Chapter 66: A Morning of Alarms and Unexpected Encounters

“Beep, beep, beep, beep… Beep, beep, beep, beep…”

The phone, vibrating noisily on the chair, emitted a jarring cacophony that shattered the tranquility of the beautiful weekend morning, relentlessly attempting to rouse a slumbering consciousness.

A morning alarm serves as both an affirmation of the user’s future aspirations and a harsh repudiation of yesterday’s self; the fervent resolve felt when setting it the night before directly correlates with the profound misery experienced upon being jolted awake. As the saying goes, “After the third ring of an alarm, yesterday’s self transforms into an enemy.”

With a heavy sigh, a hand emerged from beneath the thin covers, blindly searching in the direction of the incessant sound until it found the culprit attempting to demolish precious sleep. Without needing sight, fingers swiftly located the phone’s side button, pressing it twice in quick succession to silence the alarm and restore the peaceful quietude of dreamland.

Yet, yesterday’s self proved to be a truly vile and insidious adversary. Not only had he set multiple alarms in rapid succession, but he had also activated the “snooze” function, all in a relentless campaign to seize the high ground of consciousness through an unending bombardment. Sound, serving as artillery, was meant to breach the city gates of eyelids and utterly annihilate the stubbornly resisting army of sleep.

However, as the adage goes, “Today’s self surpasses yesterday’s.” Humans are creatures of continuous growth, and in this instance, the allure of the bed and the embrace of sleep triumphed over the cold, unyielding machinery. Despite its persistent noise, the alarm met with nothing more than repeated, momentary silences. The body subconsciously resisted, the hand having developed a mechanical, repetitive, and precise motion, while consciousness stubbornly refused to awaken.

Faced with this foreseeable, endless tug-of-war, the stalemate was finally broken.

“The alarm has been ringing for a quarter of an hour; are you ever going to wake up?”

A figure, who had clearly endured the alarm’s torment for an equally long time, pushed open the slightly ajar bedroom door with an exasperated groan. Her arrival was a strategic maneuver, a surprise attack that instantly reversed the tide of battle, effortlessly breaching the fortress of sleep and forcibly jolting the sleeper’s consciousness awake.

“…Huh? Oh…”

Zhang Qingwei groggily opened his eyes, his hand, which had been reaching for his phone, now redirected its fumbling search to the bedside table, eventually finding his glasses.

Donning his glasses, which aided his slow return to full awareness, he turned his head towards the doorway and saw Jin Shiling standing there, holding a cup of hot milk.

“Good morn— ah-wah-wah—”

He attempted to greet her, his voice hoarse from a night’s sleep, but the latter half of his words was swallowed by a prodigious yawn, further deepening the frown on the young woman’s face.

“Honestly, at your age, waking up shouldn’t be such a struggle.”

Jin Shiling grumbled as she picked up his phone from the chair, unplugged the charging cable, and tossed it onto his bed. Then, she walked back into the living room. “Didn’t you make an appointment to go to the department today? Is it really wise to be dawdling like this?”

“You don’t understand,” he sighed. “Waking up early two days in a row on a weekend is a truly cruel form of torture for an office worker…”

It not only signified the crushing of hopes for catching up on sleep after five days of arduous work but also served as a brutal harbinger of twelve consecutive days of early mornings.

Taking his phone, Zhang Qingwei canceled each alarm one by one before collapsing back onto the bed. After a reluctant farewell to his pillow, he finally sat up and grabbed his clothes from the chair.

“Well, you could have slept in naturally yesterday, couldn’t you? Where did you go yesterday?”

“Yesterday? A friend got married, so I went to their wedding,” Zhang Qingwei lied casually. After all, he obviously couldn’t tell Jin Shiling that he had spent the entire previous day at an amusement park with a Corroder.

