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

Kuroba Reise was very confident in her strength, but that was before she was defeated by a corrupted magical girl with red highlights. Now, she should avoid fighting as much as possible.

Especially someone like Inuyama Tomoe, who is very good at hiding his true intentions, and who doesn't know the other party's limits.

"You even helped them investigate me? What exactly do you want?!" Seeing Baqi silently looking at him without saying a word, Hei Yu Laisheng became even more agitated.

"Oh, I'm a corrupted magical girl, you know that, Kuroba-kun, so I can do whatever I want, right?" Baqi pouted.

Because Kuroba's reincarnation was also a fallen magical girl, she realized that there are two types of people who are the most difficult to deal with.

A person with very simple desires, whose mind is so fixed that nothing will change her mind.

For example, that magical girl with red highlights who's a corporate slave.

A person who has little desire, or who has no idea what they want, and acts solely based on their interests.

For example, Inuyama Tomoe right in front of me.

Just thinking about it made Kuroba Laisei's expression even uglier.

"Oh dear, we're all fallen magical girls, so don't look so wary." Baqi casually hooked the trigger of the matchlock gun in her hand, letting it spin twice on her finger before settling it steadily in her hand.

"Does it matter whether I'm cooperating with magical girls or not? It doesn't matter at all. I'm just curious about what you're hiding beneath St. Yuu Academy. Is that not allowed?"

As Baqi spoke, the dark muzzle of the gun was pointed directly at Kuroba Laisei's head.

"I don't know," Kuroba Laisheng said in a deep voice, his eyes showing a mixture of worry and wariness.

"Oh, you're not going to say anything, I understand." Baqi's index finger rested on the trigger, but she didn't pull it. Instead, she turned it around and firmly gripped it in her hand.

"I really don't know." Kuroba Laisheng frowned, his serious expression almost making Baqi believe him.

But Baqi remained skeptical.

"Saint Shiyin didn't tell you anything? Really? But then again, she's never trusted you. She just needs someone to do her bidding."

Baqi was slightly surprised at first, doubting the reliability of Heiyu's words about the afterlife. Then she suddenly slammed her fist in her hand and blurted out all her thoughts.

Pretending to be a good girl in this nightmare world took a lot of effort from Inuyama Tomoe.

Baqi wasn't about to let go of the opportunity to vent her frustrations to someone she disliked.

Moreover, she genuinely felt that Kuroba Laisheng's aggressive attitude meant he wasn't planning to let her leave easily.

Although she had made that belief in her heart from the very first moment she saw Kuroba Reisei.

Since things had already progressed to the point where she had no choice but to become the underdog, Baqi felt it was better to be honest.

But it seems the guy opposite me became even more agitated after hearing what I said.

"You know Saint Shion? No, how do you know? No one but me should know that Saint Shion is also a magical girl. No! How do you know she doesn't trust me! Why do you say she's using me as a tool? I've been using her all along!"

Kuroba roared, as if he was eager to prove himself to Baqi.

Seriously, Kuroba Reincarnation has absolutely no prestige.

If it weren't for knowing that Kuroba's reincarnation was ridiculously strong, Inuyama Tomoe would never have given such a corrupted magical girl a second glance.

Of all the magical girls Inuyama Tomoe had ever seen, the only one who could rival Kuroba Ryouse was the fake magical girl created by Urobuchi Mashiro, Ooki Taiga, who made a living by extortion.

By the way, even the delinquent girl named Ono Kogure next to Taiga Oki is stronger than Kuroba Kisei.

"Inuyama Tomoe! Speak up! What else do you know!" Kuroba Kisei gritted her teeth and growled Inuyama Tomoe's name in a low voice.

"If you're not going to tell me what you know, what else can I say?" Baqi waved her hand casually.

"I already told you! I know nothing! I just want to wipe out those who are destroying my empire! That's all!"

Ugh... Such a lame and cringeworthy reason, aren't you ashamed to say it?

Whether I feel ashamed or not is no longer important.

The important thing is that, in a fit of rage, Kuroba Kiyoshi herself attacked Baqi.

Chapter 159 Learning to Be Bad

"So you're saying that Kuroba Reincarnation, while talking, suddenly launched an attack on you?"

With a hint of disbelief, Tenrai Herika picked up the coffee on the table, took a small sip, looked around, and then scrutinized Inuyama Tomoe with an even more stern gaze.

"That's right! How was I supposed to know she was just stalling for time after talking to me for so long? Anyway, I'm not completely at ease with someone like her."

Inuyama Tomoe clenched her fists, seemingly intending to bang on the table, but then noticed there were other people in the store, so she landed on the soft sofa with a dull thud.

Although Helica was also furious, she didn't immediately lash out. She patiently interrupted Baki: "Alright, alright, nothing that guy does is surprising. Tell me again, what exactly happened?"

"Okay, we were both transformed back then, so I was planning to ask her how much she knew about that underground sanctuary. But she said she knew nothing about it, and then suddenly her defenses gave way, and she attacked..."

……

hum.

The runic greatsword that struck the chains that appeared out of nowhere beside Baqi hummed, and once again the force of the swing was diminished by the bending chains. The sudden tautness of the chains then bounced the greatsword aside.

Although Inuyama Tomoe can usually solve problems with God Release or with M'sishha used with Eri, the chain ability she possesses after True Name Release is not abandoned by Ibabi in the slightest.

