PSW - Chapter 64
Chapter 64
Poli Guli Robot. Before the apocalypse, it was the hottest, most popular animated series in Ling Country and even the entire world. When the world was in crisis, when people were in danger, when you needed help, the Poli Guli Robot would descend from the heavens to solve all your problems. Where there is light, there is hope. Where there is light, there is salvation.
Yes, according to the anime's lore, the robot absorbed light energy to fight.
Light Pretty Cure. Before the apocalypse, it was the best-selling of the many magical girl series. It told the story of a high school student who one day finds a magic key, obtains the Crystal of Light, and forms a contract to receive the power of light. While living her normal school life, she transforms into a magical girl-without revealing her identity or letting ordinary people notice anything amiss-to defeat monsters and save the world.
Evidently, according to the lore, the Light Pretty Cure could generate and emit various forms of light energy and purify monsters.
However, the transformation duration and ability strength of a transformation-type ability user were both closely tied to their mental fortitude. Even if the two could team up to fend off the eight ability users for a while, if they couldn't break through and escape quickly, they would soon be forced to de-transform due to insufficient mental energy.
The eight ability users clearly had the same idea. They continuously dodged and defended against attacks, and whenever the two tried to retreat, they would surround them again, sticking to them relentlessly to keep them tied down.
"Guli…" The robot's whole body trembled, and it suddenly dropped to one knee. The energy receivers on its body flashed with a piercing red light. Even with a constant influx of sunlight, its form flickered, becoming illusory. Finally, with a "poof," a cloud of white smoke erupted, and a girl in a cartoon T-shirt appeared in its place, her face contorted in pain.
"!" The Light Pretty Cure's expression hardened. "Heart of Divine Light, purify all!" she shouted, pushing everyone back with a powerful wave of light. "Let's talk this out! It's just a car, you can have it."
"Heh, so you're willing to listen now? Too late!"
Just then, a fireball accurately struck the gas tank of the car behind them. With a "BOOM," the violent explosion made everyone flinch. Before they could react, a dense torrent of water shot out in an instant, stopping precisely before their faces and freezing into solid ice.
And not a single one of them had managed to react.
"If you don't want to die, then get lost." A massive flame, a full meter high, erupted from Yu Yinan's palm. She scanned the faces of the eight people one by one, then fiercely threw the flame in her hand.
"BOOM!" A searing wave of heat accompanied an earth-shattering explosion. A wooden box was instantly blown to smithereens, but before anyone could see the flying splinters, they were consumed by the heatwave. 【Designated Lure】, very useful.
With almost no hesitation, the eight people squeezed into the one remaining car in that instant. They didn't even manage to close the door before slamming on the gas and fleeing for their lives.
Yu Yinan breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to turn and see Zheng Yi's reaction, she caught sight of Zheng Yi hurrying over.
"Are you two okay, Jiejies?" Zheng Yi grabbed the robot girl's hand, and a healing light began to glow as warm healing energy flowed into her.
"She's just out of mental energy, she's not injured." The Light Pretty Cure had a fleeting look of embarrassment on her face after hearing Zheng Yi's form of address. "Thank you so much. If it weren't for you, I don't know how this would have ended." Mainly, my little sister's combat power was a bit too weak today. She can usually stay transformed for longer. We barely fought today, and she suddenly changed back.
Just as she was about to carry her sister to the car to rest, the magic circle at her feet suddenly flickered, and the halo around her body seemed to short-circuit like an unstable power supply. The next moment, a "poof" of white smoke enveloped her as well.
"…" A handsome young man in a black cartoon shirt appeared before Zheng Yi and the others. His arms, holding his sister, instantly stiffened. His whole body froze up as if his gears had seized. "Ahem."
"Um, thank you. I'm her older brother, Xia Sheng. This is my younger sister, Xia Cheng." The man introduced them a bit stiffly. After he finished, he even let out a couple of awkward laughs. "Hehe, hehe… Transformation-types, you know… they're just like that… always have some… unexpected aspects…"
"It's okay, it's okay, we misunderstood." Zheng Yi waved her hand considerately. "I didn't realize you two siblings were such big anime fans."
"…" Yu Yinan sized up the man, finding it impossible to imagine that this was the person underneath the Light Pretty Cure's appearance just moments ago. This transformation-type… a 1.8-meter man can turn into a 1.6-meter girl?
Then again, if one could turn into a robot, what's a little gender-bending? For a transformation-type, what can't they change into?
"Let's leave this place first and find somewhere to rest," Yu Yinan said. "It'll be bad if they come back later."