After quickly getting dressed and washing up in the bathroom, Zhang Qingwei returned to the living room to find Jin Shiling seated on the sofa, nibbling on some snacks. While Jin Shiling was always disciplined with her routine, it was still quite early for her on a rare holiday. Furthermore, her elaborate attire clearly indicated she had plans for the day.

“Got plans with someone?” Zhang Qingwei inquired casually, pulling a few biscuits from a bag and popping them into his mouth.

“A classmate invited me out.”

“A male classmate or a female classmate?”

Jin Shiling rolled her eyes at him, fixing him with a look that clearly labeled him an idiot, and offered no reply.

“Ah, summer vacation truly is wonderful. Where are you planning to go?”

“Star Circle Studios.”

What a coincidence, though the city’s well-known amusement parks were few. Zhang Qingwei silently swallowed his biscuit, thinking it was fortunate he hadn’t made plans with Rainbow for today. It would be awkward if they ran into each other; she might claim it was with a classmate, but it could just as easily be with her fellow Magical Girls.

“It’s hot these days, so take it easy while you’re out.”

“I know, I know. I’ve got sunscreen, a mini-fan, cooling patches, and heatstroke medicine all with me,” Jin Shiling replied dismissively.

Jin Shiling offered a couple of perfunctory answers, glanced at the time on her phone, and then rose to pick up the shoulder bag beside her.

“It’s almost time; I’m heading out.”

Having changed into her shoes, she stood at the entrance, adding one last remark before leaving, “Oh, and when you go to the Magical Supervision Department today… don’t say anything silly.”

“?”

Just as he was about to ask Jin Shiling what she meant, the young woman had already pushed open the door and left the house, leaving Zhang Qingwei only enough time to utter a brief, “Have fun.”

With a soft ‘bang,’ the door closed, and as the sound of her footsteps faded down the hallway, he found himself alone in the house once more.

Since their return from the grave-sweeping day, the relationship between the siblings had subtly shifted. At the very least, they no longer ignored each other like strangers. Instead, they occasionally exchanged a few words. Even if their conversations lacked substance, and even if they often led to disagreements, Zhang Qingwei still considered it a remarkable improvement compared to before.

At the very least, they were both willing to speak, which made their interactions feel a little more relaxed.

As for what their relationship would become in the future, no one could predict. Everything was shrouded in uncertainty, for their bond extended far beyond the simple definition of “siblings.” On the extraordinary side of life, they each played vastly different roles.

As Zhang Qingwei, he was powerless to prevent Jin Shiling from becoming a Magical Girl. Yet, as Black Mirror, her every action would have severe repercussions for Baoyu. Should she encounter Baoyu again, how would she treat this immature younger sister and enemy? This, too, was a problem fraught with difficulty.

And of all people, she had to be teamed up with that shorty. A wave of irritation washed over him at the thought of Polaris. Entrusting Jin Shiling to her was simply too unsettling. No one knew better than him that the shorty was already at the end of her rope; to cling to life even after being stripped of her magical attire, only she could manage such a feat.

If he went to the Magical Supervision Department today, would he be able to see her? Amidst his apprehension about going, he also harbored a strange, unnameable anticipation.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He would enter the Magical Supervision Department as an unassuming civilian, investigating the situation firsthand and gathering crucial intelligence for any potential infiltration missions in the future.

“It’s about time. Well, it seems I should be going too.”

Zhang Qingwei stood before the mirror, tugging at his shirt and tidying his appearance slightly before grabbing his phone and keys. Then, he too exited the house.

“I’m leaving, Mom.”

After stepping out, Zhang Qingwei walked towards the main gate of the residential complex. According to the previous phone call, the Magical Supervision Department was supposed to send someone to pick him up in advance. Yet, when he reached the roadside by the complex entrance, he saw no car that appeared to be waiting for anyone.

No, that wasn’t entirely accurate. There was indeed a black sedan parked there. However, upon seeing a burly man with a thick gold chain around his neck, sunglasses perched on his nose, and a pair of “tattooed sleeves” open the driver’s side door and sit inside, Zhang Qingwei found it utterly impossible to associate this ‘big brother,’ who looked as if he’d just walked off the set of a gangster film, with the Magical Supervision Department.

