Off Work, Then I Become a Magical Girl
Book 2: Chapter 43: Concert

Vol 2 Chapter 43 Concert

"Thud!" "Swish!"

A black whip shadow sliced down from mid-air, lashing against the ground and carving several marks into the already soft, muddy soil.

Veronica narrowly dodged to the side, the sudden attack grazing past her. Her eyes narrowed as she let strands of silver-blue Magic Threads wrap around her wrist and yank her forward with force.

Guided by the threads, her body seemed to become a puppet, twisting and shifting through the air in movements that completely defied human biomechanics. She stopped abruptly at a precise point.

She extended her Magical Armor-formed dagger, thrusting it sharply at the figure before her, aiming for the neck. But the fierce attack didn’t land as expected—an obsidian-black blade blocked it solidly.

With a sweep of her longsword, Yuan knocked aside Veronica’s dagger, exhaling deeply. “Let’s call it here.”

“Surrendering?” Veronica asked while unraveling the dagger back into threads.

“Nope. A draw.”

Yuan shook her head. “As long as we don’t use anything outside of our Magical Armor, this is pretty much the best we can do. By the way, are your injuries feeling any better?”

“Nothing life-threatening—for now. Appreciate your concern,” Veronica replied cautiously.

This was Yuan’s third duel challenge since arriving in Fangting City.

The first took place at the Countermeasure Bureau, where Veronica had barely managed to repel Yuan with a temporary Magical Armor crafted by Hong Siyu. But the last two times were pure hand-to-hand bouts in open fields on the outskirts—both ending in a deadlock.

Only, this so-called deadlock relied on Veronica’s unconventional tricks.

Objectively speaking, Yuan’s unarmed combat skills were the best Veronica had ever seen. Her foundation and technique were at a master’s level. And on top of that, she held an overwhelming advantage in both Magic and physical strength. The only reason Veronica could pull even in these fights was thanks to the Information Gap she created.

Her combat style was highly personalized, built entirely around Magic Threads and her Masterpiece Blade. Many of her moves outright defied logic—so much so that even Yuan hadn’t encountered them before. So Veronica disguised her strategic edge as deadly finishers to hold her ground.

Still, the only reason these duels weren’t brutal beatdowns was because Yuan treated them as “sparring.”

“You think the leader of Claw Mark is really gonna buy this as you doing your job?”

The thought made Veronica glance at her opponent, eyebrow raised. “Or do you have some clever way to dress this all up as ‘field testing’?”

“Work is work. Protocol is protocol.”

Yuan casually dismissed her Magical Armor, brushing her palm across her chest as the Magical Girl outfit dissolved into Magic Particles.

“Claw Mark values the individuality of every Magical Girl. We’re free to complete our missions however we see fit. And my way—”

“Is to play around?”

“—is to defeat opponents head-on.”

She picked up a burlap bundle from the ground and slung it over her shoulder. With a shrug, Yuan added, “Anyway, I’ve had my fun today. Thanks. Wanna grab a drink?”

“Alcohol?”

“What else?”

She mimed a toast with her free hand, flashing a sly grin. “What better intoxication is there in the world than a fine drink?”

“I’ll pass.”

Also dismissing her Magical Armor, Veronica waved a hand. “I’m not like you. I have other missions.”

“Buzzkill.”

Yuan sighed and shook her head. “Fine, I’ll drop by the Countermeasure Bureau and see if the Director’s in. Maybe he’ll join me for a drink. Gotta thank him for playing matchmaker between us, after all.”

Yeah, no thanks.

Veronica grumbled inwardly.

Of course, on the surface she remained as cold and composed as ever, her expression unreadable.

Seeing her silence, Yuan didn’t bother pushing further. She tugged her ragged cloak tighter and strolled off toward the night-covered streets, looking effortlessly cool.

“Oh, right.”

Just as her figure was about to vanish from view, Yuan turned around like she’d remembered something. “Fangting City’s gotten a bit lively lately. Next time we meet—introduce me to your new friend, yeah?”

New friend?

The phrase made Veronica’s brow twitch. But before she could ask more, Yuan’s silhouette melted into the shadows, vanishing without a trace.

Veronica remained in place, a contemplative look crossing her face.

---

A Few Hours Earlier — Afternoon

Xizhao District, Xizhao Middle School.

Students were gathered in their classrooms, enjoying the midday break after a half-day of classes.

Strictly speaking, Fangting City’s winters weren’t terribly cold. But located in the southern Donghua Province, the moist, bone-chilling air found its way into every crack, making it hard to stay warm even with layers of clothes.

As a result, most students preferred to stay inside the classroom during lunch, chatting quietly.

