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

“We do sleep together.” Qianyou nodded again, as if to confirm Baqi’s guess.

"Not just sleeping, but also taking a bath."

"Sometimes it's the same when I go to the restroom."

"besides……"

The more Baqi listened, the more she felt her brain was short-circuiting.

"Hyakki, the way you put it is actually a bit scary."

As Baqi spoke, she wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead with her fingers.

"That's not true." Chiyu wasn't interested in sharing too much about her sweet life with Koumori, and tactfully changed the subject. "Speaking of which, Onee-sama, aren't you planning to spend today with Yuuki Yukino?"

However, this topic was a little too sensitive for Baqi.

If it weren't for Yuuki Eri, Baqi probably wouldn't have been so depressed as to suddenly call Hyakki Senyou out.

"Sigh, speaking of Xiaoyuan..." Baqi put a few mouthfuls of rice into her mouth, swallowing the words she was about to say along with the food.

Hyakki Chiyu listened intently for a while, but still hadn't heard Ba Qi's next words, so she took the initiative to ask, "What's wrong with Yuuki Yukino?"

"Um……"

Baqi drawled out her words, biting the tip of her chopsticks as she pondered how to answer the hundred ghosts' questions.

"It's nothing, she went out today, but speaking of which..."

Baqi tried to change the subject, but after stammering for a long time, she couldn't come up with a suitable topic for the two of them to continue the discussion.

Thinking about it carefully, the topics I could talk about with Hyakki are probably magical girls, people we both know, and shared interests.

The magical girl topic, the strategy meeting about Seishin has already been held, the other members of Nijisanji pose no threat, and Nishio Reki is unpredictable, so no matter how the conversation goes, the topic always ends up back to Yuuki Yukino.

If they were to talk about shared interests, besides food, Baqi couldn't think of any other hobbies that Hyakki Senyou shared.

If we're talking about food, aside from a few restaurants that everyone has been to, most of the time both of them have a housekeeper who is responsible for preparing their meals, and the rest is handled by either Koumori or Yuuki Eri.

So in the end, it will all come back to Yuuki Yuki.

The topic of two people knowing each other—similar to the magical girl topic—will ultimately still revolve around Yuuki Yuki.

Baqi didn't really want to talk about Yuki Yuki.

Whenever Yuuki Yukino is involved, Tomoe feels like a bunch of kittens are jumping around and scratching at her heart, making it impossible for her to stay still.

Even now, it feels like there's a ball of yarn in her heart that she can't untangle, and the fuzzy texture makes her heart itch.

Before Nishio Reki appeared, Tomoe had not felt any sense of crisis. She felt that her relationship with Yuuki Yuuki was a natural progression and would not be disturbed by anyone.

However, after Nishio Reki returned to school, many problems came to light.

Was I being inconsiderate? Did I do something that would bother Yuuki Yuuki?

Will Yuuki Yukino neglect herself because of the return of her childhood friend, Nishio Reki?

Ultimately, it was because Yuuki had tolerated almost everything that Tomoe felt so happy being with Yuuki.

Baqi has a clear self-awareness: she is the kind of person who is very self-centered. She will consider other people's feelings, but she can't always care about other people's feelings.

But the thought that some of her actions might bother Yuuki made Baqi restless.

Especially after Yuuki Yuuki returned from Nishio Reki's place last night, she acted strangely, as if she was hiding something from me.

This made it hard for Baqi not to overthink things.

If she guesses correctly and Yuuki really is hiding something from her, it will give Baqi a strong feeling of distrust, and her mood will drop rapidly.

If you guessed wrong, then the little girl was just creating trouble for herself.

However, Baqi longs to express her love for Yuuki Yuki without restraint, just like in the past, and to fully accept the feelings that Yuuki Yuki reciprocates.

It seems a bit too lame to directly tell a junior about your relationship troubles.

Even though feelings don't depend on age or experience, Inuyama Tomoe still can't get over this hurdle in her heart.

This has nothing to do with her being Qianyou's senior or being unable to put aside her senior's airs; it's simply because asking such a question is too embarrassing.

In response, Baqi's choice was to tell the whole truth.

If she could keep things to herself, she wouldn't be Inuyama Tomoe.

"I always feel like Xiaoyuan might be hiding something from me. She's been acting strange ever since she came back last night. It's like she's really hiding something from me. I like Xiaoyuan a lot, but I'm also worried about her. I'm so conflicted. I don't know if I'm wrong."

Baqi spoke incoherently.

As those seemingly incoherent yet heartfelt words were spoken, Baqi began to understand her own feelings.

It's a lie to say she had no ulterior motive; she didn't even realize that subconsciously she just wanted to find someone to vent to.

In other words, she wanted recognition. She wanted to gain the approval of Hong Moli and Bai Gui Qianyou, and wanted to hear them say to her, "No problem, big sister, go for it."

