An hour later.
Zhou Huanan finished lecturing Magical Girl Grey Moon.
He disregarded the girl’s pouting, instructing her to behave herself that afternoon and cause no more trouble. With that, Zhou Huanan parted ways with Grey Moon and returned to the Banjao base.
The ritual to summon the monster was complete, regardless of its success. As the captain leading the team, he had a summary to make.
He knocked on Dr. Zhuge’s office door, then stepped inside to report the sequence of events to her.
Dr. Zhuge nodded in acknowledgment, indicating she understood. Immediately, she had a more pressing matter to discuss with Zhou Huanan.
“Magical Girl Violet, who escaped from our base, has reappeared.”
Dr. Zhuge beckoned Zhou Huanan closer. When he had taken two steps forward, she still felt it wasn’t enough and lightly tapped the table.
Zhou Huanan understood the unspoken command. He took a slight detour and moved to stand beside Dr. Zhuge.
Dr. Zhuge pointed a finger in mid-air, directing Zhou Huanan’s gaze to the computer screen.
The wide screen displayed a Magical Girl Violet different from the one Zhou Huanan remembered. She wore a metallic mask, cackling maniacally as she unleashed her powers, killing the Banjao combatants shown on screen.
Magical Girls were not supposed to kill; this was common knowledge even a child understood.
Zhou Huanan’s brow furrowed deeply. He quickly surmised why Dr. Zhuge was showing him this footage.
“When did this happen?”
“This morning. Violet killed combatants from two squads.”
Dr. Zhuge lit a cigarette, her expression displeased as she looked at Zhou Huanan.
Some matters she could pretend hadn’t occurred, for who was without fault?
But a lesson still needed to be taught.
“Don’t be fooled by their glamorous appearances, their immense power. The hearts of these adorable Magical Girls are incredibly fragile.”
Dr. Zhuge’s words reminded Zhou Huanan of Liu Li. He parted his lips, but Dr. Zhuge took his silence as self-reflection and continued speaking.
“Once they lose control, this is what happens.”
Dr. Zhuge paused the footage, extending a finger to point at the dead Banjao combatants on the screen. They had clearly not made physical contact with Magical Girl Violet.
Yet, they lay on the ground, unable to rise again, their breathing gradually fading.
Were their helmets to be removed, no doubt faces contorted in agony and terror would be revealed beneath.
“Magical Girls are too dangerous; under necessary circumstances, they must be restrained.”
Dr. Zhuge seemed to say everything and nothing at all.
Zhou Huanan understood. Dr. Zhuge already knew he was the one who had released Magical Girl Violet. At this point, there was nothing he could do but admit his mistake and attempt to make amends.
“Then, is there anything I can do?”
Zhou Huanan did not attempt to argue or play dumb.
Dr. Zhuge still felt that making a mistake was normal for a young person. She informed him that she had already requested Banjao’s high-ranking specialists to handle the situation with Magical Girl Violet.
“What you need to do now…”
Dr. Zhuge looked at the somewhat guilty Zhou Huanan, stubbing out her cigarette in the ashtray.
“…is to quickly lure out Magical Girl Grey Moon – and fast. Then, there’s this.”
Dr. Zhuge handed Zhou Huanan a box. Upon opening it, the contents struck Zhou Huanan as very familiar. He realized it was the purple Magical Girl Heart he had seen at the bottom layer during his probationary period for the Grand Gate mission.
“This is a Magical Girl Heart, an irresistible treasure for Magical Girls. It can enhance their power.”
“Take this with you.”
“When Magical Girl Grey Moon appears, lavish her with this item.”
“Huh?”
‘Isn’t this blatant aid to the enemy?’
Zhou Huanan looked at Dr. Zhuge with a confused gaze. Giving this item to Grey Moon was something he could do anytime.
However, whether the item itself was truly beneficial remained debatable.
Dr. Zhuge claimed Magical Girls couldn’t resist it, yet when he had captured Grey Moon and was stripping her of her equipment, Grey Moon had also taken this item. Still, she had clearly scorned it, caring more about the Magma Demon’s core.
Zhou Huanan grew suspicious of Dr. Zhuge.
Dr. Zhuge couldn’t be bothered to explain, simply telling Zhou Huanan to follow through. After all, the intricacies and Banjao’s true stance couldn’t be clarified in just a few words.
Done.
Zhou Huanan was dismissed by Dr. Zhuge with a dismissive remark about him getting out if he wasn’t going to join her for a smoke, urging him to quickly get to work and find Magical Girl Grey Moon.
Outside the office door.
Zhou Huanan gazed at the Magical Girl Heart in his hand.
‘What on earth was all this?’ he wondered, but he didn’t want to follow Dr. Zhuge’s words completely.
Even if he were to give it to Magical Girl Grey Moon, he decided he would wait to confirm what this unknown item truly was before making a judgment.
