Off Work, Then I Become a Magical Girl
Book 2: Chapter 99: One Night

Vol 2 Chapter 99 One Night

Because she had to work outside during the day, it was Veronica’s turn to handle the evening chores. By the time she finished washing the dishes and cleaning up, it was already 7:30 p.m.

Shaking off the dampness from soaking her hands for too long, Veronica walked into the living room and saw Lin Xiaolu and Xia Liang sitting on the sofa, playing on their phones.

Xia Liang, as always, was a bit more perceptive than Lin Xiaolu. She noticed Veronica first and waved. “Thanks for your hard work.”

Lin Xiaolu then belatedly looked up and echoed, “Thanks.”

“It’s nothing. How was your special training today?” Veronica didn’t bother with small talk and went straight to the point as she walked in.

“Barely keeping up... Sister Hong’s training is really tough.”

Xia Liang blinked. “To be honest, after all this time, there’s still a good chunk I don’t even understand what I’m learning.”

“I know it’s hard. So as long as you’re making progress, that’s enough.”

Veronica nodded. “Learning spells is supposed to be a long-term thing. But since we’re short on time—and I’m limited in ability too—the pressure’s high. You’ll have to tough it out for now.”

“Well, the thing is…”

Xia Liang puffed out her cheeks and sighed. “Math and physics… sometimes it’s just not about trying harder.”

“Hit a wall?” Veronica walked over to them.

“Not exactly. It’s just really, really, really hard.”

She used three “reallys” to express how tough it was, then sneaked a glance at Lin Xiaolu beside her. Seeing that she still had no reaction, she slowly added, “So yeah, I still have a lesson with Sister Hong tonight. Just thinking about the workload waiting for me makes it feel so rough. Isn’t there anyone who could cheer me up a little right now…”

“You got this.” Lin Xiaolu patted her on the shoulder.

“I’m seriously in need of some encouragement here.” Xia Liang’s smile froze for a second but quickly returned as if nothing happened.

“Oh?” Veronica finally got the message from all the hints and, even without being the most emotionally sharp person, crouched down and held out her fist.

Xia Liang’s breath caught at the sight of Veronica’s fist stretched toward her.

“Junior.”

“Hmm?”

“Who taught you that this is how to encourage someone?”

“Hmm… We do this a lot during combat, you know?”

Veronica thought for a moment, then opened her fist. “Or do you prefer this? Stack our palms instead?”

“…Let’s just go with the fist bump.”

Their interaction ended with Xia Liang compromising.

Their fists bumped lightly mid-air, then pushed forward and separated again.

“You got this.”

Veronica offered her encouragement.

“…Mm.”

Xia Liang responded with a soft smile after a moment of silence. “By the way, your new outfit looks really good.”

“Let’s not talk about that.”

Brushing the topic aside awkwardly, Veronica turned to Lin Xiaolu. “Alright, time for class, White Rose.”

“Okay.”

Lin Xiaolu, who had been quietly watching their exchange, turned off her phone and stood up. For some reason, Veronica thought she saw a hint of obedience from this usually rebellious girl.

“Let’s go, Veronica.”

Lin Xiaolu took a couple of steps to follow Veronica. Then, while Veronica was turning to leave, she snuck in two “hmph hmph” laughs and flashed a victory sign with two fingers at Xia Liang.

Xia Liang rolled her eyes and couldn’t be bothered to respond.

Seeing no reaction from Xia Liang, Lin Xiaolu didn’t push further. She followed Veronica while holding her phone, saying, “Veronica, want to see the pictures I took of you this afternoon?”

“Pictures?” Veronica looked puzzled.

“Your new outfit, duh.” Lin Xiaolu said it as if it were obvious.

“…As long as you guys like it.”

With a sigh, Veronica declined the phone. “I don’t really care about that stuff.”

“C’mon, just take a look. I took tons, spent ages picking the best ones, and even edited them forever.”

Lin Xiaolu whined sweetly. “I spent all my pre- and post-dinner time on this. If you don’t look, it’ll all be for nothing.”

“We’re about to take the Certification Test in the Kingdom, and you still have so much free time…”

Veronica gave her a sideways glance and was just about to lecture her when she suddenly paused. Seemingly recalling something, she dropped the scolding and changed the subject. “What kind of photo needs that much editing?”

“Dun-dun-dun!”

Lin Xiaolu took the chance, raised her phone, and darted ahead of Veronica to show it off. “Let me show off my tal—waaah!”

Before she could finish, she stepped backward onto the stairs and lost her balance. Her phone slipped from her hand and flew into the air.

The short scream ended abruptly, as Veronica reached out just in time to grab her by the arm.

The two of them stayed in that pose for several seconds, staring at each other. Then Lin Xiaolu, only just realizing the danger, used her other hand to grab the stair railing.

