enjoyebooks Chapter 5 Lingbo and the Other Shore
Chapter 5 Lingbo and the Other Shore
Listening to the two women arguing endlessly over some inexplicable reason, Shen Zixin only felt a headache coming on. She had no mood to pay attention to their argument right now.
With a somewhat unfamiliar gait, she walked to the full-length mirror in the living room and began to examine the unfamiliar "self" reflected there.
A silver-haired little girl who looked to be only about ten years old quietly appeared in the mirror, looking back at her with slightly confused eyes that were exactly the same as Noah's.
—So...so cute.
This was the first thought that popped into Shen Zixin's mind after she saw "herself" in the mirror.
Moreover, he soon discovered that the current "she" did indeed look remarkably like Noah. If an unsuspecting person saw them, they would probably all think they were sisters.
If I had to pinpoint any differences, aside from the visible age gap, there are only a few minor variations.
Shen Zixin's hair was just shoulder-length, while Noah's hair reached her waist.
Furthermore, she currently has a completely flat chest (or rather, how could a 10-year-old kid possibly have breasts), while Noah's chest is an astonishingly large size.
In this light, I am practically a young, untouched version of Noah.
She stared at herself in the mirror for a long time, still feeling a sense of unreality—had she really become such a cute magical girl?
"Wow! Ah Xin, you look so cute right now~"
Just as Shen Zixin was still thinking, He Yuran's excited and surprised voice suddenly came from behind her.
Immediately afterwards, Shen Zixin felt her petite body being hugged from behind, and then she was constantly being rubbed and kneaded.
It seems she and Noah have pretty much finished arguing.
Faced with the somewhat excited He Yuran, Shen Zixin did not resist. She simply let He Yuran hold her in her arms and let her rub her roughly without restraint, and her face showed an expression of utter despair.
Never mind, let her be.
Then, Shen Zixin looked at Noah standing to the side—
"Can you explain why I'm in this state?"
Her voice became clear and lovely, full of the unique tone of a little girl. This made Shen Zixin feel quite uncomfortable.
"This is normal."
Noah, with a serious expression, began to explain slowly.
"The form that a magical girl takes after transforming is essentially a manifestation and modification of her own soul essence."
"Generally speaking, if the person undergoing the transformation is actually under 18 years old, then their appearance after the transformation will basically match their actual age."
"If the user's actual age is over 18, then after transformation, their appearance age will be uniformly adjusted to that of a girl around 18 years old, who is at her most energetic and has the most potential. This is an optimization mechanism to maximize the magical girl's combat potential."
"Are you kidding me..."
Shen Zixin's lips twitched; this was completely inconsistent with her current situation—
"I'm clearly 23 years old. According to you, my magical girl form should be around 18 years old, with an appearance similar to yours. Why have I turned into a 10-year-old child?! This is completely different from your explanation!"
"This means that's your true nature; you might actually be only 10 years old."
Noah smiled mischievously, a hint of amusement in her eyes. "Looking at it from another angle, you have a very youthful mindset~"
Shen Zixin was speechless, while He Yuran, who was hugging him, didn't react much and continued to rub and knead him.
Shen Zixin felt that her saliva was almost dripping onto her head.
"However, now that you have successfully awakened as magical girls, as is customary, you will all need to give yourselves a unique code name."
Noah didn't seem to notice Shen Zixin's expression and continued talking to herself.
"From now on, whether it's for magical girl-related activities or for registering your identity with official agencies, you will have to use code names to address each other."
Then, Noah looked troubled—
"Hmm... According to the original timeline, after 'I' awakened, I should have given myself the codename 'Noah'. But..."
"Since I'm going to be active in this era, I need a code name. I've been using the code name 'Noah' for over ten years and I'm used to it. So, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you a little, 'Past Me,' to come up with a new code name that will satisfy you."
Shen Zixin didn't have any particular attachment to "code names"; for her, they were just for convenience.
Therefore, she did not object to Noah's request.
However, now that she's calmed down and thought about it, if she really had to choose a nickname for herself, her first thought would indeed be "Noah".
Its inspiration naturally comes from the ancient legend of "Noah's Ark," which carried all living things to an unknown future.
So, if we disregard the name "Noah," which has already been reserved by the "owner," what should I be called?
Shen Zixin closed her eyes and pondered for a while. After about ten seconds, she slowly opened her eyes and softly said—
"I'll call her 'Lingbo'."
"Hehe, Axin, if you're 'Lingbo'..." He Yuran, who was holding her, thought seriously for a few seconds, "Then I'll be called 'The Other Shore'!"
...What's the connection between these two things? A question arose in Shen Zixin's mind.
Before she could ask, Noah spoke first, "Alright, now that your codenames have been decided, 'Lingbo' and 'Higan,' I'll teach you some basic knowledge that magical girls should have."
"I think we should go find Xiaoling first, right?"
Shen Zixin took out her phone and glanced at the time. "It's already 6:30 PM. There's less than an hour left before the time you mentioned Xiaoling might be attacked by the monsters and get caught in a battle. And—"
She looked up at He Yuran, who was still a little too excited, and said, "You've hugged me enough, it's about time you put me down."
"That's not in a rush."
Noah looked up at the window.
"I know exactly where this happened, so don't worry about us not finding her. Besides, you know nothing about magical girls and have no combat abilities. Therefore, I'll handle this battle."
"Huh? Didn't you just say this was my own business...?" Shen Zixin asked, puzzled, upon hearing that Noah was planning to take action this time.
"Consider it a bonus, and this battle is actually at a level where you can interfere."
Noah crossed her arms over her chest. "As I just said, I will help when necessary. 'You must protect your family' is a broad concept. It means you must be prepared to do so. It doesn't mean I won't help at all."
Noah paused for a moment, then continued, "Well then, I'll start talking about the precautions for magical girls."
"One of the points is what I just emphasized—when acting as magical girls, you must never use each other's real names, no matter the occasion."
"Even in this private setting where it's just the three of us, it's best to get into the habit of using code names. Later, when we go to the Human Defense Bureau for official magical girl registration, we can't use our real names; we have to register using the code names you just chose."
"Why is that?" He Yuran finally stopped playing with Shen Zixin's hand. "This is so troublesome."
"Simply put, it's to protect the personal privacy of magical girls and their associates to the greatest extent possible."
"But if I were to explain the reasons and painful lessons to you one by one, I wouldn't have that much time, and the process would be quite...unpleasant."
Noah's expression clearly indicated that she was unwilling to elaborate on this matter.
"Behind every seemingly outrageous rule, there is often an even more outrageous true story. You two, when you go out with me later, just remember to follow this rule."