Chapter 117

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 117

Chapter Title: Magical Gallery (1)

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"H-hey... help...!"

A sudden cry for help from Whitey.

I turned my head, wondering what was up.

"Yo, what's going on?"

"W-well... no, wait. Hold on."

But the moment I voiced my confusion, Whitey froze up with a stiff expression.

What was eating her now?

"Why the sudden drama?"

"Don't call me 'yo'."

"Then what should I call you?"

Whitey had a bit of a racist vibe, so maybe Goldie?

Nah, mutt wouldn't be bad either.

She was a mutt, after all.

Right then, Whitey spat it out.

"...Call me by name."

Honestly, I didn't get it.

Why demand a name now, of all times?

She'd always let it slide before.

But I kept that question to myself. Her pleading eyes sealed my lips.

"Please..."

Soon, those blue eyes—swirling with anxiety and desperation—locked onto mine.

"Did you... forget my name?"

I shook my head.

"Nah, of course I remember."

"Really?!"

Whitey's face lit up visibly.

"Sis Ray, right?"

"Sister Ray, you mutt."

Though it didn't last long.

Anyway.

"Oh."

A thought flashed by.

Come to think of it, Whitey had started calling me by name instead of 'hey' at some point.

That explained her behavior now.

She was trying to get closer by using my name, but here I was, sticking to 'yo.' How would that feel?

Pretty crappy, obviously.

So I should return the favor.

With that, I flashed a small smile.

"Yeah, Ray."

"Yup! Thanks, Siyul!"

Whitey beamed right back.

Her pure smile tickled and overwhelmed me a bit, so I quickly changed the subject.

"So, what's the problem?"

"Oh, right! Help! It's urgent! For real!"

At my words, Whitey snapped back to her frantic self and spilled the details.

It was a bit rambling, but the gist was this:

Magical Girls were bickering in the gallery, Whitey took one side, but turns out the other side was right.

"Got it. Let me check."

Sure enough, half the posts were heated debates on it. Well, "debate" was generous—it was mostly insults and trash-talk.

"W-what do I do?!"

That aside, it was a little surprising.

Whitey browsed the gallery?

Though if almost every Magical Girl did, it wasn't weird for her.

Anyway, time to handle this.

"So, to sum up: argument broke out, you backed the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wrong side?"

"Yeah! Should I apologize now?"

The fix was simple.

"Why bother apologizing?"

"Then...?"

Whitey tilted her head.

I answered firmly.

"Flip the bird and go full savage on 'em."

"Aha!"

Apologizing after getting swept up in the mob just paints a target on your back.

Especially when the real culprits clam up without a word.

Better to charge ahead as the spearhead.

"If that's not enough, muddy the waters and attack their messengers. Worst case, play both-sides-wrong to dilute it."

Muddying and stirring.

Gallery basics.

"If you're getting sniped, post some random character pic with nonsense to pull aggro."

"Still kinda scary..."

"No options left? Just drop 'your mom' and bail. Ignore the replies."

Dipping out works too.

Piss 'em off and ghost.

p>

Mental wins count. Protecting your sanity comes first.

"Your mom."

"Not to me, idiot. In the comments."

"Oh."

Damn, this crazy bitch was testing me.

Couldn't let my guard down.

"Anyway, got it! I'll try that!"

After Whitey grabbed her phone again, I peeked at the gallery later.

"You're doing great."

She followed my advice to the letter.

She tore into the Magical Girl she'd sided with earlier, smoothly steering the flow to trash her.

Still, a few held out against the tide, sniping Whitey.

Of course, Whitey handled it cleanly.

She was finally a proper gallery user.

"Whoa! It's working!"

Seeing Whitey's innocent grin made me smile warmly without thinking.

Separately, Blofish Noona got blocked. Who does she think she is, talking shit?

Then a sharp thought struck me.

Was Octopus okay?

Now that I thought about it, she'd changed how she called me too. I'd only just noticed since I hadn't paid attention.

But I always called her Octopus.

Did that hurt her feelings?

Whitey hated it that much.

I was honestly worried.

"It's fine. Mortals are inherently inferior, after all. As a superior Arhat, I can understand completely."

But when I brought it up to Octopus, her response surprised me.

It was okay.

"If it still bothers you, mortal, you're permitted to call me by name."

She even showed consideration.

Her ideology was a tad impure, but she was definitely a Magical Buddhist. Such magnanimity only came from that faith.

Only one issue.

"Hey, Octopus, what was your name again?"

That I'd forgotten her real name.

Correction.

Two issues.

Octopus had grabbed my throat, making it hard to breathe.

Even she couldn't let forgetting her name slide.

"Ah, don't piss me off─!"

Sorry.

One more correction.

Three issues.

"─Fuck, we're screwed..."

"Why?"

"...I forgot my own name too."

Octopus had forgotten hers as well.

Too deep in her crazy doctrine, she'd lost herself momentarily.

"Taishi, snap out of it! What're we supposed to do if you forget your own name?!"

Finally, Sora yelled, and we learned Octopus's name.

Taishi.

Right. That was it.

Too long ago; I'd forgotten.

At least we got her real name now. Good outcome.

"Can you let go? It hurts."

"Oh, forgot."

My swelling throat wasn't so lucky.

Anyway.

"So, Taishi, what were you up to?"

"I was about to post a question in the Magical Gallery."

"Oh, yeah?"

I smiled faintly.

Taishi looked uneasy.

"W-why?"

"To help you ask it right."

"Like that?"

You can't just ask ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠questions blindly.

Especially in the gallery.

With tons of posts burying each other, questions need max provocation.

Hence, one key trick.

"Follow the format for proper questions."

Sticking to format.

"Huh? There's a Magical format?"

"Obviously."

A plain question isn't bad. Easy ones get quick replies.

But format's better.

For real answers.

And to heat up the gallery.

Plus, I'm Padak right now.

Padak: rule guardian, gallery activator extraordinaire.

So, guide every question to be more provocative.

"What's the Magical format?"

"Game example."

Need a solid comparison.

Is this character's performance okay? (X)

Pull this and my current one's trash? (O)

"Easier to get replies this way, right?"

"Makes sense. Anything else?"

"Obviously."

Next, plant a strong impression.

Can I skip this character? (X)

Limited char that's shit—skippable? (O)

Taishi narrowed her eyes.

"That might be too sensitive."

"Gotta provoke to get reads. Bland questions get buried."

"Fair point."

"One more."

Finally, add specifics.

So, what's the verdict on this character? (X)

So, what tier's this one? (O)

"That's it."

"Got it. I'll use that."

This format works wonders.

True story.

Works for games or any genre—people eat it up. I know from experience.

"Wow, reactions are instant."

See?

Gallery's blazing already.

Harsh words flying. Could ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠spark real fights.

This fire won't die soon. No worries about inactivity.

To Padak, a beautiful sight.