Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Celebration Party
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“Solar... Explosion!!”
“Genesis Star!!!”
A massive explosion erupted from Solar's staff, surging toward the two monsters.
And in that instant, a navy-blue aura enveloped Solar's Solar Explosion.
The navy-blue energy flowing from Comet's staff instantly blanketed Solar's attack entirely, transforming her explosion into a shimmering navy-blue blast.
Afterward, Eve, the gun monster, fired lasers from the guns on her head and energy bullets from the ones on her arms, but the two magical girls' technique didn't yield an inch.
Soon, the navy-blue explosion engulfed the two monsters.
-KABOOM!!
“This should do it!”
Solar flashed a triumphant smile, certain of victory this time.
She had used her weakest technique to blow away the dust clouds obscuring their view, revealing one of the monsters.
“Huh?”
Solar let out a dazed sound without realizing it.
Because the monster that appeared was...
“Wow, I have to say, I'm impressed this time. I never imagined you'd learn a technique like that.”
It was Clok, the clock-headed monster.
He had appeared out of nowhere as always, grabbing his cape and unfurling it to block Comet and Solar's combined attack.
Without a single scratch.
“...Damn it, this guy's insane.”
“If that had hit... Eve and Oea wouldn't be in this world anymore.”
Clok casually chatted with the two monsters behind him as if nothing had happened.
Solar glared at him furiously, her rage boiling over.
“Hey!! You said you wouldn't interfere! You two-faced bastard?!”
“Hm? Haha, I've kept my word perfectly, though?”
“What? You clearly said you wouldn't interfere as long as we didn't kill them!”
“Hm? When did I say I was referring to you two magical girls?”
“What?”
Clok raised his index finger toward the fuming Solar and explained kindly.
“I distinctly said, 'as long as those two don't die.' I never specified who those two were.”
“...So you're saying...”
“Yes, exactly.”
Clok withdrew his cape and knelt down to meet Solar's eyes.
“The two behind me would've turned to dust if they'd taken a hit like that just now.”
“That's cheating...!”
“Whoa, whoa, you all keep forgetting—I'm a monster? Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't be strange if I caused a ton of casualties here in the blink of an eye.”
“!!”
“Haha, don't worry, I'm not actually going to do that. Everyone's time is precious, after all.”
Clok backed away slowly, placing his hands on Oea and Eve's shoulders.
Solar raised her staff urgently, thinking they were about to flee.
“Don't you think you should be focusing on something else right now?”
“What?”
But Clok's cryptic words threw her off, and in that moment, Solar realized Comet had been silent for a while. She whipped her head around in panic.
“!! Comet!”
Right then, Comet staggered into Solar's view.
She soon collapsed limply to the ground.
-Thud.
“Comet! Comet!!”
“So... lar...”
Collapsed on the ground, Comet called out to Solar in a feeble voice.
Tears welled up in Solar's eyes as she rushed to her side, and Comet murmured,
“I... I'm so sleepy... Gonna take a nap...”
“What? No, don't! If you close your eyes right now—”
“No... I'm not dying... Just out of power...”
“What?”
“Zzz...”
“Huh?”
Comet had fallen asleep.
“...? Are you... really...?”
“Zzz... Clok... disappear...”
“!! Comet! Don't even sleep-talk like that!”
Solar frantically turned to where Clok had been.
“Son of a—!”
Clok was already gone.
““Cheers!””
-Clink!
Three glasses clinked together, producing a crisp sound.
Mine, Ji-yeon's, and Ji-hoon's.
“Today marks our monumental debut and a huge success! It's a great day, so let's eat our fill!”
“Yes!”
“Ooh! I'm fired up!!”
Today was the best day since I possessed this body, so I went all out with the preparations.
Pizza, received chicken, tteokbokki skewers, and even bingsu for dessert.
Plus, since Ji-yeon and I were adults, we had soju and beer too.
