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

Next, Yuuki Yukino took out a second piece of paper and pasted it next to the previous one.

"Niijima Azusa, the student council president, you all know her, right? President Niijima's activities are quite regular. She spends most of her time on the Tsukimi Middle School campus every day. Although the location and content of her activities on campus are not fixed outside of class time, they are all on campus. In addition, she also has a fixed location outside of school, which is also Tenrai Herika's cram school."

Then, there was a third sheet, superimposed on the sheet that Niijima Azusa had written, but this time Yuuki Yuki explained it in a much simpler way.

“Nakagi Anju, she also went to Tenrai Herika’s cram school.”

Everyone was listening attentively, and by this point, they roughly understood what Yuuki Yuki meant.

When an infectious disease is spreading, tracing the patient's movements and isolating those who may have been infected by the patient is a very common practice.

The monsters that parasitize these corrupted magical girls didn't appear out of thin air, and Yuuki Yuki doesn't believe that these hosts were actively chosen by some force, so tracing the source is a feasible approach.

However, I always felt that Yuuki Yuuki's work was not rigorous enough, as if she was forcing the idea that Lava Mountain Lantern and Mitake Ran were related because they both had red highlights.

The more Tenrai Herika listened, the more interesting her expression became. When Yuuki Yuki stuck the fourth piece of paper on it, and the tutoring time on it matched perfectly, she couldn't resist the urge to interrupt.

"Isn't this a bit too forceful? There are dozens of people in that tutoring class, right? It's quite normal for them to fall into a slump due to academic pressure. Besides, the tutoring class schedule is fixed, and people who are supposed to go to tutoring classes at that time will definitely go. According to you, did everyone also go to Yuehai Middle School?"

Helica was only halfway through her rebuttal when she began to wonder if she was deliberately going against Yuuki Yuuki, so she quickly thought of other things to defend herself.

"Besides... that delinquent girl who got into a fight, she didn't go to any tutoring classes, did she? And that middle school student, middle school students don't go to tutoring classes either."

Helica's question is indeed valid. The example that Yuuki gave was not only somewhat forced, but also could not cover all situations. If Yuuki really said that this was the common point, then others might be greatly disappointed.

“That’s right. Since you mentioned the girl who got into the fight, let’s continue with her.” As if she already knew that everyone would have this question, Yuuki Yui pasted the last piece of paper related to the cram school and then started a new line.

Yuuki Yukino's confident expression made the other girls unconsciously begin to believe in her, and their doubts about her diminished considerably.

However, the locations on the few sheets of paper that Yuuki Yukino brought out this time, which briefly recorded the overlapping paths of several fallen magical girls, were different again.

Moreover, this was the only time they overlapped.

"This delinquent girl held a grudge because she was badly beaten up in a street fight, right? She even ended up in the hospital after being beaten up."

"This junior high school student, the one who was bullied at school, also came to the hospital for a follow-up visit due to psychological problems."

"And this one, she's a graduate of Yuehai Middle School. After graduation, she went straight to the hospital and has been interning there ever since. It's just that she was temporarily switched from the night shift to the day shift this day."

Is it another hospital?

I feel like many magical girls have become frequent visitors to hospitals.

Those who were purged by Genken Mashiro or Kuroba Reincarnation, those who got food poisoning from eating at a buffet, those who faked their deaths to deceive Kuroba Reincarnation, those who fell into a deep sleep, and those who were captured by Yuuki Yukino now...

Others might not be so sensitive to the location of a hospital; at most, they would only think of these things.

But Sakura Hanako, whose family members work at the hospital, is different. She is more familiar with the hospital than others and has a deeper impression of related matters.

In a corner where no one was watching, Sakura Hanako's face suddenly darkened.

She hesitated, trying to raise her hand, like a student eager to answer a question but afraid of answering incorrectly.

After much hesitation, Sakura Hanako finally spoke.

"Senior Yuuki, I have a question... That day, was... that day?"

Sakura Hanako stammered, and large beads of sweat rolled down her cheeks from her forehead.

