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

Time flows on, like snowflakes falling beside the girls.

"Xiao Li."

After a long pause, Yuuki blinked hard, her voice even softer, so soft that Nishio Reki could barely hear her through the howling wind.

"Ah."

"I'm sorry."

"Why would Xiaoyuan say something like that?"

"Because... I didn't know she would suddenly appear today. Actually, I should have expected it, but because I was going out with Xiaoli, I overlooked such an important matter, which led you to this danger."

"No!" Nishio Reki clenched his fist, and also gripped the ring tightly: "I'm the one who should apologize!"

Why is Xiao Li apologizing to me instead?

"It's not about apologizing to Xiaoyuan! It's because I was too weak, I couldn't escape from her grasp, and I even tripped and fell, which is how she caught me..."

"This isn't Xiao Li's fault. It's because I failed to protect her that she was able to launch a surprise attack. Xiao Li didn't just fall accidentally; I saw her..."

"If that's the case, then it's not Xiaoyuan's fault! Xiaoyuan can't accurately guess what others are thinking. Even if we were interrupted... it's that magical girl's fault! Xiaoyuan, don't take all the blame on yourself!"

Every word Nishio Reki says comes from the heart.

Yes, Yuuki Yuuki apologized, and it's also true that what Yuuki Yuuki said wasn't her fault at all.

She also knew that Yuuki Yuuki shared the same thoughts as her.

Yuuki Yui genuinely felt it was her fault for not being able to protect herself, and she didn't blame herself at all for running too slowly.

If Nishio Reki couldn't guess what his childhood friend was thinking, he would be a rather incompetent person.

If Nishio Reki can't sense what the person he likes is thinking, then his feelings are rather clumsy.

Apologies and self-blame are nothing but troubles for young girls.

As long as the result is good, nothing else matters.

Of course, the self-inflicted troubles of teenage girls are an inevitable part of adolescence.

"puff……"

"what……"

Thinking this, the girls, who were tightly embracing each other, couldn't help but laugh out loud at the same time.

"Honestly! I already said it wasn't Xiaoyuan's fault!"

"Xiao Li wasn't wrong either, ha, ha..."

"What is Xiaoyuan laughing at?!"

"Isn't Xiao Li the same?"

"Ouch, ouch, ouch, it hurts so much! I laughed too hard!" Yuuki Yu was laughing when she suddenly clutched her body, crying out in pain as she grinned.

"So, Xiaoyuan was in a lot of pain, wasn't she? Are you alright?"

Nishio Reki also stopped smiling and reached out to place his hand on Yuuki Yuuki's chest with a face full of genuine concern. He then realized that he seemed to have touched something very soft and nervously moved his hand away, his cheeks burning red.

"ah?"

Yuuki Yukina, who was being directly touched by Nishio Reki, let out a shy moan, then blushed and quickly looked away.

"It's alright, magical girls heal quickly, they'll be fine tomorrow."

As Yuuki Yuki said this, her burning cheeks showed no sign of easing.

"Ahem!" Yuuki Yuen coughed heavily, stiffly changing the subject: "Speaking of which, Kore, what were you planning to say to me before we were interrupted?"

Nishio Reki knew that Yuuki Yuuki was trying to ease her inner embarrassment by changing the subject.

But when asked this question, I feel even more embarrassed!

Will it? Actually, no.

Nishio Reki should have felt embarrassed, but after such a big farce, she felt unusually calm at this moment.

She clearly felt that expressing her feelings to Yuuki Yuuki was incredibly important, but now she felt indifferent about it.

Even if you don't express your feelings in words, Yuuki Yuki will definitely receive them.

After all, she was such a fool who hurt herself for my sake.

Even he himself was only thinking about how to confess to Yuuki Yuuki; he was simply the biggest idiot.

They care about each other and miss each other; there's no need to deliberately make it clear.

I am happy enough as I am now.

"Xiao Li! What exactly are you trying to say?!"

"It's nothing!" Nishio Reki answered loudly.

"Huh? Really? Xiao Li must have had something very important to tell me back then, right?" Yuuki Yuki asked doubtfully, her voice becoming even more disordered as the wind blew.

"I told you! It's nothing!"

"I heard it! I heard it! Why did Xiao Li suddenly shout so loudly?! It startled me!"

On Christmas Eve, girls soared freely through the swirling snowflakes and the neon-lit city streets.

……

Meanwhile, in a coffee shop.

"I just don't understand why I have to spend Christmas Eve with a short, blond guy like you? Are you sick or something?"

Baqi slammed her hand on the table in annoyance and grabbed a handful of fries, stuffing them into her mouth.

"Stop talking nonsense! It's not like I want to spend time with you! If Mizuno Yu hadn't been dragged away by Sakura Hanako, would I be spending time alone with a white-haired idiot like you?"

Herika crunched on the chicken nuggets and snapped back irritably.

"Tsk, wasn't it you, you bastard, who dragged me down? I want to be with Xiaoyuan! I want to be with Xiaoyuan!"

