Chapter 31: A Little Puppet Show

Pride cloaked herself in magic, twisting the light around her to achieve a near-invisible effect.

She soared through the air, arriving at the first incident site, where traces of destruction lingered.

Workers toiled diligently, restoring buildings ravaged by the battle.

The sweltering summer heat left them drenched in sweat.

Pride spared a fleeting glance before moving on to the nearest traffic police station.

Outside, the air shimmered with heat; inside, a blast of cool air hit her as she neared the entrance.

Pride dispelled her magic cloak, and the people inside suddenly noticed a woman with striking hair and odd attire.

“Miss, if you’re heading to a cosplay convention, it’s in the city center. We don’t have one here.”

The traffic police didn’t see her as an intruder but mistook her for a cosplay enthusiast.

Pride played along, her impassive face breaking into a slight smile, feigning realization.

“Oh~ I see.”

Her eyes flashed red for a moment.

“But I’m not here for directions. I need your help with something.”

The officer’s gaze dulled, his mind stripped of thought.

Under Pride’s power, everyone became her puppet.

With a single thought, they would perform in her orchestrated play.

But Pride had no time for a show now.

Her priority was finding the culprit who framed her and Huang Ran.

“What kind of help?” a female officer asked.

“Pull up the surveillance from the day before Iris retired, on Green Shade Street.”

“And yesterday’s footage from Ordinary Road.”

“Alright, follow me.”

The female officer waved Pride along, leading her to the surveillance room to retrieve the footage.

The first video showed Iris defeating the pollution entity, then resting when she encountered a woman, inexplicably sending her flying.

Pride watched the scene, her heart stirred by the unexplained moment.

In the footage, Iris faced off with the Greedy Witch in the sky as the pollution entity appeared.

The Greedy Witch left soon after.

Iris destroyed the entity but faced public backlash for not acting sooner.

Then, the woman Iris touched was hurled away.

The footage seemed normal, yet something felt off.

Pride replayed it multiple times, finally spotting a figure in a corner.

More precisely, a stretched shadow on the ground!

The shadow’s form didn’t reveal gender, but Pride noticed it held a straight stick.

It resembled her own Higanbana baton in length.

The shadow wore a tall, rounded hat—likely a top hat.

From these clues, Pride thought of Augustus from the amusement park.

He also wore a top hat and carried a baton.

But his baton had been destroyed by Pride, and he wore a black-and-white crow mask.

The similarities didn’t confirm they were the same person.

To Pride, it didn’t matter—they were both on her kill list.

In the next video, Pride had the officer fast-forward to the scene where Jasmine and Rose were surrounded by the crowd.

The first half was normal: ordinary people, thrilled and grateful, thanked the magical girls for their rescue.

Chances to meet magical girls were rare, and people seized the moment for photos.

Amid the crowd was an odd figure, wearing a top hat and a black-and-white crow mask.

Pride’s lips curled slightly, her eyes widening, pupils shrinking.

A grin spread across her face, revealing two small, charming canine teeth.

Pride’s smile bordered on manic.

“Found you, clown.”

Iris’s framing, the amusement park incident, Jasmine and Rose’s setup—all traced back to one person.

“Augustus, I hope you don’t show up too soon, or I won’t hold back from crushing pieg crushing you to pieces.”

Pride clenched her fist, the air around her warping with her fury.

The female officer let out a pained sound, and Pride realized her emotions had slipped.

She restored everything to normal, erasing their memories of her with magic before leaving.

“Remember, you never saw me. You’ve been working at your posts.”

“Yes.”

The officers responded mechanically, and Pride left, satisfied.

As she departed, they snapped back, working and chatting as if nothing had happened.

Pride stood in an empty alley, looking at her outfit.

A blood-red strapless gown, a Higanbana flower pinned at her chest, slits at the thighs, and a half-exposed back, barely covered by her long hair.

The truth was clear to her now; the next step was finding the target.

She knew little about Augustus or his affiliations.

Was he part of the infamous Tarot Society or some obscure group?

Or perhaps a dark organization from another city?

While Pride pondered how to dig up more on Augustus, Ye Rou, posing as an office worker, wandered aimlessly as the Greedy Witch.

Ditching her witch attire, she wore a fresh, short skirt.

Her tight top hugged her curves, her long legs wrapped in knee-high white stockings.

A high ponytail gave her a lively look, with delicate flower earrings dangling from her ears.

Her style echoed the Higanbana theme.

Sitting on a mall bench, Greedy Witch mulled over how to naturally invite Bai Yao out.

As Ye Rou, it wouldn’t work—she was supposedly at work.

As the notorious Greedy Witch, Bai Yao, a retired magical girl, would never agree to meet.

“Sigh.”

Greedy let out a heavy sigh, her heart heavy with frustration.

Her mind was consumed with images of Lust draped over Pride’s lap—her Pride!

Why! Why!

“Why not just kidnap Bai Yao? I’m a bad witch, after all~”

Greedy flashed a wicked smile.