Esper X Family – Chapter 556 – Did I Scare You?

With Ye Yao’s support, the older Luo Jianhua unleashed a large-scale mental hypnosis.

Even powerful individuals like parallel Fu Qi and parallel Lou Wei were unknowingly drawn into a state between semi-consciousness and hallucination.

In their perception, the Magical Girl Alliance was still resting in their guest room.

Even if someone met Ye Yao in private, they wouldn’t notice a thing.

In that state, their actions remained aligned with reality, rather than freezing them in place like puppets.

This ability could rival the ridiculously overpowered hypnosis seen in certain comic for adults.

It proved that as long as Luo Jianhua had enough numerical support, she could toy with all of human civilization without even breaking a sweat.

Ye Yao swaggered through headquarters, completely unbothered about being noticed.

She was pondering something very serious.

“Could I become the protagonist of the hidden world? If I mess with people in this state, would they never notice a thing?”

How delightfully wicked.

But such a low-class act didn’t suit her at all.

She would rather secretly kick the Dayun Truck.

“First, let’s get to business.”

Through her perception, Ye Yao noticed that parallel Tu Sheng had apparently returned to her quarters under the reason that she was “feeling unwell”.

That made sense.

After all, her ability was already in a shattered state. After three years of deterioration, her mental power had probably regressed to that of an ordinary person’s.

She had always been frail to begin with. Getting weak easily was only natural.

Still, Ye Yao strongly suspected that parallel Tu Sheng had used that excuse just to be alone and lure her in.

Prophets are all cunning!

Ye Yao slipped through the corridors without a care in the world.

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A moment later.

Ye Yao dropped in at parallel Tu Sheng’s residence.

The latter was sitting on a cozy swing chair ¹ This kind of chair. , sipping a hot, fragrant floral drink. A female assistant waited in the next room, ready to be summoned at any moment.

Parallel Tu Sheng didn’t sense Ye Yao’s arrival. She simply sat there quietly, as if waiting for something to happen.

“She looks so fragile.”

Ye Yao muttered to herself, noticing how a single gust of wind might just blow her over.

Good news: her physical stats were no longer all 5s.

Bad news: they had dropped. Every single stat had fallen to a level 4 instead.

It was like how someone who hasn’t exercised for a long time would lose their stamina.

Clearly, parallel Tu Sheng was now physically weaker than the average person.

Even her mental power had returned to ordinary levels.

Under the debuff of a shattered ability, mental power would steadily leak away.

That was the price of peering at the world-destroying power.

Parallel Tu Sheng hadn’t heard Ye Yao’s mutter.

She, too, was under the influence of the older Luo Jianhua’s ability.

She probably wouldn’t even feel it if Ye Yao touched her.

A high-level【Eyes Obscured by a Single Leaf】didn’t just mask sight.

“Since you’re so frail, I won’t tease you.”

Ye Yao casually removed the debuff from parallel Tu Sheng and even soundproofed the room.

“Assistant?”

Parallel Tu Sheng seemed to sense something.

“Nope. It’s the righteous magical girl, Lullaby!”

“So it’s you. What are you doing here?”

“Just looking around.”

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“You’re alone? No one else?”

“No.”

“So that’s how it is.”

As if she had confirmed something, parallel Tu Sheng’s body began to relax.

“What do you want to talk about? I am a bit bored.”

“I came to see if you have what it takes to be a magical girl.”

Ye Yao’s tone was dead serious.

Parallel Tu Sheng’s expression visibly stiffened. This answer seemed to catch her off guard.

“Are you serious?”

“Yes, serious.”

“Really?”

“Do I need to say it twice?”

“Honestly… that’s unexpected. So, what’s your conclusion?”

Parallel Tu Sheng seemed to accept the fact quite quickly.

Ye Yao hummed thoughtfully.

“You’re too old. Unqualified.”

“I’m only twen—”

“That’s the standard set by Magical Girl Morning Star. It has nothing to do with me.”

Ye Yao immediately shifted the blame to the older Mo Qiuli.

Parallel Tu Sheng seemed too exasperated to even laugh.

“Do you hate me?”

“Not at all. Actually, I kind of like you. You’re weak and frail. Feels like I could easily top you to death.”

Ye Yao’s answer was full of energy.

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“So you do hate me, right?”

“Hmm? The people I hate, I deal with them in one sure kill. Magical Girl Lullaby never shows mercy.”

Ye Yao denied her suspicion again.

Messing with people using information gaps was fun, but that kind of treatment was reserved for those in high-pressure positions, people like the Dayun Truck.

Weakling Tu Sheng was far from being qualified!

“That sounds genuine. That’s good. I almost surrendered right there.”

Parallel Tu Sheng’s tone always carried a hint of “living but half-dead”, with few emotional ups and downs.

Maybe that was the confidence of the great god of intelligence gathering.

Perhaps seeing things too far ahead had raised her threshold too high.

Ye Yao had no idea how much she had already guessed.

“Let’s lay our cards on the table. How much have you figured out? I’m curious.”

“Huh? You noticed that quickly? Looks like you and the other me get along really well. You know me so well.”

Parallel Tu Sheng’s voice was clearly surprised.

“The other you? Hmm… you’ve thought that far?”

Ye Yao narrowed her eyes.

“After all, I know a little more compared to the others. And even knowing just one piece of information can make a world of difference.”

Parallel Tu Sheng spoke quietly, as if talking to herself.

“As far as I know, there is no power in this world beyond my imagination, unless that power comes from outside this world.

My ability shattered because I observed something colossal. That’s how I learned that some world-destroying power exists in another time and space.”

Ye Yao nodded silently.

That matched what the original Tu Sheng had said.

The parallel version had ended up on the banlist the same way.

Truly a world line convergence.

“Since a powerful Esper I don’t know has appeared in this world,

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One strong enough to possess world-destroying power, strong enough to defeat fighters like Fu Qi and Lou Wei…

I can only think of that colossal entity I observed back then.”

Parallel Tu Sheng took a slow sip of her hot drink, as if clearing her throat.

“I wasn’t sure at first, but the Countermeasures Bureau found no information when Ye Ge appeared out of nowhere.

She even broke into the Bureau to take away seemingly unrelated people. A lot of the relationships don’t add up.”

Parallel Tu Sheng turned her head toward where the voice had come from, as if facing Ye Yao.

“Unless those relationships were built in another time and space, there seems to be no other explanation.

The person who knows you best is often yourself.

I know very well how I would approach certain problems.

What was our relationship in that other world? What about Ye Ge’s?

Can you tell me these answers?”

Ye Yao was silent for a moment.

“You’re actually my toy. I’d top you once a day. Ye Ge might top you a second time.”

“Ehh!?” Parallel Tu Sheng seemed genuinely startled.

“Did I scare you? Mission accomplished~”

Ye Yao smiled with satisfaction.

What are you babbling about?

Who cares if you guessed the truth?

It’s fun to tease you a bit!

Author Note

The air conditioner is on all day long, and the electricity bill is going to explode. I overestimated the power of the electric fan!

Text: I’m here to steal expression packs