"Ah, speaking of which, the sister with glasses, you're the one who treated me and Moke to milk tea before... Huh, what's with you guys?"
As Lin Xiaolu made this astonishing remark, Bai Jingxuan was still delighted by the reunion with the "good person" she remembered. However, the greeting between her and Bai Ji hadn't even started when it was cut short by Lin Xiaolu's words.
The concept of "the person who bathed in Remnant Beast slime" was tossed out, and the atmosphere that had relaxed suddenly became quite delicate.
All eyes instantly focused on her, and then, inexplicably, shifted to the blonde girl beside her.
"Ah, you're that guy who almost got killed by the Remnant Beasts at the Inchworm stage..."
The blonde girl, who moments before had been blithely greeting everyone, first paused, then belatedly realized something, and pointing at Lin Xiaolu, exclaimed, "Hold on, who are you saying bathed in Remnant Beast slime?"
Lin Xiaolu blinked and gestured in the air before pointing at the other's iconic golden hair and shiny forehead: "If I recall correctly, you look similar, sound similar, and you're also a Magical Girl who recently arrived in Fangting City. It has to be you, right?"
"I didn't say that wasn't me! I'm saying there's no such thing as 'bathing in Remnant Beast slime!'"
She shouted somewhat angrily, swinging her fists: "That was an accident! It happened because the Remnant Beast self-destructed just before dying, I didn't do it on purpose!"
"Your battle method is basically aimed at making Remnant Beasts explode, isn't it..."
"Who knew that when that thing burst open there would be such disgusting stuff inside!"
As if just recalling the incident made her nauseated, the blonde girl went pale and couldn't help pressing her stomach: "Can you stop bringing up such disgusting memories? Honestly, if I think about it again, I'm going to vomit."
"Ah, sorry..." Seeing the other's complexion worsening, Lin Xiaolu realized her comments might have touched a nerve, so she averted her gaze and decisively dropped the subject.
While the two of them reached an understanding, it didn't mean the rest of the team had nothing to say. Their exchange opened a can of worms, and naturally others had a lot they wanted to talk about as well. Especially Bai Jingxuan and the girl known as Bai Ji, who had met before and thus were particularly chatty. Plus, Xia Liang was quite curious about the Magical Girls from other cities, and the group quickly became somewhat boisterous in the conversation.
Emerald Sparrow stood to the side with her arms crossed, watching the girls chat animatedly. She had no intention of dousing their enthusiasm but instead leant against the wall, watching the nearby rest room, waiting for the person she was there to see.
Several minutes passed as she waited, tapping her arm and drifting into a daydream, when suddenly there was a "click," and the door of the rest room was deftly pulled open.
The sound of the door attracted the girls' attention, and the noise of their chat softened a lot. The actual person of interest, who had yet to appear from the rest room—Asou Haruka—finally came into view for everyone.
She was no longer wearing her stage performance costume, her glamorous makeup entirely removed, but she did not lose her luster despite having no makeup. She propped herself against the door frame and peered out from the rest room, silently sweeping her gaze over the also-silent girls, her lips slightly curving up.
The three girls from Bai An City paid their respects to the woman behind the door in succession, and though the attitude of one of them seemed somewhat off, it was enough to draw everyone's attention to her.
Asou Haruka's gaze moved over the girls surrounding her, pausing individually on Lin Xiaolu, Bai Jingxuan, and Xia Liang. She lingered on Lin Xiaolu for a moment and exchanged glances with the girls from Bai An, finally focusing on Emerald Sparrow's face.
Emerald Sparrow was looking back at her, too.
Their eyes met like that.
Even before she had left the stage, Emerald Sparrow had rehearsed many times in her mind what she'd say in a face-off with her. She thought she'd have a lot of questions about her actions, but when it came down to it, she found the atmosphere was nothing like she'd imagined.
She had assumed that being dragged onto the stage for such a prank meant that Asou was probably gloating with malicious glee. But upon actually seeing Asou Haruka's expression, she realized she might have been wrong.
Because the other's face didn't show any glee at a calamity or any teasing expression. It was a mix of weariness, nostalgia, and a relieved smile.
Even twenty years ago, it was rare for Emerald Sparrow to see such a gentle expression on her face.
"Do you have any questions?" After a brief silent stare-off, it was Asou Haruka who initiated the conversation.
"... This act you put on, what are you trying to do?"
Unsure of what Asou was plotting, Emerald Sparrow didn't want to waste her emotions and said expressionlessly: "Was dragging someone onto the stage to go along with your performance some kind of tasteless joke?"
Asou Haruka appeared a bit innocent as she said: "Is that how you see it?"
"... Maybe it's a little better than a real joke."
Emerald Sparrow sighed softly: "I thought you were going to loudly announce on stage 'This is an old friend of mine,' followed by a series of prank show skits or something."