Vol 2 Chapter 98: Forged Clothing
"It has nothing to do with . I didn’t start this project."
That afternoon, inside Erald’s lab, the chubby Fairy Doll spread its hands with a blunt tone: "Even if you ask a hundred more tis, the answer's the sa—the Kingdom’s Institute of Research has never conducted any project related to the ‘Gate of Ascension.’"
"I believe you, Your Excellency Chief. But even if the Institute didn’t research it directly, what about those affiliated projects it funded?"
Sitting at the low table across from her, Veronica had one hand resting on her knee, the other propping up her chin. "Or maybe it’s so privately funded civilian project backed by the Sapphire Scepter. Could also be one of your ‘friends’ doing a bit of personal research in secret..."
"Of course not. I’m not playing word gas with you."
Erald sighed helplessly. "I’m answering you seriously here—this really has nothing to do with , junior."
Veronica blinked, not saying anything, just staring at Erald with a look of mild surprise.
Erald seed a little offended. "What? Is that really so hard to believe?"
"It is pretty hard to believe."
Veronica nodded honestly. "After all, you’re the one who said, ‘No magic under a Magical Girl’s domain should be beyond my understanding.’ With a statent like that, you don’t strike as soone who’d ignore a suspicious rumor like this."
"You should be my chief secretary, Little Ancestor. My current secretary doesn’t dig through my history nearly as well as you do."
The Fairy Doll rolled its eyes—an expressive gesture surprisingly vivid for a figure with such a simplistic appearance. "But you have to understand, that only matters if it's even a real technique… I’m a scholar, not a detective. There are too many rumors in this world. I can’t possibly chase after every one of them. I need to pick the ones that are actually backed by facts, right?"
"So you’re saying the rumor about the ‘Gate of Ascension’ isn’t credible?" Veronica picked up on another layer of aning in Erald’s words.
"No ti, no place, no eyewitness reports. Even as a rumor, it’s basically a complete void."
Erald didn’t sugarcoat it. "Honestly, if you hadn’t brought it up, I probably wouldn’t have rembered the na at all."
"Then how do you explain the record I found at Green Tower?" Veronica frowned.
"It proves soone was definitely investigating sothing in Fangting City a few decades ago."
Erald crossed one leg over the other with the doll’s body. "But there’s no clear evidence linking the record you found to the ‘Gate of Ascension.’ Even if it was an internal file from the Counterasure Bureau, it didn’t actually ntion the Gate by na. So far, any connection is based more on subjective interpretation than hard facts."
"Yeah, I get that."
Veronica replied softly, "I’m not so stubborn as to take a rumor as truth just because it sounds interesting. For now, the link between that record and the so-called ‘Gate of Ascension’ is still unknown. But there’s sothing about it that caught my attention..."
"You an how the dates in that record seem to match the ti when you—or rather, your wife—beca a Magical Girl?" Erald recalled.
"Exactly."
Veronica nodded. "I know it might sound like I’m being overly sensitive, but I don’t think that part is just coincidence."
"...Got it."
Erald seed to understand. "Since you’re saying that, I’ll keep it on record. In a few days, I’ll look into the resource flows the Kingdom had in this province decades ago, and I’ll put together a small team to dig up more on the ‘Gate of Ascension.’"
"Good," Veronica agreed.
"Alright." Erald confird.
Then, both of them fell silent.
After a while, Veronica raised an eyebrow curiously and looked at Erald. "So?"
"So what? You think the arrangent is missing sothing?" Erald asked back.
"You agreed to this way too easily. No extra conditions or anything?"
Veronica looked skeptical. "Technically, this wasn’t part of our original deal. Aren’t you supposed to take the chance to ask for sothing more?"
"Forget it. In your current state, aside from the Beast Core, what else could you offer that would interest ?"
Erald's voice was gruff. "Don’t overthink everything, and don’t always assu the worst of people, junior. Just consider this my follow-up investnt."
Veronica hesitated for a mont, then cautiously said, "Then… thanks?"
"Mm-hmm."
Erald accepted the uncertain thank-you with ease. "Of course, if you really feel uncomfortable owing , I do happen to have a task for you."
"What task?" Veronica asked.
"It’s related to you anyway. Rember what I said earlier, about your disguise for when you head to the Kingdom?"
