Ch.23Chapter 5. Position (2)

I couldn’t say we were confident, but there must be a reason why magical girls could infiltrate this place so easily.

It seemed somewhat rushed to me. Today of all days, students from the magical girl’s school were here on a field trip. The fact that they chose to infiltrate on such a day suggests that those in charge must have decided they couldn’t delay any longer.

I wondered once again if this situation was engineered by the company to gain the upper hand.

They had been hiding everything meticulously, only to deliberately leak information at this precise moment.

Magical girl battles receive public support. They appear to be boldly standing against a seemingly successful but secretly malicious—though legal—corporation, protecting ordinary citizens.

Before even discussing right and wrong, there’s something satisfying about watching someone take down the wealthy and powerful. Especially since Noir Corporation wasn’t exactly innocent.

Until now, magical girls had shown a pattern of protecting civilians whenever they got caught in battles.

So why guide the magical girls here now?

Witnessing a battle firsthand is completely different from hearing about it through news reports. Company employees might criticize magical girls or express fear, but they’d just be seen as defending Noir Corporation. But for children who have to wake up in the middle of the night to evacuate because of a battle—that’s a different story.

Plus, these children are at the perfect age to be active on social media. They’d likely agree to interviews if news outlets approached them.

A carefully built image only matters if it stays intact. Once it gets even a small scratch, that imperfection becomes glaringly obvious precisely because everything was so perfect before.

The goal must be to make the public think, “I knew it” about the Galactic Federation.

One incident won’t be enough to cast them as complete villains, but even lowering their standing would be sufficient for Noir Corporation.

I don’t know what research they were conducting, but since the Galactic Federation clearly had no intention of revealing their researcher’s work to the public, this was a win-win situation for the corporation.

“Everyone remember,” I said, keeping my eye on the white dot in the distance. “If there are civilian casualties, rescue them first.”

That was my own thinking, but it was also the company’s directive.

For reference, as a student myself, I planned to slip away toward the end of the situation and blend in with the other students. I’d probably get scolded by the teacher, but that was the safest approach.

The warp gate opened, and the first to appear was Iris.

The design of her gun had changed.

Instead of the long bolt-action rifle she had before, she now carried a shorter weapon. It looked like a submachine gun or a compact assault rifle. Though I suppose caliber doesn’t matter much when it comes to magic.

Either way, it was a gun that really didn’t suit a magical girl.

The next person to emerge was—Blossom.

She was too far away for me to see her face clearly, but her movements seemed hesitant, and even from this distance, I could sense worry on her face.

“…Gasp.”

The Earth-obsessed colleague beside me inhaled sharply as three more figures emerged behind Blossom.

Rose, Dalia, and Delphinium.

All five had gathered.

It’s been a while since this happened.

The company had instructed us to wait until as many magical girls as possible were in sight before making our move.

“Let’s go,” I said, opening the window and heading outside.

I tried to approach while keeping my body hidden, but—

“Ah.”

In the distance, Dalia and Iris were looking in our direction.

Iris wasn’t aiming her gun. Instead, Dalia raised her staff.

“Everyone take cover!”

At my shout, the combatants following me scattered.

Some rolled to the side with all their might, others threw themselves down as if falling, and fortunately, everyone managed to get out of range.

I extended my arms to draw my blades and swung at the ball of light flying toward us.

Thankfully it was Dalia’s attack. If it had been Delphinium’s, I definitely wouldn’t have been able to deflect it all. And the combatants wouldn’t have escaped so successfully either.

BOOM!

A large mana mass exploded with a flash of light. My body—didn’t go flying.

The split mana left long marks on the ground. V-shaped traces remained around me, and all the glass in the building behind us shattered.

Immediately after, the alarm began to sound.

Did they abandon the infiltration plan the moment they saw me? At least the magical girls didn’t seem particularly surprised to see us.

This time, a look of resignation crossed Blossom’s face, as if she had expected this outcome.

“…Haa.”

I exhaled the breath I’d been holding.

60 percent.

