Chapter 53 : The Flame Reignites

Even after the announcement of the friendly tournament, born 1-star magical girls in Japan were hesitant to participate.

“Eh, fighting is a bit…”

“Just working in the relief corps is enough, isn’t it?”

“Do we really need to go that far when [Beginning] is protecting us?”

“I don’t like violent things!”

Still, girls who couldn’t overcome their curiosity went to visit the arena.

The several arenas built in the Garden were marble-floored spaces above a rose garden. Thick magical power was flowing through the outer walls surrounding the 100-meter open space, and as soon as they entered, their Glass Stars vibrated.

Woong

“Whoa?! Wh-what’s this?”

“Is this the illusion barrier they were talking about?”

“Then… maybe we can go a little wild.”

Crack!

Thud!

Whoosh!

The girls who entered the arena to test it out played by summoning creatures to rampage or spreading release magic around.

Boom!

Rumble!

“Ahaha! It feels refreshing somehow!”

“Yeah! We can’t play like this outside!”

“Smash it, smash it!!”

“Hahahaha!”

After unleashing their abilities for a while, the beautiful marble floor was completely cracked and all the roses were either burned or overturned.

As the girls who felt they had done something wrong yet refreshed snuck out, their Glass Stars vibrated again and the arena was restored.

Woong

The entire scene changed and the girls returned to how they were before entering the arena.

“This is more fun than I thought…”

“Shall we do it again?”

Seeing this, the magical girls used the place to relieve stress by playing pranks for days instead of doing the training they were supposed to.

It was just unleashing magic to the limit and making a fuss, but most magical girls were satisfied with that much.

Perceptions began to change little by little when foreign magical girls started coming in.

“White Wing 1st Platoon, ready to fire!”

“Fire!”

“Aah!”

Ratatatatat

Bang bang bang

The platoon leader of the 1st Platoon, the magical girl of [Shooting], aimed her unique weapon assault rifle at Park Saebyeok and gave orders to her platoon members.

“Cease fire!”

“Cease fire!”

Park Saebyeok, who was hit directly by the 1st Platoon’s fire without using psychic power, trembled while emitting pink energy all over her body.

“Ugh… aaaagh…”

She forcibly grabbed her shaking wrist to align it, and grasped her carotid artery that was spurting blood like a fountain, unable to cope with just the natural healing of her unique ability, and cast Heal.

“Aaagh!… Cough…”

That day, on her 5th attempt at sudden situation response training, Park Saebyeok succeeded in treating her own fatal wounds without immediately fainting from hemorrhagic shock.

Though not as much as Park Saebyeok, who was a born 2-star, the 1st Platoon members conducted sudden situation response training in the arena every day.

The platoon members lined up in a row were shot in the shoulder or thigh by their designated shooters without protecting themselves with psychic power.

Bang bang bang bang bang!

“Kyaaaaaaah!!!”

“Ugh… aaaagh…”

“Believe! The pain is real but you won’t die! Get a grip! You can survive if you use your healing ability!”

Under Park Saebyeok’s encouragement, the White Wing unit members cast healing abilities towards the areas where they felt burning pain while crying. And they confirmed the bullets naturally being pushed out from places that weren’t completely penetrated.

Clink

“Huuu… huff, huff!”

“Uuugh…”

Some members vomited from the unbearable pain or wet themselves from shock, but they gained a streak of pride and confidence in the repeated training before fear could set in.

‘If it’s now, we could fight [Bombing] again…!’

Though [Bombing] was already dead, the 1st Platoon, who harbored memories of being helplessly defeated by the terrorist who attacked South Korea while bearing the name of magical girls, especially gritted their teeth and conducted combat training.

Like real combat.

They adapted by shooting and stabbing each other with swords every day.

Sometimes they struggled in unreasonable situations surrounded by many.

Sometimes they poked at each other’s weaknesses and attacked with telekinesis in unarmed confrontations.

Sometimes they rushed at each other covered in blood while inflicting fatal wounds.

Sometimes blindfolded, sometimes with both hands tied…

So that they could protect and heal people in any combat situation and pain.

As painfully as possible so that their sense of crisis wouldn’t dull, because even a single mistake couldn’t be tolerated in real combat.

Bang bang bang

“Aaaaah! I’ve been shot many times by guns!!”

Stab

“This much won’t kill me!!”

Following the gravitational pull of fate led by Park Saebyeok’s pink star, the girls became warriors.

It was cruel training that would have made their families or friends faint if they saw, but that day’s fight made it impossible for them to remain immature.

The star that responded to their will was quietly whispering.

That the threat was not over yet.

Clang!

Chink!

The born 1-star magical girl of [Penetration] from France faced her opponent with a cold expression, holding her rapier.

The born 2-star magical girl of [Heavy Armor] from Germany also faced her opponent in a stance ready to respond at any time.

“…”

“…”

Words were unnecessary for the two girls from the same relief group.

