Chapter 28

The aftermath of the battle left everything in ruins, turning the area into a desolate wasteland.

In the midst of it all, I stood staring at the barely remaining corpse of a Grand Duke-Class monster.

“……”

“Rampage-san~!”

Realizing the battle was over, the chubby mascot came fluttering towards me, overjoyed and clinging to me. I wondered if it was really something to be that happy about.

…Still, I did feel good knowing I could take down a Grand Duke-Class monster using just my First Ability.

“…Oh, right. Chubby.”

“Yes?”

“I was so focused on the fight, I didn’t notice. What about the casualties?”

“There were no casualties!”

“Really? Looks like the evacuation went well. That’s a miracle.”

Hmm… I don’t have any personal grudge against China, but the damage got out of hand while I was just trying to gather some data.

With this much destruction, it’ll take the mascots a while to restore everything.

Though, it’ll probably be fixed in about a day.

The mascots’ restoration abilities are seriously broken.

I heard they can restore everything to its original state by reconstructing every bit of data…

That’s why even devices like computers are no problem.

To think such spacetime magic is possible… impressive.

“Ah, I can’t be bothered to walk back. Open a [Gate].”

“Roger!”

Too lazy to walk, I just took a [Gate] straight to the Fairy Realm.

While I was there, I stopped by the Magical Girl Store to stock up on some tasty snacks and ice cream.

Then, I opened another [Gate] and headed straight back home.

“……”

“Rampage-san?”

“I’m feeling a bit sleepy today. I thought I’d get some action after a long time, but it ended up being so anticlimactic that I’m drained.”

“Huh? Anticlimactic?”

“That guy just crumbled after one [Chaotic Frenzy]. I thought there’d be more to it.”

Honestly, even though I got my revenge, it doesn’t feel satisfying.

…Maybe I should visit my senior.

I did kill the main body and got my revenge, so I have a good enough reason to go.

“…Alright.”

“Where are you going?”

“To see my senior.”

I should probably wear a suit for this.

Where did I put it… Oh, here it is.

“Hmm, does it look okay?”

“Yes! You look totally cool!”

It feels less awkward the second time I wear it.

Alright, then… Since my senior is over there… I’ll just take a [Gate].

It’d take an hour by train, and I can’t be bothered.

“Before that, let’s grab some donuts.”

“Donuts?”

“Chocolate-coated donuts. The ones my senior always carries around.”

“Ah! Now that you mention it, she always had those!”

So, I stopped by a donut shop, bought three chocolate donuts, and headed to where my senior was.

I planned to just leave the donuts there, say a few words to myself, and leave.

…But there was already a visitor there.

“I knew you’d come.”

“What? Why are you here, senior?”

“I figured you’d finish up around this time and come here~.”

“You’re really something.”

Did she leave the kids with her husband and come here again…

Well, whatever.

It’s none of my business what she does.

“…You brought chocolate donuts too?”

“You brought some too.”

“Of course~. It’s her favorite food.”

Well, I guess we think alike when it comes to our senior.

Then… I stood in front for a moment…

“……”

“…By the way, that suit looks good on you.”

“That’s not a compliment, is it?”

“Who knows~?”

Stop joking around here.

Sigh, well… I’ll wrap this up and look at some more photos.

“She’d be so happy to see you now… She loved you the most, after all~.”

“Even though she put me through a lot of horrible things.”

“Ah, haha… Training was a bit harsh, wasn’t it~? Even for training, directly injecting that was too much.”

“But thanks to that, I don’t really feel pain anymore. I can calmly analyze the intensity, which is convenient.”

“……I really hope you’ll consider some counseling next time~.”

Not that counseling talk again… Can’t you just drop it?

I’m so sick of it.

“Well, then… I’ll go first, sis~.”

Did my senior leave already…

Come to think of it, why does she always call herself “sis”?

Is she doing it on purpose?

“……”

…I guess I’ll head back too.

There are plenty of chocolate donuts, so my senior will be happy.

I’ll go home and rest.

“Chubby. Let’s go.”

“Roger!”

I’ll grab some donuts on the way back. It’s been a while.

Ah, I should’ve bought more.

“…Tasty.”

So, I ended up going back to the donut shop and bought a few more.

I don’t know what they tasted like in the past, but donuts these days are really good.

I think I understand why my senior always had one in her mouth.

“……Oh, right.”

“What is it?”

“That guy… he was a Grand Duke-Class, right?”

“Yes?”

“…500 billion.”

“Huh?”

“500 billion won.”

“…Ah!”

Since I took down a Grand Duke-Class, whether it was the main body or a clone… 500 billion is going straight into my account, right?

Now I can really just hand everything over to the kids once they grow up and be done with it.

Though I still have a lot to do, having less on my plate is always welcome.

It means things can run smoothly without me having to intervene.

“Ah, and start removing Earl-Class monsters from the signal. We’ll hand those over to Pretty Heart now.”

“Understood!”

After instructing Chubby to adjust the signals, I got home, immediately threw off my suit, and dove onto the couch.

Then, I grabbed the remote and set the AC to 21 degrees, fan speed 3.

I turn it off when I leave, but I think I’ll keep it on until summer is completely over.

I can handle heat up to a few thousand degrees, but I still hate being hot.

…Considering how much the other seniors put me through, I can handle this much.

“Ugh…”

“Want some beer?”

“Sure.”

…Hmm, the usual beer doesn’t taste right today.

Is it because I’m in a bad mood?

……No, it’s just a different beer.

“Hey, Chubby. Who brought this piss-tasting trash beer? And why do we even have this?”

“Ah, wah?! Well, Paladin left it here, so I thought it was good…”

“…What?”

Sigh… She’s pulling pranks again…

“Throw it out and bring something else.”

