Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Peaceful Everyday Life
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"Ugh, beer while walking is pure bliss."
"H-Haha..."
"Here, Si-woo, you have some too."
"Ah... Sure."
I thought I was being pretty friendly myself, but she closed the distance between us way faster than I ever could.
We'd already asked each other's ages, and the moment she found out she was older, she started talking casually right away.
"I told you to drop the formalities, right? Something like 'Sori noona' is fine~."
"...Yeah, Sori noona."
Okay, honestly, it was a bit overwhelming, but she didn't seem like a bad person, so let's try to get along.
'Plus, she's the neighbor, so we'll be seeing each other a lot from now on.'
"...Come to think of it, noona, didn't we run into each other in the elevator before you moved in?"
"Huh? Oh yeah~ Now that you mention it, we did."
"What were you doing there, anyway?"
"I was checking out the place ahead of time."
"Ah, got it."
One mystery solved.
Now, what else should I ask someone like her?
"...Oh, and your style—is that what you usually go for?"
"Huh? Oh, it's not exactly common fashion, is it?"
Sori noona flapped her leather jacket and grinned.
"I just love this vibe? It's so cool, right?"
"Ah, yeah."
It was seriously cool.
Like a noona who could kick ass, you know?
"You really do look cool, noona."
"Right? I'll help you pick some out later. With your face, honestly, pretty much anything would suit you."
"You think so?"
"Totally."
She really seemed like a good person, more than I expected.
We wandered around outside for about 40 minutes like that, and even exchanged numbers in the process.
"Going in, noona."
"Yeah. You too!"
-Click.
The door closed softly.
"Ah, you're back?"
Ji-yeon got up from the sofa where she'd been watching TV to greet me.
"Yeah. Went for a walk with Sori noona."
"Sori noona?"
"Oh, you guys wouldn't know. She's our neighbor—her name's Sori. She's older than me, and we decided to talk casually... so Sori noona it is."
"I see... That's great!"
"Yeah. Honestly, her tough look had me a little intimidated at first, but she's cool."
"Oppa was intimidated?"
Ji-yeon looked amazed, like it was unbelievable that I, the Time Stop Monster, had been scared.
I'd better clear up the misunderstanding.
"I'm a monster, sure, but I'm still human at heart. I can get intimidated too. Heck, I'm scared of ghosts."
Ghosts might not even be real, but they're spiritual beings or whatever, so who knows if time stop would even work on them.
"I get it... Hehe, you're just like Ji-hoon with the ghost thing."
"Ghosts?! Ghosts are scary!"
Ji-hoon bolted from the room to his bed at the mention of ghosts.
I wasn't that bad, even if...
"...But I'm not at kid level, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah."
...She still looked skeptical.
Whatever. No big deal.
"So, were you originally heading out for a walk?"
"Ah, no, it was supposed to be a patrol... Oh, right."
I'd meant to do a quick patrol on the way back, but I ended up just strolling and drinking with Sori noona instead.
"..."
'Might as well go now.'
I immediately transformed into the Time Stop Monster and seized the flow of time.
I could do it in human form too, but the time limit was stricter that way.
"Time to head out."
In the frozen time, I opened the door and stepped outside.
"Huh?"
What do you know.
"Sori noona?"
Sori noona was bursting out her door with a look like she could murder someone.
"...What the hell?"
She must have her reasons.
I tore my eyes away from her and headed for the stairs.
Sure, jumping out the window would be faster...
But that'd smash the pavement.
So, stairs it was, even if inconvenient.
'Plenty of time anyway.'
Time for a leisurely patrol.
"...What the heck is he up to?"
[Yeah, no idea... nya.]
Ever since Clok vanished with those two monsters.
A-ri managed to avoid being late for school on time.
It was only two days until graduation anyway, but she still wanted to avoid tardies as much as possible.
With no major incidents, she graduated high school, leaving her with about three months before college started.
"...Better do some prep studying so I don't fall behind."
She was a magical girl. Magical girls often missed school for unavoidable reasons, so keeping up meant putting in extra effort in her free time.
In that period, she got five certifications—including her driver's license—and prepared to live on her own.
The distance from her house to the university she'd gotten into was pretty far, so she decided to rent a one-room near campus.
It wasn't that far compared to her friends, but with her magical girl duties, sooner was better.
And it wasn't like she was taking money from her parents; she'd earned it herself through part-time jobs, so no guilt there.
A month before college started, she moved into her place.
It was a bit messy since it had been meant for three people, but with mascot Aste by her side, it wasn't too tough.
As she settled in quickly, A-ri suddenly thought of one monster.
He hadn't shown up since New Year's—almost two months without seeing Clok.
Someone she'd seen once a month before had suddenly gone ghost, leaving her, the magical girl, feeling uneasy and on edge.
That's why she was lying in bed, heads together with Aste.
"Maybe he's dead...? Nah, let's not go there."
[I agree, nya. If he could've died that easily, he'd have died by your hand already, nya.]
"Yeah. Then... hmm, no leads at all..."
[Exactly, nya. If monsters really try to hide, even I can't find them... nya.]
"Even so, we can't let our guard down! You never know when or where Clok might pop up!"
A-ri rallied herself and sat up in bed.
Aste followed, floating into the air.
"Clok, whenever you show up, I'll be ready!"
[Ooh, that's the spirit of a magical girl, nya!]
Aste clapped with its jelly paws from behind at A-ri's passionate declaration.
"Thanks everyone for gathering for the freshman orientation! Have fun today—"
"...Why hasn't he shown up?"
Even on the day of her freshman OT, Clok stayed hidden.
To shake off her worries about him, she drank hard with her new classmates and seniors.
And as a result...
"Is A-ri here?"
"Ah... Y-Yes? Who're y-you...?"
"I'm a friend of A-ri's. You look wasted, so I'll take you home."
"O-Okay!"
She ended up being escorted out by a woman with navy-blue hair.
"Ugh... Hic! Who're you...?"
"It's me, Aste."
"Ashte... Oh, right! Hehe..."
"Sigh... Didn't I tell you to stop drinking?"
"My pretty Ashte... Why does our cute kitty turn into a tall, busty noona when she becomes human...?"
"...Just stay quiet."
The woman's true identity was Aste.
Aste had nagged her to drink in moderation, but once A-ri was drunk, it was too late to stop her.
"Ehehe... Booze is goooood..."
"You really need to cut back..."
Aste sighed and supported A-ri while taking her phone to call a taxi.
"A-ri, you have to behave in the taxi, okay?"
"Mmm..."
"...Sigh, fine. You're the magical girl who saves the world, so it's not so bad to let loose like this once in a while without a care."
Aste looked at A-ri with a bittersweet smile.
Her eyes held both apology and pride.
The day she crash-landed in South Korea on planet Earth.
This country had no means to fight monsters.
To fulfill her mission, Aste searched for the perfect candidate, and that's when Korea's first monster appeared.
No weapon worked on it, not even the military—they were wiped out in seconds.
As everyone fled, Aste spotted a girl.
"Good thing... we had enough time..."
A girl younger than her had pushed her aside and was about to be crushed under the monster's foot—A-ri.
The moment Aste saw her, it flew to her faster than light and asked.
Would she become a magical girl and save people?
Just before the monster's foot came down, A-ri answered.
She'd give her all to save them.
That day, the young girl who vowed to risk everything for others...
"Just don't get so smashed you have to use Return of the Light..."
...had become the infamous self-destruct girl who casually deployed the suicide ultimate, Return of the Light.