After get off work, I become a magical girl

Although it was a made-up reason, she was actually right.

Like during the summer vacation, they had special training at Lin Xiaolu's house during the day and tutoring at Xia Liang's house at night. In the meantime, Cuiqiao would occasionally pick up and drop off Bai Jingxuan, and several of them would often have to go out on a whim to defeat the remaining beasts... With so many activities piled up together, the magical girls spent a lot of time on the road.

It's okay during the holidays, but once school starts, such a schedule becomes a problem.

Cuiqiao was actually thinking about this matter, but she didn't expect that before she could formulate a plan, the two newcomers had already taken the initiative to propose a plan.

"A secret base..."

Accepting Xia Liang's explanation for the time being and thinking seriously about it, Cuique wiped her smooth chin with one hand and glanced upward: "It's not impossible, but can't we just set the venue at one of your homes?"

This sentence made the two girls turn their faces in opposite directions at the same time.

"...What's wrong?" Their strange reactions made Delphinium raise her eyelids slightly.

"Actually, we've already discussed this, but let's just say, hahaha..."

Xia Liang laughed awkwardly: "We couldn't reach a consensus on this matter."

Lin Xiaolu at the side nodded slightly, indirectly confirming her statement.

In fact, the two of them had already had a round of arguments about whether this "secret base" should be set up in someone's home or go out and find a place separately.

Lin Xiaolu felt that her home had more space and could easily accommodate more people; Xia Liang emphasized that there was no one else in her home and she had more freedom to carry out semi-secret activities like being a magical girl.

However, although Lin Xiaolu's home is larger, she lives with her father after all, and Bai Jingxuan might not feel comfortable; although Xia Liang's home is almost vacant, the space is very small, and it would be somewhat crowded if four people lived there.

The two people each insisted on their own opinions and the argument continued from the dining table all the way out of the house, then halfway to Xia Liang's house, and finally in front of Cuique.

In the end, it became the current situation: put the problem in front of the Delphinium and let the Delphinium make the decision.

"Speaking of which, where does the young senior live now?"

Xia Liang asked curiously, "I remember Xiaolu said you were from another place, but you should be living in Fangting City now, right?"

This sentence also aroused Lin Xiaolu's interest.

"Oh yeah! Is there enough room for the Delphinium to live there?"

For some unknown reason, Lin Xiaolu showed extraordinary enthusiasm for "being able to live in Delphinium's house", even more enthusiastic than having the secret base set up in her own home: "I haven't been to Delphinium's house yet!"

"Where I live..."

Delphinium's expression was a little stiff, and she couldn't help but draw out her voice.

Of course, such a place does not exist. After all, "Delphinium" does not need to live anywhere, and "Lin Yun" only needs to return to his own home.

Of course, she was not unprepared for this situation. Delphinium quickly came up with a pre-arranged excuse: "That probably won't work, because I rent a very small single apartment, which definitely can't accommodate four people."

Although this was a lie, Delphinium once really had such an intention.

When he first formed a team with Lin Xiaolu, Lin Yun, who was still worried about the future, considered renting a small apartment to disguise it as "Delphinium's residence" to deal with possible suspicions from Lin Xiaolu.

However, as time went by, Lin Xiaolu never mentioned this matter, and there was no trace of "doubt". This plan remained at the level of ideas and was shelved.

"Is that so?" Upon hearing Cuiqiao's answer, Lin Xiaolu visibly lost her enthusiasm.

"Um……"

Xia Liang, who was standing by, nodded his chin and said in a subtle manner, "In that case, we can only find a special venue?"

"Yes, if we really want to set up a secret base, we may need a special venue."

Following the steps Xia Liang gave to change the topic subtly, Cuique secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "If we follow your previous requirements and consider the needs of special training, we may have to have a stand-alone building. That way the environment will be more suitable."

Her suggestion left the two newcomers speechless for a moment.

