Chapter 94
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: Anticipated, Yet Unattainable
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There had been a sense of incongruity, to be honest.
Day after day passed, but Whitey's behavior stayed exactly the same, didn't it?
Yeah. There really hadn't been any change.
Normally, as vacation approached, you'd start preparing something. Maybe make plans for your time off or excitedly chatter about what you'd do.
But Whitey hadn't done any of that.
Of course, I hadn't paid much attention to it either. After all, I wasn't the one going on vacation.
Then it hit me that vacation was right around the corner, so I casually brought it up with her...
"Hey, vacation's in a few days for you, right? Lucky."
"Nah. I'm not going on vacation."
Suddenly, she says she's not going.
"Hey, bullshit. What the hell is that?"
Having been through military life myself, I knew damn well how important vacation was.
From the moment you realize you can't go, you start losing your mind. Even an A-rank like me couldn't hold out and ended up grabbing a rifle and mess knife again, so imagine for others.
Magical Girls were no different, surely. Vacation was crucial for everyone.
So I was puzzled. I couldn't understand it.
How had Whitey's vacation gotten cut?
And why was she so nonchalant about it?
Wasn't this just my take? Octo looked at her with utter disbelief.
"That's strange. Don't Magical vacations follow the schedule? No Magical deployments, so how could it get canceled?"
"Ah, this one's not from the regular Magical rotation. I was trying to use some extra vacation time I got before."
Whitey answered lightly, her fist clenched tight.
"Then couldn't you just swap your Magical slot once with one of those inferior breeds?"
"Everyone said it was hard to switch. They all have their own plans this time."
"Hmm... I see?"
Octo nodded at Whitey's response, though still looking unconvinced. For now, at least.
Whitey's explanation didn't have anything off about it. I could vouch for that.
It matched what we'd heard during some basic training session or whatever. Magical Girl vacations were long and plentiful, but only on fixed rotations.
So if you wanted time off outside your turn, there were just two options.
Use separate vacation days.
Or swap slots with someone else temporarily.
Of course, it wasn't always possible.
For the latter, if the Magical Girl in that slot refused, tough luck.
But the former was a bit weird.
Extra vacation could be used freely, regardless of your rotation. And Whitey had some.
There was a limit on how many could go at once, but that was usually an issue for last-minute requests a day or two before.
In other words, no problem if you applied ahead.
So why couldn't she go?
Whitey would've applied ages ago.
Right on cue, Rez pointed out exactly what I was thinking.
"Hetero pup, didn't you apply for this way back? If my memory's right."
"Yeah."
"Maybe the bitch handling vacations forgot? That chewed-up Magical has early dementia or some shit—vacations keep getting dropped. I just dealt with it myself."
"Nah. I confirmed it was recorded."
"Then what's the problem?"
"Well...... just......"
Whitey clenched her fist and trailed off.
Rez latched on.
"Just?"
"A little while ago, the vacation handler said some high-rank Magical Girl suddenly wanted to go in my place, so no choice."
"Who the hell?"
Rez glared. Whitey glanced around nervously, fist still clenched, then spat it out.
"......Magical Girl Mint Turtle."
"Oh, that Magical private bitch."
I knew the Magical Girl.
Glans-head, probably.
She'd shared food in the mess hall, so I thought she was decent. Now she just seemed like a total asshole.
From what I was hearing, she'd basically used her rank to steal Whitey's vacation.
Meanwhile, Rez twisted her face, still unable to comprehend.
"No, even if she's a Magical private, why steal someone else's vacation slot, that fucking bitch."
"Don't say too much. She has to meet her girlfriend, so she needed it urgently."
"Still! How long you've been waiting for this!"
"Calm down. If I endure a bit, everyone's fine, so what's the big deal."
Whitey grinned back. Her fist stayed clenched, like she'd made some vow.
Rez wasn't a total lost cause outside her walls—she had a heart—and vented all her rage in Whitey's place.
"I can't believe it! How can someone do this? Hey, am I the only one thinking this?"
Her last words were more lament than question, but I nodded anyway.
