Signed Up for the Gym
“…Haa.”
Magical girl Sapphire—real name Sophia.
She let out a small sigh, sprawled listlessly on her bed.
Even though Jewelry Academia had entered summer break, her daily life had only grown busier. Saving civilians in peril or spending time with her mother, who had overcome her illness.
Of course, she never once thought this situation was tough on her. If anything, these fulfilling days brought her genuine joy.
But a certain man kept popping into her head, making it impossible to stay composed.
That man was none other than Cafe Eclipse's manager, Jade.
Even though she hadn't seen him lately, Sophia couldn't forget his mature voice echoing in her mind—
…I wonder if there's any way we could meet again?
She kicked feebly at the blanket on her bed, stamping her feet in frustration.
With summer break in full swing, Cafe Eclipse was closed for the time being, making it nearly impossible for her to run into Jade.
If anything, they were clear strangers—at best, acquaintances.
His actions so far made it impossible to see him as just some guy, though.
Still, it's been too long. Not seeing him for over a month ahead…
She'd been visiting the cafe frequently for a while, so the backlash hit her even harder.
It was only natural. Jade had already become her mental pillar.
I could reach out, and he'd probably come if I asked…
Of course, if she framed it as thanks for helping with that parent-teacher conference, setting up a meet would be easy.
But asking to meet privately like that… it's still too embarrassing.
Her face flushed as she fiddled with her sky-blue cased smartphone.
The screen showed Jade's profile—they'd exchanged numbers at some point.
She hemmed and hawed, wasting time debating whether to send a message, over and over.
Truth be told, this was the first time the girl named Sophia had ever become aware of the opposite sex.
Her life had always revolved around being a magical girl or her family, leaving little room to notice men.
Sure, she'd gotten confessions from boys at Jewelry Academia a few times, but she'd scoffed them off, so they didn't count as experience.
But with her mother's condition improving and some breathing room in her life and heart, she could finally face her own feelings.
It was clear affection—very much like the feelings Amber had for Jade.
What if I go out and miraculously run into Jade?
Pinning hopes on an impossible miracle changed nothing.
“Aah, seriously…!”
In the end, Sophia tossed and turned all night, frustration dragging on.
Even a world-renowned magical girl who protected the planet was a total noob when it came to romance.
And meanwhile, at the same time, at Silver Unit HQ.
Another woman whose head was filled with thoughts of Jade—
“Haa.”
It was Crystal, one of Silver Unit's executives, letting out a deep sigh with a melancholic expression.
“What could Lady Crystal be worrying about?”
“Must be something grunts like us couldn't even comprehend.”
She shuffled down the hallway, oblivious to the two female staffers in the distance spinning wild fantasies about her.
Chris saw herself as a weakling trapped in trauma forever.
She'd tried to erase that flaw after being promoted to executive, but her honest talk with Jade had shifted her perspective a bit.
Me, cool? How does that guy so casually say something so embarrassing.
Those ugly emotions she'd desperately hidden from everyone.
But that cheeky subordinate had affirmed her past, saying she'd raised Nil wonderfully.
He was the same age as her, but Jade exuded a maturity that made it impossible to see him as a mere grunt.
He deserves better treatment.
Jade's standing in Silver Unit wasn't what anyone would call good, even as flattery.
Maybe because he operated solo with the youngest member and executive Amber, plenty of grunts envied or looked down on him.
Stepping in myself would just seem nosy… and he looks busy enough anyway.
Chris wanted to share everyday moments with Jade, even just once—like that time in the park.
Of course, their positions made carefree hangouts impossible.
…I want to see him again somehow, but if Lapis is right, he's on vacation now. Bugging him would feel rude.
Was interrupting a subordinate's vacation proper boss behavior?
“Kuhhh!”
Still, she wanted to see him. Talk about anything, just chat—that desire gnawed at her as she trudged down the hall, trying to suppress it.
“……”
Citrin, passing by, spotted her pathetic state, watched for a moment, scratched her head, and fled to her lab.
A wish bordering on desperation: to run into Jade even just in passing.
But perhaps the gods hadn't abandoned these girls yet. That wish would come true in an unexpected way.
Five days after Amber safely passed her makeup exam.
I wasn't going to the cafe, just leisurely chilling at home.
Not like I'd suddenly become a NEET or anything—Lapis had ordered the shop closed for the break since no students would show up anyway.
“Phew.”
Even if they told me to rest, I didn't have much to do, but scoring a vacation was pretty nice regardless. I'd been swamped helping Amber study.
Time to lay off desserts and refresh properly for a bit.
“By the way.”
“Yeah?”
“Why are you here?”
I voiced my confusion to Ravi, who was sitting on the floor sipping the green tea I'd brewed.
“Slurp…”
“Don't slurp like you're ignoring me. I thought you vanished for a while, and now you barge in out of nowhere.”
Figured it had been ages since I last saw her, but here she was camped out in my room with zero explanation.
“Ehehe, 'cause I missed Jade so much after so long…”
“If you missed me, come sooner. I got kidnapped by your buddy and locked in a cell for days.”
Memories of Ruri grabbing me and imprisoning me in the Brilliant holding facility flooded back.
She'd even shoved mana into me, so why didn't she rescue me then? When I asked—
“Mica's nice to non-dangerous people. You came out fine, right?”
“Well, yeah, but.”
True, aside from the initial restraint, she hadn't harmed me.
Even when those monsters popped up all over the city last time, she didn't do anything.
Of course, Chris had been with me then, but if I had it right, Ravi basically didn't meddle in my personal life.
She only stepped in when my life was directly at stake.
In other words, her being here now meant she had some agenda.
“Oh yeah, speaking of Ruri—do you know about Guardian?”
“Guardian?”
She'd mentioned the group during her interrogation of me.
Apparently the shadowy outfit that unleashed a monster horde on Jewel City. I'd meant to ask Ravi about it, and it just clicked now.
“Eh, our boss hasn't even heard of 'em, so you probably haven't—”
“It's an environmental group. Kinda illegal stuff.”
I'd barely finished rambling when she answered in three seconds flat.
“A bit different from Silver Unit. Smaller scale, maybe a few dozen staff.”
Fronting as eco-activists while raking in cash through shady dealings behind the scenes.
Pure evil org vibes—felt kinda familiar, honestly.
Setting aside the eco angle, what bugged me was why Ruri grilled me on their whereabouts.
“Hmm, 'cause Guardian's boss is the one who juiced up Mica's body?”
“How do you know that…”
It felt like a bombshell secret on the verge of unraveling got spoiled instantly.
Juiced up her body. Guess that's the source of Ruri's superhuman abilities.
Like she escaped a mad scientist who'd locked her up for brutal experiments. Classic comic or movie trope.
“Dropping it. Serious talk with you just kills my vibe.”
Listening further would be rude to her. Everyone has stuff they wanna hide.
“If Jade wants, I won't say more. Let's see, instead…”
With that, she changed the subject, pulling a ticket from her pocket.
“Here!”
“…Free gym membership ticket?”
“You were just gonna laze around forever, right? That's bad for you.”
True, I'd been thinking I should get in shape lately. Cafe or home tumbling—that was my routine.
But when it came to actually starting serious workouts, laziness won out, and I ended up lounging anyway—
“Grand opening… ten minutes walk from here, huh.”
“You should check it out. All the latest equipment.”
Ravi pushing this hard was a tad suspicious, but with nothing else to do, maybe drag Amber along.
What's the worst that could happen? I mentally raised that flag while stuffing the ticket into my wallet.