Chapter 296

Chapter 296: Suppressed Desires, Worldwide Attack

Sapporo, Nakashima Park.

Esther sat still on the wreckage of the tram, reading the complex data from the professional equipment, glancing at the little girls with smiles, her thoughts calm.

Although it was not the right time, after Lin Baor and Liang Xiaoxiao, there had indeed been few opportunities to go out to enjoy delicious food.

Especially Liang Xiaoxiao, whose situation was too complicated, facing a danger level high enough that during special times, she could be pulled into the laboratory for research or even executed on the spot.

As for human rights, in the face of a countdown to the end for all humanity, its value lies in maintaining stability and ensuring the execution of the "Dazzling Stage" project, but to think it holds any real power would be quite naive.

Dream Weaver had already calculated the upper levels’ attitude toward Liang Xiaoxiao.

Researching, containing, imprisoning, executing; the best outcome is still high surveillance.

This is not without reason.

The Church of the Gods has pure fighting power. They possess gifts from the will of the forbidden zone, allowing them to transplant the limbs, organs, and genes of disaster beasts, and even to actively cause disasters.

Essentially, it is about making disasters into slaves to exchange for temporarily stable power, with the strongest ones already showing threats close to that of team captains.

As for Liang Xiaoxiao? Her current fighting power assessment is roughly between E-class and Grade D, which seems to pose little threat.

However, the key issue is that her way of controlling the power of disasters is not about treating them like dogs. Instead, she uses the remaining light of the "Lighthouse" to establish the "Cocoon of the Heart," a mechanism for magical girls, using her soul and flesh as a container to forcefully bind and control.

In other words, she is controlling the power of disasters.

If it were just that, the higher-ups would not have much ill will toward her.

But…

"It’s too unstable."

Esther objectively evaluates that, in her view, the current Liang Xiaoxiao is a fusion of a magical girl and a disaster beast. While she can still maintain her human form, it is mainly because Chu Yuanqing is too special, and Liang Xiaoxiao is inferior on both sides, being neither here nor there.

If the Church of the Gods discovers Liang Xiaoxiao’s existence, they might try to make her eat more disaster beasts or even kill her friends and family to break her spirit. This fragile balance would fall apart.

If she also gets special Disaster Debris, in the worst-case scenario, she could turn into a monster with the powers of both a magical girl and a disaster beast, making her very dangerous, just below the threat of an explosion in a forbidden zone.

And the biggest problem is that Liang Xiaoxiao is also a contestant, part of the Dazzling Stage project.

Just imagine, if she changes into such a terrifying monster during the live performance, how devastating would that be for the plans to reveal magical girls?

Right now, Liang Xiaoxiao is like a bomb that could go off at any moment, and her value isn’t enough for the officials to take such a risk.

So…

Esther and the other idols shared a sweet moment before they teleported to sit in the ambulance, looking down at the gray-haired girl and the smiling Lin Baor, they said directly:

"Liang Xiaoxiao, are you mentally prepared?"

"If things turn for the worse, what awaits you is not just a prison but a laboratory, or even execution."

As her words faded, the calming atmosphere suddenly froze.

Lin Baor’s face was pale, and she urgently and angrily protested:

"Why? Xiaoxiao and I are just victims of the attack. Even if Xiaoxiao has changed like that, it’s all because of that monster."

"And she has turned back now, hasn’t she? Why treat her this way?"

Chen Yining also looked up in anger. Just as she was about to say something, a hand grabbed her sleeve.

Liang Xiaoxiao, with a thankful yet slightly apologetic smile, stopped the young lady’s impulse. She then took Lin Baor’s hand and gently pulled her back, saying softly:

"Thank you, Baor."

"But for whatever reason, I am indeed very dangerous right now. That kind of monster… must be the enemy that the magical girls are fighting, right?"

The girl’s expression was calm, her beautiful face still marked with some fresh blood, and her short hair, a mix of gray and a hint of black, flowed in the air, creating an atmosphere that was silent and cold, with a sense of wild danger.

