"Xiao Chan."

From afar, hearing Qin An's voice, Xiao Chan hopped and skipped out, her limited-edition Magical Girl backpack bouncing on her back.

As soon as she stepped out, Xiao Chan chirped, "Brother, piggyback!"

Qin An gently tapped her head. "Haven't said goodbye to the teacher yet?"

"Oh..."

Qin Chan pouted and turned around reluctantly. But facing her teacher and friends, she flashed an innocent smile. "Miss Xiao Jiang, goodbye! Lulu-chan, Ye-chan, Lin-chan, goodbye!"

Qin Chan waved her chubby little hands to say farewell. They waved back with smiles.

Satisfied, Qin Chan happily climbed onto Qin An's shoulders, boarding the "Brother Express."

"Brother, you're so mean! Making me say goodbye every time."

"Don't you like your teacher and classmates, Xiao Chan?"

"I like Miss Xiao Jiang, Lulu-chan, Ye-chan, and Lin-chan a lot. But I love Brother the most, so I want to be with him first."

Qin An smiled wryly. "Hold on tight."

"Brother Express, depart!" Qin Chan commanded like a general.

"Yes, yes."

The streets of Divine River City were spotless—in fact, unnaturally tidy.

"Brother, brother, Xiao Chan wants a magic wand today!" Qin Chan shook Qin An's head, her voice sweet and childish.

"Don't we already have plenty at home?"

Qin Chan lightly patted Qin An's head. "No, no! Today, Xiao Chan wants Sakura's magic wand from Magical Girl Sakura. Each Magical Girl's wand holds different powers. Once I have all of them, I'll become a true Magical Girl. You big dummy, Brother!"

"Alright, alright. Let's go to Ryo's shop."

Qin Chan happily raised her right hand and cheered, "Okay!"

Qin An walked about a hundred meters forward, then turned right into an alley. At the end stood a door with a sign hanging above it: "Magical Girl Café."

It was a Magical Girl Café with maid café elements. Though not remote, tucked in an unassuming corner, it still had a loyal fanbase.

Qin An gently pushed the door open. Inside, the latest Magical Girl anime played on screens. Magical Girls bustled about, serving tea, water, and love-filled omurice.

"Though I'm cute and charming, I bring death. Make it delicious! Moe, moe..." A Magical Girl chanted, casting a spell to enhance the food's taste.

On the stage, another Magical Girl danced—a bit clumsy, not flashy, but adorably cute.

Of course, besides being a café, it also sold Magical Girl costumes and props.

"Ryo, we're back!"

"Welcome back, Master, meow~"

The pink twin-tailed beauty wearing a Magical Girl outfit, complete with cat ears and tail, was the shop owner—Kazama Ryo.

"Qin-kun, I'm Ilya Meow now, not Ryo, meow."

"Alright, Ilya. Xiao Chan..."

Qin Chan tapped Qin An's head again, sternly declaring, "Brother, you big dummy! Not Xiao Chan—I'm Magical Girl Xiao Chan now."

Qin An sweat-dropped. Magical Girls were truly something else.

"Yage-chan is changing inside. She'll give Qin-kun a surprise later, meow!"

"Didn't she hate Magical Girls the most?"

"Well, there's a reason for that, meow."

Ryo—no, Ilya—grinned like a little devil, waving her rainbow lollipop.

"Ilya, is this okay?" Qin Yage stepped out timidly, her hands covering her knee-length skirt, which seemed too short for her.

Dressed in a pink Magical Girl outfit with a large heart on her chest, her fair arms exposed, she held a lotus-headed magic wand. Her twin tails swayed with shyness, and her rosy cheeks flushed deeply—utterly adorable.

Even a chubby otaku with thick glasses that hid his eyes pulled out his phone. But the moment he pressed the shutter, the photo came out pitch black.

"Sorry, no photography here. If you want to take pictures, feel free to snap the scenery outside."

"I know, I know." He tried to pull back his phone, but the hand gripping it was as solid as a rock—impossible to wrench free.

"Don't you think you should apologize first?"

Her voice was as cold as winter's chill, making him shiver even in April.

"Sorry, sorry! I won't dare again."

"Remember your place next time. Or it won't end this lightly."

Qin An patted his shoulder lightly. The man trembled in fear. Qin An had already broken the phone's camera to prevent further sneak shots.

"Truly our Magical Girls' honorable knight! Qin-kun, you're amazing, meow."

"Hmph, nothing special. I'm not happy at all." Qin Yage turned away disdainfully, but the smile tugging at her lips betrayed her.

"Qin-kun, to thank you for protecting our staff, I'll let you order for free, meow~" Ilya presented the menu to Qin An.

The top listed regular items like iced coffee and black tea. But below were bizarre entries: Healing Magic, Light Magic, Love Magic, Moe Magic—and all priced, even more expensive than the food!

"I'll have an iced coffee."

"And which magic, meow~"

"No magic needed!"

"Nope, magic is mandatory, meow~"

"Then... this Moe Magic."

Qin An picked one at random. Though a regular, he usually grabbed drinks from the back himself—this formal ordering was a first.

Ilya winked playfully. "Yage-chan, one iced coffee and one omurice, please, meow~"

"Ilya, this isn't what we agreed! I thought I just had to wear this outfit?"

"That was before. Conditions changed, meow~"

Ilya waved her rainbow lollipop again, grinning devilishly. Qin Yage huffed softly and headed to the back.

Watching Qin Yage leave, Ilya chuckled. "This girl is so tsundere, meow~"

"Uh, Ilya, I don't think I ordered omurice!"

"This is a special perk for our brave knight, meow~"

Xiao Chan had already rushed to the changing room to put on her custom Magical Girl outfit.

A while later, Qin Yage slowly approached with the iced coffee and omurice. Her steps were unsteady—her first time doing this, she was nervous as hell, palms sweating without realizing.

She plopped the items on the table. "Eat up, Brother."

"No, no, Yage-chan! At this moment, you should say, 'Please enjoy, Master,' meow~"

"No need to be so formal!" Qin An feared he'd be torn apart later.

"It's mandatory. Basic duty for a Magical Girl maid, meow~"

"P-please... en-enjoy, B-bro... M-master."

Qin Yage forced out each word as if summoning her life's courage. Her face flushed crimson, steam almost rising, ears burning red.

"And cast Moe Magic on the omurice, meow~"

"Do I really have to chant this? It's so embarrassing!"

"Absolutely, meow~" Ilya twirled her rainbow lollipop again.

"Ugh, fine. Though... I'm... cute... and... charming, but..."

So embarrassing! Is a lollipop worth this? And Brother was just enjoying the show—so mean! She didn't like him at all!

Fully changed, Xiao Chan saw Qin Yage trembling with embarrassment, limbs stiff as boards. "Sister is so useless. Watch me."

She raised her wand, spun in place. "Though I'm cute and charming, I bring death. Make it delicious! Moe, moe..."

Xiao Chan's left hand pointed to her cheek, freezing in an ultra-cute pose.

"Brother, Xiao Chan is amazing, right? I want a reward." She looked up, exposing her forehead.

Qin An kissed her forehead gently, stroking her hair. "Xiao Chan—no, Magical Girl Xiao Chan—is the best."

"Hehe." Xiao Chan beamed with delight.

"Hmph, dummy Brother. You have Xiao Chan anyway."

Qin Yage threw down her wand and dashed out. Glistening drops, cold and sad, landed on Qin An's face with the wind.