Finally, I Realized My Flaw
I transformed and focused entirely on sensing the villain's mana.
Whether it was because my eyes had recovered or something else, the mana was thickening at an incredible speed.
Once I became a magical girl, the villain would surely sense my sudden surge of power and charge right at me.
To land a massive blow the moment it did, I concentrated my mana into one fist.
-CRASH!BOOM!!
Just as I'd predicted, the villain smashed through a thick concrete wall like it was paper, its steel claws sharpened to a lethal edge as it barreled toward me.
"Dorri!"
"Luck Strike probability: 80%!"
With Dorri's probability boost, I'd raised it to 80 percent. I thrust my fist straight at the villain's face for a perfect hit.
But right before my punch connected, it kicked off the wall and dodged to the right.
"Tch...! This one's got some brains. Dorri, eye flash!"
"Haaah!"
-FLASH!!
Dorri focused her mana to unleash a blinding burst of light. I squeezed my eyes shut tight.
I swung my fist purely toward the direction of that thick mana presence.
-CRUNCH!
I felt the impact sink perfectly into the villain, accompanied by a sickening crunch.
Unfortunately, that sound was coming from my fist, not the villain's body.
"Gaaah...!"
The Fate's Wheel had definitely landed upright.
That triggered Luck Strike, and I'd swung with full mana behind it.
Yet my fist couldn't overcome the villain's rock-hard steel.
"Serendipity-nim!"
As my right fist shattered and my stance crumbled, the villain's solid punch slammed dead-center into my gut.
"Guhk...!"
With no defenses to blunt it, the blow drove deep and sent me flying far away.
-BOOM!!
Even after smashing through a heavy steel door and sturdy frame, the impact kept propelling my body onward.
I ended up plummeting from the 12th floor, crashing deep into the ground below.
"Cough... Cough cough...!"
"Serendipity-nim, are you okay?!"
"Ugh...!"
The pain wasn't just in my gut and right fist.
The deep gash I'd taken before transforming—to protect Joo-hee—was throbbing even worse now.
"Dorri, call for backup...! Hurry!"
"On it!"
With my communicator smashed from the high fall, Dorri had to race all the way to Special Resource Management Corporation HQ to request help.
Until then, escaping that villain was on me.
"Hah... Hah... Ngh...!"
If not for the deep wound on my back, I could've fought properly.
I was reminded just how lethal a villain's attacks were to ordinary people.
Flying away might buy time, but if it caught me mid-air, I'd be defenseless.
So with legs that barely worked, I limped along, dragging my battered body.
"Hnnngh...! Fuck, that hurts..."
It wouldn't take the villain long to track me down.
I could sense it too—if its mana got thick and close again, I'd just run and buy more time.
"What the hell is that thing...?"
It couldn't even speak properly, so maybe C-grade or D-grade at best. But its combat power blew past any B-grade.
Even stranger, it seemed driven purely by murderous intent.
The moment it spotted a magical girl, it didn't try to fuck her—it just went for the kill.
"Never heard of a villain without a sex drive..."
No time to think about that now.
I just needed a way to evade it until backup arrived...
-BOOM!!
"Shit...!"
I hadn't sensed its mana closing in at all, but razor-sharp steel claws effortlessly shredded the wall, revealing its form.
"Grrr... Magical girl... Die..."
"Can't you just fuck me instead? I don't wanna die a virgin after only getting railed by villains."
"Grraaah!!"
The villain slashed with both claws, unleashing a barrage of menacing saw blades straight at me.
"Aaaah!"
I twisted desperately to dodge them all, but a few sank deep into my inner thighs and calves, pinning me to the wall.
"Gaaaaah...!"
With both legs wounded now, I had no choice but to take to the air.
I kicked off the ground and launched upward.
"Grr...!"
"Wh—when...?!"
But the villain was already higher up than me.
As its steel claws closed in to impale me, I thrust both arms forward and focused my mana.
"Barrier!"
