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

"You look at me first!"

Herika’s voice was not loud, but it was full of undeniable sincerity.

"Wasn't I looking at you?" Yuuki Yuuki pressed her stomach against the rock and tilted her head toward Helica.

"It's not that you're looking at me like that, it's that you're looking at me more seriously."

Herlica crouched down, placed her hand on Yuuki En's wet shoulder, and forcefully turned Yuuki En's body to face her.

What are you doing?!

At this distance, at such a close distance...

In that case, you'll be able to see the black magic pattern just by looking down, right?

"Yuki-kun, listen to me, it was my fault. I shouldn't have... held Yuki-kun's hand... just now."

Herlica gritted her teeth and stammered out the sentence bit by bit.

Is this all it's for?

Is it really necessary to be so serious about this?!

"It's really my fault... so please, don't be angry with me..."

As Helica spoke, she pursed her lips and slowly lowered her head.

Don't look down! It's really dangerous for you!

It was too late to back away; making any sudden movements might cause Helica to see things she shouldn't have.

But there's also an idiom in Yuuki Eri's hometown: "to retreat in order to advance."

Amidst the rushing water, Helica felt her body being enveloped in something soft.

W-what?

Why did Yuuki Yukino suddenly hug him?

“I know Helica is doing this for my own good…”

Helica?! She called herself by her own name!

It was so sudden; I wasn't prepared for this at all.

No, it's not a matter of being mentally prepared; this sudden address was just too destructive for me.

"It was Helica who understood my feelings and gave me the courage to be with everyone. I should be thanking Helica."

And then there was the warm breath in her ear as she spoke, tickling her and making Herika want to escape, yet she couldn't bear to leave this sudden embrace.

"So I'm not angry at all. This is how Helica should be, this is how you should help me, isn't it?"

Something soft and wet pressed against my front. Was it... was it that...? Pressing against me in front of so many people, wasn't that a bit too much?

"Oh……"

Herlica's brain was almost completely shut down, as if if she held on for even a second longer, a dialog box would pop up asking if she wanted to stop.

Helica tried to push the girl who was hugging her away a little, and took a few deep, heavy breaths, hoping to relieve her overheated brain in this way.

Given that it was a matter of life and death, Yuuki Yukino certainly wouldn't give her that chance.

Before Helica could break free from the embrace, Yuuki Yuuki forcefully stretched out her arms and wrapped them around Helica's shoulders, as if trying to meld her into her own body, completely pulling the girl into her embrace.

The slightly rough embrace, the warm body temperature, and the rapidly beating heart in her chest all clearly conveyed the same message to Herika—her entire body was in Yuuki Yuki's arms.

Completely naked, embracing each other, isn't this just like... just like... lovers who are about to do that kind of thing?

How could I have thought of such a thing? Don't think about it, it's so embarrassing!

Although I really want to do this or that.

No, no, no, now is not the time to think about such things.

Now it's my turn to apologize.

No, no, no, Yuuki Yukino has already said she doesn't care.

So what should we do now?

Confess? How about Reimu (() = Shikuran just confesses like this!)

No way! I'm so shy! How could anyone confess their feelings while they're completely open and hugging each other?

Ah, it's completely hopeless.

Herlica's mind went completely blank, and her body went limp as she sank into the water.

After that, Helica stopped thinking.

Chapter Sixty-Five: Looking Forward to Tomorrow

"I'm so sorry! Because of me, everyone was unable to properly enjoy the hot springs."

Herlica knelt in the center of the hotel room, her hands clasped together, her sincere apology a stark contrast to her previous fierce demeanor.

"No, it's partly my fault too. I couldn't help but hug Tianlei because he seemed so hesitant. I didn't expect him to react so strongly. I'm sure that caused him some trouble too."

Yuuki Yukino took the initiative to share this huge burden with Helica.

When Yuuki mentioned that sudden embrace, Helica stole a glance at the curves of Yuuki's body that were no longer visible under her loose, light pink pajamas.

Herlica's hand unconsciously rested on her chest, as if she could still feel the warmth and softness that belonged to Yuuki Yuki back then.

For Helica, the happiness brought by such a hug far surpassed that of a hot spring bath.

But just moments before, she kept saying that Yuuki Yuki had made such concessions for everyone, and then, because of her own actions, everyone was prevented from enjoying themselves properly, which was a complete contradiction of what she had said before.

After Helica calmed down a bit, she realized that she had acted impulsively again, making the irrational move of forcing Yuuki Yukino to listen to her apology in the hot spring.

Helica will absolutely not repeat the mistakes she made before.

Although her current frantic apologies might give Yuuki another chance to suddenly hug her again—Herrica genuinely thought so. &(尔] （ 『?

