Crystal's Day (2)
After the three of them filled their bellies with the lunch Chris had personally packed, the time had already slipped into the afternoon.
"Sis, I wanna eat ice cream~"
"Ice cream... that thing, right?"
Glancing around at her little brother's pleading, Chris spotted a food truck selling cone-shaped ice cream.
It seemed perfect for a palate cleanser. Plus, she hadn't indulged in something like that for a while.
"Alright, then let me—"
"I'll go buy it, so Jade, you wait here! Got it?"
She couldn't let him handle even these little errands, so Chris cut him off and volunteered herself. Faced with her suddenly firm stance, Jade had no choice but to nod.
Hmm, Nil wants chocolate, and Jade's vanilla... what should I get?
As she joined the line at the ice cream truck and pondered the menu, Chris found herself thinking about Jade again.
He was 25, same age as her, and a lowly grunt in Silver Unit's operations support division alongside another executive, Amber.
Setting aside his suspicious claim of coming from another world, he was decent enough.
Silver Unit evaluations put him at average, but he recently uncovered the identities of the magical girls Ruby and Sapphire. Something like that.
At first, she couldn't believe he'd taken down their arch-nemesis Ruby, but considering Amber's testimony and the circumstances, it wasn't just pie in the sky.
More than that, she herself was drawn to how he truly listened to others and gave sincere responses.
"Next customer~!"
Soon enough, the lively voice of the part-timer pulled the line forward, and Chris stepped up.
"...sir! Crystal sir! Can you hear me?!"
I told them not to contact me unless absolutely necessary today...
Still, she couldn't just ignore her subordinate's plea. With a small sigh, Chris slipped out of line and headed to a secluded spot.
"I hear you. State your business quickly."
"It's...! Giant monsters have appeared all over the city!"
"Monsters? That's a daily occurrence."
The world was already crawling with countless mutant monsters. Normally, no need to report each one.
But it seemed things were turning sour.
"There are tons of them! At this rate, they might hit Silver Unit HQ or the branches—!"
"Tch, what are the magical girls doing?!"
"They're all already engaged, but with just four of them..."
No time for leisurely ice cream. Chris swiftly began establishing the combat unit command chain.
"Ignore sectors with magical girls deployed! Alpha Unit, report the situation in real-time to ensure no Silver Unit branches are attacked!"
Of course, helping civilians under attack was out of the question. Silver Unit was an evil organization that thrived on crime, after all.
Only Silver Unit's safety mattered. If they got caught up in the monster frenzy and exposed, it'd be an utter disgrace.
"Alpha Unit situation resolved. All monsters near branches eliminated."
"Omega Unit situation resolved. Monsters at HQ entrance eliminated."
"Good work. Stay vigilant and await the boss's orders."
Thankfully, the monsters hadn't tripped up Silver Unit, so Chris let out a sigh of relief and cut the radio.
Why so many at this exact timing? Someone's scheme?
But without intel, agonizing over it was pointless. Deciding to head back to HQ at nightfall, Chris turned toward the bench where Jade and Nil waited.
I kept them waiting too long. Gotta hurry back—
"Kyaaah!"
A little girl's scream shattered the park's peaceful vibe in an instant.
A monster here too?
But scanning around, no other monsters in sight.
That meant a lone or small group had strayed here for some reason. Chris figured as much.
"Help... please save me..."
The girl, desperately pleading while clutched by a grotesque monster, caught her eye—but Chris had other priorities.
Checking her brother's safety. Ever since losing their parents, Nil's well-being came first for her.
Thankfully, they were far from the monster, and Jade had Nil protected, so no immediate danger...
That kid—no one's saving her?!
No sign of parents nearby. Probably a child out playing alone.
And with a couple more similar monsters showing up, everyone else bolted from the park.
"...What am I even worrying about."
Chris desperately quashed the unfamiliar emotion stirring in her chest. No point in needless concern; nothing good came of it.
Her parents had died due to someone else's carelessness—what everyone called an accident, but really closer to murder.
In this filthy world, even if it meant staining her hands with evil, she had to protect her one and only brother.
No room for saving others. Strangers were strangers, whether they lived or died.
Besides, stepping in here would just expose her hidden identity to Jade.
"......"
In a world slowed to a crawl like a panoramic flashback, for some reason, she recalled his actions.
How he'd bravely risked his life to save her brother Nil, a boy with zero connection to him.
Was ditching someone she could save with lame excuses really worthy of a respectable superior?
"Guess he'll find out anyway."
Chris moved.
As the world's guardian, a magical girl. Displaying the overwhelming power that opposed them.
With no victims lost, all monsters dealt with, the sky had turned orange by then.
Leaving the sun sinking into the vast lake behind, the two conversed.
"...You already knew?"
"I suspected from midway. Your voice and hair color matched Crystal's too perfectly."
It was shocking. Despite the disguise, he'd figured her out before she even revealed herself.
Jade glanced at Nil, piggybacked on his back, and smiled faintly.
"He's out cold."
"Well, he ran around like crazy all day."
Before meeting Jade, she'd been nothing but worried. If her identity leaked, her position as Silver Unit exec would be shaky.
She'd played the frail past self to avoid troubling her brother's savior, but it all went to waste once exposed.
"Um, Crystal?"
"...Just Chris."
"Then, Chris, I'm really sorry. Not an excuse, but I was slow to catch on..."
For some reason, as Jade bowed his head, Chris flicked his forehead with her finger.
"You must be disappointed. Having a screw-up like me as your boss."
Her self-deprecating words, so unlike her usual bold demeanor, seemed to fluster him.
"I'm still weak as ever. Nothing's changed since back then."
A frail human clinging to her long-gone parents—that's how Chris rated herself.
Though Jade thought the opposite.
"No way I'd be disappointed. Not with you as my boss."
"Cut the flattery."
"It's not flattery. Are you an idiot?"
"Ow! You punk, who hits their superior?!"
Wearing an exasperated look, Jade flicked her forehead just like she'd done and continued.
"You were cool just now, but seeing you grovel like that? Kinda disappointing."
"...Cool?"
"Sure, saving that girl was great, but look at your brother—no one else to care for him, yet he's this lively. Even adults struggle with that."
Chris loved her dignified Silver Unit exec persona. It let her forget the crybaby girl from her past.
But Jade not only accepted it—he rated it cooler than her current self.
"Nil grew up this well because of you. Pull that dodge again, and I'll—"
"Agh, fine! Use honorifics, you punk! How do you spout that embarrassing stuff so easily?!"
Even Chris flushed, and desperate to change the subject, she rummaged in her bag and handed Jade a wrapped gift box.
"It's late, but this is thanks for saving my brother last time. Really grateful."
"Whoa! This is that super expensive coffee grinder! Wow, beans too..."
"...That thrilled? You're such a weirdo."
She chuckled softly at his childlike sparkling eyes.
Worth consulting Amber and preparing it specially.
He really is a weirdo. Watching Jade obsess over the grinder for a while, Crystal's day drifted on.