“You…”

Veronica stared wide-eyed, about to scold her—but then bit her tongue. She reminded herself of her current role and that she shouldn’t get overly emotional. Logic clashed with feeling, forcing her to take a deep breath.

After calming down slightly, she narrowed her eyes and pointed toward the stairs behind Lin Xiaolu. “Watch where you’re going. You almost fell just now. You’re not in your transformed state—you're very vulnerable like this.”

“Yeah, sorry.”

Lin Xiaolu didn’t argue and lowered her head in apology. “I got a little too excited.”

With her head down, all Veronica could see was her hair-covered forehead—no emotional cues at all. After a brief silence, she reached out and lightly tapped Lin Xiaolu on the forehead.

“I’m being serious. Watch yourself next time.”

Brushing the matter off again, Veronica went over and picked up Lin Xiaolu’s fallen phone. After making sure it wasn’t damaged, she turned it over—

And saw the picture Lin Xiaolu had tried to show her.

It was a photo of Veronica wearing her qipao. The background had been changed to a dreamy, fairy-tale style. All the other squad members who had originally been in the background were carefully cropped out. The vibe of the whole scene shifted instantly—it felt quieter, more solitary, but also made her stand out more.

“What made you think to edit it like this?” Veronica asked, handing the phone back.

“Just randomly remembered it. I saw a character like this in an anime once.”

Still a bit shaken from her fall, Lin Xiaolu’s excitement had cooled. But when talking about her favorite magical girl anime, her enthusiasm came back without hesitation. “She was a magical girl from Donghua Province, super cool and stylish. A really reliable senior type. She was so popular, she even got a spinoff. Your new outfit really reminded me of her, so I thought I’d try it out with the same background.”

“An anime character?”

Veronica had a strange guess and asked, “Do you remember her name?”

“Of course. Her name was Gentian. Why?”

“…Sapphire Scepter.”

“Huh?”

“Nothing. Just brought back some memories.”

Mentally adding a tally under Emerald’s name, Veronica expressionlessly walked up the stairs. “We’ve wasted enough time. Time to resume the lesson.”

“Oh, okay.”

Lin Xiaolu didn’t think much of it. She stuffed her phone in her pocket and followed with her hand on the railing. “So what are we doing today? More cat’s cradle practice?”

“We’ll do that a bit later. First, I need to check your magical armor growth.” Veronica’s tone was calm.

“Didn’t we already check that last week?”

“You’re in a high-growth phase. That means frequent checks and adjustments. If something’s off, and we catch it late, it’ll be a problem.”

“Oh, but I don’t think my magical armor changed much this week.”

“No change?”

Veronica gave her a curious look. “Even though I had you increase the intensity?”

“Yup.”

Lin Xiaolu nodded, then quickly added, “But I didn’t slack off! I really did increase the usage, just like you told me. It’s not my fault!”

“I believe you. In fact, I can see it.”

Veronica trusted her completely, not even considering the possibility she might be lying. “That might mean the problem is with the training plan I gave you.”

“No way—it can’t be your fault, Veronica.”

Lin Xiaolu immediately objected. “I think the training makes sense. Besides, Xia Liang and Bai Jingxuan are doing the same thing.”

“Your magical armor is special.”

Veronica didn’t mince words. “Shape-shifting magical armors are extremely rare in the Kingdom. There’s barely any data on them. What works for most magical girls might not work for you.”

“Doesn’t apply to me?” Lin Xiaolu pointed to herself, looking stunned.

Descending into the training room, Veronica ignored the darkness and hit the light switch without missing a beat.

“Yeah. With no reference case, I have to rely on assumptions. My theory was that if it can change forms, then each form should be able to grow on its own. That’s why I set up your training that way.”

As the lights flicked on, Veronica’s shadow stretched beside her. She tilted her head, deep in thought. “But I think we need to verify this again. If your magical armor really hasn’t grown, then there are only two possibilities left, in my experience.”

“What two?”

Following her into the room and taking off her down jacket to hang it up, Lin Xiaolu asked curiously.

“First possibility: shape-shifting magical armor doesn’t grow. The variety of forms is itself the ‘growth,’ which replaces traditional development.”

Veronica stood in a corner with arms crossed. “Anyway, bring out your magical armor. I’ll check.”

Lin Xiaolu obediently took out her white scepter and handed it over, while continuing to ask, “And the second possibility?”

“The second possibility…”

As she received the scepter, Veronica both observed the magic waves and focused on the four crystals lined up on its shaft. “...is that you haven’t yet unlocked all of your armor’s forms. Right now, it hasn’t even reached the baseline of a ‘newborn’ magical armor—it’s still a half-finished product.”

“Huh? Still incomplete?”

Lin Xiaolu looked shocked. “But I can use it normally, and it feels really strong.”

“Whether an armor is complete doesn’t necessarily correlate with combat strength.”