‘It couldn’t be him, could it?’ Zhang Qingwei thought, glancing around. At the same time, the ‘big brother’ across the street also looked up, seemingly catching his eye, then tapped on the flip phone in his hand, appearing as if he were confirming a kidnapping target.

Next, he raised his right arm and waved to Zhang Qingwei.

After looking left and right, Zhang Qingwei confirmed there was no one else around, then slowly pointed to himself. He watched as the man nodded in response.

‘It can’t really be like this, can it? When did the Magical Supervision Department start recruiting gangsters?’ Approaching the car while maintaining a relatively safe distance, Zhang Qingwei tentatively asked, “You… good day?”

“You’re Zhang Qingwei?”

For some reason, the simple question made Zhang Qingwei feel as though he was facing a street gang leader who had just lost a shipment, seething with anger and ready to take it out on his subordinates. The eyes peeking through the gaps in the sunglasses were sharp and cold, conveying an aura that suggested he might pull out a knife and sever a finger at any moment.

“That’s me. And you are—”

“Get in, kid. Been waiting for you for a while,” the man said, tilting his head and gesturing with a slight nod towards the back seat, indicating for Zhang Qingwei to get in.

‘Hiss, is it really okay for me to get in this car?’ Zhang Qingwei wondered. Though appearances could be deceiving, he still pulled open the car door with a touch of skepticism, settling into the seat behind the man.

The car slowly started, and the familiar scenery receded into the distance. Inside, one man focused intently on the steering wheel, gazing ahead, while the other leaned by the window, letting the street scenes distract him. Neither of the two men in the car spoke first.

After several minutes of this silence, the driver finally broke under the oppressive atmosphere within the car. He casually turned on the car’s audio system, and a lively, adorable female voice began singing an anime theme song that Zhang Qingwei found somewhat familiar.

‘Wait a minute,’ he thought. ‘I remember hearing this song yesterday at the amusement park. Isn’t this the background music that’s always playing in Cindy’s Fairytale Kingdom? Its presence here is certainly unexpected.’

“My apologies, I dropped my daughter off for her lesson on the way here, and this is what she likes to listen to,” the man quickly explained, sensing the suddenly peculiar atmosphere and fearing Zhang Qingwei might form a strange impression of him. He pressed the playlist adjustment button several times, and the lively female voice was promptly replaced by a husky, rugged male voice, singing a direct and unrefined song with intense emotion.

“A Daolang song?” Zhang Qingwei guessed the singer from memory.

“Oh, you listen to him too, kid?”

“Yeah, my dad likes his songs.”

“Well, your old man has good taste, kid. A lot of people don’t even know who he is anymore.” With a shared topic of conversation, the man suddenly became quite chatty. While Zhang Qingwei wasn’t particularly skilled at small talk, he was often praised as an excellent listener. Thus, he occasionally offered positive responses and maintained an appearance of attentive listening, providing the other man with a significant sense of validation.

During their casual conversation, Zhang Qingwei gleaned a fair amount of information about the man: he introduced himself as Old Qin and wasn’t strictly a member of the Magical Supervision Department. Rather, he was a stakeholder with partial access to information, much like Zhang Qingwei himself. Old Qin’s wife had been a Magical Girl years ago, and after retiring, she continued to work in a related capacity at the department. Old Qin, through his wife’s connections, had found a general odd-jobs position there.

According to Old Qin, many Magical Girls remained within the Magical Supervision Department after retirement, and some nearing graduation and about to enter society would directly join the department’s system. Very few could hold normal jobs while simultaneously fulfilling their Magical Girl duties. The conditions offered by the Magical Supervision Department were indeed quite appealing: stable work and ample benefits, making it a true “iron rice bowl” (TL Note: A Chinese idiom referring to a secure job with guaranteed income and benefits, often in the public sector).

