Off Work, Then I Become a Magical Girl
Chapter 127: Another Unknown Phone Call

Crunch, crunch. Crunch, crunch.

A strange sound echoed from the darkness.

Rustle, rustle. Rustle, rustle.

The faint, chaotic noise didn’t stop for a second.

Veronica stood in the middle of an empty hall, glancing around in a daze.

Why am I here?

Her memory felt hazy, and her mind was far from clear. It was as if she were caught in some illusion—yet everything felt eerily real.

She stepped forward, the crisp clack of her heels on the floor echoed outward, scattering the chaotic noise like ripples.

After a brief moment of silence, it was replaced by a soft, whispering murmur.

Veronica couldn’t tell where the voices came from. They seemed to belong to men and women, old and young alike. But they all shared one thing in common—they were laughing.

The hushed laughter tangled with the echoes of her footsteps, layer upon layer, repeating over and over, gradually sharpening into an unbearable screech.

The noise spiraled upward, pounding her ears as if trying to rupture her eardrums. The searing pain in her head made her frown instinctively.

She activated a spell to block the sound, but just as she began to move, the shrill noise vanished.

The echo, the whispers, the laughter—all gone. As if they had never existed. Everything returned to how it was at the start: just faint, chaotic noise in the darkness.

What exactly is that sound?

Veronica couldn’t figure it out.

Just as she tried to move forward to investigate, a sudden light appeared in her field of vision.

A blinding beam of light shone from behind her, casting her shadow long and thin on the ground ahead. She could see the swaying hem of her skirt within the silhouette, even the rounded shape of her bonnet. No doubt about it—that human-shaped shadow was her.

Her shadow stood silently, just like her, rooted to the spot.

What light is this?

She struggled to focus her sluggish mind to think, but her thoughts felt like a gluey mess—utterly stuck.

Suspicion stirred within her, and she meant to turn around. But then, her shadow changed.

Suddenly, in the blink of an eye—like a few frames had been cut from a video—a second black silhouette overlapped with hers. The new shadow flickered, shimmered, and then began to spread and take form.

Something had appeared behind her.

Veronica realized it in that instant.

But she couldn’t turn her head.

Every hair on her body stood on end. Her limbs turned icy and stiff. Her gut screamed at her: Don’t turn around.

And then, the shadow overlapping hers finally took shape through the flickering. It appeared before her eyes—clear as day.

It was an insect with its wings spread.

Or more accurately—it was a moth.

That was when Veronica finally understood.

The once faint, chaotic noise had drawn so close—it was now right by her ears.

She lifted her hand and looked at her arm—

——“Attention passengers, attention passengers. This journey has now ended. You have arrived at your destination: Fangting City.”

“...Huff, hah!”

With a deep breath, Lin Yun’s eyes snapped open as he sat upright in his seat.

Panting instinctively, he glanced around in confusion and found himself inside a strange ship cabin.

The noisy surroundings and the overhead announcement gradually brought back his memory—he was on a landship, returning to Fangting City from Bo’an City.

“I fell asleep?”

He muttered under his breath and turned toward the porthole beside him. The glass faintly reflected his own face. Only now did he notice the cold sweat covering his forehead.

He must’ve had a nightmare.

Now he was sure of it.

Fishing out his phone from his pocket, he checked the time and noticed two missed calls. One from Lin Xiaolu, the other from an unknown number.

He unlocked the screen and tapped into the message app, where he saw Lin Xiaolu’s message: [What time are you getting home tonight?]

She actually cared enough to ask?

Lin Yun raised an eyebrow, a little surprised.

After all, he wasn’t returning as Veronica today—he was coming back to Fangting City as Lin Yun, for the holiday.

Even though things had mellowed out between him and Lin Xiaolu, they still didn’t share many topics in common. For her to take the initiative and send that kind of message already showed a lot of effort.

Feeling somewhat comforted, his expression softened as he typed a reply: [I’ll be back in an hour.]

It had been planned long ago—after all, today was the Moon Festival.

A few days earlier, Lin Xiaolu had messaged both her father and Veronica, asking if either of them would be coming home for the holiday.

What she didn’t know was—both messages ended up in the hands of the same person. The subtle emotional difference in how she addressed the two identities made Lin Yun smile wryly.

In the end, he only responded affirmatively to one—Lin Yun.

As for Veronica, he made an excuse about an ongoing investigation and a heavy workload, and declined.

There was a reason for this choice. Most importantly, Lin Yun wanted to spend the Moon Festival as a father, with his daughter.

Even though he knew Lin Xiaolu might’ve preferred Veronica’s company, the Moon Festival carried special meaning for people in Donghua Province—a celebration of blood ties and family reunion.

Sure, it was easier to talk to his daughter as Veronica. But the Moon Festival wasn’t just any day—it was meant for family.

Regardless of either side’s preferences, he had to spend it as her father.

That wasn’t just an emotional whim—it was a way of honoring their relationship.

And frankly, he didn’t want to play the mental gymnastics of juggling identities during a rare holiday.

The investigation in Bo’an City had drained him. The lingering side effects from his magic overexertion during the fight with The Spider still hadn’t gone away—he suffered occasional migraines.

All Lin Yun wanted now was to go home and enjoy a peaceful festival. A moment of calm for his weary soul.

After replying to Lin Xiaolu, he exited the landship with the rest of the passengers and set foot on Fangting City soil. Along the way, he checked his call history and returned the missed call from the unknown number.

Unfortunately, no one picked up.

He figured it might’ve been a wrong number or a prank, and was about to put his phone away when it suddenly vibrated again.

He looked—same unknown number.

He picked up and held the phone to his ear, asking curiously, “Hello, who is this?”

The hiss on the other end made him freeze.

He remembered this sound. And the next words from the caller felt all too familiar.

“...Be careful.”

The moment the voice rang out, Lin Yun was dragged back to five months ago—to the time he first found out Lin Xiaolu had become a Magical Girl.

Same unknown number. Same fuzzy voice. Same warning—“Be careful.”

Even though he was surrounded by the noisy crowd, he felt like he’d fallen into an ice pit—cut off from the world around him.

“...It’s you?” Realizing the call's significance, he immediately pressed, “What’s going on? Who are you? What’s about to happen?”

Hiss—

“Hello?”

“Be careful tonight’s... hiss—”

The second half of the sentence was swallowed by static. Lin Yun couldn’t make it out and quickly asked again, “What did you say?”

“Be careful tonight’s...”

Beep. Beep. Beep.

This time, the call didn’t even finish. The hiss was replaced by the busy tone.

Lin Yun stood amid the crowd, staring at the now-dark phone screen, his expression stormy.