Off Work, Then I Become a Magical Girl
Book 2: Chapter 47: Behind the Scenes

Vol 2 Chapter 47 Behind the Scenes

As the deafening cheers erupted around her, Lin Xiaolu had no choice but to cover her ears with both hands to block out the thunderous shouting.

Heavens have mercy—she had never attended an event of this scale before. The booming sound of the venue’s speakers combined with the frenzied crowd had pushed the volume well past her ears' limits.

Unlike her, Jiang Yuan had already fully blended into the sea of fans. She waved her glow stick in rhythm with the music blaring from the stage and sang at the top of her lungs. What stood out even more was that since the concert began, she hadn’t missed a single lyric—clearly a devoted fan.

Seeing her friend so pumped killed any thought Lin Xiaolu had of starting a conversation. It wasn’t wise to interrupt someone in the middle of a euphoric high; the best way not to ruin someone’s mood was to keep quiet.

As she silently looked around at the exhilarated crowd, a surprising sense of loneliness welled up in Lin Xiaolu.

She wasn’t a fan, nor even a casual listener. Standing here made her feel like an outsider—someone who simply didn’t belong.

She started to regret tagging along just for the theme song of Sky Angel. Especially since the song she wanted to hear still hadn’t come up, and the ones she didn’t know were too hard to enjoy amid all the noise. It was hard to appreciate the performance in this kind of environment.

Not that the concert itself was bad. In fact, even though she wasn’t a fan of Aso Madoka, she could still tell the woman had solid vocal skills. It’s just that she really couldn’t get into it today.

—How’s Veronica doing over there? She’s not a fan either. Could they even enjoy a concert like this?

The thought bubbled up unbidden.

To be honest, even now, Lin Xiaolu was still curious why Veronica insisted on coming here in the first place.

A few days earlier, when Lin Xiaolu had told her about the concert, Veronica had unexpectedly announced a schedule change for patrol duty—and even suggested the whole squad go together.

Such a strange decision was bound to raise some eyebrows, and no matter how they pestered her about it, all she would say was, “You’ll know when you get there.” She gave no further explanation.

If that had been the end of it, fine. But what was weirder was how, while Lin Xiaolu was still utterly confused, Xia Liang and Bai Jingxuan were already acting like they’d figured something out.

Lin Xiaolu had always been the type to ask questions when something bothered her. But when she tried to pry an answer out of Xia Liang, all she got was a mysterious smile and the cryptic reply, “I’m not totally sure either, so I can’t say. Just have fun with your friend.”

Like she cared. It’s not like she wanted to know anyway.

That irritating thought only worsened her already-sour mood. After mentally roasting Xia Liang for a bit, Lin Xiaolu decided to shake off the frustration and take a breather outside.

Claiming she needed the restroom, she excused herself from the seats and jogged out of the venue, stopping in the corridor to lean against the wall and let out a long sigh.

At least with a wall between her and the speakers, the sound wasn’t quite so overwhelming.

She stood there in a daze for a while, letting her mind go blank. When the numbness in her eardrums started to fade, she walked over to a nearby vending machine and bought two bottles of water.

Tucked away in this quiet corner, the vending machine felt like a rare safe harbor in the storm of noise. Though the roar from the venue still reached here through the walls, it now felt like the soundtrack of a different world.

She tucked one bottle under her arm—planning to give it to Jiang Yuan later—unscrewed the cap on the other, and took a swig. The clear water rushed through her mouth, cooling her down and helping her feel a bit more grounded.

She stood in silence, wondering when she should head back. Ten minutes or so slipped by as song after song played in the distance. With the concert nearing its halfway point, it was really time to return. She reluctantly took a few steps toward the venue.

But before she could go far, a commotion broke out in the corridor beside her:

—“Why do we have to stay until the concert’s over? There have already been so many shows. What’s one more!” cried a slightly shrill girl’s voice.