Considering it from another perspective, this meant that the Magical Supervision Department’s authority remained firmly in the hands of Magical Girls, or those who once were. It was difficult to consider it an organization effectively monitored or controlled. Moreover, Magical Girls inherently possessed unrestrained power that could easily disrupt norms and balance. If such individuals were to band together to protect their own interests, there was a significant risk of it becoming a “one-man show” (TL Note: A Chinese idiom referring to a situation where one person or group dominates decision-making without opposition).

Approaching the city center, the towering building that housed the Jingping City Magical Supervision Department headquarters loomed ever larger. While waiting at a red light, Old Qin retrieved a tablet from the passenger seat and handed it to Zhang Qingwei.

“Kid, while we have a moment, go ahead and complete your registration,” Old Qin instructed.

“Registration?”

“Just open it. It has all the prompts, just follow along. It’ll be clearer than me nagging you about it.”

Opening the tablet, Zhang Qingwei saw a guided program. So that was it; entering required procedures like information collection and real-name authentication. This wasn’t surprising. Holding the tablet away from his face for a few seconds, Zhang Qingwei successfully completed the facial registration.

“Brother, once I’ve done this, can I enter and exit the Magical Supervision Department normally?”

“Not quite. What you’re doing today is only temporary registration, valid for less than a day. If you come again for something, you’ll need to re-authenticate, though the process will be relatively simpler.”

“Ah, I see…”

After completing all the prompts on the tablet, Zhang Qingwei placed it on the seat beside him. Simultaneously, the sedan gradually slowed, coming to a stop at the guard post by one of the Magical Supervision Department’s entrances.

“Kid, wait here for me for a moment.” With that, Old Qin got out of the car and walked towards the guard station.

It was strange, indeed. While not transformed into Black Mirror, he was merely an ordinary person. Yet, some characteristics from his time as a Corroder had persisted. For instance, he could perceive the incubation of Corroder larvae within people’s hearts; he could discern negative emotions that weren’t outwardly displayed by some individuals; and he could also see the flow of magic.

Before him, a colossal, pale golden barrier enveloped the entire Magical Supervision Department complex. This barrier was invisible and imperceptible to ordinary people, and it had no effect on them. Its true purpose was singular: to isolate Corroders. Should a Corroder’s magic touch it, the barrier would retaliate fiercely and simultaneously issue a warning to the Magical Girls inside.

If asked how he knew this, he could only reply that it was from his personal experience. With this barrier in place, neither she (Black Mirror) nor Rainbow could infiltrate unnoticed, making this his primary obstacle to overcome.

To construct such an immense barrier would undoubtedly require a vast amount of magic. Was it a specific type of spell, or perhaps generated by some device? Zhang Qingwei surmised the latter was more probable.

After exchanging a few words with the fully armed personnel at the guard station, Old Qin motioned for Zhang Qingwei to get out of the car. Following closely behind Old Qin, he observed someone approaching Old Qin’s vehicle with an instrument, and ahead of them stood a device resembling a subway security gate.

“This is as far as I go, kid. I can’t enter beyond this point,” Old Qin stated with an air of nonchalant acceptance. “These kinds of places are quite strict with their checks, you just get used to it.”

Old Qin, exhibiting a calm and easygoing demeanor, patted Zhang Qingwei’s shoulder. He then pointed to a person standing nearby, instructing Zhang Qingwei to simply follow them from there.

“Thank you for today, brother.”

“No problem, don’t mention it.”

After symbolically exchanging contact information, the two men waved goodbye. Old Qin drove off in his now-inspected car, while Zhang Qingwei followed the Magical Supervision Department personnel into the complex.

As he had expected, the barrier showed no reaction to him. To be safe, he had even left the mirror he used for transformation at home. The Magical Supervision Department probably never imagined that among the Corroders they needed to guard against, there was an anomaly like him, and this time, they had actively cleared him for entry.

