Random Enhancement Discovered!

Right after that broadcast, I went straight back to my studio apartment.

MGB asked me for an interview, but I turned them down. If I showed up on TV all giddy this early, my image would get burned through way too fast. And I also needed to think about how much to charge for enhancements. She'd gotten that much stronger, so accepting pocket change was out of the question — time to do some market research.

When I got home and booted up my computer, the internet was in absolute chaos.

Gossip articles dressed up as reporting were only the beginning.

They were even churning out pieces about my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠personal information. These journalist scum…. Okay, that one was crossing a line.

Naturally, my phone was getting bombarded with private messages from old high school friends and army buddies I hadn't spoken to in years. Heh, this part's actually nice. Feels like being popular.

The problem was that most of them had ulterior motives. Fake "how have you been" greetings, followed by a compliment about how pretty I'd gotten, followed by an invitation to grab a meal sometime since it'd been so long. I got so tired of replying one by one that I just put my account into hibernation.

Could you be any more transparent, people? And why is every single one of you using the exact same lines?

Whatever. Time to check the Magical Girl Gallery.

Let's see just how much those wretched gallerinas are talking about me.

And sure enough, every single concept post was about me or Ahn Seo-yoon. I clicked the most upvoted one.

Heh, that's me, alright. The fan-war instigator.

Once an official hero name gets assigned, don't they make a minor gallery for you too? And from what I hear, those places have people calling the magical girl "gal-lord" while disguising endless sexual harassment as praise.

In fact, there was one such post sitting right there on the Magical Girl Gallery.

And so it begins, you perverted bastards.

Watching people wage fan wars over my ability was thrilling, but the commentary on my looks was a little…. As I scrolled through the board with that uncomfortable feeling in my chest, one concept post caught my eye with its ominous title.

"…An employee of the Five Lights Office?"

Holy crap, Red Moon is coming to Seoul because of me?

The woman rumored to be calm and composed, who almost never steps outside Gangwon Province?

Haah… this is a problem. No matter how you slice it, if one of the strongest magical girls alive asks me for a favor, I can't exactly refuse on my own.

Just then, a text arrived from a familiar number. The White Trajectory Office's number.

That infuriating tilde at the end made it crystal clear: Director Im Hyun-ji, no doubt about it.

Haah, guess I have to go. If Red Moon is really coming, we need to talk strategy.

…Though ugh, that means I have to put a bra on again. What a pain.

The next day, I threw ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on a hoodie and a hat to bury my face and hair before heading to the White Trajectory Office — figuring that if anyone recognized my face, they'd go "Oh, it's Choi Yeon-seok!" and make a nuisance of themselves.

I walked over with my nerves on edge, and after only a few days' absence, the White Trajectory Office came into view. It was still exactly as shabby as ever — which, oddly enough, was almost comforting — so I slipped inside quickly and headed for the conference room on the third floor.

The moment I entered, Director Hyun-ji turned to look at me, her eyes as bleary and half-lidded as if she were still drunk. A beer can in her hand, an utterly relaxed expression on her face.

"Come on iin, celebrity~."

She waved me into a seat with leisurely grace.

Would this woman stay relaxed even if a nuke went off? She's genuinely bizarre.

Director Hyun-ji took a swig from her beer can and spoke in her slow, languid drawl.

"The Bureau called. The inquiry lines from magical girls are blowing uuup. And apaaarently, the company you used to work for is using you for marketing, which has them in quite the bind, they saay."

Wait, my old company is exploiting me? Those lunatics….

"…What exactly do they get out of that?"

"Hmm, who knooows? Image management, probably? Thanks to them, everyone behind the scenes is talk-talk-talking about yooou."

"Haah…."

A genuine sigh escaped me. Do they have any idea how much of a headache world-of-mouth gossip is? How spine-chilling the malice you can feel at your back is?

And that's exactly why….

No. Don't think about that right now.

Either way, I wanted to shut those bastard up for good.

"Is there any way? A way to make them stop pestering me, I mean."

"Hmmmm… well, there iiiis one thing…."

"Which is?"

"You get yourself into a position of power by enhancing magical girls' weeapons, that's hooow."

What does that have to do with anything?

Director Hyun-ji took another sip of her drink, then chuckled and explained.

"Think about iiit~ If fans of other magical girls start cursing you out, you just… don't enhance their girl's gear. Isn't that already a kind of power in itself~?"

…Huh. Now that I hear it, that's surprisingly compelling.

"Orr, you could enhance a magical girl who hates you and win her over instead. Then she's on your side, seee? Plenty of magical girls have already contacted meeee, you know~? Asking when you can do the enhancement."

"It's really at that level?"

I knew my ability was impressive, but that impressive?

Director Hyun-ji nodded.

"Mmhmm. Existing magitech equipment~ without side effects, it'll make something maybe twenty percent stronger at best. Buuut you tripled Seo-yoon's glove firepower with a single hammer swing, didn't yooou."

Whoa, it was that big a deal? Three times??

"A magic wand is born from its owner's wishes and mana, all clumped together and settled inside it. Mix in someone else's mana and it rejects iiiit, y'see."

Director Hyun-ji's gaze drifted to my hammer as she continued.

"But your mana went into Seo-yoon's wand without the slightest clash. It blended in as if it had belonged to that girl from the very beginniiing."

So in that case… if I just enhance a bunch of magical girls' wands on the spot, I'll be sitting on a mountain of money before I know it?

"Then what if I enhance dozens of wands a day…."

"No."

At my words, Director Hyun-ji's voice sharpened, the drunken haze suddenly burned away. The lazy drawl was gone entirely.

…What's with the sudden mood swing?

"There is no such thing as power without a price for a magical girl. Push yourself enhancing person after person in a single day, and who knows what price you'll pay. Or it might be the magical girls who received the enhancement who pay it instead."

