010 - Help
This time, unlike yesterday, she didn't dream.
Maybe that's why it was hard to wake up.
In a hazy, half-asleep state.
She knew it was morning, but for some reason, getting up felt utterly repulsive.
Dodging the sunlight piercing through the window, she rolled over, hugged the blanket, and drifted back to sleep.
Knock knock.
Her mind, which had been planning to sleep another hour, resurfaced.
A knock. Who could it be? Obvious, really.
Knock knock.
"Lee Jiyeon, are you awake? I'm coming in."
Chief Researcher Jo Jeong-ah had started naturally calling her "Miss Lee Jiyeon" at some point.
Should she tell her not to? But if she's going to use a name in front of others anyway, that was the only option. No big deal.
While her foggy mind wandered with idle thoughts, Jo Jeong-ah had already reached the bedside.
"It's 8 a.m. Time to get up."
"Mmm…."
Suppressing the urge to whine something childish like 'five more minutes,' Lee Jiyeon slowly sat up.
Good that she slept well, but mornings were this brutal?
Letting out a big yawn, she blinked and turned to Jo Jeong-ah.
"…I'm up."
"Yes, good girl. Let's wash up and go eat breakfast."
She was going to anyway.
Made it feel like she was only doing it because she was told.
Grumbling inwardly, Lee Jiyeon headed to the sink. Being attached to the research building, the room had one right inside.
Splashing cold water on her face chased away the sleepiness in an instant.
This young body made it feel even more refreshing. Addictive, maybe.
As she finished washing, Jo Jeong-ah wiped her face with a towel from the side.
She let it happen without thinking, then realized three seconds later how it looked and snatched the towel away.
"I-I can do it myself!"
"Oh, sorry."
Jo Jeong-ah handed over the towel with a soft smile.
Deciding to ignore it completely, Lee Jiyeon quickly changed into yesterday's clothes.
Then they went to the cafeteria together for breakfast.
The menu was stir-fried pork. She barely ate half and left the rest.
She thought it was just quiet yesterday, but the whole institute felt understaffed.
Lucky, maybe—no one paying attention.
On the way out of the cafeteria, a thought struck her, and she turned to Jo Jeong-ah.
"By the way, as chief researcher, you must be busy. Is it okay to stick with me for the third day straight?"
"This is the only project I'm handling right now. Anyway, there's an exam scheduled for the afternoon—is that alright?"
"Sure, whatever. What about the morning?"
"I have other things to do, so feel free to do whatever. I'll call you for lunch. Heading to the test room? Want my spare ID card?"
"Sounds good. See you then."
Lee Jiyeon took the ID card, parted ways with Jo Jeong-ah, and headed straight to the test room.
Unlike yesterday, it was empty.
Being alone in the vast space felt a bit eerie.
"Alright then…."
Lee Jiyeon sat in the control room chair and opened the system window.
Right away, the Magical Girl Gallery. As promised, the post she wanted was up.
Martial fighter. As far as Lee Jiyeon knew, that was a Chinese term lumping together all close-range hunters.
Without hesitation, she clicked that post.
(A photo of Hwa Ryong Jeong-jeom herself. A girl in her late teens. Her outfit is a vibrant red qipao styled as an active dress with added ornaments. Glossy black hair braided into twin tails reaches her waist. She's holding a guandao as long as she is tall. Slightly taller than Yoo Hayeon, her eyes gaze at the camera with overflowing confidence despite an impassive expression. Looks like an official event photo.)
This is me. As you can see, I'm a magical girl using close-range weapons. Next are combat videos of our representative magical girl Stella and mine. Compare them.
— Video Link —
— Video Link —
'This network even handles video uploads. Neat.'
Clicking the top link redirected the site, and a video played.
Crisp quality, like professional footage.
Unlike the video of Yoo Hayeon and Lee Chang's fight.
The video's main subjects were two.
One was a white figure floating in mid-air nearby.
Up close, it was a girl in a fluttering white dress.
Stella.
Lee Jiyeon knew of her well.
Because she was Japan's S-rank hunter from next door.
One of Japan's three S-ranks. The hero who stopped Hokkaido's monster 15 years ago and saved Japan.
She must be the same age as Lee Chang, but Stella looked barely in her early twenties at most.
Lee Jiyeon swallowed a dry laugh at the magical girl immortality and shifted her gaze.
On the opposite side of the video, a massive rift tore open over a vast plain far away.
As a 20-year veteran hunter, Lee Jiyeon recognized it instantly.
