“The Disaster Dragon Maiden, Nikita Cynthia.”
Right now, she was in a state of utter bewilderment.
Before her stood a boy.
Hanon Irey.
He had even dressed up as Hania Repidia to appear before her.
Why on earth?
Nikita showed her puzzlement amidst her confusion.
Hanon was a good junior.
He always quietly helped her, who had been shouldering everything alone.
He was witty and it was a joy to converse with him.
Honestly, among those I’ve talked to recently, chatting with Hanon was the most enjoyable.
Conversations with Hanon felt comfortable, and sometimes unexpected comments would make her laugh.
Sometimes he could be a bit mischievous, but that also felt like his affection.
He often seemed to know Nikita disturbingly well.
Sometimes she wondered if he had really dressed up like someone he knew well.
It was a bit suspicious, but even considering that, she didn’t dislike him.
Nikita had low self-esteem.
Her life was always filled with negativity.
Her parents didn’t expect much from her either.
Yet, she persevered and climbed step by step.
Hanon recognized this and constantly praised her.
Thanks to that, her self-esteem had significantly risen recently.
She even occasionally thought to herself, ‘Maybe I’ve done okay.’
Because of that, she disliked the phrase that her looks were the only notable thing about her.
The instances of avoiding mirrors were decreasing bit by bit.
These days, she would sometimes smile at her reflection in the mirror.
Hanon was the one who raised Nikita’s self-esteem to that extent.
So, she especially didn’t want to show him this ugly side of herself.
A thirst for revenge consuming her, feeling like she was throwing away everything to kill someone.
If Hanon saw that, he would surely be disappointed.
She felt ashamed.
She wanted to hide somewhere right away.
She didn’t want him to see her like this.
So she told Hanon not to come deep into the Magung, but he stubbornly followed her and stood right there in front of her.
Kaang!
Hanon’s hand sliced towards Nikita.
What had she done?
Even Nikita, cloaked in the Ice Dragon’s magic, was surprised by the fierce heat emanating from Hanon.
The heat she felt from his hand was scalding.
And the look in Hanon’s eyes as he gazed at her was just as heated.
Nikita instinctively felt it.
Hanon was burning himself for her.
That couldn’t last long, though.
“Nikita-senpai.”
Hanon’s hands kept moving.
The motions that had seemed clumsy in the past were now exceptionally refined.
“Are you still not going to meet my gaze?”
Nikita flinched.
She couldn’t bring herself to look Hanon in the eye.
This had gone on for quite a while.
Ever since Nia Cynthia died, Nikita had avoided eye contact with anyone.
And after deciding on Nia’s revenge, her gaze had been solely focused on that.
Yet Hanon continually tried to meet her eyes.
When he faced her, he would smile, strike up conversations, and treat her kindly.
Nikita had turned a blind eye and shut her eyelids.
‘How selfish am I?’
Nikita felt a wave of self-contempt.
Ignoring someone’s genuine care for her, she had only focused on her own emotions.
And this remained true even now.
Her desire not to show this side of herself to Hanon clashed with the determination to face him.
However, deep down, she couldn’t extinguish the burning desire for revenge.
It felt like someone was whispering to her.
“Are you someone who can’t even take revenge?”
It kept whispering in her ear.
This was a curse.
Ever since she had touched the Ice Dragon’s magic, she couldn’t escape this curse.
The desire for revenge now surpassed the area she could control.
Nikita’s sword swung once more.
A storm of cold air erupted from the sword, sweeping through the surroundings.
Hanon charged at Nikita again, breaking through it all.
Blade and hand clashed.
In the midst of it, Hanon and Nikita’s gazes met once more.
His red eyes blazed fiercely, following the trail of flames.
Hanon was a boy who often acted unpredictably.
This situation, too, surely stemmed from him catching a hint of something.
That’s why she wanted to ask.
Kaang!
Nikita brushed Hanon’s hand aside and left footprints on the snow.
“…Are you a pawn of the 3rd Princess?”
Hanon was Iris’s cousin.
So she asked if he was doing this to protect her.
But Nikita knew this question wouldn’t help.
Hanon’s eyes weren’t on Iris.
“No.”
As expected, Hanon denied it.
That denial dug deep into Nikita’s heart.
“It’s because I want to stop Nikita-senpai.”
Nikita’s eyes trembled.
“Why on earth…?”
Hanon had set himself ablaze.
Nikita couldn’t comprehend why he would block her path to this extent.
There didn’t seem to be a reason for Hanon to step in here.
Then, Hanon exhaled, leading with his hand.
“Didn’t I tell you on the first day we met?”
The first day they met.
Nikita recalled the day they had met on the bridge connecting the Martial Arts department to the main building.
“I’ve admired Nikita Cynthia-senpai’s path even before enrolling.”
That statement about respecting her.
She didn’t take it completely to heart.
She remembered the earnest gaze of Hanon as he looked at her.
“Just because of that?”
For such a trivial reason, he went this far?
“To respect someone is a sufficient reason, isn’t it?”
The flames surrounding Hanon intensified.
“That’s enough reason for me.”
Hanon forced a smile, though it seemed burdensome due to the blazing heat.
“…I’m not someone worthy of respect.”
“I don’t think that.”
“I’m not the person you think I am.”
“That’s okay. I will see what you missed.”
“I…”
Nikita clenched her fists as if swallowing her anger.
“I…”i>
She couldn’t finish that line.
