Chương 85: Promise

Inside the clothing store, after a lively "makeover," Xing Shuang finally changed into an outfit they had chosen, thanks to Su Yuqing's enthusiastic insistence and Luo Bingli's smiling observation.

The girl in the mirror looked completely different. She wore a cream-colored short-sleeved shirt with delicate ruffles at the neckline, paired with a light khaki high-waisted A-line skirt, and on her feet, she changed into a pair of flat Mary Jane shoes in a similar color to the skirt, decorated with small bows.

Her black twin ponytails were still her signature spiral curls, secured by two cute strawberry hair clips, revealing her smooth forehead.

This outfit is simple and fresh, yet sweet and charming, perfectly highlighting the delicate and lively nature that someone her age (referring to appearance) should have. It's so much more pleasing to the eye than that strange outfit she wore before.

"Wow! Senior looks so cute in this outfit!" Su Yuqing cupped her hands to her heart, her eyes sparkling as if admiring a perfect work of art.

"I knew my taste was right!"

Luo Bingli stood to the side, looking at the refreshed Xingshuang in the mirror. A rare look of amazement flashed across her usually cold eyes.

She nodded almost imperceptibly and commented in her usual concise tone, "Yes, much better than before."

"Then... then let's buy this set." Xing Shuang looked at herself in the mirror, who looked like she was going to a tea party, and still felt a little uncomfortable.

But sensing the genuine affection in the two girls' eyes and the sincere smiles on their faces, she ultimately said nothing.

"Never mind, as long as they're happy," she thought to herself.

After paying, the three of them walked out of the clothing store, each carrying shopping bags of various sizes. Inside were not only Xing Shuang's new outfits, but also some cute accessories and favorite clothes that Su Yuqing and Luo Bingli had picked out for themselves during their "makeover project".

"I'm a little thirsty after shopping for so long." Su Yuqing rubbed her stomach, giving a pitiful look.

"Senior, Xiao Li, shall we go buy some drinks? I want to try the cheese milk tea from that new shop!"

"Okay." Xing Shuang naturally wouldn't object.

"Mm." Luo Bingli nodded gently.

The three arrived at the beverage shop, where there was a long queue. Su Yuqing peeked into the queue, then looked at a juice shop next door with a shorter queue, her eyes darting around.

"Oh dear, the line for this milk tea is so long... Senior, Xiaoli, why don't you find a seat here and wait for me? I'll go queue up and buy some, I'll be right back!"

Without saying a word, she shoved the shopping bag in her hand into Xing Shuang's arms, and then dashed off into the long queue.

Xing Shuang, carrying a pile of shopping bags, watched Su Yuqing's hurried figure and smiled helplessly. She turned to Luo Bingli and said, "Let's go sit over there and wait for her."

On a bench in the central rest area of the mall, Xing Shuang and Luo Bingli sat side by side. The surrounding crowds and noisy background noise created a strange and quiet atmosphere between them.

Luo Bingli lowered her head, her fingers unconsciously rubbing the edge of the canvas bag on her lap, seemingly still savoring the relaxed atmosphere when they were choosing clothes together, or perhaps thinking about something else.

Xing Shuang looked at her quiet profile. Those eyes, which had always been distant and wary before, now appeared exceptionally calm in the soft sunlight, containing some thoughts that Xing Shuang could not yet fully understand.

Recalling her conversation with Yuexi a few days ago, a thought struck her. She knew that now was an opportunity to try to touch upon those deeply buried past events and explore the truth.

Perhaps Ruri's deep-seated resistance to those new moon-level magical girls really stemmed from a cruel and heartbreaking misunderstanding.

"Xiao Li, I'll just call you that normally," Xing Shuang said gently, breaking the silence.

"Before... thank you for accepting my invitation."

Luo Bingli looked up at Xingshuang, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, as if she hadn't expected her to suddenly bring up the previous matter.

She gently shook her head: "After all, I promised my senior that I would try to communicate with others. I should be thanking my senior. Thank you for inviting me here."

"It's nothing. You're welcome to come shopping with me anytime you want," Xing Shuang replied with a smile, then her eyes turned slightly serious.

"Speaking of which, may I ask you a question?"

"Question?" Luo Bingli raised an eyebrow slightly, revealing a hint of confusion, but she quickly nodded and replied, "Anything I know."

Starfrost gazed at her, carefully choosing her words, before finally cutting to the question that concerned her most: "After becoming a magical girl, you encountered... other 'seniors,' right?"

This question instantly dimmed Luo Bingli's eyes, revealing a complex and indescribable emotion. Her fingertips unconsciously tightened, gripping the hem of her skirt.

She remained silent for a long time, so long that Xing Shuang thought she wouldn't answer. Then, she slowly spoke, her voice low and hoarse with a suppressed tone: "That's right."

"So how did you communicate at the beginning? What was their attitude towards you?" Xing Shuang continued to ask.

Luo Bingli began to reminisce, her gaze drifting into the distance, as if piercing through the noisy crowd and looking towards a distant past.

"At first... they were all very nice. Knowing I was a newbie, they were all very friendly and said they would take care of me, teach me how to fight, and how to control my magic more skillfully..."

