Chapter 230: Sensation above all

Eh?

Hearing that reminder, Lin Yu froze for a moment.

Right!

Thinking about the timing, the effects of Dr. Reed’s special medicine should have worn off long ago!

She subconsciously touched her lower abdomen.

That sinking, aching pain had actually disappeared at some point without her noticing?

“Could it be… I’ve recovered? My immune system beat that damn Nurgle toxin?!”

Lin Yu’s eyes lit up, as if she had seen hope.

To verify this guess, she took a deep breath, cautiously closed her eyes, and carefully reached toward that dried-up psionic circuit within her body.

However, the moment the pink psionic energy began to emerge—

“Hiss—ah!”

“No no no no!”

Lin Yu hurriedly dispersed the psionic energy in fright, clutching her stomach as she sucked in a sharp breath.

Although it wasn’t as unbearably painful as before, the moment she tried to use magic, her body still sent out that warning-like cramping pain.

It seemed the toxin was still there.

Recovering her combat ability was still a distant goal.

“Forget it… if I can’t fight, then I can’t fight. As long as there’s no bleeding and no pain, I should be grateful.”

Lin Yu let her shoulders slump, giving up.

“Grrrrr…”

Her stomach let out an uncooperative protest.

“Let’s… eat something first.”

So the two of them found a nearby restaurant and settled dinner there.

To be fair, this was absolutely the most uncomfortable meal Lin Yu had ever had in her more than twenty years of life.

Even though Luo Shaotian was treating, and free food always tasted great…

The atmosphere was just way too weird!

The Luo Shaotian sitting across from her seemed to have completely slipped into some indescribable role.

When ordering, he deliberately avoided all cold or spicy dishes.

The moment Lin Yu sat down, he poured her a cup of warm water and pushed it over.

He even instinctively handed her tissues whenever she accidentally dropped food on the table.

That level of meticulous care…

It was practically like…

He was taking care of a delicate girlfriend he had just started dating!

“Cough cough cough—!”

Lin Yu nearly choked on that thought.

She kept chanting in her mind like a mantra, ‘I’m a real man’ and ‘we’re good brothers,’ burying her face in her bowl the entire time and shoveling food in without daring to lift her head, afraid that the moment she did, she would meet those affectionate eyes.

She was absolutely not a woman inside!

At least… at least for now, she still hadn’t gotten used to this scalp-tingling feeling!

The evening glow dyed the outline of the city in a warm orange-red.

The black car slowly decelerated and steadily stopped in front of Lin Yu’s apartment building.

“I’ll drop you off here.”

Luo Shaotian rested his hands on the steering wheel, his low voice sounding especially magnetic in the enclosed car.

“Alright, thanks for today, Shaotian.”

As if granted amnesty, Lin Yu quickly unfastened her seatbelt.

She was just about to push the door open and flee, but her hand paused on the handle.

She glanced sideways at the driver’s seat.

In the dim car, Luo Shaotian looked ahead, seemingly too embarrassed to meet her gaze.

He seemed troubled as well.

Lin Yu’s heart softened a little, and also felt a bit uneasy.

At the end of the day…

The situation ending up like this was largely her own fault.

If she hadn’t tried to trick him into taking medicine by staging that ridiculous “home-raised girl” act, how could this guy—once as straight as a steel beam—have been bent like this?

Sigh… what a sin.

Lin Yu let out a long sigh inwardly.

She turned back, biting her rosy lower lip, deciding she had to make things clear.

“Sigh… Shaotian.”

Her tone rarely carried such seriousness and helplessness.

“Although… turning you into this… abnormal state is indeed kind of my fault, as your bro, I still have to advise you—wake up sooner rather than later.”

She raised a slender finger, pointing at her delicate face, earnestly persuading him.

“Don’t put your feelings on me. This face, this body—it’s all fake, just a magical shell! You know it too. Inside this shell is your real, genuine brother—a straight man!”

“So between us… it’s absolutely, absolutely impossible!”

Hearing her firm rejection, Luo Shaotian didn’t argue.

He merely lowered his gaze slightly, his long lashes concealing the emotions in his eyes.

“I understand.”

