A sudden downpour {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} blanketed the city.
The heavy rain dimmed the campus streetlights, making the night even darker. Corners that were previously somewhat visible were now as dark as ink, and the few students left scattered quickly, leaving the pathways deserted and cold.
Lily, blushing slightly, clutched several packs of sanitary pads as she approached the supermarket counter, nervously standing in front of the cashier.
“Ch-checkout, please.”
Though she was a succubus and quite familiar with various playful antics in private, she still felt an intense sense of embarrassment when it came to buying sanitary pads.
The sound of the rain pouring outside caught her attention. She turned her head toward the supermarket entrance, watching the raindrops splatter on the ground, intensifying the night’s deep shadows. Ning Chu’s warnings suddenly echoed in her mind.
A crazed killer? A tentacle monster?
Honestly, she didn’t believe any of it.
But... she was afraid of the dark. She was beginning to regret going out at night.
“The rain suddenly got so heavy,” said the cashier, a student working part-time, with a hint of complaint. “Can’t believe it’s pouring like this in spring!”
“Yeah.” Lily took the sanitary pads, now in a black bag, and stood under the supermarket’s awning, umbrella in hand, hesitating and unsure.
Could there really be a tentacle monster?
She looked nervously at the dark corners around her, her legs pressed tightly together, and her arms folded instinctively across her chest.
A small, inexplicable thrill bubbled up inside her...
But Lily quickly shook off that feeling. She might be shameless, but she wasn’t stupid.
The tentacle monsters in those explicit comics were already grossly intense—if she encountered one in real life, she’d probably lose her sanity on the spot.
“Ridiculous... it’s ridiculous,” she mumbled to herself several times before finally stepping out into the rain.
...
It was only a little past nine, and the buses were still running.
Ning Chu clung tightly to Wen Yang’s arm, resting her head on her boyfriend’s shoulder, nervously staring out the bus window at the night outside.
If she could avoid it, she’d never want to face a tentacle monster head-on!
She was already a main character—she didn’t want to be turned into a breeding ground for tentacle monsters!
But since this creature was her creation in the first place... even though she didn’t see herself as particularly responsible, the thought that many innocent girls might fall victim to this tentacle monster gnawed at her, filling her with uncontainable guilt.
Meanwhile, Wen Yang, who was usually scared of ghosts and monsters, was surprisingly calm. He wore his usual gentle smile, his hand warmly wrapped around Ning Chu’s, trying to pass some sense of security to her.
With Wen Yang here, and the magical girl patrolling, there shouldn’t be anything to worry about.
From the back of the bus, Qian Qian stood up, leaning on the back of their seat and peering down at them. “Don’t worry~ Newly summoned demons are super weak—weak enough that you could stomp them to death with one foot. Otherwise, they wouldn’t need to possess humans.”
“Oh, your horns are so cute! Can I touch them?” Her gaze was drawn to the small horns curving back from the sides of Ning Chu’s head, her hand itching to reach out.
“The tips are fine... just don’t touch further down.”
Hearing Qian Qian’s reassurance, Ning Chu relaxed a bit, feeling the gentle touch on her horns. “So, how long until the demon starts causing trouble?”
“A year, maybe? And the contract for that demon hasn’t found a host yet. We don’t even know where it is.”
So, it would be a whole year until the “tentacle side-story” in the book’s plot happened?
“Then... why are you both in such a rush?”
Ning Chu sighed in relief, finally allowing a smile to break across her tense face.
Xiao Hei, the black cat, jumped onto Qian Qian’s shoulder and rolled his eyes at her. “Didn’t you drag us out here in the first place?”
“Still, since we’re here, Qian Qian and I will do a full sweep of the school tonight! With the rain this heavy, the demon might not find a suitable host right away!”
“Plus, we could recruit a worthy girl to sign a contract~ Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?” Xiao Hei tried to tempt Ning Chu with a bewitching tone. “You’d get one simple wish, a strong body, and the power to wield magic as you please~”
Ning Chu paused, her gaze flickering.
If she really became a magical girl... then if Wen Yang got carried away again, she could just transform when she felt faint and drain him dry in return...
But then, she imagined the consequences of failing in battle against the tentacle monster, and her face turned pale.
“No way, absolutely not!”
She rejected the offer firmly once more.
If she didn’t know that demons were all tentacle monsters, she might have been like Qian Qian back then, naïvely persuaded by Xiao Hei’s manipulations and foolishly agreed out of a sense of justice.
“Ning Chu, why don’t you head back?” Wen Yang suggested. “It’s pouring out. Don’t get yourself soaked and catch a cold.”
“I...”
“Both of you just go! Don’t get in the way!”
Ning Chu glanced back at Qian Qian, noticing her flushed cheeks, and immediately understood the magical girl’s intentions.
It seemed she planned to wear her... provocative battle attire to use her magic to track down the newly descended tentacle monster.
So Ning Chu would definitely be in the way. Plus, she didn’t want Wen Yang seeing Qian Qian dressed like that.
“Then I’ll go to Lily’s dorm for a bit and wait for you there. Shall we meet up after?”
“Sure~ What’s your number?”
After exchanging contact information, the bus came to a stop.
As they got off, Ning Chu noticed that the heavy rain had turned into a light drizzle.
It looked like the downpour was part of the tentacle monster’s summoning ritual?
She wondered if there had also been a rainstorm when she crossed over to this world.
“Maybe I’ll check on my dorm, too,” Wen Yang said as he stepped off the bus and smiled at her. “It’s been a while since I’ve been back. I’ll walk you to the girls’ dorm first.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t worry too much. We’ve got a year,” he reassured her, glancing at Qian Qian, who was already heading toward the school gate. “And with two magical girls this time instead of one, they should be able to handle it easily by then.”
Ning Chu muttered, “It just feels so uncomfortable, knowing a tentacle monster is lurking around campus.”
She instinctively tucked herself under Wen Yang’s umbrella, wrapping her arms around his.
“Let’s hope Qian Qian finds it. And I wonder which poor sap will get conned by that black cat.”
The magical girl’s power came from the tentacle monster, and if it reached peak condition, the magical girl didn’t seem like she’d be able to win...
So, am I actually really strong? I just haven’t tapped into my hidden power?
Ning Chu looked down at her soft, pale hands, bewildered.
Superman! Kamen Rider! Armored Warrior! Ultraman!
Her inner child burned brightly as she fantasized about defeating monsters and being admired by all the girls she saved.
When they reached the girls’ dorm, she let go of her childish fantasy and said goodbye to Wen Yang.
“Call me when you’re heading back!”
“Will do.”
With a wave, Ning Chu dashed into the dorm, heading straight for Lily’s room. Without hesitation, she pushed the door open.
Inside, she found three girls squatting on the floor in a circle, looking up at her in unison.
“What... are you guys doing?”
Ning Chu froze at the doorway, her face full of confusion.
