The Werewolf and the Magical Girl

Under the Blue Moon is fundamentally a role-playing game. The term “role-playing” implies acting out a character, but when used as a genre label, it carries a much narrower meaning. That’s because the idea of role-playing itself encompasses far too many things. Usually, people call a game an RPG when it features stats, leveling up… that sort of thing. In most RPGs, the method of gaining levels is similar. You complete quests, kill enemies, and accumulate experience until—ding!—you level up. Sometimes the direction of your growth is determined by your character’s actions. For example, each skill or stat might have its own experience bar, and performing related actions raises the level of that specific skill or stat.

Under the Blue Moon leans toward the former system. The problem is that ordinary combat and quest completion alone aren’t enough to raise your level. The method differs by race and class. Vampires, as one might easily imagine, grow by drinking blood. The higher the level of the victim, the greater the effect. Mages grow stronger by learning and researching spells, and they have several other ways to level up as well. However, because there are so many options, the efficiency of each one is relatively low. Doppelgangers become stronger by gathering clues for their transformations. And then there are werewolves.

I don’t know much about how werewolves are supposed to be played, but I do know their leveling method. It’s similar to vampires. While vampires gain power by drinking blood, werewolves gain it by eating the hearts of their opponents. Just like with vampires, the amount of experience you receive depends on how strong the heart’s owner was.

Would that setting apply to the reality I now found myself in? That was the question I had in the early days after my possession. But the doubt was soon resolved. After forcing myself to choke down the hearts of beasts, I discovered that although no status window or level-up message appeared, I could clearly feel myself growing stronger. The biggest proof was the skills.

Skills are determined by race and class. They don’t require complicated skill trees or careful choices between specialization and versatility. You simply acquire predetermined skills automatically once you reach a certain level. I first experienced this a few months ago. After defeating the vampires who attacked me and eating their hearts, I felt a strange reluctance because they had human appearances. But now that I’m a werewolf myself, I suppose that’s why I was able to consume them in the end. The fact that no one around me found it strange for a werewolf to eat other people’s hearts probably helped a lot too.

While I was eating a vampire’s heart, a word suddenly floated into my mind.

It was the Slash and Shatter skill. Immediately afterward, the method of using it surfaced in my head and became engraved in my body. It was a simple physical technique. The process of acquiring it was easy, but explaining it is beyond me. All I can say is that it just happened. It felt similar to suddenly sprouting wings and instinctively knowing how to move them.

Anyway, that’s how it was. And when I ate one of the hearts from the vampires who attacked Go Yu-jin, two more skills rose in my mind.

A skill with a rather unsettling name. But its actual effect was quite different from the everyday meaning of the words. At first I wondered if it was something added because of the nude patch I’d installed, but after thinking it over, I don’t believe that’s the case. Let’s set that aside for now. It’s not important at the moment.

It’s a passive skill. The name gives off a Proustian vibe, but to put it simply, it grants the ability to perfectly categorize any scent you’ve smelled and never forget a scent once you’ve encountered it. Considering my race is werewolf, it feels like a basic ability I should have had from the start that was instead sold as late-game DLC… Still, there’s no doubt it’s a useful skill.

However, the preparatory work required to use this ability was clearly unpleasant to others.

“What the hell are you doing? Are you crazy? Do you have a smell fetish? Don’t come near me!”

Go Yu-jin kicked me hard with her foot. Of course, a kick of that level wasn’t enough to send me flying. Instead, she lost her balance and fell over. Sitting on the floor, she crossed her arms over her chest and shouted, her face bright red with embarrassment.

“You pervert!”

I wanted to snap back, Your armpits only smell like sharp acetic acid, so don’t worry about it, but I held it in and said,

“It’s not like that, so calm down. I smelled meat on you and was checking.”

I ran a hand through my hair.

“It seems to have soaked into your hair. You should wash it properly before sleeping. Or should I go buy some air freshener?”

“…Never mind.”

She didn’t look a hundred percent convinced, but it seemed believable enough for her to let it slide.

“This place should be safe, but if anything happens, shout loudly. I’ll come running right away.”

“You’re not planning to sleep in the next room or something, are you?”

“Don’t worry. My room is on a different floor. Still, if I hear you, I’ll smash through the floor to get to you.”

“…Hmph.”

Go Yu-jin snorted and stood up, placing the handbag she’d been carrying on the nearby table.

“Get out now. I’m going to wash up and sleep.”

“Don’t forget what I said.”

“Hurry up and leave, you pervert!”

“Yes, yes. As you wish.”

I left the room, closed the door, and headed to the newly assigned room that had been given to me.

“Ha.”

What a mess. The room I’d given Go Yu-jin at least felt like somewhere a person could live, but this place looked like they’d just shoved an old sofa into a storage closet. I threw myself onto the sofa and closed my eyes.

Starting tomorrow, I had to stick close to Go Yu-jin and guard her. I couldn’t picture a single good outcome.

“Damn bastards.”

Cursing the president and Go Yu-jin, I forced myself to fall asleep. Tomorrow was going to be exhausting. More than usual.

“This is Silver Smoke Herb.”

I recognized the unique cigarette pack the president placed before me at once. How could I not? It was an item I had relied on to an embarrassing degree during my vampire assassin playthrough.

“Have you heard of it?”

I shook my head.

“No. First time.”

