Family. What Was Family?
Family. What was family?
The word whose meaning changed the most in my life was probably family. To me, that word became the one I hated most.
"You know Mom~ Dad always loves you, right~?"
When did I hear those words? I'd heard them countless times, and in so many different ways. As I walked down that terribly dark path, I took a moment to look back at the past.
Ten years ago.
"Mom! Hurry, hurry!"
Back then, I was a pretty immature, spunky kid.
That day was especially sunny, so we were going on a picnic together after a long time.
"Haha, our family's full of energy today."
...
The picnic after so long was a blast. As spring drew to a close, spending it amid the last falling cherry blossoms was the perfect memory for a kid.
"Mom! Mom! Give me a doll too! Hurry!"
True to form for a child, I begged Mom for another memory. Of course, they showered me with endless love, so they granted my request.
...
On the way home from the picnic, I listened to my favorite song.
The names of two stars♪~
"You like that so much?"
"Yeah! It makes my heart feel at peace when I listen to it!"
It was one of the OSTs from a super popular anime at the time. I guess I loved stuff like that back then.
...
When we got home and were about to have dinner, Mom realized the fridge was short on ingredients and headed out to the store.
"I gotta hurry back!"
"Yeah!"
"See you~"
How much time passed after that? Around 30 minutes in, Dad and I started feeling something was off.
"...She's a bit late. Should I call Mom?"
"Yeah!"
But all that came through was the busy signal.
"Just wait a little longer. She's probably busy shopping."
Dad said that to me, but he couldn't hide his strange unease.
When an hour had passed, news came of a B-rank kaijin appearing nearby.
It clashed with the local magical girls, beat them, and went on a massacre rampage in the shadow world.
The moment we heard, Dad started frantically calling Mom's phone.
But it was just the unreachable tone.
Soon after, our family was summoned to the Magical Girl Association.
"Your wife is... "
"No way!!!!!"
I didn't fully understand what those words meant back then. I was still too young. But I remember the atmosphere perfectly.
The sense that something was terribly wrong.
The first time all my nerves stood on end, feeling true anxiety.
"Mom... Where's Mom...?"
"Shut─! No... Mom's... "
Was that when it started? The first time Dad looked scary to me.
I quietly clutched my doll tight.
...
I held my first funeral.
Grandma, Grandpa, aunt, uncle. Countless relatives and their acquaintances.
"Aigoo~"
Lots of people cried, but back then, Mom's death still didn't feel real to me. I just followed what Dad told me to do.
...
It wasn't until a month later that Mom's death truly sank in.
Dad chugging stuff that smelled weird every day.
The room filling up more and more with trash.
No one to clean it, just me rotting away in the trash piles with my one doll friend, grieving Mom's death.
...
A year later.
Dad suddenly started clearing out all the trash piles in the house.
"Eww~ It stinks~!"
Seeing him energetically wash me up, I was overjoyed. He'd finally come back to the Dad I remembered.
It happened to be my first day of school.
Dad had given me the basics on what school was and what to do, so I was able to enroll.
Everything was fine now. Even without Mom, I had Dad.
With this lively Dad, maybe I could have a happy family.
...
A week passed, and it was another ordinary day heading to school.
"Hi!"
"Heard about that B-rank kaijin yesterday?"
"For real?"
"It appeared way over there, so we got to school safe..."
I met friends at school, did roll call with the homeroom teacher, attended classes—ordinary, everyday life.
"I'm home~"
By the time I got back from school, Dad was usually out working. So normally, he wouldn't be home yet.
"Ah, my beloved daughter... you're home?"
But Dad was home at this hour.
"Dad...? What's up?"
The way Dad looked at me, fresh from school—his eyes held an indescribable emptiness. It terrified me, and I tried to pull away.
"Daughter."
He grabbed me.
"You know Dad always loves you, right?"
"Y-yeah!"
For some reason, immense terror emanated from Dad as he asked that.
"B-but why are you grabbing me...?"
I couldn't hide my anxiety as I asked him.
"Ah~ I feel like Dad's love has been lacking lately~"
With that, he lifted my body with one hand while clenching the other into a massive fist.
The moment those words ended, he swung at me.
A dull impact.
They say you can't even scream when the pain is too great. I learned that far too soon.
Bones shattering-like agony—I writhed, but no help came.
...
Another year passed.
A year's worth of experience on how to take hits with less pain, how to get hit less—it wasn't insignificant.
"Hi!"
"Hi! Did you see Pridein debut as a magical girl last time!?"
Ordinary commute to school.
"Page 174 of the textbook today. Yun Seoyeon, read it aloud!"
"Yes~!"
Ordinary class.
"See you tomorrow!"
"Yeah! See you!"
Ordinary dismissal.
And then.
"My beloved daughter, welcome home?"
Ordinary home greeting.
"Y-yes... I'm home, Dad..."
In that ordinary routine, I still clung to my doll.
My small, cute—now worn and tattered—doll.
...
The child grew quickly.
One year, two, three.
By the time I reached fourth grade in elementary school, I became a magical girl.
Wielding a silver spear with skillful grace, defeating kaijin left and right, I joined the Association.
I heard Association magical girls could live in dedicated dorms. It would solve various problems, so I fled home like my life depended on it.
I moved to the dorm without packing a thing.
When a text came from Dad, disappointed in me, my heart sank.
'Still come when I call you~'
I couldn't reply to that message.
...
I did everything to escape him.
Blocked all contact, changed my number, threw a fit at the Association to switch regions.
But the more I did...
"Daughter. You switched branches recently, huh? Dad moved too, so come over for a housewarming soon."
He tightened his grip on me.
"Dad's love been lacking lately?"
I resisted a few times.
Transformed as a magical girl and attacked, but he dodged easily and showed me even deeper love.
...After that, I received deep love every time after transforming.
Three years into my magical girl activities, I gave up escaping him.
"S-sorry... I won't resist anymore... So please, don't hit me..."
After his love ended, everything returned to normal.
My aching body, shattered buildings, even the dead people.
No one knew or remembered.
Today was one of those days.
As usual, I went to his house at Dad's call, transformed as a magical girl, and accepted his love.
But strangely, someone intruded on our love.
Pronesis.
She appeared in our world that no one knew about.
Why?
Why her, of all people?
I'd asked countless magical girls and the Association for help.
But they all abandoned me.
I understood them.
The Association had no direct evidence.
The other magical girls faced Dad's threats.
But they were the ones who stepped up saying they'd handle it.
Countless people fled upon seeing Dad's strength.
I understood.
Even I couldn't rebel against him, trembling in fear.
But I didn't want to get hurt by them anymore. So I stopped asking for help.
Getting hurt by Dad was enough.
So why?
"Still no change of heart?"
"...No."
Why was she fighting Dad?
At that moment, a sweet voice echoed in my head.
'Don't you want to save Pronesis?'
The voice was so familiar, so sweet, I answered without a shred of doubt.
"...I want to save her."
I wanted to save her, beaten to a pulp fighting Dad.
'Then kill your dad.'
Even if it meant killing Dad.
"Transform."
'Do that, and you'll be free.'
I began sharpening the pitch-black spear in my hand.