A New Review: "How Have You Been?"

"How have you been?"

My voice carried through the quiet classroom, reaching Seoyeon amid the hush.

She flushed a little, caught off guard by how close I'd gotten, but she answered soon enough.

"Uh, y-yeah... It was so relaxing I was wondering if it was even okay to slack off this much."

Good to hear she's been doing well.

Then she flopped onto her desk with a heavy sigh.

"Haa..."

Her chest pressed against the desk, making it wobble slightly, but I'd seen this a few times before—it was familiar by now.

"I'm stressing over the performance assessments and midterms I missed..."

Ah, so that's why the big sigh.

"Doesn't the school cut you some slack if you miss for work stuff?"

I tried not to dwell on her situation, but I knew if family issues kept you from testing, the school set their own standards and assigned a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠score.

"Sure, but... getting way lower than what I could've scored feels off, you know?"

Oof.

She must study pretty hard normally.

Come to think of it, she was always focused in class.

"You've got finals coming up—don't get too down."

"...Hearing that from you kinda kills the vibe."

Whoops.

Maybe it was because I was always dozing off in class.

"Still, I did pretty well on the exams."

She gave me a puzzled look and asked what grade I'd gotten.

"...? What, how'd you do?"

I glanced around and whispered in her ear.

No need to broadcast this stuff.

"──"

She went blank for a moment after hearing it.

"..."

About five seconds, maybe.

Then she turned into a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠philosopher ranting about the world's injustices.

"You... were you studying alone this whole time we were hanging out...?"

I just flashed her a peace sign in silence.

Heh.

Truth was, I hadn't really studied—it was all stuff I'd learned ages ago, so I just skimmed. This body's brain was soft and spongy, but I picked things up faster than expected. Plus, you needed good grades to join the Association anyway.

Body's a kid, but the mind's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠all grown up.

She looked betrayed, disappointed even, peeking at me from her desk flop. Anyone could tell she was sulking like a billboard ad.

I'd fallen for this trick a few times before, so I gave her what she wanted.

"Wanna pat my head?"

"...For real?"

Instant reaction.

Come to think of it, this was probably the first time she'd pat me in this body.

"Do whatever with my body—I don't mind."

She wouldn't cross any lines anyway.

"..."

Her emerald eyes lit up with greed in an instant.

...That look never gets less creepy.

What was it? Like a snake slithering over my skin.

As her narrowed gaze swept over me, she approached with a shaky voice.

"Th-then... just a little..."

With that flushed face, it looked less like "a little" and more like "forever."

It wasn't a big deal—it didn't wear out or anything.

...But up close, she seems kinda scary.

The height difference between me and Seoyeon was about 30cm. With that massive size gap, if she pinned me, I'd be helpless against the sheer weight class.

That thought made her flushed approach feel a tad frightening, but Seoyeon wouldn't do that.

Pat pat.

Thankfully, she just gently stroked my head.

I closed my eyes and savored her touch.

Her careful fingers massaged my scalp without messing up my hair, and it felt amazing.

Each stroke sent faint warmth and a pleasant tingle through her hand, stirring up my mind.

How to describe it? Incredibly novel. My nerves fired hypersensitively to her touch, relaxing my whole body.

"Mm..."

A soft moan slipped out unbidden as I leaned into her.

"..."

I felt her arm tense above my head.

A different sensation from before, but even better in its novelty.

If the last was ticklish, this was like a scalp massage.

My skull felt hard, but her firm presses softened it somehow.

Is this what heaven's like?

Leaning into her brought a subtle lavender scent mixed with her natural aroma teasing my nose.

Nice smell. Perfume? Nah, too natural—I found myself nuzzling closer without thinking.

My mind eased. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠No thoughts, just endless petting forever—

"Hic!?"

Ah, she pulled away.

"I wouldn't have minded more."

"N-no! It's fine! Gotta hit the bathroom real quick...!"

She shook her head vigorously and bolted for the restroom.

Just a bathroom emergency, huh.

Too bad.

I worried I might end up begging for more later, but nah.

Her face was red when she left—maybe a fever?

I rummaged through my bag for fever meds.

Rustle rustle.

Hmm, not seeing it.

Stuffed the bag with school stuff, so it was a mess. Pencil case, supplies, other meds...

Ah, found it.

Good thing I had some.

Always smart to pack first-aid stuff.

I set it on the desk and pulled out my smartphone to kill time till Seoyeon got back.

Not much to do, really.

Maybe manage the Review Site?

Spam reviews had tapered off, but they still popped up.

'YES.'

Not just Association offers—straight-up weird ads too.

This ain't an adult toy billboard.

As I cleared spam, one review caught my eye.

English Lavender's review. It was up when I got home—no heads-up.

Grateful... but it stirred up a bunch of worries too.

Haa.

Honestly, that B-rank kaijin fight had me rethinking a lot.

I fight in all sorts of creative ways—warping attacks back, launching nearby objects, or just dropping foes from the sky.

Varied tricks, but my core magic lacks direct offense. Basically zilch.

The curse of a non-combat magical girl's magic, I guess.

I don't crave the spotlight.

But this setup's gonna be tough long-term.

Last incident proved it—against stronger foes, I couldn't improvise a win.

I resisted, sure, but without Lavender, I'd have been toast.

Bottom line: I need to get closer to my ideal.

Magical girl power stems from ideals, so more reviews it is.

Maybe time to revamp the site.

Old method: show up during fights, offer help, get reviews.

Inefficient as hell.

Fundamentally flawed—like yelling "Who wants food?" outside a restaurant instead of letting customers walk in and order.

So, add a call button to the site.

I'll still do house calls too.

Lots of girls don't know about my site yet.

Plus, post-last-incident, my range expanded big time.

Mana drain skyrockets with distance, but the baseline stretched way out.

Meaning...

More magical girls to meet.

Hee hee.

Imagining future encounters lifted my mood.

Meet more, rack up reviews, get stronger someday.

Speaking of—English Lavender's ideal? Her staff evolved, sign of awakening it, but no clue what it is.

Would be nice if I could help, but ideals aren't easy to compromise on. Tough.