"What are you saying? I don't want to be with Yuuki Yuuki?!"

"Never mind! Miss Minato! Give me another coffee!"

"Me too! Give me one too! And something different from this one!"

The Christmas Eve, with its stardust and snowflakes, seems to stretch on and on.

Chapter 156 Obstruction

The much-anticipated Christmas Eve has quietly passed.

On this romantic, snowy night, some people gained unforgettable memories, some realized hidden feelings, and some were filled with resentment.

Filled with resentment, Helica walked past the row of girls with her pouting lips. The more she looked at their happy smiles, the angrier she felt.

Helica was naturally happy for her friends that they were able to have a meaningful Christmas Eve.

But on Christmas Eve, he spent his time bickering and drinking coffee with Inuyama Tomoe, which made him quite unhappy compared to the happy girls around him.

It's one thing for Yuuki Yuki and Nishio Reki to have made an appointment first, and Helica understands the importance of first come, first served. What she doesn't understand is why Sakura Hanako wanted to take Mizuno Yuya away as well.

He still had that clear, adoring look in his eyes as he invited his senior away, so innocent that Herika couldn't associate it with a date at all.

But it's okay, the date on Christmas Eve was already over, let's see who dares to make an excuse to run away today!

"It's Christmas today! You know it's Christmas!" Helica banged on the table, just like she usually does when she's with Nijisanji.

Although the club is no longer called Rainbow Club, the members are almost the same. The only difference is that the position of Lin Jiezi, who was originally in Rainbow Club, has been replaced by Nishio Reki, and Nishio Reki is the nominal president of this small club.

But Helica didn't care about any of that. It didn't matter who was the president, as long as everyone was gathered here.

"Yes, it's Christmas today. What are your plans, Senior Tenrai?" Sakura Hanako pushed up her glasses, her eyes full of seriousness, so serious that Helica didn't know whether she should make a comment or not.

Helica cleared her throat: "Everyone has their own things to do on Christmas Eve, which is understandable, but today, everyone should be free, right?"

"I'm fine," Mizuno Yuu said, raising her hand first.

“Me too,” Sakura Hanako raised her hand.

Why does this conversation sound so familiar to Helica? Did something similar happen yesterday?

And those two guys said they were fine yesterday, but then they secretly ran away, leaving me to go to my former idol, Minato Nana's, coffee shop all by myself.

But Helica couldn't go back and dredge up old grievances now; she had to keep these two in check and, incidentally, bring Yuuki Yuki and Nishio Reki together: "Very good, very good."

As Helica spoke, she turned to Yuuki Yukino's direction and asked, "So, what about you two? Do you have any plans for tonight?"

“Well…” Yuuki Yuuki raised her finger and scratched her cheek.

"Yesterday! It was just the two of you who went on a date! You weren't with anyone else the whole time! Are you going to make up excuses again today?! Do you expect to go on a date for two whole days?!"

Seeing that Yuuki Yuki was hesitating again, Helica raised her finger and angrily pointed at Yuuki Yuki and Nishio Reki.

If Helica hadn't already heard Yuuki's brief account of how she was blocked by Seishin the previous night, how Yuuki and Seishin fought, and how Yuuki finally managed to defeat Seishin after much difficulty, Helica would have been even more furious.

Of course, Yuuki Yuuki never said that the magical girl in the nun's uniform she fought was Seishin. In this dream, Seishin should never have revealed her identity to Yuuki Yuuki.

Herlica never said that she knew that the magical girl was Saint Shion. She felt it was better not to talk about the information she obtained through inexplicable means.

But as long as Heracles knew that Yuuki's father, Mikuriya Kyouka, and Nishio Reki hadn't done anything naughty on Christmas Eve, Heracles felt it shouldn't be a big deal.

Moreover, Yuuki Yuki's injuries were genuine. Even outside the dream, Herika had never seen Yuuki Yuki suffer such severe injuries, which both shocked and pained Herika.

Just considering how badly Yuuki was injured, Helica could no longer continue to be willful and throw a tantrum as usual, forcibly dragging Yuuki and Nishio Reki along with her.

So she's just venting her frustrations now, and she even deliberately called their outing a date, which shows that she doesn't really care that much.

But actually, I still care about it a lot.

If Yuuki and the others refuse, there's nothing I can do to force them.

However, Yuuki Yuuki's focus seems to be a little different, at least different from what Helica wants Yuuki Yuuki to focus on.

"Oh dear, a date or something—" Yuuki Yuki cupped her face, actually blushing.

“That’s right—” Nishio Reki also turned his head away shyly, revealing an expression that made Herika’s lips twitch a few times just by looking at it.

"Hey!!!" Unable to bear Yuuki Yukari and Nishio Reki's shy expressions any longer, Helica swung her fist and slammed it on the table twice.

Now Helica is starting to doubt whether Yuuki Yuuki's claim that nothing happened is just a cover-up.