The Witch Breeds a Tiger to Her Own Trouble

“Uh, fine…

I’m already at the gym, so just come over.”

Luo You was helpless.

Looked like her plan to slack off and read doujins during work hours had fallen through.

Before long, An Jiu’er stepped into the gym.

“Coach, I’ve been practicing the moves you taught me every day.

Lately I can kind of feel my waist getting better.”

An Jiu’er boldly took Luo You’s hand and pressed it to her own waist.

“How is it?”

“Mm…

It’s only been about a week, so I can’t really tell by touch.”

Luo You’s mind was elsewhere.

Right now she wanted nothing more than to focus on preparing for her second duel with Xingyue.

But An Jiu’er’s arrival would eat into her time.

“Today I want to practice at the beach!”

“Huh?

Well… swimming does count as fitness, but that won’t really work, will it?

I still have to be on duty.”

“I heard the gym you’re at got acquired, Coach.

And you got reassigned to the quiet second floor, right?

If we go under the pretext of instructor-led training, it should be fine, no?”

“Ooh…

That actually sounds pretty good.”

Luo You was tempted.

If they went to the beach, the whole time would essentially be hers.

She could slack off as much as she pleased.

“I’ll go put in a request and see.”

But…

‘Her intentions aren’t pure, are they?’

Luo You gave An Jiu’er another couple of looks.

From her own read, the distance between An Jiu’er and her had already crept past the usual student–coach boundary.

Was this kid a lily—into girls?*

Only, Luo You couldn’t be sure yet.

There were plenty of lilies out there, but you didn’t just bump into them in everyday life.

You couldn’t assume every cute girl you met swung that way.

……

“Manager, Jiu’er says she wants to do beach training and have me accompany her.

Is that allowed?”

“Hah?”

The manager blurted in surprise, then seemed to think of something.

His face went stiff.

“Fine.

You don’t have much on right now anyway.

Go on, go.”

“Thanks.”

Expressionless, Luo You walked out of the manager’s office.

Approved.

Too easy.

A cute face really was a universal pass.

“Let’s go.”

She waved to An Jiu’er to wait by the door, then went downstairs at her building and pulled the car around.

“Coach, you can drive?”

“Piece of cake.”

An Jiu’er slid into the passenger seat without a hint of shyness, glanced around, and asked,

“Coach, where’s your swimsuit?”

“I’ll buy one there.”

She hadn’t brought the bikini and sukumizu she’d bought at the hot springs last time.

If that unfilial daughter of hers saw them, she’d start asking a million questions.

What a pain.

“You brought a lot of stuff.”

Luo You flicked a glance at the back seat, where An Jiu’er’s things were piled up.

There were even more than when she’d come in.

She must have bought more while waiting for the car.

“They’re all essentials.”

“Buckle up.”

The beach they headed for sat on the edge of Huahai City, an open stretch of coast that was usually crowded.

In the summer heat, it was even more packed.

This time Luo You bought a relatively normal swimsuit.

It was still a bikini, but much more modest than the last one—barely within the bounds of “decent,” and arguably kid-safe to look at.

Once they’d both changed, Luo You asked,

“What part do you want to work on today?”

“Mm?

Shouldn’t we put on sunscreen first?”

“…Right, duh.”

It was her first time going to the beach in a female body, so the thought hadn’t even occurred to her.

Back when she’d come as a guy, getting tanned bronze just made her look more macho.

Now…

A set of sexy tan lines did have its appeal, sure.

But if she went home like that, her daughter would definitely interrogate her about where she’d been.

So sunscreen it was.

“I’ll go buy a bottle.”

“Use mine.”

An Jiu’er produced her own sunscreen oil.

The brand…

Luo You couldn’t tell—some jumble of characters that looked either French or German.

“Thanks, then.”

She lay facedown on the beach mat.

“Do me a favor and help me put it on.”

“?”

An Jiu’er clearly hadn’t expected good fortune to fall out of the sky.

She froze for two seconds.

“Then I’ll… put it on?”

“Mm-hmm.”

Cool sunscreen dripped down, giving the girl’s skin a glossy sheen, a slick, clingy feel.

Feeling An Jiu’er’s hands spreading it across her back, Luo You closed her eyes with confidence.

‘Judging from the technique, she doesn’t seem like a lily…

Way too green.’

If she were the one oiling up a girl, her fingers would dance like devils.

Give her a minute and even the strongest girl would melt.

“Um… I’m done.”

“Mm?

Oh.

Then the front next—uh.”

The moment the words left her mouth, she realized that sounded wrong.

Back then she’d had magical girls press their soft chests against her to rub in the oil.

Looked like she’d brought that bad habit along.

Normally, you handled the front yourself.

“Then I’ll just…”

Before Luo You could back out, cool oil poured onto her flat stomach, making her body shiver.

That tiny reaction did not escape An Jiu’er’s eyes.

What followed was a little suggestive, so we’ll spare the details.

“You lie down too.

I’ll help you with yours.”

Luo You decided to demonstrate what was meant by the magic of fingers.

Ten minutes later—

Flushed, An Jiu’er sat up, breathing hard.

“Coach…

How do you even train your fingers?

Your moves are so weird!”

“It’s nothing.

I play guitar sometimes.”

“Guitar?

I don’t feel any calluses.”

“That’s because I take care of my hands.”

Luo You answered proudly.

Who was she fooling?

She’d never touched a guitar in her life.

If you wanted to talk about “plucking,” her only experience was with magical girls’…

“Alright.

What part do you want to train today?”

“Chokes and strangles in close-quarters grappling!”

“…Hah?”

“Ah, I mean the kind where you use your limbs to lock the opponent down so they can’t move.

You said you knew those, right, Coach?”

Yikes…

This girl was scary.

Who exactly was she planning to use these on?

That said, Luo You did know those techniques.

“That doesn’t really have anything to do with fitness, does it?”

“It does!

It builds strength in all four limbs!”

Well…

If An Jiu’er planned to fold choking techniques into bed-fighting, then technically… there was a sliver of logic there.**

It also trained your sense of positioning.

In bed-fighting, positioning was crucial.

Botch your positioning and you’d end up on the back foot.

So this was the legendary Strongwoman Lock?***

Luo You mused.

She usually didn’t need such tricks.

Those were only useful when you had to wrestle for the initiative.

When she hunted magical girls, which one didn’t she toy with until their resolve crumbled, leaving them utterly helpless?

They just handed her the initiative outright.

‘No…

This might be useful against Xingyue.

Might as well test on Jiu’er while I can.’

With that thought, Luo You said,

“Alright, I’ll teach you a few.

Watch closely.”

“Mm!

Please demonstrate, Coach!

And teach me how to counter them too!”

“Got it!”

······

······

“Then I’ll be in your care again tomorrow, Coach.”

“Tomorrow…

Sure, why not.”

After getting out of the car, An Jiu’er quietly took out a notebook, flipped to a page, and wrote down her takeaways for the day.

— Step One of the Plan: Get her to apply the special sunscreen. (√)

— Her weak point is still the same as before: the navel.

It seems even more sensitive now?

— Be especially wary of her fingers!

— Bring a special bento for her tomorrow!