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

But the fact that the silver-haired musketeer girl is here proves that Mizuno Yu's direction is not wrong.

The half-closed eyes and the long-awaited expression convinced Mizuno Yu that the person the other person was waiting for was her.

However, this is a mountain road only a few hundred meters away from the hot spring hotel, and it is the only way to get back to the temporary accommodation.

The fact that the musketeer girl would be waiting for him here further convinced Mizuno Yu of her guess.

Of course, the other party wouldn't be waiting for him here for no reason.

Either the other party wants to negotiate with me to reach some win-win conditions—from the dispute between the corrupted magical girls at the festival and the fact that the pink-haired girl just took a solid hit, it can be seen that the corrupted magical girls are not a monolithic group.

Kidnapping Helica is likely to be their bargaining chip.

Either the other party wants to get rid of her as well, making this magical girl from Yuyuehai City disappear forever in a foreign land, eliminating this big trouble without leaving a trace.

Or it's simply a matter of stalling for time.

If that's the case, Helica is in danger.

Baqi remained unhurried, simply sitting high up and playing with the matchlock gun in her hand, showing no intention of continuing to attack. It seemed likely that her purpose was to stall for time.

Should we use the Divine Liberation again to break through this place as soon as possible and find Helica's whereabouts?

It's not that it's impossible, but it's too dangerous. The other magical girl who's always by her side hasn't shown up yet, and if she expends too much magic power here, she'll be in danger herself.

Between engaging in battle and inquiring about the other party's intentions, Mizuno Yui chose to ignore them.

Just as Mizuno Yu lifted her foot, another shot landed in front of where her shoe would land, forcing her to put her foot back down.

When Mizuno Yu looked up and saw Inuyama Tomoe sitting there, she saw Tomoe swing the matchlock gun behind her, and before it hit someone's window, it reset its magic and disappeared.

"What do you mean?" Mizuno Yu asked, raising her eyelashes.

"How about I ask you to stay with me for a while? This invitation is pretty good, isn't it?" Baqi held the newly appeared matchlock gun in her hand, shook the gun, pointed the muzzle at Mizuno Yu's head, and made a firing gesture, but did not pull the trigger.

She is stalling for time.

Once Mizuno Yuu had confirmed Baqi's objective, she raised her hand and fired several ice arrows.

"Hey? What's with that thick thing? I didn't do anything to you, did I?" Baqi gripped one end of the chain, swinging the magical chain so that it jingled, blocking Mizuno Yu's attack.

"I haven't wasted my time on you." Maintaining her usual cold demeanor even in battle, Mizuno Yu is definitely not someone to be trifled with.

But it wasn't that difficult to handle. Baqi was able to manage it, and even had time to say some trash talk to distract the other party.

"What a pity, I thought you would be more excited to see the chains."

"That depends on who the person is."

A giant arrow of light, shining with a bright radiance, was shot into the air by Mizuno Yu, transforming into a crescent moon. The cold moonlight, empowered by magic, took on a physical form and fell towards Tomoe's body.

Faced with such an attack, Baqi could no longer easily sit on someone else's balcony and casually deal with it.

Just as Baqi rolled off the balcony, the moonlight attack that was flying towards the balcony changed direction and locked onto Baqi's location.

As she dodged, a beam of moonlight grazed Baqi's forearm, tearing a rip in her crimson demonic armor.

The moonlight didn't cause Baqi too much damage, but its icy coolness caused her entire arm to go numb for a moment, and she almost lost her grip on her wand and it fell.

But this was just one of the beams that Baqi managed to dodge.

"Hey hey hey hey! No way?" Ba Qi stared at the white that almost filled her vision and twitched the corner of her mouth.

The soft moonlight was like a missile mounted on a modern weapon, shooting down countless rays of light and carpet-bombing Baqi.

The situation on the other side of the battlefield is equally dire.

"Herika, I told you to calm down... Waaah!"

Yuuki Yuki was pinned down by the battered and bruised Helica, who seemed to have gone mad, and had no chance to resist.

