The Absurdity of Battle and a Terrifying Transformation

Hearing the girl’s teasing laughter, Zijing froze on the spot, her mind utterly failing to process the situation for a moment.

She was, after all, discussing a grave and serious matter with her; one misstep, and the girl could perish right here.

Yet, this person was… actually calling her cute?

The absurdity of the scene was akin to someone pondering tomorrow’s meal amidst a life-or-death crisis.

Previously, she had merely suspected that Young Lady Bai’s pampered upbringing made her self-indulgent.

But now… Zijing began to seriously question if this person’s intelligence was even on par with a normal human’s.

“Eh, I didn’t say anything wrong, did I?”

Yet, Bai Muxue, as if utterly oblivious to the dire circumstances, leaned closer to Zijing’s face and, staring earnestly into her magnificent purple eyes, declared, “You really do look adorable like this.”

“Bai Muxue!!!”

Even with blood trickling from her lips and her body weakened, Zijing felt a furious rage ignite within her chest.

Had she really risked everything to save this person, only to be told she was cute?

Abandoning her usual refined and ethereal demeanor, she directly grabbed the girl’s collar and roared:

“Are you even listening to a single word I’m saying? Can’t you see how dangerous it is here???”

What time was it now?

She certainly didn’t want to argue with her about such a trivial matter as being cute!

“Hmm, your tsundere (TL Note: A Japanese term describing a character who is initially cold or hostile towards another person before gradually showing a warmer, more affectionate side.) demeanor is also quite cute, as expected of Teacher Shen.”

To Zijing’s surprise, even as her usually clear voice turned hoarse, Bai Muxue’s smile remained as inscrutable as ever.

Her fingertips brushed across Zijing’s tender, pale lips, effortlessly wiping away the lingering traces of blood at the corner of the girl’s mouth.

The soft touch on her lips left Zijing stunned for a moment, a faint blush then involuntarily blooming across her pretty face.

“You—”

****

“Uh… tell me, where did that girl suddenly come from?”

In the distance, Heidi stared blankly at the two figures clinging to each other on the rooftop, her mind feeling utterly devoid of thought.

Shouldn’t ordinary passersby be screaming and scattering in a panic?

That’s what everyone on the street had just done, hadn’t they?

How could someone be completely unafraid of their chimera (TL Note: a monstrous creature composed of parts from various animals), even climbing onto the rooftop to watch the spectacle?

Did she have no fear of death?

Moreover… although there was a slight depletion, their chimera was functioning perfectly fine, wasn’t it?

Why were these two completely ignoring it and arguing amongst themselves?

“Humans truly are incomprehensible creatures…”

Heidi gently pinched her chin with a small hand and remarked with a serious expression.

“Eh, eh, eh! Are you saying they’re… flirting? Is that actually what’s happening?”

Seemingly startled by the words she’d just heard, the girl, her pretty face slightly flushed, showed an expression of sudden realization—so, the girl who had suddenly appeared on the rooftop earlier wanted to witness her beloved’s heroic demeanor in battle?!

But to be flirting in a place like this… it was truly baffling.

Weren’t they just in a life-or-death battle?

How did they suddenly run off to flirt with someone else?

“Uh, perhaps it’s better if we don’t disturb them for now?”

Heidi whispered timidly to her companion, only to hear a deafening roar erupt from below.

The calamity beast (TL Note: a monstrous creature causing widespread destruction) cared not whether the two individuals before it were flirting or otherwise; Zijing’s repeated attacks had thoroughly ignited its fury.

“ROAR—”

To the calamity beast, it made no difference whether Zijing or anyone else stood before it; they were merely tiny specks of dust awaiting consumption.

Seeing this, Zijing’s heart violently trembled, and she no longer cared to argue with Bai Muxue.

She slightly raised her staff, shielding the petite girl behind her.

“Listen closely! I’ll buy you some time.

Use this chance to escape quickly, understand!?”

Facing the colossal beast, now thoroughly enraged, Zijing spoke in a low voice, her head turned slightly to the side, without looking back.

The patterns on her right collarbone had begun to flicker, signifying that her power was nearly depleted.

