Frost and Regret

‘I…’

‘How did it come to this?’

……

White Rose clutched her head. She had done something irreversible.

When Redbud was knocked down and the disaster beast lunged at her, she had unleashed her Flower Domain.

She hadn’t trusted her teammates to salvage the situation. She hadn’t trusted her own Flower Shield to hold and buy her time to cast.

No, that wasn’t it.

She hadn’t thought about any of that.

In that moment, it felt like someone was whispering in her ear, just like the day she defeated Saint Lily.

‘Look how useless she is. Always like this. If she relied on herself, none of this would be so troublesome. She holds back for their sake, but she doesn’t amount to anything.’

‘Are you going to take this humiliation? Let this insignificant disaster beast trample over you? Show them your true power! Use that move on them!’

The Flower Domain expanded.

Frost surged.

Something had broken free of its chains, and she felt a surge of exhilaration.

Those annoying disaster beasts paid the price for their audacity.

But… that exhilaration didn’t last long.

When she saw the frozen Hyacinth beside her, staring at her in shock, White Rose felt her heart clench. Countless thoughts crushed her. The solid ground beneath her feet seemed to turn into a swamp, with countless dark hands reaching out to hold her in place. Thinking became difficult. She only realized that something irreparable had happened.

What happened next?

Someone appeared. That person took away the screaming Redbud and, while she wasn’t paying attention, stole Hyacinth too.

Who was he?

What was he going to do to my companions?

It seemed like he shouted something?

Villain Ability User?

Yes, he’s a Villain Ability User. So what should I do now?

I… I have to save my teammates. Save Hyacinth and Redbud.

Yes, if I do that, everything can be fixed.

……

Boom!

He Mo’s tall figure stood in front of several girls. An ice spear shot out, freezing half his body blue-white.

“You guys go! I’ll hold this guy off!”

The wind and snow obscured the opponent’s face, from which came a wail like a siren’s.

“Give them~ back to me~”

“Her target is these two girls. Little Tan, we can’t let her succeed!”

“Ah…”

Tan Yuhan opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but several more ice cones formed and shot toward their position.

“Little Tan, what are you daydreaming about? Get up!” The tall figure blocked in front of her once more. Only a golden back and a voice full of reassurance: “I said I wouldn’t let anyone lay a finger on you. So don’t be afraid. Take them and leave.”

“Okay! I understand!” Tan Yuhan took a deep breath and nodded in response. She picked up the still-frozen Hyacinth, called out to Redbud, and prepared to leave, but couldn’t help adding,

“He Xiao-ge, you… we’ll see you later!”

The man didn’t look back. He just gave a thumbs-up in response.

……

“Villain Ability User, I have no more worries. Submit to the law!”

He Mo punched his fists together. His muscles swelled again as he faced the ice cones and charged fearlessly into the wind and snow.

……

****

“Host, this is bad. Go check Little Tan’s livestream. White Rose has gone berserk.”

Red Spider Lily paused, frowned, and took out her phone.

She hesitated, then looked at Saint Lily.

“What’s wrong, Red Spider Lily?” Saint Lily tilted her head, noticing the gaze, and asked.

Red Spider Lily was silent for a moment, then turned the phone around to show the screen.

It showed Tan Yuhan and Redbud fleeing, with the frozen Hyacinth and a blizzard raging behind them.

Saint Lily’s smile gradually faded as she watched seriously.

Combining the footage and the comments, she could roughly understand the situation.

“Ah…” Saint Lily gripped her staff. Her body lightened, and she floated up.

“Going?” The question was somewhat rhetorical, so she added, “I’m coming too.”

“Yeah.”

Saint Lily nodded, then habitually princess-carried Red Spider Lily.

“……” Miss Dandelion watched the intimate contact wordlessly. A dandelion seed appeared in her hand and turned into a long umbrella, carrying her as she floated after them.

By the way, none of these three seemed able to fly naturally?

As expected, age is a hurdle for magical girls.

“Speaking of which, Miss Dandelion, you don’t seem to be affected by the ‘Flight Ban’?”

“Dandelion Baby isn’t affected either. There are flying disaster beasts. The Flight Ban probably only targets humans, not disaster beasts or summons. Miss Red Spider Lily and I are currently being carried while flying.” Miss Dandelion’s usually calm tone faltered, becoming slightly sour. “And Miss Red Spider Lily, who can’t fly, please be obedient and quiet. Don’t add unnecessary burden to Lily.”

“Alright~” Miss Red Spider Lily nodded obediently.

From the live stream, the ice field’s extent was vast. A quick observation from above made it clear.

“Over there.”

Target locked. Saint Lily charged, holding Red Spider Lily, leaving Miss Dandelion, who had no sprint option, to sigh helplessly and drift over slowly.

She landed, set Red Spider Lily down.

“Sister Lily?”

Redbud looked at Saint Lily, wanting to approach, but stopped when she saw the serious expression not directed at her.

Lily petals scattered through the air. The Flower Domain expanded.

The Hyacinth in Tan Yuhan’s arms thawed. A spring breeze blew, and color returned to her pale face.

Redbud also watched her. Lily petals adhered to her clothes, cleaning the dust and renewing her outfit. The purple dress now had light white accents.

“I’m here. So get some rest! Yes, Redbud, you’ve worked hard~”

“I… Sister Lily… boohoo~” (*꒦ິ⌓꒦ີ)

“There, there. Good child. Be good~”

“Mm… I…” Waking up, Hyacinth looked around in confusion. Then she came to her senses. “What about White Rose?”

“……” Tan Yuhan was silent.

“Alright, Redbud, go look after Hyacinth.” Saint Lily patted Redbud. Redbud pouted but nodded.

Saint Lily turned to Tan Yuhan. “Miss Tan, thank you for your help this time.”

“Ah~ He Xiao-ge did most of the work. I’m just here for the ride~” Tan Yuhan scratched her face with a smile.

“If you ever need help, please don’t hesitate to ask.” Saint Lily smiled. “By the way, is He Xiao-ge over on White Rose’s side?”

“Yes.”

“We’ll get him out.”

“Huh? Saint Lily…” Tan Yuhan paused. She knew Saint Lily had a sense of responsibility, but that didn’t equal strength. She wanted to tell her not to be reckless, that there was no need to walk into danger.

‘?’

‘Saint Lily Lv.??’

“…Never mind. Stay safe.” Tan Yuhan paused, rubbing her eyes. At least they would show question marks only if over five levels higher than her.

She compared her own ability to the current ability user system: above level ten was F-rank, above twenty was D-rank, above thirty was C-rank.

He Xiao-ge was only level 35, and Saint Lily was at least level 36?

She shifted her gaze to Red Spider Lily.

‘Red Spider Lily Lv.??’

A second one.

Watching them leave, Tan Yuhan turned her attention to Redbud and Hyacinth.

One was Lv.19, acceptable. The other was Lv.32, still… eh? This seemingly weak girl was also a level higher than her?

“Redbud, where’s Lily?” Miss Dandelion landed lightly beside Tan Yuhan, and her voice made Tan Yuhan turn around.

‘Dandelion Lv.??’

Seriously, what is your ‘Lucky Garden’ planning? How can you stand staying in this D-rank super team?