Chapter 219: Detective Magical Girl of the Demonic Beauty

When Keke returned home, she saw her big brother training in the yard.

As always, he was lifting dumbbells whose weight she no longer knew had been increased to what degree, stretching and doing shuttle jumps,

the concrete in the yard was pitted and uneven from his jumping.

So she squatted on the little steps by the front door and quietly watched him work out.

A cool summer breeze brushed by, and Keke, in the languid, hazy dusk, narrowed her eyes and leaned on her knees, feeling for a moment as if she had returned to childhood.

It seemed like any second her mother would come out of the house, rapping her on the head and dragging her inside, then calling her big brother in to eat.

There would be the smell of cooked food in the house and the noisy sound of the television.

When their mother came in, she would scold their father for sneaking a cigarette, sending him out the door to smoke.

Then their father would grin and call Jiang Si his brother, asking if he wanted a puff.

He would tease their mother until she chased him around with a spoon, scolding him.

Oh, at that time the theme music for the evening news would reliably play.

Little Keke would fret over unfinished homework and feel melancholy about having to get up early for school the next day.

Back then she always envied adults, even envied her big brother, for the freedom to do what they wanted,

and now that she had become the person she once envied, she also understood that freedom sometimes isn’t always happiness.

Fortunately, some pieces of childhood remained.

As long as her brother was there, she could always recall the past and feel safe and warm inside.

Where her big brother was, that was Keke’s home.

“Aren’t you going to school yet?”

He added his classic opening line.

Basically he couldn’t stand her lazing around; if she was idle, he had to question her.

Did you finish your homework? Why aren’t you going to school? Have you previewed next semester’s material?

“Going soon.”

She replied with a mock impatient tone, “Also, it’s not school anymore, school’s out early, it’s the Central Bureau of the Disaster Control Bureau.”

“Aren’t they the same? Studies and strength are both important.”

He sounded like an art student.

Juggling art and academics, both sides needing care, each one important.

Come to think of it, Magical Girl could count as a specialty student, right?

Although the college entrance exam doesn’t give extra points, Keke remembered that being a Magical Girl still had privileges; even if scores were a bit lower, universities would specially recruit them.

Out of a full score of 750, a Magical Girl with 400 could get into some prestigious universities, the Bureau had explained before,

but Keke, of course, didn’t intend to take the special admissions route—she wanted, like their parents, to rely on strength and honestly get into their parents’ alma mater.

“The gaokao results are out.”

Keke suddenly said from the side, “When I went to the Bureau, I asked, and the staff told me they’re already out.”

“They even deal with that?”

“I asked them specifically. I said Big Brother, you took the gaokao early, tell me when the results are out.” Keke snorted, “When I was heading back, they told me.”

“How much?”

“Six hundred ninety-seven.”

She saw her brother frown, “That low?”

Wow, hardly ever went to school, took the gaokao early in second year of high school, and still complains it’s low...

“That score is second in Beihai...”

“Someone dared to beat me? Who?”

“Of course it’s Lady Bingtang.” Keke said with full admiration, “Not only first in Beihai, she’s first in East China, top scorer, over seven hundred.”

On hearing it was Bingtang, Jiang Si only muttered a couple lines, saying scores didn’t mean much and the like.

But Keke still pulled out her phone and beamed, “On my way back I asked in the relatives’ chat. A few of them took the gaokao too, and others finished last year, everyone was posting results.”

“Aren’t you going to bow out?”

“Nope.” Keke wrinkled her nose, “They kept saying you were dumb, that Mom and Dad had a fool for a son—remember that? I’ll take revenge first before I bow out.”

“Learned that petty spite from who?”

“From you.”

Jiang Si smirked. He’d always been broad-minded; how could he hold grudges like that.

That little brat was talking nonsense again.

“Look, look, Big Brother.” Keke handed her phone to him, “This is Third Uncle’s son, this is Fourth Aunt’s daughter, this is Uncle’s...”

One by one the score screenshots were displayed.