Even those who hadn't yet grasped the meaning of the location Yuuki Yukino mentioned suddenly understood when Sakura Hanako spoke up, even though her words were unclear.

"Yes, that was the day."

Yuuki Yukino simply nodded.

"The day we've all temporarily put that farce aside."

Chapter 168 Sound the Horn of Counterattack!

Yuuki Yukino proposed to Nijisanji that they should trace the origins of how those corrupted magical girls were parasitized, a point on which everyone agreed.

Many people can actually think of this, but there may be some pressure in the process. However, after everyone worked together to collect information, the problem was solved.

Actually, with the double hints from Yuuki Enishi and Sakura Hanako, the answer is now almost obvious.

Even if some people are a little slow to react, seeing Sakura Hanako's expression and her shocked tone, they will belatedly realize what this matter is intricately connected to.

Regarding Sakura Hanako and the hospital, the only major incident recently was that one.

A guy who was obsessed with the legend of the "Witch" and received her help, being given a strange talisman, stuck her talisman near the electrical distribution box in the hospital.

Her actions directly affected ordinary people within a certain range, and even though the impact was very minor, it still attracted the attention of the magical girls.

Everyone had been investigating the matter for a long time, but there was no useful progress.

Later, because Yuuki Enishi successfully obtained the mark from the movie theater, Mizuno Yui was able to trace back to the website that recorded the Witch, and this stagnant state was finally broken.

The other party seemed to have realized this and shut down all their websites. Since then, there has been no more content related to the witch.

Therefore, the magical girls regarded it as someone's unsuccessful act of destruction, and because similar incidents did not continue to occur, everyone gradually forgot that such a thing had ever happened.

But when the time and place of the spell's appearance miraculously overlapped with a certain point in the movement trajectory of these girls who had been parasitized by strange magical creatures, the implications of this were self-evident.

The talisman bearing the brand of black magic was just the beginning of a conspiracy.

The talisman absorbed enough evil thoughts, which bred the prototype of a parasite. The energy absorbed by the brand when it was activated served as the reserve energy for the parasite's germination.

The most crucial self-destruction of that brand was not to prevent the girls' investigation from ending, but rather the true beginning of an evil plan to sow the seeds of malice wantonly.

Like a dandelion, it blows its magic onto everyone, leaving only a bare stem. When the magical girls go to investigate, all they can harvest is this stem.

Those seeds have already possessed all sorts of people, and it's only natural that Yuuki and the others can't trace their origins or find out their motives.

The only possible opportunity for a breakthrough was overlooked because Yuuki Yuki, in order to preserve that strange mark, did not allow it to develop to the point of self-destruction. Until the very last moment, the magical girls did not realize what would happen after it self-destructed.

Yes, that's it. The seeds have been sown, and now all that's left is to wait for them to take root and sprout, eventually transforming the city into a sea of ​​malevolent flowers.

The only fortunate thing is that Yuuki and the others did not allow the pollution to continue to spread, and all the "patients" who had just shown symptoms have been brought under control.

However, the situation they face is equally unfavorable.

After all, they had no idea how many more seeds they would have to find, or how many of them would sprout and grow into disgusting bouquets.

Even if Yuuki Enishi finds the girls who have been parasitized, how can she treat them?

Should these parasites be removed directly from their bodies?

Yuuki Yukino is still unable to give a definite answer.

But everything must be built on a foundation.

That is, Yuuki Yukino was able to successfully find them.

No, there's an even more important, earlier premise.

The guesses made by Yuuki Yukino above must be correct.

No matter how flawless Yuuki Yukino's guess may be, until she actually proves it, her guess can only be called a guess. It is not enough to support their next actions, let alone allow the magical girls to use it as a blueprint to formulate reasonable countermeasures.

Yuuki Yukina followed Tenrai Herika to the cram school today, precisely to verify the correctness of her guess.

……

Although she was able to spend time alone with Yuuki Yuuki again, Tenrai Herika had no desire to enjoy this rare moment.

