‘Huh?’
‘Could this truly be happening?’
‘Am I not a witch?’
‘Am I not Higanbana, dancing on the shores of the underworld?’
‘Shouldn’t I be the one hunting magical girls?’
‘Why! Why!’
‘How is it that I’m the one tied up here?’
In the woods outside Nandou City, the pristine moonlight bathed the earth, illuminating the long silver hair of a young man.
His hands were bound behind his back, and his ruby-like eyes brimmed with profound confusion, clearly still unwilling to accept the reality of his defeat.
‘This must be a joke!’
‘I, the magnificent witch Higanbana, a witch specializing in hunting magical girls, how could I possibly be counter-hunted by one?’
“How about it, Miss Higanbana? Do you yield, or do you not?”
The black-haired, black-eyed young woman put away her phone, which she had been using to take pictures, then pinched Higanbana’s tender, rosy cheek, her voice dripping with playful mockery.
“I yield! I yield to your @#￥%…&*! If you have the guts, let’s have a proper face-to-face duel; what kind of skill is a sneak attack?!”
Bai Zhiqiu was consumed by indignation and grief, the fury in his chest threatening to erupt.
Clearly, he was thoroughly incensed.
“But you were the one who ambushed me first, weren’t you?”
“Otherwise, how could I have subdued you before I even had a chance to transform?”
Listening to Bai Zhiqiu’s curses, the young woman showed no anger.
Instead, she crouched before him, extending her left hand to gently stroke Bai Zhiqiu’s chin, much like one would a pet cat.
“Oh, and by the way, let me tell you something else: you look so cute when you’re angry!”
“Especially right now—furious yet utterly helpless, it’s truly captivating~”
Having said this, she blew a soft puff of air onto Bai Zhiqiu’s earlobe.
Instantly, Bai Zhiqiu felt a chilling dread wash over him, a cold sweat breaking out on his back.
‘This magical girl seems a bit perverse…’
Bai Zhiqiu gazed at the young woman before him with a look usually reserved for a pervert, and coupled with her teasing smile, it almost seemed as if Bai Zhiqiu was the fallen magical girl captured, and the black-haired young woman the truly wicked witch.
“Are you a pervert?”
Seeing the young woman’s demeanor, Bai Zhiqiu found himself unable to control his words, blurting out the question.
“Of course—not!”
“Do I really look like a pervert?”
The black-haired young woman hooked Bai Zhiqiu’s chin, forcing his ruby-like eyes to meet her own.
“Yes! Very much so!”
Facing the black-haired young woman’s inquiry, Bai Zhiqiu answered with utmost seriousness.
‘Since I’ve been captured by a magical girl anyway, I’m surely doomed.’
‘I might as well speak my mind frankly.’
‘Only my sister…’
At the thought of his sister, a pang of emotion stirred within Bai Zhiqiu.
He hadn’t spent much time with her these past few days, and it seemed he wouldn’t have the chance to in the future.
“Oh? You dare speak to me like that? Aren’t you afraid I’ll kill you?”
“Whatever…”
“Death comes for everyone, sooner or later; I’ve already made my peace with it.”
Facing the young woman’s threat, Bai Zhiqiu closed his eyes and turned his face away, adopting a look of utter resignation, ready to face death.
Yet, for a long moment, Bai Zhiqiu felt no action from the young woman.
He cautiously opened his eyes, only to find her smile had grown even more pronounced.
“Tsk! I was just joking with you; I’m not that bloodthirsty.”
“How about this: if you properly beg me, I’ll consider letting you go, what do you say?”
Upon hearing her words, a flicker of hope stirred in Bai Zhiqiu’s mind.
After all, being alive was always better than being dead, and magical girls generally kept their word.
Even if the one before him was a bit perverse… she should still honor her promise, right?
“Is what you’re saying true? Will you really let me go?”
“Of course, as long as you make me happy, I’ll consider letting you go.”
“I, Yan Qingzhu, always keep my word.”
Seeing Bai Zhiqiu’s incredulous expression, Yan Qingzhu immediately guaranteed her promise.
