Even if you're a corrupted magical girl, you still have to try to redeem yourself.

"I'm here to ask you out." That's my own voice.

"How could you date someone like her!" That was Baqi's voice.

"You even went on a night raid last night, huh? How do you plan to explain this?" The cameraman Helica's footage was shaky, and the cuts were fleeting. If it weren't for Yuuki Yukino's personal experience, she probably wouldn't have noticed this tiny flaw.

"I want to solemnly clarify that this matter has nothing to do with me."

"You think it's unrelated just because you say so?"

The video ended abruptly there, but Yuuki Yuki's twitching lips continued to move from the moment the video finished playing.

It seems that Yuuki Yukino still has a long way to go before she can cheer herself up.

Chapter Thirty-Two: I really don't want to eat this kind of thing!

Early in the morning, Hong Moli was summoned to the student council room of St. Yuu Academy by the president.

The president leaned back in her huge rocking chair, her legs casually propped up on the table without regard for her personal image. She closed her eyes slightly and gently rocked her body, causing the chair beneath her to creak and groan.

Do you remember when we last met?

The president opened his eyes, glanced at Hong Moli standing in front of him, and then closed his eyes again.

The president wouldn't call her over for no reason; Hong Moli knew this very well. So, the president must have something important to tell her today.

Being called in by the student council president for two consecutive days during summer vacation is not a good sign.

I knew all this perfectly well, but I still had to answer the chairman's questions seriously.

"yesterday."

"So you remember. Then why haven't the things I ordered been done yet?" The president tapped his heel on the table, making an unpleasant thud.

“Yesterday, that magical girl I told you to kill brazenly appeared on the street again, lingered for a long time before leaving, and even took good care of the other magical girls. Hong Moli, don’t you think you should do something about this?”

So that's what it was about.

"I understand." Hong Moli lowered her head.

"You just understand? You don't seem to have taken my words to heart at all."

What happened next was much the same as yesterday: criticism, dissatisfaction with Koumori for failing to resolve Yuuki Eri's situation; punishment, the self-inflicted pain by Koumori; encouragement, acknowledging Koumori's abilities and importance; and a threat, implying that if Koumori didn't work harder to complete the mission, it would involve Hyakki Senyū.

"If you don't complete the mission... understand?" The guild leader drew out his words, ending the tense conversation.

Hong Moli silently picked up her belongings from the carpet and walked out of the student council room without looking back.

A brief silence fell over the room, then a lazy voice suddenly rang out without warning.

"Aren't you pushing that child too hard?"

The door to the student council's small cubicle was pushed open, and the girl who came out walked directly opposite the president's desk without any hesitation.

Although she could easily be called a young girl, her development was far beyond that of her peers. Even with her lazy and even sloppy demeanor, which didn't fit the image of St. Yuu Academy, she couldn't hide the mature charm in her every move.

Then the girl pushed aside the steaming cup of black tea between herself and the president, lifted her leg and sat on the president's desk. Holding onto the desk, she shuffled around halfway, turning her face toward the president who was still half-closing his eyes and leaning back in his recliner.

"This is what she should do." The president raised his eyelids and glanced at the impolite girl.

"Yes, yes, it has nothing to do with me. I don't care about that. I was just kindly reminding you not to go too far." The girl yawned lazily, rested her arm on her leg, and propped her cheek up to face the president, her face full of fatigue.

"You don't actually think this low-level lie won't be exposed, do you?"

The girl asked the question in a very relaxed manner, and the student council president, who was being asked the question, was also leaning back in his chair, not to be outdone. However, the question was anything but casual, unlike the relaxed atmosphere at the moment. On the contrary, the question was very aggressive.

Between the two lazy people, the president first adopted a slightly more formal posture, changing from a languid lying position to a sitting position, and his tone was no longer as casual as before.

Did I lie?

"Do I have to expose this again? How troublesome—" The girl stretched and rolled off the table, lying limply on the sofa. She closed her eyes and refused to look at the president. "You told that child that if she doesn't work hard, she won't be able to stand next to Hyakki Chiyu. It's as if you can decide everything. But Hyakki Chiyu has never listened to your orders."

“But Hong Moli won’t verify it, and besides, when has Qian You ever disobeyed my orders?” The president frowned.

