Something's off about this magical girl.

Chapter 67 Magical Girl VS Ordinary Teacher

"Anyway, let's try a fight!"

Tao Zhu clapped her hands, pressed down the previous word, and switched back to a serious tone.

"No need." Gu Bai shook his head, his tone calm.

"A school counselor versus a magical girl with superhuman strength or a magical girl who can accelerate time—if you want to rob someone to pay off a debt, you can just go to Kaori and ask for gold coins."

"what?"

Tao Zhu straightened her back, put her hands on her hips, and looked ready to persevere to the end.

"It's not an undead wielding a seven-star magic sword fighting a fast-running girl, plus someone who's just a bit stronger—"

She paused briefly, took a breath, raised her chin, and continued, her words ringing with conviction:

"An incredibly cute, invincible, and unparalleled magical girl!"

"Please remove the preposition." Dongchun turned her eyes to the side, her tone carrying a rare hint of disdain.

"Winter Sister, you're not allowed to dampen your teammates' spirits this time!"

Tao Zhu gritted her teeth, then put on a mournful face, moved closer to Gu Bai, and dragged out a sticky, whiny tone in her voice: "Anyway, teacher, please~"

"It's no use." Gu Bai rejected Tao Zhuo's coquettishness.

Tao Zhuo sullenly leaned back in her chair, her mind racing through backup plans. Before she could come up with anything, Dong Chun spoke first:

"Teacher, please challenge me to a duel. Gaining experience in real combat will help me better face future challenges."

Her voice remained as calm as ever, but after she finished speaking, her red eyes paused on Gu Bai's face for a moment, revealing a kind of focused scrutiny.

...okay. "

Gu Bai remained silent for a moment, considering the situation of the two magical girls in front of him, and finally breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.

"Huh?!"

But now, some people are unhappy.

Seeing this change, Tao Zhuo suddenly sprang up from the back of her chair, pointed at Gu Bai, then at Dong Chun, her mouth opening and closing repeatedly before finally erupting into an indignant accusation:

"Discrimination! Discrimination! Is there no room between you two for a delicate and beautiful girl like Tao Zhuo?!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

At last.

Led by Tao Zhuo, who kept muttering to herself, the three people and one beast arrived at the magical girl battle room.

Gu Bai pushed open the thick, soundproof door and glanced inside. The walls were made of reinforced material covered with magical patterns, the floor was clean, the space was high, and there were several testing instruments in the corner.

"Why would they actually set up a place like this?"

"...Unrestricted combat tournament." Fuyu Tsubaki uttered the words calmly, as if stating an obvious fact.

"Sister Dong, this joke is outdated!"

Tao Zhuo immediately retorted, calculating her student card bill, but upon further reflection, she realized she wasn't entirely wrong: "It is indeed a place for magical girls to fight, but the original intention was probably—"

"—This is the arena for battles against hypothetical witches!"

Yubi spoke first, her ahoge standing tall, speaking in a knowledgeable tone, then flapping her little wings twice:

"Anyway, let the fighting begin! You can beat that lowly magical girl however you want, but my master, you have to do this for my sake! Hey, wait a minute, don't just start right away, are you cavemen?!"

Before Yubi could finish muttering, the three of them stepped into the magic barrier and split into two groups, one on the left and one on the right, each taking their own place.

"Teacher, shall we start right away?" Tao Zhuo stood next to Dong Chun, casually tossing her ponytail behind her shoulder. Her tone was light, but her expression was more serious than usual.

"Okay," Gu Bai nodded in reply.

The words had barely left his lips when—

Dongchun had already appeared within two meters of him.

So fast?

Is it that my adaptability has decreased? Or has Dongchun made some different changes?

Before I could think, the magical attack had already begun.

The ink sword materialized from his palm, and he braced it against the wall, a steady tremor coming from his arm.

Gu Bai did not retaliate immediately. He was unsure how much force Dong Chun's magic barrier could withstand, so he decided to defend for the time being.

However, the next moment, a long sword, entirely white with a few specks of red ink on its hilt, suddenly appeared beside Gu Bai's hand, hovering there. It was a gift from Dong Chun:

"Although my magic output is not very stable, it's still usable for now, so there's no need to worry."