“Haha… good that you understand, good that you understand.”

Lin Yu gave a dry laugh.

Although he said he understood, his somewhat resigned demeanor only made her feel more guilty.

After all, it was her fault that had dragged her good brother into this kind of crisis of orientation. She didn’t even have the confidence to call him a “pervert” anymore.

Well, she brought this on herself…

“Uh…”

Lin Yu scratched her head in conflict, her mind waging an intense battle.

In the end, as if making a major concession, she sighed in resignation and decided to lower her stance a bit.

“How about this…”

She turned her face away, not daring to look into his eyes.

“I know… changing someone’s preferences—uh, no, obsession—won’t happen overnight. If it really doesn’t work…”

Her voice grew softer and softer, almost like a mosquito’s buzz.

“Then in the future… when I’m in my Magical Girl form, if you really have to… look at me to satisfy yourself or something… I won’t stop you.”

“But!”

She suddenly turned back, her heterochromatic eyes glaring fiercely at him as she raised a finger in emphasis.

“This is my bottom line! Don’t ever look at me like that when I’m not transformed! And don’t even think about having any improper thoughts about my male body! Otherwise… I’ll seriously be disgusted to the point of throwing up!”

Hearing this almost absurd “three rules,” Luo Shaotian was clearly stunned.

He looked at the girl in front of him, her face flushed as if it might drip blood.

“Okay.”

He responded softly, a strange smile appearing on his face.

That guy… what exactly was he smiling about at the end?

Back in her rented apartment, Lin Yu threw herself onto the soft sofa, her mind still replaying Luo Shaotian’s meaningful smile before he left.

Couldn’t figure it out—so she stopped thinking about it!

There were plenty of other things to worry about right now.

Her parents were arriving tomorrow. The priority was to turn back as soon as possible!

Lin Yu got up to look for her transformation device, but after rummaging through the drawers, she couldn’t find it.

“Huh? Didn’t I put it here?”

She turned toward a corner of the room and called out,

“Hey, Xiao Bai, where’s my Gray Crystal brooch? Have you seen it?”

“Gugu…”

A rustling sound came from the corner.

Before long, Xiao Bai walked out with a swagger, a gray crystal brooch clearly clamped in its mouth.

“Damn! Are you a dog or something? Why are you biting my stuff?”

Startled, Lin Yu raised her hand as if to smack it.

“If you break that thing, what am I supposed to do if I can’t transform back?!”

Xiao Bai snorted disdainfully and gestured with its fluffy little paw.

“What?”

Lin Yu frowned and looked.

She realized her crystal brooch seemed to have changed slightly.

“Huh?”

She picked it up and examined it carefully in her palm.

It had indeed changed. The gray crystal, which originally only had a hint of purple mixed in, now had two strange threads inside.

One was dark red, the other a ghostly green, like living blood vessels intertwining within the crystal.

And at the very center of those chaotic lines, there was even a small patch of cherry blossom pink protected inside.

“Why has it mutated again?”

Lin Yu rubbed her hair irritably.

“This won’t cause some bizarre effect on my future transformations, will it?”

“Gugu…”

Xiao Bai gestured and shook its head.

It seemed to be saying “it’s fine.”

“This broken AI is pretty human-like. But since your interaction ability is so strong, why didn’t Old Mei give you a voice module back then?”

Lin Yu muttered with a smile, gripping the brooch and preparing to recite the de-transformation command.

However, when the words reached her lips, they suddenly got stuck.

A trace of reluctance quietly crept into her heart.

Did she really… need to transform back right now?

Back into that heavy, greasy, even somewhat ugly male body?

When this current state actually felt pretty good.

No stomach pain, and still the lightness of a youthful girl’s body.

Agile movements, and especially popular when walking down the street.

Even buying a cup of milk tea downstairs would earn her extra toppings from a blushing shop clerk.

Even her younger sister liked this girl version of her more.

This messed-up world was all about looks anyway.

If that’s the case, what’s wrong with staying in this beautiful and cute form a little longer?

Even if her parents were coming tomorrow, couldn’t she just change back in the morning?

“Huh?”

The moment this thought appeared, Lin Yu herself shivered.