“Then… I’ll trust you…”
“Please… please let me go…”
Bai Zhiqiu’s soft, yielding voice reached Yan Qingzhu’s ears, and even his cheeks were tinged with a blush.
‘Although there’s no one else here, begging my opponent for mercy is still incredibly humiliating!’
“What did you say? I didn’t quite hear you~”
“Then please, won’t you~”
“Louder!”
“Please, please let me go!”
“Very good, full of spirit, aren’t we~”
“As expected, I still prefer your defiant demeanor!”
“Then… then can you let me go now?”
That final plea seemed to drain all of Bai Zhiqiu’s strength, and he slumped against the tree, utterly spent.
“Of course… after careful consideration, I’ve decided not to—let you go after all!”
Hearing Yan Qingzhu’s words, Bai Zhiqiu felt nothing but utter mockery, and fury ignited within his chest.
“Are you toying with me?”
“Not at all~ I merely said I’d *consider* letting you go.”
“Now that I’ve considered it, I’ve decided not to release you. There wasn’t a single word in there about toying with you~”
Yan Qingzhu reached out, her fingertip almost touching Bai Zhiqiu’s delicate nose, only to retract it the instant before contact, leaving him snapping at empty air.
“So fierce, little witch~” Yan Qingzhu’s voice was laced with playful mockery.
“You! You bastard! Shameless! Degenerate! A disgrace to magical girls! A deceitful, stinking fish!”
Bai Zhiqiu’s lungs felt ready to burst with fury; the humiliation and shame he had just suppressed erupted like a volcanic explosion, transforming into a torrent of furious curses, laced with a distinct tremor of tears.
He struggled violently, the ropes on his wrists digging in and leaving thin red marks.
“You never intended to let me go from the start!”
“You’re a huge liar! A big pervert!”
As he spoke, unbidden tears streamed from the corners of Bai Zhiqiu’s eyes.
‘He regretted coming out to hunt today, and even more, he regretted believing the nonsense of this huge pervert.’
“Oh my, don’t get so agitated.”
Far from showing any guilt or annoyance, Yan Qingzhu instead crouched excitedly before Bai Zhiqiu, as if enjoying a spectacular performance, even pulling out her phone to record.
“The term ‘deceitful’ isn’t quite right, you know.”
“I said I’d *consider* it, and the result of my consideration is, naturally, not letting you go.”
“The logic is clear, fair and square.”
“As for ‘degenerate’…” She tilted her head, a cunning gleam dancing in her obsidian-like eyes.
“I was never a conventional magical girl anyway~”
“And has no one told you how incredibly cute you look when you’re crying and throwing a tantrum?”
“To think that the Night Bloom shrouding Jiangnan Province… actually has such an adorable side!”
“You… you…”
Bai Zhiqiu’s chest heaved incessantly, clearly pushed to the brink of fury.
‘I should have known not to come out today.’
‘Why did I commit consecutive crimes just to break through to the Radiant Moon rank?’
‘Why did I lower my guard against an unsuspecting magical girl?’
‘A magical girl alone in the woods late at night was clearly a trap!’
“‘You what, you what’…”
Watching Higanbana, this beautiful and proud little witch, transform from a bristling wildcat forced to bow its head into a complete and utter mess after realizing he had been played…
‘It was truly too entertaining!’
Slowly, Yan Qingzhu leaned closer to Bai Zhiqiu, her warm breath ghosting softly across his cheek.
Just then, a gentle piano melody emanated from Bai Zhiqiu’s pocket.
Hearing the tune, Bai Zhiqiu’s expression drastically changed.
‘It was his sister’s call… that piano piece was set specifically by his sister…’
Bai Zhiqiu immediately twisted his body, fighting with all his might to prevent Yan Qingzhu from getting his phone.
However, his struggles were futile; the phone inevitably landed in Yan Qingzhu’s hand.
Seeing the contact labeled ‘Sister’ on the phone, Yan Qingzhu pressed the green button, all while Bai Zhiqiu looked on with pitiful, pleading eyes.
– Bai Zhiqiu! You idiot brother! What time is it?! Aren’t you coming home yet? –