Pension Getaway and Fading Echoes
Thanks. I roughly packed my bags, hopped into Kim Doa's car, and we headed off to the pension.
"What's this, taking a whole vacation?"
I asked from the passenger seat, cracking open a roasted chestnut and popping it in my mouth.
Ever since Kim Doa joined the Management Bureau, she'd been pulling all-nighters every day or racing around erosion zones. This was the first time I'd seen her take a break.
"I need to rest too, you know."
Kim Doa let out a deep sigh as she spoke.
"The Bureau actually gives out vacation days, huh? Aren't you swamped lately?"
Especially with dolls popping up one after another recently.
And all sorts of weird stuff happening.
Of course, things were starting to wrap up now.
"Swamped. I wasn't supposed to get time off, but I forced it."
"…?"
"I'd been on night shifts, overtime, extra duties—the full course. So I threatened the Director that if he didn't give me vacation, I'd blow up the Bureau. That's how I got it."
Kim Doa snorted, keeping her eyes on the road, hands firm on the wheel.
"You can't just do that."
Poor Director.
If someone showed up with a massive anti-materiel sniper rifle, I'd hand over vacation days out of sheer terror too.
"Half of it was a joke. But with everything piling up lately, I just said I needed a short break and left."
How much of that was serious?
Thinking about Kim Doa's usual antics made me nervous.
"What if something big happens?"
Kim Doa played a huge role at the Bureau.
Especially if an incident hit an erosion zone—who else could replace her?
"Told them to handle anything that's not urgent. They've got plenty of field experience now; they'll manage."
Kim Doa glanced at me, like something had just occurred to her.
"…Right. The Bureau's got a guild meeting coming up soon."
"Oh yeah?"
I remembered tagging along with Seoyeon once.
The top guilds met periodically for strategy sessions, but it wasn't exactly fun.
That's where I first met Yuseolhwa, too. No real reason for me to go, so I skipped the ones after.
"You're coming too."
"I'm not in a guild or even an Awakener?"
"Incidents pop up everywhere you go. Think they'll let you skip?"
"…Fair point."
She wasn't wrong. I hadn't meant for it to happen, but weird stuff did keep occurring around me.
For the Director's sake, I should probably show up this time.
We drove for a good while before arriving at the pension Kim Doa had booked.
A massive pool stretched out right in front, and the area opened wide to overlook the city nightscape.
The place itself was enormous.
"You booked this to relax alone?"
"It's three people, with you and Keter."
"Still… it's way too big."
I'd pictured a cozy little house for a "pension."
But this had its own separate sauna building and everything.
"No point in money if you don't spend it on stuff like this."
Everyone's wallets had gotten fat after the Great Subjugation.
Especially Kim Doa, practically living at the Bureau.
She probably had even more cash piling up than me.
"So, what do we do here?"
I glanced around.
Nothing looked particularly fun.
"BBQ tonight, but right now, I need a nap. Do whatever."
Kim Doa yawned.
"What? Then why not just chill at home?"
Why drag me all the way out here?
"Gotta go far away so they won't call me back during vacation."
"Ah, smart."
Damn, she was clever. I hadn't even thought of that.
"And you…"
Kim Doa trailed off, giving me a once-over.
She frowned, like something was off.
"Keter does your outfits, right?"
"He handles the ones for Esostars."
"No, like, normally."
"I threw this on myself today."
Does it not match?
Just normal clothes.
"…No self-awareness, huh?"
I barely caught what Kim Doa muttered.
"What."
"Never mind. I'm crashing for a bit—go have fun. There's ice cream in the cooler if you're hungry."
She reached over toward me.
I blocked my head on reflex.
But it was pointless.
She grabbed my cheek and yanked.
"Eeeek…"
She tugged a few more times, then waved satisfied and headed into the pension.
"Ugh, what the hell."
I rubbed my cheek.
What did everyone think I was?
With a small sigh, I looked around.
"Now what."
Keter had gone inside first to unpack.
Plenty around, but nothing grabbed me.
Swimming pool? Just went recently, not feeling it.
Magigal? Checked it on the way.
Something felt forgotten, though.
I grabbed an ice cream from Kim Doa's cooler and pondered while eating.
"Right, Esostars."
The phone notification jogged my memory.
Better snap now, or Keter'd drag me later for weird outfits.
Sling bag off.
Building peeking slightly in back.
Arm stretched, natural selfie.
Click—
"Hmm… not bad."
Better than expected.
.
.
.
.
Less than 30 seconds after posting on Esostars, a chat popped up from Seoyeon.
Even with notifications on, that was ridiculously fast.
I closed the chat window.
Why should I be the one taking pics?
Rustle rustle.
As I went to sling my crossbag back on, Ar crawled out from inside.
So that's where he'd been hiding after passing out from Kim Doa this morning.
"Has that monster finally left?"
"You mean Kim Doa?"
"Is that beast's name Kim Doa? The most violent and vicious human I've ever seen."
Kim Doa was like that.
Doesn't like something? Punch first, ask later.
How was that even a magical girl? More like a magic thug.
"What'd she do to knock you out?"
Ar flinched, like a memory hit him.
"You opened the door for her, and she just punched me. Next thing I knew, I woke up in this bag."
Oh… ouch.
Maybe dress him in a maid outfit next time.
Kim Doa probably saw a weird flying witch doll and swung on instinct. Kinda get it.
"She's been smashing dolls nonstop lately, so she's on edge. Couldn't be helped."
Even if dolls pissed her off on sight.
Punching first was a bit much. How violent could one person be?
Anyway, Ar'd probably faint again if he ran into Kim Doa, so to calm him down, I figured we'd sit somewhere nice and watch the night view.
I set Ar on my shoulder.
Been a while since I carried a mascot like this.
Remember doing it often back when Keter was a bear doll.
"It's been ages since I saw a city nightscape!"
Ar bounced excitedly on my shoulder.
"I want to show this to Mira too!"
"Mira?"
"Ah… the magical girl I contracted with long ago."
Figured as much.
A real mascot-era contractor.
"She wore a pink dress when transforming and shot magical beams—a cute kid."
Classic.
A rare orthodox magical girl.
"…She's alive, right?"
"Thankfully, we safely terminated the contract before she returned to her world."
"Good."
Regular magical girls got wrecked by dolls all the time.
Not tough like us—they fought on willpower alone.
Made me admire them, in a way.
"Actually…"
Ar hesitated, then spoke softly.
"Truth is, I stopped her from fighting."
"Huh?"
"I'm a low-rank mascot. Ones like me inevitably contract with weak magical girls."
"I see."
Come to think of it, Keter chose me for my high compatibility.
"That's why Mira was weak. She could rescue civilians fine, but dolls were beyond her."
"Yeah. Dolls were dangerous back then."
I nodded.
Now we had strategies, but before? Most just charged in blind.
Saw plenty turn to shadows that way.
"I couldn't send Mira into that hell. Sorry. You fought on the front lines with Keter-sama."
"No need to apologize. She's alive—that's what matters."
Deep down, I'd hoped no one else crossed into erosion zones.
Unlike me, an adult in a kid's body, they were just normal girls who'd gained power.
Too young for that hell.
Seeing it was burden enough for me.
"…Thank you. Without you, Mira might've jumped into that hell too."
I smiled faintly. Being useful to someone felt good—like my past wasn't denied.
"Someday, I want to see Mira again."
"Yeah. Hope you do."
My life was full of regrets.
But succeeding in the Great Subjugation? That much was a relief.