Chapter 25: So High School Actually Has Clubs

“I have no idea what to write.”

Clutching her pen and staring at the pristine sheet of paper for a long time, Ke Xin finally let out a long sigh.

She tossed the pen aside and rested her face on the desk, temporarily giving up.

Ever since she arrived at school that morning, she had been thinking about how to deal with this report of self-reflection. Even during class, she had been running scenarios in her mind.

But the more she thought about it, the less she knew what to write. After all, she had arrived at the scene based on the mysterious person’s tip and happened to run into the strange individual. The situation was urgent, and she hadn’t thought much—she had just followed her instincts and pursued.

She hadn’t considered the pedestrians on the street at all, nearly clashing with the anomaly in broad daylight, and in the end, she was even surrounded by the SWAT team that had arrived unexpectedly.

If she hadn’t carried her Special Investigation Bureau ID, she didn’t know how she would have gotten out of that situation.

Who would have thought, however, that the anomaly would pull a “vanishing act” while being chased, successfully escaping, and even manage to strike back.

When the Bureau agents arrived at the reported building, all they found was a body beyond saving—no resuscitation possible.

The rest of the cleanup would fall to other departments.

Ke Xin, however, still had to figure out how to explain why she had been there in the first place. She had told Agent Guan that she had her own intelligence sources, but such a vague explanation would never satisfy her superiors.

If she were honest, she’d have to say that she joined a group chat, where the group owner sent her intelligence about the anomaly—even information the Bureau didn’t have.

That didn’t sound very reasonable, even a bit far-fetched. Who could even manage something like that?

“You look troubled, Ke Xin.”

“Does it need to be said?” she replied without lifting her head, her tone drained.

A few seconds later, she realized the voice wasn’t Lu Qisi from the next seat.

While she was struggling to write her report, Qisi hadn’t offered any help or practical solutions; instead, she had mocked her, sneering in a way that made her even more frustrated.

During lunch break, she had disappeared immediately.

In front of others, she appeared to be the perfect student—bright, talented in academics and sports—but in reality, she was completely unreliable and exasperating.

If Ke Xin weren’t so patient, she would have punched her without a second thought.

Ke Xin pressed her face against the desk, feeling the chair move in front of her.

She slowly lifted her head and saw Ruolin’s back. Her eyes widened in surprise—she hadn’t expected her to return so quickly from the Bureau.

She had no idea what had happened at the Special Investigation Bureau; even if she asked, she probably wouldn’t get an answer.

“So, what have you two been up to these past couple of days?” Ke Xin asked, pretending to be oblivious. Even an ordinary person would be curious if classmates suddenly missed school for two days.

“Oh, um, there was a competition out of town. We went to receive an award,” Ruolin said, stammering out the Bureau-provided excuse.

If pressed for details, she’d have to improvise on the spot, and Ke Xin was well aware of this, so she didn’t make it difficult for her. “I noticed a few empty seats during class. It did seem strange.”

“Really? But it wasn’t for long. By the way, Ke Xin, are you free this Saturday?”

“Saturday?”

She had planned to hang out with Bai-senpai and the others, but if Ruolin had something going on, it might involve some serious trouble. If Ke Xin weren’t careful, it wouldn’t be something a simple report could fix.

“As far as Bai-senpai is concerned, it’s easy to explain; after all, they all live in the same apartment, so there are plenty of chances to hang out.”

“I think I’ll be free,” Ke Xin said thoughtfully. “What’s up?”

“It’s nothing major. It’s just… can you come to our club’s recruitment event on Saturday?”

“Club recruitment?”

Her previous school barely had any clubs; she had only heard of them vaguely and had no idea what activities they held or how to join.

Hearing this, she didn’t immediately respond. She remembered that Qisi had joined several sports clubs, and today she had been called away by the soccer club.

“So, Saturday is for club recruitment?”

“Yes. Have you already decided which club you want to join, Ke Xin?”

“No… not yet,” she quickly denied, unsure why Ruolin had suddenly become so enthusiastic.

She still didn’t know what clubs existed in this girls’ school, and there probably weren’t any that genuinely interested her.

“Good…”

“What did you just say?”

“Nothing. Actually, we also run a club. If possible, could you come support us tomorrow?”

“That’s fine.”

Ruolin smiled upon hearing her agreement—she really was easy to read.

“See you tomorrow, then.”

Ruolin grabbed her bag and dashed out, while the other three from her group were already waiting by the door.

Oh, right—Friday afternoons had no classes.

Ke Xin noticed how few people were left in the classroom after lunch, still adjusting to the light schedule.

Looking out the window, she saw someone pushing a cart loaded with tents and tables from the student activity center; the four were preparing to set up their booth.

Ruolin and the others gradually walked out of sight. Ke Xin overheard Sasaki comment, “Are we really going to pull her in? I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“Yeah, we’re not just playing house. We can’t just let anyone join,” Liu Yumeng agreed. The new transfer student seemed suspicious, and might reduce the time they could spend with Ruolin!

It was a scary thought.

Ruolin herself didn’t want new members either, but she had just received a notification from the student club management.

“But we only have four members. If we can’t reach five, our club will be disbanded.”

…

Silence fell. This was a serious matter: a club had to have at least five members to retain its activity room.

If they couldn’t recruit anyone, they would have to move out.

“Then let her write her name, but don’t involve her in… I mean, club activities?” Violet corrected herself, suddenly realizing the danger of mentioning anomalies.

Despite the Bureau’s warning not to deal with anomalies, it seemed to have little effect.

“For now, that’s fine. Too much stuff to move anyway.”

The four reached the room marked Far East Magic Research Club, swiping their student cards to enter. Inside, it resembled a warehouse.

Most of the room was lined with shelves packed with various objects—peach-wood swords, silver crosses stained like blood, and small yellow papers with strange symbols attached to the edges.

Only a small area was set up with tables and chairs, where the four usually gathered.

“We’ll need to bring more supplies next time we go out,” Violet said, lifting a box from under the table, unlocking it with a fingerprint scanner, and revealing its contents.

Ke Xin would have been shocked if she had seen it.

Everyone nodded in agreement. The strength of anomalies far exceeded their expectations. If they hadn’t run into a magical girl before, they wouldn’t even know how to handle them.