Magical Girl Heavy Dependence

Chapter 70, The Book of Homura

The black cat is grooming itself.

It licks from the back down to the belly, and finally spreads its legs, revealing the vital parts that were previously hidden by its tail.

Just then, Yan Nian, who was pacing anxiously back and forth, happened to look over. The black cat casually stretched out its legs and gestured with its eyes, as if asking, "Want to come and lick me?"

The gazes of the human and the cat met in the air.

"No...no need."

Yan Nian ultimately couldn't bring himself to do it.

He had no choice but to turn his attention back to the surveillance footage. In the video, Cheng Chen and his group walked out of the lobby of the Donglin Hotel, where they were picked up by a black van from Yinfu Entertainment.

After a moment of hesitation, Yan Nian finally spoke up: "Master, I don't understand. Why don't you meet with him in person?"

He personally saw Cheng Chen and the others off not long ago.

After the battle ended, they opened a path to the outside world, allowing the survivors to leave the damaged barrier.

His platitudes were rather uninspired, but in short, in the name of "Master of Asura" Yi Shou, he guaranteed that he would provide some form of compensation to everyone.

Incidentally, Yi Shou is the true contractor of Black Cat, but Yan Nian has never met him. For many years, he has been handling Black Cat's business behind the scenes.

Like other participants in the trade fair, Cheng Chen exchanged a few polite words and then left with his magical girls.

"There's no need for that. He already knows what he needs to know during what just happened."

The black cat had no interest in meeting Cheng Chen and started licking his butt.

"You know...?" Yan Nian was taken aback. "Know what?"

"Order records." Black Cat said intently, "Grey Elk contacted us not just to set up this scheme for the evil master, but also because they used our channels to trade and buy things, all of which are recorded on the remnants."

"When!?"

Yan Nian's eyes widened. Gray Elk had indeed ordered a lot of goods, which was part of the other part of their transaction.

It should have been kept secret, but Black Cat somehow placed the order record on Yu Nie, so that Cheng Chen could get it directly after defeating the latter.

"Master, what...what are we supposed to do?"

He was completely baffled. As an executor working for Black Cat, he had always been very good at understanding Black Cat's thoughts.

"trade."

The black cat, satisfied with its licking, climbed onto Yan Nian's shoulder and licked his face.

For a cat, licking its subordinates' fur is a form of pampering, and Yan Nian should respectfully enjoy it, and then become even more loyal.

"I think 'Sakura' is no longer a magical girl, but a demon." It explained casually while licking its lips, "Six years ago in Yin City, 'Evil Lord' wasn't the only one showing signs of abnormality."

Yan Nian's cheeks were wet, and he didn't know what expression to make.

"Everyone thought that six years ago, 'Hiyō' was only twenty years old and had not yet reached the age for magical girls to 'graduate', so they overlooked her and thought she was just a genius who made a breakthrough in the field of special magic."

The black cat leaped to the ground, raised its tail, and looked up at the surveillance video in front of it.

"And I believe that her 'graduation' came early. Before the evil master disappeared, her 'will' had already faded, and she had become an ordinary person again."

A magical girl's career has a six-year limit. If Hio becomes a magical girl at a relatively young age, her "Wish" might indeed fade prematurely. Twenty-two years old is just the final deadline.

"No one knows what happened between her 'graduation' and her rebirth, but perhaps she made a contract with some calamity beast to regain her magic power," the black cat said calmly.

Yan Nian shook his head decisively: "That's impossible."

The black cat turned to look at him: "Why?"

"Magical girls cannot form contracts with calamity beasts. This has been proven long ago, and it is impossible even for magical girls whose [Wish] has faded." Yan Nian replied immediately. As a demon lord who has lived for over four hundred years, he was very certain of his words.

"Logically speaking, that is indeed the case."

The black cat said in a calm tone, "However, in the ancient times when magic first appeared, the monsters were actually magical girls' partners. We are envoys from a true magical kingdom, who voluntarily signed contracts with girls with suitable talents to grant them power."

