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

"Xiao Yuan, can you guess what Sheng Shiyin is planning?"

Inuyama Tomoe hugged Yuuki Yuuki tightly around the waist and asked in Yuuki Yuuki's ear.

"I can't guess, but she must be hiding something from us. We need to find out the truth when we get the chance, but for now, we need to come up with a reason that won't arouse suspicion."

Yuuki Yukino speaks frankly and directly.

Hold me tighter.

Yuuki Yukino said that not because she needed Baqi's comfort or because the two of them needed any kind of ambiguity, but simply because they were moving a little too fast.

Beneath the two women, a gigantic creature that resembled both a bird and a bat was carrying them forward.

The creature was covered in jet-black scales, which are neither found in bats nor birds. Overall, it looked more like a dragon from Western mythology. However, dragons don't have heads like horses, and they are usually not as small as an elephant.

Although it's about the same size as an elephant, it's actually quite large.

Shatak Bird, this is the name of the creature, and also the name of Yuuki Yukino's skill.

Simply using tentacles to form various shapes or stepping on magic books was no longer enough to satisfy Yuuki Yuuki's needs, so she developed her wand a little and learned this transportation-specialized skill.

Essentially, it's no different from Yuuki Enishi's giant worm or Night Howler; they're all summon-type skills. However, because it's a transport-specialized creature, the Shatak Bird's attack power isn't very strong, but its speed is absolutely top-notch.

So this skill came in very handy on the way back to the hot spring hotel.

After all, no one would equip a race car with heavy weapons that slow it down, right?

Since no one is equipping racing cars with heavy weaponry, bulletproof steel plates are naturally out of the question.

So when the shatak bird was struck by the thunder from the sky, it immediately let out a tooth-grinding cry that sounded like fingernails scratching glass, and then it fell straight down.

Yuuki Yui had already deactivated her skill long before the Shatak bird fell into the street.

Fortunately, Yuuki Yukino didn't get into trouble while fighting that girl, who was still unaware that her name was Urouge Mashiro.

The two magical girls blocking her way still caused Yuuki Yuuki's stomach to churn as she felt a surge deep within her body.

If you had to pick the person Yuuki Yuuki least wants to see, it would definitely be Helica.

This troubled girl, who confessed her feelings and then lost her love on her own, left Yuuki Yukino unsure of how to treat her.

Having learned that Helica had confessed her feelings to her, Baki certainly wouldn't let her go back so easily.

Upon seeing Helica again, Yuuki Yuuki's feelings must have been incredibly complex.

Not only Helica, but Mizuno Yu came too.

When did the two of them reach a consensus and run away from the hotel?

Yuuki Yukino glanced around and, after confirming that only the two of them were there and that Nishio Reki hadn't followed, breathed a sigh of relief.

When Inuyama Baki saw Helica, her expression became subtle, a mixture of excitement and anger.

"Don't act impulsively."

All Yuuki Yukino could do was whisper a reminder in Tomoe's ear.

"I understand, I understand. I'll definitely hold back enough so that this blond shorty can enjoy his school trip the next day."

This shows a complete lack of understanding.

"Why is it you two?" Helica stared intently at the two people who had just landed on the ground with her red eyes, which were clearly still red from crying.

"Hey, long time no see. It was quite a thrilling farewell last time." Yuuki Yukina waved two fingers together from her temples at the two of them, as if she were waiting for them to come over.

Their last meeting was during the battle against Kuroba Reise at the festival.

After that, Yuuki Yuuki lived a normal life for more than a month to avoid trouble, so it was impossible for her to encounter the magical girl characters.

Most of the corrupted magical girls in Moonsea City are on Yuuki Yuuki's side. The rest are either busy working to earn money or busy being her chairperson, so they don't have a chance to transform at all.

Seeing them in their magical girl form brings back a bit of nostalgia.

“Perfect timing, I had a bunch of questions I wanted to ask you last time.” Helica slowly landed opposite Yuuki Yuuki and moved closer to her.

“Indeed, some questions should be answered.” Yuuki Yui agreed with this view, opening her arms slightly as she spoke, waiting for Helica to approach.

"Yes! Then explain why you corrupt magical girls are dragging us and innocent civilians into your battles!"

Helica's pace quickened, and the Thunder Hammer appeared in her hand as she leaped, crashing down with overwhelming force.

Why is the situation different from what I expected of a bell ringer?

Fighting side by side? Risking your own life to let them escape? How could all of that be forgotten?

"I have no such intention."

"Enough nonsense! You corrupted magical girls are all the same! You would never do anything so selfless! In my opinion, that was a long-planned attack!"

Helica was right about some things; sacrificing herself for others was her gamble to get into Starsea, and the long-planned attack was indeed true.

Judging from Helica's logical analysis, it's probably another conjecture put forward by Mizuno Yu.

"There's a reason for this..."

Yuki Yuki wanted to explain a few more words, but Baqi didn't give her a chance to say more.

"Who needs to explain to you? (Omitted)"

Now transformed, Baqi can finally stick out her tongue and reveal her black magic markings without any hesitation, and her short silver hair is growing at a visible speed.

"Huh?" Helica curled her lips into a smirk, and the force of her fall intensified.

A series of explosions rang out in the air, forcing Helica back from her unstoppable meteor-like descent. She staggered a few steps and landed on the ground, her hand gripping the warhammer still trembling from the recoil.

The only thing capable of blocking Helica's attacks is a power far greater than Helica's.

If you were to ask who could rival Helica's destructive power, Baki's gunblade would definitely be the answer.