"Yeah. Not buying it at all."
"Oh, right? You're alright except for being a guy. Same thoughts as me."
Satisfied with my answer, Rez slung an arm around my shoulder and ground her teeth again.
"Still can't believe it. A Magical private bitch causing this shit just 'cause she can't wait for her own vacation."
"Yeah. Totally unbelievable."
Rez was spot on.
I didn't believe a word.
"That bitch has a mom."
"Ah, that side?"
I figured she didn't.
Meanwhile, Octo stayed calm instead of getting swept up in the anger and offered some advice.
"If it's meeting a half-inferior breed, seems like an important schedule. How about filing a Magical petition for emergency vacation anyway?"
"It's fine. I don't have to be with Sora. Plus, even a Magical petition wouldn't time out right."
"Ah, yeah, too late now. If nothing else works, how about aiming for a day or two of Magical leave?"
"That's hard too. Magical Captain said the Magical Battalion Commander shut it down."
"Both are such shitty inferior breeds."
But there really wasn't any sharp solution.
Basically, she was being told not to go.
Finally, Rez couldn't take it and stood up.
"Fuck this, I can't stand it. I'm gonna go see that turtle bitch real quick."
"What're you gonna do?"
Rez made a determined face at my question.
"Crack her skull with the Magical High-Pressure Cutter."
"Good intent, wrong method, fuck."
Well, her words veered a bit from heroic.
"Please don't do anything crazy."
"No, this works! Cut the corner of a Magical locker the other day!"
"No wonder that fuck-girl's Magical locker was sliced—I wondered who the Magical perp was, and it was you, the rubbing inferior breed?!"
"Ah."
While Rez got one-sidedly pummeled by Octo, I turned to Whitey.
"Hey, you really okay? Need me to do something?"
"Yeah! Totally fine! No problem!"
Whitey clenched her fist and beamed.
It was her usual smile, but given her vacation was cut, it faintly felt like she was holding something back.
Was this really okay?
Should I say something comforting?
I racked my brain for the best words.
That moment.
*Testing, testing. Ahh.*
Magical Private Kim Siyul, report to the Magical visiting room immediately.
It named me, too.
Octo smashed one more fist into Rez's head, then turned to me.
"Bro, got a mom or dad?"
"Octo, I get what you're saying, but it feels kinda shitty."
"Then guess who came for Magical visiting?"
"No clue."
I really didn't know.
Hardly any friends, parents' status unknown—who'd visit me?
Repeating: Magical Private Kim Siyul, report to the Magical visiting room immediately. End of transmission.
Repeating meant it wasn't a mistake.
Anyway, I'd find out by going.
Couldn't ignore it.
"Whatever, I'll head out."
I waved casually and left the barracks.
What an odd experience. Never had a visitor in regular army, but first one as a Magical Girl.
"Who could it be?"
I carried the faint question in my footsteps.
A spread of food lay before me.
Varieties hard to get in Magical Girl life, mostly unfamiliar stuff.
But.
The visitor wasn't a stranger. Quite familiar, actually.
"Eat up, sunbae."
Yeah. Sora.
On vacation, yet here to visit me.
"It'll all get cold."
Sora chided, but I didn't touch a thing, just gazed at her steadily.
"What's on your mind?"
I couldn't understand.
Why had Sora, who should be enjoying her vacation, come to visit me?
Especially with so much food. Way too much.
Even for visiting, it was just us two. Yet the pile could've fed the whole barracks.
"You know we can't eat all this, right? I'm telling you upfront, I can't."
"I just didn't know what you liked, so I got a bit of everything. It's fine, you can leave some."
Sora smiled, unfazed by my words about leftovers.
Which made it even more puzzling.
It wasn't much to her, but objectively, it'd cost a pretty penny.
Was wasting money like this okay? Sora wasn't a big spender; she was pretty frugal.
"You have some business, right?"
"Haha, well, actually......"
Sora gave an awkward smile, then suddenly turned serious.
"Sunbae, please help my sister, just once."
Her voice even more grave.