The heat brought by the Volcano Monster gradually dissipated.
Hyacinth's everyday clothes had changed from yesterday's hoodie to a shirt and jacket, allowing her to appear more in tune with today's temperature.
At least she wouldn't be stared at strangely by passersby.
“To ensure safety, we've increased the number of personnel for outdoor operations and canceled the three-way division of labor, concentrating our combat power as much as possible,” the Bai Diao (White Sable) Spirit said from within Hyacinth’s jacket hood, addressing the others around her.
“All in all, you can rest assured; Mai Sui and her team will be ready to support you at the association headquarters at any time. I hear they’ve prepared ample firepower to cope, so nothing will go wrong!”
“Let’s hope so,” Iris said with a wry smile, nodding, still quite confident in Mai Sui’s firepower.
But Nightingale sighed helplessly, shifted her satchel higher on her shoulder, and quietly checked the items inside.
Smoke grenades… flashbangs… and reserve tear gas and stun grenades… all set!
Walking not far from the three was the duo of Red Zircon and Zi Ying Shi. The latter perfectly complemented the anti-magic barrier that Xin Yuehu had set up this time; one could even say it was her home ground—
Zi Ying Shi was carrying a hard guitar case, which was extremely disproportionate to her petite frame, but it didn't draw attention. She looked completely like a student preparing for a music class.
Hyacinth glanced at this silent, masked, and hooded girl, and swallowed.
Her guitar case didn't contain an instrument—it was a terrifying weapon, the heavy sniper rifle that Zi Ying Shi was famous for, transformed from her magic staff.
An M200 sniper rifle.
“…”
As if sensing Hyacinth's gaze, Zi Ying Shi secretly glanced at her, and her body trembled the moment their eyes met. She quickly shrank behind Red Zircon.
“Hmm? What’s wrong, Little Zi?”
“…”
“…Oh, that’s Hyacinth over there. Haven’t you two met before?”
Turning to meet Hyacinth’s gaze, Red Zircon looked at her companion in confusion.
Seeing Zi Ying Shi still looking shy, Red Zircon sighed and said to Hyacinth:
“Little Zi is just like that; I apologize.”
“It’s fine. We’ll be counting on you two later.”
“Leave it to me and Little Zi!” Red Zircon said with a confident smile.
The group parted ways at a music square intersection. Red Zircon and Zi Ying Shi turned onto a road leading to a house with an open view, heading to occupy Zi Ying Shi's sniping vantage point.
“Let’s go. Our mission is still arduous,” Hyacinth said, watching the two leave, then turned to look at Iris and Nightingale behind her, clenching one hand into a fist, her expression serious.
“—Find the barrier Xin Yuehu and her team set up, evacuate the crowd, dismantle it, and then quickly withdraw!”
“Begin operation!”
…
Nan Xiaofeng walked into the music square.
Rather than a square, it was more like a large Magic Girl music-themed park.
—That's right, this is also a Magic Girl theme park. Do not question any Magic Girl elements in a world with Magic Girls.
This was Inari's debut battleground, and also the performance venue she most frequently used during her active period as a Magic Girl.
Today, a music party was being held here as usual, playing familiar anime theme songs, and even songs performed by Red Rose were featured.
Hearing a fifty-year-old song here was truly unexpected, Hyacinth thought.
But would there really be a so-called barrier node in a place like this?
Nightingale walked beside Hyacinth, cautiously observing her surroundings.
Nearby was a rather large music hall, with several music class enrollment advertisements plastered on its outer walls. An artificial lake flowed around the music hall, and the sounds of teaching notes seemed to emanate from inside.
As for the greenery, it was surprisingly good—
Patches of trees and shrubs covered the park. Main roads and forest paths divided the park into three general areas, making it even more complex than yesterday's mall terrain.
“The terrain here is quite complex,” Nightingale said.
Hyacinth nodded, involuntarily reaching down to press the cold weapon beneath her jacket, ready to respond to any potential ambush or sneak attack from Xin Yuehu.
But… was Xin Yuehu really nearby?
She would definitely leave space for crowd evacuation before starting a fight. If so, could she judge whether Xin Yuehu was ready to act based on the density of the surrounding crowd?
Nan Xiaofeng suddenly had a dangerous idea—if she stayed with the crowd, wouldn't she be able to make that golden-furred fox…
“No, no! This idea is absolutely not allowed!”
Nan Xiaofeng raised her hand and slapped herself twice, throwing this terrible Mai Sui tactic into the astral plane, startling the two people beside her.
The three began their investigation in the music park.
Bai Ling also poked her head out of Hyacinth's jacket hood, curiously looking around.
“The environment here is quite nice,” Bai Ling said. “Did Inari used to perform here? What kind of performances would she do?”
“Oh, there were so many,” Nightingale quickly chimed in, speaking with full confidence.
As an avid fan of Magic Girls, Lin Muyao’s admiration for the senior Inari was no less than anyone else’s, and she spoke of Inari’s performances as if recounting cherished possessions.
“Senior Inari’s magic level is very high! She can use the magic power of one magic missile to create a barrier that launches fireworks. Her magic shows are even more magnificent than Senior Qiu Baiyang’s!”
“More magnificent than Qiu Baiyang? That’s truly impressive,” Iris exclaimed in surprise, an answer that Hyacinth also affirmed.
But the latter was a staunch fan of Qiu Baiyang and didn't say much about it, though her resolute expression was enough to illustrate Inari's magic level.
“Senior Inari even composed many personal songs. There’s a studio in that music hall that she used to compose and sing in, which has probably become a tourist attraction now.”
“…So, Xin Yuehu really precisely targeted the attractions Inari left in Hong Kong City, exactly like in her preview video,” Nightingale muttered to herself.
The three chatted as they walked down a forest path, heading towards the music hall.
And what no one noticed was that on a window sill on the second floor of the music hall, a golden figure gently lowered the curtain by her hand.
“They’re here. They’ll enter the music hall entrance in about five minutes.”
“They’re pretty fast.”
Not far behind, the tactical-clad Cat Girl stretched in a bored, cat-like manner, pulled the black weapon hanging at her side to the front, pulled back the bolt to check the chamber, and hooked the bullet that flew out of the ejection port with the tip of her tail.
A 5.5 bullet, emitting a deep blue magical glow, its terrifying power could be felt.
“Yes, after all, this music hall is very conspicuous,” Su Tianqing said with a cheerful smile, looking back at the Cat Girl beside her.
“Today should be a lot of fun, Cat Cat, how do you plan to play with them?”
“I already have an idea.”
The Cat Girl walked to the window, leaned out to glance at Hyacinth, who was leading the group, and smiled slightly.
“—I want to have a good exchange with Hyacinth.”