Dreams and Hopes Might Be Something Like This (1)
The evil organization Mekrak.
About ten years ago, an unwelcome visitor arrived from another planet called Mekrak.
Led by the Mekrak King, they invade everywhere, destroy everything, turn men into monsters to use as minions, and freely extract the energy they need—magic power—from women. Trash, the lot of them.
Cruel, vicious, and cunning villains.
Honestly, what are they even doing coming all the way to someone else’s planet? The nuisance is unreal.
Even when the country tried to counterattack with cutting-edge weapons, we couldn’t win against their unknown technology that far surpassed our so-called “state of the art.”
If only they’d put that unknown tech to some useful purpose.
“But don’t worry nyang. Our fairies from the Magic Kingdom couldn’t just stand by and watch those cruel bastards, so we’ve appeared on Earth nyang! We’re giving power to you weak, foolish Earth humans nyang! Be grateful nyang! So accept it nyang!”
“What the hell, why me, you crazy bastard!”
I shouted. Not that it would do any good.
This fluffy doll-like creature had grabbed me on my way back from the convenience store and arbitrarily chosen me to become some kind of magical girl.
I’d been selected.
This was insane.
“I’ll explain first nyang. Earth women possess something called magic power nyang. The evil organization Mekrak is after that power nyang.”
“I’m a guy. A man. Not a girl or anything!”
“That’s exactly why I’m here nyang. As the holy fairy from the Magic Kingdom, this Cookie-sama will turn you into a woman nyang. Of course, I’ll also grant you the power to use that magic nyang. You’ll become a perfect magical warrior nyang. Mekrak is our enemy too! Let’s defeat them together nyang!”
“I said no, you lunatic!”
“You can’t refuse nyang. It’s my decision nyang.”
“Damn it!”
This was tyranny! I was going to sue! I’d definitely sue!
When the fluffy fairy named Cookie waved its tiny hand, light suddenly began to emanate from my body. This… this couldn’t be…!
“Now, transform nyang!”
“Nooooooo~~~~~!”
And so.
Today, I became a magical girl.
* * *
For now, let me explain my current situation.
In the early dawn before even the birds had started chirping, inside a tiny one-room apartment, I examined my transformed appearance as a “magical girl.”
I had become a perfect woman. My height was noticeably shorter than when I was male.
Feeling discomfort in my throat, I tried speaking. “Ah, ah.” My voice was clearly higher and thinner than usual.
Slender shoulders, a narrow waistline, wider hips—definitely a female physique.
My face could rival any celebrity’s. Delicate, flawless features formed a lovely and beautiful countenance.
“You’ve transformed into the ideal female image within you nyang.”
“……Yeah, that seems about right.”
Even though it was just a vague image of my ideal type, looking at it now, there was nothing more I could ask for in terms of body, face, height, or figure.
However, calling this a “girl” felt off. With breasts like ripe fruit and long, shapely legs, it was the form of an adult woman rather than a girl. The same age as my original self—an adult woman. What the hell.
Well, if I’d transformed into a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old—or younger—it would’ve been just as problematic.
No matter how you looked at it, this wasn’t a magical girl.
“Originally, transforming you into a ‘magical girl’ would be ideal nyang. It’s not impossible nyang. To be honest, I’d rather turn you into a fresh young girl than this nyang.”
“Then why this form?”
“The monsters from Mekrak subject women to all sorts of humiliations in order to drain their magic power nyang.”
That’s right. Men become monsters, while women are humiliated as their magic power is extracted.
Uh, so if Mekrak attacks me in my current female body…
Just imagining it made my face go pale. A guy with no experience as a woman, getting humiliated as one…?
Goosebumps rose all over my body!
“B-but what does that have to do with this appearance?”
“It seems the ‘Child Pornography Act’ applies to the appearance of a girl nyang. Those picky Earthlings.”
Truly no dreams or hope left. And what kind of fairy talks like that?
This guy’s tone is cute, but his insides are clearly filled with pitch-black ink. An octopus of a creature.
Anyway, I’d been flustered by the “magical girl” label, but this form was closer to a magical warrior or a witch. I felt a bit relieved. Though becoming female was the same either way. Thinking about it again just made me depressed.
I looked at my reflection in the mirror once more. This time, the outfit.
But the outfit… what the hell was this?
Completely naked except for pitch-black underwear, complete with garter belt and stockings—a seductive appearance. To put it bluntly, it was lewd.
Of course, in games and such, a female character’s strength sometimes scales with how much skin they show (like how the strongest equipment is bikini armor), but I had doubts whether that rule applied here too.
“Transformation costumes are random nyang. This is the default state since it’s your first transformation nyang. From the next transformation onward, a proper costume and weapon will appear nyang. And try shouting ‘Status Window’ nyang.”