"A single-family house..." Lin Xiaolu blinked blankly, "Isn't it a little too luxurious?"

"It's very expensive, isn't it?"

Xia Liang also said with some concern: "It's just a venue for an event. Do we really need to choose a place like that? And we don't have any money..."

"You guys, have you underestimated the value of being a magical girl?"

Delphinium raised an eyebrow and said, "Let's not talk about anything else. Just the egg-level beasts you have defeated in the past few months, if you take all the echoes to the kingdom to exchange for money, how much do you think it would cost?"

"Uh... fifty thousand?" Lin Xiaolu said uncertainly, "I have no idea about these."

"A hundred thousand?" Xia Liang's estimate was obviously more optimistic. "I remember seeing rumors online that magic materials are very valuable."

“It’s all wrong.”

Unfolding her arms, she spread her palms in front of the two girls and gestured, "The answer is, if we only count the egg-level remnants, there are more than 30."

"In other words, as long as we go to the country to exchange these echoes for money, we can rent a villa in a not-too-remote place for a whole year."

"Eh!"

"Really?"

This answer obviously exceeded the two girls' expectations.

“But I don’t recommend it.”

Squinting her eyes slightly, Kuei-jae shook her head and said, "As Xiao Jin said before, magic materials are very expensive, and using echoes to exchange materials with the kingdom is the most cost-effective way. No other channel will be cheaper than exchanging them with contribution points in the kingdom."

"If a magical girl wants to quickly improve her magic power, she can rely on resources to help her. If she wants to research and develop spells, she needs to consume a large amount of magical materials. If she wants to make equipment or conduct experiments, she needs even more materials."

"No magical girl who is in the process of rising in strength will exchange the echo for money. At most, she will use a small part to supplement her daily expenses, and most of it will be used to improve her own strength."

"So I am only telling you the value of the echo. As for the location of the secret base, we can choose another way - to ask the Strategy Bureau."

This is also the safest way.

If you rent or purchase a place to set up a secret base privately, there will be all kinds of problems. The decoration of the house, the payment of daily expenses, and the surrounding security will actually cause some troubles.

With the help and background of the Strategy Bureau, this matter will be much easier to accomplish, and the location chosen will be more secretive, which can better prevent it from being discovered by ordinary people.

Although doing so would make the location of the secret base known to the Strategy Bureau and no longer so "secret", sometimes, it would be better to communicate with local official agencies in advance to avoid more interference.

"Can the Strategy Bureau do this?" Lin Xiaolu seemed to have opened the door to a new world and asked curiously, "No, can we make such a request to the Strategy Bureau?"

"Of course. It's better to say that such requests are actually reasonable official duties."

Delphinium raised her chin slightly. "It is perfectly normal for the Strategy Bureau to provide a venue for magical girls to hold activities. Don't get it wrong. They actually benefit more from this than we do."

"Because it means that our cooperation with the Bureau of Foreign Policy has become more in-depth, and we have also achieved a preliminary exchange of interests."

"The Strategy Bureau has no right to drive and manage magical girls, but favors and interests can do this. With the exchange of interests, the Strategy Bureau knows what conditions can make magical girls work for them."

"So they are not afraid of magical girls making requests to them. In fact, they are looking forward to you asking for something from them more than anyone else."

"I actually hope that you won't rely on this kind of mutually beneficial relationship. After all, we are still people living in the material world, and human relationships will restrict our actions. The more times you ask for help from the Strategy Bureau, the more embarrassed you will be to refuse its requests."

"Of course, there will be magical girls who treat the Strategy Bureau as a servant, driving the Strategy Bureau to work like a slave, only taking benefits and never helping. This is certainly possible, but over time it will also damage the cooperative relationship between the two parties."

"The Strategy Bureau has no power and ability to do anything to you in major matters. But they are an official agency that represents the government to a certain extent. They have enough power in the city and they have no problem annoying you and causing trouble for you in various small matters."

