27. TS. Serena Nightbloom
Serena Nightbloom, chief of the Heretic Inquisition, had been pondering for a long time.
How could she corrupt magical girls more easily? After much deliberation, she found the most fitting method: turn them into eggs.
A magical girl whose mind shatters and begins to despair becomes immobile. So it was fine to call them eggs.
In that state, the magical girl is defenseless against external attacks. The moment her mind crumbles is the optimal instant for corruption.
She had visited the hospital.
"Han Siwoo survived?"
Huh... He was definitely supposed to be dead. Even a miracle wouldn't make survival possible.
"What the hell...?"
If Han Siwoo had died, she would have obtained Lumia Star as a broken egg.
Lumia would have hatched from the egg to become an even more beautiful and radiant Fallen One.
But.
All those plans had been ruined. Because of that man named Han Siwoo.
Tsk.
Still, it wasn't without gains.
Luna Pixie Yuna.
She was broken.
Not much to look at. So stupid and dull. Chasing the empty facade of justice only to end up shattered like this.
At some point, magical girls stopped pursuing true justice. External reputation. Fan popularity.
And the hollow mask called justice. Things like that.
A senior had to teach her foolish junior the truth about the world.
She retrieved Yuna, huddled trembling in the corner.
She would corrupt her slowly and meticulously.
Not as talented as Lumia Star, but still a 1st Rank magical girl.
Not a bad harvest.
A pure white ceiling. A familiar voice echoing in his ears.
"Siwoo!"
He opened his eyes to see Lumia Star rushing toward him from afar.
She sprinted from the corridor to the patient room and crashed into him. No, she hugged him like she was tackling him.
"You're alive, you're alive, sob sob, waaah!" "Guh, this patient's a patient, y'know."
It felt like getting hit by a compact car.
"I was so worried! I really thought you were dead! For real! For real!!" "Well, I'm alive now anyway. Must be thanks to you, Lumia."
"That's not it! You idiot! Moron!"
Smack. Stars seemed to burst in his vision.
"Start explaining yourself right now! Why were you fighting that dimensional monster alone?!"
Lumia was starting to feel downright scary for some reason.
"Well... A dimensional monster suddenly appeared from behind... I thought if the command center fell, the defense line would be affected too..."
Lumia's expression grew more terrifying by the second. His voice shrank like a scolded child's.
"That's what the security team's for!" "But how could I ask them to die in my place?"
"And you know that, yet you charged out alone and came back half-dead?" "Sorry..."
Why the hell was his body perfectly fine? His gut had been pierced. The blood he'd lost was way beyond what any human could survive.
"How the heck did I even survive?" "Even the doctors don't know—how should I?!"
Her puffed-up cheeks and furious pout were almost cute. Still, he had to soothe her; she'd gotten mad because of him.
"Lumia, calm down. My bad." "I'm not mad at you, Siwoo. I just hate myself for not protecting you."
"What're you talking about? I saw that awesome attack you launched to save me." "Siwoo, that wasn't a joke—you were really about to die, you know that, right?"
She asked with a serious look, making him realize just how stupid he'd been.
"Honestly, I was scared. Wanted to run. But then I thought..." "What? Say something dumb and I'll get mad."
"That you go through fights like this every day. So I couldn't run away..." "Haha, so you're debuting as a magical girl now?"
She glared at him.
But that glare held no hatred. It only made her cuter.
"No way. The Busan disaster wrapped up okay, right?" "Yeah, yeah, you became the total hero. Gonna be more popular than me now? Hmph!"
Lumia reached for the remote with one hand. The TV flicked on, broadcasting live footage of him running.
His face was all over the news.
"Look at you, turning into the nation's hero." "Haha, all thanks to you, Lumia."
"Do that again and I'll really, really get mad." "Got it."
As he listened to Lumia's grumbling for a while, footsteps echoed from the corridor.
And in walked another magical girl. A black-haired one.
Dad?
"Didn't I tell ya not to get chummy with magical girls? Now you've gone and made one your girlfriend. Sigh, tsk tsk."
Old-man grumbling speech. A magical girl puffing on a cigarette dangling from her lips in the hospital.
"I don't know who you are, but this is a hospital. And she's not my girlfriend..." "Sigh, that's why you young'uns are such a pain, tsk tsk tsk."
He was speechless at the sight. He knew exactly who this magical girl was.
He whispered to Lumia.
"Lumia, that old guy's my dad..."
Then, casually as if it were nothing, he addressed his dad.
"What brings you here?" "Told ya not to hang with magical girls, and look—ya nearly got yourself killed. Came to see if ya survived."
This black-haired magical girl was his father. A magical girl. Haha...
Lumia froze for a long moment before snapping back and bombarding him with questions.
"Huh? Dad? Father? Ah? Yes? Wha—? What?!"
Her expression control was failing hard. Dad chopped the top of Lumia's head with his hand.
"Sigh, what're ya tryin' to do, seducin' a guy fresh off death's door? Siiiigh..." "Th-that... S-s-s-s-sorry, just now, s-s-sorry!"
Lumia had completely short-circuited.
"Dad, what're you doing to my first girlfriend?" Lumia's face turned beet red, like it might explode. "G-g-g-girlfriend...?!"
Dad clutched the back of his neck and collapsed dramatically.
