Raising magical girls, and leave them with eternal regret?!

“Eh?”

Liu Meng’s eyes widened in disbelief as she got a clear look at the Negative Beast clinging to the elevator.

In an instant, anger and fear surged through her heart simultaneously.

Why was this monster, which was supposed to be dead, appearing again?

And why… why was it here, in this very shopping mall, as if it had been waiting for them?

“That monster is a Negative Beast, right? I didn’t fully grasp it before, but now I truly understand—it’s such an ugly thing…”

YouYu frowned as he observed the centipede-like Negative Beast and the panicked crowd scattering around it. Turning his gaze to Liu Meng, who was frozen in place, he asked:

“Liu Meng, what should we do next?”

“…For now, we run!”

Snapping out of her daze at YouYu’s words, Liu Meng took a deep breath, hesitated briefly, then grabbed YouYu’s hand and ran.

But just as they started moving, the centipede Negative Beast seemed to notice their presence. It let out a piercing screech—“Ssshhhhhhhh”—and darted toward them with its unnaturally agile body.

“!! Tch!”

Noticing the beast’s movements, Liu Meng quickly pulled YouYu toward a corner. Instead of attempting a straight-line race, she opted for a tactic to confuse it.

Dashing through narrow pathways meant for human-sized traffic, they weaved through the mall’s passages. Before long, they managed to lose the beast and found a momentary reprieve to catch their breath.

After resting for a moment, Liu Meng looked up at YouYu, whose expression was a mix of emotions, and said:

“YouYu, let’s leave the mall now! Staying here any longer is far too dangerous!”

“After all, that Negative Beast is probably targeting us… There’s no way it’s here by coincidence. It could attack again at any moment.”

“Right now, escaping from here is our best option.”

With that, she stepped forward, grasped YouYu’s hand firmly, and tried to lead him out.

But this time… no matter how hard she pulled, she couldn’t budge him.

“YouYu?”

Glancing down at his immobile hand, Liu Meng raised her head to look at him in confusion.

Noticing her reaction, YouYu shook his head and said:

“Can you hear it? The sounds?”

“Sounds? What sounds?”

“Listen carefully.”

“…Okay.”

Although she didn’t fully understand his intentions, Liu Meng trusted him enough to still her thoughts and focus on listening.

What she heard were the sounds of destruction—structures and storefronts being demolished—accompanied by people’s screams and cries.

Hearing these noises, Liu Meng furrowed her brows, and her grip on YouYu’s hand slackened unconsciously.

“……”

After a while, just as Liu Meng couldn’t hold back and was about to speak—

A deep, raspy voice suddenly blared from the mall’s speakers.

“There’s someone I’m looking for in this mall…”

“So, I won’t waste time with idle chatter. I’ll lay out my terms clearly.”

“In three minutes, come before me.”

“Otherwise, this mall will cease to exist.”

“Don’t think about escaping. I’ve already sealed the entire mall.”

The voice vanished, leaving only the terrified screams of those who hadn’t managed to flee in time.

Liu Meng’s face darkened. She looked down at the yellow gemstone on her necklace and clenched her trembling fists tightly.

It seemed she was hesitating, deliberating over some difficult decision.

“……”

Seeing her like this, YouYu seemed to catch on to her thoughts. With a calm tone, he spoke:

“Liu Meng, are you planning to fight?”

“To transform into a magical girl and fight again?”

Liu Meng remained silent for a moment before answering, “…Given the situation, even if I don’t want to fight, I might not have a choice.”

“But…”

She still harbored doubts.

To be honest, she hadn’t fought in a long time. After leaving her family and arriving in Rainbow City, she had chosen a low-profile life, thanks to the presence of another magical girl, Blue Night.

If she transformed into a magical girl now, her strength and skills likely wouldn’t be as sharp as they once were.

After all, while the centipede Negative Beast had been the first foe she ever defeated, its power was nothing to scoff at.

And more importantly…

If she chose to fight this time, regardless of victory or defeat—

Her peaceful life might be gone forever.

