“Want me?” Yan Qingzhu was slightly taken aback. She hadn’t expected the Little Witch to ever make such a bold move. “What do you want me for?”
Yan Qingzhu leaned in, her lips brushing against Bai Zhiqiu’s ear, a soft, teasing lick.
“Oh!” A jolt, like an electric current, coursed from her brain down to her very limbs.
‘My ears are so sensitive!’
“Little Witch? Is something the matter?” Motong’s azure eyes turned towards them, holding a hint of seriousness mixed with evident schadenfreude. “This is a meeting, you know! Does the Little Witch perhaps have some unique insights into the battle plan?”
Instantly, every gaze in the room converged on Bai Zhiqiu, leaving her momentarily flustered as she desperately scrambled for an excuse.
“I… I don’t have any problems! I just think Senior Motong’s idea is absolutely brilliant!”
‘As the saying goes, one doesn’t slap a smiling face. A little flattery should do the trick!’
“But…” Yan Qingzhu began to whisper, her voice barely audible beside Bai Zhiqiu’s ear, attempting to convey something.
“Shut up!” Bai Zhiqiu hissed, her voice low and venomous, as she shot a fierce glare at Yan Qingzhu.
Seeing Bai Zhiqiu’s fierce expression, and the teacher’s amused gaze from not far away, Yan Qingzhu swallowed her words.
“It’s clear the Little Witch is quite skilled at flattery!” Motong remarked to Bai Zhiqiu with a smile, though not far away, Qian Moyu merely covered her face with a sigh of resignation.
“Hehe! Just standard procedure!” Bai Zhiqiu chirped cheerfully, flashing a ‘victory’ sign at Qian Moyu.
To her surprise, Qian Moyu simply closed her eyes in exasperation upon seeing Bai Zhiqiu’s gesture.
‘Since Motong had smiled, the chances were high that she was in the clear!’
“But we haven’t even started discussing the battle plan yet, have we? To be able to deduce the entire strategy before we’ve even deliberated! How truly clever of you!”
‘What? They haven’t discussed the battle plan yet?’
Hearing Motong’s words, Bai Zhiqiu was instantly dumbfounded. She had never imagined Motong would corner her with such a trick.
Feeling Motong’s increasingly oppressive gaze, Bai Zhiqiu looked to Yan Qingzhu, silently pleading for help.
Noticing Bai Zhiqiu’s desperate plea, Yan Qingzhu nodded subtly and gave her an ‘OK’ sign.
“Alright, Master, let’s discuss the battle plan first! The Little Witch is likely just exhausted from the recent battle!”
Having said that, and seeing Bai Zhiqiu still standing there, dazed, Yan Qingzhu discreetly pinched Bai Zhiqiu’s bottom.
“Ah! I… I… Yan Qingzhu is right, I’m just too exhausted. I’m so sorry~” Bai Zhiqiu finished, sticking out her tongue at Motong.
‘Bai Zhiqiu was supremely confident in her charm offensive; it was a tried-and-true method for dealing with magical girls!’
“Considering Qingzhu spoke up on your behalf, I’ll overlook it this time. Now, pay attention!”
“Mm-hmm!” Faced with Motong’s warning, Bai Zhiqiu feigned obedience, nodding earnestly.
Without dwelling further on Bai Zhiqiu’s antics, the meeting’s focus quickly shifted to addressing the current situation.
Through the collective discussion, Bai Zhiqiu began to gain a preliminary understanding of the gravity of the situation.
In short, the enemy this time was overwhelming, with even the Cloud Whale having flown to the front lines.
Moreover, both the sheer number and the formidable quality of the demonic beasts far surpassed previous attacks, considering a Radiant Moon-tier beast had already appeared in the very first wave.
And yet, the most troublesome problem wasn’t even that…
“Although Poppy chose to withdraw from our confrontation,” Qian Moyu interjected, seizing the opportune moment, “based on my understanding of her, she wouldn’t leave here without achieving her objective.”
“In any case, we must pour all our strength into defending the Gateway!” As the meeting drew to a close, all operational details had been meticulously arranged, with only five individuals yet to be assigned.
“Since everyone understands their tasks, let’s adjourn the meeting for now! Go back and get some good rest! And those on duty today must be extra careful; the beast tide could launch another assault at any moment!”
The moment Motong announced the adjournment, everyone swiftly departed the conference room, leaving behind only Motong, Qian Moyu, Jasmine, Yan Qingzhu, and Bai Zhiqiu, who remained comfortably seated on Yan Qingzhu’s lap.
“Didn’t the meeting end? Why aren’t we leaving yet!” Bai Zhiqiu poked Yan Qingzhu. ‘She hadn’t been assigned a combat mission this time, so she was eager to get some good rest!’
“Are you in such a hurry to go back?” Yan Qingzhu patted Bai Zhiqiu’s head. “If we’re kept behind, there must surely be a more crucial arrangement! Why do you seem so… dim-witted!”
“You’re the silly one!” Bai Zhiqiu glared at Yan Qingzhu, then opened her mouth to snap playfully at the hand that had reached to pinch her cheek.
Watching the little one in her arms bristle in protest, Yan Qingzhu reluctantly withdrew her hand. However, she soon resumed her teasing.
“We’ve been asked to stay because there’s something more important, something that couldn’t be discussed in front of everyone,” Qian Moyu began, her words immediately capturing the attention of the two who had been bickering.
“This time, the enemies we face, beyond Poppy and the demonic beasts, include the emergence of Spirit Users.”
The moment the words ‘Spirit Users’ were uttered, a profound silence descended upon the room. Even Yan Qingzhu froze, her hand, which had been teasing Bai Zhiqiu, suspended mid-air, allowing Bai Zhiqiu an opportune moment to swat it away.
“Senior! Is this information reliable?” Even Jasmine was stunned by Qian Moyu’s words. Although she knew that Qian Moyu speaking of it now implied the intelligence was almost certainly true, she still found herself unwilling to believe it.
‘An organization long thought annihilated—how could it possibly rise from the ashes?’
“The intelligence is absolutely true,” Qian Moyu confirmed, her voice heavy with gravity. “I had been wondering how Poppy managed to find this place, but now it seems these Spirit Users are behind it all! And to think she’s actually willing to cooperate with them…”
‘Bai Zhiqiu had never heard her Master speak with such a heavy tone before…’
Although she didn’t fully grasp what Spirit Users were, from Qian Moyu’s tone, Bai Zhiqiu could infer that this organization was undoubtedly formidable! And it sounded as though Poppy had been specifically invited by these Spirit Users this time…
At this thought, Bai Zhiqiu instinctively reached for the ring in her pocket.
Observing their somber expressions, Yan Qingzhu offered a word of reassurance. “I’ve seen detailed intelligence in the Imperial Capital Headquarters’ archives about the previous princess uniting with magical girls from various nations to annihilate the Spirit Users. It’s safe to say that the majority of their high-tier combatants were purged in that war, so they shouldn’t have recovered their strength so quickly.”
Hearing Yan Qingzhu’s words, even Bai Zhiqiu felt a measure of relief. ‘It’s always better if the enemy is relatively weaker!’
“However!” Yan Qingzhu paused, then continued, “The Eastern Kingdom’s Chief of the Spirit Users—her body was never found at the scene. While she hasn’t made any significant moves in recent decades, if Spirit Users are truly involved this time, it might be a prelude to their resurgence into the public eye.”
“Regardless, we must prepare early!” Motong declared. “Now, let’s arrange our specific actions…”