It’s hard to get used to the readings when they keep changing the equipment.

The number was much lower than during the last battle, but this equipment had a larger capacity. The total amount was definitely higher than last time.

“Let’s go!”

There was no point in hiding anymore.

At my command, all the combatants got to their feet.

Normally, this would be a situation where you’d understand if one or two people ran away. We were facing five magical girls, after all.

Even though they had strong personalities and didn’t work together perfectly, they had years of fighting experience together, and each one was powerful in her own right.

Had fighting them built up our courage?

…No.

I could feel several combatants looking in my direction.

They seemed to sense some possibility.

Perhaps it was because I was here with them now.

The only one who had ever succeeded in a mission against all combatants.

Because someone like that was leading them.

Beep.

66 percent.

My body responded honestly, with that pressure steadily building up in my “despairing heart.”

The magical girls changed their formation.

Though my outfit had changed, they all seemed to recognize who I was.

Well, my suit had a completely different design from last time.

Since my suit had nearly broken down at the end of the last battle, it made sense they’d assume I’d received a new one.

The magical girl at the front was—Blossom.

She had looked troubled earlier, but now her expression showed firm resolve.

She held her flower bouquet-like staff in her hand.

Blossom, Rose, and Iris.

The three took positions surrounding Delphinium and Dalia. Now I understood why Iris’s gun had changed shape.

A white orb of light rose above Dalia’s staff again.

Delphinium held an open thick book in one hand and waved a conductor-like wand in the other.

She seemed to be muttering some kind of spell.

I took out a battery. This fully charged battery was also a larger model than before.

When I poured energy into the battery in my left hand, it became hot enough to nearly explode. I couldn’t understand its exact structure, but anyone could tell it had become unstable.

The batteries burned out whenever they released all their power at once through the circuit. The circuit’s role was to control that energy and to recharge batteries that had depleted their energy without breaking.

If that was the case, I could make the battery’s power spread in all directions when it exploded.

In other words, I could use something like Dalia’s light orb, albeit in a limited way.

I threw the battery with all my might.

Blossom gripped her staff with both hands.

From the pretty bouquet, a pink light emerged. It took the form of a sword. Though it blazed with magical power, it looked sharp enough to cut through anything.

Like a warrior charging at a dragon, Blossom held her sword and sliced through the battery I had thrown in one stroke.

She didn’t move much. She simply swung her sword as if she were a legendary swordmaster releasing a blade of energy.

BOOM!

The battery split in half and exploded in mid-air.

But even that explosion was neutralized mid-way. It was nullified by the pink magical energy that scattered after the sword strike.

It looked like cherry blossom petals fluttering on a spring day.

Hope so intense it could burn away all despair.

That must be what people saw.

But throwing the battery wasn’t entirely wasteful.

The magical girls had spread out a bit to prepare for the explosion, and Blossom had stepped forward slightly while swinging her sword.

The larger the physical gap between them, the better chance I had to attack the magical girls in the back.

I had no chance of winning in hand-to-hand combat against Rose. Iris would likely send me flying if I got too close.

Blossom was out of the question.

So I needed to neutralize the two in the back first, the ones less suited for close combat. While individual combatants fell easily, large numbers could make even magical girls struggle to respond.

The problem was—

“I can’t let you pass,” Blossom said.

—Right. The problem was that any tactics I could think of, the magical girls could think of too.

Blossom held her staff in one hand. Then she swung her left hand toward me.

Even without wearing gauntlets like Rose, pink light swirled around her hand.

Getting hit would be devastating.

If I jumped right or left, Iris and Rose were there. Both were currently fighting combatants.

Beep.

70 percent.

I lowered my head with all my might. Blossom adjusted the trajectory of her punch downward mid-swing, but she couldn’t hit me as I slid awkwardly with my stomach against the floor.

I would have liked to keep sliding, but the floor’s friction was too strong. The distance was too far to slide all the way, and leaving the back of my head exposed for too long was dangerous with Blossom around.