Even though Helica's injuries are so severe that she might collapse at the slightest touch, Yuuki Yuuki can easily push her away.

It was precisely because Herika's injuries were so severe that she would collapse at the slightest touch that Yuuki Yuuki dared not push her away carelessly.

Such a crazy reaction is definitely abnormal, just like when Bachi was unable to suppress the black magic patterns because she had exhausted a lot of magic power.

However, Yuuki Yuuki could not sense even the slightest trace of corruption from Herika.

The massive black magic runes in the sky wouldn't affect him, but that didn't mean they wouldn't affect Helica. Yuuki Yuuki had personally witnessed the black magic runes suddenly dimming.

The last time the black magic patterns in the sky faded, along with the disappearance of Nishio Reki, this time Mashiro Urouge's target for the black magic patterns is almost certainly Helica, who is with her.

Although Yuuki Yuki couldn't understand why Helica wanted Urobuchi Mashiro to use that black magic mark—to use the same power as when dealing with Nishio Reki.

But Helica always manages to create impossible miracles, just like how she and I persevered together for so long in front of the Black Feather Reincarnation.

Miracles can also be the opposite; while Helica's potential can create miracles, in the opposite direction, her potential is also a huge crisis.

What if my actions somehow provoke Helica, causing some irreversible change in her...

If Helica were to develop inappropriate thoughts because of her refusal, causing this radiant girl to fall into darkness, Yuuki Yukino could not bear that responsibility.

Adding teammates who are also fallen magical girls? That's just a thought. If possible, Yuuki Yuuki doesn't want any magical girl to fall into darkness.

Judging from the magic power currently flowing into her body, Helica is still a normal magical girl, which should be considered good news.

But it's not normal for a normal magical girl to pin herself down, tear at her clothes while trying to remove them, and then reach her hands along the exposed black magic markings toward her more inviolable territory.

A slight stinging sensation ran down her neck as she was marked with a unique mark belonging to the other person. Her lips felt an even more frenzied plundering than before on the steps. Helica was completely dominating Yuuki Yuuki.

The wound inflicted by Mashiro was also throbbing slightly. Yuuki couldn't tell if it was a recurrence of an old injury or if he was becoming completely defenseless against Helica's increasingly frenzied actions.

Herlica lifted her face from Yuuki's chest, her small, painful fangs piercing Yuuki's lips, and roughly pinched Yuuki's chin, transferring her taste to her through this intertwined, soft bridge.

Both Helica and herself had just expended a lot of magic power, so replenishing it now wouldn't hurt...

No one would believe this flimsy excuse if it were told to others, but as long as Yuuki Yuki herself believed it, that was enough.

How does Yuuki Yukino view this behavior? She herself doesn't know.

Even if now is not the time to do this, if I go along with Helica's idea, maybe my guilt will be less.

Forget it, don't think about that anymore.

Yuuki Yukino slowly closed her eyes.

Come to think of it, when I first met Helica, she was also carrying a guitar, wasn't she?

Although we don't see Helica using the guitar in Nijisanji, she must be practicing diligently, right?

After all, he's a kid who likes the band his older sister is in.

In the game, there are scenes where Nishio Koki watches Herika practice, scenes where Herika sings and plays instruments when the four of them go out to play together, and scenes where Herika ignites the entire audience at the school festival concert, changing everyone's perception of this proud and aloof girl.

Yuuki Yukino still remembers the exquisite performance by the blonde girl on the school festival stage in the Helica route, where her fingertips lightly touched the strings of the piano.

It was a performance that everyone should remember, both in terms of its in-game presentation and the awe it evoked in the players watching on screen.

On stage, Helica played with a range of techniques, from deep, steady strumming to light, melodious plucking. Whether it was a rapid strum that brought the stage to a climax or a few bright arpeggios that added the finishing touch, Helica always managed to capture the resonance of every note with remarkable sensitivity.

Every note was precisely released by Helica on stage, as if lighting a lamp for every star, ultimately igniting the passion that ignited the entire sky.

