Chapter Twenty-One: You all heard it; he said it himself.

The Saturday make-up classes for the second-year students at No. 4 High School are, in fact, against the regulations.

Several years ago, there were reports filed with the Education Bureau, but the principal possesses enough influence and connections in high places. Even when a reporter once came specifically on a Saturday to film the situation—nearly making it onto the news—the matter was ultimately suppressed. To this day, the tradition of Saturday classes persists.

In reality, from many perspectives, Saturday classes are not necessarily a bad thing. The students learn for an extra day and can achieve better exam results, the teachers receive additional pay, and the school improves its college entrance rates; it is a win-win-win situation. However, for the students, having only one day of rest per week is, after all, a bit too difficult to endure.

Yin Lian herself does not attend these Saturday classes. As a magical girl for the Disaster Strategy Bureau, whenever a disaster beast appears, the Bureau handles her leave of absence directly. Naturally, only the principal is aware of this arrangement. Furthermore, the Bureau has the capability to predict the appearance of disaster beasts, so they request leave in advance. Under normal circumstances, the magical girl does not wait for a beast to appear before deploying; rather, she is already on the scene when the beast emerges, keeping damage to a minimum. This also prevents people from deducing who the magical girl is based on someone being absent whenever a beast appears.

Of course, even if someone were to guess, it would not matter. The Disaster Strategy Bureau has a final resort: directly wiping memories with magic. As long as the magical girl does not wish to be exposed, the Bureau has plenty of methods to help her conceal her identity. Unless it is a magical girl like Feng Xinzi, who voluntarily went public, ordinary people would never know who the magical girls are.

There are, however, exceptions. Like Yin Lian, who, due to special circumstances, was forced to transform in front of an acquaintance...

Yin Lian had intended to rest properly this Saturday. After all, her battle against the Firebird disaster beast, followed by being knocked out of her transformation state by Zi Yuan, had clearly taken a significant toll on her body. The doctors at the Disaster Strategy Bureau had advised her to get plenty of rest. But Yin Lian felt she was no longer injured, and being unable to sit still at home, she came to school anyway. In truth, sitting in the classroom listening to lectures did not feel tiring to her at all.

When the first period ended, she leaned against the window and saw Jiang Si being lectured by a teacher outside. Being a full period late—you really couldn't blame the teacher for losing his temper.

Coco’s older brother has a rather delicate, refined appearance. If he wore glasses, he would be the quintessential scholarly bookworm. Yet, the expression in his eyes contrasts too sharply with his features. It wouldn't be accurate to call them cold—in fact, when his pupils shift, they occasionally hold a hint of warmth. It wouldn't be accurate to call them vacant, either; it isn't the dullness of someone lacking thought.

A detached indifference might be an appropriate description, but in reality, Jiang Si lacks that haughty, self-important air. He seems more like someone who simply doesn't care; indifferent to the development of surrounding events, he focuses only on his own affairs. Yin Lian sometimes thinks of her own older sister. Although Yin Luo isn't quite so extreme, she becomes much the same way when she is focused on her own tasks. Very mature, very cool.

Yin Lian has always admired this state, as she herself is someone who gets distracted extremely easily, finds it hard to focus, and is always unconsciously concerned with her surroundings, constantly reacting to them. It is precisely because of this similarity between her sister and Jiang Si that Yin Lian felt from the start that Coco had likely misunderstood her brother. They aren't truly cold or indifferent to their surroundings; they simply exhibit that demeanor because they have things they must do. Once those tasks are finished, they return to normal. She used to have conflicts with her sister over this, but once her sister finished her work, she would become gentle and reliable again, taking the initiative to apologize. She hopes Coco and her brother can clear up their misunderstandings and get along well soon.

"Li Yi, the teacher is calling for you."

A classmate shouted from outside. Yin Lian responded, "Got it," and stood up to head out.

"Jiang Si! Get your butt to the office!"

On the other side, Jiang Si’s teacher, perhaps not having finished venting or not having had his fill of yelling in the hallway, bellowed at Jiang Si to go to the office. Yin Lian actually knows that this type of teacher doesn't truly have the best interests of the students at heart. There aren't that many good teachers in the world. This teacher is simply furious because his authority has been challenged by a student, and Jiang Si’s tendency to display a look of indifference is like dancing on a landmine for a teacher so obsessed with his own dignity. That is why, every time Jiang Si is scolded, he is dragged to the office, where the teacher can get physical. She has seen the teacher throw books at Jiang Si; it is truly excessive.

"Li Yi, be careful," a classmate whispered as she left the classroom. "Stay away from that delinquent Jiang Si. Don't get dragged into his mess. When Teacher Zhang gets worked up, he'll yell at anyone he can get his hands on. He's terrifying. Jiang Si really is something, having to provoke him like that..."

Yin Lian laughed and said, "That sounds like a problem with the teacher, not Jiang Si."

"People say that, but..."

