Standing before the full-length mirror, Chu Lian looked at the girl dressed in the Tokiwadai Middle School uniform and revealed a cheerful smile. The reflection in the mirror looked just like a mini version of Misaka Mikoto—except for lacking Railgun's height and having a very different face, everything else was practically a carbon copy.
Anyone who saw it would think this cosplay was god-tier. If a makeup artist could really achieve this level, once these photos went public, there would definitely be hordes of fans falling to their knees begging the artist to marry them. Of course, most of those fans would be guys who liked guys…
She lifted her skirt and checked the safety shorts underneath. After hopping around a few times and confirming there was no risk of exposure, she exclaimed in surprise, "So safety shorts really are that safe. Looks like I'll need to wear them whenever I go out from now on! I'll probably be doing a lot of movement later—without these, a big move might flash everything. But with these on, even if I lift my skirt, no one sees a thing. They're basically made for preserving integrity!"
"Misaka Mikoto's Safety Shorts: Safety shorts are the greatest invention in human history! With them on, you'll never have an accidental flash. (This is actually just a regular pair of safety shorts, though it seems to possess indestructible properties.)"
"Safety shorts really are one of the greatest inventions in human history…"
In her previous life, she had encountered safety shorts before—but back then, she was a guy, and naturally resisted things like that. So even when she risked a wardrobe malfunction, she still wouldn't wear them. However, after becoming an actual girl, she was shocked to discover how unexpectedly useful they were.
Ever since coming to this world, she had been constantly busy, rarely thinking about how to live as a girl going forward.
If not for receiving the "Loli Heart" reward after completing the first phase task, "Debut of the Literary Girl," and if not for the extra free time that allowed Ayase to slowly guide her behavior, she probably would still carry traces of her masculine demeanor.
The last time she wore the Tokiwadai uniform, it was during a confrontation, and her tense mood had dulled her bodily senses—she hadn't noticed any of this at all. This time, she used the Dimensional Barrier and activated Possession Mode, fusing Misaka Mikoto into herself. The Tokiwadai uniform that had been stored in the system space automatically appeared on her body, so she didn't realize it right away.
In fact, when she triggered the second phase of the system's main quest, the description for Integrity Points had already explained how to earn them. At that time, Ayase had said things like: "Deliberately acting cute, accidentally falling and flashing your panties, uploading seductive leg photos to tempt others, dancing with skirt swirling—when people think they'll see panties but it turns out to be safety shorts, teasing the opposite sex while staying completely out of reach…" and had mentioned safety shorts specifically.
She had just chosen to selectively ignore that part—it was too embarrassing. Back then, she couldn't possibly do any of that. Yet here she was, barely ten days later, already using this kind of item. Fate truly plays tricks.
She flipped her shoulder-length tea-colored hair, and streaks of blue-white electricity danced along her fingers and through her hair. They caused no harm at all—only made her look like someone embraced by thunder and lightning.
"When the release of energy can be captured by technology, it becomes the most natural and high-level special effect. Even though I know nothing about special effects, as long as I can film it, this whole photo set will have built-in effects." She extended her hand in a finger-gun pose, and in sync with the motion, a burst of electric sparks gathered at her fingertips before dispersing with a crack!
"To control lightning freely without harming oneself… this ability seems even more complex and powerful than in the anime. As expected, only by bringing it into reality can one grasp how terrifying it truly is. Now I'm actually looking forward to seeing the Electric Princess in action…" As she spoke, another coin rolled between Chu Lian's fingertips and appeared in her hand.
The moment the coin emerged, the electric sparks around Chu Lian's body began to stir restlessly. It seemed the lightning had been excited by the residual energy of Misaka Mikoto on the coin, reacting with a kind of gleeful frenzy. But from the outside, it looked more like a thunderous outburst of rage.
At 1,000 Integrity Points per coin, it was no doubt expensive. But then, the system always handled Integrity Points this way. The more Integrity something cost you, the cheaper it was in exchange value—no matter how powerful it might be. What cost the most were the truly practical abilities. On the other hand, items meant to harm others were absurdly expensive, though they were always one-time purchases.
"Mhm, looks good. I'll deactivate Possession Mode for now and go eat first…" She glanced at the clock. It was nearly six—Mom was probably finishing dinner.
She had promised her mother not to skip meals anymore, so no matter how busy she got, she paid attention to time now. When she made a promise, she very rarely broke it.
