Magical Girl Home Visit (Unlawful Entry)
I teleported to Honjo and headed for the address Arongante told me about.
Since standing out in real life as a magical girl isn’t ideal, I returned to my normal form.
Unfortunately, today I wasn’t wearing my usual tracksuit or hoodie but rather a thick dress.
This was what you’d call an “Akuma Choice” outfit.
While I don’t know its official name, it’s relatively tame compared to other Akuma Choices.
Additionally, since it’s colder than expected, I’m also wearing a cape.
Meeting people in my pre-transformation state is something Akuma dislikes, but this time I have proper permission.
How long has it been since I’ve walked like this?
When fighting monsters, I revert to this form, but usually, I stay transformed.
It’s been since I was at Thalagong’s place that I’ve relaxed like this, hasn’t it?
When I was Shiro, I used to drive around everywhere, but since becoming Haruna, I’ve been traveling all over the world…
If there were no monsters, I probably wouldn’t have become a magical girl, but then again, what would have happened…?
My sister might not have died, and maybe I wouldn’t be in this situation…
“Turn here, and you’ll see a signboard that says ‘Yamamoto,’ that’s Marin’s house.”
(Acknowledged.)
Meeting her as an individual rather than as a magical girl makes me strangely nervous…
Marin has black hair and eyes, embodying the classic image of a Japanese beauty, but I wonder how she looks when not transformed…
(Is her civilian name Yamabana Karin, right?)
“Yeah, that’s correct. And by the way, it seems only Karin’s presence is reacting.”
It’s roughly 3 PM, so if her parents are at work, they shouldn’t be home.
The doorbell rings with a calling sound.
However, there’s no response.
(Is she home…?)
“This must be what they call ‘playing hooky’!”
Whether she’s hiding or locked away, we have options if that’s the case.
(Can you teleport inside the entrance?)
“Of course. But isn’t this technically unlawful entry?”
While it’s generally wrong, this is a request from Arongante, who ranks ninth, and others are waiting for Marin’s return.
We can’t back down here.
Even though it’s unlawful entry, we’re not strangers, so it should be fine.
(Since it’s Arongante’s request, it should be alright. If only Marin is home, there’s no risk of anyone else seeing us.)
“Can’t help it—here goes nothing.”
After a brief sensation of floating, I move from outside the entrance into the house.
Well then, shall we disturb her?
(Where’s Marin?)
“She’s upstairs, to the right side.”
(Acknowledged.)
Though there’s no particular meaning, I climb the stairs quietly.
In the direction Akuma indicated, there’s a closed door, which is likely Marin’s room.
(Now then, will it be ghosts or snakes?)
I knock three times on the door.
I hear the faint rustling of fabric, so she’s not asleep.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me… do you recognize me?”
“—Inie?”
Ah, she understands.
As much as I want to open the door, entering a girl’s room without permission isn’t appropriate.
“May I come in?”
“…Yes, you may.”
Turning the knob produces a clicking sound, and pushing it opens the door.
Her room is neat and clean.
Marin… Should I call you Karin now?
Karin was wrapped in blankets on the bed. Her hair is usually black when transformed, but now it’s blonde, and her eyes are blue.
Blonde hair and blue eyes, huh…
Apparently due to magic, regardless of genetics, some people are born with different hair and eye colors.
I heard that in ancient Japan, almost everyone had black hair, but now these fantastical hues are starting to appear.
That said, if no one mentioned it, I doubt anyone would realize Karin is Marin.
She resembles a Western doll instead of a Japanese one.
“Is this our first meeting here?”
“…Yes, I’m Yamabana Karin.”
“I’m Hase Haruna now.”
I sit beside the bed and look at Karin.
Her hair is quite messy, and she has dark circles under her eyes.
It seems she hasn’t been sleeping well.
“I heard you haven’t been going to the academy or the Magic Bureau.”
Marin nods while looking down.
I came because I was asked, but I don’t know what to say…
I don’t know how to heal someone’s heart.
Rather, I’m the type who’s given up on healing altogether.
What can I do when I can’t even heal my own heart?
“…Hey,”
“What is it?”
“Why did Inie become a magical girl?”
If asked why, it was just fate.
One could say it was the only way to survive…
“Because it was the only way to live.”
“Eh?”
I recount the story I told Jeanne and Thalagong in the hospital to Marin.
Having done it twice, this time it flows smoother than before.
Though I question whether it’s suitable content for a young girl, if asked, I must answer.
Living in a facility, being the sole survivor, being created as a magical girl…
It’s a fabricated tale, but as fiction, it could pass as plausible.
A surviving girl fights for revenge.
In a sense, I’m helping Akuma with their vengeance, so it’s not entirely false either.
During the story, Marin remained frozen.
“I only know how to fight. And there’s something I must do.”