At this moment, anxious Banjao combatants walked past Zhou Huanan.
– I don’t know what to do. I can’t just take leave now, can I? –
– It’s no use. A rogue Magical Girl kills anyone they see. It’s safer inside the Banjao base. –
Many combatants passing in the corridor expressed their anxieties about Magical Girl Violet.
Outside the base.
A rogue, rampaging Magical Girl was on the loose.
Though only half a day had passed, news concerning their very lives spread throughout the Banjao base in less than an hour; everyone was aware.
However, Zhou Huanan disregarded this information, intending to continue his mission. After all, Liu Li was still waiting for him somewhere unknown, and the sooner he acted, the less harm Liu Li would suffer.
He hadn’t even considered his own safety.
Time.
No longer allowed him a moment’s respite.
Even if it meant facing life-threatening danger, Zhou Huanan was prepared for this.
He couldn’t rely on Dr. Zhuge to solve this problem.
While Dr. Zhuge was usually kind to him, often turning a blind eye to many of his actions, she was ultimately Zhou Huanan’s superior, not a friend.
If she knew the true source of Zhou Huanan’s motivation, she would likely secretly imprison Liu Li, shattering her spirit, only arranging a meeting between them once Zhou Huanan had been promoted to a position Dr. Zhuge deemed desirable.
But that would take too long.
Zhou Huanan shook his head, then gathered his team to deploy.
The combatants under Zhou Huanan’s command heard they were to deploy immediately.
They couldn’t even manage a desperate cry like ‘Aleeeee.’ Several combatants directly knelt in supplication before him in the elevator plaza, under the gaze of everyone present, telling Zhou Huanan they didn’t want to die.
Many Banjao staff members looked over, falling silent. Even the Banjao supervisory squads didn’t immediately apprehend the disobedient individuals.
Seeing this, Zhou Huanan was enraged.
“You don’t want to die?”
“What kind of place is Banjao? It’s an evil organization! You’ve reaped all the benefits of bullying men and women, and now you tell me you don’t want to die!?”
Several people knelt before Zhou Huanan, pleading tearfully, one after another, claiming they had elderly parents and young children to support. It made Zhou Huanan’s teeth itch with anger.
He thought of how these scoundrels had harmed countless girls like Liu Li, yet faced no consequences whatsoever.
Presuming upon the Magical Girls’ kindness, they indulged in evil without the slightest remorse.
‘How could those who commit evil not pay the price?’
Zhou Huanan had long since come to a similar realization, preparing himself…
“Oi, what do you rotten people take Banjao for?”
“A benevolent organization purely for your own pleasure?!”
Zhou Huanan was furious.
He drew a pistol from behind him.
He gave no quarter for negotiation, pressing the weapon directly against the heads of the disobedient combatants.
Banjao’s specially designed armor-piercing pistol, a weapon capable of piercing even the combatants’ helmets which were impenetrable to most captains.
The pistol in Zhou Huanan’s hand, should he pull the trigger…
…could take a life from this distance.
At this moment, in the plaza.
Many Banjao combatants and staff members, seeing Zhou Huanan in such a state, only then truly realized what kind of organization they had joined.
They swallowed hard, and cold sweat broke out.
However trendy its external propaganda, however generous its salaries and benefits, none of it changed the fundamental truth that Banjao was an evil organization.
Many people only now realized this fact.
‘Refuse my orders, and you die.’
Zhou Huanan coldly eyed the individuals before him. The weapon in his hand truly would fire.
Just then,
A phantom figure seemed to stand behind Zhou Huanan, a Hannya demon representing Banjao.
Its fanged maw was wide open.
It was ready to devour those who had only sought novelty and excitement, who had joined Banjao on a whim, thinking it was a decent place.
The Banjao combatants urinated themselves in fear. The weaker ones were eventually dragged away by the disgusted supervisory squad.
No one knew where those who had openly defied orders and refused to deploy were taken.
Zhou Huanan was not a good person.
To climb the ranks, to save Liu Li, to seize that sliver of hope…
He was willing to do anything.
Whether it meant being a villain through and through, pointing a gun at someone’s head, Zhou Huanan took his remaining team members, selected the monsters, and, fully equipped, boarded the elevator.
They began their Magical Girl abduction mission.
Even though a rampaging Magical Girl driven by vengeance was outside,
Squad 19 nonetheless resolutely deployed.
Everyone else in the plaza hall remembered the number on his face—the number nineteen.
How others admired Captain 19, Zhou Huanan, behind his ’19’ mask, was unaware of this admiration. He only knew that three days were almost over, and there was still no news of Liu Li. The girl was waiting for him.
That was all.
He recalled the smile of his childhood sweetheart, the warmth of holding her that night, and the memory of his playful mischief towards her.
Just thinking of this,
Mere danger, even the possibility of death…
Could not deter Zhou Huanan from his search for Liu Li.