Yes, I did all of this!

Yu Zhi opened her mouth, but before she could finish speaking, Duanmu Mo interrupted her:

"So, under the guise of helping you develop your self-reliance, they brought you to this city to live with your mother's classmate?"

"..." Yu Zhi was silent for a long time before she whispered, "I live alone. Aunt Katsuragi has her own family."

"That would be even worse."

Duanmu Mo put down the clean lunchbox, got up and went to the refrigerator to take out two plastic cups that were emitting a cool white mist.

"You're so young, yet you're already being bound by so many adult demands. If this continues, you'll become a problem child sooner or later."

Duanmu Mo placed a box of cups in front of Yu Zhi's table. Upon closer inspection, the white sundaes, adorned with red jam or syrup, looked incredibly tempting.

"Kids your age usually buy themselves a dessert after school to reward themselves for a long day of classes, but you probably haven't even had a sundae yet, have you?"

"...I ate it on my twelfth birthday..."

Yu Zhi looked away from the sundae on the table and said softly.

Even Duanmu Mo could tell that the number of times it happened was very small.

"So, do you want to eat?" Without giving her a chance to hide it, Duanmu Mo stretched out the sundae again and waved it in front of her eyes.

"You dare to transform into a magical girl and fight monsters, yet you can't even afford a sundae? Consider this a return gift for bringing me food."

"I..." Looking at the cold sundae in front of her, longing finally prevailed in her eyes, and Yuzhi carefully took the sundae: "Then... I'll start eating."

Yu Zhi scooped up a snow-white sundae mixed with some red syrup and put it in her mouth. The melt-in-your-mouth sweetness, along with the sweet aroma of strawberries, was refreshing and invigorating. Unconsciously, Yu Zhi's expression relaxed, and a faint smile appeared on her face, with a blush rising on her cheeks.

"So sweet..."

With her body relaxed, Yu Zhi was no longer nervous. She looked up at Duanmu Mo in front of her and observed this adult who was quite different from what she had imagined.

Unlike her parents, who were always busy with official duties and exuded a capable and serious aura, or the idle person her parents had strictly forbidden Yu Zhi from becoming, this adult named Duanmu Mo seemed to be somewhere in between, leisurely enjoying his daily life while occasionally displaying his experience and maturity.

In Yuzhi's education, abilities are things that should not be wasted: if you have the talent for research, then you should become a scientist; if you have the talent for making delicious food, then you should become a chef—finding your best talent and making the most of it is the optimal choice.

But looking at Duanmu Mo in front of her, according to the information Yu Zhi found online, he can only be described as unknown. The only information about Duanmu Mo is the scenery photos taken by tourists who came to this city, and Duanmu Mo's office was inadvertently included in the photos.

If Duanmu Mo were given the opportunity to truly utilize his abilities, what level could he achieve?

Out of curiosity, a question involuntarily slipped out: "Mr. Duanmu, why did you become a detective?"

"I'm not a detective, I run an agency," Duanmu Mo corrected. "Whether it's finding lost pets, locating missing people, or helping investigate the real culprit of an accident, I can take on any case."

Picking up his sundae, Duanmu Mo crossed his legs and said, "However, whether or not to accept this commission, and how to complete it, is entirely up to me."

Chapter Seven: Abilities Matching Talent

"Doesn't that sound too dangerous?"

This doesn't sound like a proper job...

Yu Zhi thought to herself, while Duanmu Mo laughed and said with a hint of pride:

"To borrow someone's words, this city is my backyard; I can see through any evil that is hidden there."

"really?"

Seeing Duanmu Mo's smug smile, Yu Zhi's curiosity was immediately piqued.

Seeing her confusion, Duanmu Mo revealed a mysterious smile.

He stood up and went to the bookshelf behind his desk, pulling a folded map out from between the pages.

Behind Yu Zhi's gaze, a sinister look of "mastermind" flashed across Duanmu Mo's face.

—Perhaps some things can be accomplished through magical girls.

Turning around, Duanmu Mo's expression remained calm as he sat back down on the sofa and unfolded the map.

