Living with a magical girl, but a weirdo cadre

　And Bei hasn't changed its name... because there's no need to change it anymore; Bei is now a paradise for weirdos.

　In a city controlled by monsters, humans naturally exist. However, they live under the monsters' dominance, completely independent of the world's system.

　Whether I'm doing well or not, nobody knows.

　Consequently, urban transportation and logistics in the vicinity of Beidu will gradually be paralyzed, and this paralysis will spread to the surrounding areas.

　Moving between cities now involves a great deal of risk.

　There are many such cities and phenomena around the world.

　However, the fall of cities in other countries—such as the Vatican—is traceable, but only the northern capital of Japan… has sealed away that history of defeat.

　Whether there are any strange people pulling the strings behind this remains to be seen... for the general public.

　"I...sneaked a look."

　The person on the other end of the phone wasn't surprised by the team leader's words: "The owner of the magic in your hands is some strange figure from that battle."

　The team leader was indeed somewhat surprised by this, because the monsters participating in the battle in the video seemed to be quite terrifying, unlike the small monsters who usually caused trouble: "So, the other side must be at least an officer?"

　[It might be more complicated than you think. The other party is one of the "unconfirmed code names"... Anyway, destroy that magical data without leaving a trace. This call will also be deleted from the record.]

　[Dududu——]

　"..." Accompanied by the busy tone, the research team leader became serious, knowing that this matter was indeed very serious.

　If we categorize monsters according to their strength and level, the strongest is...

　However, he is a mysterious and eccentric emperor who has never shown his face.

　If we arrange them from lowest to highest, they are: ordinary monsters, executive-level monsters, and headquarters executive-level monsters.

　Then there are "leader" level monsters, which are monsters with the strength of a leader in a certain monster subgroup.

　And then...

　These are "undetermined codenames" that may be difficult to study and name because of their complex abilities.

　In other words, it's impossible to give it nicknames like "Ant Monster" or "Crab Monster".

　Similarly, it also means that the association does not know the other party's appearance, identity, or specific affiliation, and there are not many people whose prototypes cannot be determined.

　To put it simply, it means their weaknesses haven't been identified.

　"King level?"

　Muttering to himself like this, the team leader felt a chill run down his spine... King-level monsters are probably those who stand on countless corpses, committing heinous acts of slaughter when they are unhappy, and eating at least ten children every day, right?

　-

　"Congyu-chan - the fried noodles and bread are on me, you absolutely must remember my kindness! For at least seven days!"

　Cong Yu (perfunctorily): "Yes, yes, yes..."

　Chapter Twenty-Six: Locked Up on the Rooftop (Physics)

　Rooftop... This is truly a scene that appears in all sorts of school romance anime.

　But the rooftop in Fukushima is undoubtedly the best rooftop in the world.

　The wind here isn't particularly strong, but you can definitely feel it, and it's incredibly refreshing...

　That is why Cong Yu chose to live in Fengdu.

　"Ah um——"

　Cong Yu was biting into the fried noodle bread in her hand... How should I put it? It tasted pretty good, and the crust was a bit crispy.

　The fried noodles inside are light and chewy, and the sauce is just right—a sweet teriyaki sauce.

　Cong Yu, who was enjoying a simple lunch treated to by Yao Chuan Guang, leaned against the wall next to the door and looked up at the beautiful sky through the outer fence.

　Tiantai has always been a place associated with rain.

　Sometimes I'll take a nap here, and skipping afternoon classes is no big deal... anyway, the classes aren't very meaningful.

　Because Cong Yu's grades were very good, the teachers didn't say much.

　However, today, the rooftop welcomed its second guest.

　"Congyu-chan? Ah, she's really here..."

　First came the sound of the dilapidated and somewhat rusty rooftop door opening, followed by Yao Chuanguang's voice.

　Cong Yu, who had been keeping her eyes closed, opened them with a hint of helplessness.

　At that moment, Yaochuan Guang had already sat down in his place, on the left side of the door... the other side relative to Congyu.

　"Wow, what a refreshing breeze, even though it's not very hot today."

　Yao Chuan Guang sighed, and like Cong Yu, gently closed her eyes, her golden hair cascading over her shoulders.

　The wind blew, gently ruffling the golden hair at her temples.

　In response, Cong Yu simply finished the last few bites of fried noodles and bread: "As long as you calm down and look up, you will find that the wind in Fengdu has always been the same, and has not changed over the years."

　The wind here is clear and aloof, always has been.

　"What do you mean by 'over the years'? You make it sound like you're some middle-aged, over-40-year-old corporate slave, just like the agent."

　Yaochuan Guang was making sarcastic remarks, ignoring Cong Yu who was glancing sideways with a somewhat guilty expression, when he suddenly became excited: "But I saw Cong Yu's grades!"

　"You got the highest score in the whole grade last year! I overheard a classmate saying as I passed by that he was determined to surpass you."

　You surpassed me?

　Cong Yu hesitated for a moment, glancing at Yao Chuan Guang: "It's true that I was first in the final exam last year, but... you surpassed me? Do you mean you surpassed me?"

　Hikaru Yokawa: "That's about it—"

　It's way worse!

　To be honest, for Fuuto High School, which takes happy education to an extremely high level, the exams here are very simple.

　"Can Congyu-chan tutor me?"

　As Yao Chuan Guang said this, he looked at Cong Yu, who had his hands behind his head: "I didn't understand much of the class this morning. World history was okay, but I didn't understand math at all."

　It's normal not to understand.

　"After all, you started high school a long time ago, right? The textbooks have changed once, and Kensaku Takenaka's teaching level is also very poor."