“Roger!”

This senior has always been a prankster since way back…

Even if I try to get back at her with pranks, she just eats them all up, so it’s pointless.

We’re really the worst match…

“…By the way, everyone’s texting like crazy.”

“Who?”

“Pretty Heart and my friends. Well, aside from family, they’re the only ones with my number.”

I should reply.

Especially to brag about the 500 billion to my friends.

They’ll be super jealous.

Unlike me, who can live as a total bum for life, they have to work and learn something because of their family’s principles.

Well, it’s not like I’ll just laze around forever either.

But it’s still better than juggling being a Magical Girl and a regular job.

…Speaking of which, what was the purpose of those medals?

It’s been radio silence since then.

I hope they figure it out soon.

“Chubby. How’s the medal analysis going?”

“Still in progress! But they said it’ll be done soon!”

“Really? That’s a relief.”

It’s slower than I thought, but at least it’s progressing.

I’ll just ignore the medals for now.

What I need to focus on now is… this, right?

Coordinating schedules with Pretty Heart and my friends…

“These guys… They’re gonna use up all their vacation days this time…”

“Your friends?”

“Yeah. They said they’re taking time off right after the Grand Duke-Class hunt. Pretty Heart’s coming too, so it’s a bit awkward.”

“Why? Isn’t that a good thing?”

“No, think about it. They’re gonna have a drinking party, and we can’t do that in front of a middle school girl.”

“Ah! You’re right!”

How should I handle this…

Pretty Heart said she’s coming tomorrow, and my friends are coming tomorrow too… I can’t ignore their vacation days.

But at least tomorrow’s Friday.

I’ll just tell Pretty Heart to come on the weekend.

And since they won’t come early in the morning, we’ll have the drinking party tomorrow and kick them out by midday Saturday.

…Just in case, I’ll tell Pretty Heart to come on Sunday.

I have a feeling they’ll stick around until Saturday…

“Sorry, Pretty Heart.”

“She’ll understand!”

By the way, is there any alcohol left…

Oh, there’s quite a bit left.

This should be enough for the drinking party.

“Ah! I just got a message from the Fairy Queen!”

“Really? What’s it about?”

“She’s highly praising your achievement of taking down the Grand Duke-Class monster and says she’ll reward you!”

“…What’s the reward?”

“That’s a secret!”

“Why’s it a secret this time…”

She doesn’t usually do this, but suddenly she’s talking about achievements and rewards?

Is she just using this as an excuse to do something to me?

Honestly, I have no idea…

“Let’s go right now!”

“Alright, stop pulling. And open a [Gate] or something.”

“It’s open!”

Since the Fairy Queen said she’d reward me, I took a [Gate] to the Fairy Realm.

Following Chubby’s guidance, I headed to the Fairy Queen’s… or rather, a slightly different place.

A heavily secured room with strict access controls, always tightly shut.

When I arrived, the security system recognized me and automatically unlocked, opening the door.

“This is… state-of-the-art.”

“It’s been a long time since this place opened!!”

“Really?”

Wow… Inside is filled with all sorts of fantastical devices.

Magical Girls are already fantasy, but seeing this makes it feel even more surreal…

…So, why did she bring me here?

“Welcome, Magical Rampage.”

“…Fancy.”

“…Yeah.”

“……I can hear you.”

“Ah, sorry.”

“My apologies!!”

Well, I’m used to seeing the lazy queen, so this feels a bit off.

But… she looks pretty good when she’s all formal like this.

“…Magical Rampage. In recognition of your achievement in defeating the Grand Duke-Class monster that invaded the human realm from the demon realm, I shall grant you a great reward.”

“A great… reward? More like, you were planning to do this anyway, right? This is just an excuse.”

“Fufu… Well, yes. But while you’ve already received material rewards in the human realm, I, the Fairy Queen, have decided to strengthen the power of hope within you.”

With that cringy line about the power of hope, the Fairy Queen stepped aside to reveal something behind her.

It was a device that clearly looked like it was meant to process and enhance something.

“This is a device that enhances the Soul Weapon, the magic wand that every Magical Girl possesses.”

“…Wait, you can enhance the wand?”

“Structurally, it can only be done once, but for you… given your combat style, it will be a tremendous benefit.”

“You mean… you can increase the wand’s energy output?!”

“Correct. What was once just a supplementary function can now become your main source of power… increasing it several times over. However, the overall enhancement rate of your magic power will decrease slightly.”

Wait a minute… So, this is assuming I’ll be infiltrating the demon realm and waging war against monsters?

No, considering what she’s said so far, she probably planned this from the start.

“You are a natural talent, the culmination of effort… a genius among Magical Girls. It may not be now, but someday… when the time comes to connect with the demon realm, I hope you will become a hero.”

“…A hero? Don’t talk nonsense. I’m just a selfish brat who kills anyone who’s an enemy. The title of hero is too much.”

“My, aren’t heroes essentially just selfish slaughterers? It’s just a matter of whether they have justice for the collective or not. In that sense… Rampage-san, you are a fitting candidate for a hero.”

“……”

“So, hand over your magic wand. I will customize it to suit your talents.”

…The title of hero doesn’t suit me.

I’m just a twisted lunatic because of one past incident.

But… if she believes in me, I’ll live up to that expectation.

Protecting the human realm as a Magical Girl, protecting humanity as a hero… I haven’t abandoned that resolve from long ago.

So, I have no reason to refuse the Fairy Queen’s offer to enhance my wand.

Without hesitation, I walked over to the Fairy Queen and handed her my magic wand.

“…From now on, I will customize and enhance this magic wand to suit you.”

And so, with the enhancement of my wand… I took another step further, becoming even more distant from others.