Chapter 23: Looking Forward to Going Home, Meow?

A Discovery in the Closet

Inside Xiao Xi’s room, Ye Xinglan was rummaging through the closet for the cosplay outfit.

She suddenly realized a problem—through her headphones, she hadn’t clearly heard where Xiao Xi said the clothes were. She tried calling back, but the call didn’t go through.

Unbeknownst to her, Xiao Xi was sitting behind the counter getting her makeup done by Su Ying, her phone left in the break room.

Whatever, the closet wasn’t that big. She’d find it herself.

Ye Xinglan dug through it but, after a thorough search, still couldn’t locate the cosplay outfit.

Weird, it’s just a closet… Oh, there were three drawers she hadn’t checked. Maybe Xiao Xi had folded the clothes and put them away?

She opened the drawers one by one, only to find Xiao Xi’s undergarments neatly stored inside.

So Xiao Xi’s style was this plain? She’d expected something cuter, given how cute Xiao Xi was… Ahem, no, she wasn’t snooping! Xiao Xi told her to look!

Her gaze landed on the third drawer, the only part of the closet she hadn’t checked. It was secured with a large lock, and Ye Xinglan didn’t know where the key was.

After a moment’s hesitation, she decided to act quickly. Xiao Xi’s urgent tone suggested she needed the outfit now.

A crimson glow gathered in Ye Xinglan’s hand. With a flash of red light, the lock snapped clean off and fell to the floor.

Humming, Ye Xinglan opened the drawer, but before she could start searching, she froze at the sight of its contents.

It wasn’t clothes. She picked up a photo album and flipped through it.

This was… Eternal Star?

Ye Xinglan’s eyes sharpened.

A Tense Wait

In the café’s break room, Xiao Xi, now made up, glanced at the time, growing anxious.

Why wasn’t Ye Xinglan here yet? It was a twenty-minute walk from home to the café, tops. Nearly half an hour had passed, and they were about to open!

As Xiao Xi debated calling Ye Xinglan again, Su Ying’s voice came from outside.

“Xiao Xi, your friend’s here!”

Relieved, Xiao Xi opened the break room door to let Ye Xinglan in. For some reason, Ye Xinglan’s expression seemed off.

Probably annoyed about running an errand… Feeling guilty, Xiao Xi spoke apologetically.

“Sorry, Xinglan, for making you come all this way.”

“It’s fine,” Ye Xinglan said lightly, shaking her head. “Your clothes were just hard to find.”

“I turned your whole closet upside down, went through everything, and still didn’t find them. Turns out they were on the balcony drying rack.”

She emphasized “upside down” and “everything,” but Xiao Xi didn’t catch it. She slapped her forehead—she’d forgotten the cosplay outfit was drying on the balcony and hadn’t been brought in.

Xiao Xi hurriedly started changing, pausing awkwardly when she noticed Ye Xinglan standing still.

“Um, Xinglan, I need to change. Could you… step out for a bit?”

Ye Xinglan left the break room silently, unable to read anything from Xiao Xi’s expression.

Was Xiao Xi playing dumb? Or did she really not realize Ye Xinglan had figured out she was [Eternal Star]?

Opening Day Hustle

When Xiao Xi, now changed, reached the photo area, the café had just opened. Customers were trickling in, and Su Ying was busy taking orders at the counter.

Xiao Xi sighed in relief. She’d made it without causing a major mishap.

“Excuse me, miss, can we take a photo?”

“No problem! We’ve got a photo check-in event for a free dessert. Check it out~”

A customer approached, and Xiao Xi flashed a smile, though she felt a bit nervous.

Her natural cuteness drew plenty of attention the moment she appeared.

Watching Xiao Xi surrounded by customers, Ye Xinglan’s eyes darkened, her gloom almost tangible.

She’d never considered the possibility that her roommate was Eternal Star herself. What a… golden opportunity.

She’d been tirelessly searching for Eternal Star with no leads. Who’d have thought her chance for revenge would come so suddenly?

Now wasn’t the time to act, though. Xiao Xi seemed oblivious to being found out, making this the perfect chance to humiliate her.

As for revenge, that could wait until they got home tonight.

Meanwhile, facing a growing line of customers waiting for photos, Xiao Xi struggled to keep her professional smile.

She hadn’t expected so many people. With little photo experience, she was flustered, mostly just throwing up peace signs, her smile timid and socially awkward.

Luckily, the customers loved it. Thank goodness Su Ying picked Bocchi-chan—Xiao Xi’s nervousness fit the character perfectly.

If Su Ying had chosen the slightly less intense pink-haired guitarist from another band, Xiao Xi’s performance would’ve been totally out of character.

“Next, please stand here for the photo… Wait, you?”

Seeing Ye Xinglan in line, Xiao Xi froze.

“What, I can’t take a picture?”

“No, that’s not it…”

It was just awkward. Familiar-person embarrassment hit hard—taking a photo with Ye Xinglan felt way more cringe than with strangers.

Ye Xinglan didn’t care. She boldly wrapped an arm around Xiao Xi and started snapping selfies nonstop.

These photos were proof of Eternal Star, the mightiest magical girl, fallen to working as a server… No, wait, that sounded like she was insulting herself. Whatever, more photos couldn’t hurt!

The world’s strongest magical girl, reduced to a side hustle. Ye Xinglan could already imagine the stir these would cause online.

“Easy, easy…” Xiao Xi patted Ye Xinglan’s arm around her neck. It looked affectionate, but only Xiao Xi knew how tight that grip was—she could barely breathe!

Was Ye Xinglan still mad about the errand? Seeing her forced smile on the phone screen, Xiao Xi could only assume so.

“Sorry, Xinglan. I’ll make you a big dinner tonight to make up for it, okay?”

Xiao Xi lowered her voice so only they could hear. Ye Xinglan gave a cryptic smile.

“Really? Then I’m really looking forward to going home tonight.”