have you still not found a way to strengthen that idealistic power?”

“Well… it’s not like I didn’t try…”

Lin Yu scratched her cheek awkwardly.

“I followed your instructions and asked the senior magical girls. They gave me some suggestions…”

“Oh? What suggestions?”

“Like… finding the most genuine, pure reason in my heart for wanting to become a magical girl…”

Lin Yu pondered hard, her small cheeks puffing slightly like a squirrel storing food.

“But… can’t it just be money?”

She looked up and asked matter-of-factly.

“I’ve always forced myself to be a magical girl for money! For that forty-thousand monthly salary, for the rewards—does the power of a magical girl conflict with the desire for money?”

Hearing such an utterly mundane answer, Dr. Reed did not laugh.

She had nearly finished her meal.

She checked the time on her wrist, then folded her hands on the table, her expression serious.

“Money?”

Her voice was soft, yet carried a penetrating force.

“Mr. Lin, don’t let appearances blur your vision.”

“Money, at its core, is just a symbol created by human society—a number.”

“When those banknotes can’t buy anything, when those numbers can’t be exchanged for what you want…”

“What value do they have?”

She leaned forward slightly, like a patient and guiding therapist.

“Think deeper.”

“Don’t stay at the shallow level of ‘I need money.’”

“Ask your heart—why do you need money?”

Why?

What kind of question is that?

Lin Yu sat there blankly, her gaze gradually losing focus.

Of course it was because she lacked money.

If I had money…

If I had enough money since childhood…

I wouldn’t have been looked down on by teachers and classmates for not being able to afford tutoring, always sitting in the corner of the classroom.

I wouldn’t have been mocked and bullied by those kids for wearing worn-out sneakers.

At school, I wouldn’t have failed to even treat a girl to a decent meal, never managing to find a girlfriend.

I wouldn’t have had to stare longingly at toys and figurines in display windows, comforting myself that “I don’t actually like them that much.”

Money can buy dignity, confidence, and the right to stand tall in this damned world.

And…

And if I had money…

Lin Yu bit her lower lip hard, her body beginning to tremble uncontrollably.

That person wouldn’t have…

“Ah Yu? Ah Yu?”

A warm, firm touch landed on her shoulder.

“…Mm?”

Lin Yu’s thin shoulders trembled, as if she had just been pulled ashore from deep water.

Following the pressure of the hand on her shoulder, she slowly turned her head, meeting Luo Shaotian’s deep black eyes filled with concern.

Only then did she realize—

It was too quiet around her.

The room was empty, with only sunlight streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

“Where’s Dr. Reed?”

“She left a while ago.”

Luo Shaotian bent slightly, looking at her pale face, his brows tightly furrowed.

“What about you… what happened? Ever since the doctor finished speaking, you’ve been sitting there like a statue. I called you so many times, but you didn’t respond.”

“Spacing out? I…”

Lin Yu looked confused.

She pressed her temples.

“Ugh… my head hurts…”

“I actually… spaced out for that long? You really are something… you should’ve shaken me awake earlier…”

“I…”

Luo Shaotian looked at her, his throat moving slightly, as if hesitating to speak.

“Ah Yu…”

“Hm?”

Lin Yu rubbed her aching head, looking up at him.

Luo Shaotian stared straight into her eyes.

“What were you thinking about just now?”

“Why do you ask?”

“Because the expression you had while spacing out…”

“…was like you’d lost something important.”