Get off work and become a magical girl

Chapter 361 Post-Exam Reflection
When Team 277 emerged from the maze, there were already hundreds of examinees at the exit.

Clearly, the Celesteids and their companions didn't find the exit particularly quickly.

Although Tu Dinggui had used her full abilities, their location was simply too poor—after venturing into several nodes, they were quite far from the actual exit, so even if they rushed as fast as they could, it still took them nearly an hour to reach the exit.

Lark had little to say about this result. After all, compared to the tens of thousands of test takers, being among the top few hundred to find the maze exit was already quite good. Adding the bonus points Team 277 earned within the maze, their final total score ranked third, which was remarkably excellent. In fact, considering Lark's desire to keep a low profile, this result was almost too good to be true.

However, Tu Dinggui did not seem to be satisfied with the result.

Although she didn't show much emotion on the surface, Lark noticed the slight urgency she showed when exploring the exit, as well as the disappointment she felt when she finally learned that she was ranked outside the top 100 in the exit line.

"It's just the first round of practical assessment, so this can already be considered a good start, right?"

Taking advantage of Tu Dinggui's break, Cui Que pretended to say casually, "As long as we perform steadily and achieve good rankings in the next few assessments, it's not impossible for us to get first place in the end, is it?"

"Huh? Ah."

Realizing that the lark was speaking to him, Tu Dinggui took a few seconds to process it before softly replying, "Sorry, did I make my disappointment too obvious?"

Lark hadn't expected her to be so direct.

"...No, at least Foxtail Grass probably didn't notice."

After thinking for a moment, she decided not to keep hiding it any longer: "I didn't really sense any 'disappointment' from you. I just logically reasoned that you might not be so satisfied with the result."

"Yes, I am indeed a little dissatisfied."

Perhaps because she had consumed a lot of magic in the maze, Tu Dinggui had already deactivated her transformation. She took off her coat and held it in her arms, saying bluntly, "I would rather be number one."

"That's easy to tell."

Cui Que nodded: "And what you want, senior, is not the first place in a certain assessment, but the first place in this year's assessment, right?"

“…Of course.” Tu Dinggui hesitated slightly. “In fact, I have to be number one.”

This explanation sounds like something you'd hear in a class when a top student cries because they didn't get a perfect score on a test.

"You have very high standards for yourself."

Cui Que paused for a moment: "But there are so many people participating in this assessment, and there must be many outstanding candidates. The idea of ​​'only wanting to be number one' will make things very difficult for you."

"I know."

Tu Dinggui, holding his coat, nodded: "That's why I think that if we can do better in the first assessment, we'll have a better chance of getting first place overall."

"Ha." Faced with this self-torturing level of self-discipline and logic, all the larks could do was sigh.

"I'm sorry." Hearing Cui Que's sigh, Tu Dinggui apologized softly.

Why the sudden apology?

“These are all my own requirements for myself, but since we are now a small team, we will more or less affect you in the next few projects,” Tu Dinggui said seriously.

"In that case, shouldn't I apologize to you, senior?"

Cui Que looked completely bewildered: "After all, I've already said my piece. I'm not some kind of powerful magical girl, and being my teammate certainly won't help you achieve your goal of 'competing for first place'."

“But if it weren’t for being on my team, a normal candidate would only need to get a ‘pass’ grade.” Tu Dinggui clearly believed in his own logic: “And in order to achieve my own goals, I might semi-force you to move forward together in the next project.”

How exactly was this child raised?

Surprisingly, Cui Que began to feel that Tu Dinggui was also a rather troublesome child.

She had no doubt that if it were her own daughter, who single-handedly led the entire team to first place in the maze exploration score and also achieved third place in the overall score of the assessment, she would be incredibly proud of herself, thinking, "You should all thank me and praise me."

Rather, most people would have a similar mindset in this situation.

Tu Dinggui, on the other hand, did the most work and made the most contributions in the team, but at this moment he was able to apologize to his teammates, feeling that not getting first place was because he hadn't done enough.

"I want to get good results, senior Tu Dinggui."

Controlling her facial expression, Celeste said as calmly as possible, "And as far as I know, Senior Foxtail Grass probably thinks so too. So you don't need to think that 'wanting to be number one' is just wishful thinking on your part. If possible, we all hope that's the case."

Of course, this is a lie.

In fact, Cui Que herself did not want to be number one at all. Rather, she was exactly the kind of person that Tu Dinggui had mentioned earlier, who "only wanted to get a passing grade."

What she's saying now is entirely based on the assumption that a magical girl like Longdan really exists, and what a newcomer like her would feel when participating in the assessment.

It would be strange if a rookie magical girl taking the exam for the first time didn't want to get a good score.

"However, even if we wanted a high score, without you being assigned to our team, Senior Dogtail Grass and I probably wouldn't have been able to achieve such good results. So, you are actually the hero of our team right now."

Cui Que tried her best to embody the role of "Gentian" and said to Tu Ding Gui in a very serious tone: "In my opinion, you have done a very good job and it is quite remarkable. Senior Tu Ding Gui, I am very grateful to you."

"...Thank you for saying that."

The encouragement from his "junior" probably made Tu Dinggui feel a little happier, and a hint of joy appeared in his serene expression: "Yes, I should actually thank you, Longdan. Although I don't know why, I feel that you said a lot of things that were very valuable to me today, including now, I have learned a lot."

"It's just some snippets of knowledge I've picked up from others. If it's of any use to you, senior, that would be wonderful."

Lark also humbly replied, "I hope you can cheer up, senior. After all, our team's ranking in the next few assessments depends entirely on you."

For a moment, the atmosphere between the two became quite harmonious. If the teachers of the Silver Corridor were to see such a polite and respectful conversation, they would probably be listed as a typical case of "Etiquette for Working Together in the Magical Girl Squad".

"Well, I will."

Tu Dinggui smiled slightly: "Instead, please leave it to me."

“That’s really reassuring.” Lark also gave a polite smile.

"However, gentian."

"What's wrong, senior?"

"Well, although it might be a somewhat abrupt request, or you could say it's just my personal preference, but..."

For some reason, Tu Dinggui suddenly became somewhat shy, and then, rather hesitantly, said:

"If possible, could you please stop calling me 'senior' and start calling me 'older sister' instead?"

(End of this chapter)