Chapter 13
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: Intermission - Conversation Between Two Girls (2)
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Jin Soa's head froze solid.
"Ha...?"
It was incomprehensible.
Magical marriage.
What the hell did that mean?
"Mar... riage...?"
"Yeah. Marriage."
Lee Seobin even etched the word "marriage" clearly once more into Jin Soa's hazy mind.
Could this just be a dream?
A truly pitiful, oh-so-convenient dream conjured by her own longing for magical marriage.
Doubting herself, Jin Soa slapped her own cheek.
"Ow."
With her fist.
A stinging magical shock radiated from her cheek.
In other words, this wasn't a dream—it was reality.
In this utterly unrealistic reality, Lee Seobin's sharp words, laced with worry, came flying at her.
"No, Soa! Why'd you suddenly do that!"
Jin Soa blankly moved her lips.
"I thought maybe I was dreaming."
"So you punch your own face, you idiot! Just pinch your arm!"
"Yeah..."
Jin Soa nodded in agreement, but her face remained slack and dazed.
She just couldn't wrap her head around it.
Marriage.
To someone she'd only met today, no less.
Forcing her creaky magical thoughts into motion, Jin Soa shot Lee Seobin a silent question.
What the hell are you thinking?
Reading Jin Soa's doubt, Lee Seobin quirked up the corner of her mouth and slowly began.
"Listen. Objectively speaking, his conditions are really solid."
Lee Seobin ticked off the magical conditions one by one.
Age: 33.
Only 14 years older than Jin Soa.
"They say a 14-year gap is no big deal for compatibility."
"...Isn't that just a 4-year gap?"
"The 1 up front is just decoration. Like a silent letter in English."
"S-seriously...?"
His looks were surprisingly youthful for his age.
Even without any effort, his appearance was decent enough.
"Well, if I had to nitpick, his eyes were a little weird. They made him look like he'd lived a full life already."
"Yeah, I got that vibe too."
"Personally? His gaze felt more cynical than yours, Soa."
"What's wrong with my eyes...?"
No relatives, not even any family.
Just Kim Siyul, all on his own.
"No worries about in-law drama. No need for engagement meetings or anything. Honestly, a little jealous."
"Is that really such a big deal?"
"Oh, right. You wouldn't get it."
"Hey, fuck off. Keep poking and it'll hurt."
And that was it? He'd held his own against Jin Soa without flinching.
No cowering—in fact, he'd even snapped back at her.
A sight that would terrify anyone. No one in Korea didn't know Jin Soa.
"He doesn't get uncomfortable around you at all. Where else are you gonna find a guy like that? Plenty of dudes can't even string a sentence together to a magical girl."
"Maybe his brain's just busted?"
"...Can't argue with that."
On top of that, plenty of other magical factors checked out.
His favorite magical foods? As long as he could eat them, fine.
No expensive magical hobbies.
No girlfriend, no magical girl friends, not even a single normal magical friend.
'And he's not uninterested in marriage or kids.'
Plus, Kim Siyul didn't care about age or body type. Preferred personality? As long as she didn't stab him in the back, good enough.
Under the premise that his partner was a magical girl.
"As long as she's not a nasty magical girl, he doesn't care about her figure or age."
"That's all? Nothing else?"
"Well..."
Lee Seobin trailed off.
Of course there was.
But she wasn't telling Jin Soa.
No way was she admitting he got hard over women's magical slippers.
The sudden thought made Lee Seobin mutter bleakly without thinking.
"No, but why slippers of all things..."
"Seobin, what's up? Something happen?"
"N-no... Just ignore it, please."
Lee Seobin fumbled awkwardly—uncharacteristically for her—before meeting Jin Soa's eyes.
"Anyway, isn't this pretty good?"
"Hm..."
Jin Soa pondered for a moment.
A bit younger than her? No—slightly older, actually.
A youthful appearance, if not quite on her level.
An orphan with zero family to suck up to.
A personality that ignored social status.
And.
Magical sexual preferences that overlooked age and figure, as long as the magical girl wasn't a total bitch.
"Uh...?"
To Jin Soa, he was a solid match.
No—correction.