I formed a shield with what mana I had left, but it shattered effortlessly.
-CLANG!!
"Kyaaah...!"
The claws didn't pierce me, but the shockwave slammed me deep into the ground.
"Hah... Haa..."
Lately, I'd been getting owned by villains way too easily.
This had to mean my combat strategy was fundamentally flawed.
My problem was...
"Ngh!"
-BOOM!!
The villain gave me no time to reflect.
Using my one good left arm to prop myself up, I barely leaped aside from its downward slash.
Dorri should've reached HQ by now and called for backup. Roughly five minutes until my teammates arrived.
I had to hold out alone against this thing for those five minutes.
"Hah... Haa... Alright, let's do this for real."
Maybe it was the blood loss clearing my head.
Thoughts raced sharply, letting me review my fights so far.
My flaw: over-relying on Luck Strike.
If it landed, great—one-shot win. If not, I was half-crippled and at its mercy.
"Hoo..."
My legs could barely support me.
My dominant right fist was pulverized.
So I had to fight left-handed, holding this stance as best I could.
"Grr..."
Until now, I'd been a gambler betting my life on "if it pops, I win."
Time to ditch that luck and fight smart.
The agony from my crushed right hand cooled my head.
Paradoxically, the extreme pain sharpened my mana senses to a razor's edge.
"Raaagh!!"
The villain kicked off the ground and charged.
Straight punches like before would never pierce that steel body.
I forced my ragged breathing steady.
Instead of concentrating mana in my fist, I circulated it through my entire body.
Even the mana leaking from my wounded back and legs—I wove it all into one flow, channeling it to my left fingertips.
I wrapped it thin and razor-sharp, like a high-frequency blade.
As its massive claw dropped toward my head, I exploded mana into my screaming legs and twisted sideways.
-BOOM!!
By a hair's breadth, the claw grazed my shoulder and gouged the ground.
Before, the shockwave would've knocked me flat. But I used the spin to dive into its guard.
I saw its opening.
Smart or not, its attacks were fueled by pure killing rage—huge, predictable arcs.
"I don't need... fucking probabilities!"
I slammed my left palm against its solar plexus.
No praying for Luck Strike. I condensed every ounce of my mana into one point and injected it.
Internal destruction.
If the steel shell was unbreakable, just disrupt the energy flowing inside.
-THRUM!!
A dull thud echoed as the villain's massive frame staggered back.
Confusion flickered in its eyes for the first time. But the cost was brutal.
Veins burst in my overtaxed left arm, dark blood soaking my sleeve.
"Cough...! Fuck... That hurts like hell..."
The villain only faltered briefly before recovering and swinging its claws again.
No counter came to mind.
Was this the end?
-CLANG!!
Then it happened.
A sturdy barrier enveloped me, blocking the villain's strike cold.
At its center floated a jester's hat.
Which meant...
"Serendipity!"
"Jester..."
Soo-ah had rushed over thanks to Dorri's call.
"Raaagh!!"
The villain reared back for another swing, but a giant hat swallowed its arm whole.
Another materialized on the opposite side, yanking its arm out to smash its own face.
It'd punched itself silly.
Enraged, the villain conjured a massive greatsword and swung.
-CRUNCH!
A thick tree stump now stood where I'd been, and I'd landed safely in the flower bed where the tree had been planted.
"You okay, Serendipity?"
"Jester, thanks..."
"Raphtel and Electra are off handling other villains right now. You're stuck with me as backup."
"Got it."
"Rest up. I'll handle this one."
When Soo-ah first debuted as a magical girl, the public had mocked her: "What can a little girl like that do?"
But one battle flipped that opinion completely.
-SHFF!
Cards shuffled in Soo-ah's hands.
A cape draped over her, and a massive scythe appeared in her grip.
-SLASH!!
The villain's right arm severed clean off as it charged.
That unbreakable steel was nothing before Soo-ah's mana.
"Welcome to Jester's Grand Circus, Mr. Villain."