"This punk—I told ya to stay away from magical girls!" "It's fine. Lumia's so strong and reliable."
Lumia's face was beyond red, on the verge of bursting; she fidgeted uncontrollably, unable to keep her hands and feet still.
"Ugh, you're totally smitten. Head over heels."
"Dad! Quit with that prophecy crap and your superstitions already."
Suuuuck... Puff. He took a deep drag on his cigarette and exhaled heavily.
"Ain't superstition—it's fortune-tellin'! How many times I gotta say it? Get close to magical girls and yer doomed to die early!"
"Agh, seriously—I'm not dead, am I? So that fortune was bunk. Put out the damn cigarette."
Smoking in a hospital?
"With my boy rottin' my guts like this, how could I not smoke?" "Still, I'm fine, right?"
"Yeah, look at ya, all fine. I'll tell yer mom that. She saw ya on TV and passed out—ya know that?" "Sorry..."
Mom fainted? Come to think of it, the TV showed his entire fight. Did they air the part where his gut got pierced too?
Haha... He was in deep shit.
"Mom's okay?" "Yeah. So take it easy from now on. Don't worry us."
"Got it, I'll be careful." "And you—Lumia, was it?"
"Y-yes!" "If so much as a scratch shows up on my boy's body, no wedding for you two."
"M-m-m-marriaaaage?!?!"
Lumia was melting on the spot.
"Dad, what the hell!" "Yeah yeah, just kiddin'. Anyway, Dad's headin' out. Oh, and Lumia—c'mere a sec."
"Y-yes!" Seeing Lumia tense up and follow him out, Siwoo grew worried. What nonsense was he about to spout now?
"Don't say anything weird." "Won't say nothin' weird, don't worry."
"Be right back."
Lumia quietly followed her boyfriend's father out.
Phew.
"Girl, ya like my boy that much?" "Yes, I do."
No intention of hiding it. She liked him. Wanted to marry him. Make him happy. Be happy together. She dreamed of that.
"Ya know the prophet Cassandra?" "Yes, I do."
The greatest prophet, never wrong once. Said to live in the International Association HQ's safest spot.
"Yeah, she prophesied it. My boy gets tangled with a magical girl, he won't live long."
"Pardon...?"
Tangled with a magical girl and won't live long? Memories flashed through her mind. Siwoo had never had peace since getting involved with her. Not even a month in, and he'd nearly died three times—three whole times.
"He's the most precious thing to me. Couldn't even see him whenever I wanted because of that damn prophecy."
"Ah..."
Grind. The sound of grinding teeth reached her ears. She felt the rage he'd bottled up for years.
"Then suddenly some girl plants herself by his side. How d'ya think that makes me feel?" "I'd feel conflicted."
"Right. If ya truly care for my boy, I trust you'll act accordingly."
"Yes..." Watching the father leave, she thought. She loved Siwoo. But she didn't want to lose him more than that. When he'd come back to life, she'd sworn it. She'd do anything. Just let Siwoo live, please. That's what she'd begged. If it was because of her... Tears threatened to fall. Why couldn't the world ever go her way?
Lumia returned from talking with his father, utterly dejected. Like she'd been hit with a barrage of harsh words.
"Uh... Lumia, that was..." "Th-that man just now... your dad, right?"
"Yeah, a 1st gen magical girl—and my father." "H-how...?"
"Rare case. A successful implant into a male."
"I-I see. So he's a senior."
The mood turned awkward again.
"Siwoo, you know about the prophecy?" "Yeah, a prophet read my fortune when I was a kid. Said I'd die if I got involved with magical girls."
"Haha, I see..." "C'mon, it's superstition. Don't buy into it."
He could guess what Dad had said. Trying to pry Lumia away with that nonsense again? No way. Even if he died, no.
"But that prophet's Cassandra..." "I'm happier than ever with you, Lumia. Unless... you hate me now or something?"
"I love you, Siwoo—so much I'm going crazy..." "Then why..."
Lumia's expression darkened. She clearly didn't want to leave. But resolve flickered in her eyes.
"You'll die because of me."
"Forgot our vow? We promised to protect each other forever."
"Yeah..." "Changed your mind?"
"No, it's not that!" "It's okay. I trust you. You rushed in and saved me again when I was in danger."
Too close and my life’s at risk, blah blah. Sick of that crap.
"But... I keep hurting you, making you suffer..." "Don't trust yourself? Gonna abandon me?"
Lumia seemed deep in a mental breakdown. Dad's words had hit her hard.
"No, it's... I can't stand seeing you hurt or in danger..."
He didn't believe in that prophecy crap. Nor would he live by it.
He'd met the woman who could make him happy for life.
Dad wouldn't cheer him on—instead trying to tear them apart. Persuading Lumia nicely was pointless. He glared at her. Like he’d devour her.
"Lumia."
"Eek! Y-yes!"
"You're mine, aren't you? Why're you suddenly talking about leaving?" "But if I'm around, you'll..."
He grabbed her wrist and threw her onto the bed. Lumia hit it without resistance.
Then, to ensure she couldn't escape anywhere, he mounted her.
Lumia couldn't even meet his eyes. "Sorry."
That one word of apology from her torment. He couldn't end it like this.
He had to drill it into her clearly. That she couldn't live without him.
So no stray thoughts could even enter her mind.