“Listening to your story, you seem like a tragic girl, but in reality, it’s much worse, isn’t it?”
In reality, killed by a magical girl and replaced in a girl’s body to become one myself, deciding the fate of the world in battle, losing my lifespan, and having no original body left…
The story of a girl living in a facility and the tale of a man killed by a magical girl…
Which is crueler, I wonder…
“Doesn’t it hurt, Inie? All those wounds, hardships… your eyes too…”
“Yes, I’ve endured many hardships, but I’ve fed all such sentimental thoughts to the pigeons along with the beans.”
“Eh?”
Pain and injustice make excellent spices for battle.
All the suffering and hardship belong solely to me.
“Marin, I don’t know why you’ve been shutting yourself away, but didn’t you have a purpose when you became a magical girl?”
Marin remains silent, offering no reply.
There aren’t many newcomers who can defeat A-rank monsters except for special cases.
Marin must have a strong resolve.
“At first, I purely wanted to protect everyone…”
Protecting… Such a noble thought.
So different from me, who only wants to fight.
“But after being saved by Inie, I started wanting to fight beside Inie… yet in the end, I keep needing Inie’s help and fail to protect anything…”
“…You’d be better off not being by my side.”
Being near someone who disappears whether they win or lose brings no good. Having Akuma is enough.
“Besides, during M·D·W, didn’t you manage to protect civilians and those two?”
“That was only possible because Inie and Thalagong were there…”
…This is getting frustrating.
For a guy, physical gestures might suffice, but she’s a girl… No, wait, does that apply to magical girls?
“Do you want to quit being a magical girl, Marin? Or do you want to continue?”
“…I don’t know. I don’t know what I want to do anymore…”
(Akuma, can you transfer us to an uninhabited seaside or ruins?)
“Sure, but why?”
(To fight.)
“Nowadays,热血 (enthusiasm) isn’t really trendy, but whatever…”
If this doesn’t work, I’ll give up, but moving the body might help if she’s feeling down.
If things worsen, we’ll deal with that then.
(Got it.)
“Understood. Make contact somewhere on Marin.”
Casually grabbing Marin’s arm, she lets out a surprised gasp, but immediately a floating sensation takes over, and the scenery changes.
Somewhere by the sea… The timing is perfect as the sun begins to set.
“Transformation”
I take on my usual robe-clad appearance and point my staff at Marin.
Marin steps back in surprise, but I ignore it.
“What… what is this?”
“Transform, Marin. If you refuse to fight, I’ll kill you here.”
“Eh?”
“A magical girl without the will to fight is irrelevant whether alive or dead. At least let me show you mercy and kill you.”
“You’re completely the villain here, but did you mess up your lines?”
(Ignore it. It’ll be fine as long as Marin gets motivated.)
I fire an icicle towards Marin, making sure it barely misses her.
Of course, I have no intention of killing her, but this should convey my seriousness.
Come on, stand up, Marin.
If you truly are a magical girl, show me.
Show me the strength of your resolve…
“Ugh… Transformation”
Marin transforms into the familiar kimono-clad magical girl.
From here on, I’ll call her as usual.
Honestly, I care about Marin quite a bit.
Despite being a newcomer, she became the top power in the North Kanto Branch, and when I was male, I even supported her.
Though I dislike magical girls, she gave me a glimmer of hope, however small.
“I don’t know what troubles you, but if you’re a magical girl, fight me.”
“I am…”
I summon an ice spear and point it at Marin.
“Stand up. If you can’t, then this is goodbye.”
I aim the practiced ice spear just past her face.
“Magical Girl Marin… farewell.”
1
That day, as usual, I secluded myself in my room.
My parents were at work, leaving me trapped in a maze with no exit.
The doorbell rang, but I lacked the energy to answer.
I stayed wrapped in my blanket, unmoving.
A few minutes later, I heard knocking on the door.
Or maybe it was just an auditory hallucination.
No one should be home, and I hadn’t heard the front door open.
“Who’s there?”
I timidly spoke out.
“It’s me… Do you recognize me?”
“…Inie?”
That voice, though most unwanted, was the one I most wanted to hear.
Seeing Inie—now Haruna—for the first time, her white hair resembled an old person’s, which was strange.
“Why did Inie become a magical girl?”
I asked curiously.
But Inie’s response was far too harsh and sorrowful…
Perhaps the feeling of brokenness I once sensed wasn’t entirely mistaken.
Something I could never endure…
Yet, I still wanted to walk and fight by her side.
Was it impossible from the start…?
She’s too solitary.
I couldn’t save Inie or fight alongside her…
While pondering this, suddenly Inie grabbed my arm, and after a moment of weightlessness, we were at some seaside.
Caught off guard, Inie transformed and pointed her staff at me.
Would she kill me…? Perhaps dying at Inie’s hands wouldn’t be so bad.