Teardrops fell, freezing into sparkling crystals once again due to the cold.
Scales began to sprout more prominently on her skin.
The Ice Dragon’s magic had penetrated deeply into her body, rendering it uncontrollable now.
The dragon opened its mouth.
To completely engulf Nikita, it froze her spirit.
Nikita felt her consciousness fading away.
Even as she tried to grasp the thread of her awareness, she lost her grip repeatedly.
No. This can’t be happening.
If it went on like this, Hanon would be in danger.
Nikita desperately clung to her consciousness, but it refused to stabilize.
Nikita bit down on her newly sprouted fangs until they cracked.
Her body trembled uncontrollably.
Yet, despite that, the storm of cold grew stronger.
“Senpai, run…”
Nikita wanted to tell Hanon to escape.
This was her sin.
There was no reason for him to be in danger.
But even her lips had slipped from her control now.
“Once this is over, I have something to tell you. And I owe you an apology.”
In the fading consciousness, Hanon smiled and said that.
“So just wait here.”
As she looked at that smile, Nikita suddenly thought of someone.
A man who had feelings for her.
She had faced dire consequences due to his poor judgment.
Yet, she remembered his smile dearly.
She thought that his smile resembled Hanon’s in some way.
And with that, Nikita was finally swallowed by the Ice Dragon’s magic.
* * *
Perhaps due to the heat of the flames, her breath quickened.
Yet, even more so, the cold seeping in was chilling.
Before my eyes.
Nikita had been completely consumed by the Ice Dragon’s magic and had transformed into a dragonkin.
The magic of the Ice Dragon had instinctively realized something.
That the heat I possessed could burn itself away.
As a result, the Ice Dragon’s magic had shifted to accelerate her transformation.
In a game, Nikita’s death would be inevitable, an unavoidable plot point.
No matter what Lucas did, there was no way for him to save her.
Yet now, this world was reality.
Lucas lacked the knowledge to stop the Ice Dragon’s magic.
I had that knowledge.
‘The day I save Nia has already been decided.’
It is I who will push the world towards the main story.
But no matter what I do, I can’t take the same steps as Lucas.
So let’s move towards the main story.
I will paint the ideal main story I desire.
‘I will save Nikita.’
With that resolve, I took a deep breath.
In the moment when Nikita completely transformed into a dragonkin.
The evil zone would surely reach out and try to seize her dragonkin body.
I could feel the Magung writhing even now.
It was proof that the evil zone coveted Nikita.
‘As if I’d let you.’
Don’t covet her.
There’s no chance I’d ever give her away.
Hooow!
In that instant, a chilling cold swept over me.
At the same time, Nikita’s eyes burst with light.
Here it comes.
As soon as I sensed it, Nikita’s form vanished.
My heated hand shot out as a blade extended toward her, and the blade’s ringing echoed.
Swoosh!
The air froze in the cold, creating frost.
Through the blade, I glimpsed Nikita’s form twisted with sinister energy.
Her reason had vanished.
Only the dragonkin for killing existed now.
In that moment, Nikita’s mouth opened wide.
Seeing this, I quickly jerked my head away.
Flash!
A flash of light swept before my eyes.
The icy beam temporarily froze some of my hair as it zipped past.
In that interval, Nikita’s right knee shot up toward my side.
I lowered my left elbow to block the knee while pulling back.
I clutched a handful of heat in my right hand.
Then, I immediately thrust my fist toward Nikita’s chest.
Thud!
Nikita’s sword blade intercepted my punch.
With a resounding impact, heat and cold collided and exploded.
The strong explosion echoed in my ears, leaving a ringing sound.
Yet even amid the explosion, Nikita’s sword continued to aim for me.
Nikita’s imbued swordsmanship burst forth instinctively.
Left diagonal, right overhead.
The sounds of blades clashing, combined with her gaze and footwork.
Every single aspect was scrutinized by my eyes as they fervently followed her.
My dynamic vision surged to its peak.
One slip and it would be fatal.
I knew that all too well, so I desperately clashed with her again.
And at some point,
Nikita’s movements while wielding her sword began to slow.
Conversely, I was also starting to feel sluggish as well.
My body was undoubtedly moving more slowly than before.
This wasn’t simply because our physical stamina was depleting.
‘Finally starting to show.’
Signs were beginning to manifest.
Nikita’s inherited Ice Dragon magic was showing signs of confusion.
‘No, wait.’
It wasn’t just the Ice Dragon magic.
Deep within Nikita.
Something that had been entwined much longer began to reveal its disarray.
It must have realized that it, too, was now in danger.
A weary smile crept onto my face.
Inside the Ice Dragon magic.
The Ice Dragon’s curse passed down through the Cynthia family for ages.
That was the reason why Nikita had to live a life devoid of talent.
Remnants of the Ice Dragon
The real reason Lucas couldn’t save Nikita.
And the true identity of the merciless curse that could only be removed by her touching the Ice Dragon’s magic.
This was the very fate entwined with Nikita.
Thus, I prepared the only countermeasure to break that fate.
“Looks like you’re finally a bit shaken up.”
I gasped heavily as I laughed bitterly.
Within the cold.
Finally, flames began to emerge, having stuck to the remnants of the Ice Dragon planted by the cold dragon.
![[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come](https://i3.wp.com/darkmtl.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/1737407792-8993-TS-The-end-of-magical-girls-has-come.png?resize=85,105 "[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come")
