The Witch Beneath Denial's Veil
The Witch Beneath Denial's Veil.
A magical girl's final words after falling to erosion, unable to resist.
She appears almost human on the outside, but inside, she's a monster ruled by erosion, driven by base desires.
I've seen plenty of magical girls fall in my time. But there's only one witch I've killed with my own hands.
My senior, who guided me all the way to becoming who I am now. The one who taught me just how important a smile is for a magical girl.
'Residual Fragrance'—Shin Arin.
The worst witch left in the wake of the Great Subjugation.
"...What the hell are you?"
The senior I remember is already dead.
No matter how much I deny it, that's an unchangeable fact.
I'm certain. That's something else wearing her skin.
"Oh? You didn't like this form? I prepared it especially for you."
It covered its mouth with its hand and chuckled.
"Ah, maybe you'd prefer if I mimicked her speech patterns too, like last time?"
It cleared its throat, letting out a few low sounds.
"Your smile is so beautiful."
I drove my fist straight into it.
"Don't defile my senior."
I couldn't forgive it.
Not this thing that wore her face and aped her mannerisms on a whim.
But where my fist landed, there was nothing.
It vanished like smoke, then reappeared.
"Oh dear, I've gone and made you hate me."
I unleashed a shockwave at it once more.
Flames scattered with a deafening roar.
But the blast cleaved only empty air, hitting nothing.
As the smoke cleared, it was smiling at me again.
"Sadly, I didn't formally invite you to my nest, so we can't touch each other right now."
I clenched my fist tight.
I wanted to smash it right then and there, but it seemed truly intangible. The surroundings—and it—were completely unscathed.
"I'll ask one more time. Who are you, and why are you pretending to be my senior?"
"I see. Better start from the beginning, then."
It paused for a moment before speaking again.
"I am the Otherworld Queen—something akin to the gods you humans so often speak of. And this form is borrowed briefly from one of my children who received my grace. For your sake."
The Otherworld is the homeland of Keter and the other mascots.
I'd heard it became uninhabitable because of erosion.
Queen. Grace. Erosion.
The words gnawed at me, painting an unsettling picture in my mind.
"You don't mean to call erosion your 'grace,' do you?"
"Oh my. Calling my grace something so awful hurts my feelings."
"How the hell is that grace? Do you have any idea how many people have suffered because of erosion?"
Erosion let dolls rampage across the world.
The mascots lost their home.
We suffered countless casualties.
No one wanted erosion. It benefited no one.
"What's wrong with that?"
It tilted its head, its expression genuinely puzzled, as if it truly couldn't comprehend.
"Weak beings who can't accept my grace have no need to exist."
"You're talking nonsense. If not for erosion, my senior could've lived a normal life. Don't you dare speak of her with that loose tongue."
My senior resisted to the bitter end.
She realized she was turning into a monster and tried to end her own life.
But erosion wouldn't even allow her that.
"True. That child was too weak to accept my grace. Ah... such a pity."
It closed its eyes.
As if imagining the moment my senior became a witch.
The sight disgusted me.
"...So the impersonator was your doing too?"
I forced down my rising fury as I spoke.
"That foolish human? She harbored such strong hatred for magical girls, so I tempted her just a little. What do you think of a human driven solely by hate?"
"Where is she now?"
The impersonator had been swallowed by black-red mist.
But she was nowhere to be seen here.
"She served as the medium to bring you to me in this place. Not just anyone can enter my nest, you know."
"What?"
"She's of no use now, is she? I even let her contract with the shell of my precious daughter. Yet she couldn't hold out against you at all. Truly disappointing."
Flames flickered along my gauntlet.
Every word grated on me.
Of no use? Disappointing?
It was that rotten erosion that dragged the impersonator into hell.
If dolls hadn't invaded in the first place, her life never would've been ruined like that.
"But you're different. Your body was practically born to accept my grace."
"What a joke. Is that how you've been turning people into monsters?"
I won't fall for such honeyed lies.
The thing before me is a monster that cunningly manipulates others' emotions.
"It's no lie. Why do you think you can't return to your original body?"
"Because of otherworldization from smashing those damn dolls. Which is ultimately your fault."
"Oh? It seems Keter lied to you. Hehe, yes, that child has always had a strong possessive streak since she was young."
It narrowed its eyes in a smile.
"From the moment you contracted with my daughter, you could never return to your original body."
"You expect me to believe that?"
If I had to choose, I'd take Keter's lie over this monster's words any day.
Either way, returning to my old form is impossible now.
"You don't have to believe me. You'll realize it for yourself one day—what that truly means."
With those words, the black-red mist enveloping us began to fade.
Its form grew hazy along with it.
"That's all for today. It was fun. Come to my embrace anytime you wish."
It spread its arms toward me.
"Get lost. I'll come kill you after I clear my throat."
And I punched at it with all my heart.
"Ha... annoying to the very end."
I came to in the alley again.
Keter stood alone beside me.
The sky was pitch black.
Everyone else had gone home, leaving Keter to wait by herself.
"Miss, are you alright?"
Keter scanned me up and down with worried eyes.
"Yeah. I got dragged to some weird place for a bit. No big deal."
"……"
Then Keter's expression hardened, as if she'd noticed something.
"...You've met my mother."
"How'd you know?"
"I sense strong erosion around you, miss."
Hanging out with the source of erosion itself must've done that.
Feeling strong erosion from myself was a bit off-putting.
"Yeah... looks like I did."
I answered nonchalantly.
"Did Mother say anything to you?"
Keter looked at me with a serious expression.
"Just a bunch of useless bullshit. But I did realize one thing."
"What is it?"
"That killing that thing will bring true peace to the world."
Only when that monster dies will the root of erosion end.
As long as it exists, more victims like the impersonator might appear.
"Was that a bad pun?"
Seeing my face, Keter gave a small smile.
"It's fine. I no longer think of her as my mother either."
"Good."
I felt awkwardly relieved.
"Where are Kim Doa and Kim Dohee?"
"Ms. Doa left a message asking you to call her and went ahead. We should head back. It's late."
My phone showed it was past 10 PM already.
How many hours had Keter been waiting alone?
"You go on ahead."
"Staying by your side is always my priority, miss."
"Yeah? Thanks."
That's Keter for you.
Always sacrificing for me.
Even if she's hiding something about me.
There must be a reason.
"Let's go home."
"Yes, miss."
We walked side by side down the night street.
I had plenty to say—and things that needed saying—once we got back.
"But seriously, is tteokbokki really out of fashion?"
"Yes. Have you grown tired of it, miss?"
"No, no, it's not that. Just wondering if I'm falling behind trends."
Tteokbokki is delicious. Still my favorite snack.
But Seoyeon's bombshell comment left a weird aftertaste.
"What's trending these days, then?"
"Spring onion bibimbap is popular now. I can make some when we get home if you'd like."
"Yeah... pass."
"...Picky eating isn't good for you, miss."
No, but still. Going from tteokbokki to spring onion bibimbap is too extreme a shift.
Banwol Guild's cramped officetel room.
Having chased out all the guild members and left alone, Kim Dohee stared at her phone.
The internet was flooded with photos of her in magical girl cosplay.
No one knew why she'd ended up in that outfit.
"Should I die...? No, let's just die."
Only Kim Dohee was dying.