“Mr. Zhang, this way please.”

After undergoing a body search and registration verification, the person beside him led him into what appeared to be an internal department vehicle. After driving a short distance, they finally arrived at the front of the Magical Supervision Department building.

Along the way, the person in the car briefly introduced Zhang Qingwei to the layout and functions of the area, mostly information that could be found online and nothing particularly noteworthy.

Stepping into the ground floor lobby of the Magical Supervision Department, a young woman in uniform jogged over to take over as his escort, leading him to a small conference room on the third floor.

“Please have some tea. I’ll go retrieve today’s materials and documents. Please wait here for a moment.”

“Understood. Thank you for your trouble.”

Watching her leave the room, Zhang Qingwei rose and went to the window, looking outside as he mentally reconstructed the building’s structure and details based on his observations during the drive.

They had ascended via the elevator hall closest to the ground floor lobby, which contained four elevators. They appeared identical from the outside, and using them required a card swipe. He had noticed two types of cards: one, like the one the woman held, seemed capable of accessing any floor, while the other resembled a hotel room key, only allowing access to a specific floor. Moreover, the elevator they took only went up to the fifteenth floor, and the method for reaching higher floors remained unknown.

Coupled with the surveillance cameras he had noticed almost every turn, it was clear this place wouldn’t be easily breached. Zhang Qingwei picked up his teacup and took a sip, forcing himself to think and strategize more deeply.

Ultimately, aside from his ability to transform into Black Mirror, he was just an ordinary person, unremarkable in both intellect and physique. To challenge a building that embodied the collective wisdom of elites with only his individual strength would be nothing short of a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

“I apologize for the wait.”

The young woman, who looked no older than a college student, returned to the room carrying a stack of documents. Seeing Zhang Qingwei standing by the window with his tea, she asked, “Would you like me to lower the air conditioning further?”

“No, that won’t be necessary. Let’s begin.”

Zhang Qingwei sat back down, waiting for her to hand over the documents and agreements one by one.

“Hm… I think we can talk first, Mr. Zhang.” The woman, after reviewing the documents, did not immediately hand them to him. “You may ask any questions you have regarding Magical Girls, the Magical Supervision Department, and your sister’s activities here. While the purpose of inviting you here today is indeed to obtain your signature and support, you also have the right to be informed. The Magical Supervision Department hopes to become your companion in protecting your family, and a collaborator in maintaining social stability. Your support is an indispensable aid on your sister’s path to becoming a Magical Girl.”

Zhang Qingwei nodded. At the very least, she was eloquent in her pleasantries. And since she had proactively offered the opportunity, he genuinely wanted to learn more relevant information.

“Then… what should I call you?” Zhang Qingwei glanced at the name on her badge: Liu Fei.

“You can just call me Xiao Liu. I’m a Level 2 Staff Member in the General Administration Department of the Magical Supervision Department. Please don’t be formal; I’ve actually only been here for less than a year myself.”

“So, you’re also…?”

“Ah, I’m not a Magical Girl, and no one in my family has ever been one,” she quickly denied, waving her hands. “I was recruited normally after graduating from university. While such opportunities and channels are rare, there are still some people like me within the Magical Supervision Department.”

An ordinary person with no connection to magic? To be able to stay here, she must possess strong personal abilities or a deep loyalty to this work.

“I see. Well, I don’t know much about Magical Girls and don’t usually pay much attention to it. So, when my sister told me she had become a Magical Girl, I was quite surprised. After all, she’s only a high school freshman. Back then, I was still playing games with my classmates all day. So, I’d like to know if it’s common for someone her age to become a Magical Girl. Also, does placing such a heavy responsibility on her suggest that the number of Magical Girls in the city is currently low, or that their overall strength is somewhat weak?”