The Liang Xiaoxiao now is like a completely different person from her half a day ago.

It’s not just about her hair color or that she just cut her long hair; it’s more about how living with the disaster aura has changed her presence, and… the determination that comes after experiencing life and pain.

Liang Xiaoxiao’s emotions are completely calm; from her point of view, it should be Xu Ying who feels trapped and angry, even losing his mind in accusations.

But because she has experienced the danger of the disaster beast and possesses this power, she understands that the official attitude is expected.

On the other hand, she is very aware of the dangerous state she is in.

That gift does not come without an end.

This time, she could think of the song he sang in a moment between life and death, and through shining back to life, but what about next time? What about the time after that?

The current version of herself feels like a wonder built on balance; just a little push from the outside could cause it to crash down.

From the beginning to the end, she has never felt truly alive; before, she would feel happy and have vivid emotions only because of the captain’s unchanged gaze and because he saved Baor, whom she thought was dead.

So, Esther’s words had become a little meaningless to her, just like telling a dying person that they have another type of cancer.

Esther admired this attitude.

If Liang Xiaoxiao’s reaction was intense or if she seemed lost, that would be truly hopeless.

Although it is cruel, the truth is that in her current state, not being able to face the fear of death calmly and not dealing with her situation rationally is like asking for death.

Miss Dreamweaver calmly introduced:

"Disaster Beast, it is the cancer of the world, the enemy of humanity."

"Magical girls have many enemies, but the true form of their power is all disaster beasts."

Esther looked at the silent little idols and said seriously:

"Logically speaking, by holding back the disaster beast, protecting the civilians, and successfully defeating it, I should give you the praise of a hero."

"But the reality is that in the past, there have been more than one case of someone accidentally controlling the power of the disaster beast. At first, they may still think like humans, but often, within just a few minutes, they completely lose control and transform."

"Liang Xiaoxiao, you are a special case, and I believe you understand the unique reason for your situation."

"Because of this, if you lose control, you will turn into an even more terrifying Disaster."

"In that situation, if you were in the official position, what would you do?"

Execution on the spot.

This logical and cold decision appeared in the minds of the three of them almost simultaneously.

Lin Baor’s mind went blank, her fingers trembled, and the experiences from over ten years never taught her how to handle such unreasonable and cruel situations.

The girl did not understand; she could not comprehend why, after finally escaping such misfortune, Xiaoxiao still had to face this dilemma and unfairness.

Lin Baor couldn’t help but ask herself, if someone were to try to kill Xiaoxiao now, would she be able to protect her?

The answer is no.

Even if it costs her life, her fragile body cannot block many bullets.

Lin Baor suddenly understood Xiaoxiao’s feeling of helplessness at that time and realized why she chose such a tragic way to gain the strength to fight against the disaster beast.

Many times, just having a choice is already a kind of luck.

Chen Yining hated this feeling of being helpless; she understood the official position but also wanted to protect her friend.

But even as a magical girl, this power was still too weak—so weak that she did not have the right to say she could take responsibility to ensure Xiaoxiao would not lose control.

The young lady looked down in a daze; it was the first time she had experienced this feeling, realizing that her little money and power in the worldly sense had no say in such matters.

Liang Xiaoxiao didn’t know how to comfort her two teammates; she could only avoid their gazes and look at Esther, calmly assessing the situation.

"Containment, detention, monitoring, and what you mentioned last—execution."

"But the first thing to do should be to let me withdraw from the competition."

No matter how lenient the officials may be, it makes no sense to allow her to appear in public.

Moreover…

The source that led her to devour the disaster beast was a gift from the [Heart Flow] development room, and with the captain becoming a magical girl, the project called "Dazzling Stage" seems quite complicated.

In fact, considering the recent events, "Dazzling Stage" may have originally been a talent show to train magical girls.

In such a case, how could the officials possibly throw a bomb into a large group of magical girl recruits?