"Mhm, okay. Really… thank you so much. We're very grateful."
Xia Sheng, 21, was a university student before the apocalypse. Xia Cheng, 17, was a high school student. Xia Sheng had been studying in Zuoyang, while his parents worked in their hometown, where his sister also attended high school. Coincidentally, just before the apocalypse broke out, Xia Cheng had taken a break to visit her brother in Zuoyang. The two had planned to go to an anime convention together, but before they could do anything, the emergency notice was issued.
At first, they held onto the hope of being "rescued," stocking up on a good amount of food and water and managing to survive in a hotel near the university for some time. After the first major downpour, they both accidentally got caught in the rain and came down with high fevers. However, when they woke up, they didn't realize they had awakened any abilities.
It was only later, when their food ran out and they were forced to leave the hotel to scavenge, that their potential erupted. During a crisis where Xia Sheng was surrounded by zombies while trying to check the situation in the university dorms, one of them turned into a robot, and the other into a magical girl.
After that… rescue never came. The siblings discussed it and decided to return to their hometown to find their parents. The problem was, neither of them knew the way, nor did they have a car. They started by riding bicycles out of Zuoyang. Later, they ran into a few survivors, exchanged information, and obtained a simple map.
The very car they were driving was one they had found on the highway. Only then did they abandon the bicycles. In theory, Xia Sheng could drive, but he hadn't gotten his license yet. As for Xia Cheng, she wasn't even an adult. So, although the two had transportation, they drove with extreme trepidation, stumbling along the way. Even refueling the car at a gas station was a struggle that took them a long time to figure out.
Speaking of their journey, it was truly a tale of bitter tears. It was a wonder they had managed to survive for four months.
"We're from the Humanity's Light Shelter in Pujie," Yu Yinan said softly. "If you find your parents, you can go to this shelter. The conditions are good, and it's very fair."
"Humanity's Light Shelter? I'll remember that." Xia Sheng carefully committed the shelter's name to memory. Pujie, huh.
Xia Cheng had woken up by now and was sitting quietly beside her brother, holding a cup of hot water from Zheng Yi and taking small sips. Whenever she accidentally made eye contact with Zheng Yi or Yu Yinan, she would become visibly flustered and lower her head, looking like a textbook case of social anxiety.
Although Xia Sheng was sharing their experiences with Zheng Yi and Yu Yinan, he was clearly a bit anxious and awkward as well. He kept his head down as he spoke, occasionally touching the tip of his nose or his fingers, or tugging at the corner of his shirt or cracking his knuckles—in short, he was constantly fidgeting.
Once the topic of conversation died down, a dreadful silence fell over the room. The two siblings grew even more uncomfortable. Their eyes darted around, clearly wanting to leave but feeling it would be rude to their saviors.
"Why did you become the Poli Guli Robot, but your brother became the Light Pretty Cure?" Zheng Yi asked sincerely. Her eyes were clear, devoid of any mockery, just showing simple curiosity.
"Because I love the Poli Guli Robot. I've always wanted to be omnipotent like Poli Guli and defeat all the monsters. Other people might think it's childish, but I just love it!" Speaking on this topic, Xia Cheng became much more animated. Her eyes lit up, and the joy she felt talking about something she loved was palpable. As for the second question… "My brother loves watching all kinds of magical girl shows. He's a total otaku. His favorite is Light Pretty Cure… I never knew he'd want to become the Light Pretty Cure, though."
"No, that's not it! I just like the Light Pretty Cure, I never wanted to become her!" Xia Sheng's face flushed as he hastily denied it. "I don't know how this transformation ability awakened, it- I… I can't control it, I don't want this!"
"Really, really, I swear!" Xia Sheng looked at Zheng Yi and the others in a panic, afraid of being mistaken for a pervert.
"It's okay. I've seen Poli Guli and Light Pretty Cure too. They're both really good, I like them a lot." Zheng Yi smiled. She sat obediently beside Yu Yinan and said earnestly, "Wasn't there an episode of Poli Guli with the polar night monster? It cut off all light sources and destroyed the power stations and signal towers. That's my favorite episode."
"Ah! That's my favorite episode too! Poli Guli couldn't kill the monster before its energy ran out and almost died. But then, everyone from all over the world rushed to the battle site and used everything they had that could emit light to give it power!" Xia Cheng became excited in an instant, recounting the plot with animated gestures. When she watched that episode as a child, she'd even cried pathetically.