Why “quietly”? Because some students were napping at their desks.

Lin Xiaolu was one of the napping crowd—because she was exhausted.

She’d been going all out the past few days, pushing through Magic Forging and Soul Resonance training nonstop. Her goal was to break through her current limit and reach the Bud-tier of Ability Blooming.

Unfortunately, while her Magic Capacity had improved slightly, Ability Blooming still felt like a distant dream.

Her urgency stemmed from both a shift in mindset and a harsh reality—Fangting City’s Magical Girl Squad had just gained its first Leaf-tier member.

Just two days ago, Xia Liang bloomed and advanced.

That meant someone who’d joined nearly half a month after her, younger and less experienced, had now jumped two full tiers ahead.

There was no way Xiaolu could pretend she wasn’t jealous. As the squad’s only Seed-tier member, a deep sense of crisis had taken root.

It was already mid-December. In three months, the annual Magical Girl Certification Test would take place. If she was still Seed-tier by then, she might not even qualify for a Certification Badge.

Given how Veronica had been growing closer with Bai Jingxuan lately, and the odd vibe she had with Xia Liang, Xiaolu couldn’t help but think—what if she failed, and she was the only one left behind?

She didn’t want to find out.

So she had to awaken her Magical Armor. Fast.

Driven by that pressure, Xiaolu had been hitting the training ground more often than Bai Jingxuan, even swallowing her pride to ask Xia Liang for advice.

Yet despite everything, her Magical Armor showed zero signs of awakening.

No armor, no results—just sleep-deprivation. She’d been dozing off in class constantly.

This afternoon, half-asleep at her desk, she suddenly felt a tap on her arm.

Groggily raising her head, she turned to see a girl she didn’t really know standing beside her, holding two colorful slips of paper.

“Ah, sorry Xiaolu—didn’t mean to wake you.”

The girl gave an apologetic smile and placed the papers on Xiaolu’s desk. “Someone asked me to give these to you.”

“Someone? Who?” Xiaolu asked groggily, glancing toward the door where the girl pointed.

She saw a boy awkwardly peeking into the classroom. His face looked familiar—after a few seconds, she remembered.

He was the guy who had confessed to her over two weeks ago.

Apparently noticing her gaze, the boy made brief eye contact—then immediately ducked back behind the wall in a panic.

Xiaolu looked down at the two colorful slips on her desk and finally saw what they were: concert tickets.

Don’t tell me… he wants to take me to a concert?

Realizing this, she didn’t hesitate. She picked the tickets back up and handed them to the girl.

“Sorry. Please return these to him—I’m not interested.”

“He said you don’t have to go with him,” the girl replied, gesturing toward the tickets. “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. I don’t want him wasting money on me.”

Xiaolu said firmly, “Please tell him—I’m not okay with this.”

“…Alright. I’ll return them.”

The girl smiled, a bit teasingly. “Sorry for bothering you, Xiaolu. Go back to sleep.”

Then she walked over to the door and handed the tickets back to the disappointed boy.

Once Xiaolu confirmed the tickets had been returned, she let out a sigh of relief and slumped back onto the desk. She tried to settle into a more comfortable position, but then noticed someone was still staring at her.

She didn’t even need to look to know—it was Jiang Yuan, her only real “friend” in the class, who sat directly in front of her.

“Xiaolu.”

Jiang Yuan leaned back and whispered conspiratorially, “Do you even know how hard those tickets are to get?”

“Nope,” Xiaolu mumbled into her arms. “Don’t care. I’m not into pop idols.”

“That’s not just any pop idol’s concert!”

Jiang Yuan knocked on her desk in frustration. “It’s Masao Madoka—the world-famous diva who’s been on top for over a decade!”

“So?”

“She sang the Magical Girl anime ‘Color Sky Angel’ theme song! Your favorite!”

Jiang Yuan cupped her hands and raised her voice a bit. “As a proper ACG fan, you should know what that means!”

“…I guess it was a good song?” Xiaolu said, confused.

“Are you dumb? Of course it’s a big deal! Anyone who sings for a Magical Girl anime is top-tier in the pop world!”

Jiang Yuan nearly slammed the desk. “Madoka rules the music scene in Eastern Island! She rarely tours Donghua Province—and never in small cities like Fangting! Do you know how rare this is?!”

“Oh.”

“You’re really not curious about hearing the Color Sky Angel theme live?”

“…Maybe a little,” Xiaolu muttered.

“Ha! Then it’s a good thing you turned him down!”

Jiang Yuan beamed, reached into her sleeve, and pulled out two identical tickets.

“As a fellow member of our ‘anti-mainstream alliance,’ I got us covered! Let’s go together!”