Chương 17: Magic Manipulation Practice

The night was like a piece of velvet soaked in ink, pressing heavily over the city. Moonlight shone through the gaps in the curtains, drawing a silver line on the wooden floor.

After returning home, Lin Che calmly pushed open the door and entered his room.

He went to the desk, paused for a moment on the drawer handle before slowly pulling it open.

The pink-gold transformation device glowed faintly in the moonlight, and the star patterns inlaid on the edges seemed to flicker with his breath.

Out of his own resistance, he left it here after returning home, and the system did not seem to regard this temporary shelving as equivalent to abandonment.

Now, Lin Che stared into deep thought at the transformation device in the drawer.

Earlier, the word "star" that Su Yuqing had let slip suddenly rang in her ears—if she were to bump into her transformed self one day, she would probably be nailed to the pillar of shame for being a pervert and displayed to her whole family.

If you don't want to reveal your identity, the right choice is to minimize the number of times you actively transform.

But slowly, his fingertips hovered above the drawer, trembling slightly, and the transformation device seemed to respond to him, emitting an even stronger light.

"Tsk."

After hesitating for a long time, he grabbed the transformation device in the same way a kind-hearted citizen surnamed Jin pulled out EA, his movements so fast it was as if he was afraid he would regret it.

A burst of pinkish-gold light instantly illuminated the entire room.

In the light, his figure rapidly shrank, and his clothes transformed into Xingshuang's Lolita dress adorned with stars and moons.

[I remember the host saying before that there wouldn't be another time he would transform on his own.] The system's voice sounded at the right moment, its mechanical tone carrying a clear hint of sarcasm.

Xing Shuang's expression instantly turned from embarrassment to annoyance, her ears turning bright red: "Shut up, you talk too much."

He—or rather she—came to the mirror, biting her lower lip as she looked at herself, her fingers unconsciously tightening around the hem of her skirt.

The girl in the mirror had a delicate, porcelain-doll-like face and a sweet outfit, but the stubborn curve between her brows still carried Lin Che's shadow. This strange feeling made her subconsciously look away.

Xing Shuang looked down at her pearl-white gloves, then touched the heart-shaped hair ornaments on her head, and her lips twitched.

He still couldn't get used to this appearance. It was obvious that he really didn't want to transform into Starfrost.

—But what if she gets hurt?

This thought, like a thorn, had been deeply embedded in his heart ever since he returned from the South Suburb Park.

Su Yuqing is a magical girl, and I've seen her in battle before—Yin Xue, the brave and kind girl in the emerald green battle suit.

Her magical barrier was as fragile as a candy wrapper under the claws of the Void Beast, yet she recklessly stood in front of it to protect her companions.

This time, with her help, both of them were safe and sound, but what about next time? And the time after that? Who can guarantee that she'll be safe and sound every time?

As her fingertips traced the star-shaped gem at the tip of the wand, Starfrost's gaze gradually hardened.

More intense than shame surged in my chest.

—I must become stronger.

It's not to complete a task, nor is it to appease the system.

Rather, it's because if he can't even control this level of power, how can he protect that reckless fool who rushes ahead? How can he safeguard this newly formed family?

When he was first reborn, he was more willing to trust his own judgment and actions, and did not feel that he needed to rely on the power of the system to make his family happy.

But after learning how different this world was from the one he knew before, his thoughts immediately changed.

In this world, he has to face far more than just ordinary family disputes.

A natural disaster called Void Infiltration could happen at any time in any corner of this world. What would happen if his beloved family members encountered such a natural disaster?

The answer is obvious. As [Xingshuang], she might still have the power to protect them, but as [Lin Che], he can do nothing.

Not to mention, above the erosion-level Void Beasts are the Lord-level and Calamity-level.

Even though she can easily defeat erosion-level Void Beasts now, how she will fare against higher-level Void Beasts remains to be seen.

The shame of the transformation was no more unbearable for him than the grief of losing his family; knowing that was enough.

Starfrost took a deep breath, raised her hand, and once again created a magical barrier in the room, protecting everything inside.

[Has the host finally come to his senses?]

"Don't flatter yourself." Xing Shuang sneered.

"I just... don't want to see the people I care about get hurt."