She looked at me then, her eyes carrying an uncharacteristic seriousness.

"Miss Yeon-seok. What's the most times you've ever enhanced something in one day?"

Well… how many times had I done multiple enhancements in a row, again?

"Twice, at most."

"Exactly. What if you pushed to four, five enhancements and your mana ran dry? Running dry would be the lucky outcome. What if the wand you enhanced developed side effects instead?"

"But still—!"

Ugh, come on! This is my golden opportunity to make serious money!

Why is she stopping me? Making lots of money is a good thing, isn't it?

"What if the other magical girls get tired of waiting and start threatening you? Or try to abduct you? Red Moon is on her way up as we speak, you know."

There are an awful lot of magical girls who are, well, a few fries short of a happy meal… no, let's say "fiercely independent."

And on top of that, even if it's just rumor, the famous Red Moon herself was apparently coming.

But then Director Hyun-ji said something unexpected.

"It's fine. I'll take responsibility."

Huh? Since when? That's a complete about-face from the woman who couldn't be bothered five minutes ago.

"Haah, getting saddled with a handful like you in my twilight years is a real headache, I'll admit… but if I leave this alone, something even more troublesome is bound to happen. Consider it protective custody, in advance."

"…Will those people actually listen to you?"

"I'll just tell them I'm not doing the enhancement~. If you say it, they'll go 'who do you think you are,' but coming from me, a Grade 1 magical girl, it carries some authority, y'seeee."

Grade 1 magical girl?

The rank directly below Special Grade?

…I thought this woman just marinated in alcohol for a living, but apparently not?

Wait, no — if she's Grade 1, why is she working out of this crumbling dump of a building?!

In the middle of my stunned disbelief, the conference room door burst open.

"Hey, con artist! The con artist's in here, right? I heard everything you said earlier!"

It was that brat — the stubborn one who'd gotten thoroughly beaten down by Ahn Seo-yoon yesterday.

"A con artist, you say? It's my unique ability, actually."

But the brat just narrowed her axe-shaped eyes and jabbed a finger at me.

"Con artist, obviously! You were hiding power that strong, and then you only enhanced that Ahn Seo-yoon bitch — that's fraud, that is!"

"No, that doesn't even make any…."

"Ahn Seo-yoon got enhanced and took down a Main Villain-class! If I get enhanced too, I'll do even better!"

Absurd.

That was the only word that came to mind. But Director Hyun-ji, far from being bothered, doubled over in her chair clutching her stomach, cackling — then jabbed a finger right back at the brat.

"Then why don't yooou just get enhanced yourself~? Then you could beat Seo-yoon, couldn't yooou?"

"Of course I can! Absolutely stronger! Strong enough to smash that bitch's barrier to pieces in one hit!"

"…Why would I want…."

"Come on, just this once! Please!"

The brat started throwing a full-blown tantrum.

…This is a completely different creature from that razor-tongued girl from before?

"Last time, you were the one asking why anyone would bother with such a cheap trick."

"That was the me of the past! The me of the present wants enhancement! Desperately, desperately wants it!"

Peak absurdity. The absurdity of absurdities.

"Aww, come on, Soo-bin's begging you this hard — just do ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it for her~."

Director Hyun-ji said it with an artfully innocent wink.

"Big sis promised to protect you, didn't sheee? You're really not going to grant your big sis one little favor?"

…The word "big sis" really does not sit right with me.

"I'd prefer 'Director,' if it's all the same to you."

"Aww, so stiiiiff. Big. Sis."

"Then I'll settle for 'ma'am.'"

"Nope, this one I won't budge ooon~"

Ugh, what is with this stubborn streak.

Then again, I was quietly curious myself what would come out of an enhancement. Fine, one time couldn't hurt.

"Alright. Once. Exactly once. I mean it, just once."

"Yesss! Here, here it is!"

The brat, thrilled out of her mind, hastily laid her magic wand — a massive anti-materiel sniper rifle — on the desk. A complete one-eighty from her "why would anyone get enhanced" attitude of just days ago.

Fine. I'd just think of it as paying off a debt and phone it in. Whatever happens, happens.

"Que será, será." That's the mindset.

No point overthinking the details.

So I gave the anti-materiel rifle a little tap with the hammer — and this time, a rainbow glow so dazzling it hurt my eyes coiled around the weapon.

What the— why is the color so ridiculously flashy this time?

A moment later, when the anti-materiel rifle's new form revealed itself…

It was gleaming. Blindingly, radiantly gleaming. A soft shower of stardust drifted from the muzzle — it looked like a legendary-tier weapon straight out of an RPG.

"Oh! Isn't it totally stronger? You ARE useful!"

The brat's eyes sparkled as she snatched up the rifle and bounced around the room.

Meanwhile, Director Hyun-ji had already collapsed face-first onto the desk, shoulders shaking with barely contained howls of laughter.

…What is wrong with her, seriously?

"Wh-what's so funny, Director?"

When the brat asked in a voice uneasy at the ominous atmosphere, Director Hyun-ji answered between suppressed snorts.

"My my~ you don't even know what state your own wand is innn~ Unlike Seo-yoon's gear, there isn't one single sign that it got strooonger."

"…Then what's with all this shine?"

"The weapon was 'enhanced to shine.' Sparkle, sparkle."

…So Director Hyun-ji just couldn't hold in the twinkle-twinkle joke after all.

I literally went in thinking "whatever happens, happens"… and it shines?

Well, to be fair, weapons with glowing effects in games are usually the strong ones, right? Good for it. Sparkle away.

"Hey, you con artist! Refund my wand!"

Nope? Live long and prosper with that thing. An assassin with a sparkling weapon — how cool would that be?