Starting as a Magical Girl, I Alone Shall Rule for Eternity

Chapter 146: Keke, Beihai's Light of Hope

"Keke! North of the city! Move your mana fifty meters to the left!"

"Received!"

Keke, flying in mid-air, immediately locked onto the area north of the city. A massive red light cannon bombarded over there, instantly turning the running Disaster Beast into dust.

A C-class Disaster Beast was hardly worth noticing for Keke.

She just maintained vigilance as per the Disaster Control Bureau's training, only stopping after completely blasting the Grief Seed to pieces as well.

If it were before, with Azure Cloud Sect disciples around to snatch the Grief Seeds, it wouldn't have been this troublesome.

But recently, for some unknown reason, Magical Girls from the Beihai Azure Cloud Sect had been rarely seen, forcing Keke to personally and thoroughly destroy the Grief Seeds.

This was to prevent any weird things from popping out again; the Disaster Control Bureau had previously encountered situations where new Disaster Beasts were born from Grief Seeds left behind by dead ones....

After clearing out the Disaster Beasts in the west area, Keke scanned the surroundings again.

"Wait! West side! Watch the west side! Don't distract Keke!""I told you not to give blind orders..."

"Keke, you pay attention yourself!"

The voice of someone unknown came through the earpiece again.

They had fallen into their habitual arguing again.

Keke felt a bit helpless listening, but she had gotten somewhat used to it these past few days.

Senior Yueji was mostly working at the police station; she had been transferred to help with the Heart Image Remnant incident before.

And An Shiyu and Peony from the Bureau had gone to provide support long ago. Now, within the Beihai Disaster Control Bureau, she was practically the only one truly ready for battle at any moment.

For Keke, however, this wasn't really a difficulty. Ever since advancing to the Seedling rank, she rarely encountered mana shortages.

More importantly, through training, her control over her magic sense was getting better and better.

Once expanded, her magic sense could cover half of Beihai, allowing her to clearly sense any movement of Polluted Magic.

The downside was, she couldn't hide her magic sense.

When her magic sense swept over, the Disaster Beasts within it sensed the abnormality, immediately became agitated, quickly shrieked and took flight, trying to attack the people around.

There were two Disaster Beasts in the west area. One charged onto the street, running amidst the endless stream of vehicles; the other grabbed a little girl and was flying in the air.

Both were B-class Disaster Beasts.

"Keke!"

Only then did Yiyi's voice come through. She was driving a car, holding a spray canister in her hand. "You deal with the one in the air first!"

"Received, Captain!"

Magic sense locked on. Keke, gripping her Magic Wand, gathered her mana.

Then.

Great Barren Imprisoning Heaven Finger!

It pressed down directly onto the flying Disaster Beast.

In terms of mana control for this technique, Keke had reached a level of mastery.

After all, since the special training with Teacher Shion last time, Keke, having found the trick, had been diligently practicing this move.

Her thousand-times refined technique allowed her to press the Great Barren Imprisoning Heaven Finger firmly onto the Disaster Beast's back, crushing it amidst the beast's shrieks.

But simultaneously, the mana stopped with extreme precision right in front of the girl the beast was holding, not harming the child in the slightest.

When the Disaster Beast fell and the child began crying and falling from the high altitude, Keke again carefully caught the girl with the Great Barren Imprisoning Heaven Finger.

This was a usage Keke had figured out herself. She reasoned that since it was a finger, it could be used as one.

It proved indeed possible, and very useful at that.

Two huge fingers carefully pinched the little girl, flying down towards the ground.

The originally wailing child, realizing she was fine and could even swing in the sky, instantly stopped crying and started laughing, waving her arms and legs, touching the mana fingers holding her.

When put down, she even jumped, wanting to touch the mana fingers again.

The child's parents quickly rushed over, hugged their kid, crying and thanking.

Although far away, Keke could still hear it clearly.

A small sense of joy and pride welled up in her heart, but soon Yiyi's voice came through the earpiece.