Baqi tossed her long hair, which reached her heels, and her pure white, spotless military uniform, as white as animal hide, fluttered in the wind.

Long hair? Gunblade?!

After fighting that girl for so long, Baqi was able to hold back from revealing her power after the release of her divine powers. How come she can just casually activate the release of her divine powers now?

"Is it the same two-stage release that the blonde vampire tried?" Mizuno Yu's support shot followed closely behind, filling the brief vacuum period caused by Helica's unstable landing.

Mizuno Yu's attack came too quickly, making it hard for Yuuki Yui not to suspect that they had planned it all along.

Helica's aggressive fighting style can easily create large gaps in the defense, which Mizuno Yu's support can fill.

It is no easy task to withstand Helica's strong attacks while dealing with Mizuno Yu's harassment; underestimating her will definitely lead to a great loss.

It seems that while I wasn't causing trouble, the two of them weren't idle either.

However, even the pure white moonlight arrow could not stop the suddenly excited Baki. The spear blade, which seemed capable of cleaving through light, was wrapped in firelight and danced a deadly dance of smoke and explosion.

Baqi had been holding in a lot of anger—whether it was from the perspective of a magical girl or from the perspective of being pursued by Yuuki Yuki—and now she needed to vent a little.

Fortunately, Baqi remained rational and only vented her anger slightly before obediently leaving with Yuuki Yuki.

To be precise, she was forcibly dragged away by Yuuki Yukino rather unwillingly.

This skirmish ended perfectly, with no one injured and the neighborhood unharmed.

"Damn it! They got away again!" Helica stomped her foot in annoyance and deactivated her transformation.

“They don’t seem like they want to fight us,” Mizuno Yu replied. “Also, that state, although I haven’t tried it, I should be able to achieve it now.”

“That’s not the point. What are those two doing here? This is Rainbow Leaf, not Moon Sea,” Helica complained, but she didn’t seem inclined to continue the conversation.

The battle with Baqi felt like I couldn't unleash my full power. Baqi was strong, but she seemed to be holding back. The pressure was much less than the battle with Hong Moli on the beach.

This made Helica even more irritable.

"Don't rush, let me explain slowly."

Although Helica had no interest in listening, she still forced herself to try and understand what Mizuno Yu wanted to say.

Mizuno Yuu displayed her usual quick wit, pinpointing Yuuki Yuuki's attitude towards the battle, and then analyzed the whole situation.

“This city isn’t just home to those two magical girls. Even the three auras we sensed this afternoon, and the four auras that just appeared, all belong to them. There are at least four magical girls in Rainbow Leaf City besides us.”

Helica didn't follow up on Mizuno Yu's words, but instead evaded the topic and said, "But we can only stay here for a few days during the school trip. The real trouble is for Nijiha City to solve itself. I'm already facing a mess, and I really don't have the energy to deal with any more."

"What's wrong with you?" Mizuno Yu asked curiously.

"Nothing much, we'll talk about it when we get back. And maybe we won't even talk about it then." Helica gave a vague answer, quickly jumping out of the hole she'd dug for herself, and picked up the topic she'd ignored: "So? Four magical girls?"

Mizuno Yujun got back to the point: "It's been a while since we discovered the presence, met up, and rushed over together, but have you seen any other magical girls? Even just sensing a magical aura approaching would be helpful."

Helica frowned, examined herself, and shook her head: "No."

"Based on this incident, along with what the Pink Demon did at the festival before, I have a hypothesis—the corrupted magical girls also have their own organizational structure, and they are fighting for territory among various organizations. This could explain some of the questions."

"Like a gangster movie? Don't do business on my turf?" Helica didn't think this guess was very accurate: "You've even started doing business in the neighboring Rainbow Leaf City?"

"This is the most important thing I wanted to say." Mizuno Yu pointed in the direction where Yuuki Yuuki had just disappeared. "Where is that?"

"Where? How would I know?"

“It’s a hot spring inn.” Mizuno Yu revealed the correct answer: “The direction they went just happened to be the hot spring inn where we are staying.”

"That's a far-fetched argument. I know what you're going to say, but I think it's more likely that it's a territorial dispute, as you just mentioned. Because they wanted to fight for territory, they ran to Rainbow Leaf City. Doesn't that answer the question of why they disappeared without a trace these past few months?"

"The school trip had just begun when they appeared in Nijiha City with us, and coincidentally, they were heading towards the hot spring inn, looking like they were in a hurry to do something. Is this far-fetched, or just too much of a coincidence?"

Mizuno Yu spoke calmly, then added another sentence.

"Make bold assumptions, and verify them carefully."

Helica took a few deep breaths: "There are only three classes in the third grade in Moonsea City."

“Yes, there are only three classes: yours, mine, Yuuki’s, and Nishio’s, who doesn’t cooperate with us.” Mizuno Yu stated bluntly: “The one that has been threatening Tsukimi City all along is right beside us.”

"So what do you suggest we do next?" When Helica asked about the next steps, she had already internally agreed with Mizuno Yu's suggestion.

Who is the most trustworthy member of Nijisanji among the magical girls? It's Mizuno Yu.

To clarify, this refers to Mizuno Yui in her normal state.

The fact that Mizuno Yu didn't give away her things for free on the streets of Nijiha City, as she had done in the past, speaks volumes.

"That's not difficult. Just like we did in the hospital before, find an opportunity to check the hotel's surveillance footage to see who went out and who happened to come back during that time."

Mizuno Yu said.

"Putting aside whether we can find out, Yuuki Yuki isn't here right now. Are we going to put her on the suspect list too?"