Extremely solid.
Practically one of a kind.
He passed through her three magical filters—body, age, status—without a hitch.
"Really...?"
As Jin Soa murmured skeptically, Lee Seobin narrowed her eyes and whispered softly.
"What do you think?"
"W-wait, hold on!"
Jin Soa flailed her arms in panic.
Lee Seobin pressed on relentlessly.
Like a cunning magical serpent tempting her with magical fruit from the tree of good and evil.
"Perfect match for marriage, right?"
"I-it's not bad, but..."
Before Jin Soa could succumb to the sweet magical venom of the magical viper, she half-freaked out and pointed to the bitter magical reality.
Specifically, one unresolved issue.
"I-if that happens, won't he go around banging every other magical girl without a care?"
A taste for magical girls regardless of body or age was a godsend for Jin Soa.
But she wouldn't be the only target.
Obviously, other magical girls would catch his eye—or more.
It would only make the problems with Kim Siyul worse.
In other words.
"Trouble's guaranteed."
The magical girl shortage stemming from Kim Siyul's magical libido was inevitable. Just a matter of time.
"Oh, that?"
"Yeah. Makes me a little uneasy."
"No need to worry."
Lee Seobin's words were more hunch than fact, but Jin Soa could feel the conviction behind them.
She couldn't understand it.
"No, why not?"
"You spaced out the whole time, so you missed the lie detector results at the end."
"Oh... Sorry."
"It's fine. Everyone else missed it too."
Well, it was that serious. With that addendum, Lee Seobin continued.
"Everything up to the middle was true."
"But?"
Jin Soa questioned.
Lee Seobin smiled faintly.
"The part about banging every magical girl? Total bullshit."
According to the magical lie detector, all of Kim Siyul's wild statements were lies.
Simple magical bluster.
"Really?"
"Yeah. So he won't be fooling around with the other magical girls in the unit."
Lee Seobin reflected on the earlier scene as she spoke to Jin Soa.
Honestly, it was still weird no matter how she thought about it.
Another world? True.
Getting horny for magical girls? True.
Even his magical perversions? True.
All the parts that should have been lies were true.
"Well, the other world stuff and... the rest being true is still fishy, but anyway."
However.
Kim Siyul's final declarations? All lies. The kind anyone would swear were true.
Gonna do dirty things to magical girls? Lie.
Loves hanging with magical girls? Lie.
And.
Nothing to lose? Lie.
The first two could be chalked up to zero real interest in magical girls, but the last one? Unexpected.
Kim Siyul was a 33-year-old jobless high school grad dropout.
'Guess he does have something.'
Meaning he had something to lose.
Probably material magical assets, in cases like this.
But how much? A couple bucks wouldn't cut it.
Had to be overwhelmingly loaded to register like that.
For example.
'Major shareholder in Top□ and No□pia.'
Lee Seobin thought it, then immediately shook her head, rejecting the idea outright.
No way.
Impossible.
Top□ and No□pia stocks were a burden even for one share. Even for a three-star magical girl like Lee Seobin.
Yet somehow, a regular joe? A high-school dropout, jobless 33-year-old magical loser? Holding those stocks?
Impossible. Absolutely.
'Not the point anyway.'
Bottom line: Kim Siyul had something.
A ton of it, whatever it was.
That was Lee Seobin's conclusion.
Of course, she had no intention of spilling it straight to Jin Soa.
No need, and it wasn't important.
'It's not like our Soa can't support a man.'
Even if he had jack shit, it wouldn't matter anyway.
Anyway.
Lee Seobin shook off her thoughts, faced Jin Soa, and gave a soft smile.
"So don't worry too much, Soa."
"...That's a relief."
Jin Soa let out a sigh.
To her, Lee Seobin flashed an eye smile and slid over a sheet of paper.
The magical consent form to make Kim Siyul her magical girl.
"Anyway, this should be enough, right, Soa?"
Time to drive home the magical nail.
"Just sign at the bottom."
One signature from Jin Soa, and it was done.
Then Kim Siyul would join her magical unit as a magical girl, just as Lee Seobin intended.
Though one thing made Lee Seobin slightly uneasy.