And if she lost, her sister’s toxin…

“I see.”

Though Liu Meng didn’t voice her full concerns, her expression revealed enough for YouYu to guess her thoughts. He turned around and said:

“If it’s inconvenient for you, I’ll fight in your place.”

“…What?!”

Liu Meng froze for a moment, then exclaimed in alarm:

“No! You can’t fight! You’re not even sure if you can control your powers yet! If something goes wrong and you get hurt—”

“But!”

Suddenly, YouYu’s voice rose sharply, cutting off what Liu Meng was about to say.

He turned his head, and the calm expression from earlier was gone, replaced by a mix of urgency and earnestness.

“But! If I don’t fight now, if I turn a blind eye to those in danger right this moment, then… this restless feeling in my heart… I won’t be able to suppress it!”

As he spoke, a faint greenish glow began emanating from YouYu’s body. Liu Meng could sense it—a sign that negative emotions were about to erupt!

And from the intensity of it… it far exceeded that of the centipede-like Negative Beast.

Thankfully, after taking a deep breath, YouYu managed to calm himself down, forcibly suppressing the turmoil within.

After a moment of silence, he continued in a serious tone:

“Liu Meng, let me just say what I’ve been meaning to say now, since we don’t have much time left.”

“Liu Meng, you’re not like me. You have a younger sister. I can easily guess why you don’t want to fight. If you were to weigh your family’s life against the lives of strangers, even I would choose family without hesitation.”

“But… I’m just a memoryless being, something that can’t even be called human. I have no family, no attachments. So if anyone’s going to fight, it should be me.”

“Of course, just because I say this doesn’t mean I’m recklessly throwing my life away.”

Seeing Liu Meng hesitate to speak, YouYu quickly explained:

“I just can’t stand that thing wreaking havoc here—it’s as simple as that.”

“And… I want to protect you, too. Forcing you to make such a cruel choice… it’s too much.”

“If I go, you won’t have to face this kind of decision.”

“…”

Hearing YouYu’s words, Liu Meng opened her mouth, but no words came out.

Indeed, letting YouYu fight might be the best option. But this was supposed to be her responsibility. If this fight led to YouYu’s death, or worse, caused him to lose control and turn into a Negative Beast himself, how could she…

“If you’re worried about me losing control, I have an idea.”

As if reading her thoughts, YouYu stepped closer and turned his back to her, pointing to the back of his neck.

“You still have your magic powers as a magical girl, right?”

“Then it’s simple. Just plant a bomb here on my neck. The stronger, the better.”

“If I lose control, you can end it right there.”

“You—!”

Liu Meng’s voice trembled as she shouted, unable to suppress her emotions.

“Isn’t that just walking to your death?! Why would you even—”

“I already told you the reason.”

With a sigh, YouYu spoke quickly:

“For the people here. And for you.”

“It’s that simple.”

“…”

Hearing his explanation, Liu Meng wanted to argue further, but time was running out. In the end, she could only sigh.

Furrowing her brows, she extended her hand, a golden light flashing as a golden card appeared in her palm.

She handed the card to YouYu and steadied her voice as much as she could:

“This card contains my power. If you feel yourself losing control, just grip it tightly. It’ll dispel your negative energy.”

“But… using it will bring you excruciating pain. Please think it through.”

“I’ve said everything I needed to.”

Turning her head away, she avoided meeting YouYu’s gaze.

“You can go now.”

“I just hope you won’t have to use that card.”

“…”

“Thank you, Liu Meng.”

After she agreed, YouYu put the card away and smiled sincerely.

“I’ll make good use of this card.”

“After all, it’s not just a keepsake. If I don’t use it when I need to, it’d be meaningless.”

“Now… I’m heading out.”

With those words, YouYu turned and ran in the direction of the centipede Negative Beast without looking back.

As his footsteps faded, Liu Meng watched his figure disappear around the corner, biting her lip.

Everything had been fine just moments ago, and now, suddenly…

“This is… the worst.”