Especially her.

Especially Su Yuqing, who once cried and trembled in his arms, yet still stubbornly said, "I will never regret it."

"Transfer the basic knowledge of magical girls to me," she suddenly said, her voice so soft it sounded like she was talking to herself, yet it carried an undeniable resolve.

[Ready to start sharing] As a flood of knowledge rushed into her mind, Starfrost gripped her wand tightly, a slight smile curving her lips as a ball of pink-gold magic light condensed at the tip of the wand.

[Magic Control] The skills that every magical girl must learn and master, whether it's the most basic abilities like flight, magic beams, and magic barriers at the Stardust level, or more advanced techniques like spell construction, magical equipment construction, and even domain construction, all rely on this; it is the foundation of the foundation.

Although she can now directly construct complex techniques, she doesn't understand the underlying principles and is unable to explain them to others.

To draw an analogy, people with a good sense of language can still achieve good English test scores during compulsory education, even if they don't understand grammar or have accumulated a large vocabulary.

However, if you want to study at a higher level and achieve better results, the latter two are indispensable.

Xing Shuang felt that she was in a similar situation, so she decided to start learning from the very basics.

On the one hand, it can better improve one's own strength, and on the other hand, it can make it easier for one to explain techniques to other new magical girls.

Although educating the younger generation is hardly something a fake like her should be doing, but...

Starfrost recalled what Ruby, the contracted fairy, had said before: the message for help had been sent but no reply had been received, and the magical girl senior had suddenly lost contact with her.

Now she has a guess in her mind that urgently needs to be verified.

"I hope it's not what I'm thinking..." Xing Shuang shook her head, banishing the thought from her mind, and began practicing.

She raised her wand in front of the dressing mirror, but the ball of light that gathered at the tip of the wand swelled and shrank, as if echoing her fluctuating emotions.

The image of Yin Xue being knocked away by the Void Beast yesterday flashed through my mind—when that idiot was protecting Liu Li and fell to the ground, the gaps in his combat suit were full of bloody abrasions.

"Concentrate..." She bit her lower lip, her wand tracing a trembling arc in the air.

The ball of light finally stabilized to the size of a fist, but suddenly veered off course as it shot toward the mirror, crashing into the magic barrier and exploding into countless specks of light.

[Warning: Mana output is unstable]

"It's so noisy, I know." Starfrost's voice was unusually anxious. She gritted her teeth and forced herself to focus on manipulating the light sphere.

However, the next sphere of light that condensed bounced off the barrier and struck her skirt, leaving a charred burn mark.

Staring blankly at the tattered hem of her skirt, her gaze then shifted to the still unmoving magic barrier. In her bewilderment, Xing Shuang felt an absurd sense of disconnect.

Even though manipulating magic to construct advanced spells is something she can do with just a thought, whenever she tries to manipulate it more precisely, to carefully sense the direction of every bit of magic, the sphere of light she condenses becomes uncontrollable, just like before—it's practically like a pure, newly-minted magical girl.

[Hint: The host can use magic to repair the combat suit]

"Keep it." Her fingertips traced the scorch marks, and Starfrost's eyes grew even more determined. Every scratch was a warning, a reminder of the gap between her and a true magical girl.

"If you can't even do this much..."

......

Outside the window, the lights of the distant high-rise buildings gradually went out, but her room continued to glow with a magical light until late at night.

When the countless magic manipulation training sessions ended, Starfrost's combat suit was covered in scorch marks from the magic and had become tattered.

Xing Shuang slumped to the ground, sweat dripping from her hair and leaving dark stains on the wooden floor. Looking at her disheveled self in the mirror, she suddenly laughed.

"So... this is the necessary path to becoming stronger. Is this how all magical girls progress step by step?"

Xing Shuang raised her hand and touched the gem on her chest. A flash of light appeared, and Lin Che reappeared. He put the transformation device back in the drawer, walked to the bedside, and sank into the soft bedding.

"Not enough..." The boy closed his heavy eyelids.

"It's far from enough."

Tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, the day after that... until I no longer have to watch the people I care about get hurt in front of me.

The starlight outside the window gradually dimmed, but the flame that had been burning in my heart to protect it was growing stronger and stronger.