Chapter 22: The Transformed Serendipity Takes the Stage
My injuries from the battle with the villain had healed cleanly after about a week, but I was still holed up at the Special Resource Management Corporation HQ, skipping school.
That's because I'd told Joo-hee it would take around a month for my treatment to finish.
About three hours after we'd taken down the villain, I got a call from Joo-hee.
Of course, it was her checking on how I was doing.
I managed to reassure her by exchanging messages and even finishing a video call while pretending to be a pitiful patient.
And she told me she'd gotten an autograph from Serendipity.
"There goes my exam scores again, down the drain naturally."
The central government would handle anything related to exams.
I wouldn't get an F, so graduation shouldn't be a problem.
The real issue might be that I couldn't keep my promise to study with Joo-hee.
Of course, when I brought it up, Joo-hee brushed it off, telling me not to worry and even nagging me a bit.
"Ha-young unnie, how's your body feeling?"
"I'm good now, Soo-ah."
Soo-ah came into my room to check on me, and to prove I was really okay, I moved my body vigorously.
"Phew, that's a relief. I was worried because the wound looked so deep."
"What about you? You used a ton of mana."
"You know we recover all our mana after just a day of rest."
"Yeah, you guys do."
"Oh, right. Not you, unnie."
All the other magical girls except me could recover a significant amount of mana just by resting.
That didn't mean I got zero recovery from rest.
It was just a tiny amount.
Basically, it meant I was destined to get fucked by villains for life.
"No villains showing up? I wish one would hurry up and appear."
"You're the only magical girl besides Hee-soo unnie who actually wants villains to show up."
"But I can't recover my mana properly without them."
In the middle of chatting with Soo-ah, I felt an ominous gaze from the doorway.
I turned toward it and spotted Hee-soo unnie peeking in with just her head through the door, smirking lewdly.
I could guess why she'd come to my room just from that look in her eyes.
"Hee-soo unnie, what is it?"
Maybe because Soo-ah was there.
Hee-soo unnie just stared silently before mouthing a single word.
'Sex.'
"...T-team leader!"
"Wh-what, why are you suddenly calling for the team leader...?!"
"Team leader! Hee-soo unnie's saying she wants to have sex even though my injuries aren't fully healed!"
I liked having lesbian sex with Hee-soo unnie, but I called the team leader because I just wasn't in the mood today.
For one, I wanted to catch up with Soo-ah after so long. And I needed time to keep responding to Joo-hee's messages.
If I was even a little late replying, she'd definitely worry.
"Kim Hee-soo!"
-Smack!
The team leader had appeared out of nowhere and brought her hand down sharply on the crown of Hee-soo unnie's head.
"Eek!"
With that one strike, Hee-soo unnie crumpled and passed out.
Calling the team leader really was the most effective way to deal with her.
"Rest up, Ha-young. I'll clean up this blonde trash."
"Yes, team leader."
And just like that, Hee-soo unnie was dragged away by the ankle, courtesy of the team leader.
"She knocked her out in one hit... Hee-soo unnie's a magical girl too."
"The team leader used to be one. Experience like that doesn't fade."
"Unnie, let me show you something fun."
"Something fun?"
Soo-ah pulled out a top hat from somewhere and signaled for me to put my hand inside.
There was nothing in it.
"See, nothing there, right? But... one, two... poof!"
A pure white pigeon flapped its wings twice and burst out at her signal.
"Whoa! What? Did you use mana?"
"No, this is just a magic trick I can do."
"It's always amazing no matter how many times I see it. You were a magician before becoming a magical girl, right, Soo-ah?"
"Yeah. I only performed at small venues, though."
The three other teammates besides me all had notable pasts before becoming magical girls.
Soo-ah had started performing as a magician in high school.
Ye-na unnie had been a writer, and Hee-soo unnie... well, she'd lived a pretty promiscuous life.
Hee-soo unnie was a bit of an outlier, but it seemed like a magical girl's abilities and title were determined by their past life.
I'd spent my previous life dreaming of becoming a magical girl or at least meeting one.
"Call for Jester anytime you're bored! I'll make you laugh every time!"
"Got it, Jester. Thanks."
"Then Jester's off! Whoosh!"
Soo-ah dashed out making sound effects with her mouth, and I couldn't stop laughing at how cute she was.
That adorable little sister turned into a circus-master pierrot who loved entertainment the moment she went into Jester mode.
-Bzzz!
I'd just finished replying to Joo-hee and was in the middle of texting when...
-Weee-ooh! Weee-ooh! Weee-ooh!