Resting her hands on the armrests, the Fairy Doll slowly straightened up. "Do you still have that fake Heartstone I gave you? Did you bring it?"
"You an this?"
Veronica reached into the pocket of her skirt and pulled out the bud-shaped Heartstone. "I did bring it. Does it have so other function?"
"Not yet. But it’s about to."
Taking the fake Heartstone, Erald walked over to a nearby precision device. "I’m going to record a brand-new Magical Outfit into this gem—one that looks completely different from your current form as a Magical Girl. It'll help you disguise yourself as the new Magical Girl: Gentian."
"A brand-new Magical Outfit?" Veronica followed Erald to the side of the device, watching her operate it as she asked.
"Exactly. Think of it as custom armor. Its defensive capabilities might even be a little better than your current Magical Outfit."
Erald’s tone was flat, as if creating sothing that outperford a Flower-tier Magical Outfit wasn’t worth ntioning. "Once you transform, just secretly activate the fake Heartstone. It’ll overwrite your current outfit with this new one, giving you a completely different look."
"Got it."
Veronica nodded, starting to understand. Then she added, "But it’s just the outfit, right?"
"Right, just the outfit. Your height, body shape, and face stay the sa. Like I said, altering those is too easy to get caught."
Erald placed the Heartstone into the slot of the device and ran her fingers across a rune panel beside it. "But don’t worry. Since you’re fairly well-known in the Kingdom, I had so professional stylists co up with a look that gives off a completely different vibe."
"Hah..." For so reason, Veronica had a bad feeling. "A completely different vibe? How exactly?"
"That’s what I need you to find out."
Soon after, Erald retrieved the Heartstone and handed it to Veronica. "Here, try it on."
"Let just confirm—this is sothing socially acceptable as streetwear, right?"
Taking the gem, Veronica narrowed her eyes. "Also, since my trip is supposed to be low-key, the outfit shouldn't be too flashy..."
"You’ll find out once you try it." The voice from the Fairy Doll remained lazy but slightly amused.
"Alright then."
So Veronica said no more. She followed Erald’s earlier instructions and activated the Heartstone with her magic.
A beam of bluish-purple light shot out from the gem. Just like a real Magical Girl transformation, the light flashed briefly—and standing there was Veronica in an entirely new look.
Her long hair, which had previously cascaded freely, was now swept up into a high bun secured with ornate hairpins. Her bonnet was gone, replaced by a hair clip pinning her bangs. A pair of bright silver earrings dangled by her ears.
Her dark navy Lolita dress was replaced by a sleeveless, high-collared qipao in shades of blue and purple, slit at the sides. A traditional Donghua knot hung between the frog buttons. On the outer edge of the hem, delicate white and gold silk threads illustrated a watercolor painting—of a gentian flower blooming amid grass. Her elevated, pointed embroidered shoes matched the style perfectly.
If her previous look was that of a noble lady from the Xiluo Province, her new outfit scread Donghua flair. The mature styling on such a childlike fra produced a strange blend of cuteness and sophistication—a curious contradiction.
"Well?"
Erald sohow produced a mirror and placed it in front of Veronica. "The previous Gentian also had a Donghua-style outfit, so my team just followed the sa direction. Feels like a whole different person, right?"
"Sort of?"
Veronica stared silently into the mirror for a mont, then discreetly looked away. "It still looks like in there, but sohow my subconscious feels like I’m seeing soone else. It’s... unsettling."
To her surprise, the outfit wasn’t as ridiculous as she feared, despite Erald’s secrecy. It was genuinely attractive and decently modest. By Magical Girl standards, it was completely normal.
"Then it’s all just minor details now."
Erald didn’t seem too concerned. "My job is to make sure no one can be certain you’re 'Cornflower.' Anything beyond that isn’t my responsibility—or within my ability."
"By the way, that gem has another function—it can store a second outfit for daily wear. You can record your regular clothes into it, which will help you fake a 'pre-transformation' look. I call it 'Casual Mode,' but you’ll have to decide what outfit to use."
She waved a paw in a shrug-like gesture, casually dropping another bombshell before moving on. "Now, here’s the real job I need from you."
"What is it?" Veronica asked, though she was still a bit hung up on the “Casual Mode” idea.
"It’s simple. Since this identity is fake, we have to sell the act. We need to create the illusion that ‘Magical Girl Gentian’ has been active in Fangting City."