Helica was truly dazzling at that time, even more radiant than when she was enveloped in lightning.

Back then, no, back then, Yuuki Eri, although she was also on stage, everything she played was just an accompaniment for Helica, and she couldn't overshadow Helica's brilliance at all.

Just like himself now, pinned down by Helica, the notes he played were merely accompanying Helica's performance.

Helica is the one who controls the rhythm; the ups and downs of the performance are all controlled by her, who is immersed in the world of music.

Under Helica's deliberate guidance, the performance finally came to a final, soul-stirring climax.

Chapter 109 Roaring Under the Moon

From beginning to end, Yuuki Yuuki was completely suppressed by Tenrai Herika, and had no room to resist at all.

If Yuki Yuki were to comment on her feelings, it would be that the guitarist truly deserves to be called a guitarist, and is even more talented than Inuyama Tomoe, who has been through many battles.

As for what kind of talent she possessed, Yuuki Yukino didn't want to go into detail.

This should have been a very memorable night, but because so many things had happened recently, the atmosphere was also extremely appropriate in the opposite sense, making her and Herlica's experiences seem like a nightmare no matter how she thought about them.

Well, if Helica had done these outrageous things to herself in the world before Yuuki Yuuki, she would have been arrested and questioned.

Overall, Yuuki Yuki suffered a crushing defeat.

On the other side, in the real battlefield, Inuyama Tomoe's situation was much better than Yuuki Enishi's.

At least, she wasn't completely subdued to the point of being pinned to the bed, no, rubbed against the ground until she couldn't get up.

Inuyama Tomoe still has a chance to fight back.

Whether it's the werewolf in legend who transforms upon seeing the full moon, or the literary works created by herdsmen living on the grasslands, moonlight and wolf howls always appear together, as if wolves lose their original color without the moonlight.

Amidst the thick dust kicked up by a series of moonlight strikes, a loud wolf howl soared into the sky.

This long howl gave everyone living in the city's towering buildings the same feeling at the same moment: they were in the middle of nowhere, being stared at by pairs of green eyes, and everyone felt a chill run down their spines.

Mizuno Yu, who was directly exposed to the howling of wolves, felt it even more clearly. It was as if she were standing on an endless wasteland, with the bright moonlight above her head, the rustling grass under her feet, and in the distance, pairs of hunters of the wasteland with their green eyes staring at her, with nowhere to hide.

But amidst that cloud of smoke and dust, the eyes that looked at Mizuno Yu were not the ordinary green of a wolf pack, and the silver-haired girl did not symbolize an ordinary wild beast.

That was the legendary giant wolf that devoured the world, a notorious evil god capable of even devouring the king of gods.

However, even when facing the evil god, Mizuno Yu simply raised her bow and arrow, aimed at the billowing smoke and dust, and slowly but powerfully drew back the longbow formed of frozen ice.

Besides being the goddess of the moon, Artemis also possesses another power: she is the goddess of the hunt.

In her eyes, all raging beasts were treated equally.

"Ugh! This is so troublesome! Why is it so complicated? Is it really necessary to go to this much lengths? Is it really necessary? I didn't do anything!"

Emerging from the dust was not the colossal wolf that shook the earth, but Inuyama Tomoe, who was grumbling and brushing the dust off her clothes, her entire magical outfit now filthy.

Mizuno Yu completely ignored what Baqi was saying, and released the bowstring with her other hand. Three pure white light arrows drew colorful intersecting arcs and shot towards Baqi simultaneously from three directions.

She was already showing Baqi through her actions that she had nothing to talk about with her and that not a single second of her time was worth wasting.

"Tsk."

Baqi pouted unhappily; Mizuno Yu's indifferent reaction made her somewhat displeased.

However, dangerous attacks should still be dealt with.

Baqi raised her toes and kicked out a matchlock musket attached to a chain, which flew toward one of the arrows.

The second and third chains were thrown by Baqi and collided with the oncoming attack.