Chapter 56: Part (2): Uneasy Leisure

Using everything she’d learned in her life so far, Kexin dragged Luo Anying along as the two of them sprinted at full speed from the dormitory to the Special Investigation Bureau’s office building on base—the same place where the theory lectures were held. For this first day of training, the location chosen was a large conference hall on the first floor.

By the time Kexin slipped through the doors, the class was just about to begin, and the air inside was thick with a tense, serious atmosphere.

On the podium stood a middle-aged woman in a Special Investigation Bureau uniform, sorting through a stack of printed handouts. The moment she heard footsteps at the entrance, she turned her head. After seeing who had come in, she wordlessly went back to what she was doing—as though she hadn’t seen them at all.

Behind her, several rows of people stood perfectly still, each wearing a different type of uniform—clearly the instructors and staff for this session.

Fortunately, the seats were numbered. Kexin and Luo Anying quickly found theirs and, trying to make as little noise as possible, tiptoed over to sit down.

Kexin glanced around. The room was packed—hundreds of rookie magical girls gathered from branch divisions all over the country. Everyone sat straight and silent, faces serious, just like a school assembly when the principal himself came to address the new students. Well, at least that was how it was back at Muxhou No.1 High. At New Moon Academy, you’d never see a sight this disciplined.

Even Qisi, who was usually all giggles and chatter, sat stiffly in her seat. When she noticed Kexin arrive, she didn’t even say a word.

Maybe it was the mood of the room rubbing off on her, but Kexin automatically straightened her posture and focused on the front. Almost immediately, she noticed that the woman at the podium—the Bureau officer—seemed to be looking straight at her.

Don’t tell me she’s already written my name down in her little black book… Kexin thought nervously. Am I about to get “special treatment”?

“Director, it’s about time,” one of the agents behind her whispered. The middle-aged woman nodded, waved him back into line, and turned toward the rookies.

“Welcome to your training session. I am Chen Meiling, Director of the Special Investigation Bureau’s Training Academy, and also the general supervisor for this joint program. Over the next week or so, I hope you’ll come to understand what it truly means to join the Bureau—and the dangers that come with it. If anyone here is still treating this like a game of make-believe, you can withdraw now and go back to your normal life.”

Starting with a warning—Kexin couldn’t help thinking this felt like every military movie where the commander opens with a threat about how only the tough survive.

As Director Chen’s stern opening speech continued for nearly twenty minutes, Kexin’s thoughts drifted back to the day she became a magical girl—back to the moment when she hadn’t been given any choice at all.

Finally, the director wrapped up her speech.

“Next, let me introduce the instructors responsible for each area of training—”

The officers who’d been standing behind her stepped forward one by one when their names were called. Among them were even military officers seconded from the Federal Defense Force—the ones handling practical combat instruction, like firearms training.

Even though magical girls used specialized weapons designed by the Bureau—most taking the form of firearms—their magic-driven mechanisms didn’t actually produce recoil like real guns. So why did they still need to learn how to shoot? Because magical girls were still special agents. Their missions often required a broader set of skills than just fighting monsters.

After introducing the instructor team, Director Chen left the room, leaving only the young female lecturer in charge of theory lessons.

The oppressive air in the room eased immediately.

“Alright, the Director already introduced me, so I won’t repeat that. Let’s begin today’s theoretical session,” said Jiang Xuelu, her voice soft as a whisper—gentle enough that, if not for the quiet, it might have been swallowed by the air.

Yet that softness drew everyone’s attention instantly.

“First, I’ll give you a brief overview of the Bureau’s history, the ranking system for magical girls, and the threat classification for anomalies. Some of you may already know this from your seniors, but for everyone’s sake, we’ll start from the basics.”

As she spoke, she turned slightly toward the audience.

The big screen behind her flickered to life, showing slides filled with chilling images—grisly corpses, villages reduced to rubble, and nightmarish abominations.

“The Special Investigation Bureau was founded ten years ago—still a young organization—but anomalies have existed far longer. Throughout human history, we’ve recorded countless depictions of such entities, many of which have been passed down for centuries. They brought disaster—and fear.”

The next slides displayed ancient illustrations and text from old manuscripts, followed by early photographs from the modern era.

“Long before the Bureau existed, there were already people who sought ways to fight these beings—hunters who tracked them down. Across the world, they went by many names: vampire slayers in Europe, exorcists in Asia. Today, we call them demon hunters.

After the formation of the Federation, a surge of inexplicable cases emerged. Some investigators reached out to hunter groups for help, and through their cooperation, these independent hunters gradually became part of federal operations. Eventually, to centralize and improve efficiency, several departments were merged to form the Special Investigation Bureau. The catalyst was a catastrophic air disaster ten years ago—an event that claimed more than four hundred lives. It was then that the first transformation devices were developed, and the magical girl system was born.

Compared to traditional hunters, magical girls possess far greater combat capabilities. Since then, they have stood on the front lines against the anomalies—protecting the world, often at unimaginable cost.”

Jiang Xuelu’s calm voice echoed through the hall, every syllable landing with quiet weight.

