You call this a love game?

His voice turned cold. "Don't even think about it."

“Don’t be nervous, I’m just stating the facts,” Kyubey blinked his ruby-like eyes, his gaze seemingly able to see directly through Shiroha to Nagisa Hyakue behind him. “Why not ask him if he has this intention?”

Feeling the tugging of his clothes behind him, Bai Yu realized that the girl seemed genuinely interested, so he had no choice but to step aside, revealing Bai Jiangzhu to the world.

"Nagisa, are you interested in becoming a magical girl?"

"Magical girl? What's that?"

Bai Jiangzhu was clearly still a little confused. The name sounded like someone with magical abilities from a fairy tale, someone who was often a symbol of strength and wisdom.

"Then let me introduce myself," Kyubey said. "By signing a contract with me and becoming a magical girl, you can make any wish you desire. Any wish is fine. However, becoming a magical girl is the price for fulfilling this wish. After that, you will need to fight witches and obtain Grief Seeds. So, would you like to consider it?"

"Hmm... granting any wish... it seems a bit unbelievable, I can hardly believe it."

"If you don't believe me, I can take you to meet the magical girl in this city, and then you'll understand that I'm not lying."

"But it's dangerous to go with strangers!"

Seeing that the girl was unmoved, Cupid had no choice but to change the subject and continue explaining, "Whether you believe it or not, granting you any wish is not a lie."

Bai Jiangzhu was somewhat at a loss. She subconsciously looked at Bai Yu beside her and saw him nod firmly. She had no choice but to believe this magical animal for the time being.

But the next second she had a new question.

"But why does Nagisa want to become a magical girl?"

Kyubey: "Because you have that qualification, not everyone's wish can be fulfilled, it is the privilege of those with the qualification."

Nagisa Momoe: "But what is your wish? To become a magical girl in exchange? If you become a magical girl, you'll have to fight monsters like witches, right?"

Kyubey: "Well, it's a bit early to let you experience it in person... but fighting a witch is the price you pay for fulfilling your wish, that's all."

"The price of a wish..."

Bai Jiangzhu pondered, hesitant and indecisive, seemingly finding it difficult to make a decision.

Seeing the hesitant girl, Bai Yu became even more reluctant to let her become a magical girl.

After all, she was only eight years old, too young to control many things on her own. It was too much of a burden for a little girl to bear the extremely dangerous task of fighting a witch.

However, if the girl truly desires to achieve her dream by becoming a magical girl, he will not stop her; that is her prerogative. At most, he will help her adapt to this identity to some extent after she becomes a magical girl.

"Any wish can be granted. For many people, this is an unimaginable thing that can change their lives," Cupid continued to entice.

"But if it's that wonderful, why doesn't Kyubey just make a wish to become a magical girl?"

Although it had no memory of such a thing, Kyubey felt as if someone had said something similar to it, but it still explained it earnestly.

"Because we don't have individual emotions and don't understand these things, that's why we've come here specifically to persuade you humans to become magical girls."

"Feelings... if you have feelings, then you can know your own wishes...?"

A wish, a wish, a perfect wish

If I become a magical girl

Only one, to achieve this for you.

If you kill the witch

Only one, to achieve this for you.

What is your wish?

"So, what exactly is a wish? Does desire something become a wish?"

"What is a wish...? I think you humans should understand this better than we do... But in your words, a wish is a desire. There are also people who want to increase their charm, wisdom, money and power by fulfilling their wishes, and who are eager to settle accounts with their past."

Thinking about what Kyubey said, Nagisa still didn't quite understand, but she did understand what the wish was.

So far, she has only been thinking about unfortunate stories, and suddenly when she mentions things she desires and wishes, she doesn't understand why. In those stories, those who have their wishes fulfilled usually end up unhappy, so she doesn't want to become unhappy.

If we want things to turn out this way, and we don't want things to turn out this way, if we reverse our wishes, will an unfortunate story turn into a happy one?

"No matter what, money does have some appeal to me, but in stories, even if you want wealth and get it, it's only natural that you don't have a good ending. Wealth is obtained by chance, and it's obtained using incredible power, which is not incredible. It always feels like a loss!"

"That's true. Although you need to get the amount you want, if you can sacrifice your social life, you can also get a certain amount of money with the power of a magical girl."

Simply put, it's about robbing a bank.

But Nagisa still couldn't understand what she really wanted, so she turned to Shiraha for help.

"What do you think is Xiaozhu's most important wish, Brother Baiyu?"