Werewolves are a race especially distant from magic-like powers. Humans learn magic through study, doppelgangers can use it by mimicking mages, and among vampires there are clans specialized in magic who possess skill rivaling or surpassing most humans. Unlike those races, werewolves cannot learn or use magic. In other games, they’d be pure warriors with zero MP. However, using magic-infused items is possible.

“Do you know how to smoke?”

I knew how to light one, at least.

“No.”

“Then that’s the first thing you need to learn.”

The president took a cigarette from his suit pocket and put it in his mouth. Then he lit it with an expensive-looking oil lighter.

Click—!

“When you light it, you have to inhale through the filter end.”

He took a long first drag, then held out a cigarette to me.

“Take it.”

“…Yes.”

I accepted the cigarette and put it in my mouth. He brought the flame to the tip. I gave the filter a light pull, and the cigarette caught fire immediately.

“Not bad.”

“Huu. Thank you.”

I turned my head to the side to exhale the smoke, then bowed to the president.

“Silver Smoke Herb is a type of cigarette. More precisely, it’s a magical item shaped like a cigarette.”

“A magical item?”

“Yes. One pack costs thirty million won.”

Was that how it was? I knew ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it was a valuable item, but I didn’t remember it being that expensive in the game.

“That’s incredibly expensive.”

“Because it’s a magical item. Using Silver Smoke Herb is simple. Just smoke it like a normal cigarette, the way you did just now.”

“Then what happens?”

“Surprisingly, you become invisible.”

What nonsense.Silver Smoke Herb isn’t that grandiose an item.

“Huh?! R-really?!”

“Hahaha. I’m joking, joking. There’s no way I’d hand over something like that so casually. Silver Smoke Herb is an item that makes it difficult for people around you to notice your presence.”

To be exact, it’s an item that grants perception deterrence for a set duration. It’s a setting that appears constantly in sci-fi and occult stories.

“When you smoke Silver Smoke Herb, that’s what happens. The duration is… about two hours if you smoke it all the way down ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to the filter?”

Two hours. The duration matched the game’s setting exactly. But the part about smoking it down to the filter meant I’d have to consider the smoking time as well when using it.

“During that time, unless someone is consciously aware of you, they’ll have a hard time perceiving you.”

“Useful.”

“Indeed. Use it to slip in quietly. The students around Double Melon will have trouble noticing you. If it’s a lecture with a large number of students, even if you sneak in, hardly anyone will suspect you.”

“So I’m supposed to use this to protect Double Melon?”

“Yes. But don’t rely on it too heavily. People who already know about your existence beforehand will still be able to sense you. It only works on people who don’t know you. The Samgunhoe or Authentic Blood bastards might already be wary of you, so be careful.”

“I’ll keep that in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mind.”

“Then take the Silver Smoke Herb and go.”

“Ah. What about the lighter?”

“What? Why are you asking me for that? Go buy one at a convenience store.”

The president opened the oil lighter he had used earlier and said,

“Something like this stands out, so use a disposable lighter.”

“…Understood.”

I left the president’s office and headed for the company entrance. In a corner, trying to avoid people’s gazes, I saw Go Yu-jin sitting there.

“Sorry I’m late. Let’s go.”

“What did he say?”

I showed her the Silver Smoke Herb the president had given me.

“He told me to smoke this and stay near you.”

“Silver Smoke Herb?”

Go Yu-jin’s face crumpled.

“You’re going to stay next to me?”

“I have to if I’m going to protect you.”

“Ha.”

She looked unhappy with the current situation. But even though she was complaining, she didn’t try to stop it. It seemed yesterday’s incident had been quite a shock to her as well.

“Did you hear the explanation about Silver Smoke Herb?”

“Roughly.”

“…I see. Then.”

Go Yu-jin raised her arm and pointed somewhere. Her index finger was aimed at a smoking booth far in the distance.

“Go smoke it and come back. Quickly!”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“Make sure you get rid of the smell as much as possible before you return. Like the president said, you can’t stay too far away.”

I shrugged and walked toward the smoking booth at a slightly quicker pace.

The taste and aroma of Silver Smoke Herb weren’t very different from ordinary cigarettes. If anything, it was one of the smoother, lighter-scented varieties. There was almost no harshness in the throat.

When I returned after smoking it, Go Yu-jin greeted me with one hand pinching her nose and the other fanning the air.

“Are you done? Let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

I headed to her university together with Go Yu-jin. I followed behind her, keeping a consistent distance. Far enough that even if someone noticed me, they wouldn’t think I was with her, yet close enough that I could respond immediately if anything happened to her. I maintained that precise, appropriate distance.

The effect of Silver Smoke Herb was definite. People walking along the wide streets clearly failed to perceive me. When I tested it by lightly bumping into someone coming the opposite way, they reacted as if they had run into a lamppost.

It was the same after arriving at the school. As it happened, Go Yu-jin’s first lecture of the day was a liberal arts class with a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠very large number of students. It was the perfect opportunity to test whether I could sneak in, just as the president had said. The students couldn’t perceive me, someone who wasn’t a student at this school.

I took a seat a little distance away from Go Yu-jin and observed her. Judging by how people’s perception worked, it seemed possible to wait in the hallway outside the classroom during major lectures where fewer people knew each other. I was feeling relieved with that thought.

Perhaps because of everything that had happened last night and the president’s orders, I had too many things on my mind and hadn’t thought that far. I had genuinely forgotten.

From the look of her startled face, it seemed Go Yu-jin had forgotten too. When I saw the two men who had approached her yesterday with obvious erections entering the lecture hall, I immediately covered my face and slipped out of the classroom.