Chapter 27

I sent a text asking what that broadcast was about, and Eve came to see me at night.

When I asked her what made her so confident, Eve just stared at me blankly, as if wondering what the problem was.

Well, we had already agreed to attack at the end of October for Halloween.

If we’re going to do it, might as well make it flashy. I have no objections to that.

But the problem lies with the broadcast.

“You don’t have to worry about the broadcast. This hotel has a grand reception hall called Grand Bloom. We can rent it for a few hours. I’ll handle the expenses… I mean, the Association will cover it.”

“Eve, if the Magical Girl Association pays Mogmog for the rental fee, what kind of backlash are you expecting?”

“It won’t come to light. Our Association has a dedicated tax team. And even if they complain, what are they going to do about it?”

“Oh my… Fine, whatever.”

That girl’s not normal either.

“Anyway, I’m not really feeling the broadcast.”

“Is it because of that time you messed up your pronunciation?”

“That’s not— Ugh… Forget it. Let’s not talk about it.”

I acted annoyed with Eve as if there were other reasons, but honestly, that’s the main reason. Ever since I messed up my pronunciation during my first broadcast, I’ve been a bit hesitant about doing them.

“We’ll prepare the script for you, so don’t worry too much. We’ll handle the makeup too. Just think of it as coming out and reading the script with some emotion.”

“Alright, got it. Let’s do it. It’s no big deal.”

“What about Kabe?”

Kabe was carried by Dusik to her room.

She took the pajamas Eve bought and went to wash and put Kabe to sleep. She’s probably busy bathing and playing with Dusik and Keru by now. So tonight, it’s just me and Eve in this family room.

“You’re going to sleep alone in this big room?”

“Well, who else is there to sleep with? You can sleep here too.”

“Hmm.”

Eve crossed her arms and fidgeted with her crossed legs.

“Want some beer?”

“No, I don’t drink. You have it. I’ll have cola. I quit alcohol.”

“Alright.”

Eve took a can of beer and cola from the fridge and tossed the cola to me.

“It’s really refreshing.”

We clinked our cans and each took a sip. The cool, refreshing sensation felt good as it went down my throat.

“Actually, because you won, things have gotten a bit complicated now.”

Eve’s voice sounded heavy.

I picked up a piece of squid leg she had laid out as a snack and chewed on it.

“What do you mean?”

“Do you know how battles usually go?”

“No. Keru never told me about that. I was planning to ask today or tomorrow, but I kept forgetting.”

“I haven’t experienced the Mother-Body’s battles firsthand, but I’ve heard about them. The difference between Mogmog Group and us Magical Girls is…”

She went on with a lengthy explanation.

To summarize:

Magical Girls fight individually. They each fight on their own.

Mogmog Group, on the other hand, has minions with lower combat power compared to Magical Girls, so they rely on numbers. They form teams, and the team leader synchronizes with the Mother-Body to share real-time battle information and follow her commands.

In other words, the Mother-Body bears an enormous burden.

After hearing the explanation, I could only respond indifferently.

“Is that so?”

“Why are you reacting like that?”

“I haven’t experienced it, so what kind of reaction do you expect?”

You can’t understand just by hearing about it.

Experiencing it once is the best way to know.

“So, Eve.”

“Yeah. I’ll prepare a reception hall. How about the day after the broadcast?”

“I didn’t even bring it up yet?”

“You were going to ask if we could do a mock battle, right?”

Is she reading my mind or something?

“It’s not mind-reading.”

But it feels like it!

“It’s just the timing. You seem like the type who gets used to things faster by doing them once rather than hearing explanations a hundred times.”

“Spot on.”

“Heh.”

Eve finished her beer can.

“I had a friend like that back in the day.”

My hand, which was picking up a squid leg, stopped.

“She was just like you. She said she understood things better by doing them once rather than hearing explanations a hundred times. And she really did. I keep feeling bad because I disappeared without saying goodbye when I became a Magical Girl. I wonder how she’s doing now.”

Is that so?

So she’s been remembering, or rather, keeping those memories alive.

“Hey, Eve. Stop being so pitiful. Are you drunk?”

“Why are you picking a fight?”

“That friend would understand too. If the country told you to do it, what else could you do? Right?”

Eve chuckled at my words. She grabbed a new beer can, popped it open, and took a sip.

“Still, I feel sorry. We were really close. Even now…”

That’s enough. I’m satisfied knowing she hasn’t forgotten me and that I wasn’t the only one who thought we were close.

“Hey, hey, hey. Stop with the gloomy talk. Who doesn’t have friends? Anyway, let’s finish what we were talking about earlier. What did you mean by things getting complicated because I won?”