'All those lies are a bit iffy.'
Fooling around with magical girls? Lie.
Likes being around magical girls? Lie.
In other words, he wouldn't mesh with magical girls and had no desire to be near them.
A double-edged magical sword.
Less chance of magical accidents in the unit, but it also meant zero interest in magical girls—regardless of his tastes.
Jin Soa included.
'So I gotta help out here.'
She wasn't just gonna watch.
Lee Seobin planned to assist as much as possible.
Even if it meant abusing her magical authority—she was fully committed, no hesitation.
She meant it.
'Soa deserves some happiness now.'
She didn't want Jin Soa suffering anymore.
"...Ugh, but."
Yet Jin Soa kept hesitating.
Even though all her concerns were addressed.
Lee Seobin scolded her gently.
"Think about it, you idiot. This is your last shot. In my book, let him slip now and it's over for good."
No choice. Had to push her like this, or Jin Soa wouldn't decide.
She'd just spit out another vague magical solution, like always.
"Th-then why not just let him off and meet naturally later—"
See?
Already doing it.
Lee Seobin cut her off.
"God, you frustrating idiot. Let a guy like that go? Everyone'll lose their minds and swarm him."
"Th-then what am I supposed to do...!"
Jin Soa wailed helplessly.
Honestly, at this point, even Lee Seobin was beyond exasperation—straight-up pitiful.
She slaughtered monsters like nothing, yet choked on basic romance before it even started.
Jin Soa's tragic lack of male experience up to 47 was a bigger magical hurdle than Lee Seobin had realized.
Lee Seobin gave a wry smile and spoke.
"Grab the chance and keep him close. That way, you get the natural meeting you want without losing him."
"But what if... it doesn't work out...?"
Did she really need to spell this out? Sighing inwardly, Lee Seobin let it go.
What were magical friends for?
Exactly this.
"Then just close your eyes like I did and make it a done deal, you fool. Easy, right?"
"W-well, yeah, but..."
"You wanna live like this and die alone, old and single?"
Even saying it hurt Lee Seobin's heart.
Too harsh for her magical friend. She didn't want to say it.
But no choice.
"All alone in an empty house, dying forgotten and lonely?"
If they stopped here, marriage would forever be a pipe dream for Jin Soa.
Lee Seobin couldn't allow that.
So she steeled herself.
"N-no! I don't want that! I don't, but...!"
Tears welled in Jin Soa's eyes. Lee Seobin's stung too.
Sorry. So damn sorry.
This might ruin their friendship.
She could already feel the awkwardness starting.
But.
Jin Soa—Lee Seobin's hero, her lifesaver.
The one true magical girl Lee Seobin acknowledged.
If she could make Jin Soa's dream come true, Lee Seobin had long vowed to say even harsher things.
"At least get married before you're 50!"
Hate her if you want.
Despise her, fine.
"You've only got three years left!"
She was used to playing the villain.
"Wedding dress before a shroud!"
As Lee Seobin's words ended, Jin Soa's body froze stiff. Like a magical corpse, standing breathless.
But.
Her eyes burned bright.
Firm resolve ignited her stark orange irises, making them shine.
Brighter than ever.
As radiant as the sun in the sky.
Yes. The magical girl's eyes Lee Seobin knew.
'Good.'
Lee Seobin swallowed her relief and gave Jin Soa a faint smile.
"Decided, Soa?"
Jin Soa didn't speak.
She answered with action.
By adding her final magical signature to the consent form.
The moment Jin Soa set down the magical pen, Lee Seobin smiled apologetically.
"Soa, it might sound weird coming from me—the one sending him to your unit—but brace yourself. It'll be tough. No, it will be."
Jin Soa nodded silently.
Of course she knew.
Nothing was fully resolved.
Still plenty of unease.
A guy who couldn't use magic like Kim Siyul was bound to cause big and small issues. Unforeseen magical accidents, maybe.
Things her past experience couldn't handle. Headaches from total unknowns.
Pure magical chaos, unpredictable.
But Jin Soa didn't care anymore.
"Do your best anyway, Soa."
"Yeah!"
Nothing mattered more than magical marriage.