Chapter 42: Badmouthing to Her Face, Meow?

An Unexpected Inspection

Hearing it was the Magical Girl Association, Su Ying hurriedly left the counter and rushed over, her face tense with nerves.

“I-I’m the manager. Is something wrong?”

Soon, Xiao Xi pieced together the situation. After the café’s monster attack, the Association had given Su Ying compensation to rebuild. Now, they were here for a follow-up investigation.

Su Ying relaxed, her usual warm smile returning as she welcomed the group inside.

However, Xiao Xi sensed the staff member wasn’t telling the whole truth. She stole a glance at the two magical girls trailing behind. Why would a routine visit need magical girls in tow?

Since combat-ready magical girls accompanied them, they likely anticipated a fight. Suddenly, Xiao Xi recalled Miss L mentioning the Association’s plan to thoroughly re-investigate sites of past monster attacks.

So, they were here to probe the monster incident. Miss L hadn’t informed her, probably knowing she worked at the café and didn’t want to disrupt her shift.

Nearby, Ye Xinglan overheard the staff and sighed in relief. Good. They weren’t here for her.

Ye Xinglan itched to leave. One of the magical girls was [Nightingale Songstress] Mu Xingge, someone she’d clashed with plenty of times before.

Yet, leaving now might draw suspicion. Since Mu Xingge likely wouldn’t recognize her as the Blood Moon Witch, she decided to stay put.

A Tense Encounter

Su Ying led the staff to the counter for their inspection, leaving the others to wait in the café.

Xiao Xi flashed a smile, seating the remaining group and serving lemon water with her signature stellar service.

As she placed drinks before Little Red Riding Hood and Mu Xingge, Xiao Xi kept her professional smile. Little Red Riding Hood thanked her politely but distantly. Both acted like complete strangers.

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After serving, Xiao Xi discreetly returned to Ye Xinglan to finish her maid duties, avoiding even a second’s glance at Mu Xingge.

This marked her first time meeting Mu Xingge without her magical girl transformation. As long as she acted normal, Mu Xingge wouldn’t spare a thought for a mere café maid.

When Xiao Xi sat back down, she noticed Ye Xinglan staring at Mu Xingge.

“Xiao Xi, that’s [Nightingale Songstress] Mu Xingge over there.”

“Oh?” Xiao Xi feigned surprise. “I didn’t even notice.”

Ye Xinglan scoffed. You were writing spicy fanfic about her last night, and now you don’t recognize her?

Stirring Trouble

Xiao Xi scooped a bit of cake and fed it to Ye Xinglan. Chewing, Ye Xinglan spoke at a normal volume.

“By the way, that person in your group is so annoying, Xiao Xi. Last night, I just made a small suggestion, and she jumped down my throat, asking if I had an antisocial personality.”

“Can’t you kick her out?”

Xiao Xi’s eyes widened. What the heck? Why was she suddenly bringing this up?

Not responding would look odd, so Xiao Xi shot Ye Xinglan desperate looks while keeping her voice steady.

“Haha… kicking people out randomly isn’t cool, right? You argued back too, didn’t you?”

Ye Xinglan hadn’t lowered her voice, so her words reached Mu Xingge’s ears. Normally, others’ chatter didn’t concern her, but this sparked a memory.

Last night, while browsing the “V-Me-50-for-Crazy-Thursday-Insights” group, she saw someone suggest writing more of Mu Xingge’s defeat scenes, complete with examples. Furious, she’d argued, even asking, “Do you have an antisocial personality to want this stuff?”

A coincidence? Mu Xingge glanced toward the two.

Noticing Xiao Xi’s frantic eye signals, Ye Xinglan didn’t ask if her eyes were okay. Instead, she lowered her voice.

“Why are you so scared? We’re not naming Mu Xingge. She’s not in your reader group. How would she know what we’re talking about?”

I’m freaking screwed…

Xiao Xi froze, speechless. She desperately wanted to tell Ye Xinglan that the person she argued with was Mu Xingge, but she couldn’t say it. It was like swallowing a dry bun—she was choking on it.

Spilling Secrets Aloud

Before Xiao Xi could find an excuse to hush Ye Xinglan, she continued, still at normal volume.

“But your recent plots are kinda dull, you know? Your slime monster arc was so good before.”

“Especially when the protagonist lost to the slime due to carelessness, all wrapped up in goo. And that tentacle monster arc before…”

Stop talking! Please, just stop!

Xiao Xi’s face muscles ached from signaling Ye Xinglan, but she showed no signs of stopping, rambling on.

“Why are you such a coward?” Ye Xinglan whispered again. “We’re just chatting. Mu Xingge hasn’t read your stuff. A big shot like her probably doesn’t even know you wrote fanfic about her. What’s there to fear?”

Ye Xinglan hadn’t named Mu Xingge directly, using “protagonist” instead, just as she avoided her name in the group.

Her logic was sound—so sound Xiao Xi couldn’t argue. The words “Mu Xingge has read it” stuck in her throat like a massive, dry bun, nearly suffocating her.

You’re doing this on purpose! You know that group member is Mu Xingge, and you’re trying to get me killed!

A Deliberate Provocation

Ye Xinglan was indeed doing it on purpose, but not to ruin Xiao Xi. She genuinely didn’t know the group member was Mu Xingge or that Mu Xingge had read Xiao Xi’s novels.

Her goal was simpler: to badmouth Mu Xingge to her face.

As the Blood Moon Witch, Ye Xinglan held a grudge against Eternal Star’s team, especially Mu Xingge, who’d fought her countless times.

She couldn’t exactly grab Mu Xingge and beat her up now, but she could gossip about her fanfic right in front of her, knowing Mu Xingge wouldn’t catch on.

Wasn’t that thrilling? It gave her the rush of badmouthing an enemy to her face while she remained clueless.