Seeing the girl's gaze, Bai Yu patted her head and smiled, "Well... I think it's better for Xiao Zhu to find it herself. After all, it's a very precious opportunity, and it's easy to regret it if you let someone else make the choice for you."

"Hmm... but Nagisa really doesn't know what she wants."

If we're talking about love, then Hyakue Nagisa believes she has received enough love. If it's just money, then she feels she's lost out. As for other things, it seems that most of them can be bought with money.

For example, the cheese that Mom likes to eat, the pretty dress she's wearing, or delicious food.

Bai Yu looked at Bai Jiangzhu's conflicted little face and gently patted her shoulder.

"There's no need to rush into a decision. You'll naturally understand what your wishes are when you truly need them."

Kyubey flicked its fluffy tail and paced in front of Nagisa Hyakue. "But opportunities don't wait for anyone. If you only think of making a wish when you're in danger, it might be too late. Besides, if you delay too long, your aptitude might decline."

"Shut up." Bai Yu glared at it. "Xiao Zhu doesn't need to make decisions at a time like this."

Bai Jiangzhu looked down and played with her fingers, then suddenly asked softly, "Brother Bai Yu... if I make a wish, and my mother gets better and goes back to how she was before... is that okay?"

Kyubey's eyes immediately lit up, and he interjected, "Of course! This level of wish is perfectly—"

"Xiaozhu." Bai Yu crouched down, looking the girl straight in the eye. "Such a precious wish, shouldn't you consider your own desires a bit more?"

To be honest, he didn't really want Bai Jiangzhu to wish for her mother. Regardless of her past experiences or personality, the harm she had caused Bai Jiangzhu was undeniable. Bai Yu couldn't bring himself to waste his precious wish on such an irresponsible mother.

"Besides, if you really want to cure your mother's illness, why don't you ask her first? Although it's not very nice to say it like this, at least let her know that it was Xiaozhu who saved her, right?"

Bai Jiangzhu blinked, her eyes slightly red. "I'm sorry, Brother Bai Yu, I was too naive."

"It's okay." Bai Yu ruffled her hair. "We're friends. Isn't it normal for friends to help each other?"

Seeing that the girl had calmed down and realized that there seemed to be no opportunity to form a direct contract, Kyubey could only shake his head regretfully.

"Alright, if you're not planning to make a wish now, then forget it. But remember, I'll always be there for you whenever you really need me."

After saying that, it lightly leaped onto the wall beside it and disappeared into the morning light.

After parting ways with Cupid, the two went to school as usual.

During lunch together, Shiraha once again explained to Hyakue Nagisa the pros and cons of becoming a magical girl.

After all, being a magical girl isn't easy; it requires fighting witches, who are extremely dangerous monsters. It's too much of a stretch to have eight-year-old Nagisa Hyakue fight them.

Although he knew that Nagisa Hyakue's mental maturity was indeed much higher than that of her peers, far surpassing most elementary school students, he still didn't want the girl to take such a dangerous risk.

Even Mami Tomoe, who was so powerful in the last simulation, said that when she first became a magical girl, she couldn't control her magic power well, which prevented her from unleashing her full power. She was seriously injured in her first battle against a witch. Fortunately, magic power can heal physical injuries to some extent, which allowed her to survive that battle.

Of course, if the girl chooses the contract herself, he won't stop her, since it's her freedom. As a friend, he can only offer some advice and help in the battle against the witch.

Compared to Shiraha's composure, Hyakue Nagisa was much more conflicted.

She spent the entire day staring blankly into the air, seemingly lost in thought.

She knew no one would believe her if she said that she could grant any wish, but it was the truth nonetheless.

This rekindled the flames of desire in Baijiang Zhu's heart.

For example, can she really use this wish to bring her mother and her family back to normal?

She didn't know how exactly to fulfill this wish, but there was no doubt that wishes could be fulfilled.

But the question that follows is, is she qualified to be a magical girl?

She heard from her brother Baiyu that witches are very dangerous and terrifying monsters, and that no matter what kind of magical girl she is, she could be killed by a witch if she is careless.

However, the magical girl must defeat the witch, otherwise more people will become victims, and she absolutely cannot let this go unchecked.

Moreover, without defeating the witch, there will be no Seed of Lamentation, the item used to restore magic power, which is something we must obtain.

But why does Nagisa insist on saving the others? None of them had ever saved her before, so why does she have to go and save them?