After discovering that Zheng Yi also liked Poli Guli, Xia Cheng immediately felt closer to her. Besides, Zheng Yi had a gentle and beautiful smile, and her voice was soft and sweet, which greatly stirred Xia Cheng's protective instincts. She couldn't help but scoot closer to Zheng Yi. "Jiejie, you two are so amazing. Are you water- and fire-type ability users? You're so strong. The water and fire users I've met before weren't nearly as powerful as you."
"We're not that strong. They were just startled for a moment." Zheng Yi smiled shyly. As if embarrassed by the praise, a faint pink blush appeared on her face.
"No, you're super strong! And you're super nice people. Anyone else who saw those eight ability users definitely wouldn't have come to save us. My brother and I have met a lot of bad people, and ingrates too." As she said this, Xia Cheng grew agitated again. "Jiejie, don't worry, we're not ingrates! We'll definitely repay you!"
"Ge, go to the car and get the corn sausages I hid in the crack of the back seat. Let's share them with the Jiejies!"
"You hid food in the back seat?!" Xia Sheng was utterly shocked, but before he could say more, Xia Cheng gave him a push. With Zheng Yi and Yu Yinan present, he had no choice but to resign himself to his fate, get up, and retrieve the food from the car.
"Then I'll give you some candy." Zheng Yi smiled and pulled a handful of candy from her pocket, placing it in Xia Cheng's palm. Fearing it wasn't enough, she handed over a bag of chocolate as well.
"Wow! Jiejie, I haven't had candy in so long! Since you're so generous, I can't hold back either. Wait, I've got a few packs of spicy strips hidden away!"
Yu Yinan sat quietly beside Zheng Yi. Even though she was the closest to her and knew that Zheng Yi was completely in acting mode, still… hearing someone else call Zheng Yi "Jiejie," watching Zheng Yi speak so gently to another person and share candy with them, Yu Yinan felt an indescribable discomfort in her heart.
But what right did she have? This wasn't Xia Cheng's or Xia Sheng's fault; it was her own mentality.
After a simple round of sharing snacks, the awkwardness between them finally dissipated. Xia Cheng, in particular, had grown extremely close to Zheng Yi. She abandoned her brother to sit beside Zheng Yi, listening intently as Zheng Yi recounted their journey from Qiding to Genbin, and then from Genbin to Pujie. She was especially captivated by the descriptions of the various facilities and plans at the Humanity's Light Shelter, which filled her with longing.
"Jiejie, you've even encountered mutated animals and plants! So dangerous!"
"Yes, but luckily, this Jiejie also has a Jiejie to protect her, so I was okay." Zheng Yi smiled and glanced at Yu Yinan, tilting her head to rest it on her shoulder for a moment.
"That's so nice. Jiejie's Jiejie is really cool, too." Xia Cheng remembered the massive explosion she'd heard in her daze. At this, she couldn't help but turn to glare at her brother before turning back to Zheng Yi, taking her hand, and saying plaintively, "I'm so envious of you, Jiejie. Unlike me, all I have is a glowing magical girl for a brother."
"Your brother loves you very much, too. He always protects you when there's danger."
"Mmm… I guess that makes him a decent brother, barely," Xia Cheng mused for a moment before offering her reluctant assessment.
"By the way, can ability users at Humanity's Light Shelter have codenames? If I go there, can I be called Poli Guli Robot?" The codename was a bit long; she wasn't sure if it would be approved. Thinking of this, she asked curiously, "Do you Jiejies have codenames?"
"She doesn't, but I do," Zheng Yi said mysteriously, pulling a nameplate from her pocket and handing it over. "Look."
"Saint?" Xia Cheng froze for a moment, racking her brain for any popular anime series but failing to recall a character with that name.
"Mhm, just like you want to become the Poli Guli Robot, I want to become a Saint, full of great love, who can help everyone." As she said this, Zheng Yi lowered her eyes bashfully. "But I'm still a long way off, aren't I? Is it ridiculous?"
Ah, a Saint, that kind of Saint! Xia Cheng had initially thought the codename was a bit ill-suited for the apocalypse, but after hearing Zheng Yi's explanation, her expression instantly became serious and earnest. "How could it be? It's not ridiculous at all!"
"I'm the Poli Guli Robot, and you're the Saint! What's so ridiculous about that? That's super cool, okay!" Xia Cheng grasped Zheng Yi's hands and looked her seriously in the eyes. "Zheng Yi Jiejie, in my heart, you are a true Saint!"