Erald raised a paw and pointed at Veronica’s outfit.
—"So, until you head to the Kingdom, spend so ti out and about in Fangting City as Gentian."
Veronica’s new outfit was a hit at the base.
Erald wasn’t kidding—this outfit truly was a masterpiece. From the structure and stitching to the arrangent of accessories, every elent was crafted with such artistry that it left nothing to nitpick. As soon as she made her appearance in the base wearing it, several Magical Girls imdiately pulled out their phones and started snapping photos.
"It’s… it’s stunning, it’s adorable, it’s so seductive, Senpai!"
The one most aggressively taking photos was clearly Hong Siyu. Her phone’s flash was going wild, and her complints poured out nonstop.
"You should be on the cover of the Kingdom’s fashion magazine—no, scratch that, the yearly cover!"
"Is it really that dramatic?" Veronica raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced.
"Well, duh! If you walked down the main street of the Royal Capital dressed like this, every girl along the way would be shooting you envious, dazzled looks!"
Hong Siyu’s face was flushed with excitent. "Ahhh, seeing you dressed up like this, Senpai… I could die happy right now…"
"Don’t go dying over sothing so stupid."
Veronica sighed helplessly. "So, what you’re saying is, this look is… extrely eye-catching?"
—"If we were to put a number on it, say your original ‘turn-head score’ on the street was a 70, then now it’s definitely a 90. That’s the kind of upgrade we’re talking about," Xia Liang chid in thoughtfully while also snapping photos.
"‘Turn-head score’? What’s that?"
"It’s basically how much people feel like turning around to get another look at you."
Xia Liang grinned, raising one finger. "Doesn’t it sound like a very intuitive tric?"
"…I think I need to ask them to make a more low-profile outfit," Veronica muttered, glancing down at the qipao she was wearing.
"Nooo, Senpai, this one is perfect! Don’t return it!"
"Yeah, yeah, it’d be such a waste to give back sothing this beautiful!"
Naturally, that decision was quickly drowned in a sea of passionate objections.
In the end, Veronica had no choice but to accept the reality: for the foreseeable future, she’d be wearing this outfit during her public appearances. Ignoring Hong Siyu’s protests, she deactivated the illusion from the fake Heartstone and reverted to her trusty dark navy dress.
With the day’s tasks mostly wrapped up, Veronica did a bit of housekeeping, then watched so TV with Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan. Later, she helped Asou Madoka prepare dinner.
It wasn’t until dinnerti that the trio from the Bo’an City Squad finally made their way downstairs.
No one knew exactly what the three had been up to earlier, but based on the information Veronica had, it seed likely that Wood Lily had already achieved the goal she ca to Fangting City for, and they were now discussing their return to Bo’an.
The conversation over dinner confird her theory.
Now that they’d found clues about the “Gate of Ascension,” there was no longer any reason for Wood Lily to stay in Fangting. She and Bai Ji made peace, both apologizing for their argunt the day before and once again bidding farewell to the Fangting City Squad.
Their departure was scheduled for next week—just about a week before the Fangting team was set to head to the Kingdom.
Even for Magical Girls, traveling frequently between cities wasn’t an easy thing. So this farewell might be the last ti they saw each other for quite a while.
"Well then, given the circumstances, shouldn’t we throw a proper farewell party?" Xia Liang suggested over dinner.
"No, no, we’ve already imposed enough during our stay. You really don’t need to go out of your way for us," Bai Ji imdiately declined. "Besides, you’re all headed to the Kingdom soon for the exam. Your ti is way too valuable to waste on us."
"But if we don’t at least do sothing, it’ll leave a bad taste in our mouths," Hong Siyu chid in. "Even if it’s just for one evening, shouldn’t we show so kind of gesture?"
Bai Ji looked like she still wanted to object, but before she could say anything, Lin Xiaolu suddenly spoke up.
—"Show so gesture… well, how about the temple fair?"
She was chewing on her chopsticks, speaking as if the answer was obvious. "The timing lines up, and the schedule works too. There’s a New Year’s Blessing Festival at the temple near the end of the month. Why don’t we all just go together?"
Her suggestion left the whole table in thoughtful silence for a mont.
Then, aside from the still-hesitant Bai Ji and the utterly confused Bai Jingxuan (who clearly didn’t know what a “temple fair” was), everyone else at the table gave a unanimous thumbs-up.
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