"Would you even call that an order to you? It's just a transaction where each of you gets what they want, right?" The girl yawned. "No matter what kind of evil organization it is, or your position as student council president, you're all just empty shells."

"That depends on who gave it to, my Vice President."

This morning, Yuuki Yuen was woken up again by the vibration of her phone.

Yuuki Yukino was woken up at 11:48 a.m., and in her eyes, anything before midnight could be considered morning.

Yuuki Yukino struggled to open her eyes to adjust to the dazzling sunlight streaming through the curtains. After a night of rest, the summer heat had finally returned to its usual intensity, greeting everyone under the blue sky with an even more intense heat than before.

"Herrica, after being silent all night, has she finally decided to complain?"

Yuuki Yui rolled over, covered her head with the summer blanket, and fumbled around under the pillow for a while before finally finding her phone. She then pressed the fingerprint unlock button and opened the message page.

The message that popped up wasn't from Helica, but from Baki's private chat.

"Xiaoyuan, shall we go eat Chinese food?"

Chinese cuisine? Yuuki Yukino's heart skipped a beat.

This modified dish, better suited to local tastes, was described by Yuki En in four words: a hodgepodge.

Actually, it's not as exaggerated as it sounds. Dumplings with strawberry or cream fillings are indeed quite bizarre, but before Yuuki Yuki's time travel, there were also local bizarre dishes like oil-splashed chili sundaes that even her own people couldn't stand.

If Yuki Yuki were to actually try the Chinese food here, she would very likely find it quite delicious.

While she was idly scrolling through her phone in a bad mood, she actually saw more than one Chinese restaurant, but she didn't even have the desire to click on any of them.

No matter how she cooks in this world, she can't find the familiar taste that Yuuki Yukino has buried deep in her memory. So Yuuki Yukino prefers to avoid these things altogether, so as not to awaken the softness in her heart that doesn't belong to this world.

Yuuki Yui has never forgotten the past, but she feels that she doesn't need this kind of meal replacement that can only be remembered but not touched.

Or you could say they just didn't have the courage to click on it?

So going out with Baqi is a good thing, but going to a Chinese restaurant is not.

Yuuki felt a little reluctant to directly refuse Baqi, but she didn't have a suitable reason to refuse, otherwise Baqi would definitely make a scene.

Why did you suddenly decide to go to a Chinese restaurant?

Yuuki Yukino decides to persuade Tomoe to give up gradually, starting with a casual introduction.

"Because I went to eat there yesterday and even posted about it, it looks like it tastes pretty good."

Bachi's reason was completely unexpected.

Then Baqi sent several more screenshots from her phone, all taken from Bai Gui's account. The table was filled with dishes that looked a bit strange but were actually quite presentable.

Hyakki Senyou's photography skills aren't particularly impressive; she probably just snaps casual photos to share her life.

It's worth noting that Yuuki also saw another person in the photo. Although only a small part of the corner of her clothes was visible, it was obvious that the person was Koumori.

I was worried about Hong Moli all day yesterday, but I didn't expect her to leisurely go out to eat Chinese food.

Suddenly, Yuuki Yui seemed to sense something was amiss.

She and Baqi had previously analyzed Hong Moli's behavior and agreed that someone was using Bai Gui Qian You as a hostage to coerce Hong Moli.

However, in the game, Koumori and Hyakki Senyu always appear together, including when they persuaded Miya Miya to join them.

Yuuki Yui had also witnessed the intimacy between Koumori and Hyakki Senyu, and she couldn't tell at all what a hostage looked like.

But that would be very unusual.

Although we don't necessarily have to go to Zhonghua Restaurant, we might need to ask Baqi for something else today.

Chapter Thirty-Three: The Linked Clues

"Eh? Xiaoyuan asked me what kind of child Baigui Qianyou is? Let me think—"

Inuyama Baki sat across the table, carefully gathering the chopsticks she had just picked up and placing them horizontally on the plate in front of her. She then covered the lower half of her face with her hands and thoughtfully gave her conclusion.

"If I had to say, Hyakki's most distinctive feature is her ordinariness."

As Baqi spoke, she separated her intertwined fingers, waved to the other side, and then loosely put them back together.

"Xiao Yuan, don't misunderstand. There are many kinds of ordinary people. Like that girl with glasses in Xiao Yuan's club, she's just an ordinary person, right? Ordinary people, let's just call her that. It's normal for ordinary people to act ordinary. But, Bai Gui Qian You is not an ordinary person."