Esther remained silent for a long time; if she were still the Original Witch from the past, perhaps she could rely on her instincts and take a risk.

But now, she is the super AI [Dream Weaver], implanted with rules and the [Celestial Sphere] used by the Countermeasures Bureau to observe the direction of civilization.

Liang Xiaoxiao’s fate is not hers to decide.

Esther’s mind was racing, and she said softly:

"You are right."

"So it is no surprise that this may be the last half day you spend with your teammates."

In fact, if Chen Yining had not just become a magical girl and gained some control over others for safety reasons, the rules in her mind would have already decided to imprison Liang Xiaoxiao in the underground base.

On the other hand, the Church of the Gods seemed to understand that the officials planned to reveal magical girls, which would break apart their own scheme of creating panic, so today they launched a large-scale counterattack.

The result of this was that even now, there are still Calamity Seeds hatching all over the world, causing attacks.

Those most targeted are the contestants of the Dazzling Stage; Lin Baor and Liang Xiaoxiao were not the only ones attacked, as some participants in the Tokyo division have even lost their lives.

The higher-ups are very busy trying to find solutions and organize counterattacks, and they have no time to deal with Liang Xiaoxiao’s situation, which has allowed for this half-day buffer.

Unfortunately, the little idols do not feel very lucky.

On the contrary, this clear number made them feel a heavy sense of suffocation.

Esther said no more and simply vanished from the spot.

The powerful AI left behind no warning words, but everyone knew that Liang Xiaoxiao had nowhere to run.

Any electronic device on Dongliu Island could be under surveillance, and if any unusual movement was detected, armed forces would be sent immediately to suppress and contain.

Furthermore, if Daxia is manageable, the island itself is not very large, and under official control, it is truly difficult to escape.

Moreover…

Deep down, everyone still held onto hope, waiting for a turning point.

If they tried to escape, they would be labeled as unstable elements, going from being a suspect to a wanted criminal, and they would never be able to turn things around.

For the three girls, who were all underage on average, this was an undeniably heavy and cruel reality.

Liang Xiaoxiao was the first to break the silence. She brushed her gray-white hair back, raised her eyes to look at the two, and showed a bright smile as she said:

"Let’s first inform Wutong and Little Shuzhu."

"It’s still afternoon. Let’s wander around and then have dinner together, as a farewell feast."

Lin Baor heard her good friend’s casual tone, and her eyes turned red. Tears started to flow down her cheeks. She sniffled and couldn’t help but hug her friend, crying and saying it was okay.

Chen Yining felt her throat was very dry. She nodded in agreement and, together with the two, stepped over the yellow warning line. Under the watchful eyes of many armed forces, they got into a special vehicle and left the blocked street.

Sapporo, as the administrative center of Hokkaido, is a rare inland big city in Dongliu Island, and it is also the most populated one, so it covers a large area.

The blockage of this street, whether it was called a show or a fire, did not cause much panic among the people. A few kilometers away, the outside view was one of ordinary harmony, bustling with activity.

Liang Xiaoxiao looked at that once familiar scene and suddenly felt a phantom pain as if her body was being eaten away by acid, along with the cruel images of the disaster beast flipping over the tram and biting Lin Baor’s limbs. She whispered softly:

"Baor, Little Ning, I understand the things we will face later because dealing with the disaster beast is like this, right? If not handled well, it can ruin many people’s happiness."

"I don’t want to become that kind of person, and I certainly don’t want to be the one to blame."

"So, before I die, if I can save my good friend and feel like a hero just once, I will be very happy."

"Promise me that even if you become powerful magical girls, you won’t forget our dream and will continue to stand on stage."

As the words faded away, tears fell onto her thigh, creating dark splotches.

Chen Yining didn’t want to cry, but when she looked at the girl’s silent profile and the tears that fell without sound, she couldn’t help but tear up.

Lin Baor wiped her tears and tried to smile, saying comforting words:

"Dreams have no meaning unless we make them come true, right?"