"At that time, I really thought... that the seniors were different from 'adults'."

Her voice grew softer and softer, carrying a hint of barely perceptible longing.

"I thought they would forgive me and protect me. I tried... to let go of the shadows of the past and communicate with them properly. I even... exchanged contact information with them."

Xingshuang listened quietly, slightly surprised. She had always thought that with Liuli's sharp personality, she probably had never had any in-depth contact with those Crescent Moon level magical girls, let alone exchange contact information.

But this overturned fact gave her a clearer understanding of Ruri's past. It seems that Ruri was not hostile to all her seniors from the beginning. She had also tried and had... had expectations.

"But..." Luo Bingli's voice suddenly choked with sobs. She lowered her head abruptly, not wanting Xing Shuang to see her vulnerable expression.

"Soon... they disappeared one by one."

"Every time I fight, I hope they can appear when I need them most and come to my aid in time, but often the Void Beasts have already been eliminated by me and Yin Xue with all our might, and no seniors appear."

Her shoulders began to tremble slightly: "Later... I felt their attitude changed. They became... somewhat anxious, as if they were always hiding some confusion and unease."

"This made me start to doubt whether I had done something wrong, whether... I shouldn't have asked them for help. Once, I tried to fight in my own way, to prove that I wasn't just a burden..."

"As a result, I was severely questioned by a senior colleague. She asked me why I didn't follow orders and why I was so reckless... She even said that she could handle a beast of this level by herself and that I should just watch from the sidelines."

Xing Shuang's heart sank suddenly, and another thing that had puzzled her before was now explained reasonably.

This is probably the underlying reason why, during their second meeting, Liuli questioned why she hadn't directly eliminated the Queen Ant Beast.

As for the change in the magical girls' attitudes, combined with Yuexi's words, it was probably due to their worry and anxiety about the successive disappearances of their companions. They were eager to nurture Liuli, a junior with great potential, to grow into a key force in protecting the city.

Ruri's perhaps slightly reckless fighting style that time undoubtedly touched upon the long-suppressed emotions in that senior's heart, which is why she said such hurtful words as "let her watch from the sidelines."

On the other side, Luo Bingli continued, "Then... then not long after, that senior also disappeared. I mustered up my courage and used the contact information we had exchanged before to send her an apology message, wanting to tell her that I was wrong, that I shouldn't have done that..."

"But there was no reply, not a single one..." Her voice grew softer and softer until it was almost a barely audible sob.

Xingshuang looked at her shoulders trembling slightly from the pain and listened to her suppressed despair as she poured out her heart, a bitter feeling welling up inside her.

"So..." Xing Shuang's voice was very soft, as if afraid of disturbing the girl immersed in sorrow before her, "that's why you became the way you were when we first met, right?"

Luo Bingli's body stiffened abruptly, and she slowly nodded, the movement so small as to be almost imperceptible.

Then, a smile that was more like a grimace than a cry, tinged with self-mockery, appeared on her face: "I wasn't nice to them either... Maybe I deserve what happened..."

Xing Shuang looked at her tearful appearance and heard her self-deprecating words filled with despair. Her heart felt like it was being ripped apart, and she felt so painful that she couldn't breathe.

She reached out and, without the slightest hesitation, gently embraced the trembling, seemingly strong girl, her movements soft yet carrying a comforting power.

"This isn't your fault, Liuli." Xingshuang rested her chin on the top of Luo Bingli's head, her voice gentle yet firm.

"Absolutely not."

She gently patted the girl's back, as if comforting a wronged child, "You are good, you are brave, you are kind, you are not troublesome at all, and you don't deserve it at all."

Luo Bingli seemed completely unprepared for Xing Shuang to suddenly hug her, and even less expected to hear such direct and warm comfort and affirmation.

She instinctively wanted to struggle and push away this sudden intimacy, but the warmth of Xing Shuang's embrace and the words that struck her heart made her lose all strength to resist.

The pent-up resentment and loneliness that had been suppressed for so long surged forth like a flood bursting its banks at this moment.

"Ugh..." She could no longer hold back and buried her face in Xing Shuang's arms, letting out suppressed, broken sobs.

Xingshuang didn't speak, but simply hugged her tighter, letting her vent her unspoken pain in her arms.

She knew that these tears contained the disappointment of being stood up, the grievance of being ignored, the fear of fighting alone, and... the unspeakable longing and worry for those "disappeared" predecessors.

She gently stroked Ruri's hair, now convinced that these misunderstandings stemmed from the successive disappearances of the Crescent Moon-level magical girls.

The seniors didn't break their promises on purpose, they didn't ignore you on purpose, they just... might really be gone.

But the truth is too cruel for me to tell you right now.

But one day, I will find the answer, I will clear up this misunderstanding, and I will let you know that you have never been abandoned or forgotten.

She tightened her arms, silently conveying this weighty promise with her body heat and heartbeat.

"Believe me, Liuli," Xingshuang's voice carried an undeniable firmness, "that kind of thing will never happen again."

"From now on, I'll be here for you."