Chapter 3: A Shared Afternoon and Magical Girl Dreams

[A cat peeks out] Is school out yet?

[My work here is done; I can leave anytime. (A cat stretches)]

Upon seeing the messages on her phone, Bai Li, whose face usually remained stoic, finally broke into a smile, her fingers swiftly tapping the screen to reply:

[School’s out for me. Let’s meet at our usual spot. (Hugs cat and nuzzles)]

[Alright, I’ll be waiting for you. (A cat salutes)]

After confirming their meeting place, Bai Li pocketed her phone and leaped from the rooftop.

For her, such a distance posed no challenge; a quick teleport or a powerful leap would get her there instantly.

However, to maintain the facade of an ordinary person, she consciously and unconsciously reined in her strength, merely jumping from one rooftop to another.

Of course, she had long mastered the art of concealing her presence, ensuring that virtually no one would notice her.

Before long, Bai Li arrived at their designated meeting spot.

“…Bai Li!”

Suddenly, a girl pounced on Bai Li from behind, her arms wrapping tightly around Bai Li’s waist as if to lift her off the ground.

“…You still enjoy doing this.”

Bai Li offered no resistance, allowing the girl behind her to spin them around.

“Hehe~ After all, I went straight to my mission after lunch, and we haven’t seen each other for most of the afternoon.”

The girl set Bai Li down, then came to stand before her, hands clasped behind her back.

She possessed jewel-like, aquamarine eyes, and her long pink hair was tied into twin half-ponytails on either side of her head with white floral hair ties.

Her stature was even daintier than Bai Li’s, who was already on the shorter side among her peers, yet the matching JK sailor uniform she wore with Bai Li clearly indicated her identity.

“Lin Xi, did your work go smoothly?”

“Mhm! Extremely smoothly! I repelled the E-rank mutated beast without a scratch!”

Lin Xi put her hands on her hips, beaming as she recounted her successful mission.

“Is that so? That’s excellent.”

Bai Li gently stroked Lin Xi’s head, her gaze filled with doting affection.

“Mmm… even though an ability user’s work is quite fulfilling, without Bai Li by my side, I always feel like something is missing…”

Lin Xi purred like a kitten, enjoying Bai Li’s head pats, as she spoke.

“Oh, right! The Ability Awakening Ceremony should be soon, shouldn’t it? That means you, Bai Li, might also awaken a combat ability!

“If only you could become a magical girl like me, then we could form a team and fight together!”

“Mhm, that would be nice.”

“Right, right?”

Lin Xi nodded in agreement, then continued to share her thoughts.

“I’ve already thought of a name! From now on, you’ll be Magical Girl Bai Ye (TL Note: ‘Bai Ye’ means ‘white night’ in Chinese)!”

“Whatever you like.”

“Mmm… sometimes I wish you’d offer some of your own ideas.”

“My own ideas, you say? Does this count?”

Bai Li suddenly pulled out a chilled drink from her bag and pressed it against Lin Xi’s cheek.

“Is this Coffee Jelly Chewy Milk Tea? Isn’t this a new release that’s really hard to get?”

“It’s nothing. I just thought you might be thirsty and need an energy boost after work, and I happened to see it on the way, so I bought one.”

‘Actually, she had made a detour for this very purpose, even calling on a few more human-like mutated beasts to help reserve it in advance. If she still couldn’t get it, she would have resorted to some less conventional methods.’

“Thank you~ Bai Li is the best~”

Lin Xi happily hugged Bai Li, then linked one arm through hers and began sipping the milk tea with the other hand.

“It’s delicious! Bai Li, you should try some too.”

As she spoke, Lin Xi held the milk tea, from which she had taken a few sips, out to Bai Li, the used straw nearly touching her lips.

‘For a fleeting moment, the thought of discreetly making the straw disappear, at a speed imperceptible to others, flashed through Bai Li’s mind. Ultimately, however, she decided against it.’

‘Compared to savoring it alone, a shared experience offered far greater value.’

“…Mhm, it tastes like Lin Xi.”

“B-Bai Li!”

Lin Xi, upon hearing this, initially panicked, but her expression quickly shifted to indignation.

Yet, in Bai Li’s eyes, she remained utterly adorable, her slightly puffed-out cheeks practically inviting a playful poke.

“So, where should we go next?”

“…Recently, an elder colleague who helped me a lot with my work mentioned some pretty good snack stalls nearby.”

“An elder colleague, you say…”

‘Upon hearing Lin Xi utter that phrase, a flicker of displeasure crossed Bai Li’s face, though she quickly regained control, allowing no outward sign.’

“Mhm, there’s roasted meat, fried skewers, takoyaki, and all sorts of things. It’s like a whole food street.”

“That sounds quite delightful then.”

This spot wasn’t far from Tiangong City’s Ability User Organization, conveniently situated between Hailin Middle School and the organization itself.

It was likely a bustling hub, with countless students and ability users flocking there daily to spend their money, raking in profits.

After all, in this current world, the primary consumer base consisted of the ‘civil servant’ ability users from the Ability User Organization and students.

They not only had more time and disposable income but also accumulated stress that needed to be released.

In such a prime location, it would be difficult *not* to have business.

“Let’s go then! I just got paid, so today’s my treat!”

With that, Lin Xi pulled Bai Li along, heading towards the direction of the snack stalls.

To outsiders, they appeared like a pair of intimately close young lovers, but in reality, their relationship remained undefined.

At least not officially; at present, they were akin to exceptionally close friends, perhaps even overly so.

Bai Li, however, naturally desired to take their relationship further.

Yet, such matters required choosing the opportune moment.

“…Come on, come on, let’s eat!”

Lin Xi, always brimming with energy, immediately bought several skewers of fried pork cutlets, generously coated in sauce.

She thrust half of them into Bai Li’s hand before already starting on the other half.

“Eating too fast can make you choke, you know. There’s no need to rush.”

Bai Li didn’t eat first; instead, she took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the sauce from Lin Xi’s face.

‘While she could have chosen to lick the sauce off, that would have been far too much, utterly beyond the realm of a joke.’

“Delicious food just naturally makes you eat faster, doesn’t it?”

“If that’s the case, why do you always eat my cooking so slowly?”

“That’s different! Bai Li, your cooking is so incredibly delicious that this rule doesn’t apply. I have to savor it slowly to truly do justice to its taste!”

“You certainly know how to sweet-talk.”

Bai Li finished the fried skewer in her hand, then spoke again.

“However, since we’ve eaten so much now, it seems your dinner portion will have to be reduced.”

“Ah? No way! I was really looking forward to it!”

‘Facing Lin Xi’s adorable pouting, Bai Li maintained her composure outwardly, though her inner self was screaming.’

‘However, she had grown accustomed to such situations and never let it show.’

“Then don’t eat too much; just try a taste of each item, alright?”

“Mhm! Then let’s go try some desserts…”

Bang bang!!

Before Lin Xi could finish her sentence, a series of crashing and smashing sounds suddenly erupted from not too far away.