Ch.188IF Side Story: Galactic Love (13)

We decided to move.

After all, we couldn’t stay here forever.

Though I’d strayed far from my original plan, my intention to catch the Chairman and make him pay somehow hadn’t completely disappeared.

My feelings were complicated in many ways.

I wanted to be ruthless and push everything aside, but I kept worrying about Pang Pang.

How would Pang Pang react if I completely fell to villainy? If I quit being a magical girl?

…She would probably treat me the same as before. That much I’m certain of. We met while doing villain work in the first place, and Pang Pang liked me even before I became a magical girl.

“…Today, I’ll somehow get more food supplies. Preferably something unrelated to vegetarian food. Oh, and coffee too if possible.”

Before leaving, when I said that, Pang Pang burst into laughter.

“Coffee, huh. It’s been a while. Remember? You said we wouldn’t get addicted to it?”

“Yeah, looking at our steady hands, that seems to be true.”

I replied with slight amusement.

The other magical girls were watching our conversation in silence.

Especially Hayun and Ju-a.

“…”

Pang Pang briefly took my hand without saying anything, then let go.

I moved out with the kids, my worries still intact.

*

After people learned what Noir Corporation and the police had done to me, the government tried to persuade me.

And one of their persuasion methods was, quite predictably, involving Jihye.

I… hated that.

She’s already suffered because of me. Her room was trashed, she was terrified, and she even fell asleep after inhaling some unidentified sleeping gas.

At that time, I just tried to resolve the situation quickly and left.

Of course, Jihye didn’t know what had happened to her, and she must have been even more worried.

“…”

And yet, when Jihye came to me, she brought a large plastic bag filled with supplies.

A plastic bag full of food for me and the magical girls to survive on. No, not just food. It even contained underwear and spare clothes.

It must have cost her quite a bit.

“…Thank you, really.”

When I said this with tears in my eyes, Jihye smiled and shook her head.

“I’m just glad I could meet you like this.”

Had I been taking too much for granted until now? Despite having so much around me, I was just filled with discontent.

In the end, I was the one who ruined everything.

If only I had been satisfied with just being friends with Hayun. If only I could have avoided that strange sense of inferiority.

…Then, maybe I could have just lived normally.

What did I care what Noir Corporation was doing? Surely Hayun and the magical girls could have resolved everything—

But there was no time for such thoughts.

“…Someday, I’ll come back.”

“Yes. I’ll be waiting. So, don’t worry about me.”

How could I not worry?

The connections I had, ones I didn’t even know I possessed.

Perhaps I truly am what could be called a “villain” in this world.

*

Meanwhile, we also visited the magical girl headquarters. After bringing Cherry, who had been the magical girls’ mascot, we had another serious conversation.

And we concluded that we didn’t need to stay here anymore.

While it was unpleasant that the government was bothering us, the atmosphere was no longer hostile.

Stubbornly holding out with our remaining supplies would just be obstinacy, and we decided that what we needed to do was more actively draw out our opponents.

“First, let’s go and see,” I said.

“If they refuse—we can always come back then.”

Hayun, Ju-a, Rose. And Dalia and Delphinium too.

They all nodded.

Only Pang Pang looked somewhat anxious.

“It’s okay.”

I told her.

“They’re all good people. The teacher and the kids staying there… Well, there are some troublemakers, but they’re all basically good kids.”

To be honest, I couldn’t be completely certain.

While I was somewhat familiar with many of their faces, I didn’t know them all personally. I wouldn’t be able to tell if someone with strange thoughts was mixed among them.

“…”

After thinking for a moment, Pang Pang nodded with a slightly awkward smile.

“Yes, I trust you.”

Only after seeing that smile did I feel somewhat relieved.

*

The teacher readily agreed.

There weren’t many rooms to distribute, so we all had to live together in a small room, but we could do everything else outside except for sleeping. While we couldn’t help using the bathroom and shower, we could at least get fresh air outside the building.

The reporters were chased away by the police guarding our building.

Though they might still take pictures with telephoto lenses from far away, it was less annoying than having cameras shoved in our faces.

Plus, we could eat proper meals and buy clean clothes. We could even order delivery food without feeling awkward—assuming we had money, of course.

Still, I had some money in my account, and no one had blocked withdrawals. The other kids had no issues either.

“…”

But even after coming here, Pang Pang’s anxiety didn’t disappear.

Maybe someone had broken into her home?

She seemed quite calm for a long time after that incident.

“Are the orphanage kids bullying you?”

Of course, there were kids our age too. An orphanage doesn’t only have very young children.

But Pang Pang shook her head at my question.

“No, it’s not that.”

“…Then what? Are you worried someone might break in again? Don’t worry. I’m here with the others.”

“…”

Pang Pang only gave me another weak smile in response.

She didn’t drink any more coffee. Perhaps she thought it would look strange in front of the younger children.

And even when Hayun, Ju-a, and I walked around the building at night talking, Pang Pang tried to avoid going outside.

I never managed to find out the reason myself.

…I should have pressed harder to find out.

*

The anomaly came too easily.

And too suddenly.

“…What.”

Until now, the Chairman had never attacked the orphanage.

Did he think he needed to maintain some minimum image? If he ever needed to deal with the Galactic Federation, he would need to maintain at least a basic reputation.

But this time… it was different.

Kaijin appeared in the sky above the orphanage.

We already knew how these Kaijin were created. They were cultivating or producing Earth-like beings, and all these Earth-like Kaijin could activate circuits.

“…”

That was the problem.

[We have demands.]

Such a voice came from one of the Kaijin.

Kaijin should basically be uncontrollable. Or perhaps they could somehow control them with the power from those circuits… It might be possible if they could somehow immobilize the body.

The Chairman’s voice seemed to be coming from a speaker attached to one of the Kaijin’s bodies.

[There’s an alien there. Hand over that alien. Then we’ll disappear from Earth forever.]

“…”

An alien? Pang Pang?

While I was blinking in confusion, the voice continued.

[We know you’re hiding it.]

I couldn’t understand the intention behind those words.

Was he saying he’d only take one hostage? To put shackles on our ankles?

No, if that was the case, we wouldn’t need to do such a thing.

If we destroyed all the Kaijin here—

[I know what you’re thinking. I’ve taken precautions to prevent that from happening.]

The Chairman’s voice, which I disliked from the first time I heard it, said.

[Something is about to happen. Something that might kill countless people if you don’t stop it.]

“…”

[Before that happens, make your choice. The lives of countless people—or the safety of that non-Earth being. I don’t promise not to kill it.]

What nonsense.

Crunch.

The sound of teeth grinding.

Is he really saying, after bringing Kaijin and breaking into my home, that I should hand over my dear friend?

Absolutely not.

This time, I will not give up. I will protect her.

[A foolish choice. But then again, you’ve always been that way.]

Seeing me about to draw my weapon, the voice said.

Yes, I’ve always been that way.

But I’m trying not to be anymore.