But if she didn't care, Nagisa wouldn't save them, because if Nagisa didn't save them, someone would die, and Nagisa didn't want to become a murderer...

Suppose there are 100 people attacked, and 99 of them give up, ultimately only one can be saved. She would still feel that even if she insisted on saving one, she might fail; even if she went, she would still fail. In the end, she still couldn't save one. It's completely wrong that she could potentially save one but still fail...

So, will the clumsy and slow-paced Nagisa Momoe be able to become a magical girl without any problems?

If I don't become a magical girl soon, someone else might be attacked by a witch right now.

If Nagisa hadn't become a magical girl, would she have already done something bad?

More importantly, the story can't continue without her becoming a magical girl...

-

After school in the afternoon, Bai Jiangzhu did not go to the hospital immediately. After all, her mother had just been angry yesterday, and she wanted to wait until her mother calmed down first.

However, this afternoon, Bai Yu took her to his house to play. She played with that thing called an electric one, which was a lot of fun. Although she didn't know how to play it, she was already happy just to play with Bai Yu.

Brother Baiyu invited her to come over and play again tomorrow weekend, but she didn't plan to do so. Instead, on this sunny morning, she went alone to a cake shop where she could smell the fluffy and sweet aroma from afar.

"Mashkaboom cheese! Gogansola cheese! Cheese!"

Looking at the dazzling array of cheese products on the shelves, Nagisa Hyakue's eyes sparkled.

Her mother loves cheese, and she accidentally upset her mother that night, so she came here specifically to buy some of her favorite cheese to apologize.

However, she also wanted to tell her mother the good news that she had the ability to grant any wish. If her mother agreed, she would immediately pray to Cupid to cure her mother's illness so that she could have a happy family like other children.

Since it's a gift, she can't be perfunctory; she has to carefully select it before buying it.

"I bought all cheese."

A slightly familiar voice rang out from behind Hyakue Nagisa.

She turned her head and looked around, finally spotting Kewpie standing on the shelf.

"Eh? It's you!" Bai Jiangzhu looked around again, but didn't see Bai Yu, and immediately became alert. "What are you doing here?"

"I've been following you because I'm curious about you."

Kyubey jumped off the shelf, stood in front of Nagisa Hyakue, and stuck his head out, as if indicating that she could touch him.

Bai Jiangzhu hesitated for a moment, then slowly reached out and placed her hand on Kyubey's fluffy little head. The soft touch reminded her of Mami's rabbit doll, and once she started touching it, she couldn't stop.

"So why did you buy so much cheese? I think it would be better for someone your age to reconsider a balanced diet."

Kewpie looked at the basket that Nagisa Momoe was carrying, which was filled with various types of cheese, and the amount looked like something an eight-year-old girl could not possibly eat.

Nagisa Momoe fiddled with the cheese inside and explained, "This is all cheese to bring to Mom. Nagisa doesn't eat it, and Nagisa doesn't like this kind of thing."

"Does your mother eat that much?"

"Perhaps she won't eat it all, but she'll definitely pick out the good parts. Although she can't eat much right now, she'll definitely have an appetite if she eats what she likes!"

"Aren't you going to buy yourself some food?"

"Nagisa ate at school. Aunt Masayo's bento was delicious!"

Soon, having bought the cheese, Nagisa Hyakue took it and headed straight home, planning to use it when she visited her mother at the hospital that afternoon.

She felt that the reason her mother was so angry must be because she didn't get to eat any good food. She thought that as long as she could eat her favorite food, even if she was angry, she would definitely smile again and become happy!

She believed that.

Chapter Seventy: Family, Dreams, and Freedom

"Xiaozhu's mother has been on TV before!"

"She used to be cute and popular, but since she married her father, she has been sick and her condition is getting worse. Her father is always busy with work and never comes home. He can no longer come home. Xiaozhu and her mother have been abandoned."

Originally, he just wanted to follow behind Nagisa Hyakue to observe the girl's every move and peek into her personal life so that he could better entice her to make a contract with him and become a magical girl.

To Kyubey's surprise, the child seemed to have been holding back for a long time. After discovering that he could communicate, he became very talkative when talking about his parents, praising his mother incessantly about how amazing she was in the past, as if trying to make up for something.

Listening to Hyakue Nagisa's rambling, Kyubey couldn't help but share his own insights on human beings.

"If Mom hadn't married Dad, maybe she wouldn't have gotten sick..."

"Xiaozhu, do you hate your father?"

"No... Nagisa doesn't hate anyone. Hating someone is not a good thing."