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

The newly entered content didn't feel very polite either, as if it was deliberately trying to show off to the other party, so Yuuki deleted the newly entered content as well.

After several revisions, Yuuki Yuuki finally pressed the send button.

"I've already set off. Sorry I didn't receive your message in time."

Less than a minute later, a new message popped up on the screen, containing only one short sentence: "Come quickly."

When Yuuki Yukino pushed open the door of the coffee shop with the wind chimes hanging on it, the hour hand of the old-fashioned clock on the bar counter had already crossed the 10 mark. Under the dim lighting in the shop, the only two people in the shop—the shop manager behind the bar and the silver-haired girl sitting in the corner—simultaneously looked up in her direction.

"An iced Americano." Yuuki Yuuki quickened her pace, bent down and sat down opposite the girl, placing her order in the shortest possible words. She only turned to the girl after the manager had left.

"I'm sorry I'm late."

"Hmm." The girl had changed into a more casual long dress, and her exquisite handbag was placed on the sofa beside her. She was stirring the half-cup of coffee in front of her, which was no longer steaming, with a spoon. That soft hum could be interpreted as a response: "Inuyama Tomoe."

"What?" Yuuki Yu knew it was a name, but she had never heard of it before, and she didn't understand the meaning of the other person saying this unfamiliar name.

“My name is Inuyama Tomoe.” The girl continued stirring her coffee, repeating her name. “You know what that means, right?”

"Hmm." Yuuki Yui didn't quite understand, but she nodded nonetheless. The true identities of magical girls are always a secret.

She saw the other person's willingness to reveal their real name as a gesture of utmost goodwill.

"I can probably guess what you want to ask. Listen to me first. I'm not the one who wanted you to become like this. I was doing it on someone else's orders. She gave me the power of a magical girl on the condition that I help her complete this task."

Baqi dropped a bombshell as soon as she opened her mouth. Yuki had also guessed that the attack on her was not the other party's idea, but it was just a guess. When it was confirmed, Yuki's heart sank.

“I gained this power on Saturday morning. The person told me that doing this would break my current boring life, so I agreed,” Baki continued, her eyes fixed on the small swirl of coffee in her cup.

"She told me to wait until that night, as she instructed, until the dark-haired girl came downstairs, and then put something inside me. She said that if I did that, I would abandon my hypocritical facade, accept my true self, and become one of our partners. I would complete my mission once I confirmed that you had successfully joined us."

"She also said that she would come to my aid if anything unexpected happened."

when--

The stirring stopped abruptly. Baqi released her fingers and let go of the spoon, the handle striking the cup with a crisp sound.

"I've been scammed."

Baqi spoke quickly, her steady breathing gradually becoming rapid, and her expression was completely different from her casual demeanor in the morning.

"You failed to become our partner, and I'm being targeted too. If I transform, a magical girl will attack me. She didn't come to help me at all! Tell me! What should I do?" Baqi showed no intention of answering the question. She slammed her clenched fist heavily on the table, causing the coffee in her cup to slosh around and almost spill onto the table.

As the girl spoke, Yuuki Yukino's brows furrowed more and more tightly. Important points were always glossed over, leaving Yuuki Yukino with a sense of helplessness, as if the other person couldn't grasp the key points.

The shop manager brought the coffee over at just the right moment and placed it in front of Yuki Yuki, interrupting Baqi's excited emotions and causing her to fall silent as if deflated.

It's normal for a corrupted magical girl to be attacked, right? Why is she so agitated?

Also, can the power of magical girls be granted? In the game, they all need to go through a specific opportunity to transform their own characteristics into power and thus become magical girls.

According to what Baqi said, she not only became a magical girl as if she had been given power, but also skipped many steps and directly completed the corruption, which has never happened in the game.

More importantly, she does not possess the characteristics of someone who has fallen into darkness; at least her personality is not completely distorted, and she has no concept of defeating other magical girls.

Baqi's current state didn't seem to indicate that she could communicate normally, so Yuuki Yukino stopped asking the questions she wanted to know and instead focused the conversation on her: "Did anyone see you transform? Or when you de-transform?"

“I transformed in front of you once, but I don’t know if anyone saw it. I also deactivated the transformation by following your command,” Baqi replied.

"Is there anything else?" Yuuki Yuen pressed.

"I transformed once this afternoon, but absolutely no one saw it! But shortly after I transformed, I was attacked again. What's going on?!"

Baqi's emotions surged again, causing the shop manager, who was operating the coffee machine behind the counter, to stop what he was doing and look up in their direction.

"Keep your voice down," Yuuki Yui reminded her. "Every magical girl's magical outfit has magic that prevents others from recognizing you. As long as you transform and de-transform without being seen by others, no one will know your true identity. Don't you know that?"

"I don't know..." Ba Qi replied obediently in a low voice.