Ji-hoon looked like a full-grown man visually, but he was only 15, so I gave him drinks instead.
Anyway, as we enjoyed this lavish spread, I showered them with praise.
Today's achievements were truly thanks to those two.
“You did great, Ji-yeon, Ji-hoon! Thanks to you, Comet finally learned a new technique besides her self-destruct one!”
“Ahaha...”
“Uhaha! Praise feels good!”
Ji-yeon blushed shyly, while Ji-hoon brimmed with confidence.
Definitely, today's MVPs were those two.
“To think we'd succeed like this on the very first day...”
Honestly, I hadn't doubted Ji-yeon and Ji-hoon, but I figured it would take some time.
In the original story, Comet only learned new techniques after crippling herself with Return of the Light somewhere, and only when her allies were pushing themselves in her stead.
She always got beaten down without landing a hit on monsters, so Comet felt more guilt toward her allies than friendship.
But now, I was controlling those damn monsters and even assigned them perfect opponents like Ji-yeon and Ji-hoon.
As a result, Comet learned a technique through 'friendship' without a single injury.
How perfect is that!
'Plus, this Genesis Star technique is new even to me. Honestly, I was half-excited, half-worried when I first saw it... but luckily, there was no flickering sign of life-threatening danger.'
Flickering refers to the phenomenon where Comet, the comet magical girl, has her hair and eyes revert to their original colors and recolor repeatedly when her lifespan is draining or her life is in peril.
For reference, using Return of the Light alone keeps the flickering going for days.
But there wasn't even flickering this time, and at the end, Comet hadn't passed out—she'd just fallen asleep.
She learned a new technique outside the original story, and it doesn't even come with the demerit of shortening her lifespan?
“Damn, you two are the best!”
Ji-yeon and Ji-hoon were like walking good-luck charms.
Truth be told, I'd been worried while killing monsters to balance things out.
What if Comet could only grow through sacrifice?
But thankfully, this proved she could grow through love and friendship like other magical girls, without sacrifice.
“Comet got a new technique, and her friendship with Solar is solidified, so now I can really relax! Thanks, you guys!”
“Heehee, I'm glad you look so happy.”
“How could I not be! Comet grew in just one day thanks to you!”
We clinked glasses countless times over the hours, and eventually...
“Ugh... I'm buzzed.”
“Oppa... Aren't you drinking too much?”
“Nah, this is nothing.”
Even as a monster, there were limits, and my head started spinning.
Unlike me, who kept downing glasses nonstop, Ji-yeon, who sipped moderately, seemed fine. Ji-hoon had gone to bed since it was late.
For reference, this temporary hideout had only one room, where Ji-hoon slept on the floor and Ji-yeon on the bed.
There was another bed in the living room, but putting Ji-hoon there risked breaking it, and it made sense for me to be in the living room if someone suddenly opened the door.
Anyway, Ji-hoon was asleep in the room, leaving just Ji-yeon and me in the living room, knocking back drinks.
Without him, the conversation turned serious—stuff he wouldn't get.
“Honestly, when my attacks didn't work on the Breeding Monster, I was terrified.”
“Can't blame you. Women's attacks straight-up don't work on it.”
“Still, I'm so grateful you saved me, oppa...”
Chats like that went on for a while, but sensing the mood tanking, Ji-yeon switched topics.
“By the way! Do you have someone you like, oppa?”
“Huh...?”
“It must be Comet, right?”
“Eh...? Not romantically, no.”
“Huh?”
“I'm helping her because I don't want a kid like that suffering, and for the world's sake. No girl I like romantically.”
“I see...?”
Seeing her surprised reaction, I added an explanation.
“For starters, I'm a monster and she's a magical girl. No way that works out.”
“Then... what about between monsters?”
“Monsters? Hm... Pretty ones could work, I guess. Personality matters most, though.”
“...Right.”
“Why? Got someone you like?”
“No comment. Anyway, it's getting late—time to sleep.”
“Yeah...?”