The villainous magical girl's daily mission is to find fault.

Chapter 455 The Long-Standing Cold Wind

Xia Youyou remembers that she used to have many brothers and sisters.

They lived in cramped shacks. During the day, they would go outside to play wildly, with older siblings leading their younger siblings in play. At night, they would squeeze onto a shared kang (heated brick bed) and fall asleep laughing and joking together.

Although my parents are fierce and don't like us much, they will still cook a pot of steaming corn and steam several trays of white flour buns at mealtimes. Occasionally, we can even eat some cabbage that has just been pulled from the ground.

……but.

One day, one of the older sisters was called out of the house by her father.

That older sister was always sickly, often catching colds in winter, and she had a fever when she was called out of the house.

Xia Youyou thought her father must have taken her older sister to see a doctor, but she never appeared in front of her again.

Puzzled.

Confusing.

Then, a nameless fear gripped my heart.

Xia Youyou wanted to tell everyone about this, but her family ignored it and continued their old lives—still laughing and joking on the kang (a heated brick bed) and welcoming their new siblings.

Something must be wrong. Xia Youyou thought to herself.

It wasn't until her closest older sister found her, pulled her to a secluded spot deep within the park, and showed her her gleaming golden cross that she finally understood.

"Look, Yoyo, this is the Guardian Star, the Guardian Star of magical girls. I found it in the grass."

Do you know magical girls? They're those girls in Shenyang who can fly and use magic to defeat monsters—they're super amazing!

Hehe... If we had a Guardian Star, maybe one day we could become magical girls too!

[And also, I'm going to school in the city tomorrow. When you're the same age as me, I'll find a way to let you study in the city too.]

Xia Youyou stared at the shining cross in her hand, listening to her sister's story, as if the fear in her heart was dispelled by the shining light.

Then, she expressed her inner fears and told the story of another woman's experience.

My sister also told me the truth about everything:

[Listen, Yoyo]

"...A vicious curse flows deep within the blood of us rabbit-like beastmen."

This curse causes your younger siblings to constantly make noise, while your older siblings will disappear after a serious illness.

Remember what I said.

Don't eat food from unknown sources sold on the street. Remember to keep warm in winter and make sure you're well covered up at night.

[Please, please don't get sick, or rather, don't let your parents know you're sick.]

I will definitely come to pick you up... I will take you to live in the city, I will take you to a very, very big school to study in, and to make many friends!

Xia Youyou was very scared.

But her sister's serious expression made it seem like she was talking about something very important. Although Xia Youyou didn't understand why, she nodded vigorously and kept it in mind.

……later.

After returning from an outing, Xia Youyou felt dizzy and lightheaded. After finishing her dinner of corn, she collapsed in the courtyard of her house.

When she woke up again, she was lying in a hospital bed at a nearby clinic, with her sister sitting beside her, holding her hand tightly.

Behind the older sister stood her parents, whose faces were filled with disgust.

The doctor at the clinic said that this illness is somewhat difficult to treat and that it will take several days of intravenous fluids to recover.

But her parents didn't answer; they just looked at her silently.

In that instant, Xia Youyou's heart seemed to be filled with despair, and her mysteriously missing older siblings seemed to appear before her, silently mocking her:

Do you think you're special, Xia Youyou?

You're just a useless child. A seriously ill child is unwanted by the rabbit clan.

Even his closest sister was forcibly dragged away from him by his parents, plunging his vision into darkness once again.

How long was he unconscious after that?

To this day, Xia Youyou still can't give an accurate number.

When she felt a jolt and groggily opened her eyes again, Xia Youyou was already wearing a thick cotton coat and being carried on her sister's back, walking step by step towards the city.

[Yoyo, hang in there, Yoyo!]

I sold the Guardian Star, and got a lot of money. I'm going to take you to a big hospital in the city for treatment.

I also got some money from home. The doctors in the city are very skilled; they'll definitely be able to cure Youyou's illness!

You will get better...you definitely will!

Did my sister sell the Guardian Star?

That guardian star must be very important to my sister.

My older sister loves magical girls. She has hidden many collectible picture cards in the shed and often shares them with her younger siblings. She also tells them stories about magical girls that she has heard from others.

He even secretly took odd jobs to earn money to buy cheap toys, and when his parents found out, he would often get a beating.

After that, Xia Youyou couldn't remember anything else that happened.

When Xia Youyou finally regained consciousness from the chaos and darkness, she found her mother discussing treatment costs with the doctor in front of her, while her older sister was nowhere to be found.

Xia Youyou learned about her older sister's situation from her parents:

"Your sister?"

"That heartless ingrate stole money from home to pay for your little brat's medical treatment, and he even injured your father's leg!"

"Do you even know how much this illness will cost? I should have thrown you and your sister away a long time ago! Just like all the other brats!"

"You're asking where your sister is? She's long since disappeared!"

"If I catch her, I'll break her legs and throw her into the river to feed the fish!"

Another argument broke out in the hospital ward.

The doctors seemed used to this, comforting the mother while adding another bag of clear medicine to the IV stand next to them.

……

Meng Donghua's story is a bit long.

"I've never seen my sister since then."

"Later, as I grew up, I was admitted to a school in the city, where I worked while studying."

"I also bought a lot of magical girl merchandise, and even met a stargazer who gave me a brand new guardian star."

"But... my sister never appeared again."

"I think my sister is still somewhere in the world, probably already finished her studies and is studying at some school."

Meng Donghua didn't continue speaking, but the expectation in her eyes seemed to say a thousand words.

Marigold was still testing her magic cannon spells in the open space not far away. She shattered several large rocks, occasionally letting out a sound of amazement.

Su Tianqing continued to focus her attention on Meng Donghua.

"Dandelion-senpai, actually I..."

Meng Donghua opened her mouth to speak, but suddenly choked halfway through. After a moment of hesitation, she continued:

"Today, I saw someone who looks a lot like my sister."

"Senior, do you think... my sister has come back to find me?"