Raising magical girls, and leave them with eternal regret?!

But… even though Bai Yu’s side has “snapped,” YouYu couldn’t just abandon his ongoing plan—he had to keep moving forward.

After all, reality wasn’t a game; there was no pause button for him to press.

“Guess I need to think about what to do next…”

Looking at the current situation, Bai Yu had already been influenced by WuYue, and her mindset was starting to become unstable. If this continued, something problematic might happen.

So… should he find a chance to talk to Bai Yu and ask her to step back from all this?

“……”

After thinking it over for a while, YouYu reached a conclusion.

No, it might not be necessary.

Because… knowing Bai Yu’s character, she wasn’t the type to impose on others. If she realized that her involvement would only make things more complicated, she might very well choose to back out on her own.

There might not be concrete evidence to prove that Bai Yu would withdraw from his and WuYue’s matters, but judging by the speed with which she spoke and how she delivered that last sentence, it seemed likely enough.

After all, during times like these, she was always the least capable of keeping her emotions in check.

“Then… as for Bai Yu, the issue shouldn’t be too big; the main thing is to have a talk with WuYue.”

Leaving it as is for now probably wouldn’t cause any immediate problems, though it might come at the cost of further straining Bai Yu’s relationship with them. But until he was sure he could pull her back… this was the best course of action.

Besides, tomorrow—tomorrow was WuYue’s birthday. On that day, he could use the celebration to help her open up again, and if she could return to her old self, then everything should work out.

As for how to do it… he was somewhat confident. After all, over the past few days, WuYue had already shown some small signs of change. As long as he could get her to talk, it wouldn’t be a big issue.

With these thoughts in mind, YouYu headed back to the training ground.

—

When he returned to the training ground.

WuYue and Bai Yu were no longer sitting on the bench chatting like when he brought back the snacks before. Instead, they were each busy with their own things.

“……”

It was almost like everything they’d done had been for nothing. Their relationship seemed to have reverted to how it was in the beginning.

Sighing, YouYu walked over to WuYue and handed her the bread he had bought from the convenience store, saying:

“I brought you the bread. Here, WuYue.”

“Ah! Thank you, YouYu!”

“……”

Watching WuYue eat the bread, YouYu fell silent for a moment, then turned his gaze toward Bai Yu, who was leaning against a nearby tree.

She wasn’t looking their way; her eyes were fixed on the distant sky, lost in thought.

Her expression was utterly calm.

Feeling a bit helpless, once WuYue had finished the bread, YouYu called out to both of them:

“Let’s continue training! This will be the last session, and then we can head home.”

Only then did they nod and agree, resuming their training.

However… even as they trained, YouYu could see that their spirits were low.

Especially Bai Yu—her attack frequency was much lower than usual, and she spent most of the session in defense, taking hits without retaliating.

If WuYue hadn’t been holding back, Bai Yu probably would have ended up with a few scrapes and bruises.

“……”

After about twenty minutes, their final training session came to an end in a rather half-hearted manner. Since neither side had much will to fight, they wrapped up quickly.

Once training was over, they began their usual routine—gathering their belongings, reminding each other to stay safe, and then heading off in their separate directions…

“……!!!”

Just before leaving, Bai Yu seemed to remember something suddenly. She stopped packing her things, turned around, and was about to speak.

But…

When she saw that YouYu was still standing beside WuYue, she hesitated. After a brief silence, she decided against speaking, instead continuing to pack her things as if nothing had happened.

Over the past few days, she had constantly been reminding YouYu to seize opportunities—to approach WuYue, suggest going home together, or find some other way to connect with her.

Although each attempt had been met with various refusals from WuYue, afterward, Bai Yu would always debrief with YouYu, discussing what to try next time.

The time she spent “debriefing” with YouYu wasn’t particularly long, but after doing it for several days straight, the abrupt absence of this routine left her feeling a bit uncomfortable.

“……”

After all, she had decided to stop involving herself in their matters. They needed to handle things on their own.

If she stepped in again… it would only cause more trouble, making everything even messier.

If only she hadn’t intervened in the first place.

With that thought, Bai Yu sighed inwardly. She quickly finished packing her things, then turned and called out to them:

“I have something to do today, so I’m heading back first!”

“You guys should finish up early, too!”

With those words, Bai Yu got on her bike and rode off without looking back.

That left just YouYu and WuYue behind.

“……Um, YouYu.”

Watching Bai Yu leave, WuYue seemed to realize something. She looked a little uneasy as she asked YouYu:

“Bai Yu… did something happen to her? Usually, she’d come over to chat with you around this time. Why didn’t she this time…?”

“She really does have something going on today. She mentioned it when she spoke to me earlier,” YouYu replied with a shake of his head.

“Oh… is that so?”

“……”

After hearing YouYu’s explanation, WuYue was silent for a moment, then said:

“Then, you should head back first, YouYu. I’m taking a longer route, so it’ll be a while before I get home…”

“No need.”

Before WuYue could finish, YouYu, guessing what she was about to say, cut her off directly:

“This time, I’ll go back with you.”

“Huh? There’s no need for that, right? Didn’t you just take on a new job? You still have to go take some photos for someone, don’t you? It wouldn’t be good to waste your time on me now…”

“No.”

YouYu shook his head, dismissing her reasoning.

Then, with a serious tone, he told her:

“I don’t think there’s such a thing as wasting time when it comes to you. In fact, being with you is more important than that job.”

“But…”

“I just want to walk home with you! This time, no matter what, I will!”

Seeing WuYue still trying to make excuses, YouYu decided to be direct.

After all, there wasn’t any more time to waste.

WuYue froze, stunned by his words, and then her cheeks flushed red.

“Is that okay?”

“……”

After a long hesitation, she finally replied:

“Alright then… fine.”

“Great! Then let’s head back together!”

Seeing her agree, YouYu nodded with a smile.

This time, he had to find a way to talk with WuYue. The timing seemed just right.

As long as he could have that conversation with WuYue on their way home…

Then tomorrow’s plan to resolve everything would go off without a hitch!