Chapter 22: Princess Knight Magical Girl VS Dead Goblin

“Xiaobai, are you coming in with me this time?”

At the target location, under the setting sun, Jiang Yao gazed at the distant factory, radiating demonic energy in her magical girl vision. To an ordinary person, it might just feel unsettling. In the physical universe, the factory was just a factory. But for magical girls, that place no longer belonged to humans.

It was, without a doubt, a devil’s den.

The intelligence was too scarce. A week ago, Jiang Yao was fighting bugs, and now, she’d stumbled upon a major dark-side stronghold outside the city.

It was like a hero fresh from the Novice Village, leveling up by killing worms, only to face a small boss at the gate. After a cutscene, the boss was slain—a plot kill to scare her, she thought. But then, news hit: the Demon King had attacked the Novice Village itself.

Worse, this damned final boss had kidnapped her mother—freshly awakened from a coma, powerless, gentle, kind, and so pitiful she’d cry over a dead ant.

Jiang Yao was deeply uncertain.

“Of course, don’t we always fight together?”

“Xiaobai, honestly, I’ve seen other magical girls’ partners.” Jiang Yao shot back: “I’ve never seen a fairy fight alongside a magical girl.”

“This…”

Suddenly, Jiang Yao called out in a stern tone: “Tanggula Aifeiyal Sneed Dragon Ridge Mountain Kuku’e Jianghu Double Blade Master Bai Second!”

“Here! Wait—you remembered my full name?!” Xiaobai’s eyes welled with tears, moved. A fairy’s full name was their pride, and being called by it was a great honor.

“In short, you’re an unreliable guy.” Jiang Yao flicked Xiaobai, watching the little furball yelp “ying” and clutch its forehead with tiny paws.

“If you’re hiding anything from me, spill it later…”

“Um…”

Xiaobai hung its head guiltily, missing Jiang Yao’s reaching hands.

“So now, I need you to report to the Administration, tell them there’s an emergency here, and request backup. Got it?”

“I got it… Hey, hey, hey!”

Jiang Yao grabbed Xiaobai’s round body with both hands. She lowered it, raised her foot—

“Go!”

Whoosh— Xiaobai arced perfectly through the air, turning into a meteor streaking toward the horizon.

“Sigh…”

Watching Xiaobai vanish, Jiang Yao turned, her magic surging, light magic nearly overflowing.

Xiaobai was truly unreliable. Last week, sensing danger, she’d gone to the Administration to secure a special identity certificate for her mother, a magical girl family certificate, and other documents. She’d done some digging too. Turns out, Xiaobai hadn’t taught her many basics!

Yet, she wasn’t a true magical girl. She was just someone who, by chance, attracted Xiaobai—an unreliable but genuine fairy. Her magic, tied to her heart and character, was real, and her spiritual attire was a justice knight’s, brimming with a guardian’s aura.

Jiang Yao, who wasn’t bad but lacked the golden spirit of a magical girl, found this surprising. If her mother hadn’t been kidnapped, she wouldn’t have rushed here so recklessly.

From that angle, Xiaobai’s unreliability was a blessing, letting someone like her wield magic.

Jiang Yao focused, steadying her magic. She now understood why those stray dogs after school were tougher than expected. They were deliberately sent to intercept her.

How she’d been found out, she could only guess. Perhaps a reconnaissance monster or stealthy demon had tracked her home since her last fight.

No wonder—Xiaobai, as a fairy, was too unprofessional to guide a magical girl. She’d only recently learned magical girls must clean up battlefields after fights, and she’d barely practiced it.

Honestly, her mother’s kidnapping was partly Xiaobai’s fault. “Sigh.”

Jiang Yao sighed. She couldn’t fully blame Xiaobai, though—the kick was punishment enough. The real reason was her own slackness after her mother’s awakening.

She’d always known the magical world’s harshness and trained hard for the first two months. But she’d slacked off until danger struck, only researching after seeing that strange pink-haired magical girl.

The Administration had heaps of human-side data, freely accessible to her as the city’s only registered magical girl. Yet she’d wasted that resource.

Jiang Yao calmed her mind, channeled her magic, and approached the abandoned factory’s gate. The iron sheet had peeled, revealing rust beneath. She pressed her hands to the gate, pushing slowly.

Squeak—Gah— The metal’s friction made a teeth-grinding noise. Clearly, the creatures inside didn’t use the main entrance.

“Tch.” Jiang Yao clicked her tongue, irritated.

The factory air reeked of dust, rusted steel, a foul stench, and sour decay. The dark aura hitting her face made her grimace.

The dim light barely let her see, with only slivers from broken windows revealing shadows of large machines inside.

“I’m here.”

Jiang Yao stood at the iron gate’s center, announcing her arrival calmly. The setting sun’s glow streamed in behind her, casting a divide of light and dark, with her as the boundary.

She gripped her sword and stepped inside.

Bang! The iron gate slammed shut behind her, cutting off her retreat.

“Hehehe…” “Hehehehe…”

Intermittent laughter echoed from the darkness, soon swelling into a cacophony. “Hahaha…” “Quack… uh… quack…”

Countless shrill laughs filled the factory, and red-glowing eyes lit up in the shadows. Heads of all sizes stirred among the tall machines.

“Paladin’s Sword—”

Jiang Yao slashed a crescent-shaped energy wave, instantly revealing the creatures’ forms. Short, thin, with rotten skin and exposed bones, they were patchwork undead.

A fitting name: Undead Goblins.

The crescent energy hit the factory wall like a referee’s whistle. Whether Jiang Yao stepped forward first or a goblin lunged, a chaotic battle erupted instantly!

“Goblins versus Princess Knight, you know?” “My daughter’s amazing!” “Nice work—this attack style’s perfect. For these small fries, melee magical girls just need to slash. They can’t break her defense.”

High above, Jiang Lingwei dispatched surrounding monsters, then hid in a gap between two old machines, watching her daughter’s fight. She didn’t mind the stench or filth here—past battles had been far worse.

Compared to bug-infested fields or walls of tentacles and flesh, this was just a bit dirty—practically luxurious.

“But… isn’t she overdoing it? She should conserve her magic…”

In her hand, she gripped the neck of a dark wizard monster, a big catch from her surprise raid. Pointing to the battle below, Jiang Lingwei whispered: “Look, my good girl’s exhausted because of your mess. Not nice, is it? Shouldn’t you offer compensation?” “No rush for that—let’s start with info. You summoned that trash, I saw it. So, who’s that suited idiot? What’s his deal?”

“Gugugugugu…” The dark wizard, neck strangled, bulged its blood-red eyes, struggling but unable to speak, only making penguin-like noises.

“Tch.” Jiang Lingwei, who’d thought she was kind enough, frowned, mimicking her daughter’s exasperation. “Damn dark monster, why so tight-lipped? Speak!”

Crack. She snapped off the wizard’s arm.

“Gugu ga ga!!!”

“Ha, am I too hasty? Let’s try again, from this side…”

Crunch. The wizard’s palm broke off.

“Guguga!!!”

“Still not talking?! Tough guy, huh? A well-trained monster! You’ve earned my respect.”

Crack.

“Kouwagalalaa…”

Two streaks of black blood oozed from the dark wizard’s terrified, wide-open eyes.