Off Work, Then I Become a Magical Girl
Book 2: Chapter 101: Leaving Fangting

Vol 2 Chapter 101 Leaving Fangting

February 10th, 9:00 AM, clear skies.

At the Fangting City Magical Girl Base, Veronica was in her room, doing a final check on her suitcase.

“Spare clothes, toiletries, travel permit, driver’s license, phone, keys, wallet…”

She listed each item while going through them, double- and triple-checking that nothing important had been left out. Only then did she close her suitcase.

“Mm, all set.”

She sounded confident.

The trip to the Kingdom for the Certification Test had been planned long in advance. Preparations were already done—now all she had to do was follow the schedule.

Dragging her suitcase out of the room, she made her way to the stairwell. She looked at the somewhat narrow stairs, then at her luggage, and after a moment of hesitation, raised her hand and drew a few patterns in the air. With her Magical Armor, she conjured a makeshift zipline and lowered the suitcase down.

She waited alone in the living room for about ten minutes before the Fangting City Squad’s juniors came trickling downstairs. After another short wait, Asou Madoka finally arrived with a yawn. After handing over some work-related things to Veronica, they officially set out from the base.

The juniors from the Bo’an City Squad had already returned to their city a week ago, leaving only Asou Madoka behind in Fangting. From the looks of it, she’d be teaming up with Hong Siyu to protect the city after Veronica and the others left.

Driving the group away from the city center and toward the Landship Port, Veronica felt her vision open up the farther they got from the bustle. The city buildings in the rearview mirror blurred into silhouettes, the smoggy air giving way to something cleaner and crisper.

On either side of the road leading to the outskirts, farmland began to replace concrete. Vast fields stretched endlessly across the horizon. Overhead, the sky was a sprawling canvas painted in sunrise hues, impossible to look away from.

Soft golden light spilled across the road ahead. Birds fluttered past the windows, their chirps fading into the morning stillness, adding a poetic note to the journey.

After driving along the country road for more than ten minutes, the port finally came into view.

As the city's outermost structure, Landship Ports were typically built into the city’s Barrier, sitting at the boundary between the city and the Wasteland. Once you passed the port, you were in the wilds. Enter the port, and you were in the city. It was a crucial frontier zone. While Ravagers rarely breached the city thanks to the Kingdom’s tech support, if they did, it was a huge problem. So the port maintained close coordination with the Countermeasure Bureau.

Though far from downtown, the port had a booming commercial district due to the massive foot traffic every day. Restaurants, lodging, entertainment—everything you could need. It was practically a little town of its own.

Driving through the commercial zone, the juniors couldn’t help but gape at the unfamiliar sights. Being young, none of them had much experience leaving the city or riding a Landship. Lin Xiaolu had left Fangting once on a family trip, and Bai Jingxuan had taken a Landship when her family relocated, but both memories were vague—they’d been just kids.

Seeing them plastered to the windows, Veronica couldn’t help but smile faintly in the rearview mirror and slowed down a little.

Ten minutes later, she pulled into the port parking lot. The girls grabbed their luggage and walked into the massive port terminal.

Their tickets had been prepared ahead of time by the Countermeasure Bureau, but due to tight finances lately, Lin Yun had denied the request for four first-class cabins and approved just two economy cabins instead.

Under Veronica’s lead, the group breezed through ticket pickup, baggage check, and security. The only hiccup came at security, when the staff couldn’t find their “guardian.”

“Even though you have tickets, Landship intercity travel carries risks. Without an adult present, we can’t allow minors to board alone,” the staff explained.

“I’m an adult,” Veronica replied.

“You’re… uh…” The staffer had started to ask for proof but then looked at the one who’d spoken—clearly the youngest-looking girl of the group—and hesitated.

“Little one, this is a security checkpoint. We take things very seriously. Lying won’t work here.”

“…I really am an adult.” Veronica had expected this and sighed as she pulled out her prepared ID.

Her ID was legitimate and Countermeasure Bureau-endorsed. After checking several times, the staffer gave up trying to find a flaw, apologized, and let them pass.

“Little one… pfft.” As soon as they walked out of the checkpoint, Xia Liang couldn’t hold back a laugh.

“Cut it out,” Veronica responded with a dramatic eye roll.

That little episode didn’t delay them much. Soon, the Landship to Yannan City began boarding right on schedule.

The Kingdom was far away. In the entire Material World, only the Central Cities had trains that could go directly to the Kingdom. Each province had rail lines circling the Central City before heading out of the Material World and into the Magic Kingdom.

Because of that, the Fangting City Squad first had to travel to the nearest Central City—Yannan—and then transfer to the Kingdom Express.