Moreover, with Yuuki Yuki's guidance, Tomoe manipulated the chains using the same method Yuuki Yuki used to manipulate those tentacles. Although it was impossible for them to be as agile as tentacles that seemed to have life, Tomoe used the chains in a different style when she swung them.

A wilder, and more dangerous style.

The runic greatsword was deflected, and the force of the deflection forced Black Feather's arm to be raised backward.

Kuroba Laisei used all the muscles in his body to forcefully dissipate the power contained in the deflected sword, forcing himself to stop his arm in mid-air.

Doing this caused a sharp pain in Kuroba Kiyomi's arm, but she had no choice but to do it.

Just centimeters from the back of her hand, a rusty, dark red copper chain stopped there.

If Kuroba Reisei had reacted any slower, she would have already touched the chain that was undoubtedly set by Baqi as her escape route.

Restraint trap?

Kuroba's first thought was the universal ability of corrupted magical girls: if one were caught in a restraint trap during battle, even if it wouldn't directly determine the outcome, it would still cause a lot of trouble.

But that shouldn't be the case. In Black Feather's eyes, that chain was far more dangerous than a restraint trap.

Regardless of what it was, Kuroba Reincarnation felt that she shouldn't have come into contact with it.

Kuroba Laisei originally planned to use a sneak attack to make Inuyama Hatsuki unable to open her mouth forever, and then take the dying Inuyama Hatsuki to confront Seishine face to face.

Even if I were to lose to that office worker with the red highlights, I might not lose to this magical girl, right?

Despite her caution, compared to her natural arrogance, Kuroba's arrogance in her next life still prompted her to take action.

However, even with the sneak attack, they failed to gain any advantage and were instead outmaneuvered by Inuyama Tomoe.

Now, even Kuroba Laisei finds it difficult to put down his sword.

Another chain emerged from in front of his wrist, waiting for him on the path that Black Feather Reincarnation would inevitably take to bring down the giant sword.

The next one was between his legs—originally intended to pierce Kuroba Laisei's thigh, but Kuroba Laisei dodged it by stepping to the side.

The chains multiplied, appearing on her ankles, sides, neck, and knees, like venomous snakes lurking in the shadows, each one with sharp, venomous teeth aimed at Black Feather's fatal spot.

Although she managed to dodge them all, Kuroba Reisei's movements were restricted to a very small area by the horizontal and diagonal chains.

If three more come, no, two more, then Kuroba Rebirth will have absolutely no room to dodge.

Inuyama Tomoe was also taken aback by how well Kuroba Laisei could dodge.

She knew that Kuroba's reincarnation was very strong, but she never expected that even a phantom in her nightmares would have such power.

Is the "omnipotence paradox" that Xiaoyuan mentioned really true? Why is this guy so difficult to deal with?

Either Yuuki Yukino or Tenrai Helica made a mistake in their judgment, as even a magical girl's illusion is quite powerful; or Kuroba's reincarnation is truly too strong, even if her power is limited in a dream, she is still extraordinary.

Or perhaps Sumireko Yumehara greatly misjudged her own abilities.

To be able to create something to this extent is like a magical girl's illusion... Sumireko Yumehara just looks weaker.

But it doesn't matter which path it is; their own battle is likely to attract the attention of magical girls, and Inuyama Tomoe doesn't want to drag the battle lines out too long.

Kuroba Rise thought the same way. Neither the discovery of the underground cathedral nor the luring of the magical girls who could defeat Seishin was a good thing.

Quick fight.

A surge of magical power erupted from Kuroba Reisei's body, washing away the surrounding chains like a whirlwind.

If you don't want to touch the chains, why not just crush them with unparalleled force?

Kuroba Laisei's thinking was simple, and his response was also very clever. If it were a typical arrangement to restrict movement, it probably wouldn't have been able to withstand this.

However, her opponent is Inuyama Tomoe.

She is a magical girl with the "explosive" attribute.

As the chains were swallowed by the wind pressure, Inuyama Tomoe raised her hand high and snapped her fingers lightly in the air.

Snapped.

Following that crisp snap of the fingers, the chains surrounding Kuroba Reisei, like soldiers receiving orders, faithfully performed their sole duty—to explode.

The chains exploded around Kuroba Laisei like lit firecrackers, and the shockwaves and billowing smoke instantly swallowed him whole.

Did we win?

How can it be?

Even if Kuroba's reincarnation was an illusion, Inuyama Tomoe didn't think that she could defeat him by simply using the Burst Lock released from his true name.

Just as Baqi had guessed, amidst the continuous explosions, a figure covered in charred soot burst forth from the billowing smoke and dust, its six pairs of black wings blowing away the thick smoke that obscured its vision.

A jet-black light enveloped the entire runic greatsword, as if it were about to devour all the light around it, and swung it down towards Inuyama Tomoe.

The white military uniform fluttered in the wind, and the silver-white gun blade, a stark contrast to the pitch-black, met the giant sword that was as tall as the girl herself.

……

"And then, you got carried away and just... killed Kuroba Reisei?"

Helica's lips twitched a few times, her face contorted with a vicious expression as if she wanted to devour Inuyama Baqi whole.

"Uh, well, it's like this..." Baqi scratched her head sheepishly:

"The moment I saw that guy, I was filled with rage, and in that situation, I didn't have any room to be distracted, did I?"

"Even if she's just a magical girl's illusion, she's still pretty strong. At least I've never seen anyone stronger than her in my dreams. In fact, no one is stronger than her in magical girl illusions."

As Bachi spoke, he didn't forget to meticulously correct his own statement, leaving Helica both angry and speechless.