Qiye’s phone vibrated. She opened it and her pupils constricted slightly—another overseas message?
“Again?”
‘Why is Ling Cheyin messaging me again?’
Qiye maintained a placid expression, her peripheral vision catching Weizhan and Xincheng still lost in thought, staring intently at their communicators.
She sat opposite them, casually fiddling with her phone, feigning disinterest.
In reality, she was expertly bypassing the network firewall to facilitate the reception of the overseas signal.
****
Moments later, Qiye opened the chat. Ling Cheyin’s message contained only five words:
[“Tell them to leave.”]
Qiye’s heart jolted. ‘What does that mean… “them”?’
‘Does she mean Weizhan and Xincheng!?’
‘Wait, isn’t Ling Cheyin overseas?’
‘How can she possibly be observing my situation here?’
Qiye sent a question mark in reply. A moment later, the “typing” indicator on her screen made her breath catch.
[“Your teammates.”]
At this, a profound chill crept down Qiye’s spine, spreading through her entire body. ‘Am I truly being monitored?’
‘It must be Ling Cheyin, or perhaps a contingency left by Ling Qinghe.’
Qiye thought to herself, discreetly using her magic to scan the vicinity. Finding nothing, she rubbed her lower abdomen.
Although the magic within her body had long been dormant, and even her magical imprint had completely vanished.
If Ling Qinghe had indeed tampered with something here, Qiye wouldn’t be able to detect it.
****
Ten seconds passed. Seeing Qiye still hesitate, Ling Cheyin immediately applied pressure, sending three urgent words:
[“Hurry up!”]
After much deliberation, Qiye had no choice but to send Weizhan and Xincheng away.
Otherwise, she dreaded to imagine what kind of trouble Ling Cheyin might stir up.
However, the knowledge that the other party was definitely overseas offered Qiye a sliver of comfort. ‘At the very least, my personal safety should be guaranteed, right?’
Immediately after, Qiye clutched her forehead, feigning utter exhaustion as she leaned against the backrest.
Her voice deliberately rose in volume:
“Don’t lose heart, you two! We are Magical Girls, and Tanhua City is waiting for us to protect it. So, you both must cheer up, Weizhan, Xincheng!”
As she spoke, Qiye braced herself against the stone table.
Sure enough.
Weizhan, hearing this, was momentarily stunned. Qiye’s words made her realize she truly had been in a slump.
Thus, she said:
“Qiye is right. Come on, Xincheng, sitting here is just a waste of time. Why don’t we take a patrol and clear our heads together?”
Xincheng closed her eyes, pondering for a moment, then stood up. She finally nodded lightly in response.
“Alright, then… Qiye, we’ll see you at the branch at eight.”
After a while, Qiye sank wearily into her chair.
However, just as her taut nerves began to relax even slightly.
****
Suddenly.
The snowflakes eerily froze in place.
At this, the hairs on the back of Qiye’s neck stood on end. A faint tremor resonated from the ground, and viscous black mist seeped from the cracks in the flagstones.
Within the black mist, a familiar silhouette began to coalesce—Ling Qinghe’s magical phantom, rising from the earth itself!
It appeared directly opposite Qiye.
This sight startled Qiye, causing her to stammer and point at the magical phantom.
In response, the black, misty face of the magical phantom twisted into a distorted smile, the corners of its mouth splitting into an eerie arc.
“Little Yezi, it’s only been a day, no need to be so surprised, is there?”
Qiye bit her lower lip, her voice trembling with the question:
“Ling Qinghe, when… when did you return?”
“Me? Hmm~ If I told you I never left, would you believe me? Hm-hm~”
In truth, Ling Qinghe had always maintained a magical phantom within the borders of Yuan Yu Kingdom.
Moreover, as long as the distance wasn’t too great, or the border barrier too restrictive, Ling Qinghe could swap places with her magical phantom.
Of course, this would drain an exorbitant amount of magic, enough to completely exhaust Ling Qinghe. Therefore, she couldn’t yet perform such a swap.
She could only control the magical phantom from afar to seek out… the little informant she had left in Xuanhua City.
That informant was none other than Qiye, the Magical Girl with numerous vulnerabilities, all held firmly in Ling Qinghe’s grasp.
Qiye’s throat tightened. She glanced sideways, unwilling to meet the magical phantom’s twisted smile directly.
She knew that what followed would inevitably be Ling Qinghe’s various threats, forcing her to do the other’s bidding.
Having grown accustomed to this, Qiye decided to preemptively ask:
“What do you need me to do?”
Hearing this, Ling Qinghe merely chuckled, the sound causing ice shards to fall from the pavilion eaves.
“Little Yezi is becoming quite… proactive, aren’t you~”
Black mist surged around her as she continued:
“It’s nothing, really. The photo Huiyin sent you, you haven’t posted it yet, have you?”
Upon hearing this, Qiye stammered involuntarily, drawing out her words:
“This… I, I…”
Ling Qinghe, sensing Qiye’s ‘difficulty,’ spoke plainly:
“I know you’re worried that if this photo gets out, it will ‘benefit’ me, and that my schemes might succeed… Hmm~ You also received the notification just now, didn’t you? A new Special-Grade is coming to usurp Zhennu Yibai’s position, you know…”
Qiye softly hummed in acknowledgment, staring at the ‘malice’ and temptation that couldn’t be hidden in the phantom’s eyes.