Veronica had already calculated the timing. With the Landship’s speed, they’d arrive in Yannan the next morning, transfer to the express the same day, and reach the Kingdom the following afternoon after a full night and morning of travel.

Unlike her previous solo trip to Bo’an, this journey would involve an overnight stay. Since economy cabins had two beds, Lin Yun had only approved two rooms.

He would soon regret that.

“I want to room with Veronica!” Lin Xiaolu stood firmly next to the bed across from Veronica.

“I’m sharing with Mom—uh, I mean, Teacher!” Bai Jingxuan stood her ground.

“You’re not a baby anymore! Shouldn’t you be learning some independence? Always clinging to your elders—you’ll never grow up like that!” Lin Xiaolu chided.

“Like you’re one to talk! You’re older than me!” Bai Jingxuan shot back.

“Heh. That’s because I’ve already got tons of experience being independent. I don’t need the practice anymore,” Lin Xiaolu replied smugly.

“Well, I’ve got experience too!” Bai Jingxuan insisted.

“Okay, okay, whatever it is you’re arguing about… can we not with this ‘independence’ thing…” Veronica had to intervene.

“Haha… is rooming with me really such a horrible idea?” muttered Xia Liang, sounding almost hurt.

In the end, neither Veronica nor Xia Liang could stop the childish spat. The battle over “Veronica’s cabinmate” raged on. Neither side backed down.

Seeing the argument going nowhere, Xia Liang made a suggestion.

“Well, this isn’t what I intended, but… how about we settle this with a game?” She pulled a box out of her backpack.

“What’s that?” asked Lin Xiaolu.

“Flying Chess,” Xia Liang said with a grin. “I brought it in case we got bored. But I guess it could solve this, too?”

“Flying Chess?” Bai Jingxuan’s eyes lit up.

“Hmm…” Veronica glanced at the girls, thinking it over. “I guess that works.”

She didn’t want to pick sides, and continuing the dispute was out of the question. Letting them battle it out fairly was the best move.

Flying Chess was harmless enough, too—no real risk.

“No complaints here…” Lin Xiaolu squinted. “But what if Veronica wins? Do we redo the match?”

“Well, if our little senior wins, she should get a prize. How about the prize is rooming with—” Xia Liang started, but Veronica cut her off.

“One point per win. First to three wins.”

Arms crossed, she added, “If I win, every time I get a point, you each have to do an extra school assignment after the exam, when we’re back in Fangting.”

“Eh?”

“Ah?”

“Ugh…”

The three girls made a variety of expressions—none happy.

But after a brief pause, they agreed:

“Fine, let’s do this!”

---

“…Lost…”

Hours later, Lin Xiaolu slumped over the board, staring at the scattered pieces, defeated.

“So close…” Bai Jingxuan sat next to her, sulking with the die still clutched in her hand.

The ultimate winner—with three victories—was an awkward-looking Xia Liang.

Lin Xiaolu had actually won the first round, riding a wave of absurd luck. She’d bragged endlessly after. But that was her only win.

Bai Jingxuan managed two wins and had a shot at the match point, but luck turned on her.

Xia Liang came from behind with careful strategy and just enough decent rolls to take the crown. She even sent Lin Xiaolu’s pieces back to start so many times, the girl nearly cried.

As for Veronica, she wasn’t really trying. The “extra homework” was just a bluff. She only won one match to avoid looking like she was throwing the game entirely.

Which meant—by agreement—Xia Liang and Veronica would be roommates.

“Ugh, you sneaky snake! You knew Flying Chess was your thing and suggested it on purpose!” Lin Xiaolu recovered just enough to make accusations.

“Totally!” Bai Jingxuan backed her up.

“Wha… I swear, I barely knew the rules before this. Honest!” Xia Liang raised both hands in surrender. “I just thought it’d be a fun way to pass time…”

“No way! That game was totally rigged. We demand a rematch!” Lin Xiaolu yelled.

“Yeah!” Bai Jingxuan echoed.

“But I actually worked for that win…” Xia Liang said helplessly.

——“That’s enough. Quit being sore losers, White Rose, Bosetsu.”

Veronica reached out and pressed a hand to each girl’s head. “Xiaolu won. That’s the deal. You two lost, so suck it up. Learn how to lose with dignity. No whining.”

“Your next job is to go settle into your cabin, and make sure all the equipment works. If there’s a problem, we’ll need to call maintenance.”

She gave their heads a final ruffle and let go, bluntly dismissing them. “Now grab your stuff and go.”

To Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan, her words were like a thunderbolt.

Not just because they lost and now Veronica and Xia Liang would room together—

But because they both realized something horrible:

——They’d have to share a cabin with each other.