Off Work, Then I Become a Magical Girl
Chapter 100: The First Morning at the Secret Base

Ever since Xia Liang discovered Veronica’s secret identity, she had taken every opportunity to act more affectionate than usual.

Sometimes, she would sit beside Veronica and play with her long blue hair, braiding it into little plaits or twisting it into rope-like twists.

Other times, she would suddenly rush up behind her, covering her eyes in a childish game of “Guess who?”

But most frequently, she would pull little tricks like she was doing now—choosing moments when Lin Xiaolu was around to sneakily poke, nudge, or scratch Veronica, or even write secret messages on her hand.

These messages were utterly meaningless—things like I don’t get it, This is too hard, or Explain it again—things she could have just said out loud. But no, she insisted on passing them through these sneaky little gestures.

If it had only been once or twice, Veronica might have let it slide. But after it became a repeated habit, she figured it was time to put Xia Liang in her place.

“Viola, you’ve been staring at that page for half a day now. Figured out how to solve it yet?”

Narrowing her eyes slightly, her tone turned a little cool. “I just went over this with White Rose. Why don’t you discuss it with her?”

“Hmm?”

Xia Liang, who had been pretending to focus on her textbook, blinked in confusion and looked up. “What?”

“Aren’t you looking at the problem?” Veronica withdrew her hand from Xia Liang’s antics and crossed her arms. “Factorization. Why don’t you share your thoughts with White Rose?”

“Ah, uh…”

Xia Liang lowered her head, staring at the content on the page, suddenly at a loss for words.

Just as Veronica expected. Xia Liang had been so busy messing around that she probably had no idea which problem they were even talking about.

Even if she did know how to solve that type of problem, she’d struggle to jump into the discussion now.

And so, under Xia Liang’s slightly aggrieved gaze, Veronica launched into a stern lecture, using all the classic phrases—You can’t afford to be distracted right before an exam and Even if you’ve improved, you shouldn’t get complacent. In the end, Xia Liang was left speechless, lowering her head in defeat to start working on her exercises.

Lin Xiaolu, of course, was watching gleefully from the side. Bai Jingxuan glanced at the two of them in confusion before returning to her own studies. Meanwhile, Moko, who had been napping on the bookshelf, was startled awake by the noise and lazily rolled over.

And just like that, the final weekend before the placement exam came to an end.

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Monday morning.

As the first rays of sunlight touched the bedframe, Veronica instinctively opened her eyes. She sat up groggily, reaching toward the empty space beside her. It took a moment for her to fully wake up before she rolled off the bed and got to her feet.

In her magical girl form, her body didn’t produce sweat or dirt like an ordinary human’s, so she technically didn’t need to wash up. Still, out of habit, she went to freshen up in the washroom.

Then, she made her rounds, waking up the girls one by one.

Lin Xiaolu was the easiest to wake.

Probably because of the cold war she had with Lin Yun over the past two years—she had made a habit of getting up early just to avoid seeing her father’s face before school. Even though their relationship had improved, her habit of being easily roused remained.

So, all Veronica had to do was knock on her door, and Lin Xiaolu woke up immediately.

Bai Jingxuan didn’t have to go to school, but she had a lot of magical girl studies to catch up on, so she couldn’t slack off.

She had a steady routine, likely developed from her years at the orphanage. Though not as quick to wake as Lin Xiaolu, a few knocks at her bedside were enough to get her stirring. Once awake, she didn’t whine or stay in bed; she got up quickly, ready to start the day.

The hardest one to wake? Xia Liang.

According to her own words, she wouldn’t get up unless it was the last possible second before being late.

But in reality, one of the main reasons she was considered a delinquent at school was because she was always late—something Lin Xiaolu had pointed out.

Now that they were all living under the same roof, Veronica wasn’t going to let her get away with that bad habit.

She knocked lightly on Xia Liang’s door. No response.

Twisting the doorknob, she stepped inside and glanced toward the single bed by the window. A lump under the covers.

Veronica stood at the bedside, watching for a moment. She soon spotted half a head peeking out from beneath the blanket, a mess of black hair spilling over the pillow. With each slow, even breath, the strands of hair trembled slightly.

She waited, hands on her hips. Nothing.

Raising a brow, Veronica decided to stop being gentle.

Grabbing the edge of the blanket, she gave a firm yank, pulling it clean off the bed—exposing the figure curled up underneath.

Xia Liang was hugging a large stuffed toy, her head buried in its plush surface, face completely relaxed in deep sleep. A faint smile rested on her lips, as if she was lost in a pleasant dream.

Veronica walked to the window, pulled open the curtains, and let the morning light flood the room. Then, she returned to the bedside and gave Xia Liang’s shoulder a firm shake.

“Time to get up. You have school.”

No response.

She tried again—patting her shoulder, nudging her, even tapping her forehead. Nothing.

After multiple failed attempts, Veronica resorted to a slightly more extreme measure.

Pinching her nose.

She gently clasped Xia Liang’s nostrils shut and crouched beside the bed, watching her face while mentally counting the seconds—just to make sure she didn’t actually suffocate.

At around the thirty-second mark, just when Veronica was about to release her grip, Xia Liang finally stirred.

“Haa—whoo… whoo… S-Senior?”

Still half-asleep, she blinked groggily, gasping for air before mumbling in confusion, “Why are you in my house? Am I dreaming?”

“This is our base. Your school starts in forty minutes. Get up.”

Veronica let go, took two steps back, and left the room without giving Xia Liang a chance to protest.

She didn’t notice the dazed expression on Xia Liang’s face as she sat there, seemingly deep in thought. But with time ticking, Veronica wasn’t about to linger.

She headed to the kitchen, slipped on her arm sleeves, and pulled ingredients from the fridge, swiftly preparing breakfast.

Unlike before, she now made meals for four people. The process remained the same, just with slightly more steps.

She boiled water in a pan, dropped in a measured amount of noodles, chopped some scallions and vegetables, cracked in a few poached eggs, and mixed the broth seasoning in four bowls. Just like that, a simple noodle breakfast was ready.

After rounding up the others from their washrooms, they all gathered at the table.

This was the first breakfast shared at their secret base—the first time all four of them ate together.

Veronica quietly took note of their reactions to the food. Lin Xiaolu and Xia Liang resumed their usual bickering. Moko rambled about something to Bai Jingxuan, who quietly ate her noodles while listening in.

A new week. A new life.

Veronica stayed behind to tutor Bai Jingxuan, while the other two headed to school.

Time flew. The magical girls grew accustomed to their shared life at the base. Soon, it became routine.

Lin Xiaolu and Xia Liang walked to and from school together. Veronica trained with Bai Jingxuan and handled household chores. Moko, ever convinced of her importance as the Seeder, wandered off daily in search of new magical girl candidates.

Meanwhile, Lin Xiaolu sent a simple text to Lin Yun each night, while Veronica used his phone to send back a caring response. Bai Jingxuan occasionally checked in with the orphanage staff.

During this time, there was only one Ravager attack—weak, an Egg-stage.

Since the defeat of Claw Mark and Black Cinders Dawn, the Ravagers in Fangting City had noticeably weakened, and attack incidents had declined.

Veronica didn’t care why. If the world had no Ravagers, people wouldn’t have to live in fear.

With the placement exams over, she treated the whole squad to hotpot.

As autumn approached, things settled down. But one thing loomed on Veronica’s mind—

The day she promised to go out with Xia Liang… was coming.