“This isn’t about the number of shows. It’s because tonight is the final stop of the tour—it means something different,” answered a more composed and mature-sounding voice.

“What meaning? Just the final stop? Do they serve champagne after or something?”

“Well, no…”

“Then what’s the point? Just because Fangting City’s her hometown?”

“No, technically, even her hometown isn’t Fangting City.”

“Exactly! I’ve got an important opportunity and a date coming up—don’t mess this up for me!”

This out-of-context argument piqued Lin Xiaolu’s curiosity. It seemed someone else didn’t want to be here either. That strange sense of kinship pulled her off course, and she wandered toward the source of the voices, deeper into the corridor.

There, she saw three young-looking girls gathered together, chatting.

Young-looking mostly because of their faces—they seemed about her age overall. All of them were wearing bright yellow T-shirts, the apparent uniform of the concert staff. Lin Xiaolu couldn’t imagine why girls so young would be working here.

The earlier noise came from two of them. The shorter one, who looked maybe two years younger than Lin Xiaolu, was the one insisting on leaving. She had shoulder-length blonde hair with slightly parted bangs that revealed a broad forehead. With hands on her hips and an indignant posture, she looked like she was laying down the law.

Another girl, wearing glasses and looking like the eldest of the group, exuded a calm and intellectual vibe. She was patiently trying to reason with the blonde.

The last girl hadn’t said a word since the beginning. She just stared blankly at the scene in front of her. If not for seeing her with her own eyes, Lin Xiaolu wouldn’t have guessed she was even there, judging by the voices alone.

—So who were they?

Lin Xiaolu couldn’t help but wonder.

They couldn’t be fans—not when they’d bailed on the concert just like she had. They clearly weren’t enjoying themselves.

But they didn’t look like real staff either. Not at their age. And with the show ongoing, all hands should’ve been on deck—not chatting in the hallway.

Most importantly, why did the blonde girl seem so familiar? Lin Xiaolu felt like she’d seen her before.

As she puzzled over the group, the girls noticed her and fell silent, turning toward her.

For a few seconds, no one spoke. The hallway filled with awkward silence.

They probably thought Lin Xiaolu was just passing by and decided to wait quietly for her to move on—but instead, she just stood there, watching them with open curiosity.

It was the girl with glasses who finally broke the deadlock.

“Hello there. Is something the matter?”

Her tone shifted abruptly from serious to friendly as she addressed Lin Xiaolu with a smile. “Miss, are you lost?”

But Lin Xiaolu didn’t answer. Her brows furrowed as she stared intently at the blonde girl.

That direct gaze didn’t go unnoticed. The others followed her line of sight and realized who she was staring at.

“She looking for you?” the girl with glasses asked.

“Looking for me?” the blonde looked confused.

“She is,” the quiet girl suddenly confirmed.

“What for?” the blonde asked, turning to Lin Xiaolu, bewildered. “Is there something on my face?”

“…I just have this weird feeling.”

Lin Xiaolu stared for a while longer before speaking slowly. “Haven’t we met before?”

“Huh?”

The blonde girl was stunned.

The girl with glasses adjusted her frames with a strange look.

Even the silent one blinked wide-eyed in surprise.

“…Is this a pickup line?”

“Kinda sounds like one.”

“I—I’ve heard of this kind of pickup line before! My sister told me about it…”

They huddled together and whispered, occasionally glancing at Lin Xiaolu, though they didn’t reach any conclusions—just a series of confused mutterings.

It was the blonde girl who eventually picked up on something odd. As she studied Lin Xiaolu more closely, she suddenly got the same strange sense—like they had met before.

She shared her feeling with the others, which sparked another round of exclamations.

“You feel that too?”

The girl with glasses glanced back and forth between them, puzzled. “But why?”

“It—it’s love at first sight!”

The quiet one stammered, deadly serious. “M-my sister told me… this kind of feeling is called love at first sight! It’s fate!”