"Xiaoyuan has seen what Hyakki Senyou looks like. To be fair, I think she's definitely cute, even among the most beautiful students at Seiyuu Academy. And then there's her family; she's the daughter of the Minister of Hyakki, so her family situation must be extraordinary. And her grades—while she can't compare to Koumori, who excels in all subjects, she's still quite good. All of these are extraordinary aspects, but I'll still call her ordinary, because that's what makes her extraordinary."

Baqi picked up the chopsticks she had just put down from above the plate, held the ends of the chopsticks with her two index fingers, and twirled them with her thumb.

"It's not very nice to say that about girls, but Bai Gui Qian You is like a ghost, she doesn't attract anyone's attention wherever she goes, Xiao Yuan, do you understand? Seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary is a kind of strength, like being able to get exactly 60 points on every exam, or having 25000 points in a card game until the end. Correspondingly, it's also impressive for an extraordinary person to act very ordinary, right?"

Baqi bit her chopsticks and started thinking again, occasionally pursing her lips, her eyes darting around, and the wrinkles between her brows growing deeper.

"As for other characteristics? Does being able to eat count? I'm not kidding Xiaoyuan, Baigui has a very high pursuit of food. She wants to try anything. Baigui doesn't care much about the variety or quality. It doesn't necessarily have to be an expensive restaurant. She doesn't mind going to some street stalls, as long as it suits her taste. There are many restaurants that I only found out about from her posts."

The chopsticks twirled twice in Baqi's hand, then she held them in her palm and waved them a few times as if waving a magic wand. The tips of the chopsticks tapped against the plate, making a crisp "ding" sound.

"Anyway, that's it. By the way, Xiaoyuan, why haven't you touched anything? If you're not going to eat, I'm going to start eating first!"

"Okay, Baqi, you eat first." Yuuki Yui was thinking about other things and just gave a casual reply.

Yuki En had no intention of eating Chinese food at all, but Baqi kept pestering her, and she needed to find out some things from Baqi. Besides, if she didn't seize the fleeting inspiration, it might slip away from her mind.

In short, the process was very complicated, but in the end, she ended up sitting in the store.

"Perfunctory! Xiaoyuan is being too perfunctory!"

Baqi picked up a piece of dry-fried shrimp covered in sauce and forced it into Yuuki Yuki's mouth.

The dishes on the menu were one of the reasons why Yuki En didn't touch them. The menu called it Dry-fried Shrimp, and judging from the name, it shouldn't be covered with a thick sauce, right?

Perhaps I'm just ignorant.

But how can there be such a thick sauce for shredded green peppers and pork?

"There's no perfunctory attitude here." Yuuki Yuen opened her mouth and took the food from Baqi's chopsticks, chewing on the shrimp in her mouth as she said sullenly.

Fearing that Baqi would accuse her of being perfunctory again, and to make the conversation go more smoothly, Yuki Yuki picked up another shrimp and put it in her mouth: "If you want to eat Chinese food, I can make it too, why do you have to come out to eat Chinese food?"

Actually, Yuuki Yui can cook Chinese food, but she can only cook Chinese food. She's not good at simple dishes like croquettes or hamburger patties.

"That's different! Going on a date together and eating something made by Xiaoyuan are completely different experiences!" Baqi pouted like an angry pufferfish. "Besides, there aren't many restaurants that even a hundred demons would praise!"

"Just because you saw Hyakki Senyu's post?" When Hyakki Senyu was mentioned, which was also the main reason for Yuuki Yuen's visit, Yuuki Yuen suddenly became excited: "Speaking of which, haven't you and Hyakki Senyu not seen each other for a long time?"

"After transforming, the last time we met was at the Moon Sea Tower. If we didn't transform, it was the time I bumped into Xiaoyuan at the school gate." Baqi answered without thinking.

During her unhappy and overthinking period yesterday, Yuuki Yukina even considered this scenario.

It's possible that Hong Moli came to find him alone, or that she and Bai Guiqianyou received different orders, which is why they had to split up and defeat them one by one.

It is unknown how many magical girls there are in Moonsea City, but they are all familiar faces. If the two of them really have to act separately, there is a high probability that Hyakki Senyou will find Baqi.