Veronica shook her head. “Anyway, this is all guesswork. I need to verify. Even if I’m right, there’s no need to panic. It won’t affect our course. Whether your armor is complete or not doesn’t matter for the upcoming test.”

As she spoke, she began releasing her magic, carefully sensing any changes in the magical armor since last week.

About a minute later, she opened her eyes, expression a little complicated.

The bad news? Lin Xiaolu was right—her magical armor hadn’t changed at all.

The good news—or possibly not—was that Veronica could sense the third crystal on the staff starting to emit faint magic waves.

This meant Lin Xiaolu’s efforts weren’t wasted. It’s just that her energy hadn’t triggered growth, but was instead nurturing the still-unknown third form of her magical armor.

This might be good news. It meant that her development had a clear direction—far better than aimless floundering.

But Veronica wasn’t sure how to feel, because she had a vague, unsettling hunch. Just as Lin Xiaolu’s second form seemed somehow connected to her own, this third form… might have a great deal in common with Aya.

Right now, Lin Xiaolu had no idea what kind of combat style or methods Aya used, nor what kind of magical armor she wielded. But paper can't wrap fire forever—sooner or later, Lin Xiaolu would find out.

When that day comes, would she start making certain connections? Like, why her magical armor resembles her mother’s in some ways, and at the same time bears similarities to Veronica, this so-called "senior"?

Veronica didn’t want to keep following that train of thought. No matter how she looked at it, it would inevitably lead her to spin more lies—and she was tired of piling weight onto this fragile balance between truth and falsehood.

The more weights added, the more catastrophic the collapse when the scales tip.

Wrestling with such complex, deep thoughts far beyond a child’s world, Veronica kept a blank face and pretended nothing was wrong as she presented her hypothesis to Lin Xiaolu.

Then, as class began, she deliberately pushed all these tangled thoughts to the back of her mind.

---

By 10 p.m., the lessons ended, just like always.

Not only Lin Xiaolu, but Xia Liang too, was freed at the same time. The two ran into each other on the way back to their rooms and, as usual, exchanged a few jabs before going their separate ways.

Bai Jingxuan had it much easier. Her special training tutor, Asou Madoka, didn’t have to work during the day, so Bai Jingxuan’s lessons were done before nightfall. That evening, after a few rounds of games with the Bo’an City Squad and some time reading alone in her room, she was ushered off to bed by Veronica.

After settling in the juniors, the exhausted Director of the Countermeasure Bureau returned to her unchanging study to wrap up the day’s work. The light in her study stayed on until midnight before finally flicking off with a tired sigh.

She washed up, changed clothes, exchanged a few words with Asou Madoka who was watching late-night TV, and said goodnight to Hong Siyu, who was also still working. Then Veronica returned to her own room. After checking her messages, she tossed her phone aside and flopped down onto her single bed.

"Another day down."

She murmured, raising her right hand to drape her wrist over her eyes, and let out a long breath.

Magical girls didn’t get physically tired in any obvious way, but mental fatigue and emotional drain were still unavoidable. For someone like Veronica, who had to stay transformed at all times, sleep wasn’t about restoring energy—it was about clearing her mind and escaping the mental toll.

Her body didn’t need rest. She just needed peace, needed a way to shut everything off.

In the silent room, apart from her faint breathing, there wasn’t a single sound. Darkness became the best protection, cutting off the turmoil of daytime. Eyes closed, Veronica felt like she was drifting along a dark river, carried by the current.

And then, at some point, a soft knock knock broke the silence.

The sound was so quiet and light, it made her wonder if she’d imagined it. So Veronica didn’t get up right away. It wasn’t until the second knock that she was sure someone really was at her door.

She opened the door to find Bai Jingxuan standing there with a pillow in her arms.

“What is it?” she asked in a hushed voice.

“Can’t sleep,” Bai Jingxuan replied just as softly.

“You can’t sleep? This late?”

Veronica glanced at the clock on the wall. It was already 1 a.m. “Is something bothering you?”

Bai Jingxuan didn’t answer—she just stared at Veronica with wide, pleading eyes.

Under that kind of look, anyone would cave. So Veronica stepped aside and let her in.

“So?”

She asked with a hint of exasperation, “What’s going on?”

“I want to sleep with Mommy,” Bai Jingxuan said.

“Oh, you want to sleep with Mom—huh?”

Veronica was halfway through repeating the words before realizing what was off. “Why?”

“No reason.”

Bai Jingxuan clutched her pillow tighter. “I just want to sleep with you.”

“I mean, it’s not like you can’t, but... Mom’s bed really isn’t that big.”

Veronica looked back at her single bed, then turned to her. “Wouldn’t your own big bed be more comfortable? Why squeeze in here?”

“…Because this is the only time Sister Xiaolu isn’t around.”