Her words made Lin Xiaolu suddenly realize: "Ah, so the contact person from the Strategy Bureau always asks me if I need any help?"

"So, young senior, that's why you asked me to establish contact with the Strategy Bureau as late as possible?" Xia Liang was thinking more, "I still haven't found a contact person in the Strategy Bureau. Are they actually more anxious?"

"The Yi Ce Bureau is a partner, but it can only be your partner forever."

Nodding in affirmation of the two's reactions, Kuei-Chrysanthemum said earnestly, "Don't underestimate the complex power relations within the city government, or even the interests between cities."

"If you get too close to the ISIS Bureau, or even the government, you will often have to focus on some very troublesome things, and I don't want you to do that."

"We eliminate the remaining beasts and do our job well; the Strategy Bureau handles the aftermath, maintains the stability of the city, and does their job well. When everyone does their job, it is the best and healthiest relationship."

"An appropriate sense of mystery and distance can allow us to retain enough goodwill and tacit understanding with each other."

"Of course, just asking for a venue is a small matter for the Strategy Bureau, so we have to show this momentum and treat it as a 'small matter'. Even if you think it is a large sum of money and think it is a big deal, you have to force yourself to act like you don't care."

"If both parties think this is just a small matter, then it is really just a 'small matter', and the favor gained in return is also just a 'small favor'. It can only smooth our relationship, and you don't have to worry about the Strategy Bureau making any requests to you."

After saying so much, in order to let the two girls follow and understand, she stopped talking and asked Lin Xiaolu, "Do you understand the logic of what I said?"

She didn't ask Xia Liang because she knew that Xia Liang's sensitivity on these matters was enough to make him quickly understand what she said.

"Maybe... you can understand?"

Lin Xiaolu was obviously feeling guilty, and could only stammer, "Anyway, asking the Strategy Bureau for help requires a lot of thought? It's just... uh, the adults' thoughts are so complicated."

Obviously, she didn't understand.

Delphinium sighed inwardly.

Although she knew that her daughter was probably at this level and her performance did not deviate from her expectations, she still felt complicated.

Parents always hope that their children are innocent and pure, but they do worry: if they really raise their children to be naive, what if they get cheated?

"Forget it. Just remember one thing: try to solve things on your own if you can. If you ask the Strategy Bureau for help, you must be confident and justified, and don't be embarrassed."

She drooped her eyelids, raised her index finger and said, "So if we want a secret base, we should ask the Strategy Bureau for it as a matter of course, and act like we don't care."

popping.

"Only at times like this do I feel that the young senior is worthy of being an adult." Xia Liang clapped his hands gently on the side.

"Well...anyway, Delphinium is pretty amazing!" Lin Xiaolu clapped her hands belatedly.

"Ahem, enough of the small talk."

Being praised by two little kids, she felt a little embarrassed. Delphinium said with a straight face, "Now it's time to get down to business. Take out your textbooks. We're going to have class!"

Chapter 98 The Hardest Question (5k)

2023-04-30

Afterwards, the Fangting City Magical Girls Team held another concentrated discussion on matters related to the secret base.

There are two core issues in the discussion: whether or not to ask for help from the Strategy Bureau, and what the positioning of the secret base is.

Regarding the first question, after Cuiqiao had done some popular science, Xia Liang and Lin Xiaolu both had the answer in their minds; after explaining to Bai Jingxuan and obtaining her consent, the four people's voting results were all unanimous - to fleece the Yi Ce Bureau.

The latter question seems simple, but it caused some disagreement during the discussion.

The main purpose of the secret base is to facilitate activities: to facilitate gatherings, teaching and training, and to keep in touch. In addition, the magical girls can of course choose to stay overnight in the secret base.

Among them, Xia Liang and Bai Jingxuan had the clearest attitude: since everyone usually gathers here, they might as well move in and live there permanently, using the secret base as their residence.

Although it may sound a bit cruel, for them, moving into such a secret base may be more comfortable than living at home or in an orphanage.