My heart was already flickering, incapable of continuing as a magical girl.
But…
“Ugh… Transformation”
I transformed.
“If I don’t know what you’re troubled about, but if you’re a magical girl, then fight me.”
“I am…”
Suddenly, I remembered words Inie once told me…
“—There is nothing a magical girl cannot do—”
(That’s right…)
So, what’s this about lack of power?
What’s this about impossibility?
I am a magical girl.
Even if I lack strength and can’t fulfill my own wishes, I am a magical girl.
As long as I live, as long as I don’t give up, there is no such thing as impossibility.
“Magical Girl Marin… farewell”
Inie’s icicle shoots toward my face…
It’s okay, I won’t give up anymore.
Because I am a magical girl and Inie’s senior!
“I am!”
I shatter the icicle with my sword and charge forward.
The sunset reflecting off the ice seemed strangely dazzling.
“I am Magical Girl Marin! A magical girl of the North Kanto Branch of the Magic Bureau and a guardian of Japan…”
So, the feelings I had for Inie weren’t just respect and gratitude…
“I am a magical girl who fights by your side.”
Inie’s lips curl slightly upward.
Alright, I’ll fight with you, Inie.
Inie casts a spell, and sand swirls around.
Probably trying to obscure my vision and create distance between us.
But distance means little to me.
Even if Inie escapes the range of my sword, I have a bow.
“Shoot!”
I recklessly launch a magical arrow, keeping Inie in check.
I dodge the incoming icicles with a step and fire arrows in the direction they came from.
(Seems like I’m being toyed with…)
If Inie were serious, after the dust settles, she’d escape into the sky, and I’d have no way to defend against powerful spells from above.
With no means to fly, I’d be helpless.
“Wind Blade!”
I swing my wind-empowered sword, blowing away the sand and clearing my vision.
There stands Inie, approximately twenty meters away.
That’s the distance between Inie and me.
Will I reach her first, or will Inie defeat me first…
Even as she talks about killing, she’s surprisingly gentle.
Still, I have no intention of holding back.
I can’t afford to lose this battle.
“So, respond to me once more, Hanazuki.”
Calling the blade’s name, it responds with a ring.
Words come to mind.
I don’t understand what Inie intends to do.
But this girl, like the darkness itself,
surely doesn’t have normal intentions.
Then, let me at least illuminate her path and create time for her battles.
“Guiding Light… Hanazuki!”
My hair shines brilliantly white, and my single blade becomes two.
The bow on my back disappears, and my outfit changes.
I’ll show her my resolve.
“Let’s go… Inie!”
Drawing my sword, I cut through the magic Inie sends my way and advance.
Dodging the raining icicles, I crush the rock spears beneath my feet.
Inie is strong.
But she has a weakness: inability to instantly cast powerful spells.
Moreover, to me now, Inie’s magic seems slow.
“Flames, rise!”
“Wind Blade Dance – Slash!”
Just like in the academy days, Inie creates a tornado of flames in front of me, but I blow it away with my dual swords.
And I dash forward forcefully.
I deflect the icicle flying toward me and raise my sword.
Before Inie can cast another spell, I thrust my sword toward her throat.
My… victory!
Inie raises both hands in surrender.
“Looks like the senior wins.”
“Yes, sorry for being such an incompetent senior. But now, I’m fine.”
I lower my sword and release the Enhanced Form.
As long as you fight, I will fight too.
As long as you don’t give up, neither will I.
Even if defeated or broken, as long as I’m alive, I won’t stop.
So…
Sheathing my sword, I remove Inie’s hood.
Her eyes remain cloudy, but that doesn’t matter.
She tilts her head, looking adorable.
“I like you, Inie.”
“Huh?”
I kissed Inie on the cheek.
Yes… I like Inie.
That’s why everything is fine now.
“Huh, eh? Hi?”
“Surprisingly, you can be caught off guard, Inie?”
Unlike her usual stoic expression, it’s amusing to see her flustered.
“Um, what do you mean by ‘like’?”
“Just as it sounds. Not affection, but love.”
“…If you’re serious, it’s better to stop. You should properly date a man.”
“It doesn’t matter what Inie thinks. I’ve decided not to stop anymore.”
As long as I have this feeling, I won’t stop.
Once realized, it’s too late.
“Well, please send me home. Or in front of the North Kanto Branch is fine too.”
“Hmm… As long as you’ve recovered, that’s good enough. Touch me.”
Hugging Inie from behind, there’s a brief pause before the sensation of floating, and the familiar North Kanto Branch appears before my eyes.
“See you tomorrow at the academy, Inie.”
“Yes, then.”
Inie’s figure vanishes, leaving me alone.
First, I need to apologize to Mr. Shirokigawa and Ms. Amakaze for the trouble.
Hehe. I’m looking forward to school tomorrow.