A massive alarm blared throughout the Special Resource Management Corporation HQ.
Villain Appeared. Villain Appeared. Magical Girls, Dispatch Immediately.
Sure enough, it meant a villain had appeared.
I messaged Joo-hee that I wouldn't be able to reply for a while due to tests, then transformed and rushed to the meeting room.
"Team leader!"
"Serendipity, you heading out too?"
"Obviously."
A villain appearing meant a chance to recover my mana in one go.
Plus, it was finally time to test the new combat style I'd refined through endless reviews of past fights.
I was done relying solely on Luck Strike. I couldn't wait for one to show up so I could take down a villain with a proper fighting method.
"Serendipity, stand by. It's too much for you right now."
"No way. I'm deploying."
The team leader's orders were absolute during a villain emergence.
I knew that, but I defied her anyway.
Because my excitement to test the new style outweighed the chance to recover mana.
"Your eyes say it all. Fine, Serendipity, head to sector 017."
"Yes, got it!"
"Electra to 021, Raphtel and Jester to 011."
"Yep!"
"Electra, please... just take it down normally this time."
"Gotcha, team leader. You gotta stop doubting me like that."
We each flew off to our assigned sectors.
Flight magic was a stretch with my remaining mana, but since it was close to HQ, it wasn't too bad.
-Static!
"That means it's a first-timer, right?"
"Yep, understood!"
Listening to the team leader's radio as I arrived, the place was a narrow alley that looked like no one ever set foot in it.
Opponent estimated B-grade.
No room for carelessness, though.
I'd learned that the hard way, countless times.
"Huh, Serendipity's here?"
As I scanned warily, a black-haired woman appeared.
Her presence alone radiated thick mana, confirming she was a villain.
"Pretty bold. Showing yourself openly in front of a magical girl."
"I know you well."
Knowing me well meant she knew my abilities too.
Normally, I'd bet everything on Luck Strike from the start, but not anymore.
I kicked off the ground like I was walking and plunged straight into the villain's guard in an instant.
"Is that so? But I'm not the Serendipity you know."
"How'd you get in here so fast...!"
I pressed my right palm flush against her solar plexus.
Recalling the times I'd faced villains full of killing intent, I condensed my mana solely into my palm and injected it.
-Boom!
I pumped my mana into her body, sending her flying far away naturally.
"Guh...!"
The moment the villain, slammed into the ground, staggered to her feet.
"Gaaahhh!"
She writhed and screamed in agony.
Her body was rejecting the foreign mana I'd forced inside.
"Gaaah! Cough...! Blegh!"
In the midst of her screams, she hacked up blood that stained the ground red.
"You... what did you do to my body... gaaah!"
It was the rejection reaction from her original mana pushing out the unfamiliar new mana.
The weaker her mana and the stronger the injected mana, the more intense the reaction.
The previous villain had just frozen briefly, but now I was in top shape and this one was weaker, so it was super effective.
I didn't stop there.
To suppress her purely with taijutsu, no mana, I charged in, snapped my leg up, and kicked her jaw.
As the airborne villain neared the ground, I smashed her face into the wall.
"I told you. I'm not the Serendipity you know. Die, you bitch!"
I poured all my power into my legs and sprinted full force, crushing the villain's face into the thick concrete wall.
Blood sprayed in a harsh straight line, and as she seemed to lose consciousness, I hurled her away and kicked with everything I had.
"Huff... haa... that should do it."
Testing the new style took priority over mana recovery, so skipping her semen was fine.
"No need for Luck Strike even."
"Serendipity-nim! You've grown!"
"Dorri, we're done here. Time to report back to HQ..."
-Kaboom!
"Eek!"
As I started talking to Dorri, the thick concrete wall crumbled like tofu.
Dorri, hit by the flying debris, slammed into the opposite wall and passed out.
"Dorri... mffgh?!"
Before I could assess, someone clamped a cloth over my mouth and nose.
"You shouldn't assume there's just one, Serendipity."
"Mffgh!"
A villain identical to the one I'd just downed stood behind me.
She was trying to knock me out by cutting off my air.
But a magical girl passing out from something this lame...?
"...Hng?!"
As I struggled to break free, a sickly sweet scent wafted in.
The more I inhaled, the weaker my body grew, my vision blurring.
"Mffgh..."
I knew I had to escape.
I knew I had to hold my breath.
But from the moment that sweet aroma hit me, my body wouldn't listen—it kept greedily drawing it in.
"Hnggh..."
My legs gave out and I slumped down, my vision going dark.