Seeing this, Ling Qinghe’s magical phantom flickered a few times before continuing:
“What if I told you I have a way to make this Special-Grade back down?”
“That is to say… to leave the Special-Grade position in Xuanhua City vacant until Silvia returns to the country, until public opinion turns, and until her name is cleared, so she can assume the post smoothly?”
Qiye’s first reaction to Ling Qinghe’s words was disbelief.
This wasn’t the first time she had faced Ling Qinghe’s allure. This woman…
Always highlighted the benefits of a situation. But as for the consequences, the schemes, she would remain utterly silent.
However, did Qiye truly have a choice?
Even a hint of refusal would likely result in Ling Qinghe blackmailing her with recordings of her dealings and intimacy with the witch.
So, Qiye pondered for a moment.
“What should I do?”
As she spoke these words, the magical phantom clapped its hands in satisfaction, then extended a finger formed of black mist, pointing at Qiye’s phone.
“Now, make that photo public. Tell the whole country that Silvia has reverted to her female form and is about to return to the country…”
Qiye picked up her phone, staring at the phantom.
“Should I use my personal account? Or should I create a new one…?”
As the words left her mouth, she realized with a start that she had already tacitly agreed to cooperate.
Ling Qinghe shook her head.
“Don’t worry about that, Cheyin has already prepared everything…”
As her voice fell, Qiye’s phone vibrated. Ling Cheyin had sent a cross-border link.
At this, Ling Qinghe drew closer to Qiye, emanating an icy chill.
“My sister is very thoughtful; she’s already prepared the draft for you~ Click on the link, then copy it into your browser. Remember to use incognito mode.”
“She’s made special arrangements; it can be published with one click to all major online platforms in Wan Yu Kingdom, and it will automatically be pinned and featured…”
And so.
Qiye had no choice but to comply, her fingers trembling as she operated the screen.
When an image loaded, along with the text written by Ling Cheyin, Qiye almost burst out laughing.
“I shall return gloriously as a woman, greeting the dawn, to clear my past name. See you at the Monan border… I will give an explanation to all citizens of the Wan Yu Kingdom.”
Qiye’s mouth twitched. ‘This… this caption is far too childish and chuunibyo-like, isn’t it?’
Both the stiff phrasing and the exaggerated tone were evident.
However, considering it was written by Ling Cheyin… ‘Hmm, it’s barely acceptable.’
Qiye shook her head helplessly, suppressing the absurdity, and carefully checked for any typos.
****
She clicked ‘Publish.’
The next moment, a chorus of electronic device hums rose from the distant city.
Qiye opened a news page.
Countless identical posts were frantically flooding the screen at a visible speed.
Likes and saves soared, reaching 100,000 in just a few seconds.
Aside from some websites protected by the Magical Girl Association’s firewall, whether it was social media platforms, news forums, or video sites, the homepage recommendations and trending lists were all dominated by this news.
Having completed this step, Qiye closed her phone.
“What’s next?”
“Hmm~ Well… when it’s almost eight, you and your companions just need to go to the Xuanhua City Association branch to handle the reception…”
“There will be a surprise~”
With that said.
Ling Qinghe stared at Qiye with a cold smile, then gradually faded away, the playful glint in her eyes almost overflowing.
Qiye looked at Ling Qinghe’s smile, feeling a profound sense of absurdity, as if she had been sold out and was still counting money for the other party.
She knew that her click this time had unleashed a storm of public opinion regarding Senior Silvia’s return.
‘Hmm~ I’m doing this to protect Senior Silvia’s position…’
Qiye murmured to herself, gazing at the surging clouds in the sky, trying to convince herself.
Ling Qinghe’s schemes and calculations were, at this moment, forcibly suppressed into the deepest recesses of her heart, a form of self-deception.
She told herself.
‘As long as I can prevent the new Special-Grade from taking office, as long as Silvia has a place to return to…’
‘Then, any means are worth it…’
Yet, deep within her, a faint voice incessantly reminded her:
‘Why would Ling Qinghe be so kind?’
‘There must be a larger trap hidden behind this.’
But Qiye refused to ponder it. She hugged her arms tightly, pacing back and forth in place.
“Perhaps… it really can turn public opinion around… In that case, I am also helping Senior Silvia.”
She spoke again, her tone firmer than before, as if repeating the lie enough times would make it reality.
She recalled Silvia’s voice, her smile, her cheerful demeanor, and then the sorrowful expressions of the three of them when they learned of the new Special-Grade’s impending appointment. These images became Qiye’s best excuse for self-deception.
Just then, her phone screen lit up again, a flood of push notifications pouring in.
Qiye trembled as she tapped it open. The screen was filled with discussions about ‘Zhennu Yibai’s return to the country.’
Likes and comments were still climbing frantically.
Of course, there was no shortage of skepticism and curses.
Indeed, the crimes Zhennu Yibai had committed—treason, colluding with the enemy, gender fraud—would not be so easily ‘whitewashed.’
However.
Qiye forced herself not to look at the negative comments, staring only at the words ‘See you at the Monan border,’ lost in thought.