Regarding the fact that my best friend is a magical girl

He simply asked in a cold voice, "Why don't you just let her stay here? Are you conjoined twins? You even have to go out together?"

"No, she'll be executed by the hunters if she goes out alone. I must protect her... Miss Knight, she's my princess now!"

"Even if you say it in that cutesy tone, I still don't have a good impression of witches... I saved her back then to save Kawanami Namie inside her, a magical girl senior who sacrificed herself for this world. Even if there is only a tiny chance of reviving her, I will not give up this hope."

In other words, if defeating the Samehada witch could revive Kawanami Namie, I would not hesitate at all. Witches and monsters are the same; they are invaders from outside the world and enemies of humanity.

"..."

The mermaid witch just stared at me with her sharp teeth clenched, without saying anything in response. Perhaps she herself understood what I was saying.

My words may seem harsh, but I truly have no intention of cultivating a good relationship with her. That would only dull my resolve, and we would both suffer in the end.

"Miss Water Resources Commission, please put these on."

Liu rummaged through the closet in the villa and found arm sleeves, gloves, a scarf, and a mask.

But these are clearly not enough to cover all the scales, and the nature of shark scales means that close-fitting clothing will definitely be torn...

"...We don't need those things."

The mermaid witch only had a mask, but the emerald silver scales on her body began to shrink under her skin, and in the blink of an eye, they turned into normal skin.

"So you can transform into a human?!"

The Mermaid Witch put on a mask to cover her jagged shark teeth.

He added, "...The lack of scales makes me feel disgusted."

For fish, not having scales is like humans not having hair, right?

Imagine someone with no hair, eyebrows, or body hair on their face, looking like a bald hard-boiled egg; it would certainly be unacceptable to most people.

"Alright, let's head out!"

Liu seemed quite excited; did he think we were going shopping?

------

A shopping mall at night.

The crowds were surging and the atmosphere was lively.

Did they actually come to go shopping?

"The dark energy actually landed in the shopping area. It's too difficult to check all these people one by one."

This is a wormhole far from the airport; if there are any monsters that haven't been exposed yet, this is the most likely place.

"Haha, there's no use in rushing anyway, so let's just look for it while we play?"

Liu's laughter was unrestrained. Because she was dressed in women's clothing, she no longer needed to hide her voice and completely opened up.

He then asked, "Miss Knight, what is our budget for today?"

Does this guy want money?

Sirius didn't give me any money, but she said there would be a bounty if I could catch the target... I don't know the exact amount, but I can lend you some money.

Sirius, who is clearly not short of money, only gave me a salary of five thousand yuan. I guess this bounty bonus can't be much higher either.

"According to Sirius's intelligence, the wormhole unfolded from the roof of this building, and nothing was left behind... So, Liu, can you smell anything with your prized nose?"

"Yes, and it's very strong. People who are parasitized by that power have been wandering around this shopping center."

It seems his nose is actually quite useful.

"Wandering?"

He used such a zombie-like term and explained, "Well, wandering around repeatedly, if it were a normal tourist, it wouldn't be possible to pass by here dozens of times, right?"

Are humans who have become monsters wandering around shopping malls for some purpose...?

"Can you track down the target's whereabouts?"

"I remembered the scent of that cheap perfume, but figuring out the direction... was difficult; the highly repetitive routes made it impossible for me to discern the final path."

She's wearing perfume... Is she a woman?

No, male salespeople also wear perfume, so it's hard to draw conclusions.

"Hey, can you solve this with that?"

Wearing a mask and a thin, long-sleeved hooded sweatshirt, the Mermaid pointed to the surveillance cameras inside the mall.

“That makes sense. Just look at who circles around here the most, and you’ll know who the weirdo is.”

Liu slapped his forehead, then looked at me and asked, "But how can we view the surveillance footage?"

“Simple, just ask Director Spica for a search warrant.”

When Spica was mentioned, Ryu crossed his arms and trembled slightly.

"No, let's go find Miss Sirius instead."

Are you that afraid of Spica?

Liu replied in a serious tone, "In a sense, she is dangerous."

"You've already had your face changed, how could she recognize you?"

"Huh? She'll definitely recognize you!"

I don't know why he was so sure, but I still dialed Sirius's number.

"Want to view the surveillance footage? No problem, just go to the mall's back office and I'll have someone arrange it. The mall will also cooperate with you."

"Is there no written search warrant?"

"Are you underestimating the internet? Who still uses cumbersome paper documents these days? This matter concerns the safety of the entire city, and I guarantee no one will get in your way."

Sirius hung up the phone, and I relayed the situation to Ryu and the Mermaid Witch.

"It's easier than I thought, let's go now."

That's what Liu said, and I grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait, do you know where the monitoring room is?"

"do not know!"

Is this what happens when you encounter unwise people?

I've found that most of the people I meet are unreliable.

------

After questioning the mall's security guards, I was taken directly to the monitoring room.

The security guard took out paper and pen and stammered, "Um, Miss Miluno... could you please sign my autograph? I'd like to give it to my daughter as a gift."

"Sure? Does your daughter like me?"

When asking questions, I tried my best to keep my expression from becoming too stern.

"No, she actually likes 'Bubble Witch' Seruno, but your names sound similar..."

"..."

He couldn't keep his expression straight anymore.

I thought that Wang Zuxian and Wang Zulan's names were quite similar.

...In the end, I still signed it.

Why is Serono so popular?

After I explained the basic operation of the monitoring station, the security guard who was on duty there also went out, leaving only the three of us in the monitoring room.

"You can investigate."

"Row."

I handed the work over to Liu and leaned against the wall to take a short rest with my eyes closed.

However, I could clearly feel the gaze of the Mermaid Witch.

Why are you staring at me?

"You really don't plan to take me back to jail?"

This girl's voice is really high-pitched. The moment she opened her mouth, it reminded me of the sound of chalk rubbing against the blackboard, and it almost made my hair stand on end.

No wonder she doesn't like to talk.

“I don’t trust you, but I trust Ryu and Sirius’s judgment. Since they think you are harmless, I will wait and see for the time being… But just because you tried to kill Seruno, I can never forgive you.”

Seeing that my attitude was clear, she shrank back and stopped talking.

What's going on...?

In this way, I end up looking like the bad guy.

--------

First of all, thank you to the generous donor 【风导星歌一逐梦】 for the donation!

(Your name is a bit long, do you have a shorter way to address you?)

I never imagined that such a day would come after three years of writing. Suddenly, I feel that everything has become meaningful.

Additionally, according to the bonus chapter rules, I owe 31 more chapters...

I originally planned to return the donation from another big shot, Emperor Yan, after finishing this update... but I'll postpone it for now.

I will gradually repay these 31 chapters. My drafts are still running low, so please give me some time.

Thank you again to [Wind Guide Star Song One Dream Chaser], and to all the readers who have made it this far!

I'm not sleeping tonight!

Chapter Twenty: Bad News, Good News, and Reunion

(Sun Yao)

I was locked in a sealed glass jar, but not soaked in any formaldehyde.