Not only because the tutoring class was very fast-paced, even a top student like Helica would find it difficult to absorb all the material at once, but also because she was worried about their true purpose today and that things might get worse.

However, the cram school was indeed the most suitable place in the eyes of these magical girls. It was full of girls the same age as Helica, and these girls who were preparing to go to school were the most suitable targets for becoming corrupted magical girls and potentially becoming targets for those parasites.

If Yuuki Yukino's guess is correct, then what awaits her ahead is not only a series of truths, but also a fierce battle.

Seeing that the teacher, who had been lecturing for the entire period, had already left the classroom with his textbook, and hearing the rustling sounds of people packing up their books and putting on their coats, Tianlei Helica couldn't help but feel a little anxious.

"The class is over, have you noticed anything unusual?"

More importantly, Yuuki Yuki remained completely still throughout the entire lesson, as if she were truly listening attentively.

Even Herika couldn't help but ask a question that, in most contexts, sounds either stupid or the kind of question only a delinquent girl would ask about the Indian Third and Seventh Division.

"Yuki Yuuki, you...you weren't actually paying attention in class the whole time, were you?"

"Is there anything wrong with me paying attention in class? This is a tutoring center, and you even said the teacher is amazing. Besides, the price of one tutoring session is equivalent to several days of work..."

As Yuuki Yukina put away her textbook, which was filled with notes, and put it into her shoulder bag, she casually replied.

"And I have to say, this teacher is really something. I benefited a lot from just this one lesson. It completely changed my mind that tutoring was useless. I'm even considering whether I should come back to learn from him again in the future."

"It's not...you..."

Helica was speechless for a moment, but she didn't want to raise her voice too much for fear of disturbing others or alerting them: "That's true, you're preparing for higher education... it's not wrong to listen carefully in class... but... what are we here for? You haven't forgotten, have you?"

It's good to be fully engaged during class, but being overly engaged might hinder their progress.

"Of course I haven't forgotten."

Yuuki Yukino twirled the carbon pen she had placed on the table for taking notes between her fingers twice, as if she were playing with a small conductor's baton, before stuffing it into her backpack.

Immediately afterwards, Yuuki Yukina raised her head toward Tenrai Herika and gave her a smile that inexplicably made Herika feel incredibly at ease.

At the same time, just like a small pebble being thrown into a calm, still pond, magic began to emanate from Yuuki Yuuki's body, spreading slowly to every corner of the classroom.

Even Helica Tenrai, who was extremely familiar with Yuuki Yuuki, couldn't help but frown when she sensed this magical power.

She knew that Yuuki Yui was quite strong, and she also knew that Yuuki Yui was a corrupted magical girl, but apart from the first time she had her divine liberation and the corrupted Yuuki Yui had a real fight, the two of them had never had a battle where they used all their trump cards, and she didn't know how strong the other was.

Only when Yuuki Yuki made no attempt to conceal her magical power did Helica sense the weight of that power and the chilling aura that made her feel physically uncomfortable just by touching it.

Is this the magic of Yuuki Yuki?

Helica couldn't help but shiver.

This chilling magic was completely incompatible with the bright, smiling pink-haired girl folding her schoolbag.

It was precisely because Yuuki Yukino's smile was so gentle that what she was doing was chilling.

Helica Tenrai only knew that Yuuki Yuuki was releasing magic power and was amazed by the strangeness of Yuuki Yuuki's magic power, but she never thought about why Yuuki Yuuki was doing this.

In other words, she never imagined that Yuuki Yui would be openly engaging in such behavior typical of a fallen magical girl, which is why she didn't immediately associate the magic with anything bad when she first sensed it.

thump.

The dull thud as her body slumped back into her seat reached Helica's ears, causing her to instinctively furrow her brow.

Such sounds came one after another, and the classroom, which had become slightly noisy because of the break, fell silent again within a few breaths.

When Helica looked over, she found that everyone in the classroom was lying haphazardly on the floor.

Some were slumped over the table, some lay on the ground, and some leaned against the steps or chairs, but all the girls had their eyes closed, looking as if they were asleep.