Her eyes widened as she covered her face like she had seen a ghost.

“Why… would I think something like that?!”

“Heh…”

The old me couldn’t wait to take off this shell even for a second!

“Ah…”

She rubbed her temples hard.

“I must just be too tired lately… that Nurgle toxin must have messed with my head. Yeah, that has to be it.”

After thinking it over, Lin Yu still made up her mind—she had to de-transform!

“Oh right…”

She suddenly remembered that she was still wearing the OL outfit Luo Shaotian had chosen for her.

She had to take it off first.

Otherwise, if she turned back into a rough guy while still squeezed into a pencil skirt and white shirt, that would be way too horrifying.

She carefully unbuttoned her clothes, slipping off the outer layer, leaving only her close-fitting white underwear.

“Gugu…”

The moment she looked up, she met Xiao Bai’s ruby-red eyes staring straight at her.

It sat there motionless.

“Hey, even if you’re an AI robot, at least turn your eyes away!”

Lin Yu’s face flushed as she covered her chest awkwardly and waved at the rabbit.

“Mm…”

Xiao Bai rolled its eyes dramatically, showing an extremely disdainful expression, completely unmoved.

“Haha… this guy, just an electronic pet, yet so arrogant!”

Lin Yu puffed up her cheeks angrily, her soft face puffing adorably.

She pointed a slender finger at its nose.

“Turn around!”

“Mm—”

Xiao Bai still wore a look of “who cares about that little bit of flesh,” full of disdain.

This… this guy…

Lin Yu was really getting annoyed.

“Look look look—what are you staring at?! You think you’re him or something? I didn’t give you permission to keep staring at me!”

The moment the words left her mouth, Lin Yu froze.

She suddenly thought of what had just happened in the car.

Damn…

If this ambiguous agreement continued, wouldn’t he also keep staring at her like that all the time?!

Ahhh—

So annoying!

If she’d known, she wouldn’t have softened up earlier, wouldn’t have made that kind of concession!

“Still staring?! You’re still staring?! I—I’ll use [Shining Entrance] to blind your dog eyes!”

She shouted in embarrassment and anger, her hands instinctively crossing in front of her chest as she made a motion.

Flash!

“Ah—!!!”

Without any warning, a burst of dazzling pink starlight effects, accompanied by a crisp magical sound effect, suddenly exploded around Lin Yu!

The intense light instantly illuminated the dim room like broad daylight.

Though it lasted only a brief moment, it was bright enough that even Lin Yu couldn’t open her eyes.

“Huh?”

The light faded.

Lin Yu stood there blankly, still holding that casting pose, staring at her hands in disbelief.

“[Shining Entrance]… I… I actually used it again?!”

There was no stabbing pain, no backlash from the toxin.

That smooth, natural control… that warm power filling her limbs…

“The Magical Girl skills… my psionics… I can use them?”

Lin Yu’s mind raced rapidly.

How… how did this happen?

It was supposed to only suppress pain—so why could she suddenly cast spells now?

What exactly… did I just do?

I only just…

Thought of… that guy?

“No—!! Impossible! Absolutely impossible!!!”

Lin Yu’s face instantly flushed like a ripe tomato, as if steam might rise from her head.

How could thinking of that man allow her to mobilize psionic energy?!

That setting is way too indecent!

“What’s so special about being looked at by him? It’s just being treated like a girl… it’s just…”

Her voice abruptly stopped.

Lin Yu’s pupils slightly widened, her heart pounding violently in her chest.

She suddenly understood why.

What Li Qing had told her on the rooftop before, what Chen Bing had taught her in the training room, and that cold but piercing question from Ye YeYing.

“Find a reason—one that makes you truly willing to become a Magical Girl.”

A Magical Girl’s heart needs a “reason” to be built upon.

Could it be…

All this time, I’ve been lying to everyone—even to myself.

The “reason” I wanted to become a Magical Girl…

Was never about earning more money.

But rather…

That feeling—

That feeling of being watched so intently, of being cared for without reservation, of someone who knows my flaws, knows how fake and terrible I am, yet still chooses me without hesitation…

“That feeling?”