Lucky Colors

A sudden and unprecedented weather shift struck Nine Seas City.

Snow burst forth as though a hole had been torn open in the sky.

The heavens were sealed in white, blanketing the world in silence.

The entire city ground to a halt.

Transportation stopped.

Doors shut tight.

The cold winds drifted into the neighboring cities like a spreading curse.

Locals who had lived here for years had never seen anything like it.

Grumbling, they threw on extra layers and curled up in bed, content to ride out the storm in warmth.

‘Only lunatics would go wandering around in weather like this!’

“Am I one of those lunatics?”

Luo You shivered violently in the blizzard.

Her arms clutched tight around her body.

Blanketed in snow, she gave a full-body shake like a startled cat, flinging the frost off her cloak.

Then she started cursing under her breath.

“Damn it all—how do the locals stay warm in this place?!

I’ve got like five layers on and I’m still freezing!

Even my fingers—the very hands that once crushed countless magical girls—are going numb!”

“Enough! Transformation—go!”

Sha-shaa…

A pair of delicate, bare feet wrapped in mismatched grey and white stirrup socks stepped lightly into the snow.

Her steps sank in up to the ankles.

A long skirt trailed across the frozen ground.

Yet despite the howling wind, she felt almost no cold.

“So, no shoes this time, huh?

Well, it’s still better than last time.

At least I got socks this round.”

Luo You reached down, hooked a finger into the edge of her right sock, tugged it taut—

Then let it snap back with a pop against her thigh.

Warmth surged through her limbs.

The outfit looked indecent, sure.

But it was really effective at keeping heat in.

A tourist jogging out of the park caught sight of her attire and muttered under his breath:

“That girl’s nuts!

Who the hell wears a backless outfit in this weather just to look hot?

Although… those uneven stirrup socks are kind of doing it for me.

God help me, I’m gonna dream about that tonight.”

Luo You glanced down at her right hand.

Three colors glimmered from the magical star rings on her fingers—orange, green, and red.

“Still no blue…

Whatever. This’ll do.”

Each time she transformed, three “lucky colors” manifested with her.

When using the powers tied to those lucky colors, their effects would be boosted by roughly 50%, and the magic cost would drop significantly.

On the flip side, using abilities not tied to a lucky color meant they’d perform at standard output—and drain her energy like mad.

Ji Yue had mentioned this before.

Back when Luo You had faced two of the Ten Seats at once, her luck had been atrocious.

All three lucky colors that day had been purely support-based.

That’s the only reason it felt like a difficult battle.

If even one of her colors had been blue, orange, or pink—

She would’ve wiped the floor with them.

And if white had shown up?

She could’ve turned it into an art piece—taking one Ten Seat apart while stylishly subduing the other.

Today’s draw: orange, green, and red.

Only orange could be reliably used in combat.

Crimson was technically support too, but it could significantly enhance her overall battle power.

The only total dud was green.

It didn’t even count as auxiliary.

“Brainwashing and hypnosis… what kind of garbage ability is that?

Why the hell did I awaken that?”

Even Luo You herself felt embarrassed by it.

That bull cuckold crowd-pleaser skill felt utterly useless to her.

She could crush magical girls by sheer force—

Who needed mind control?

Of course, she couldn’t say it had no utility.

Interrogation? Sure.

Spicing things up in bed? Arguably.

But combat?

Worthless.

And it wasn’t even permanent.

The hypnosis wore off after a while.

Of all the lucky colors, this was the one Luo You least wanted to see.

As for the pattern behind the colors—

She had spent ages studying it, to no avail.

The changes were too erratic.

Totally random.

If she wanted to uncover the secrets of Divinity Particles, she’d need deeper research.

Maybe she could re-infiltrate the Abnormals Organization and “borrow” their classified files for reference.

Or even delve deeper into the Sea of Realms.

After all, the Divinity Particles came from there in the first place.

The secrets had to be hidden in its depths.

Thirty minutes later—

“So where exactly are all these ‘paranormal events’ supposed to be?”

The Canglan Ruins were infamous online for being filled with supernatural oddities—

Supposedly due to residual energy from the Sea of Realms.

But Luo You had walked for ages now and hadn’t encountered a single thing.

Coincidentally, up ahead in the rubble, a livestreaming influencer team was filming under a bike shed.

A few crew members hovered around a girl in an orange sweater, holding lights and props as they slowly moved deeper into the ruins.

“This snow is insane—sooo cold! Little Orange is turning into a popsicle!”

“If it weren’t for all the warm hearts lighting up my stream, Little Orange might freeze to death right here… come on, fam, tap those red hearts~”

[An influencer?]

A content creator with their own team must’ve been at least semi-famous.

But Luo You had never heard of this “Little Orange.”