"Ah, the great Magical Girl Keke, I know you saved a family, very much worth celebrating, but if you don't come soon, your humble little follower Yiyi is going to die here, sucked into a tornado toilet..."

Keke quickly looked down to find her. The car Yiyi was driving had been smashed to pieces, the entire vehicle being swept into the sky by a tornado, clearly the work of a Disaster Beast.

Yiyi was leaning against the car, holding a pistol. This was standard equipment for Disaster Control Bureau combat team members.

The bullets were mana bullets, but unfortunately, their power wasn't ideal, only capable of repelling or hindering Disaster Beasts.

Defeating a Disaster Beast with this was basically impossible.

However, Keke had heard that in Jiangming City, there were cases of using firearm weapons to defeat Disaster Beasts. If Beihai could find a way to purchase some of those weapons to use, that would be good...

"Coming, coming! Captain, hold on!"

Actually, even before shouting, a mana cannon had already blasted away the Disaster Beast that had nearly driven Yiyi into a corner, then gently placed Yiyi's car back on the ground.

Judging from the scene, this Disaster Beast had been racing vehicles on the main road, was intercepted and even lured to an open square by Yiyi, allowing Keke to easily finish it off.

Otherwise, if it had been amidst the crowd, that last stretch of strong wind might have caused some casualties...

Although, in reality, Keke had been monitoring Yiyi's situation the whole time, ready to handle any problem immediately, but since that flying bird Disaster Beast had a hostage, for safety's sake, it was best to let Captain Yiyi stall it.

Keke flew down and high-fived Yiyi. "Good work, Captain!"

"I already told you I'm not the captain anymore. I'm the setting sun in the west, and you are the rising sun of tomorrow." Yiyi complained a little. "You really should stop calling me captain."

"But to me, Yiyi will always be the captain!"

"Member Keke!"

"Here!"

"I order you, in my capacity as captain, to never call me captain again."

"No."

"Why not!"

"Because Yiyi isn't the captain anymore."

Infuriated, Li Yi reached out and started pinching and pulling the cheeks of her flexible junior.

Although Li Yi could no longer transform into a Magical Girl, as she herself said, she was doing her utmost to help Keke fight using her own methods, to become a better Magical Girl.

And now, Keke had already become the strongest and most reliable Magical Girl within the Beihai Disaster Control Bureau.

"Magical Girl Ruri, I'm your fan!"

"Wow, it's really Magical Girl Ruri!"

"Can I get your autograph?"

"Is a photo together possible?"

"Please, please go out with me!"

.......

Just after staying for a moment, the surrounding crowd gathered. Keke quickly hugged Yiyi and flew up first.

"S-sorry, everyone, there are other Disaster Beasts elsewhere to deal with. Sorry, we can't waste time, goodbye..."

Watching Keke flusteredly fly away holding her, Li Yi couldn't help but chuckle.

"Big star, you need to get used to being adored sooner..."

"Was Captain Yiyi like this back then?"

"Uh, I wasn't very popular..." Yiyi scratched her head. "In the Magical Girl Combat Team back then, the most popular was Senior Hyacinth, then Susan. You probably know about Susan's popularity, right?"

"Oh, right, she was on TV many times."

She was a ratings guarantee for a while, you know, Magical Girl Mermaid, Zhu Lu! Super popular back then. When Susan lost her transformation ability and the Bureau announced her retirement, there were groups of her fans causing trouble at the government building every day."

"Wow..."

Just hearing about it gave Keke a headache. "I hope I won't have that many fans in the future..."

"You're the face of the Beihai Disaster Control Bureau now. You'll definitely have many fans in the future. The government will promote you more too. After all, on the surface, they can't let the Azure Cloud Sect steal all the spotlight. Magical Girl Winter has taken quite a bit of the Disaster Control Bureau Magical Girls' popularity among the public. I myself was heavily boycotted because I was seen as the officially pushed Magical Girl who stole Hyacinth's position."