[Ding! Detected that Xia Cheng believes the host is a Saint from the bottom of her heart! Assessing emotional intensity…]
[Assessment complete. Rewarding 8 Saint Points!]
Zero One never expected Zheng Yi to pull off a stunt like this. Looking at Xia Cheng's earnest face, it thought to itself, this chuunibyou girl is so easy to fool. Such sincere words, such sincere Saint Points!
"Right, Ge?" Fearing Zheng Yi still didn't believe her, Xia Cheng whipped her head around to look at Xia Sheng, who was intently eating his spicy strips.
"Huh? Oh, yes, that's right."
"Huh? Is that how you treat our savior, with such a half-hearted answer?! You're a completely unqualified Light Pretty Cure! The magical girl world would be ashamed of you!"
Xia Sheng was speechless. The magical girl world was probably ashamed of me the moment I could transform into the Light Pretty Cure. However, looking at Zheng Yi's unconfident face, for some reason, he acted on impulse. He put down the spicy strips in his hand, cleared his throat, stood up, and struck a classic Light Pretty Cure pose. "I! The Light Pretty Cure, who embodies both beauty and wisdom, sincerely acknowledge your status as a Saint! O maiden, let us shine together! Meow-chu~"
Ah! Why did my body move on its own! What am I doing! I'm really not a pervert!
In that instant, a storm raged in Xia Sheng's mind, nearly knocking him over. He held the pose for three seconds, then, feigning composure, sat back down, picked up his spicy strips to hide his face, and continued eating.
[Ding! Detected that Xia Sheng believes the host is a Saint from the bottom of his heart! Assessing emotional intensity…]
[Assessment complete. Rewarding 6 Saint Points!]
Yu Yinan was completely dumbfounded.
Transformation-types are truly amazing. Is there no one left in this world they care about?
"Zheng Yi Jiejie, so are you two just going to the coast to see the sea?" When Xia Cheng heard that Zheng Yi and the others were planning to go to Chuanyang to see the sea, she couldn't help but squeal. "How romantic! Jiejie, you're not blood sisters, are you? Are you a couple?" The calm, cool, max-combat-power ice queen older girl and the gentle, sweet, adorable younger girl! Is it? Is it? Is it? Sweet girls and cool older sisters are such a good match!
"Jiejie's surname is Yu, so of course we're not blood sisters. But we're not a couple either. Jiejie and I only met after the apocalypse. We're very, very good friends." Zheng Yi smiled and explained openly, not feeling awkward about Xia Cheng's misunderstanding. As for Yu Yinan, the little deer that had started to run wild in her heart was slammed to the ground and brutally ground into the dirt by an invisible hand after hearing Zheng Yi's words.
"That's great too, to make such a good friend in the apocalypse! I'd love to be close with a sister too! If only my brother were really a girl, ahhh, I really want an older sister."
Xia Sheng scooted backward, wanting nothing to do with his crazed sister.
Zheng Yi, however, good-naturedly patted Xia Cheng's head, only to be pulled into a hug. "Zheng Yi Jiejie~ Will you be my older sister? Ooh, you're so soft and you smell so good to hug. I like you so much."
"…" Yu Yinan suddenly stood up. She met Zheng Yi's upward gaze. "Sorry, I just remembered I left something in the car. I'll be right back." She spoke quickly and then, not daring to look at Zheng Yi again, walked out briskly.
Why- why can some people so easily and enthusiastically say what's on their mind? Liking someone, being close to them—how could it be expressed so directly and simply? A sour feeling welled up in Yu Yinan's heart. She quickly opened the car door and saw the box of dried fish Zheng Yi had given her on the passenger seat.
Soy-sauce fish, sweet and sour flavor.
She tore open the box and stuffed the entire small bag of dried fish into her mouth. This was clearly sweet and sour dried fish, so why couldn't she taste any sweetness, only the sourness of vinegar in her mouth?
She leaned against the car door, closed her eyes, and let out a long, soft sigh, her head tilted toward the sky.
Zheng Yi was so smart; she must have noticed something was wrong. She must know why. Ah, perhaps Zheng Yi did it on purpose. Not to target her, but simply… treating everyone who acknowledged her as a Saint with the same fairness.
That was impulsive. I shouldn't have come out. The moment she calmed down, Yu Yinan felt a pang of regret. Zheng Yi's attitude toward her had just… for whatever reason, it had just started to improve. Yu Yinan cherished these ordinary, peaceful moments together. By walking out like this, would Zheng Yi think she was "crossing the line" again? Would she find her too troublesome and talk about sending her back to the shelter…
And Xia Cheng and Xia Sheng were here. Wasn't she being too selfish? She hadn't considered anything, just left because she was uncomfortable. Would Zheng Yi think she was throwing a tantrum?