"That corrupted magical girl is the acknowledged enemy of all magical girls, didn't you know that?"

What is corruption?

"Then, Nishio Reki, the black-haired girl you mentioned, you don't even know where she is?"

"do not know."

"Then what do you know?"

"That's all I know! She...she didn't even tell me what would happen if we lost! Only you helped me, only you..." Baqi bit her lower lip, her voice choked with emotion.

Yuuki Yui took a deep breath, trying to calm her violently beating heart. Her purpose in coming to the appointment was not to hear these things, such as why the completely ignorant Tomoe had become a magical girl.

Thinking about it carefully, it's understandable. It's precisely because Baqi is completely ignorant that she's easier to exploit. He uses Baqi to corrupt himself, and then casually discards her...

If we take it a step further, perhaps the reason the mastermind didn't reveal these things to Baqi was that they wanted Baqi to be discovered and defeated quickly after she did these things, thus silencing her forever.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing." Ba Qi choked up, wiping away the tears welling up in her eyes with the back of her hand.

"The person who turned me into this person turned off the transformation when she left. I didn't get to see her face, but the uniform she was wearing was the same as yours."

Chapter Nine: Well then, let's see yours?

"Wearing the same uniform as me?"

Yuuki Yukina repeated it to herself, her face turning deathly pale.

At the school where Yuuki Yuuki attends, not only do some people know that she is a magical girl, but they also deliberately try to corrupt her.

What's even more terrifying is that the person who orchestrated the whole incident truly possesses the power to corrupt magical girls.

Yuuki Eri doesn't care what kind of impact the increase in corrupted magical girls will have on the city. She's not a hero who defeats the Demon King or a superhero who maintains world peace, and she doesn't have that kind of saintly sense of responsibility.

Her goal was simple and straightforward: to clear her name.

The more people who know my true identity, the more dangerous it becomes. Moreover, this unknown enemy is lurking in the same school as me, able to monitor my every move, while I don't even know her identity.

"What should we do! Don't stay silent!" Seeing that Yuuki Yuki still didn't make a move, Baqi urged anxiously.

What to do, what to do? I keep repeating this, I don't even know what to do myself. You ask me, who am I supposed to ask?

Yuuki wanted to yell at the other person, but their pitiful appearance made it impossible for her to speak. In a fit of pique, she picked up the cup of iced coffee and gulped down a large mouthful. The cold, bitter liquid somewhat calmed her rage, allowing her to finally suppress her impulsive thoughts.

"I'll ask you something first, and you have to answer me truthfully. What do you know about that black-haired girl who left my room?" Yuuki Yuki placed her hands together on the table and lifted her chin.

“You two were going to do something naughty, and then I don’t know what happened, but you two had a fight.” Baqi’s eyebrows furrowed.

"That's not what I'm asking. Why did you attack her?" Yuuki Yuen was somewhat displeased. If the other party hadn't been so serious, she really would have wanted to fly into a rage.

"Because the girl who told me to do this said that if that girl, the one you mentioned, Rei, were here, it would affect our operations. She also said... Rei is a magical girl too, and that I should just focus on completing my mission..."

"Arata is a magical girl?" Yuuki Yuuki repeated to herself to make sure she hadn't misheard. Her fingers clenched tightly together, her teeth clenching unconsciously. The anger she had suppressed twice erupted, and she roared out, unable to contain herself any longer: "She's not! You might have killed someone, do you know that?!"

"I...I don't know, I thought..." Ba Qi's pale explanation grew softer and softer until she finally wisely shut her mouth.

The roar drew the store manager's attention, and belatedly, Yuuki Yuuki's body went limp, leaning back against the sofa and looking up at the empty ceiling.

She had no emotional connection with Li and couldn't understand why she had lost her composure. If she really had to find a reason, it was probably because she was angry at their indifference towards life.

No, something's not right. There's no way Riku could become a magical girl. Her bonds with the other characters in the story are solely due to the ample magical energy she possesses to replenish her mana and her gentle personality.

Even if their home location could be traced, the original storyline of Yuuki Yuuki inviting Arata to replenish her magic was a coincidence. How could the mastermind know that Arata would be at their home on a Saturday morning and have made the relevant plans?

If the other party knew the game's plot, it could be somewhat of a far-fetched explanation. But the two of them spent the night together in the game, so how could she possibly know that her transmigrated self would refuse Li's mana replenishment and thus launch an attack on Li?

Unable to figure it out, Yuuki Yukino turned her gaze back to Inuyama Tomoe, who was trembling directly opposite her. Just like herself, she had inexplicably fallen into darkness, and the other had also chosen this path without knowing the inside story. Perhaps because of their shared suffering, she could no longer take her anger out on others.

Her willingness to trust Baqi was largely influenced by her first impression. Baqi's straightforward personality made her feel like she wasn't interacting with a girl, which made her quite fond of this magical girl who didn't exist in the original work.