Hyakki Chiyu's reaction was a little different from what Baqi had expected.

Qianyou blinked, her incredulous expression shifting to her usually expressionless face: "Big sister, are you talking to me about love?"

"Yes, yes! Is that not allowed?" After Qianyou said that, Baqi's face burned even more, and she showed a little fear in front of Qianyou.

"I'm a little surprised. Neither before nor after the transfer did my older sister seem like she would talk about this kind of thing. It seems that Yuuki Yui is really important to her." Chiyu didn't even finish the last bit of rice bowl and focused on resting her chin on her hand.

"This isn't the time to talk about that! I'm just really curious! I'm just really concerned! What's wrong with Xiaoyuan like this!"

Ba Qi was completely humiliated.

"As for Hyakki, what's going on between you and Kurenai? You've been together since you enrolled. When did you become magical girls, and how did you both fall into darkness? (Kagemai, how come you two are so close?!)"

"Although I'm a little shy about sharing my romantic experiences, it's not a bad idea if my older sister wants to use it as a reference."

On the other side, at the Holy Age Academy.

"There's something I'm also curious about," Yuuki Yui said, sitting on the sofa, biting her lip as she pondered.

"How did you and Hyakki Chiyu manage to become magical girls together, fall into darkness together, and control the corruption of the black magic runes together? Can I learn anything from this experience?"

Chapter Twenty-Six: Some Past Events

Magical girls do exist in this world.

Most girls dream of one day becoming a magical girl who shines in the eyes of others.

If you ask these girls who dream of becoming magical girls why they dream of it, their answers will vary widely.

"You will gain amazing power, which will allow you to do many things that you can't do normally."

"It's definitely cool to punish evil and promote good! Being able to protect the peace of the city and gain the power to protect everyone! Isn't that awesome!"

"Because I'll be wearing one of those dreamy little dresses, right? That way I'll attract more attention."

However, Hyakki Chiyu did not become the magical girl she dreamed of.

Even though she's not a magical girl, she can do many things that others can't.

With a family that others envy, excellent grades, and a bright future, Hyakki Senyou surpasses many others in this respect alone.

Punishing evil and promoting good, protecting others, is not something that can only be done by becoming a magical girl. Everyone living in Moonsea City protects Moonsea City in their own way.

This monotonous, peaceful daily life is a miracle created by everyone together.

As for attracting other people's attention.

The youngest minister's daughter, the child of the Hyakki family—these labels were attached to her from birth.

Qianyou has always lived with these labels on her shoulders, even though she doesn't really want to bear them.

She has always been a child who has been cherished and protected, and has always been the center of attention.

Hyakki Senyou didn't care about any of the benefits she gained from becoming a magical girl.

If conditions allowed, Qianyou would prefer not to be noticed by anyone, not to be labeled, and not to bear anyone's expectations.

Not wanting to bear the expectations of others doesn't mean she can't do well; on the contrary, she does it too well.

At the best primary school in the entire city, he consistently achieved the highest score in the entire grade in every exam from enrollment to graduation.

He then entered the excellent Meihuayuan Middle School and graduated with outstanding grades.

Finally, he became a member of the Holy Age Academy.

But she doesn't want others to take her responses to their expectations for granted.

She did not want all her achievements to be attributed to terms like "the family of demons" or "ministers," ignoring her own merits.

Hyakki Senyou can do it because she is excellent enough.

It's not because she's someone's daughter, nor because she's been given any special privileges; it's simply because she's exceptionally talented.

Whether someone is outstanding or not is not important. What Bai Gui Qian You wants to be is not an outstanding person, but herself.

It would be even better if she could become even better on her path to becoming herself.

If she could, she would rather be a transparent little ghost who doesn't have to respond to any expectations or bear any labels.

Ideally, it shouldn't attract anyone's attention.

This seemingly insignificant wish has already become an essential element of becoming a magical girl.

Hyakki Chiyuu, who didn't want to become a magical girl, became one in her final days at the Plum Garden.

When she transforms into a magical girl, she is truly just herself; she doesn't need to care about anything, nor will she be noticed by anyone.

Although Chiyu has hardly ever fulfilled the duties of a magical girl—there are quite a few magical girls in this city, and most of the time it's not her turn.

But there is one exception.

Qianyou hoped that person would keep watching her.

That was a name that a hundred ghosts and a thousand lovers would remember for a lifetime: Hong Moli.

Everyone around Hyakki Chiyuu has some ulterior motive for interacting with him.

Whether in the past or the future, many people have paid attention to the Hundred Ghosts and Thousand Ghosts, some pretending to attract attention, some openly showing hostility, and others showing the respect that many others do.

Even her peers acted like little adults, cautiously pondering their own thoughts, concealing their motives, and trying to gain something from her.

Material? Spiritual? Vanity? Satisfaction?

But only red jasmine is different.