The Aftermath of Battle
"Ugh... urp... ugh... wuuuuh..."
With the battle settled, Lin Xiaolu collapsed onto the ground, half-kneeling as she dry-heaved over and over, tears welling in her eyes.
From the mont she had been drenched in the Ravager’s rancid body fluids, she had been vomiting on the pavent. Then ca the crying.
She would cry for a while, then dry-heave, then sob again, repeating the miserable cycle until her face was covered in tears, snot, and pure despair.
"There, there. It’s okay."
Veronica crouched beside her, gently patting her back. Her voice was calm and soft, a rare contrast to her usual deanor.
"It’s just a bit slly. No one saw you. Once you get ho and take a nice, long bath, the sll will go away."
Seeing her daughter in such a pitiful state was genuinely heartbreaking.
So even though speaking so gently went against her usual persona, Veronica couldn’t help herself.
"Veronica... urp... ugh! Waaaahhh..."
Lin Xiaolu turned to look at her, eyes brimming with tears. But she barely managed two words before dry-heaving again.
A few ters away, Xia Liang wasn’t doing much better.
She clung to a traffic light pole, looking absolutely green in the face.
Unlike Lin Xiaolu, she had stronger willpower. She had only dry-heaved a few tis at the start, but then forced herself to stop through sheer self-control.
At the very least, she had managed to preserve so dignity.
The stench in the area was unbearable.
Even Veronica—who had seen her fair share of disgusting battlefields—felt queasy.
She covered her nose and mouth with a hand, trying not to breathe in too deeply.
After sitting beside Lin Xiaolu for a while and realizing she wouldn’t recover anyti soon, Veronica flew over to Xia Liang instead.
"How are you holding up?" she asked, a hint of concern in her voice.
"Ugh... better than before, I guess."
Xia Liang was still clutching her mouth, forcing an exhausted smile.
"But this sticky stuff in my hair is so gross." She hesitated for a mont before asking, "Veronica-senpai, do you happen to know any water magic or sothing?"
"Sorry, I don’t," Veronica admitted.
Water-based cleansing spells—also known as "Freshwater Rituals"—did exist, but Veronica had never bothered to learn them.
For Magical Girls, once they advanced to Leaf-tier, mastering spells and rituals beca a basic skill. But to actually beco proficient in various types of magic required dedicated ti and effort.
And frankly, when he was still Lin Yun, he had zero interest in studying spells.
He had only picked up the most basic combat-related techniques before deciding it wasn’t worth his ti.
So unfortunately, he couldn’t help here.
That said, there were other solutions.
Veronica waited until Lin Xiaolu recovered slightly, then suggested,
"Since the Ravager has been taken care of, why don’t you both just go ho, clean up, and get so rest?"
Lin Xiaolu, still on the ground, struggled to speak.
"But... urp... we have... school... this afternoon..."
"No need to worry about that."
Veronica waved a hand dismissively.
"That’s exactly what the Counterasure Bureau is for. I’ll report this incident to them, and they’ll handle everything with the school. Your attendance won’t be an issue."
In fact, if Xia Liang wasn’t here, Veronica wouldn’t even need the Bureau.
She could just call the school herself, as Lin Yun, and excuse his daughter’s absence.
One of the perks of being an adult.
"...Alright... ugh."
Now that school wasn’t a problem, Lin Xiaolu didn’t argue further.
Weakly, she pushed herself up from the ground.
Once on her feet, she took a mont to regain her bearings.
Her mind was still a bit scrambled, so she scanned her surroundings to locate her ho.
After so ntal effort, she finally figured out which direction to go.
Taking a few steps forward, she planned to fly ho once she regained enough magic.
That was when she noticed sothing strange.
Soone was following her.
At first, she thought it was Veronica.
But after glancing toward her, she realized that wasn’t the case.
So she stopped walking, turned around, and squinted.
A certain purple-clad Magical Girl was standing behind her, smiling sweetly.
Xia Liang.
The mont Lin Xiaolu turned around, Xia Liang raised a hand, waved cheerfully, and smiled again.
She offered no explanation whatsoever.
"...Why are you following ?"
Lin Xiaolu’s tone was irritated.
"Mm… looking for a place to take a bath?"
Xia Liang’s expression remained casual, though her voice carried a hint of uncertainty—like she was suggesting a trip to a public bathhouse.
"Don’t follow . Go ho and bathe at your own place."
Lin Xiaolu had no interest in Xia Liang’s vague nonsense.
Throwing out a blunt response, she turned and walked off.
But after just a few steps, she noticed sothing wrong.
The footsteps behind her hadn’t stopped.
She froze.
Turned around again.
And this ti, she looked genuinely pissed.
"You!"
Now fully frustrated, she glared directly at Xia Liang.
"I already told you not to follow ! What the hell do you want?"
"Nothing much."
Xia Liang blinked innocently.
"I just wanted to see your house."
"...Hah?!"
Lin Xiaolu looked at her like she had grown a second head.
"Why the hell would I let you into my house?!"
"Mm…"
Xia Liang tapped her chin as if she was seriously considering the question.
Then, after a brief pause, she tilted her head and answered—
"Doesn’t seem like I can go ho."
"...What?"
Lin Xiaolu frowned.
Xia Liang’s face suddenly brightened, like she was proud of sothing.
Then, with a dramatic puff of her chest, she boldly declared—
——"Because I ran away from ho."
Silence.
Lin Xiaolu froze.
Even Veronica, who had been quietly observing, raised an eyebrow in genuine surprise.
Of all the things she had expected Xia Liang to say, this was not one of them.
But Veronica was an adult.
She quickly realized this was an opportunity for Lin Xiaolu to bond with Xia Liang.
So, instead of interfering, she nudged Lin Xiaolu’s back encouragingly.
Lin Xiaolu snapped out of it.
And, still staring at Xia Liang in disbelief, she cautiously asked—
"…What did you just say?"
Seeing both of them looking at her, Xia Liang blinked innocently.
Then, as if she hadn’t been clear before, she repeated—
"Oh, I said I ran away from ho."
"And now I don’t have anywhere to go."
She smiled sweetly again.
"So—"
"Can I stay at your place?"
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