Clang!

They hadn’t let go of their unique weapons, which they hadn’t taken out while their friends were alive, for days.

No one could protect them.

Not soldiers, not police, not politicians, not religious people.

Everyone was helplessly defeated by the terrorists.

Boom!

[Heavy Armor] deflected the rapier with her shield wrapped in psychic power and charged forward, becoming a living tank.

Crack

[Penetration] was hit by that charge, crushed and sent flying into the rose garden.

Woong

With the vibration of the star, everything returned, and they were back in their confrontation stance.

“27 matches, 25 losses…”

“Your attacks are getting sharper. Especially when you attack the neck and shoulders, it’s hard to respond.”

“The 2 wins were just you letting me win by taking the hits.”

Grip

“It’s still impossible for me to beat you even a little.”

The eyes of the magical girl of [Penetration], gripping her rapier as if it would break, were still coldly burning.

[Heavy Armor], confirming her friend’s gaze, raised her shield again and took her stance.

“Come!!”

Clang!

The two Chinese magical girls caught their breath as they saw their weapons entangle.

Whoosh!

“…!”

Clang clang clang

The two girls who were fighting each other responded by spreading psychic power like a curtain to the flying daggers that came from somewhere.

“Li Na…!”

The born 1-star magical girl of [Dagger] from China, who appeared from the shadows under the garden, spoke while looking at the two fighting girls.

“It was you who allowed me to do sneak attacks, you haven’t changed your mind already, have you?”

“No, it was appropriate.”

“Then is it three of us now? Li Na, are you also going to say you can’t do it unless it’s a sneak attack?”

“No. I’m going to fight head-on now too.”

Li Na threw a handful of long needles at the two girls, and the three girls fought fiercely, unleashing their most fatal attacks on each other.

Slash!

Clang!

Seeing people die, pierced by flying black swords, the girls chose to burn their hearts with anger rather than despair.

Clang!

Clang!

They quietly burned the anger towards [Sword] that grew in their hearts and honed themselves. So that even if they were feeble blades now, they could one day become daggers that would fly to pierce [Sword]’s heart.

“…”

The Japanese magical girls watched those girls in silence. Pondering the questions that arose in their minds.

Why?

For what reason?

You’ve already entered the safe embrace of [Beginning], haven’t you?

Most ordinary girls could only shudder at their desperate training, but magical girls who had bloomed strong powers asked serious questions about their own strength.

“What did we become strong for?”

What is the reason the magical girl of [Beginning], who even adults and nations are flustered by, provided us with this space? What did those girls training so fiercely see?

“…”

Could we also realize it if we train as fiercely as them?

From the next day, among the Japanese magical girls coming to the arena, the number of those entering with serious eyes rather than playful smiles increased.

And so several more days passed.

On the day of the tournament, a girl with a red ribbon on a white dress entered the arena with a determined expression.

Bloomed born 1-star magical girl of [Flame]

Shikishima Yuki

“This is… [Beginning]’s domain…”

Because [War]’s domain was always full of endless anger and fighting, the sounds and sights felt in the space unfolding now were similar.

“No, it’s different.”

Although they were still inexperienced girls who had just started to take fighting seriously, what shone in their eyes was not madness but will. The resolve of girls that should have started next year with the fight between the Alliance and Flag.

“[Beginning] is different from [War].”

Yuki felt the will to protect and raise magical girls in the right direction in [Beginning]’s domain. She felt her gentle heart.

Thump

Thumplp

Yuki’s heart pounded as it felt this.

“I’m not alone anymore.”

The magical girl who wanted to lead everyone from this despair to the path of hope was no longer just Yuki.

The unfamiliar girl who came from the changed past was correctly guiding the world that should have fallen into despair.

Though they had never met even once, she was helping Yuki’s new beginning with kinder hands than anyone else.

Even the companions who fought together in the future only fought against destruction in the end because they wanted to protect what they desired.

Perhaps someone who could truly understand and help Yuki…

“…I want to meet the magical girl of [Beginning].”

Yuki looked into her red Glass Star.

<1st Magical Girl Friendly Mock Battle Tournament>

Only bloomed magical girls showed a meaningful participation rate. Therefore, for fairness, even among bloomed magical girls, 1-stars and 2-stars were divided and organized separately.

The tournament taking place over 3 days proceeded quickly with a 10-minute time limit per match, and the last day was scheduled to conclude with the 2-star girls’ tournament.

The number of bloomed 1-star participants was 64, including Yuki.

The number of bloomed 2-star participants was 7.

Originally, one person would advance with a bye in the 2-star tournament, but…

“I must catch [Beginning]’s eye.”

Yuki shyly smiled while thinking of a plan to turn the tournament upside down.

“…Come watch me, magical girl of [Beginning].”

Whoosh

Even if all that remained in her hand was just a tiny spark.

Her flame was a flame that had returned alive from the end of the world.