"How is that possible!?"

Yan Nian was so shocked that he couldn't speak.

"The Homura Book, a magical girl's travelogue believed to be fictional, records the adventures of the magical girl Madoka Homura and her companions." The black cat smiled, quite satisfied with his expression.

Yan Nian hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Do you believe in this book?"

The black cat shook its head, not answering directly, but instead said, "Why must it be a girl? When did the calamity beasts and magical girls become enemies? And how did the [Heart of Wishes] appear and replace our contract?"

"..."

Yan Nian hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.

"We don't have the ability to make contracts with magical girls now, not even with 'Holy Spirits'." The black cat glanced at him. "But if it's an existence that escaped from the Great Seal, it may have lived in ancient times and still retains the abilities that only ancient calamity beasts possess."

"So, I'm very curious about 'Hiyō'. I've wanted to meet her for the past six years."

The black cat turned back and saw a gray delivery box not far away; that was its cat bed.

"Why does the Evil Lord know 'Scarlet Cherry'? They were once mortal enemies; when did they reconcile their hatred? When Gray Deer cooperated with the 'Bee Phoenix's' contractor to dismantle the Sound Palace Entertainment, why did the Evil Lord return to help her?"

Yan Nian stopped in his tracks. "What do you mean?"

"The evil master himself is not the point."

The black cat didn't look back. "His relationship with Hiyori is the key."

……

The midnight air was still.

The internet cafe lobby was brightly lit, filled with the smell of instant noodles and the clatter of keyboards.

"Very strong?"

A man in a suit sat in a gaming chair, but didn't turn on his computer; he simply crossed his arms and looked at the person next to him.

The other man next to him, slurping his instant noodles, had an oily face and stared intently at the screen in front of him.

In the scene, a burst of intense light erupted, making his features appear deathly pale.

"Much stronger than expected, I'm probably no match for them."

The man in the suit was somewhat annoyed, his voice turning colder: "You sent my most capable subordinate to his death, and this is the only conclusion you've reached? Glory, sir?"

"Ah Hui, thank you. What's with all that stuff? It sounds so embarrassing, I'm curling my toes up."

Ahui pressed the spacebar to pause, leaned back, and sank completely into the middle of the chair.

"The Holy Embryo strengthened your precious subordinate, allowing him to use the forbidden magic 'The Fallen Lord of the White Night,' but I couldn't even force him to use his full power. Moreover, even the little trick I left on the remnants was seen through."

He pointed to the compass next to the mousepad, which was spinning wildly as if it were broken.

"I originally planned to plant a small eavesdropping spell when he lowered his guard, but it seems like I was just being presumptuous."

"What about the other task?" the man in the suit asked in a deep voice.

"A large part of the success was achieved."

Ahui turned his head, and a series of pure white light spots suddenly appeared in his hand.

"The soul essence extracted from the demons and magical girls within the barrier is enough to revive the 'Holy Embryo' to the next stage before it begins."

"Not nearly enough."

The man in the suit pointed it out without any mercy.

Ah Hui barely managed to suppress a laugh and nodded repeatedly: "That's right, that's right. Aren't there other channels for ordering 'goods'? If we put them together, it should be about the same."

Upon hearing this assurance, the man in the suit stood up and straightened his collar.

"The evil master has been confirmed to possess strength beyond the normal fifth rank. You should behave yourself for now and stop provoking him."

"Finally found an opportunity to report to your boss and claim credit?"

Ah Hui joked, "When the big boss is in a good mood and gives you a bonus, remember to share half with me."

The man in the suit gave him a cold glance.

"I'll send someone new to you," he said. "Hopefully, you can produce satisfactory results before you wear down my patience."

After saying that, he turned and walked out of the internet cafe without looking back.

"Reconnect with the glorious Lord."

"May you rest in peace."

Ahui waved weakly, then turned his gaze back to the image frozen on the screen. For some reason, a pleasant smile appeared on his lips.

"That's not enough."

He muttered to himself, "Please do one more good for me, evil Lord."

……