　Cong Yu gave a simple reply, and seeing Yao Chuan Guang's astonished expression at him for calling the math teacher by his first name, she comforted him, "But anyway, you're a magical girl, so you don't need to worry about your grades, right?"

　Even if they aren't magical girls, many students don't care about their grades.

　Being a magical girl is, in a sense, a secure job, just like the innocent Ding Yilang, for whom going to school is merely a form of entertainment.

　Innocence is the invincible path; why bother reading the classics?

　"That's true, but my parents always wanted me to study hard. They always said that being a magical girl was too dangerous."

　As Yao Chuan Guang spoke, a look of remembrance and sadness appeared on his face: "They wanted me to be a normal person, and I even argued with them about it."

　"..."

　"I must say, your parents are quite remarkable, managing to stay clear-headed at a time when humanity desperately needs magical girls."

　Cong Yu said simply, resting his chin on his hand: "You yourself..."

　They should also be able to sense, to some extent, that the profession of magical girl isn't glamorous.

　Looking at Yaochuan Guang with his eyes lowered, Cong Yu paused for a moment before speaking again, this time in a more serious tone: "At least, it's not as wonderful as you think."

　That's true. It's because before Hikaru Yokawa became active, or after he had just started fighting monsters, he thought that magical girl jobs were cool and awesome.

　But then we discovered...

　A battle is a battle, pain is pain, and an injury is an injury...

　“And if a person is killed, then they die; magical girls are similar to humans in this respect.”

　Cong Yu spoke simply, then thought of Lan Tianzhu and the other magical girls: "You're actually quite good. There are quite a few magical girls near our residence, but they are all trainees."

　In other words, those who don't get paid voluntarily train during their spare time from school or work in order to pursue their dream of becoming "magical girls".

　It takes at least two and a half years of training to become a semi-qualified magical girl. But will she die in her first official encounter with a monster?

　That's an unknown.

　"In addition, there are the limitations of agencies and contracts, and magical girls also have the problem of lifespan... Like me, I will definitely grow old and die."

　Cong Yu rambled on about his lifespan, since the monsters were also immortal beings, distinct from humans: "Back then you were just as young as you are now... if you hadn't died fighting the monsters."

　In reality, being a magical girl is indeed a high-risk profession. While not as dangerous as one might imagine, it's still quite dangerous.

　It's equivalent to a special operations worker, but without a safety belt, safety rope, or safety helmet.

　There is a risk of sudden death at any time.

　There are actually quite a few magical girls who have died at the hands of Murasame.

　Well, before he reformed, he wasn't the kind of person who would go easy on someone just because they were pretty; he believed in loving what you do.

　Except drawing comics.

　"Ugh... After what you said, Congyu-chan, I'm a little scared, but I can't help it—"

　Yao Chuanguang seemed to hesitate for a moment, but then revealed a helpless smile: "If I don't do it, who will protect the wind?"

　This smile wasn't exactly handsome; it wasn't as dazzling as Yaochuan Guang's usual cheerful smile, but it lacked that innocent silliness.

　Cong Yu was stunned for a moment.

　"Think about it, Murasame-chan... If I hadn't become a magical girl, the innocent people in the Grass Flower Bank and the children in the park would have suffered at the hands of the monster."

　With her hands on her hips, Yao Chuan Guang recounted the civilians she had saved, regaining her initial confidence: "I'm different from those magical girls who only post videos and try to gain traffic. The reason I'm so popular is because I genuinely save people!"

　"..."

　"That's true... but that's your job, and besides, if you don't do it, there are plenty of other people who can."

　Cong Yu admitted it and pulled her legs back.

　Sunlight shone on Yaochuan Guang, making her hair shine, while the rusty iron gate blocked out all the sunlight.

　Cong Yu shrank back and leaned completely into the shadows, forming the opposite extreme from Yao Chuan Guang's side.

　One side glittered, while the other remained calm and dark.

　but……

　"Congyu-chan! Why aren't you saying anything? Praise me!"

　Yaochuan Guang shouted and slammed the door shut, blocking the two of them. Instantly, Cong Yu's expression turned to astonishment.

　The sunlight, which had been blocked, shone warmly on him, but the sudden brightness made it feel a little dazzling, but...

　It's hard to say whether the glare comes from Yaochuan light or from the sunlight itself.

　"Hmm... well... ah... how else do you want me to praise you? You idiot, the key is in the other side of the door."

　Cong Yu sighed as she stood up, reached out and pulled on the iron gate, then sighed again: "Alas, this door doesn't budge, as if it's fixed to space itself."

　"So, Ms. Yaochuan Guang, how do we get down now?"

　"..." Yaochuan Guang: "Eh? Uh, does that mean we can only spend the rest of our lives together on the rooftop?"

　Cong Yu: "Are you kidding me! You idiot!"

　Chapter Twenty-Seven: Red...Teacher?

　It's worth mentioning that Cong Yu left her phone in her bag in the classroom, and there were only three QQ accounts on the phone that could help her.

　They are Minato Namikaze, Hikaru Yokawa, and Nagisa Azuma.

　There are many other things that are not needed at the moment, such as ambiguous nicknames like "Red," "Boss," "Doctor," and "[Old Colleague (Snow)]."

　Of course, there are also editors (female) in the editorial department.

　In short, when it comes to communication related to "work" in any sense, Cong Yu is the type of person who is used to using Lixe to send messages for work.

　Therefore, Cong Yu had no way of recalling Minato Namikaze's phone number, because he had never known it in the first place.

　Yaochuan Guang did have her phone with her, but she hadn't added Lixe as a friend on social media or had her phone number yet.

　So in the end, it was Cong Yu who gave the homeroom teacher's phone number.