Defeating this calamity beast and that strange girl was now impossible, but at the very least, she could buy Bai Muxue a chance to escape.

Strange as it seemed… despite how much she detested this person, she still wished for her to survive this moment.

Just as Zijing had steeled her resolve, the girl behind her let out a soft sigh, then rose on her tiptoes to pat her shoulder.

“…Fine, just remember to repay this favor to me later.”

“If you die here, it would be quite troublesome for me.”

Bai Muxue showed no fear of the roaring behemoth before them, all while uttering words that Zijing found utterly baffling.

“What do you mean? What are you talking about?”

Zijing urgently grabbed Bai Muxue’s shoulder and asked.

Yet the girl showed no intention of answering her, merely pulling out a small, jet-black box from her embrace.

It was a small box, identical to Zijing’s own.

“Is that… a Magical Music Box?”

Seeing this, Zijing couldn’t help but freeze on the spot.

This person was actually… a magical girl too?

Bai Muxue said nothing more.

For some reason, a hint of hesitation flickered across the girl’s pretty face, but in the end, she embedded a jet-black brooch into the box’s slot.

As if having made a firm decision, she let out a soft sigh.

“Transform.”

No sooner had Bai Muxue’s words faded, than a jet-black flame suddenly ignited from her body, soaring straight into the sky.

It forced both Zijing beside her and the calamity beast not far away to instinctively recoil several steps.

Immediately after, the jet-black flames gradually weakened, replaced by a slender, graceful figure that appeared behind Bai Muxue.

It was a petite girl dressed in a Gothic-style dress, with long, snow-white hair.

Her form was blurred, making her face indiscernible.

[Embrace your power, Young Lady.]

The girl leaned close to Bai Muxue’s ear and whispered, her tone as soft and tender as a lover’s coaxing.

And with the girl’s words, her charming figure abruptly transformed into a horrifying skeleton, faint phosphorescence seeming to flicker within its hollow eye sockets.

With a sharp *crunch*, the skeleton’s arm, wreathed in black aura, suddenly pierced through Bai Muxue’s chest.

The jet-black flames once again engulfed her petite body.

“This is…!”

The utterly grotesque and bloody scene before her caused Zijing to involuntarily gape, her pupils contracting, and the astonishment on her face deepened.

Was this truly a magical girl’s transformation?

How could there be… such a terrifying transformation?

In Bai Muxue’s vision, the string of crimson countdown numbers in the corner was rapidly changing, swiftly decreasing from an initial thirty days to just seven.

[Imagination, Ideal, Illusion.]

Countless ethereal figures of girls in dresses flew towards Bai Muxue, their converging light and shadows continuously overlapping onto her.

[Creator of all, Ideal Paradise, advance.]

The jet-black flames gradually receded, and the girl, previously enveloped by the fire, slowly revealed her form.

A jet-black velvet Gothic miniskirt accentuated the girl’s slender waist.

Its blood-red trim swayed gently in the wind.

Black silk gloves were adorned with a silver chain entwined around them, from which hung an amethyst.

Her fair, delicate skin shimmered faintly under the setting sun.

Jet-black garter stockings encased the girl’s slender, rounded legs, while below, small black leather boots were outlined with grey patterns.

Her formerly jet-black hair was now dyed half silver-grey, and her ink-dark eyes had each coalesced into a deep blue and a magnificent purple respectively.

Paired with rose-red eyeshadow, her once charming and fragile appearance now possessed an allure akin to the cold glow of a bright moon.

[Magical Girl Kaguya, transformation complete.]

“Magical Girl… Kaguya?”

Zijing, standing dazed beside her, murmured the name, as if her entire soul had been captivated by the person before her.

Both charming and alluring, both innocent and profound… these completely disparate qualities converged within one person, yet fit together so seamlessly.

She was like the luminous moon in the night sky—clear, gentle, yet equally filled with indifference and aloofness.

Meanwhile, Heidi, who had initially been observing from a distance, now hovered above the rooftop, her previously timid pretty face etched with solemnity:

“Who exactly are you…?”

“Just a… passing magical girl.

Do you have a problem with that?”

Kaguya twirled a wisp of hair by her temple, speaking in a seemingly nonchalant manner.