Meanwhile, on the other side, Cipher rested a delicate hand against her forehead, her gaze lazily sweeping across the brilliant rainbow stretching across the sky.
"My Aglaea, is the Little Princess giving up on being human altogether? The battle's barely started, and she's already opening with her ultimate?"
Cipher gently shook her head before slowly shifting her gaze elsewhere.
The situation on her side had already been resolved in no time at all.
Looking around, the condition of the three men could only be described as miserable.
One was embedded in a wall, barely breathing.
Another had half his body buried deep in the ground, completely unable to move.
The last hung upside down from a tree branch, all traces of his earlier arrogance long gone.
At Cipher's feet sat a massive red-and-blue magnet, quietly covered with confiscated handguns, knives, and all sorts of other lethal weapons taken from the men.
In short, the entire scene could be summed up in a single word:
Wrecked.
There were even a few wallets and bank cards firmly stuck to the magnet. As for why that happened, even Cipher herself had no idea.
"Well... you won't be needing these anymore, so I'll kindly keep them safe for you."
With that, Cipher naturally pocketed the wallets and other valuables before heading off to witness the Magical Girl's fighting style.
...
At the center of the other battlefield.
The Magical Girl, dressed in her blue battle skirt, stood openly in the middle of the road, facing a street that had been nearly incinerated.
Looking at the deserted surroundings, she pursed her lips as a mischievous smile spread across her face.
Without even using her psionic energy to search, she simply raised her head slightly and softly called out,
"Little Hong."
The moment she spoke, a distinctive female voice emerged clearly from the Magic Wand.
It carried both the pure sweetness of a young girl and the cold precision of a mechanical voice—a strange fusion that created an exceptionally recognizable onee-san tone.
[I am here, Fantasy. How may I assist you?]
This was the artificial intelligence program Silver Wolf had thoughtfully designed for the user.
Its sole purpose was to provide combat support for a trash-tier user.
Meng Xingyao's gaze immediately sharpened as she gave her command.
"Lock onto the positions of the two hiding in the shadows."
[Understood. Beginning analysis immediately.]
The instant those words fell, the blue gemstone at the tip of the Magic Wand lit up, flickering like an awakening star.
An invisible ripple spread outward from the gemstone.
Everywhere it passed—the patterns etched into the ground, the psionic fluctuations in the air, even the faint breathing concealed behind the ruins—was captured with pinpoint accuracy.
[Targets successfully locked.]
"Operation Plan Two, execute immediately!"
[Understood.]
At that very moment, two figures suddenly rushed out from opposite sides.
[Warning—]
The command and the analysis all happened within the span of a heartbeat.
Without needing xiao hong's reminder, Meng Xingyao had already sensed the faint tremor beneath her feet.
Her eyes narrowed.
With a powerful push from her legs, she instantly leaped several meters into the air, her blue dress fluttering gracefully behind her.
The moment she left the ground, several familiar Rock Spikes erupted violently from beneath her feet, densely piercing the exact spot where she had just been standing.
Had it been an ordinary person, they would have been turned into a pincushion before they could even react.
Meng Xingyao then hovered steadily in mid-air.
The three people below stared at her in stunned silence, their jaws practically dropping to the ground.
Fortunately, the Magical Girl's battle suit came with the Absolute Territory enhancement.
At this moment, the three attackers were completely bewildered.
Countless questions exploded inside their minds.
Who exactly was this girl?
What kind of Special Ability did she possess?
She could fire a rainbow cannon powerful enough to level an entire street.
Now she could even hover in mid-air.
Not to mention that strange detection ripple from earlier...
Could this seemingly innocent girl actually be a First-Level Esper?!
The two remaining attackers instantly lost all desire to continue fighting.
Although they couldn't be certain, the girl before them was at the very least a Second-Level Esper—and might even be a First-Level Esper.
If that were true...
They stood absolutely no chance.
Hovering high in the air, Meng Xingyao quickly noticed their intentions.
With Little Hong's comprehensive analysis and support, she could clearly sense the two figures desperately trying to flee the battlefield.
As for the three extra figures below...
Cipher (⌐■_■): "Clones? And they're staying very close to the original."
Watching from a nearby rooftop, Cipher casually nodded, becoming curious about what the Little Princess would do next.
A confident smile appeared on Meng Xingyao's lips as xiao hong spoke once more.
[Preparation complete. Ready for activation at any time.]
"Good. Floating Turrets, construct!"
The instant the words left her mouth, the air surrounding Meng Xingyao rippled.
Countless dazzling colored particles materialized from thin air, spinning, assembling, and reconstructing themselves at visible speed as though guided by invisible hands.
In the blink of an eye, four Floating Turrets with sleek futuristic aesthetics had formed, hovering steadily around her.
Each turret featured a streamlined barrel less than half a meter long and roughly the width of a bowl.
Their bodies were primarily cool blue and white, with small blue gemstones embedded near the muzzle and faint blue energy exhaust glowing at the rear.
Seeing this, the three clones below immediately raised their weapons and opened fire from three different directions.
Meng Xingyao ignored the decoys entirely and flew straight toward the direction in which the two real enemies were escaping.
As for the incoming bullets...
[Danger—]
[Defense Formation.]
The three Floating Turrets instantly seemed to come alive.
They shifted behind Meng Xingyao in perfect unison, rapidly arranging themselves into an equilateral triangle.
The energy ports at both the front and rear connected together.
Pale blue energy beams instantly lit up.
As the turrets slowly drifted apart, the beams stretched and solidified, ultimately forming a semi-transparent blue triangular barrier.
When the bullets whistled toward her, the barrier effortlessly intercepted every single shot without so much as the slightest ripple.
Blue light flared from the muzzle of the final Floating Turret as its energy instantly reached maximum output.
[Fire!!!]
Three energy beams shot out almost simultaneously, accurately piercing through the three clones.
Thud— Thud— Thud—
Without offering even the slightest resistance, the three clones collapsed like popped balloons, losing all signs of movement.
Meng Xingyao didn't spare them another glance.
Her entire focus remained fixed on chasing the two fleeing enemies.
Within moments, she caught up to one of them.
Sensing movement behind him, the man instinctively looked back.
The instant he saw Meng Xingyao, his face turned deathly pale.
His hand froze halfway through raising his pistol.
Seeing this, the tip of Meng Xingyao's Magic Wand glowed as a blue magic bullet instantly formed.
"Take my Fissure Light Bullet!"
The magic bullet shot straight toward the man's face.
His pupils shrank as the blue light exploded directly in front of him.
Bang!
A blinding white flash instantly engulfed his vision.
The searing brilliance stabbed into his eyes like countless burning needles.
He let out a miserable scream, instinctively covering his eyes.
All he could see was an endless expanse of white.
Not a trace of light remained.
What the hell?! It's actually a flashbang?!
While the man stumbled about in confusion, Meng Xingyao had already silently appeared right in front of him.
She clenched her fist.
A cluster of rainbow-colored light instantly gathered around it, interwoven with countless tiny twinkling specks.
"Magical Girl Punch!!!"
Before the final syllable had even fallen, her small pink fist cut through the air with a sharp whistle and slammed squarely into the man's chest.
Thud!
The man felt as though he'd been struck head-on by a speeding truck.
His body flew backward like a kite with its string cut, smashing through three or four tree trunks before crashing heavily onto the ground.
His eyes rolled back as he lost consciousness instantly.