Dark-colored Fairy Tale: Seven Magicians - Chapter 44

Chapter 44

Suddenly, an intense surge of magical power erupted from Chloe without warning. Her Parasite’s Spear materialized instantly and lunged straight for the bento box in Li Qiuyu’s hands.

Li Qiuyu’s reaction was just as swift. The moment Chloe’s spear appeared, a silver-white longsword—the White Emperor Sword—formed in her hand. With a downward slash and an upward flick, she deflected Chloe’s spear. The clashing of their weapons echoed with a startling clarity on the empty balcony.

Liu Menglu, who had been lost in a daze watching the clouds, snapped back to reality. She sat up, bewildered, and stared at the two girls with weapons in hand. “What’s going on?” she asked tentatively, her voice filled with confusion. “I thought you were both about to eat lunch?”

Chloe’s eyes remained fixed on the bento box in Li Qiuyu’s hand, saying nothing. Li Qiuyu followed her gaze and noticed the box. A subtle smirk formed on her face as she provocatively waved it.

Chloe’s grip on her spear tightened, and her dark golden eyes swirled with condensed power.

Seeing Chloe’s expression, Li Qiuyu finally understood the reason for her sudden outburst. The chaos in her mind, caused by Liu Menglu’s kindness, finally cleared. The influence Liu Menglu has on Chloe is not ordinary. This meant that if she could control Liu Menglu, she could indirectly control Chloe and make the unruly magical being behave herself in China.

Forcing down a hint of reluctance, Li Qiuyu quickly reached a conclusion. To get closer to Liu Menglu, she would have to play a different game.

Li Qiuyu was the first to put away her White Emperor Sword. She returned to her kneeling posture, picked up the chopsticks, and with a seemingly slow but actually very quick movement, she picked up a piece of food and put it in her mouth. She then calmly turned to Liu Menglu and said, “Your cooking is very good.”

Liu Menglu had offered the bento out of her affection for magical girls and a small amount of pity for Li Qiuyu, who seemed to have a similar background to Chloe. Hearing the cold Li Qiuyu’s unexpected compliment, she was momentarily stunned. However, her good manners took over, and she simply nodded politely. “Thank you for the compliment.”

She then felt a little speechless. Wait, did these two just have a skirmish a moment ago? Is fighting before a meal a fine tradition among magical girls?

Liu Menglu looked at Chloe with a puzzled expression. Chloe’s face was still cold as she stared at the bento box in Li Qiuyu’s hand. After a moment, she slowly sat down. She divided her own bento in half. Although Liu Menglu had eaten breakfast with her, Chloe didn’t think it was enough to keep her from getting hungry.

Chloe’s portion was not small, but she ate while intently watching the food in Li Qiuyu’s hands, looking so greedy it was as if she wanted to snatch it away. This filled Li Qiuyu with immense doubt. As magical beings, they were taught from a young age to suppress the seven deadly sins. Such blatant greed should not appear on a magical being.

But Chloe’s greed was completely undisguised. Li Qiuyu was about to make a sarcastic remark but stopped herself as she was holding the bento made by Chloe’s friend. She made an effort to soften her tone so it didn’t sound like a provocation.

“Are there no other candidates in Fayalon that you, of all people, could become the host of an ancient sacrifice?”

Despite her best efforts, Li Qiuyu’s lifelong training in a rigid environment made her voice flat, like that of an emotionless machine. Coupled with her naturally cold voice, it sounded like a direct provocation to Chloe, who already held a grudge against her.

Unlike Liu Menglu, Chloe was not so carefree. She had a clear memory of every wrong Li Qiuyu had committed—from trying to drive a wedge between her and Liu Menglu, to stealing Liu Menglu’s bento, and then using that bento to provoke her. She remembered every single thing.

Faced with Li Qiuyu’s taunt, Chloe was not about to back down. She looked at the robotic Li Qiuyu and was reminded of the term “block of wood” that Liu Menglu had used the day before. The quick-witted Chloe said, “If a block of wood like you can be a magical being, why can’t I?”

Li Qiuyu calmly retorted, “At least I abide by the magical being’s code.”

“And I don’t?”

“That greedy look on your face doesn’t befit a magical being.”

The two traded barbs, each one aiming for the other’s weaknesses. Meanwhile, Liu Menglu felt a little awkward at the use of the word “block of wood.” After all, in the anime they had watched, it was a term of endearment. Now Chloe was using it to insult her enemy—

Hehe, why is there such a strange and cute feeling?

Liu Menglu covered her mouth, trying to hide her uncontrollable “auntie smile.” Her bright eyes watched the two of them closely, occasionally letting out a giggle.

Although Chloe was bickering with Li Qiuyu, her attention was still on Liu Menglu. She had noticed Liu Menglu’s slightly strange behavior earlier. Despite the odd feeling creeping up her spine, she still hated the girl who had eaten Liu Menglu’s bento more.

Li Qiuyu, as expected of a young lady from a prestigious family, had impeccable dining manners. Aside from breaking the rule of not speaking during a meal, her posture was that of a perfectly disciplined young lady.

One was rigid and formal, while the other was lazy and refined. In Liu Menglu’s eyes, they were a perfectly matched and slightly goofy couple. Her eyes sparkled, and she felt the urge to take a photo of the scene.

Just as she was getting excited, Chloe stopped eating and placed the remaining half of her bento in Liu Menglu’s hand. Then, she stared intently at Liu Menglu, silently urging her to eat it quickly.

Liu Menglu hesitated. Not because she didn’t want it, but because she was worried Chloe wouldn’t have enough to eat. At that very moment, Li Qiuyu also held out her bento. She, too, had saved a clean half for her. Although Li Qiuyu rarely interacted with people, it didn’t mean she lacked intelligence.

Seeing both bento boxes offered to her at the same time, Liu Menglu’s eyes lit up again.

Hehe, they’re exactly the cute couple I’m shipping. Their telepathy is a perfect score!

As Liu Menglu’s mind filled with pink bubbles, Chloe’s face turned cold as she looked at the bento that had been touched by Li Qiuyu’s saliva. She half-closed her eyes, staring at Liu Menglu, who was daydreaming again.

“Whose will you eat?”