Bai Jingxuan pouted. “Lately, it’s always Sister Xiaolu by your side during the day. It’s been so long since you’ve spent time with me.”

Veronica understood.

She had noticed it herself. In fact, she’d tried hard to balance things so no child felt left out. But clearly, she hadn’t done a great job.

Bai Jingxuan was a very well-behaved girl, which meant she wouldn’t pick fights with others. But that didn’t mean she didn’t have her own feelings. In fact, when it came to things she was serious about, her stubbornness was second to none in the Fangting City Squad.

In other words, the moment she showed up at Veronica’s door hugging a pillow, it was a sign she wasn’t going to back down.

Knowing her well, Veronica didn’t doubt that if she turned Bai Jingxuan away now, the girl would probably stand outside the door all night.

Thinking that, she couldn’t bring herself to say no. Plus, after doing so much emotional prep over the past weeks, she could now mentally block out the whole “middle-aged man sleeping in the same bed with an unrelated underage girl” concept and suppress her moral guilt.

“…Alright then. Mommy will sleep with you.”

Maybe there was something wrong with her now too?

Veronica thought with a hint of self-mockery but kept her face blank as she climbed into bed with Bai Jingxuan.

Though it was a single bed, Veronica was small and Bai Jingxuan was still a child, so it didn’t feel cramped. Actually, Veronica’s body was on the cooler side, and Bai Jingxuan was like a little furnace. When she crawled under the blanket, the chilly bed suddenly felt nice and warm.

Honestly? It was kind of comfortable.

That thought flashed through Veronica’s mind, but she quickly shook her head to banish it.

More importantly, she’d once shared a bed with Xia Liang before due to some strange situation. Compared to Xia Liang’s wild and disruptive sleeping habits, Bai Jingxuan’s were practically textbook perfect.

Completely different from her usual clinginess, when she said she wanted to sleep together, she really just meant sleep. No sneaky groping or sprawling all over. She stayed neatly on her side, not even taking up extra space. Such polite behavior made Veronica feel guilty for even having suspicions earlier, and she couldn’t help but glance at Bai Jingxuan.

Only to see her open one eye and stare directly back.

“Pfft—cough, cough, cough…”

Veronica nearly choked and started coughing.

“What’s wrong, Mommy?” Bai Jingxuan asked with concern.

“…Nothing, my throat just tickled.”

Trying to keep her voice even, Veronica asked, “Why aren’t you sleeping? Why are you staring at me?”

“I wanted to see when Mommy falls asleep,” Bai Jingxuan said honestly.

“Is that so important?” Veronica asked, puzzled.

“Mhm.”

“Why?”

“Because once Mommy’s asleep, I can hug her…” Bai Jingxuan whispered, burying half her face in the blanket.

“…You can’t sleep like this?” Veronica asked the ceiling.

“Nope.”

“Then why not just hug me now?”

After a moment’s thought, Veronica turned to face her. “Mommy doesn’t mind that.”

“Because I think Mommy doesn’t like cuddling when she sleeps.”

Bai Jingxuan blinked her exposed eye. “Just a guess.”

“You guessed right, Xiao Xuan. You’re really smart.”

Veronica brushed the hair off her cheek and tucked it behind her. “But it’s fine. If you want to, go ahead and hug me while we sleep.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Really?” Veronica looked straight at her.

“Mhm. I don’t want Mommy to feel uncomfortable,” Bai Jingxuan replied sincerely. “So you go to sleep first. Then I’ll hug you.”

“Then I’m going to sleep, okay?”

“Okay. Goodnight, Mommy.”

“Alright. Goodnight.”

Veronica said that and shifted slightly closer, reaching out to gently rest her hand on Bai Jingxuan’s shoulder.

“…Mommy?”

“What is it?”

“Um… your hand?” Bai Jingxuan asked hesitantly.

“Ah, is this not okay?”

Veronica seemed a little unsure. “You wanted the kind of hug-hug sleeping?”

“Um, I… I kind of do want that.”

After a short struggle, Bai Jingxuan gave in to her desires. “But this is fine too.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“Good.”

And the room fell silent once more.

A long time passed. Who knew what time it was. Veronica had already started drifting off when she heard Bai Jingxuan whisper.

“Mommy.”

“…If you don’t go to sleep, I’m going to get mad.”

“I love you the most.”

She said it suddenly.

The room went quiet again.

This silence lasted longer than any before. Bai Jingxuan herself wasn’t sure if Veronica had heard or if she’d already fallen asleep.

After a while, a sleepy voice reached her ears.

“…Thank you. Mommy’s really happy. Goodnight.”

Bai Jingxuan took a long time to process those words. And when she did, she smiled quietly.

She looked one last time at Veronica, who seemed to be asleep, then shut her own eyes in peace.

“Goodnight, Mommy.”

A whispered curtain call on the night.