"Esther is willing to give us time together, which means there is still a chance. Cheer up! I believe Xiaoxiao can control the disaster beast and perfectly wield its power."

Liang Xiaoxiao smiled, gently patted Lin Baor’s hair, and softly said, "It’s okay."

Later, she silently lowered her gaze out the window and forcefully pulled off the scales growing on the inside of her wrist, letting the dark red mixed with purple spread, using the pain to suppress the increasingly inhuman thoughts, altered senses, and changed organs.

The girl struggled to control herself, pushing down the saliva rolling in her throat. Her pupils spun around more times than usual, then slowly reversed to return to normal. The disaster aura within her soul surged, stirring an unbearable desire.

Only when she could no longer bear it would she seek the white light to suppress or shield from this transformation.

As a consequence, the white light within the "Cocoon of the Heart" became faintly thinner, deepening the darkness inside.

Esther was right; she was a monster who deserved to be executed. Half a day’s time was just right; even if she were given a few more days, she would not want to stay by her friend’s side any longer.

Because…

The true form of that desire was a bare appetite.

…

…

At the same time, Salzburg.

Xie Qingxuan extinguished the dark magic in her hand and looked at the tall, terrifying three-headed griffin, which resembled a monstrous creature. She quietly watched it slowly crumble into tiny ashes and whispered:

"So weak, it died without even needing a blessing."

This absurd and surreal scene made the frightened bystanders stop in confusion, looking at this elegant and graceful lady, unsure whether to believe it was real or some kind of prank.

If the three-headed griffin hadn’t crushed the fountain and flattened the nearby shops, everyone would have definitely thought it was the latter, considering the overly calm demeanor of a certain Stage Tyrant.

Tang Liuli cautiously curled up behind the Great Devil. She blinked her green eyes, and after seeing the three-headed griffin turn to ashes, she regained her bravery and quietly puffed out her chest.

Yes, although she was still holding onto Xie Qingxuan’s clothing, that wasn’t a sign of fear; she just wanted to be ready to protect this silly dog at any moment.

The green-eyed cat appeared very confident, as if to say, "If you hadn’t acted so quickly, she would have already dealt with the three-headed griffin."

As for her inner thoughts?

In the first ten seconds, her mind was filled with thoughts about why such a scary thing happened while shopping, and she began to regret frantically, thinking she shouldn’t have chosen today to go with Little Xuan to pick a birthday gift for Charlotte.

Tang Liuli looked around nervously, clutching Xie Qingxuan’s sleeve, signaling her to hurry up.

Xie Qingxuan picked up the gray crystal left by the disaster beast, casually activated [The Power of the Titan] to lessen their presence, and walked out of the area, continuing to tug Liuli to pick gifts in other places.

On the other side, there was a castle on Monk Mountain.

Chu Yuanqing’s eyes lost their golden glow of authority as she turned to Esther, who had suddenly appeared beside her, and softly said:

"The Church of the Gods holds powers over space, and the 37 [Calamity Seeds] that fell into Salzburg appeared in the air in an instant, sniffing the magical scent to scatter and track, hatching instantly."

Esther pondered for a moment and softly replied:

"Thank you, this is very valuable information."

After the super AI spoke, she glanced at the calm and peaceful scene of the castle and continued:

"But… they did not expect your strength to be far greater than anticipated. Allocating two-thirds of the Calamity Seeds to invade the castle was completely a wrong plan."

Chu Yuanqing felt a bit regretful; she had not yet realized the situation. Her instinct to fight stirred a fiery wave of anger, and in one breath, she burned all the Calamity Seeds without giving them a chance to hatch.

If it were not for this, she really wanted to keep a few more to use as training material for the little idols and to seek the feel of the first playthrough.

The Pure White Witch looked towards the distant lights twinkling in the night and then glanced back at Miss Bunny Girl, directly asking:

"Speak, what do you want from me?"