“The highest is just over five hundred, the rest are in the four hundreds, and they’re all comparing.”

Keke’s last message in the chat sounded like she was both envious and lamenting that her big brother had a score.

Then the house’s five-hundred-scoring Third Uncle jumped in to comfort.

This guy even changed his avatar to his son’s score.

Others pretended to console while throwing shade, saying it’s fine, my son only got four hundred plus, Jiang Si didn’t study seriously, a little lower is nothing.

Mostly full of smugness.

Keke posted the 697 score, and the whole relatives’ chat went silent.

Some might have thought she was kicked out of the group.

Keke sent two more lines, joking that not reaching 700 would be a betrayal of their parents’ upbringing—actually their parents’ gaokao scores weren’t higher than Jiang Si’s.

Back then those two always bragged to their daughter and son about their own gaokao scores, urging the kids to catch up.

Jiang Si glanced, curled his lip, “You’re really boring.”

“Ting, making this lot shut up is not boring. Big brother, with a score that high you must show it off, otherwise what was the point of scoring so high?”

Keke opened her alt account, “Those people talk behind our backs, suspect your score is fake, said they’d verify your results. I screenshot everything. I’ll show them later.”

“Don’t get carried away—watch your future comeback list! Sherlock Lupin III’s famous line.”

She said that while triumphantly producing a pair of plain glass spectacles from who-knows-where and putting them on, “Detective Magical Girl Ruri never fails!”

“Finish up and quit, study properly.”

“Not going to, after I take my gaokao I’ll do it again.”

“Don’t mess up your studies, just quit.”

“I need revenge to study harder, Big Brother~”

That last coo earned Keke a light bonk on the forehead from Jiang Si.

“If your results drop, I’ll make you regret it.”

“Got it, got it, Detective absolutely won’t regress because of this score!”

Keke giggled foolishly.

She hated these relatives always calling her brother stupid, a fool, a blockhead.

Although Jiang Si didn’t mind, Keke cared terribly.

Even during cold wars with her brother, she found those words like thorns.

So she had to make those relatives admire her brother.

Even if they doubted his score now, no one dared belittle Jiang Si as stupid.

That was exactly Keke’s intention.

After Jiang Si finished training, he put down the dumbbells, stretched, and walked into the house. Keke followed behind.

“So which school are you applying to?”

“Yanzi University.”

“Huh?” Keke froze, “Not Lilac, the one Mom and Dad went to?”

“Same difference. Yanzi’s Magical Girl program is better; I want to research more.”

Is it for me? Or Teacher Shion? Keke thought, then nodded, “Okay, I’ll aim for Yanzi University too.”

“You’re still young.”

“I’ll skip grades too!”

She declared solemnly, fantasizing about attending university with her brother, though she was only about to enter the third year of middle school—university was still far away.

After counting her age and grade on her fingers and sharing a meal with her brother,

she left for the Beihai Disaster Control Bureau.

The transport to the Central Bureau was already ready.

...

Not long after Keke left, Jiang Si followed Bingtang’s arrangement and headed to the outskirts of Beihai, boarding the dedicated bus to the Central Bureau—a spacious, modified coach.

They said the Central Bureau could not be flown to or walked to; a special vehicle was required to receive visitors.

Probably some powerful magic.

And the traveling companions were, naturally, familiar faces.

“Yo, hello there, Lord Shion’s boyfriend!”

This came from the Bureau’s newly promoted inner-disciple, the blue Magical Girl Xingxuan.

“Hello, are you interested in our great Harry Potter?”

This was True-Transmission disciple Qianzhencao, who never knew her true identity.

When Qianzhencao was about to preach, she froze at Xingxuan’s words and turned to look at her.

“Lord Shion’s boyfriend?”

Xingxuan also looked surprised, “Huh? True-Transmission, you didn’t know? It was all over the place before—Mr. Jiang Si being our Sect Master’s boyfriend is common knowledge.”

“No one told me!”

Qianzhencao’s wizard hat almost flew off, “Impossible, Lord Shion can’t be dating anyone! If she were to date, it should be Lady Bingtang, that’s the ship I support!”