Saying this, Li Yi felt a bit regretful, and pinched Keke's cheek. "Anyway! Keke is our Bureau's last brave warrior. Don't lose to the Azure Cloud Sect's big bad guys!"

"I can't compare to Teacher Shion."

"Magical Girl Shion isn't very popular in Beihai anyway, don't worry."

Flying back to the Disaster Control Bureau with Yiyi, Keke suddenly remembered. "By the way, where did you get that car, Captain?"

"Oh, temporarily requisitioned."

"Huh?" Keke was a bit dumbfounded. "T-then, is it okay that you wrecked it like that?"

"Relax, there will be compensation. I already talked to the owner. The Bureau will fully reimburse."

"I remember you don't have a driver's license, and when did you learn to drive..."

"Disaster Control Bureau members have privileges, of course! I learned to drive in the Bureau before, following my sister around. Keke, just relax!"

"......"

After the two returned to the Disaster Control Bureau, Susan was the first to come out, saying with a cold face, "Good work."

The Bureau was quite deserted now, with very few people overall. If Susan didn't come out, basically no one would come to greet them.

"There are fewer and fewer people at the Bureau lately," Li Yi said as she walked into the Bureau. "Disaster Beasts have inexplicably increased. Still no news from Peony at the Heart Image Remnant site?"

"Mhm, no news from either Peony or An Shiyu."

Susan hesitated for a moment before continuing, "I plan to go to Anyang to check. Peony may like slacking off, but she usually wouldn't be completely silent like this."

"Alright." Yiyi held Keke's hand. "Leave Beihai to us. No problem!"

Susan's lips twitched slightly as she looked at Li Yi. "About your Miracle Seed issue, if there's a chance in the future, you could ask people from the Azure Cloud Sect. You might get some answers."

Li Yi was a bit surprised, then nodded. "Mhm, I will. But recently, the Azure Cloud Sect Magical Girls seem to have gone elsewhere..."

"They seem to be looking for someone..."

The situation at the Heart Image Remnant site was said to be over, but some things seemed to be just beginning.

She heard the Azure Cloud Sect had been very active in other places lately, looking for someone.

Keke was a bit curious, but ultimately, it didn't have much to do with her.

After completing the report, Keke didn't linger at the Bureau for long, as the remaining tasks weren't her responsibility.

As the only Magical Girl in the Bureau ready for battle at any moment, she was generally not bothered with rear support work.

Li Yi stayed behind at the Bureau to handle the aftermath.

Returning home alone, the house was still empty.

The person who said they would move in before, Li Yi, usually only came over at night. Recently, with the Azure Cloud Sect's increased activity, she often worked overtime at the Bureau, so she ended up staying there most of the time.

Susan was the same. An Shiyu and Senior Peony were out on a mission and hadn't returned.

Jiang Si hadn't returned either.

He said he was going to a hotel with Teacher Shion for tutoring before leaving, but no one found out which hotel...

Their parents' biggest hope for them before was to study hard and get into a decent university. Yet Jiang Si wanted to take the college entrance exam in his second year of high school, and on top of that, he was inconsistent with his studies.

Maybe he secretly ran off to play outside with Teacher Shion...

Thinking this, she felt a bit stifled.

Going to play was one thing, but there hadn't been any news for so many days.

Teacher Shion should also be a high school student. Those two... surely they wouldn't end up having a child while still in high school, right?

If they really had a child, how could Li Yi afford to raise it? And with my personality, I'd probably dislike the child, but if Teacher Jiang Si was reluctant to give it up.

Then the two would argue over the child, then the older brother would abandon her after having his fun, Teacher Shion would become a single mother raising a genius child, take revenge on Jiang Si, and finally Jiang Si would be filled with regret...

And I would be the evil little aunt scheming to secretly torment my niece or nephew, refusing to let Teacher Shion and her child be in the family portrait....

Her mind filled with wild thoughts. When she entered the house, it was cold and quiet. Turning on the lights, she went to the kitchen and casually reheated some food.

