Ch.204IF Side Story: Somehow, Everyone Seems to Like Me (5)

“No.”

And I immediately rejected what my seniors had first proposed to me.

“Why?”

Seo-hee asked incredulously.

“The magical girl outfit you normally wear is more revealing than this, isn’t it?”

“Are you seriously saying that right now?”

I said, looking at Seo-hee.

“Look, this has way less fabric overall. No matter how you look at it, I can’t wear something like this, even if it is a swimsuit.”

I said that while looking at the swimsuit Seo-hee was holding out to me.

That’s right.

Seo-hee was recommending a bikini swimsuit to me. Because it’s summer.

Last time, we went to a pension and just grilled some meat without actually getting in the water, but this time, the magical girl seniors suggested going to the beach once since it’s summer.

I understand their feelings. Regardless of being exam students, for the seniors, this is their last summer as high school students.

Graduating doesn’t completely end their teenage years, but with only a few months left, I understand their desire to burn through these last summer days.

“Maybe if it were a one-piece…”

But no matter what, it’s hard to accept easily.

I’m already used to wearing women’s clothes since the school uniform was a skirt. I even wear women’s underwear without issue.

But I’d rather decline wearing a bikini with insufficient fabric coverage in front of others.

“But you’re the core of our party.”

Seo-hee insisted in response to my words.

“You have the most defined figure among us. If you were born with such a body, what’s wrong with showing it off a little?”

“…”

Is she serious?

No, it’s not that I didn’t have confidence in my body. Everyone around me liked my body. That is, people like Hayun, Jihye, Ju-a, and Pang Pang. They’ve been genuinely enthusiastic about hugging me lately.

“Come on, don’t be like that. I’ll buy it for you.”

Seo-hee kept pushing the bikini toward me.

“Hayun would probably like it too, you know?”

Surprisingly, I was somewhat tempted by those words.

I know there are many people who like me. But I still have no idea how to deal with them.

I know I have to choose one. Even if it’s a same-sex relationship, and even if it’s not institutionally recognized as marriage, that’s the social consensus.

But, true to my indecisive nature, I find myself drawn to all of them. I know it’s a bit different from the subcultural ideal I dreamed of as a child, but I’ve certainly imagined it.

“…”

“Wow, she’s really considering it.”

Yeon-woo remarked with disbelief.

“…Looks like her feelings are genuine.”

Chae-yeon chimed in from the side.

“…Did you say that just to test my feelings?”

“No, I’m actually serious.”

Seo-hee smiled and placed the bikini in my hand.

“So, junior, we’ll help you choose one. It’s rude to keep refusing when your seniors offer to buy you something.”

What kind of old-fashioned logic is that?

“You guys have never hung out with juniors before, have you?”

Seeing them all avoid my gaze, it seems I’m right.

Anyway.

I shrugged my shoulders.

Well, if that’s the case, I can’t help it.

It’s my first time hanging out with seniors too, but in the end, we’re all equally inexperienced.

Hayun probably got along well with all the magical girls, but she’s not the type to actively go around socializing everywhere.

She probably just went home to rest after magical girl duties.

“…Fine. I owe you anyway, so I’ll let you third-years experience the fun of hanging out with a junior.”

The three of them looked somewhat bewildered at my words, but whatever.

I’m just as bewildered myself.

*

Still, hanging out together turned out to be more fun than I expected.

Thinking back, I had already experienced walking around with Jihye and Hayun on either side of me. And I remember it being very enjoyable even though we didn’t do anything special.

Probably because I had somewhat accepted the other magical girls.

All these feelings are possible because my revenge is completely finished. If there were still people I felt I needed to deal with, I wouldn’t be able to go around so carefree like this.

“…”

Wait.

Recalling the past made me remember some unpleasant memories too.

That day, when I was walking around with Jihye and Hayun, I encountered a kaijin.

Well, though I say kaijin, it wasn’t the berserk kind, but an alien with a modified camera attached to its body. A literal monster.

That day, Hayun called all the other magical girls—which is how I first met the other magical girls.

I wonder how today will go.