“Many guardians of Magical Girls share these concerns, and I deeply understand your feelings. From what I know, most Magical Girls complete their transformation during adolescence, which is indeed a rather sensitive age. Many parents also worry that the responsibilities of a Magical Girl might negatively impact their safety and physical and mental development. To address this, the Magical Supervision Department has implemented numerous measures, providing effective support in areas like academics and psychological well-being. Here, I have a record of your sister’s recent counseling sessions at the Magical Supervision Department, and this is her final semester report card that the department received.”

Zhang Qingwei took the documents and began to flip through them. He wasn’t worried about Jin Shiling’s studies, but now with these records, he could indeed match them to the occasional late nights she came home. Besides academics, there were also two recent shooting training sessions. It seemed she was even more diligent than he had imagined.

‘Wait,’ he thought. ‘If the first training was on this date, that means she became a Magical Girl around…’ Zhang Qingwei recalled the day he had rescued that girl on the rooftop. He vaguely remembered seeing scattered residual magic from a vanquished Corroder on Jin Shiling that night, but he had later investigated the incident and assumed Jin Shiling had merely been present at the scene and thus picked up a bit of magic. (Thought format)

‘So, did she become a Magical Girl on that very day, or shortly thereafter?’

“Regarding your concerns about the city’s Magical Girl defense capabilities, while I cannot provide you with the exact number of Magical Girls currently in the city, I can assure you that the present Magical Girls are sufficient to handle most Corroder-related crises. Jingping City’s overall safety rating has consistently remained among the top in the country.”

Seeing that her earnest gaze didn’t seem to be lying, Zhang Qingwei asked again, “So, our city is quite safe, with no threats worth worrying about?”

“Yes, you can understand it that way,” she replied decisively.

“I see. In that case, as an ordinary citizen, I can rest easy.”

Zhang Qingwei responded blandly, thinking to himself that if she wasn’t trying to deceive him, it could only mean she was unaware of the existence of Plague-level Corroders. Perhaps even within the Magical Supervision Department, intelligence flow was restricted. However, given that he was just a civilian, there were certainly things he shouldn’t know, and the possibility of her feigning ignorance wasn’t out of the question. (Thought format)

Afterward, Zhang Qingwei, under the guise of further inquiry, subtly probed for more information. However, through their conversation, Zhang Qingwei realized that the staff member truly knew very little about the more internal matters. So, after asking a few more peripheral questions, he stated that he had no further concerns for now, expressed his willingness to cooperate with the Magical Supervision Department in maintaining confidentiality, and pledged to support Jin Shiling’s Magical Girl activities from a family perspective.

After signing the confidentiality agreement, he understood that he likely held no further value to the Magical Supervision Department. Seizing the opportunity while the conversation’s atmosphere was still amicable, and before the Magical Supervision Department asked him to leave, he made a request.

“Excuse me, may I meet the captain of my sister’s team?”

“That… might be a bit difficult, Mr. Zhang. Is there something specific you wish to discuss with her?”

“Yes, you could say there is.” Pushing the documents and agreements back across the table to her, Zhang Qingwei capped the pen on the table. “My sister previously confided in me about some of her experiences as a Magical Girl. While I don’t know the exact details, her situation at the time seemed quite dangerous. You mentioned earlier that my sister has only been a Magical Girl for a relatively short time, so her strength probably isn’t very great. Therefore, allowing such a young person to be in peril makes me a bit uneasy about her team.”

He then added,

“I also hope the Magical Supervision Department can understand that our family… has experienced some unfortunate events previously, so I hope to at least ensure her safety.”

“Hm…” The staff member appeared somewhat troubled. She took out her phone, indicating to Zhang Qingwei that she needed to request permission, then left the room again.

After about five minutes, she returned to the room and took an elevator card from her jacket pocket, placing it in front of Zhang Qingwei.

“Please exit, turn right, and take the elevator at the end of the hall to the twenty-third floor. Wait there for a moment.”

“She agreed to see me?” Zhang Qingwei picked up the elevator card.

“Yes, she said she also hopes to have a face-to-face conversation with you.”