Kexin listened carefully. When the “air disaster” came up, a memory flashed in her mind—news broadcasts she’d seen as a child. The official explanation had been that extremists hijacked a passenger jet bound for the capital and crashed it into a residential district, followed by a secondary explosion that worsened the tragedy.

She’d never realized that incident had been caused by an anomaly.

Many of the girls in the room were visibly shaken by the images—grim photos, smoking ruins, mangled bodies. Not everyone could keep a straight face like Kexin.

“Becoming a Special Agent is dangerous,” Jiang continued. “Every day, we face threats from anomalies. But it is also a job of profound importance. Now, let’s move on to the ranking system for magical girls.”

With perfect timing, she shifted topics—an expert at reading the room, Kexin thought.

The slide changed to a neat chart listing the ranks.

“Magical girls are divided into five ranks: E, D, C, B, and A, from lowest to highest.
E-rank are complete beginners—those who can channel magic but haven’t undergone training.
After completing basic training and passing the exam, one attains D-rank. D-rank girls can use basic magic and handle themselves in combat, but are not yet assigned to field missions.
C-rank is the minimum qualification for active deployment.
B-rank magical girls have proven strength and can often operate alone—though we don’t recommend it. They form the backbone of the Bureau.
A-rank are the elite—our best of the best. The evaluation is rigorous and comprehensive, and few ever reach it. But I hope you’ll aim for that goal.”

Kexin quietly sighed. When she’d been D-rank, she was already forced into battle. In just a few months, it seemed the Bureau’s training system had improved drastically.

“The anomalies themselves come in many forms,” Jiang went on. “Their danger levels are categorized into four main grades: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta, from weakest to strongest. Each category is further divided by numbers—the higher the number, the greater the threat.

An Alpha-1 is the weakest—your typical ghostly apparition, rarely capable of harming humans.
Beta-class anomalies, however, can easily kill. An ordinary person has virtually no chance of eliminating one. A Beta-class outbreak might wipe out an entire rural settlement. Most magical girl missions involve subduing Beta-class anomalies.
Gamma-class entities possess high physical strength and intelligence. They are often humanoid, earning the term “aberrants.” These are extremely dangerous.
Finally, Delta-class anomalies represent the highest recorded threat. Left unchecked, they can destroy an entire city—natural disasters given form. Only a handful have ever been recorded, but each one has caused catastrophic loss of life.”

The slides showed example images—some real, some illustrated. When the Delta-class footage appeared, the screen was filled with scenes of total devastation.

Massacres, Kexin thought grimly. That word fit perfectly.

Looking at those images, her chest tightened. Few here realized it, but somewhere not far from this very base, a Delta-class entity might be active right now.

To most of them, Deltas were just distant nightmares. To her, they were an approaching reality.

She should have felt fear—but something else was building inside her instead.

“Some of these images may be unpleasant,” Jiang said softly. “But since you’ve chosen this path, you must get used to seeing such things. This will be your everyday reality.”

She moved on to review a few procedural notes, again reminding them that it was still not too late to walk away.

By the time the lecture shifted to basic magical theory, Kexin’s attention began to drift—she’d already learned most of this through actual combat.

The ninety-minute session ended exactly on schedule. When Jiang’s alarm went off, she closed her notes with a bright smile.

“That’s all for today’s theory course. Please take time to review and reflect on your decision. See you tomorrow.”

As soon as the class was dismissed, her tone softened, cheerful and warm—so different from the stern lecturer from earlier that it was almost hard to believe she was the same person.

Still, a teacher who doesn’t drag out the class is always a good teacher, Kexin thought with relief. Back in school, she’d suffered through entire mornings of “just one more minute” lectures that made it impossible to go to the bathroom.

“Ah, finally we can talk again,” Qisi groaned, leaning back so hard she nearly bumped into Bai Xihan behind her.

“What, you couldn’t last an hour and a half?” Bai Xihan poked her in the back with a pen, making her sit up straight again.

“Of course not! No one warned me the instructors here would be so scary!”

“She seemed nice enough to me,” Kexin said uncertainly.

“You just got here, Kexin, you don’t know yet,” Qisi whispered. “That ‘nice lady’ is a tiger in disguise. She’s an A-rank magical girl stationed in the capital. Strict as hell.”

Bai Xihan nodded in agreement. “Confirmed.”

A lazy hand rose beside Kexin—Luo Anying’s. She was half-sprawled over the desk, eyes barely open to a sliver.

“Early mornings,” she muttered. “Can’t handle them.”

Rumor had it she skipped most morning classes entirely—Kexin wasn’t sure where she’d heard that, but it fit.

Since there were no further tasks scheduled, letting her nap a bit wouldn’t hurt. Kexin’s gaze drifted from her to a group of six unfamiliar girls sitting not far away.

They were also from Muxhou City—new recruits assigned to her training unit. The two placed directly in her squad were Tang Yuan and Chu Xueqing. Kexin recognized them from their personnel photos: one looked simple and cheerful, the other cold and aloof.

No wonder Senior Yan Luofei hadn’t wanted to be this squad’s leader. It already looked like a handful.