At dinner, for some reason, her mom seemed especially cheerful. Even though Tina was being picky at the table, she didn't scold her at all—just kept watching Chu Lian with a warm smile, making Chu Lian feel both puzzled and happy.
Having a family like this was such a blessing—especially one where everyone adored her. You could say that 90% of the family's love was poured onto her. From her parents, to her older brother and sister, even that younger sister who had been rarely seen since she arrived in this world.
Leaning against the corner of the staircase on the second floor, Chu Lian gazed at her mom's back as she washed the dishes. Stroking Tina's little head nestled in her arms, she murmured, "No matter how kind you all are, you can't bring back the original Chu Lian. I'm just a despicable thief… a thief who stole the life and affection that rightfully belonged to her."
"I'm sorry. The only thing I can do now is to make you all proud of me… That was my promise to her, and it's what I'm trying my best to fulfill now." Her voice was soft—so soft that only she could hear it.
After placing Tina onto the bed, Chu Lian turned on her computer and opened M Station to check the comments on her video.
The top-ranked video in the music section was her ultra-HD solo performance from Saturday afternoon. It included plenty of her commentary and behind-the-scenes tidbits. Since she was the center of the recent storm, the video's views had exploded—surpassing a million in just two days.
It seemed overseas viewers were also flocking to M Station to see her performance. Which meant… her fanbase was starting to gather there too.
Sure enough, when she opened the comment section, what greeted her were waves of excited fan messages.
The simpler ones were short but practically oozed a hentai vibe, such as: "All hail BlackNeko! Long live Lady Chu Lian! Long live the loli! Long live forever!", "Lolis really are the best. The era of us lolicons has arrived! All hail the flat chest—how else can we flatten the world?!"
Below these gentlemenly words were tons of responses just as refined from fellow kindred spirits.
Then there were the love-crazed declarations, like: "Ayase-sama rules! BlackNeko the loli rules! Queens and lolis all rule—they're all mine!", "They're all my wives—don't you dare look! Wifey, mwah~", and, "Ohhh I'm turning! Seeing such an adorable little girl, such a perfect queen—I'm a girl and I want to lick them! Please marry me!"
Of course, declarations like that were bound to invite the battlefield of reply chains: "Come at me!", "Nonsense, they're obviously mine!", "What kind of monster are you?! Come taste my ♂stick!", "They belong to me—hands off!"
Naturally, being a performance video, there were also some thoughtful, objective comments.
One came from a user named "StringsBetweenFingers," a self-proclaimed boy♂, who wrote: "Being able to witness Lady Chu Lian's performance is the best gift I've received in all my years on M Station. At first, I worried you'd crumble under the tidal wave of hate, but you actually stood up to it—and then dealt a beautiful counterattack with pure skill. You slapped their faces so hard, they're probably still swollen. I bet they won't dare speak up for another few months…"
"Although I think you should focus on your studies and personal growth at your age, you shouldn't completely vanish from the public eye either. Even though you said you'll keep releasing your work online… I get that you want to avoid unnecessary drama, but to semi-retire just because of those scumbags—does that really feel right?"
"You may have won this round, but over time, the one who loses is still you. Because their end goal is to erase you from the public eye. By fading away, you're giving them exactly what they want. I know you don't care—but could you think of us fans too…?"
"Don't go. Don't retire. Please, stay with us, okay?"
His words were heartfelt—clearly from a devoted fan. And they resonated with many others, who filled the reply section with the same sentence: "Don't go. Don't retire. Please, stay with us, okay?"
Chu Lian was touched. But even so, what had already been decided wouldn't be changed. Still, replying—she could at least do that.
"Thank you for your words, and thank you for your support. I'm not leaving because I fear them, but because I want to grow. After all, I'm only thirteen, right? My stage isn't now—it's the future. If you're willing, then follow my works and wait for my return. I promise—it'll be worth it."
She finished the message and hit send. Then returned to the original comment box and typed:
"Tomorrow, BlackNeko's new novel Sword and Fairy 1 will begin serialization in Firefly Magazine. I hope everyone supports it. The day after tomorrow, the long-awaited first Cosplay series promised by BlackNeko will be revealed—please look forward to it!"
She copied this announcement and posted it on Weibo as well.
As expected, those words set off a storm—a single stone causing a thousand ripples.