For now, I could see people glancing at us. We’re bound to stand out. After all, we’ve appeared on the news several times.

Unlike Hayun, who tried to hide her identity, these senior magical girls seemed more accustomed to it after being at it a year longer, and didn’t appear to care much about the attention.

Some people were pointing their phone cameras at us, but since the seniors didn’t care, I decided not to either.

“It’ll be quite a sight at the beach. Especially with these swimsuits.”

“Hmm? Is our junior worried about that?”

Yeon-woo said with a smile.

“Don’t worry. Even though it’s a beach, it’s private property. It’s not an enormous beach, but it has a decent sandy shore.”

I can’t imagine how rich one must be to have a private beach in this small country.

“So that’s why you’re so carefree…”

I muttered while looking around—

And made eye contact with someone.

Among the people pointing smartphone cameras at us, there was someone awkwardly moving around.

Though I say person, there was something different about them. They didn’t seem to be from Earth. Their appearance looked human, but there was a strange sense of incongruity.

“What’s wrong?”

Noticing my reaction, Seo-hee asked.

“No, I just thought there was a strange person over there.”

I answered Seo-hee quietly.

Seo-hee followed my gaze and looked in that direction.

Receiving the gaze of two people, that person who looked human but probably wasn’t quickly turned and started moving away from us.

“…”

And I could see it.

The man hurriedly putting something like a wallet into his pocket.

“Looks like a pickpocket.”

Even in a country known for good public safety, crimes still exist. There’s probably not a single country in the world where no crimes occur.

Especially in places that attract attention like this.

“What do you want to do?”

Seo-hee asked.

“…Shouldn’t we call the police?”

I answered sensibly.

If it were a real kaijin, it would be important for us to step in, but otherwise, the police can handle it. Especially for such a clear-cut crime.

Hmm.

No, maybe I’m being too prejudiced.

It might not be someone else’s wallet. Maybe he just happened to take out his own wallet and put it back in his pocket.

I could just ignore it and move on, but—

Somehow, all the senior magical girls were looking at me.

As if they would move according to my judgment.

“…Why are you all looking at me like that?”

I asked, feeling a bit dumbfounded.

“Am I some kind of leader?”

“You did act like a leader for a while.”

Yeon-woo nodded and said.

“…When we were going after Noir Corporation.”

Chae-yeon added.

…Well, that was true, but…

I’m just a magical girl now, right? If we’re being strict, Hayun would be the leader.

But Hayun isn’t here right now.

And thinking about it, they probably don’t actually think of me as “the leader.”

Rather, they looked like seniors who wanted to see how their junior would act.

“Hey, haven’t you been vigilantes for so long that your thinking has become warped?”

I protested slightly, but the three just shrugged.

Well, we are magical girls after all.

Fighting for love and justice.

“…Haa.”

I sighed softly and said.

“Let’s follow him for now. We’ll see when we get there.”

At my words, the three nodded with slight smiles on their faces.

*

And then—

“…It was a trap.”

I muttered, looking up at the sky.

“Well, junior, next time you should think twice when something seems so obvious. But it’s natural not to know these things as a first-year magical girl.”

Looking at Seo-hee acting all superior, I deliberately gave her an incredulous expression.

Seriously, she told me to do what I wanted and now this.

“…”

Including that alien from earlier, the aliens who had been waiting in the alley slowly approached us.

Humans who looked one or two heads taller than us.

“Remnants of Noir Corporation, perhaps.”

They all nodded at my muttering.

There are many who hold grudges against us. Especially those who held executive positions in the company.

If so, there might be people who want revenge on us.

…Could they have also confirmed that we’re not using our circuits?

“Hmm.”

But that doesn’t mean we’ll go down easily.

I don’t understand why anyone would think magical girls are weak just because they haven’t transformed.

Well, if the opponents are aliens, they might think differently—

Whoosh.

As I dodged a knife flying toward me by slightly turning my body to the side, I thought:

Maybe we’re the “unusual” case.

“Generally speaking,” Earth humans are indeed weak without circuits.

Looking at the fake human face that didn’t even distort, I thought.