“…? Status Window.”
As I muttered it, a translucent holographic screen appeared before my eyes.
Name: —
Costume: <Default>
Magic: —
Traits: —
Status: —
It was just like a game screen. Amazing.
“I made it easy to read for you dumb Earth humans nyang. Depending on the situation, voice guidance will also play, so it should help nyang.”
“You know your true nature is slipping out little by little, right?”
“What’s wrong with my cute and lovely true nature nyang? More importantly, decide on a name nyang. You’re not planning to use your real name in that state, are you nyang? That would be terrible nyang.”
“I’m not deciding. I’m not doing this anyway.”
“Nyang?”
I glared sharply at Cookie.
I had no intention of playing along with this forced sale from the start.
“Why me? Go ask a real woman. Actually, would anyone even agree to this request in the first place?”
“Are you out of your mind nyang? What do you think will happen if a magical girl loses to a monster nyang?”
Well… just like the promised development, she’d get humiliated.
“When I tried asking women, they all refused with curses and insults nyang. Thinking about it, it’s ethically questionable too nyang. Even the Mekrak guys say they feel uncomfortable the whole time they’re humiliating someone nyang. They say they can’t even attempt hard play nyang. Since their words make some sense, I started to worry nyang.”
I didn’t even know where to begin tackling that.
But weren’t they supposed to be enemies…? Why were they sharing concerns with each other…?
“Then I suddenly thought nyang. ‘Wouldn’t it be fine if a man became a woman and got humiliated…?’ nyang. Am I a genius nyang?”
“Keep those insane thoughts to yourself, you crazy bastard!”
“While I was thinking that, the guy who appeared before me somehow seemed like a pushover who’d go along with it nyang.”
“Who?”
“You nyang.”
“Who the hell would go along after hearing that?!”
“You don’t like it nyang?”
“No.”
“Doesn’t matter nyang. If I call you, you’ll transform into that form three minutes later nyang. You won’t be able to undo the transformation until you defeat a monster nyang.”
“Aaaaaah! You son of a bitch!”
“I’m a cat nyang. Not a dog nyang. And in that state, your magic power will be amplified nyang. You’ll become the monsters’ number one target nyang.”
This was a nightmare. A nightmare!
No, I don’t want this! I don’t want to become this form, I don’t want to be targeted by monsters, and the thought of a guy getting humiliated makes my blood boil!
Feeling like I wanted to cry, I sank to the floor. Somehow even the way I sat felt—
“And it’s not free nyang. You’re a job seeker, aren’t you nyang?”
“……Yeah.”
When Cookie waved its hand in the air, a calculator popped out of empty space.
“If you work as a magical girl, you’ll get paid nyang. In this day and age, we don’t ask people to do this without compensation nyang.”
Wait, isn’t the standard supposed to be something like “granting wishes”…? Why has the magical girl business become so materialistic?
I had my doubts, but when I saw the screen on the calculator Cookie held out, all my thoughts flew away.
“The base pay is this much nyang.”
“Uh…… wait, is that annual salary?”
“Monthly salary nyang. Paid every month.”
My mind went completely blank. My pupils were probably experiencing a magnitude 9.0 earthquake right about now.
Cookie tapped the calculator a few more times and showed it again.
“If you add hazard pay, performance bonuses, and other things like that… I expect you’ll get roughly this much per month nyang.”
Gulp. I swallowed.
Just by transforming into a woman… if I could endure that, this much money…?
Besides, even if I suffered humiliation, it wouldn’t be happening to my real body. My original body would stay the same. Since it said I could “return,” that had to be true.
In that case, couldn’t I just think of it as some kind of VR experience…? If I just closed my eyes, this huge amount of money would steadily come into my hands…?
Ah, no! I was getting tempted!
“N-no! I still don’t want to!”
“You don’t have the right to refuse anyway nyang. But it’ll be troublesome if you don’t fight properly nyang… Fine nyang, let’s do this nyang. I’ll turn you back into a man first nyang.”
Cookie suggested this as if it had no choice. It was agreeing more readily than I expected…? The atmosphere had felt like it would push harder.
“I’ll drop the male you among the perverted monsters who prefer that nyang. The burly macho monsters will violate the male you, and in the end, they’ll turn you into a monster nyang. If that’s fine with you, then it doesn’t matter nyang.”
“I’ll do it! I’ll be a magical girl! I’ll do it, you damn bastard!”
“Good job nyang. You were the pushover I expected nyang. And I’m a cat nyang.”
Swallowing my tears, I had no choice but to take Cookie’s outstretched hand.
What kind of magical girl was this? There really were no dreams, no hope, nothing at all.