Still, she didn’t think much of it and approached the group.

“Excuse me, mind if I ask something?

Also, please keep the camera pointed away from me.”

Sidestepping the lens, Luo You continued smoothly:

“I’m from out of town.

I heard the Canglan Ruins have paranormal activity, so I came to explore.

But I’m not too familiar with the area. Do you…”

“Oh! You’re looking for spooky spots, right?”

Little Orange jumped in excitedly.

“Yes.”

“Then you’ve come to the right girl.”

She puffed out her chest with pride.

“You’ve got the map of the ruins, right? You can find it online.

Here—this building is supposedly haunted by a female ghost.

And here—two streamers disappeared without a trace.

But my top recommendation is this lake right here…

Actually, why don’t you go check it out yourself?”

“Hmm.”

Luo You compared the location with her phone map and looked across the old broken bridge.

According to the coordinates, the place she wanted lay just beyond it.

“Thanks…”

The rest of her words caught in her throat.

Because—

There was no sign of the streaming crew anymore.

Just a few rusted bicycles scattered under the ruined shed.

Not even footprints in the snow.

Silence settled like a shroud.

Only the wind and snow whispered through the desolation.

“…So I’ve been cursed by the ruins’ spirits too, huh?”

Luo You’s eyes narrowed in thought.

Now that she reconsidered…

There had been plenty of red flags.

Even she knew her outfit today looked like something a crazy person would wear—

But none of them had reacted to it.

She’d failed to notice it in time. That was her mistake.

Azure Illumination of Truth—dispel falsehood.

She activated her teal aura—

Nothing in her surroundings changed.

That meant this was reality.

“She marked out those spots for me.

I suppose I should take a look.”

Luo You stepped across the decrepit bridge.

On the other side lay a frozen ruin atop a lake.

The water had long since frozen solid—layers upon layers of ice, several meters thick.

At first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

But when her azure glow swept over it—

She saw it.

The illusion cracked.

She walked into the heart of the ruins.

Beneath her feet, deep in the ice, something glinted.

A warped, decayed wooden door.

She stared at it for a long time.

“Enough pretending. Come out.”

“Well played, oh bearer of the Third Relic…

I thought I hid well enough.”

“Flattery won’t save your life, darling.”

“……”

The ancient gate hidden in the ice opened silently—

As if it didn’t belong to this world at all.

A withered, fur-covered snowman stepped out.

“Were you the one who led me here?”

“I’ve done no such thing.”

“What’s your connection to the Light-Harvester Class Dimensional Beast from back then?”

The creature climbed free from the ice.

It wasn’t particularly tall—only a head higher than Luo You.

Its aura wasn’t strong.

In fact, it felt fragile.

“Light-Harvester Class… was merely a defective stage of evolution.”

Luo You’s eyes narrowed.

It dared to call that thing a defect?

That beast had taken tens of thousands of soldiers to suppress—

Along with elite magical girls and Abnormal troops—

And in the end, the Alliance had to unleash a Zero-Rank Spell just to seal it away.

“You’d better prove you’re not spouting nonsense.

And don’t think I didn’t hear what you called me earlier—

‘Third Relic Bearer.’ What do you know?”

Her gaze turned cold.

Three Lives, Ten Directions – Pure Land unfurled beneath her.

The snowman was instantly bound in radiant chains.

Her long hair whipped up in the wind, bleeding into a deep, flowing crimson.

Like wings of blood unfurling behind her.

The pressure was suffocating.

The snowman dropped to its knees.

Its already gaunt frame bent further, hunching low—

Until it barely reached Luo You’s chest.

The teal light of truth bathed its form—

Its fur rapidly vanished, revealing its true face.

“…A furry?”

Luo You stared.

The Three Lives, Ten Directions retreated.

Beneath the disguise was a small creature—

Barely waist-high, with human-like limbs but strangely inhuman fingers.

Its fur was soft and pure white, like a plush animal brought to life.

Its eyes were large and round, gleaming with innocent clarity.

Two floppy ears curled on either side of its head.

Judging by looks alone, it would’ve made an ideal pet.

“There shouldn’t be any creature like you on Earth.”

Luo You stayed cautious.

“What are you, exactly?”

Now free of her binding field, the snowman relaxed.

It raised both hands over its head and bowed.

In a childish voice, it said:

“O mighty Bearer of the Third Relic, I mean you no offense.”

“Cut the crap.

Answer my questions—now.”

“…In a sense, I am the Light-Harvester Dimensional Beast you speak of.”

“Yes or no. Be specific.”

“Why are you yelling at me like that?!”

Luo You raised an eyebrow.

Did it seriously think being cute would work on her?

Time to eat a full dose of Brainwashing Hypnosis.