What is a Magical Girl?
What is a magical girl? What is a magical girl?
Someone in the past used to call them that.
Combat weapons. Monsters that hunt monsters. Humanity's last hope. Poor girls forcibly conscripted.
Just hearing those titles made my skin crawl.
So what about now?
"Whoa…."
…Yeah. As you can see.
It was a far cry from the old days.
These days, some people called magical girls idols. Streamers or BJs living off their looks. Humanity's security grannies. The ultimate cushy job where life hands you everything on a platter. Chicken coop magical girls.
…That last one stings a bit.
I stared blankly at the computer, once again shocked by the internet's underbelly.
It had been a while since I'd looked up magical girls across various media.
As always. Just like every time.
Magical girls were a hot topic for the masses.
A simple search for "magical girl" brought up tons of articles on any site.
A magical girl hit with dating rumors with a male idol. A magical girl divorced from a hot actor. A magical girl caught cheating with a married man. A 40-year veteran single spinster magical girl.
…And so on.
Dating and marriage articles are always the top ones, huh.
I got it, sure. But just seeing all those similar headlines showed how much interest there was in magical girls.
Click click.
While browsing around, I watched a video about one particular magical girl.
"With a smile that always shines bright! Smile Berry has arrived!"
A massive monster appeared in the middle of the city.
People fleeing in panic.
Amid them was a child-like beacon of hope.
Wearing a frilly dress. Holding a magic wand adorned with ribbons. Even a strawberry-shaped mascot floating above her shoulder.
The picture of a girl. The epitome of a magical girl.
With her bright smile and hopeful voice, she saved people and defeated the monster. A magical girl through and through.
She was definitely a magical girl, but…
…I just can't watch this.
No matter how much it's just for show.
Isn't that a bit too much? What if I had to do that right now—
Imagining it made me mutter,
"Holy shit."
"…What's wrong, cheep?"
"Nothing."
"Cheep?"
A curse slipped out.
Over 100 years old and doing that crap?
Thank god I don't have a mascot…
If it was something cool like Iris's uniform-style transformation outfit, maybe.
But having to wear a drafty dress like that kid in the video? No way in hell.
Even if Isia begged me to cosplay, I'd refuse.
I probably wouldn't have transformed even with a mascot.
My past life memories, my personality, my age—none of it fit.
Still, watching kids like her isn't so bad…
They looked young, I guess. My own juniors went through that phase too.
After about 10 years of experience, it usually became a black history they kicked off their blankets over.
But most magical girls retired around then, so it often blew up after retirement.
Even in the truly dark early days, there were a few magical girls with that kind of brightness.
…Not me, though.
I was positive, sure, but never that bubbly.
I watched the video on repeat, zoning out.
…Come to think of it, this is from 15 years ago.
Recent updates… ah, she retired, huh.
She was getting hot attention in a recent video's update segment.
In it, Smile Berry—looking not a day older—was doing an interview with a flushed face.
That explained why the old video was blowing up now.
I clicked into that one too.
…How to put it.
The Smile Berry in the new video had a hint of maturity mixed in, her perkiness toned down a notch.
Even though her appearance hadn't changed at all.
Smile Berry answered awkwardly, face beet red.
The translation was simple.
She's hit with reality.
I'd be the same.
I deeply empathized with the kid and checked the comments.
Predictable reactions poured in.
Black history. Magic granny? (40). Chicken coop stink. Still cute.
Blatant as expected.
…So why did my chest hurt more?
With a sigh, I closed the video.
This Smile Berry clip was #2 in trending videos.
Naturally, I wondered what #1 was and scrolled up.
[The Truth Behind the First Great Rift Subjugation?]
My mouse froze at the title, about to click.
…Great Rift. Been a while since I heard that.
A Great Rift. Exactly what it sounded like—a filthy huge rift.
One opening could wipe out a whole country. A catastrophe.
The first one hit China.
Luckily, their land was vast, so it stopped at half-devoured.
If unsolved, all of Asia would've been at risk.
Korea's magical girls went to help, of course.
Click.
I played the video.
It starkly showed how dangerous the First Great Rift was.
12 1st Grade magical girls dead.
147 2nd Grade magical girls dead.
3rd Grade— …Couldn't even count below that.
So many magical girls died.
…And today marked 100 years since that Great Rift opened, the video noted.
Magical girls hadn't been around long back then.
Another video popped up in it—an old, grainy one.
Showing the biggest threat of the First Great Rift.
A massive dragon-shaped monster that could chomp high-rises like snacks rampaging.
The narrator explained gravely.
The narration sped up the video to near the end.
Bahamut was still dominating.
Then—
BAM—!
The dragon's head plummeted from the sky.
Like someone had flicked it from above.
The impact turned the surroundings to rubble.
…And the video cut there.
Probably camera wrecked by the fall.
…What the hell. That's me.
How'd they even film that?
I panicked for a second.
[The video ends here. But everyone back then thought that magical girl took down Bahamut.]
[Though neither the Association nor the government revealed who she was.]
At my request, naturally.
I'd threatened to kill anyone who spilled it.
I hated my face getting out back then.
[No one knows who that magical girl was.]
[But we don't need to.]
[The key is, thanks to her, we're alive today.]
[If that disaster wasn't stopped, how many more would've died?]
[So even now, I think this.]
[These days, the image of 'magical girl' has faded for the public.]
[But if someone asks me 'What is a magical girl?'…]
[I'd show them this video right away.]
[That's what a magical girl is.]
"…."
Damn, Narrator, you sure know how to praise.
My face heated up.
…What is a magical girl.
People still thought that way.
A warm feeling spread in my chest.
Let's see the comments…
Mostly guesses about the girl in the video. Or praise. Debates on who was stronger than which famous magical girl.
…Not very nutritious.
Time to head out.
Today, I officially become Jeong Hanbyeol's teacher.
I quickly got ready to leave.
.
.
.
…What is a magical girl?
At least, I might've wanted to teach everyone that.