Lately, she'd been cooking for two, originally thinking that one day when Jiang Si returned, they could eat together.

But he hadn't come back for several days in a row, so the extra portion just became leftovers for the next meal.

Fortunately, it was more convenient this way; just heat it up and it's ready to eat.

After preparing the meal, she habitually walked to the TV and turned it on. Next to the TV hung a photo with her parents.

Parents with bright smiles, herself looking silly and dazed, and Jiang Si looking impatient.

If Jiang Si had a child, would they have to add them in...

Keke, inexplicably thinking of this, immediately shook her head, feeling she was overthinking.

Casually taking out the remote, she switched to the news channel.

Actually, this habit was Jiang Si's. When they were little, every time he finished exercising, he liked to turn on the TV and switch to the news channel.

No one in the family actually liked watching the news, only Jiang Si did. His favorite were those strange, bizarre news stories. Thinking back carefully, perhaps even back then, Jiang Si was searching for traces of Magical Girls.

After what happened three years ago, Jiang Si rarely turned on the TV. But Keke herself had developed the habit. She liked to turn the TV on, listen to the news while eating, even while sleeping.

Today's news featured herself. BH City's recent promotion of her could be said to be relentless, often having her make appearances. There had even been several press conferences prepared for her before.

But Captain Li Yi helped her refuse them all, which also let Keke breathe a sigh of relief.

She didn't like the feeling of being in the spotlight. Moreover, if everyone from the Azure Cloud Sect saw it, how embarrassing would that be?

Others were so powerful yet never been on TV, while she, a rookie Magical Girl with not much strength, went out to steal the limelight.

How mortifying.

"Recently, the Azure Cloud Sect's brutal crackdown on the Witch Association has begun spreading towards South China. Many Witch Association members have started surrendering, claiming the Azure Cloud Sect has begun killing innocents, severely disrupting social order and causing massive panic..."

Although the news often criticized the Azure Cloud Sect, today's report seemed particularly harsh.

Ever since the Heart Image Remnant disappeared, things at the Azure Cloud Sect had been strange.

She didn't know what Teacher Shion and the others were doing. Previously, they seemed to be conducting large-scale purges of Witch Association members too.

They've been condemned many times.

Finishing her meal while listening to the news, Keke got up and cleaned the table, then headed into her bedroom.

She had exams in a couple of days and needed to review. She had fallen behind in some subjects recently, being so busy with Magical Girl matters...

Taking her schoolbag out from the bedroom, she noticed a beautiful purple figure standing next to the TV in the living room, watching it.

"Teacher Shion?"

After a moment of surprise, Keke was startled. "Y-you, why did you come suddenly?"

Then her heart began to feel uneasy.

Was she here to tell her she was really pregnant...

Or had she already been dumped by her older brother, so she came to find her suddenly?

Then, how should she comfort her?

Crap, couldn't think of anything at all.

Because no matter how she thought about it, she couldn't see any downside to the two breaking up, and she couldn't even empathize with Teacher Shion's potential sadness.

"I came to talk to you about your brother."

Although this was somewhat in line with what she had guessed—next would probably be the confession of being dumped or something.

But suddenly, Keke sensed a somewhat different aura.

The visible fatigue and unease on Teacher Shion, the evasive gaze.

It was the first time she felt weakness from Teacher Shion, as if she was afraid of her.

She had never sensed such an aura from Teacher Shion before.

Weakness, fear, lacking that omnipotent, reassuring reliability.

Only then did Keke realize, Teacher Shion was really... small.

She had never noticed before...

"Jiang Si is missing."

Her voice had become very small too. The news was loud, so loud it was somewhat noisy and chaotic, making Keke doubt for a moment.

Was she really Teacher Shion?

"We can't find him."

But soon, her thoughts became sluggish, unable to process, to distinguish this matter.

Keke looked at her blankly, then glanced out the window where flurries were dancing.

A thin layer of white had accumulated in the yard.

Beihai had started to snow.

"Can't find him... what does that mean?"