Xingxuan looked baffled, “What are you talking about...”

Qianzhencao was despairing, “You know? If Lord Shion isn’t with Lady Bingtang but with someone else, that’s like Harry Potter not ending up with Hermione! It makes no sense!”

“Wait, wait, Shion and Bingtang are girls, they can only be friends.”

“Eternal friendship can surpass love! Still, Shion should be with Bingtang...”

Watching the sad Qianzhencao, Xingxuan shrugged, “Who’d understand what you’re saying?”

“It’s like Xiao Wu not with Bai San but marrying Wanrenyu.”

“What the—can’t accept that!”

Watching the two resonate, Jiang Si wondered if Bingtang had deliberately set this test for him,

to sit with two lunatics all the way? That would be hard.

Rational and able to separate reality and fiction, Jiang Si had always looked down on people who merged novels with real life.

To avoid being grouped with their foolishness, he kept silent.

“Weren’t you just saying you don’t read web novels much?”

Xingxuan suddenly remembered and asked Qianzhencao, “You’re super into them, right? Our Battle Demon Continent stories?”

Qianzhencao’s face didn’t change, but a faint coldness flickered in her pupils, “Know thy enemy and know thyself.”

“You said it was boring before?”

“I’ve read boring novels; this one is no worse.”

Jiang Si glanced up from the book in his hand at Qianzhencao.

Although smiling, Qianzhencao’s eyes contained a thin chill, “What’s up? Got a problem?”

Because he had once disliked Qianzhencao, Jiang Si had strictly forbidden other disciples from telling her his true identity,

so among the True-Transmission, she was the only one who still didn’t know he was a male in disguise.

“Shion said that.” Jiang Si said lightly. “She said she hates you. Don’t imitate her words.”

The little witch-dressed Qianzhencao immediately took off her shoes, curled up in her seat, leaned against the window, hugging her black-silk-clad legs,

eyes closed.

Even Jiang Si knew about that; perhaps the two had already crossed taboo lines.

Is our Bingtang completely hopeless now? Will the Bingtang-Qinghua alliance collapse?

That thought made Qianzhencao feel as defeated as if Harry Potter married Ginny in the end.

Xingxuan patted her shoulder, “See, web novels are the only things satisfying fans. Works far removed from readers only frustrate people. That’s why I don’t like Harry Potter—so much regret, what’s enjoyable about that...”

“Not always; sometimes regret is a work’s strength...”

“At a time like this you defend Harry Potter?”

Xingxuan muttered, then glanced at Jiang Si.

This trip to the Central Bureau was to choose three people for the Mental Landscape trial.

She wondered why the Sect Master sent her boyfriend and even assigned them to protect him.

Clearly Lord Shion valued her boyfriend highly.

The cold perfect face flashed through her mind as she glanced once more at Jiang Si.

Though the youth was somewhat handsome, honestly he didn’t seem a match for Shion...

No wonder Qianzhencao shut down.

“By the way, you’re the blueprint for Bai Family’s Third Sister’s master, right?” Xingxuan asked seriously, “Jiang Xiaosi.”

Jiang Si’s mouth twitched.

So he couldn’t avoid the reputation of a master after all?

Bai Mei, you traitor disciple...

But since she had recognized him, Jiang Si didn’t deny it and simply nodded.

“Oh, that’s me. Bai Mei’s theoretical knowledge was all guided by me.”

Xingxuan raised her coffee cup and nodded earnestly. “I see, so this trip to the Central Bureau isn’t Lord Shion’s direct order.”

“What do you mean?”

“Above the Central Bureau is the independent divine realm.” Xingxuan smiled confidently, “After Bai Family’s Third Sister ascends to divinity, she’ll surely bring you, Jiang Xiaosi, into the divine realm.”

“You’re sure that fits the original work?”

“Not written later, but I’m sure it’s how it goes.” Xingxuan patted her chest. “Our plot should now be entering the Elite Tournament of the Advanced Soul Master Academy; we must represent Slime Academy and win against Martial Soul Hall! My time to shine and join the Slime Seven!”