"Don't worry, the teacher wouldn't dare yell at me."

Because her grades are excellent—top three in the grade—and her several leaves of absence were personally approved by the principal, these teachers all know that Yin Lian has powerful connections.

When she stepped out of the classroom, she intentionally walked over to Jiang Si’s side. Teacher Zhang, who had been ready to keep yelling, saw Yin Lian and immediately swallowed his words, only muttering, "What are you doing here?"

Yin Lian just smiled politely and said, "Teacher Fang asked me to go to the office, Teacher Zhang."

"Don't walk with Jiang Si."

"Teacher, the hallway is so narrow, and there is more space on Jiang Si's side."

Seeing Teacher Zhang fall silent, she lowered her head and whispered, "Don't be afraid. With me by your side, he won't dare to yell."

Jiang Si glanced at the little girl. Because he is such a thorn in the side, Teacher Zhang basically misses out on bonuses and has no chance at any awards, which is why he is so easily angered. This trouble-making from Teacher Zhang hadn't been going on for just a day or two, and Jiang Si was long accustomed to it. He would take the lukewarm scolding, and occasionally the physical abuse, but it was basically like being scratched; Jiang Si couldn't be bothered to pay attention. After all, no matter how angry the teacher was, once the bell for the next period rang, he wouldn't dare detain a student in the office. Jiang Si didn't spend much time at school anyway, and he was caught even less. Being lectured a few times didn't hurt.

Yin Lian’s meddling, however, only served to accumulate more of the teacher's rage. Sure enough, once they reached the office, the teacher grabbed him, shut the door, and kicked his calf. "Squat over there. With a student like you, why even bother coming to class?"

Yin Lian, who had been heading toward Teacher Fang's desk, immediately blocked Jiang Si, her pretty face flushed with anger. "How can you kick a student! No. 4 High School does not advocate corporal punishment!"

"What does it have to do with you if I kick a student?" Teacher Zhang, clearly losing his temper, glared at her. "You're just a kid, what do you know? Move aside!"

"He was only late! Why are you kicking him? How can you call yourself a good teacher?"

"Whether I'm a good teacher or not isn't for a child like you to say..."

Teacher Fang, who had been drinking tea at his desk, immediately set down his cup and trotted over, pulling Yin Lian aside. "Hey, hey, Li Yi, come here, come here. Why are you arguing with the teacher? And you, Old Zhang, what are you doing, baring your teeth at my student? I’m warning you, this is a student from my class; don't take your frustrations with your own students out on mine."

Yin Lian shook off her teacher's hand, walked over to Jiang Si, and squatted down beside him. "If Jiang Si isn't leaving, I'm not leaving either."

Teacher Fang looked both amused and exasperated. "I asked you to come over to pick up the homework assignments, and now you’re going to linger here? Old Zhang..."

"If she wants to squat, let her squat," Teacher Zhang said, picking up his water glass and grinding his teeth. "Let him go back when class starts."

"Fine, fine." Teacher Fang gestured at him, then at his own student, and walked back to the desk to gather the notebooks. "I'll deliver them myself, how's that?"

"Hmph, Teacher Fang is a coward. He's most afraid of trouble."

Squatting next to Jiang Si, Yin Lian whispered, "But he's not a bad person, and he's very good to me because I study well."

They are all colleagues who see each other every day; if they burn bridges, it makes work inconvenient. They are all adults—who would cause trouble for their own jobs over such a trivial matter? The "old fox" had defended his student while avoiding provoking the short-tempered Teacher Zhang—it could be considered the best way to handle it. And even though Teacher Zhang was furious, he had taken the out provided to him, saying he would let the boy go once class started.

But explaining this to a "pure" magical girl probably didn't mean much. The label of "childish" is only applied when one's abilities aren't enough to overturn the world. When someone like a magical girl, whose abilities are outstanding, exists, they receive a different set of evaluations: maverick, eccentric. So, as long as one has enough ability, one doesn't have to change to adapt to society; society will change to adapt to her. The so-called "Great Path of Self-Reliance" on the road of cultivation is the same. The Great Path follows me, not I the Great Path.

"I'm sorry."

"Even if you hadn't stepped in, Teacher Zhang would have had the same attitude."

Yin Lian paused, then let out a small, stealthy laugh, careful not to be heard while Teacher Zhang was still in a rage. "No, that's not what I meant. I meant for lying to you before about not being a magical girl. I'm sorry."

Jiang Si had almost forgotten that Yin Lian had hidden her identity from him at the beginning. It wasn't until they met at the Disaster Strategy Bureau and she was forced to transform to fight a beast that it was exposed. Because he had known Yin Lian was a magical girl from the start, he hadn't even remembered that she had lied to him.

"It's nothing. Magical girls have to hide their identities anyway." After thinking about it, Jiang Si asked, "Do you need to wipe my memory, Yin Lian?"