Suddenly, footsteps sounded. Yu Yinan's eyes snapped open to see Xia Sheng coming out.
"Um, sorry. My sister… once she gets to know someone, she gets kind of crazy like this with people she likes. Uh, she doesn't mean any harm, and, um, she doesn't mean anything else by it. She's just, um, being friendly with your… your… little sister." Xia Sheng explained haltingly. He scratched his jaw and neck, switching from the left side to the right as he finally managed to get the words out. "Anyway… thank you so much for saving us, really. Thank you. Um, if my sister made you unhappy in any way, I apologize on her behalf. I'm sorry."
Xia Sheng's face turned redder and redder. His skin was naturally fair, so the blush was particularly obvious.
"No, I'm not unhappy, and I'm not angry. You don't have to apologize, I know. I'm also happy that she likes my… little sister." Yu Yinan waved her hand. She knew perfectly well this was her own problem and had nothing to do with the siblings. She felt even worse that her impulsiveness had made Xia Sheng come out specifically to apologize.
Xia Sheng looked at her, seeming to want to say more but holding back. He knew that many magical girl shows had yuri or strong friendship themes. The shipping possibilities were endless, with dozens of pairings for the various magical girls, not to mention countless fan-made video edits.
The tsundere cool older sister who's cold on the outside but warm on the inside, stubborn but soft-hearted, paired with the innocent, kind, and naive soft, sweet younger girl… Plus, one is a water-type and the other is a fire-type. Could this ship be any better!
Ah, from the looks of it, isn't she obviously jealous? One is silently loving and protecting from the sidelines, while the other is too naive to understand anything, thinking it's just simple sisterly affection.
Although Xia Sheng's mind was racing, it was clearly not something he could say to her face. He apologized again earnestly. "Xia Cheng is a 'face-con,' she likes anyone who's pretty! Whether it's an older sister, younger sister, older brother, or younger brother, as long as they're pretty, she'll say she likes them. Really, she's just saying it, she would never actually act on it!"
"No, it's really okay… I'm happy that she acknowledges Zheng Yi…"
Both of them were extremely flustered. After going back and forth like this for a while, Yu Yinan finally decided she didn't want to waste any more time and said through gritted teeth, "We should go back inside. It's not good to keep them waiting."
"Ah, yes. You're right." For some reason, Xia Sheng had switched to using a more formal mode of address.
But as soon as they walked back into the room, they saw Xia Cheng sitting in Zheng Yi's lap. She had her arms wrapped affectionately around Zheng Yi, and she looked up to meet the two pairs of eyes at the door.
"Xia Cheng, what are you doing? How can you be so rude to our benefactor!"
"I wasn't! I was saying I haven't lost much weight in the apocalypse. Zheng Yi Jiejie said I'm not fat at all, so I sat down. Zheng Yi Jiejie said I'm not heavy at all. I just sat down!"
"Alright, get down now." Xia Cheng got up from Zheng Yi's lap. She stumbled, and just as she was about to fall back into Zheng Yi's arms, Xia Sheng's reflexes kicked in. He lunged forward, managed to catch his sister, and then pushed her down to sit beside him.
"Thank you both for your help today. We will never forget this life-saving grace! Once Xia Cheng and I get our parents from home, we will definitely go to the Humanity's Light Shelter to repay you both." Xia Sheng gave a deep, sincere bow, then pulled Xia Cheng up. "You two should rest. We won't disturb you any longer."
"Ge! Ge! Zheng Yi Jiejie and the others are leaving from Huikong!" Xia Cheng yelled anxiously. "Jiejie and I just agreed! We can travel together to Huikong and then part ways!"
"?!" Xia Sheng's pupils contracted. For a moment, he didn't know what to say and could only slowly turn his gaze to Yu Yinan. He saw her looking straight at Zheng Yi.
"Jiejie, I was just about to tell you. Xia Cheng and I get along extremely well. The ability users in Hangnu are rather restless, and they just escaped danger. Why don't we travel together and part ways when we reach Huikong?" Zheng Yi smiled gently, her dark eyes fixed on Yu Yinan.
That's right. The siblings had just escaped danger. With her Saint persona, how could she feel at ease leaving them here?
"Okay," Yu Yinan agreed. She lowered her gaze before looking up at Zheng Yi and offering a smile. "Hangnu is dangerous. I was thinking the same thing."
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