“Ah, that.”

Picking up a squid leg, Eve opened her mouth, looking annoyed just thinking about it.

“Prilly is making a fuss about leading the battle at the end of this month…”

“I thought it was individual combat? What’s this about a leader?”

“It’s not like she’s officially called a leader or anything. But originally, the Mother-Body would also go to battle. She’d command the battlefield, and since the minions see her as their mother, her presence would boost their combat power. So back then… I mean, when I first appeared and there were only a few Magical Girls, around that time—”

They had to retreat the Mother-Body as quickly as possible.

Or at least make sure she couldn’t command.

That way, it was easier to deal with the weakened minions.

To achieve that, the Magical Girls would break through the Mother-Body’s guard, and the stronger ones would rush in to attack her, keeping her busy so she couldn’t command the minions. Meanwhile, the other Magical Girls would clean up the minions and regroup to support.

And the Magical Girl who fought the Mother-Body one-on-one to buy time was informally called the leader, and that’s how it’s been ever since.

So, to summarize:

“Prilly wants a rematch with me, is that it?”

“That’s right.”

Still not satisfied, huh?

“Let her come. I don’t back down from fights.”

“Mother-Body, I know you’ve beaten both Priqu and Prilly, so you’re not weak, but…”

Eve was staring straight at me.

“Prilly isn’t that weak. I don’t know what happened, but you had resistance to her main magic, and she lost because she underestimated you.”

Hmm.

Thinking calmly, that’s probably true.

I emptied the last drop of cola into my mouth and thought for a moment.

The battlefield suddenly went dark. It was something called a Mind Field, right? It blinds enemies within range and forcibly lowers their morale. A kind of debuff.

And that beam she shot at me, or whatever it was, along with a few other spells she threw at me. None of them worked on me.

If Prilly hadn’t underestimated me at all, could I have won?

Probably not.

I’ll have to have a serious talk with Keru tomorrow.

“Eve, stop drinking.”

“It’s only my second can. I’m not drunk yet.”

“I’m starting to want to drink, so stop.”

“You’re unbelievable.”

I got up from my seat.

I slapped Eve’s back, who was looking at me incredulously, and said:

“Let’s go for a night walk.”

Getting some fresh air is the best way to clear your mind.

Worrying can come later. If you’re stuck in a room, hugging your knees and groaning, it’s better to just go out and get some air.

“Oh, that truck is still here.”

On the hill from Seolleung Station to Hanti Station.

From what I remember, there’s a tteokbokki truck halfway up that hill.

It’s insanely spicy, but also insanely delicious.

It was pretty late, and since it’s already October, the weather was a bit chilly. I thought they might have packed up early, but luckily, they were still there.

We pushed aside the plastic curtains around the truck and went inside.

“What’s with the tteokbokki?”

“I’m hungry. Boss, three servings of tteokbokki, please.”

“Mo… No, Yoon-Woo, I can’t eat that much.”

“I’ll eat a lot. By the way, you never told me your name?”

“Hyeran. Last name Seo, first name Hyeran. But I’ve hardly ever been called by my name.”

“I can imagine.”

That silver hair isn’t common. It’s not something you can get from dyeing, and bleaching would turn it white, not silver. Even if the color is similar, that shimmering silver doesn’t come out.

In other words, if someone has silver hair like that…

“Oh my, it’s the Association President.”

“Hello~”

Immediately, Eve smiled brightly and looked around, bowing her head in greeting.

“Aren’t you bothered by this?”

“Why would I be? People are greeting me kindly. I’m grateful, actually.”

“You’re just born to be a Magical Girl.”

“What nonsense are you spouting now?”

Tteokbokki doesn’t take long to prepare, so it came out quickly. The rice cakes were thick, the fish cakes were big, and the spicy sauce was absolutely fantastic—

“Ah, ah, ah, ah…”

Tears welled up.

My lips felt like they were tearing apart.

It felt like my mouth was on fire.

“Hey, hey. Yoon-Woo, drink some cool piss, drink it.”

A paper cup touched my lips as I gasped for air. Eve fed me a full cup of cool piss, and only after downing it all at once did the fire in my mouth subside.

“Ah, no, I used to handle spicy food really well…”

Even as I stuck out my tongue and fanned myself, my mouth still felt burning. This is weird. I wasn’t this bad with spicy food before.

I used to handle this level of spiciness just fine.

“Did my taste buds change because I became a girl… Ugh, I’m dying…”

“What did you say?”

At Eve’s sudden question, I looked at her, and she was staring at me with wide eyes.

“Because you became a girl…? What are you talking about?”

“Huh?”

Oh no, I messed up.