At least she has the right to know the most basic information about magical girls, right? Thinking this, Yuuki softened her tone and patiently told her everything about magical girls.

Information known only to time travelers was deliberately hidden; it was Yuuki Yukino's secret weapon, and no one else could ever know it.

What is a magical girl? What is corruption? What are magical girls' attitudes toward corruption? What might happen after defeat? Yuuki Yukino told Yuuki Yukino everything she could think of without reservation.

While recounting her story, Yuuki Yukino also reflected on her current situation, which she described in just four words—extremely pessimistic.

"Waaah, I... I don't want to be defeated, I don't want to turn into a ball of fluff." As Yuuki Yuki continued to speak, the sobs of the woman opposite her gradually evolved into crying. The tissues she used to wipe her tears piled up on the table, and they were still increasing.

Yuuki En has no experience dating girls. Apart from necessary daily interactions, he rarely has the opportunity to talk to women. This is the first time he has ever had coffee face-to-face with a girl like this.

It's perfectly reasonable to offer some comfort when you see a girl crying.

How should you comfort a crying girl? How would she know? In this situation, the best thing she could think of was to present the facts and reason with her, appealing to her emotions and reason.

If you date with this kind of mentality, you'll definitely be labeled as a nerdy guy or a straight man. Fortunately, I'm a girl now, and this isn't some romantic scene with a partner in a coffee shop with pink bubbles.

In the end, what Yuuki Yuki said was not comforting at all: "The transformed magical suit will automatically release a kind of psychological suggestion magic, making it difficult for people to associate the before and after transformation, so as long as you don't transform, you won't be discovered."

"Really?" Baqi sniffed and nodded thoughtfully.

"Also, after falling into darkness, dark magic markings will appear on your body, which only magical girls can see. If you intend to hide your identity, you'll have to hide it well. In short, as long as you're not discovered, your life won't be disrupted," Yuuki Yui added.

Although her words, upon closer examination, are unconvincing—the influence of the Black Magic Mark, the existence of people who know her magical girl identity, and other factors are not taken into account—they are sufficient for the time being to appease Bachi's emotions.

Baqi remained silent for a long time, about ten minutes, seemingly digesting Yuuki Yuen's words. Then she pursed her lips, opened them, and hooked her index finger to the corner of her mouth, pulling it aside to reveal her sharp canine teeth. Just as Yuuki Yuen was wondering what the other was doing, her light pink tongue was sticking out of her lips.

Yuuki Yuuki's gaze was drawn to the girl's pink tongue, the patterns on which were very similar to those on her own abdomen, yet also had many differences. Without a doubt, it was also a Black Demon Pattern.

Baqi stuck out her tongue forcefully and mumbled, "Is this the black magic pattern you're talking about?"

“That’s right.” Yuuki Yui swallowed and looked away. Although Inuyama Tomoe was straightforward and somewhat naive, and always noisy, it did not change the fact that she was a beautiful girl.

The impact of a beautiful girl making such a move is simply too strong.

“Then…” Baqi nodded, retracting her tongue, and looked at Yuuki Yukino expectantly: “Let’s see yours?”

Chapter Ten: The First Taste Was Coffee

"Take a look at yours?"

This sentence was like a tired joke thrown out by netizens when surfing the internet before time travel, which made Yuuki Yukino furious. Her mouth reacted faster than her brain, and she retorted in a harsh tone.

"What are you looking at?!"

After her outburst, seeing that Baqi's eyes were red again, Yuuki Yukino realized that she had said something that was not in line with the image of a beautiful girl. She wanted to say something to bring the conversation back on track, but it was already too late.

She had just made herself quite angry several times. If she hadn't given him a way out, who knows how things would have turned out. And now the other person is saying these kinds of things. I really can't tell if Baqi is just being straightforward or if she doesn't know how to read the room.

Fine, I'll just go all the way and be a good person. I can't keep throwing tantrums at her, can I?

"That's not what I meant. I meant that I can't just show you the Black Magic Mark." Yuuki Yu explained helplessly, but it seemed like she didn't say anything at all. Given her past life experience, her social and verbal skills were certainly not very good, and she was completely unable to convey her thoughts to the other party.

“I’ve already shown it to you.” Ba Qi looked aggrieved, clearly not satisfied with the explanation.

"What I mean is! Black magic markings, can't they appear on the body? They can appear not only on the tongue, but also on other places." Yuuki Yuen was getting a little anxious, afraid that if she spoke too quickly, people would misunderstand that she was being perfunctory, which would further agitate Baqi's fragile spirit, so she tried to keep her tone as calm as possible.

At the same time, she couldn't be too blunt. Although she had described some extreme scenes to Baqi before, those were special situations when she was being chased. If she didn't provoke the other party, she might not be able to guarantee their cooperation.