At 10:07 PM, Qiluo Tian Gong walked out of the convenience store.
The night breeze, carrying the chill of early autumn, blew from the direction of the station, brushing the stray hairs on her forehead behind her ear.
She held a plastic bag containing a discounted employee pineapple bun in one hand, while the other loosened the collar of her shirt. The buttons of her uniform were making her neck feel a bit uncomfortable.
There had been an inventory check at the store today, so she finished work a few minutes later than usual. Her senior had stayed until the end to help her double-check the stock, saying, “You’re a quick learner, Tian Gong-san,” before disappearing into the night on a bicycle.
Standing at the entrance of the convenience store, Qiluo stretched her calves, which were stiff after four hours of standing, and began her walk back to the apartment along her usual route.
The streets were sparse with pedestrians just after ten o’clock. The streetlights cast circles of orange-yellow light one after another onto the sidewalk, and the convenience store sign behind her grew smaller and smaller.
As she passed the park, she habitually glanced toward the fence, but there was only a patch of light illuminated by a streetlight.
She withdrew her gaze and continued forward.
Then, her footsteps faltered.
It wasn’t because she heard something. On the contrary, it was because it was too quiet.
The insect chirps stopped all at once. At the edge of the streetlight’s glow, the air began to vibrate slightly, as if something invisible was pressing against the membrane between reality and another world.
Qiluo took half a step back, switched the plastic bag to her left hand, and pressed her right hand against the belt wrapped around her wrist. The magic crystal felt cool against her skin.
At the center of the vibrating air, a mass of black mist slowly seeped out of the void.
The mist expanded, swelled, and solidified. Eight legs extended from it, followed by a refrigerator-shaped carapace. A vertical slit tore open in the front, revealing dense rows of teeth that didn't belong to any known creature.
Is this an Erosion Body? It’s larger than the ones I saw in the records.
The surface of the carapace had a metallic reflection, and irregular spikes grew at the joints of its legs. It hadn't noticed her yet, agitatedly scraping its legs against the street, leaving light gray marks on the asphalt.
Retreat? Too late. She was right at the edge of the Erosion Body’s perception range.
Fight directly? She wasn't a combat-type mage, and she had no idea what the consequences of fighting in this world using her own mana would be.
She ducked into an alley, hung the plastic bag on a pipe, and closed her eyes. At the moment her consciousness split, she simultaneously felt the cool night breeze and another curled-up perspective—Star-trail, in the corner of the apartment.
I’ll use Star-trail for the fight. Star-trail will be the caster.
“Star-trail, come here. There’s work to do.”
Back in the apartment room, Star-trail opened its eyes, its star-chart pupils lighting up in the darkness. It turned into a silver-white streak, darting through the gap in the window and flying into the night sky along the outer wall.
Fifteen seconds later, as Star-trail landed in Qiluo’s arms, the battle had already broken out.
A deep blue figure dashed from the shadows of a building and landed on top of a streetlight. A short skirt of interwoven deep blue and silver-white unfurled in the night breeze, its hem adorned with star-like light ornaments.
On her left shoulder was an emblem Qiluo had never seen before—a crescent moon entangled in chains. She held a scythe larger than a person, its blade glinting with a cold light, and the deep blue ribbons wrapped around the handle moved on their own in the air.
As she leapt onto the streetlight, another small figure was already crouching on the crossbar.
It was a milky-white creature, slightly smaller than a cat, round and plump like a breathing mochi ball. Its fur was fluffy and soft, giving off a faint cream-colored glow under the streetlight.
Its ears were long and floppy, like a miniature version of a lop-eared rabbit, with pale pink inner tips. It had two tails, as fluffy as a squirrel’s, each adorned with a small golden bell at the end.
The bells swayed gently in the night breeze but made no sound.
Its eyes were large and round, a caramel color, with pupils that occupied most of the space, giving it a permanent expression of looking at you intently.
In the center of its forehead was a small golden four-pointed star mark that pulsed in time with its breathing.
Currently, it was using its two tails to wrap around the streetlight’s crossbar for balance, its two front paws neatly tucked together in front of it. Its large caramel eyes were focused on the Erosion Body below, its ears twitching to track the creature's movements.
So cute.
In the alley, holding Star-trail, Qiluo’s mind was filled with only those two words.
Every detail was designed to maximize the urge to pick it up and cuddle it.
If her deduction was correct and the magical creatures of this world generally leaned toward the cute side, then her Star-trail would have to move in that direction too.
