Chapter 9
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: I Lied
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After calming down Yu-na, who had come rushing in already transformed the moment Teacher Aruel contacted her that I'd woken up, and the Boss, who had been dragged along in her grip,
"What? I've been out cold for a whole month?"
I had no choice but to be shocked at the fact that I'd been in a coma for an entire month.
"A whole month has passed, and I'm still this sore?"
No injury I'd ever sustained had left aftereffects lingering more than a week, so I turned toward Teacher Aruel with a puzzled look. She was sitting there now somewhat calmed, sipping steaming hot coffee.
"Don't you think it was that serious an injury, Ha-yul?"
Of course, the teacher grumbled back at me, complaining that I'd doubt her after all her dedicated treatment.
"...Sorry. That's not what I meant."
I had nothing to say. Even a brief reflection made it obvious. That enemy had wielded magic power so immense it still gave me chills thinking about it all over my body. Surviving a fight with something like that was fortunate enough in itself.
Slurp.
Just like that, Teacher Aruel—who had been exuding a strange pressure since moments ago—loudly slurped down her coffee in one gulp as if making sure we'd hear it. She gave a light glance at the Boss and Yu-na, who had been keeping their mouths firmly shut like mutes under that same pressure, then fixed her glare on me and spoke up.
"So, Ha-yul... what the hell did you fight?"
Well, yeah, of course she'd ask. To be blunt, my magic power might be a pittance, but I'm still a Magical Girl by name. Even if a Ruby-level threat I couldn't handle alone appeared, I had confidence I could hold out until reinforcements arrived. And of course... the three people in front of me right now knew that too.
"I don't know either."
"......"
"I'm not hiding anything— I really have no idea what it was. In eight years as a Magical Girl, I'd never seen anything like it."
That's why I decided to tell them everything without holding back. That day, on my way home. The unidentified enemy I'd suddenly encountered. And what I'd done to fight that enemy.
"......"
Once my story ended, the three of them sat in silence, lost in thought with expressions full of contemplation... then, as if on cue, they all stood up at once and approached me.
Thwack!
"Ack!?"
They grabbed my head and started flicking my forehead and crown relentlessly.
"Ow! Ah, wait! It hurts, it hurts!"
What the hell were they doing to a patient? In my indignation, I moved my aching arm to cradle and protect my head.
"You little idiot. How many times have I told you to borrow someone else's strength now and then?"
This time, along with Teacher Aruel's touch full of worry... I felt the warm embrace of her small frame hugging my head.
"Seriously, I've told you every time you get hurt to think about your body a little. Ha-yul. My hair's even starting to fall out now. Please, just... don't do this anymore. I'm begging you."
Next came the Boss's voice—now feeling so enormously large—gently patting my back.
"Senior's... an idiot, a total idiot...!"
Finally, Yu-na kept weakly tapping my head until the end, her head bowed low, her body heaving with sobs... So I quietly apologized and reached out to pat the head of the tearful Yu-na.
"...Sorry."
Of course, Teacher Aruel scolded me harshly afterward, saying you don't just touch a girl's head without permission. But still, it seemed I'd been forgiven by Yu-na at least... so I decided to count my blessings that I was alive.
It had been about a week since I woke up.
"Ms. Seriel. First off, congratulations on your discharge."
Ah, annoying people.
"I heard from Ms. Aruel that you're still not fit to return to duty, but we regrettably had to ask you to come in for a formal statement regarding the incident's closure. If that's inconvenient, we're truly sorry."
I turned my eyes away from the woman in a suit, her tie pulled so tight it looked suffocating just to see, and quietly sighed.
"Then, let's get straight to the point."
I'd told them I didn't care how they handled the aftermath, but these people always dragged busy folks in for interrogations like this whenever some incident popped up.
"I'm Kim Hyun-ji, chief of the Incident Processing Division in the Magical Girl Activity Support Department. If you're still unwell, there's no need to transform; we can guarantee your safety as is..."
Magical Girl Activity Support Department. Nicknamed the MagAct Department. An agency established by the government twenty years ago to support Magical Girls in various ways, now effectively controlling all Magical Girls.
"No need. It'll hurt more if I undo the transformation, so let's do it like this."
Of course, since they handled Magical Girl identity issues too, this stiff-looking bureaucrat in front of me surely knew I was originally a guy... but.
—Ha-yul. For now, don't tell the government you turned into a girl. Or about making a deal with the star for power.
Teacher Aruel had told me not to mention to the MagAct Department how this happened until a clear cause emerged. From what I heard, no matter how competent you are, there's no need to share info that could become a weakness to the government.
—I'll look into a new identity through my contacts for now. It might be inconvenient, but bear with it till then. You don't drink or smoke anyway, right, Ha-yul?
When I'd asked how my identity would work going forward, Teacher Aruel's gaze had been pretty chilling as she said she wouldn't stop me if I really wanted to become an official test subject. I was awfully curious how she'd fix my identity without the government, but I decided to drop it—I had a feeling I'd regret prying.
"Ms. Seriel?"
"I'm listening. And you can use my name."
"Since this is official business, I'll address you as Ms. Seriel."
Just then, the suffocating bureaucrat's voice droned on again, so oppressively that I openly sighed.
"This Blackout incident will be treated as nonexistent publicly."
She'd said she'd get to the point, and sure enough, she dove right in, skipping all preamble.
"As you know, the existence of Blackouts isn't known to ordinary citizens... nor to Magical Girls who lack sufficient seniority and track record."
Of course, I'd half-expected that. It hadn't even been a few years since I'd learned the term Blackout myself. No benefit in loudly announcing that our world nearly ended a month ago.
"Naturally, Ms. Seriel, who repelled the Blackout with minimal damage, will receive appropriate compensation and..."
As the bureaucrat explained that while Blackouts would be hushed externally, they'd collect internal case files via statements... following Teacher Aruel's advice, I began recounting what I'd experienced.
"Is that all?"
"...Pardon?"
This time, her voice suddenly cut me off.
"According to our investigation, at the boundary you entered... we detected traces of magic power so immense it's unimaginable for the usual Ms. Seriel."
I met the eyes of the bureaucrat, who paused and stared at me with a businesslike expression. What did this woman just say? Our investigation? Meaning they went into the boundary I entered? After the incident was over?
"...How?"
It was beyond my common sense. Boundary Inversion was dangerous enough to call suicidal without a Mascot or other return method. The reason being that Boundary Inversion naturally led to different dimensions each time, depending on when you crossed.
"Ah, you didn't know. Recently, the government developed tech to measure and fix the dimensional coordinates of entered boundaries. Of course, it required cooperation from multiple Magical Girls... and it's not perfect yet."
As she warned that this was classified too, so don't spread it around, I sighed in bewilderment.
"Anyway, it seems Ms. Seriel had some trump card... If it's all right, I'd like to ask about that."
With an air of expectation. As if she had no doubt I'd soon spill useful info for them... with that kind of gaze, she asked me.
"......"
I knew intuitively. What she—what they—expected from me. And why Teacher Aruel said not to mention the deal with the star.
"Well... a trump card, you say? Nothing special. I steadily store magic power in my sword when things are quiet. Luckily, no big incidents for a while, so I used it all at once."
That's why I lied. These people existed to support Magical Girls, so they'd never do that. But just in case. Hoping against hope that my fears were unfounded.
If they exploited the fact that Magical Girls could gain power from the star at a price... to force sacrifices on others. I truly didn't think I could endure that.
"That's it. Nothing more."
I lied. For the sake of other Magical Girls, not myself.