She looked at Jiang Si, “The later parts focus on me, so you probably don’t have much screen time, Jiang Xiaosi.”

Just as Xingxuan showed a regretful face, Jiang Si proudly smiled, took out the engagement document from his pocket,

and slapped it down on the table:

“Sorry, my storyline is arriving: the fallen genius who returns to cancel the engagement!”

Xingxuan’s pupils contracted as she stared at the engagement document.

Impossible—how could a boy without mana occupy the protagonist’s plot?

Wait, no mana, despised by herself—this is the fallen genius plot. Damn, I accidentally became an insignificant antagonist!

“You just looked down on me earlier, didn’t you?” Jiang Si sneered, his words striking her like a hammer, “You lost. Magical Girl Xingxuan, naturally taking on the roadside antagonist role means you’ll never be the protagonist!”

Xingxuan was hit hard and lowered her head in shame.

Xingxuan, after reading so much Battle Demon, still slacked here—how shameful to Bai Family’s Third Sister!

Thinking that, the blue Magical Girl took off her shoes, hugged her blue-stockinged calves, and curled into a ball of self-closure.

Nearby, Qianzhencao, who had been sulking, perked up when she heard “engagement.” Her ears twitched, and she climbed up to look at Jiang Si’s document. Her previously dim expression immediately brightened.

“That’s not an engagement contract!”

“No way.” Jiang Si frowned. “It’s authentic, given by official staff.”

“This paper.” Qianzhencao planted her left foot, clad in black over-knee socks, onto the table before Jiang Si, grabbed the document, flipped to the last page, and arrogantly pointed at the words, “Look here—it’s a marriage certificate!”

Jiang Si’s face changed. He snatched it back, checked carefully, and upon confirming, his expression soured.

“You brat, how dare you lie to me!”

His anger startled Qianzhencao so much she nearly slipped and did a split, almost kicking Jiang Si in the face.

Who would have expected this mana-less youth to be as intimidating as the Sect Master when angry!

Qianzhencao hastily withdrew her foot and curled up carefully.

For a moment no one dared ask why the marriage certificate’s names weren’t his and Lord Shion’s.

Xingxuan raised a hand, “Isn’t a marriage certificate the same as an engagement contract?”

“They’re not the same!”

“Anyway it ends with a broken engagement and a divorce paper thrown in the other’s face.” Xingxuan comforted, “It’s fine; swap it for a divorce certificate later. Though it adds a remarriage backstory—I don’t know if readers will accept that, but the plot still goes the same.”

Jiang Si calmed and, after thinking, carefully put away the marriage papers.

“You speak well; I was reckless.” He looked at Xingxuan with some appreciation, “Looks like your craft has deep roots.”

Battle Demon and Demon Breaks the Heavens are both classics; I’ve read them many times...

He praised Bingtang inwardly for recruiting such a disciple. Then he turned to the driver.

Although the driver had hidden well, Jiang Si had missed it at first,

but when he got angry,

a faint trace of corrupted magic power drifted by—something Jiang Si could not fail to notice.

When they reached a highway service area and saw the driver step out to refill the vehicle while staff walked over and he walked to smoke in the distance,

taking advantage of Qianzhencao and Xingxuan hugging their legs in self-closure, Jiang Si also got off and walked over to the driver.

The driver tilted his head in puzzlement when he saw him.

“Please return to your seats, guests...”

“Wait until Yin and Yang are reversed and in chaos.”

Hearing Jiang Si’s words, the driver froze, then lowered his voice, “With my demonic blood staining the azure sky?”

The driver asked in a hushed tone, “At the end of the demonic road, who stands at the peak?”

“One sees the demonic slayer and the path becomes empty.”

The driver excitedly exhaled a smoke ring and bumped Jiang Si’s shoulder.

“Bro, awesome.”

“Undercover and you even scored the Sect Master of Azure Cloud Sect!”