"Huh? No, no, it's not like that. It's only a problem if a stranger finds out, which is why we wipe memories," Yin Lian said as if it were obvious. "Jiang Si isn't a stranger, and you're Coco's brother—you're practically the family of a comrade-in-arms. My own family hasn't had their memories wiped; they all know I'm a magical girl. As long as you don't go around shouting it, it's fine."

"Oh."

Actually, even if he did shout it, they could always use memory-wiping magic as a fallback, so it didn't really matter.

"Also, my name is Li Yi. Yin Lian is just my magical girl codename..."

"Isn't your sister named Yin Luo?"

"We chose our codenames together. Back then, my sister wanted to become a magical girl with me, but unfortunately, she didn't succeed... Uh, getting off track, sorry." Yin Lian returned to the topic. "I wanted to apologize to you that day, but then I went to chase the Firebird and ran into a very powerful enemy." The girl said, looking a bit dejected. "I didn't beat her, and after I lost, I passed out. It took a long time to wake up, so I couldn't come to find you."

As the culprit behind that, Jiang Si comforted her: "It's not a big deal."

"I'm glad you don't mind." Yin Lian let out a sigh of relief. She was most afraid of being disliked for lying. "By the way, after your sister went home, did she try transforming in secret?"

"Yes. She transformed in the middle of the night and messed around with a barbell, breaking the floor at home." Jiang Si didn't hide it.

The girl covered her mouth and giggled. "Hehe, it was about the same for me when I first learned to transform. I hid under my covers and transformed in secret, curious about my own strength. The next day, I didn't wake up in time, and when I got out of bed, I was still in my transformation state. I accidentally tore the bedroom door off its hinges..."

Jiang Si felt lucky that his sister wasn't quite that foolish. However, being able to sleep soundly through the night on her first transformation showed excellent talent. At the beginning, one is unaccustomed to everything, and the transformation doesn't last very long. Everything takes time to adapt to and practice.

"If you and your sister fight, you can call me. I'll protect you from being bullied by her."

Looking at Yin Lian, who was flexing her muscles to show off, Jiang Si was left speechless.

"But I won't help you bully her, though..."

While they were still chatting away, Teacher Zhang, who was grading papers at his desk, coughed and slammed his water cup onto the desk. "Class is about to start! Why are you two still squatting there? Hurry up and get to class, don't waste time here!"

Yin Lian immediately grabbed Jiang Si and left the office. Before exiting the doorway, she made a face at Teacher Zhang.

"Hmph, he just uses students to vent his emotions. Jiang Si, don't be discouraged. Teachers like him are rare at No. 4 High School. Maybe you can transfer classes..."

"We'll see."

Transferring classes is too much trouble. Other classes don't want to take on a hot potato like him. Teacher Zhang has already tried to transfer him several times, but the other teachers weren't willing.

It wasn't until they were almost at the classroom that Yin Lian waved her hand. "Anyway, I'll help you! Don't worry."

She was overly enthusiastic. Could it be that she suspected he was involved with the Qingyun Sect? Jiang Si immediately dismissed the idea; the possibility was too low. Perhaps it was because of the incident where he nearly fell from the clouds that she had grown suspicious and wanted to investigate him. Or maybe she just wanted to take care of Coco, so she was starting with him. There were too many possibilities. He would ask Bing Tang for intelligence from within the Disaster Strategy Bureau later to make an inference.

Bing Tang hadn't come to school today. She usually didn't come on Saturdays because she had her own private family tutor. She didn't even need to come to school, yet Bing Tang came to school more diligently than Jiang Si. However, they didn't run into each other at school often, because Jiang Si didn't like meeting Bing Tang at school.

Being the center of attention is too much trouble. Bing Tang’s appearance, personality, and family background meant she had an astonishing number of suitors, and there were always brainless people looking to pick a fight. He couldn't fight with students at school; if he actually did, even the principal couldn't protect him. Inside school, he could only pretend not to see the troublemakers, and once outside, those bastards ran faster than anyone. So, at school, he tried his best to avoid Bing Tang.

When he returned to his seat in the classroom, he inadvertently noticed that the student in the third row to his left looked familiar. He realized later that it was the student the "Cripple Trio" had blocked earlier that morning. What a coincidence—were they actually classmates? He hadn't noticed at all.

As he sat at his desk and started digging through his backpack for his books, he noticed that the kid kept looking out the window, looking terrified, not knowing what he was watching. Jiang Si followed the boy's gaze and discovered a figure wandering around the school gate.

The Cripple, looking like he was searching for someone.

He should be looking for him.

He truly lived up to being the most "gutsy" delinquent.

Finding his book, he stuffed his backpack into the desk, rested his chin on one hand, and let out a yawn. As he was about to look away, the Cripple seemed to have spotted him. They locked eyes; the distance wasn't great, and he could see the Cripple wearing a rather arrogant grin, his mouth wide as he made gestures toward him.

The lip-reading was quite easy.

"Damn it, come here, come beat me to death!"