Chapter 38: The Bait and the Revelation

Su Qianyu likely understood her fate.

She dared not open her eyes, hoping it was merely a hallucination.

Unfortunately, the wind left scratches on her face, immediately followed by the icy touch of Illo’s hands.

“So, what exactly were you and she discussing earlier?”

Illo’s tone gradually regained its composure, yet Su Qianyu knew that the calmer the sea’s surface, the more formidable the waves it concealed beneath.

‘What could she do? What more could she possibly do?’

‘Since you’re playing such a game, why shouldn’t I just tell you everything?’

‘How preposterous.’

She recounted everything she knew, spilling every detail from their meeting at the café to their casual pleasantries.

Yet, after hearing her out, Illo’s expression remained largely unchanged.

‘In fact, it seemed even colder?’

‘Eh, what was going on?’

‘Shouldn’t she be showing some dawning realization right about now?’

“At the café, is this truly all you discussed with her?”

Having heard Su Qianyu’s account, Illo seemed somewhat bewildered, prompting her to press further.

“Nothing else?”

“No, that’s all.”

‘So, I laid everything bare, and all it did was activate a terminal? There’s nothing else?’

Shifting her gaze to the Magical Girl terminal in her hand, Illo reactivated it.

Eliminating all other possibilities, only one remained.

The other party intended to play a long game to help Su Qianyu rebel.

Holding the terminal, Illo effortlessly accessed the chat interface with the mysterious person.

‘Since she desires to meet at the Magical Girl headquarters, then Su Qianyu can simply go.’

‘One must risk a pawn to capture a queen.’

Few, if any, had ever managed to escape Illo’s grasp once she had them under her watchful eye.

‘It’s only natural to get one’s shoes wet when constantly walking by the river.’

Illo could afford countless mistakes, but this so-called mysterious person?

They had better not make a single one.

“Here, it’s yours again.”

“Eh?”

Taking back her terminal, Su Qianyu could hardly believe it.

‘It was just returned to me, plain and simple?’

She was about to ask what had happened when, in the very next second, Illo’s voice resonated once more.

“I’m giving you a chance to prove yourself.”

“You, go meet her again.”

As soon as these words were uttered, Su Qianyu instantly understood.

‘Oh, so I’m to be the bait.’

Noticing the young girl’s somewhat disdainful expression, Illo pondered for a moment before speaking again.

“If you help me capture that stranger, I might just be in a good enough mood to grant you your freedom, you know?”

“Truly?”

“When have I ever lied to you?”

Su Qianyu fell silent abruptly.

She wasn’t avoiding the conversation; rather, she was wondering if Illo was up to some new trick.

But after a brief moment of silence, laughter once again filled the room.

“Ahahaha, well then, it’s a deal!”

Feigning an innocent smile, Su Qianyu declared brightly.

However, as Illo observed that face, her body suddenly leaned forward slightly.

“And, you know.”

“I detest children who lie.”

The atmosphere, which had just barely warmed, turned frigid once more, clearly indicating that Illo was calling out her forced smile.

‘Am I not even allowed to fake a smile anymore!’

Yet, complaints aside, what needed to be done still had to be done.

While she outwardly agreed to help Illo capture the person, in reality, she was not so foolish!

‘I’m incredibly clever!’

‘Any sensible person knows not to put all their eggs in one basket!’

Therefore, she wouldn’t blindly follow Illo’s commands.

Under Illo’s watchful gaze, Su Qianyu was compelled to initiate contact with the other party.

Yet, after several messages, there was no response whatsoever from the terminal’s other end.

It was precisely like when she had sought out the Sub-Moderator to ask about weaknesses.

During the interval of waiting for a reply, Su Qianyu suddenly recalled something.

Reflecting on their conversation at the café, she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was amiss with the other person.

‘This Sub-Moderator… why does their speaking style seem so different from their online persona, almost like two different people?’

‘From now on, we’ll communicate using this.’

That sentence of theirs inadvertently surfaced in her mind.

‘I’ve always been in contact with them, so why would we need to use the terminal to communicate?’

Though it was a simple sentence, she couldn’t shake the feeling that some hidden message lay within it.

The more she thought about it, the more uneasy Su Qianyu felt.

Connecting it to the incident in the swimming pool changing room, the thought Su Qianyu had previously dismissed resurfaced in her mind.

‘Could it be… that the Sub-Moderator I’ve been communicating with all this time was actually Illo in disguise?!’

Glancing at Illo behind her, and seeing her intently focused on her own terminal, Su Qianyu silently turned her head back.

‘No, I have to test this.’

Slipping her right hand into her pocket, she navigated to the chat interface with the Sub-Moderator.

After blindly typing “111” and sending it, Su Qianyu leaned slightly towards Illo.

Following a brief pause, Su Qianyu heard a buzzing sound.

A chill ran down her spine.

‘No, I need to try again.’

‘Maybe, maybe it’s just a coincidence?’

So, she typed “222” and sent it.

Yet, after another brief few seconds, the familiar vibration struck again.

A wave of dread washed over her!

“Who’s sending me messages?”

Feeling the movement in her pocket, Illo frowned, pulled out her phone, and mumbled.

But seeing that it was the Little Fox Girl in front of her who was responsible, she found it rather odd.

‘What did she mean by sending me “111” and “222”?’

‘And doing it so secretly?’

‘When things are out of the ordinary, there’s usually a reason,’ Illo thought, her brow furrowing.

Recalling Su Qianyu’s intelligence in her previous life, Illo remained vigilant, beginning to monitor the emotional fluctuations of the person before her.

Yet, seeing no ripple of emotion, Illo clicked her tongue.

‘Hmm… perhaps I’m overthinking it?’

‘Or is it that mysterious person’s doing again?’

Considering that the other party had managed to locate the café she had planned to meet at, it wasn’t impossible for them to suddenly hack into Su Qianyu’s account and send her messages.

Only Su Qianyu herself knew just how tense she had been moments ago.

‘Holy hell, it’s actually true!’

‘So the Sub-Moderator I’ve been chatting with all this time really *is* Illo?’

‘Does that mean this so-called freedom of speech isn’t free at all?’

‘No wonder Illo always caught me whenever I was up to no good.’

‘After all this, what’s the difference between this and running naked in the street!?’

But, after a brief internal lament, Su Qianyu discovered something else.

‘If the Sub-Moderator is Illo, then who was the person I met?’

As this thought struck her, Su Qianyu’s expression instantly shifted.

‘Wait, wait a minute?!’

‘It seems I’ve stumbled upon something truly significant?’

“Um, may I use the restroom?”

Trying to appear as unassuming as possible, Su Qianyu made her request to Illo.

“Go.”

Seeing Illo agree, Su Qianyu clutched the terminal in her hand and, without a backward glance, darted into the restroom.

‘Oh no, oh no, oh no.’

‘Things suddenly seem to have taken a terrifying turn.’

Turning on the exhaust fan, Su Qianyu sat down on the toilet.

+15 Fishing Power.

‘Deep breaths, deep breaths!’

‘Calm down! Calm down!’

After a couple of gasps, Su Qianyu finally composed herself.

Yet, before she could thoroughly process everything further, the terminal in her hand vibrated again, and a pop-up window appeared once more.

[I see you.]