But such behavior would definitely cause her to lose points in Yuuki Enishi's heart, eventually turning her into a spoiled brat who needs to be taken care of by others—although that is indeed the impression most people have of Helica.

In short, I'm very sorry!

Helica concluded her apology with a deep bow while kneeling.

"I already said it was nothing. I don't really like hot springs anyway, where you expose your body. I get restless when I'm in them. Thanks to Tianlei, I had a chance to escape."

Yuuki comforted Helica using the same reasons she had mentioned before.

"Yes, and I really felt relieved when Xiaoyuan went out to take care of you," Nishio Reki, acting as the team's lubricant, chimed in.

Yuuki Yuki did indeed breathe a long sigh of relief, but that was because the crisis had been temporarily averted.

If Helica had retained any semblance of consciousness at the time, Nishio Reki's statement would have become strong evidence in favor of Yuuki Eri.

"N-nothing, we had a lot of fun soaking in it," Lin Jiezi stammered as she expressed her thoughts.

Even Lin Jiezi said so, and Helica's worries about delaying everyone were greatly reduced.

The deed is done, and dwelling on it again and again will only make the situation worse.

"Really? I'm so glad everyone says that..."

"Tch, that's fake! If it weren't for you, I could have had a nice intimate moment with Xiaoyuan in the hot spring."

Baqi's portrayal of the jealous girl was a little over the top, but her resistance to Helica was genuine.

The first official battle left Yuuki Yukino covered in injuries, and she was almost pulled into the Coin Dimension and turned into a velvet ball. This grudge is something Baqi will remember for a lifetime.

"Huh?" Helica was immersed in the touching atmosphere when she heard Baqi suddenly say that. Her lips twitched, and she turned to Baqi with a crooked mouth and bulging veins on her head.

"Alright, alright, stop arguing." Yuuki Yui stepped between the two, her eyes sparking with tension, waving her hands to block their view and prevent the awkward atmosphere between them from escalating further.

"whispering sound."

With Yuuki Yuki setting the mood, Helica couldn't continue arguing. She gave a cold snort, crossed her arms, and moved her bottom further away, sitting in a circle with the others.

The fact that some people didn't quite accept her apology actually made Helica feel a little better. Being comforted by someone like Baki, who was always going against her, made Helica feel pitied and ashamed.

Seeing that Baqi didn't seem inclined to add fuel to the fire and obediently returned to her seat, Helica couldn't help but feel a little suspicious.

Was Inuyama Tomoe trying to provoke me on purpose to make me feel better?

If that's really the case, then Baqi isn't actually that annoying.

Before Helica could think further, she heard Yuuki Yukino clap her hands a few times, drawing everyone's attention with her small gesture.

"Alright, alright, there's still some time before bed. Do you want to do something?"

To ease the tension and get the school trip back on track, that's what Yuuki Eri is doing right now.

Yuuki Yukino herself didn't know what to do on the night of the school trip.

Based on experience in animation, if an animation contains some non-everyday elements, starting tonight, either a supernatural event will occur, a victim will appear, or a character from an opposing force will take action.

No, no, no, that's not something you can refer to. The only thing you might need to pay extra attention to is whether Sheng Shiyin will do anything else.

Slice-of-life anime would involve things like pillow fights and emotional late-night talks.

A pillow fight is out of the question. First, none of them are close enough to have a peaceful pillow fight, and if Helica and Baki were to play it together, Yuuki Yuuki isn't sure if it would escalate into a magical girl battle. Second, the noise would disturb the others' rest.

As for emotional talks, there are three out of the four people in the room who have feelings for me. If I don't handle it well, it could escalate to the point where Baqi and Nishio Reki were fighting over him. There's really nothing to talk about.

Let's just pick a random topic to deal with the current situation first, and then we can gradually expand on it.

"For example," Yuuki Yui said, tapping her lips with her fingers, "For example, how about we discuss tomorrow's itinerary?"

When she doesn't go against Helica, Baki is much less troublesome.

"That's great! So, does anyone have any places they'd like to go? I'm the type who doesn't care where I go as long as I'm with Xiaoyuan!"

“I… am fine with anything…” Lin Jiezi said, moving closer to Yuki Yuki and Ba Qi.

The incident where they helped Lin Jiezi out of a predicament seems to have earned them a lot of goodwill from Lin Jiezi.

This won't work. You don't care, and neither does she. In the end, you still didn't talk about anything.

When Yuuki Yukina worried about whether this topic was appropriate, Nishio Reki offered her opinion first.

"The most famous shrine in Rainbow Leaf City is Seiun Taisha. Would you like to visit Seiun Taisha? I've heard it's very efficacious."

After Nishio finished speaking, he secretly gave Helica a victory sign.