Saved the Magical Girl
Sophia opened the door and stepped inside. There, on the bed, lay a woman deep in slumber.
"……."
She was someone who would normally still be awake at this hour, but for some reason today she'd fallen asleep early.
Sophia couldn't bring herself to wake her forcibly, so she dragged over a nearby chair and perched on the edge of the bed.
…What should I say?
Telling a sleeping person "I had a safe trip back" hardly seemed meaningful. But putting off the greeting would be no different from running away.
I wanted to at least say it looking her in the eyes.
Sophia gave a wry smile and gently stroked her mother's hair.
The mother of the magical girl Sapphire, her name was Sonya.
She had been a magical girl of the previous generation, protecting Earth from the sudden emergence of bizarre villains for several years.
She'd passed down her knowledge of being a magical girl to her daughter, raising Sophia into an exemplary hero—and thanks to that, the world had edged even closer to peace—
"You used to be so cool back then. Why'd you have to get that illness?"
It had happened before Sophia even entered Jewelry Academia.
Her mother had contracted an intractable disease untreatable by modern medicine, starting to show mental abnormalities.
No renowned doctor could cure Sonya's illness.
They could slow its progression with drugs, but a full cure seemed utterly hopeless.
In the end, Sophia's father had set off on a worldwide journey to find a treatment, but even after several years, there was still no promising news.
Why did it have to be this person?
Sophia had despaired countless times at the sight of her mother, who could barely recognize her anymore, and avoided facing her.
Memory regression—that was the disease's primary symptom.
Just a few days ago, Sonya had still treated Sophia like a child, restricting her late-night outings and calling now and then to check on her daughter.
But a few days prior, Sonya had finally begun to forget her own daughter.
She seemed aware of it herself, desperately resisting by scribbling Sophia's name repeatedly in a notebook at home…
"It was all for nothing. She forgot in the end anyway."
The attending physician judged that within less than two years, she'd regress to an infant-like level of memory.
At this rate, she'd forget not just her child, but even the person she'd vowed eternal love to.
Sophia's father had hired butlers and maids as a stopgap to care for Sonya, but that choice had only increased her stress, accelerating the mental deterioration.
There was no time left. It would be too late once something happened.
But she hadn't run away. The three-way meeting today had allowed her to steel her resolve, in her own way.
First, have a calm talk to make her recognize that she was her daughter. Then, gather the whole family of three and properly discuss the future. That was Sophia's personal vow.
"Goodnight, Mother."
She planted a soft kiss on Sonya's forehead, shook off all lingering attachments, and rose from the chair.
The moment she turned to leave a message for her traveling father to come home—
"…Sophia?"
From behind came her mother's gentle voice, calling her name affectionately.
"It feels like a week has already passed. How's it going since then?"
"She's improving bit by bit. No side effects either, it seems."
"Good to hear."
In a lab at Silver Unit HQ, I was chatting with Citrin, one of the executives, about Sophia's mother.
"I never imagined you could cure that illness, Citrin."
"I got lucky. It just happened to be a condition I knew well."
She waved it off like it was no big deal, alternating sips of the black tea and dessert I'd served.
But curing an intractable disease that every doctor in the world had given up on was worthy of acclaim.
That aside.
First, I should explain how key members of Silver Unit ended up treating a magical girl's mother.
A few days ago, Ravi dumped two requests on me.
The first, as you know, was me acting as Sophia's guardian for the three-way meeting.
I got direct permission from her father, and it all went smoothly without issues.
The second was to introduce her to Citrin, a Silver Unit executive. That seemed to be the main point, actually.
I wondered why that woman out of nowhere, but after hearing the full story, I learned something shocking.
"I had no idea you used to be a doctor, Citrin."
"It's not something I go around bragging about. Especially not to blabbermouth Amber."
"Yeah, she'd probably spread it all over town."
Citrin was a former doctor—a renowned neurosurgeon specializing in the human brain, no less.
According to Lapis, she'd voluntarily retired about three years ago to cover for a subordinate's mistake or something.
She'd lived a pretty spectacular life, contrary to appearances.
Her brilliance must be why she's treated so well in Silver Unit now.
Plus, she was a mana-less like me, which boosted my affinity for her.
Anyway, Ravi commissioned Sonya's treatment from Citrin in exchange for granting one of her orders without question.
Since it was a brain-related disease, Citrin's expertise allowed her to cure it…
"The real question is how Magical Girl Ruby knew I was a neurosurgeon."
Citrin's doubt was valid. This proved Ravi had pierced not just Silver Unit's org chart, but even the executives' pasts.
How much does she know, exactly?
At this point, it was less surprise and more resignation. She even knew Citrin's upbringing casually.
"I'd bet she scoped out this hideout's location ages ago. The mystery is why she hasn't raided us yet."
"Well… she's still thwarting our schemes left and right."
Ravi was still swiftly crushing the petty crimes of Silver Unit grunts.
She'd drop by the cafe for friendly chit-chat sometimes, but behind the scenes, she was relentlessly dismantling Silver Unit with a poker face.
"And that's not all. Even during surgery, she followed my orders perfectly to fix that lady."
No matter how skilled Citrin was, without mana, she needed extra hands.
Ravi didn't seem medically knowledgeable, but she insisted confidently, so I had no choice but to nod.
…Long story short, thanks to her, the surgery was a resounding success.
"She moved with ice-cold precision in a situation where a 1cm deviation could've been fatal. What is that girl?"
My image of Magical Girl Ruby was someone who just swung around her innate massive mana.
If anything, I'd guessed Sophia was superior in fine mana control, but this incident corrected that notion.
"It was like she'd done it a hundred times—such familiar movements. What, is she a former surgeon at that age?"
"I get it's ridiculous, but breathe while you talk. Owing her one isn't all bad."
At my words, Citrin lifted her teacup to wet her parched throat.
"Gulp… Puha. One more."
"Coming right up."
She must've gotten thirsty mid-conversation; she downed the fresh pour from the pot in seconds.
She drank it with such relish that the brewer in me was pleased.
More importantly, Ravi's the issue now.
There were plenty of other suspicious points. One big one: she knew I was from another world.
Maybe high-level magic could pull off that kind of stunt.
Like how boss Lapis searched my fate with her unique magic, Ravi might've dug up info with something similar.
But calling it "info" felt off. Her words and actions didn't suggest precognition.
Just recently, she hadn't known I'd handle her three-way meeting, and she couldn't track rapidly changing real-world events.
That would weaken the theory of some power granting her our info.
The unease every time I talk to Ravi. That's probably the hint.
She speaks to me with the familiarity and kindness of an old friend.
We've only known each other a few months, yet she acts almost like a lover. It's bizarre no matter how I slice it, but if not foresight, only one possibility remains.
"…She already knew."
I muttered under my breath, too quiet for Citrin to hear.