"This is......"

Yu Zhi looked at the map and found that it was an aerial view of the city, but there were red circles with small words written on them in red ink at various locations on the map.

"These are all traces of strange people or combatants." Before Yu Zhi could ponder what the areas circled in red meant, Duanmu Mo directly explained the contents, immediately startling Yu Zhi.

"—Eh! You mean, the strange man appeared there!" She stared wide-eyed at Duanmu Mo in disbelief, not only surprised by the number of locations the strange man had been active in, but also shocked that Duanmu Mo had been able to pinpoint so many locations.

Is he really just an ordinary person? And not some magical boy or something? — Looking at Duanmu Mo scooping up a strawberry sundae, Yu Zhi's heart was filled with turmoil.

"There's nothing surprising about it. Both monsters and combatants need to eat and drink, and some people are fascinated by the power of monsters, so it's not incomprehensible that these monsters or combatants integrate into the dark side of society."

Duanmu Mo crossed his legs and replied.

Of course, he wouldn't tell Yuzhi that he discovered all of this through the hidden abilities of his monster form. And what these monsters liked to do most was use their power to subjugate bars or gangs, to kidnap ordinary people, rob them of money, and so on.

And some ordinary people are even unaware that the person in charge behind them is an oddball; they simply work diligently, serving those oddballs without knowing it—this is also a common occurrence.

As for examples of higher-ranking officials collaborating with monsters... there are some, but once exposed, they would immediately become targets of magical girls and the entire society, and would be severely punished by law, with their whole family unlikely to escape unscathed, so no one dares to do it.

—But these things, which are perfectly normal for adults, sounded rather cruel to Yuzhi.

"In that case, why doesn't Mr. Duanmu tell the police..." Yu Zhi looked at the map, then at Duanmu Mo, her eyes wide.

Before she could finish speaking, Duanmu Mo took the map back, rejecting her words with his actions:

"I have no such intention."

"Why!?"

Duanmu Mo toyed with the map, watching Yu Zhi's innocent gaze follow the map in his hand. A playful smile appeared on his lips: "I proved my talent by 'investigating' these clues in this city, but you might as well think about what would happen to me if others knew that I had this wisdom?"

Seeing Yu Zhi deep in thought, Duanmu Mo said directly, "The police who want to get rid of the monsters will try every means to get more clues from me and will ask me to investigate the monsters' location; and if those monsters know that I am so smart, they will also do anything to kill me and bring danger and trouble to my life."

Finally, Duanmu Mo tapped his temple with the folded map: "So, although I have this talent, I don't have the ability to use it. If the price of using this talent is to make my life a mess, I would rather lock it up. Do you understand?"

Upon hearing Duanmu Mo's words, Yu Zhi was stunned. Her moist lips parted slightly, but she couldn't utter a single word for a long time.

She was still just a child after all. There were many loopholes in Duanmu Mo's words, but she didn't notice them. The naive girl subconsciously believed him after learning about the danger she hadn't considered.

Revealing information about the strange man would indeed save more people, but if the price is that the people who helped her are in danger, what choice will the kind-hearted girl make?

Yu Zhi found it difficult to gain weight from this, but she also noticed the hidden information in Duanmu Mo's words.

Without the slightest hesitation, she stood up, placed her hand on her chest, and volunteered, "Then, Mr. Duanmu, give me the map! Let me handle these strange people!"

The girl might not understand the complex relationships between adults, but Yu Zhi knew very well that magical girls had the mission of defeating monsters. Therefore, she believed that as long as she transformed into a magical girl and solved the monsters, she wouldn't have to worry about what Duanmu Mo was talking about.

"Oh..." Duanmu Mo looked at the serious girl with a half-smile, as if he was thinking about something: "Hmm, it does seem to be a good idea."

"That map..." Upon hearing this, before Yu Zhi could even show a hint of joy, Duanmu Mo folded it up:

“I won’t give you the map. If you accidentally lose it and someone finds out, they can easily find me by looking at my fingerprints or scent.” Duanmu Mo said earnestly, “However, I can take you there.”

