Something's off about this magical girl.

Chapter 61 Prayer of Hearts - Glory Community

Saturday arrived, and Gu Bai still met with them.

Tao Zhuo and Dong Chun both changed into casual clothes that were more relaxed than Qi Xin's high school uniform.

Tao Zhuo wore a beige knitted cardigan, the hem of which covered half of her thighs, making her look more like a well-behaved daughter than usual.

Dong Chun maintained her usual simple style, but changed her coat to a light gray thin sweater.

Perhaps it's because they're all white-haired?

From certain angles, Dongchun and Moxin do look quite similar.

Gu Bai stared at Dong Chun's figure for two seconds, then removed the thought from his mind.

Mo Xin's hair is a softer, slightly glossy silver-white, while Dong Chun's is a colder, almost snow-white.

It's definitely not the same person; I'm just being melodramatic out of boredom.

"Yay, thank goodness the teacher came! I only saw later that the photo requirement was for at least two magical girls together, plus a photographer!"

Tao Zhuo excitedly ran up to Gu Bai, put her hands on her hips, and said, then asked Dong Chun to hand the camera to Gu Bai: "Please, the photos need to be realistic, but not too realistic. It's best to maintain a 'beautiful and warm' atmosphere!"

Is it a human demand?

Gu Bai took the camera that was handed to him, and couldn't help but mutter a complaint in his heart.

"Generally speaking, for the first visit, Qixin will arrange a rather special magical girl," Fuyutsubaki added from the side.

"Oh, I get it, you mean a very rich magical girl who lives a very comfortable life, right!"

"..." Dongchun didn't reply, but instead shifted her gaze to the path beside her.

Tao Zhuo paused for two seconds in silence, then blinked: "Huh? Wait, what does that expression mean, Dong-meimei?"

"Anyway, let's go. Our first visit should be to the three magical girls, right?" Fuyutsubaki had already started walking.

Tao Zhu picked up the prepared fruit and followed, muttering, "No, no, Dong-meimei, answer me..."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Arrive at your destination.

The entrance is blocked by railings, and a small sign hangs to the side that reads "Qixin Rongguang Community".

Below is a smaller line of text: This community provides long-term housing for retired magical girls. Unauthorized visitors and media are not permitted to enter.

Helpless, Tao Zhuo went to the gatekeeper and took out the registration form she had prepared. The gatekeeper used his magic to confirm it and then waved for her to pass.

First up is Courtyard No. 1!

Located near the entrance to this community, it appears to have been deliberately chosen as a "front" location.

There was an osmanthus tree in the courtyard. The flowering season seemed to have passed. A few withered golden fragments were scattered at the base of the tree, stuck to the wall by the wind.

As expected of a magical girl's room, it's so luxurious!

Tao Zhuo stepped forward and knocked on the door.

"Who is it? Coming—!"

The voice was much younger than Gu Bai had expected.

The woman who opened the door had short chestnut hair and was wearing a cartoon sweatshirt with a Q-version co-branded design by Qixin. She acted like an "elder" and ushered the three of them inside. Her enthusiasm was in stark contrast to the mailbox at the door that was overflowing with forms and couldn't be closed. Wasn't she going to clean up the clutter outside?

Gu Bai followed him into the house without making a sound.

There were more than a dozen collaboration figurines on the coffee table, half-opened limited edition card packs scattered on the sofa, and a special-grade statue of "Heart Magical Girl" in the corner of the TV cabinet that was still unopened and priced at five figures.

"These are all treasures here, senior!"

"Sigh, when I was young, I was running around disaster-stricken areas every day, I didn't have time to deal with these things. Now that I'm retired, I'm just making up for my childhood."

The woman smiled as she brought over the tea.

Routine interviews. Questions.

Dongchun didn't say a word the whole time, while Taozhuo was a little annoyed that Dongchun was so cold today.

Fortunately, everything went smoothly until the final photo session. The other person, as expected of a former magical girl, was very cooperative, knew how to pose, knew which angles were best for the camera, and knew how to show the most natural smile when the flash went off.

Gu Bai nodded finally, put down the camera, and announced the end of the first interview.

"Little Peach."

Before leaving, the woman who had accepted the fruit offered as a token of appreciation leaned forward and said, "I have a favor to ask you. I'm a little short on cash this month. Could you lend me some? I'll pay you back next week, okay?"

Tao Zhuo paused for a second, but the other party immediately followed up with, "It's only five thousand yuan. You've reached five stars, and you've already received your signing bonus, right? You think I'm easy to get along with, so please lend me some."

"I'll return it to you next week—"

Dongchun didn't say anything and silently backed away.

Tao Zhu swallowed hard. She had heard these lines online before, but this was the first time she had encountered them in real life...

"Senior, I don't have much money. Is a thousand yuan okay? You know, An Yu's supplements are going up in price every day—"

"—That's enough! Of course it's enough! I'll return it to you next week!"

The woman brought up the payment interface, but Tao Zhuo noticed that the interface displayed another magical girl. She felt a little strange, but in the end, she still paid the money.

He took his leave and closed the door.

In the next instant, the door was locked from the inside.

—Click.

It's the sound of an electronic device screen lighting up.

Tao Zhuo frowned; she had a bad feeling.

Immediately afterwards, the background music for the latest rerun of the "Prayer for Souls" gacha pool started playing rapidly inside the door, accompanied by ten consecutive gacha sound effects at a very fast pace.

"Qixin is so kind! They sent someone to deliver money to me again. A few more rounds, and I'll be able to ship the goods soon!"

Upon hearing this, Tao Zhuo's smile slowly froze.

Gu Bai then shifted his gaze back to the mailbox beside the courtyard, this time clearly seeing the sheet at the top that had been blown about by the wind—

[Qixin Consumer Finance Bureau - Seventh Collection Notice - Overdue Amount: 284,627 RMB. Please contact this bureau within seven days. Failure to do so will affect your Qixin Credit Score and all future related rights!!!]

Tao Zhuo saw it too, and she slowly turned her head to look at Dong Chun: "Dong Chun, did you know?"

"I still have five thousand dollars with her." Fuyuchun nodded, confirming, "The first magical girl to receive the first condolence visit is always this one."

"..."

Tao Zhuo didn't say anything, opened her phone, and quietly swiped the notification message about the 1,000 yuan deduction from her notification bar.

It's true, people's hearts are treacherous.

After a long while, Tao Zhuo let out a breath, suppressing this experience from her chest, and put on a smile again:

"Yes, Qi Xin is reminding us to control our impulses and not waste money on meaningless gacha pulls. I'll remember that, but things always need to be compared!"

"Let's go! I'm confident that the magical girl we'll be assigned to the [Fourth Academy] will be an outstanding and successful magical girl!"

四？

Gu Bai mentally considered the number, but said nothing. He just felt that the second half of this filming trip might not be peaceful.

I hope it's just my imagination...