Chapter 49: Transaction?

A deal?

It was hard to imagine a retired magical girl making a deal with the Greed Witch.

Was this a fall of morality or a twist of humanity?

After the Greed Witch left, the two girls hurried back to the Flower Shop to share the news.

Everyone who heard was caught in a mix of disbelief and outright denial.

They all knew who the previous Iris was—except for the two newbies.

Yao Bai would never be that kind of person!

“Are you sure this is true?”

Ran Huang still couldn’t believe Yao Bai would have some shady deal with the Greed Witch.

This was Yao Bai, the pure and flawless Iris—how could she be tied to a witch?

“Of course it’s true! Are our battered faces fake too?”

Feifei Bai pointed at her bruised face. Fighting a pollutant far beyond their magic level had left them both beaten and disheveled.

If the Greed Witch hadn’t shown up, they wouldn’t be standing here now.

“It’s true. I can vouch for it—the Greed Witch said it herself.”

Their injuries weren’t fake, and their serious expressions didn’t seem like a lie.

But it was hard for everyone to accept that Yao Bai had a deal with the Greed Witch.

“We understand. You two should heal up first.”

Ran Huang pulled out a small bottle of magic liquid, excellent for healing injuries caused by magic.

The group split into two: Ran Huang and the others discussed the deal, while Feifei and Xiaoxiao applied the healing potion.

“Little White, what do you think?”

“I… I’m not sure.”

Little White believed Yao Bai wouldn’t have some unspeakable secret with a witch.

But a deal? Who could say for sure?

Yao Bai was retired, no longer a magical girl, with no power to face a witch.

If the Greed Witch had coerced her, a deal was possible.

“Why don’t we just ask her directly?”

Shu Long’s mind was simple—she didn’t like overcomplicating things.

To her, Yao Bai was a sister-in-arms; what couldn’t they ask?

If Yao Bai didn’t want to talk, that was fine.

Everyone had their own little secrets, good or bad.

Everyone had the right to keep things hidden.

“Everyone’s here, huh.”

A blonde girl with a high ponytail walked in.

Seeing Venus enter, they all tacitly dropped the topic.

Not that Venus couldn’t know, but the matter wasn’t confirmed yet.

Spreading it rashly could harm Yao Bai.

“Didn’t you go handle a pollutant incident? Solved it in under half an hour?”

Ran Huang asked first, steering Venus into her rhythm.

They’d been huddled in discussion—if Venus asked what about, they’d need an excuse.

Plus, Feifei and Xiaoxiao didn’t know about the previous Iris. If they blurted something out, it could cause trouble for Yao Bai, who was resting peacefully at home.

Since Yao Bai had retired, she deserved a quiet, happy life.

These messy matters were for Ran Huang and the others to handle.

“It was weird. I sensed a magic surge, from extraordinary to ferocious level.”

“But when I got there, it was just a mess—no sign of the pollutant.”

Venus’s words caught the attention of the two girls, now done with their potions.

“Sister, the pollutant was already dealt with.”

Feifei raised her hand, looking adorably obedient.

“You two…”

Venus sized up the two unfamiliar girls in the Flower Shop, recalling the recent plan to expand the magical girl roster, plus Little White being a magical creature.

It wasn’t hard to guess—these bruised girls were likely the new recruits.

“Newbies?”

“Yes, Sister. We were part of that pollutant incident you mentioned.”

“You two took down a ferocious-level pollutant?”

Venus was shocked. Weren’t newbies usually at ordinary level?

How could they defeat a ferocious pollutant?

Even with perfect teamwork, crossing two magic levels was impossible!

The gap between each level was vast—not just in magic power, but in control techniques and combat experience.

“Sorry to say, it wasn’t us—it was the Greed Witch.”

“We two rookies just got beat up and did basically nothing.”

It was embarrassing—they’d just become magical girls and faced a pollutant, a ferocious one at that.

They had no chance to fight back.

But thankfully, they’d managed to evacuate everyone safely.

“The witch?” Venus’s jaw dropped, incredulous. “The Greed Witch showed up again? Wasn’t she in the next city last time?”

“Witches’ movements are too mysterious. We can’t pinpoint when they appear. Even tracking where they’ve been is tough.”

Little White sat on the table, lazily swishing its tail.

Little White wasn’t strong, only able to sense magic.

Witches’ magic levels were infinite, their bodies radiating protective magic.

It blocked attacks and shielded them from detection.

If not for that magic, Little White wouldn’t even know a witch had been in the city.

“It’s strange. The Greed Witch has been handling pollutants more than once. Now some people are starting to think she’s a magical girl.”

Venus’s expression was grave—this wasn’t a good sign.

Ordinary people couldn’t fully distinguish witches from magical girls.

To them, both were glamorous, magical women doing things beyond human ability.

Mistaking a witch for a magical girl was serious and needed addressing fast.

“I’ve reported it, but the authorities told us to hold off for now.”

“Hold off? Are they planning to work with the witch?”

At Venus’s question, Little White shook its head.

“What are the higher-ups thinking? Not figuring out the witch’s motives and telling us to stand by?”

Venus couldn’t understand—either she was missing some deeper intent, or the higher-ups were beyond saving.