“In that case…” Yu Zhi hesitated for a moment, but seeing Duanmu Mo’s determined expression, she finally nodded and accepted his idea.

"Then that's settled." Duanmu Mo smiled, exhaled a cool breath, and placed the empty sundae on the table. "As for now, if there's nothing else, you can go back after you finish your sundae—staying a little longer is fine, but I bet your family won't agree."

Seeing Duanmu Mo leaning back casually on the sofa, Yu Zhi paused for a moment: "Um... weren't you going to take me to the weirdo's place?"

"I'll let you know when the time comes." Duanmu Mo maintained his leisurely smile, dismissing the magical girl in front of him: "As for now, you just got back from the hospital, didn't you? I'll let you know when you've rested enough, or when those lurking monsters make their move."

"But--"

Duanmu Mo knew without even thinking what Yu Zhi was worried about, and interrupted her: "As for the danger of these strange people, you don't need to worry about that. They have their own purposes for hiding, and they won't harm anyone."

probably.

Hearing Duanmu Mo's confident words, Yu Zhi believed him and relaxed: "I understand. Mr. Duanmu, I look forward to your contact."

She put down the sundae she had finished eating, bowed to thank Duanmu Mo for his hospitality, left her contact information, and then left.

—At the door, Duanmu Mo looked at Yu Zhi coming downstairs and said with a smile, "I'm looking forward to your battle with the monster, magical girl."

Upon hearing this, Yu Zhi subconsciously turned around, but only saw Duanmu Mo closing the door. She didn't take his words to heart and turned to leave.

Inside the room, Duanmu Mo sat back in his office chair, put his legs on the desk, and flipped his hand, revealing a white card depicting a strange person.

This is a card that the Spider Demon he killed earlier turned into—this kind of card contains the power of a monster. Although it is only of white quality, who knows if it will have a surprising effect in the future?

"Then, I'll leave the task of collecting the cards to you." Turning his head to look out the window, Duanmu Mo watched Yu Zhi's receding figure with an enigmatic smile.

Chapter 8: On the Relationship Between Knights and Biker Gangs

—A few days later, Yuzhi had recovered and returned to school.

In class, Yuzhi sat by the window watching the teacher's lesson in front of the blackboard.

The school's curriculum is demanding, and even a slight distraction can cause students to fall behind in their studies, let alone a student like Yuzhi who also has to juggle being a magical girl.

"Students, remember this formula well, it's very likely to be on the next exam!"

The teacher at the podium spoke sternly, and at the same time, the bell rang, signaling the end of class. She stopped lecturing: "After you get home, review what you learned in this lesson. get out of class dismissed."

After saying that, the teacher left the classroom without pausing for a second, carrying her bag.

The atmosphere instantly relaxed with the students' cheers, and the classroom was soon filled with a cacophony of voices. Invitations between classmates and discussions unrelated to studying filled the entire school with the vibrant energy of student life.

Yuzhi packed her schoolbag, preparing to leave school, but in her mind, the image of herself fighting as a magical girl still lingered.

Weirdos cause trouble, magical girls appear and defeat them—this has always been the scene Yuzhi has witnessed—but since visiting Duanmu Mo's agency, Yuzhi has discovered that things are not so simple.

There are many more strange people lurking in the shadows, and even if they don't cause any real damage, they will eventually harm others.

But even if she knew, what could she do? She couldn't find them anyway. And whenever she thought of these "non-existent" weirdos, Yuzhi couldn't help but feel a strange sense of urgency and pressure, which made her somewhat agitated.

—When they're not doing anything, those strange people are probably behaving themselves and not harming anyone...

Yu Zhi could only think this way. She sighed, her slender shoulders slumped, and she slung her backpack over her shoulder, intending to leave the classroom.

"Hey—Yuzhi!"

Seeing her actions, a classmate stepped forward, patted Yuzhi on the shoulder, and approached her with a smile:

"You left so soon?"

Seeing her classmate's smiling greeting, Yuzhi subconsciously put on a polite smile as well:

"Yes, I haven't been to school these past few days, so I need to hurry up and review."