Gate Break.
Not just any break—this one looked huge.
Even A-rank hunter Lee Chang wouldn't dare face it without ample allies and support.
Flashing lights meant it was about to burst.
Facing the gate, Stella drew her weapon.
A bow.
Slowly drawing the string, a light arrow materialized as if always there.
Then the gate erupted without warning.
House-sized monsters poured out in hordes.
The instant Stella released, a white beam's afterimage streaked out.
A flash exploded from the gate and monsters, filling the screen.
Like a nuke.
The shockwave from kilometers away hit the camera, shaking the footage wildly.
Moments later, only a massive crater remained where the monsters had been.
The gate, having emptied everything, vanished like mist.
The video ended.
Magical girls were extreme in spells, and as an S-rank, this was her firepower.
Pure admiration, Lee Jiyeon played the next video.
This one looked drone-shot, with real-time movement in background and subject.
The girl from the photo, Hwa Ryong Jeong-jeom, fought a monster in city outskirts ruins.
Mid-sized, dump-truck scale, but its speed and aura were exceptional.
Better than that gate break, but still a beast Lee Chang couldn't guarantee victory against.
Plus, Hwa Ryong Jeong-jeom's physical specs seemed roughly Lee Chang's level at best.
Praise-worthy for a healthy girl's body—not some log-armed brute—but….
No, not just praise.
How was she using reinforcement circuits that much with magical girl mana?
If that body matched past Lee Chang's physicals, her circuits output several times more.
Lee Jiyeon watched intently with intrigued eyes.
Come to think of it, Hwa Ryong Jeong-jeom was enveloped in a red aura-like energy.
Flame-like.
Lee Jiyeon felt a vague familiarity.
Then it burst explosively.
In the illusion of her 5m radius igniting, she swung her guandao, flames gathering into form.
The monster charged undaunted.
Hwa Ryong Jeong-jeom unleashed the flame shape—a fire dragon, true to her name—wrapped around the blade.
The mid-sized monster burned to ash instantly.
After the kill, she caught her breath, looked at the drone camera blankly, and flashed a V-sign.
A bit cool.
As you saw… My fighting style differs greatly from typical magical girls. My circuit ratio is 6 reinforcement, 4 spells. I don't know your reinforcement development, but if you can't train spells more, yours are probably maxed out body-wide already…
Spot on. That's why Jo Jeong-ah said she might not be able to fight.
Lee Jiyeon scrolled down intently.
…Magical girl mana generally can't be used for reinforcement circuits. That's clear. The only method I've found is this. Heard of 'aura'?
"Ah."
Then Lee Jiyeon realized the source of her déjà vu from Hwa Ryong Jeong-jeom's video.
2020, early Cataclysm.
Before Jin Baek-hyeon popularized mana circuits universally.
Awakened around the world experimented wildly with this new mana, and aura was one such attempt, per Hwa Ryong Jeong-jeom.
More precisely, a side effect.
Self-proclaimed martial artists proudly flaunted it everywhere.
Why Lee Jiyeon didn't recall it instantly from the video? Simple.
'It got obsolete the moment circuits spread.'
Users were mostly China and parts of Korea.
Even they lasted under two years before vanishing.
Reason: Low efficiency vs. circuits, high training difficulty.
…Wiki covers it, but aura is an obsolete old mana method. I was raised by a group preserving it. Won't detail circumstances, but post-awakening as magical girl, I kept at it. Then I discovered by chance: Activating reinforcement via aura bypasses 'spell judgment via reinforcement,' freeing somewhat from mana restrictions…
"…What?"
The last part was brand new info.
Lee Jiyeon recalled yesterday's mana bolt.
Easy as throwing a rock, but it's a spell.
She unconsciously routed through reinforcement circuits to fingertips.
Despite reinforcement path, it applied mana properties.
Aura seemed similar. Spells via reinforcement….
Lee Jiyeon swallowed and read on.
The rest covered aura details, step-by-step implementation.
Scrolling revealed the comments.
…Even first step success, leave a comment. Rooting for you.
[5 Comments]
Not all positive reactions.
Especially GUN's comment suggested Hwa Ryong Jeong-jeom had hurt her own potential with this.
Makes sense.
Aura detour lets magical girl mana use reinforcement, but efficiency lower than proper use.
No issue for Lee Jiyeon.
She had to try something or do nothing.
After a simple thanks, Lee Jiyeon closed the system window and stood.
Perfect spot: the test room.
Time to try it right now.