However, now wasn't the time to analyze the aesthetics of someone else’s contracted creature. The battle had begun.
The Magical Girl kicked off the lamp post, flipping through the air as her scythe swung down from above.
The movement was clean and sharp. At the same moment, the milky-white little creature leapt from the crossbar, using its two fluffy tails to catapult itself forward.
Its entire body traced a parabola through the air like a fluffball launched from a catapult, its landing point precisely set on the back of the Erosion Body.
The moment the scythe blade carved a gash into the Erosion Body’s carapace, the small creature’s two tails whipped down simultaneously.
The two golden bells at the ends of the tails finally made a sound the instant they touched the Erosion Body’s surface.
It was a shockwave of golden light. Ripples spread outward from the point of contact, and the Erosion Body’s carapace trembled violently within the waves, the gash vibrating until it doubled in size.
The Erosion Body let out a low hiss, its six front legs stabbing toward the Magical Girl at once.
The Magical Girl used the scythe handle to pivot in mid-air, her body spiraling to avoid the stabs. The small creature didn't retreat with her—it used its two tails to take turns battering the Erosion Body’s back. Each strike was accompanied by a low bell-tone shockwave, drawing the Erosion Body’s attention entirely to itself. The six front legs turned to stab at it instead.
“Nuomi!” the Magical Girl shouted.
The little creature named Nuomi jumped off the Erosion Body’s back like a spring, flipping three times in the air. Its four short paws spread out, landing steadily on the Magical Girl’s outstretched arm.
Then it ran up her arm and onto her shoulder, crouching by her neck. Its two fluffy tails hung over her chest, the bells swaying gently.
Their coordination was perfectly seamless.
Wait! Why does it have to fight too? Does... does that mean I have to fight as well?
As a contracted beast, shouldn't it just stay in the back and watch the Magical Girl fight?
There was more than one Erosion Body.
A second one seeped out from the wall of a building behind the Magical Girl, smaller and faster.
It made almost no sound as it emerged from the wall, only producing a slight friction noise when its legs hit the asphalt. The Magical Girl was busy suppressing the first one from the front, her scythe raised for a final blow, leaving her back completely exposed.
Nuomi was on her shoulder, tails facing forward, and from its angle, it couldn't see behind her either.
This is bad; she’s in danger.
Star-trail leapt silently from Qiluo’s arms. The thirty-centimeter-tall silver-white figure flashed under the streetlight, the starlight particles on its tail trailing a long, thin streak of light as it landed on the ground in front of the second Erosion Body.
Star-trail tilted its head back and let out a cry that echoed with the sound of the starry sky. The Erosion Body’s charge stopped as if someone had pressed the pause button.
The first to react wasn't the Erosion Body, but Nuomi.
Nuomi snapped its head around the same instant Star-trail appeared, its large caramel eyes widening into perfect circles.
Its two long ears shot straight up, then drooped halfway down, as if it couldn't tell if what it was seeing was real or just its imagination.
Its two tails wagged rapidly against the Magical Girl’s chest, the bells letting out a crisp sound. Ding-ling, ding-ling—it sounded like it had been startled.
Then, it did something Qiluo hadn't expected at all.
It jumped down from the Magical Girl’s shoulder. Its four short legs hit the ground, its round body bouncing once before stabilizing.
Then, it began to hop and skip toward Star-trail, its two tails wagging happily from side to side behind it as the bells rang incessantly.
Qiluo watched blankly from the alley. It didn't seem to think Star-trail was a threat at all.
As a magical creature, its first reaction to seeing an unknown member of its kind on a battlefield wasn't vigilance or scrutiny, but running over to say hello. Just how carefree was this child?
“Nuomi, come back!” the Magical Girl called out, her tone more helpless than warning.
Nuomi stopped about three paces away from Star-trail.
It hadn't heard the voice behind it at all, because it had finally seen Star-trail’s appearance clearly.
Its ears stood up completely, its large eyes scanning Star-trail from top to bottom before stopping on the starlight particles falling from Star-trail’s tail.
Those silver-white specks of light were reflected in its large eyes like a miniature galaxy.
“...A companion... So pretty.”
Nuomi spoke.
The voice was a crisp, child-like one, with a hint of a milky quality. Its ear tips twitched with excitement as it spoke, and its two tails wagged so fast they became a blur, the bells ringing like wind chimes at a temple fair.
“Mingyue,” its voice was trembling, but each word was clear. “It’s a Contract Spirit too. A real Contract Spirit—”
Rate on N.U.