"Alright." Gu Bai said, dispelling the ink sword and replacing it with the weapon handed to him by Dong Chun.

"External magic fixation, Winter Sister, you've secretly learned new magic again without me!"

Tao Zhuo's eyes widened slightly. She took a step closer, and before she could finish speaking, she was already in front of Gu Bai. She raised her hand—

call out!

A punch came flying through the air, and a faint sonic boom could even be heard in my ears.

Gu Bai took a half-step to the side, and the fist flew past his shoulder, the shockwave even brushing against his collar.

Let's try to avoid attacks as much as possible.

"Glass cannon"—that's how Gu Bai describes himself.

Without relying on the immortality bestowed upon him by Mo Xin, there must be a difference between his physical body and Tao Zhuo's.

However, Tao Zhuo's timing for punching was poor. With her center of gravity leaning forward and not having time to retreat, this punch was more than enough for her to regain her rhythm.

--boom!

However, Dong Chun had already activated her magic and unleashed several low-level spells, precisely timing them to block Gu Bai's counterattack.

The two of them worked together without saying a word.

Gu Bai had no choice but to stop his attack, turning his counterattack back into a defensive stance. He swung his sword to parry Dong Chun's follow-up attack while simultaneously dodging to the side.

"A scorching...fist!"

Along with the words came a wave of intense heat from Tao Zhuo's fist, so intense that even the air smelled burnt.

"Can't you at least have some taste when choosing a name?"

After dodging, Gu Bai finally spoke, saying that he had to admit he couldn't sense Tao Zhuo holding back at all; she was really serious.

"Oh, the teacher avoided it again?"

Tao Zhuo stopped where she was, tilted her head, and said with a hint of genuine complaint, "You're so mean, couldn't you wait for me?"

There's a problem with this statement!

Gu Bai had originally planned to deal with Dong Chun's side first, but the moment Tao Zhuo uttered those words, his steps inexplicably slowed down—

But if you're one step behind, you'll be behind at every step.

He then only had time to turn his sword to deflect the force, parrying the magical attack from Dongchun that was already close to his ribs. The airflow spread along the sword's surface, sweeping up a piece of his clothes.

"Teacher, now you'd better take this punch!"

Tao Zhuo's voice carried an uncontrollable smugness; the [Charm Magic] was indeed quite useful.

Today's battle, on the surface, is Yubi's victory, but in reality, she has been looking forward to it for a long time.

I've been secretly practicing this new spell for a long time, and I plan to use it as a killing move here. If I can actually make the teacher take a hit, I can be proud of myself for a very, very long time!

However, the teacher's health...

Just before the attack landed, Tao Zhuo hesitated and withdrew some of her strength.

Gu Bai had already turned around, opened his palm, and caught the fist in his hand—

The sound of a thunderous explosion exploded, like a speeding truck slamming solidly into my palm.

One second, two seconds...

To Tao Zhuo's surprise, the teacher was not thrown away. Two shallow marks were left on the soles of her feet, and she finally landed steadily on the spot.

The two men stared at each other for a moment, separated by their fist-catching stance.

"Teacher, you're really not a magical girl?" Tao Zhu's mouth opened slightly, filled with genuine confusion.

"If you don't believe me, try it tonight. What did you say before you came?" Gu Bai released his hand.

"Just now? Which sentence—" Tao Zhuo paused, thought for half a second, and her face flushed red: "Oh dear, that was nonsense!"

She quickly withdrew her hand, turned her gaze elsewhere, and decided not to dwell on what she had just said.

The training room fell silent for a moment, marking a temporary pause.

Just then, a familiar voice came from outside, unhurried and with a distinctive sense of propriety: "Can I join you?"

Gu Bai looked in the direction of the voice and saw Guan Lan again: "What, it's you?"

"Today is my last day of study at the First Affiliated Hospital, Professor Gu Bai, may I come along?"

The girl in the wheelchair didn't show much emotion and obediently waited for Gu Bai's answer.

"what ever."