Feeling a chill at the back of my head, I quickly rolled away, and a blade struck where I had been. Blossom had jumped up and brought her sword down.

Hayun might not be very heavy, but Blossom’s magic was a different story.

Crack.

Seeing the magic blade effortlessly pierce the marble where my face had just been sent chills down my spine.

I got to my feet.

I extended the blade in my left hand as far as possible and swung it at Blossom.

Clang!

But my attack was blocked too easily.

71 percent.

The circuit was running wildly. My left wrist felt a bit warm, but it didn’t seem about to burst yet.

Hayun was glaring at me. Though she was a magical girl, only her hairstyle and outfit had changed—her face remained the same. The same Hayun I saw every day.

And that Hayun was now glaring at me while swinging a sword.

…I really am a strange person.

Despite feeling such jealousy and wanting so badly to win, when facing Hayun, I couldn’t attack with killing intent. It was the face of a friend I had known for so long.

Would Hayun feel the same way seeing my face—

I leaned my upper body back to avoid Blossom’s sword passing near my abdomen, then pulled down my left hand to thrust the blade upward. Blossom also stepped back to avoid my blade.

In my peripheral vision, I noticed black matter rising like smoke from the circuit. It seemed to be that unpleasant substance from before.

Rat-tat-tat.

“Ugh!”

A beam of light flew from the side and hit my body. Each beam wasn’t as thick as the bolt-action rifle, but somehow the pain was almost proportional.

Were they compressed somehow?

Seeing me get hit, Blossom’s eyes widened slightly. She looked like she couldn’t believe it.

Could it be that each shot was a warp bullet?

Looking in that direction, I could see the number of combatants had drastically decreased. Facing so many opponents, she was simply sending them away one by one with each shot. That reduced the absolute number, making the fight much easier.

Of course, the company had anticipated this and prepared other teams. The person who had been our team leader was already running toward us from behind a pillar.

The fact that I didn’t disappear after being hit by a warp bullet meant this suit could somehow block them.

Instead, the result of that blocking was the tremendous pain I felt. I still didn’t understand the principle, but—okay, it was useful.

I created a barrier.

Whenever white beams came toward me, they deflected or split mid-way. It looked as if I had surrounded myself with a thick hemispherical glass.

“You, what are you—” Blossom began, but I was already running toward Iris.

Iris was glaring at me. She seemed to be gritting her teeth.

I used up one battery installed in my left wrist circuit.

BOOM!

As I stopped moving, I extended my left arm forward and released the energy. The battery capacity must have increased, because the energy that burst toward Iris was much larger.

“Eek!”

Iris screamed.

But before she screamed, I noticed something strange.

Her body had flinched slightly.

The usual Iris would never have done that.

Ah, I see.

In our last battle, I had headbutted Iris with all my might. My head was protected by a helmet, but hers wasn’t.

It’s common for a boxer famous for one-sidedly attacking opponents to lose their edge after just one defeat. Having never been hit before, they’re not prepared for the pain—or so I’ve heard.

I don’t know if that’s really true, but it certainly seemed to fit Iris right now.

Right after releasing the battery’s energy, without even a chance to see Iris’s face, I fell backward from the recoil.

My buttocks and back hurt a bit, but I managed a decent breakfall. My head didn’t hit hard, allowing me to maintain consciousness.

Blossom followed right behind and tried to strike down with her sword again, but I wasn’t going to fall for the same trick twice.

After sliding sideways to dodge, I grabbed Blossom’s ankle as it touched the ground.

Ka-ga-chak!

Blossom didn’t miss the opportunity and pulled her sword, which was stuck in the floor, toward me, slicing my arm.

“Ugh!”

I couldn’t hold back a groan. But I clearly saw Blossom’s sword bounce off my suit with black sparks the moment it made contact.

73 percent.

I pulled hard on Blossom’s ankle. The battery was already burned out and I hadn’t replaced it yet, so I couldn’t release much power at once, but it was enough to pull Blossom’s weight.

Blossom’s body wobbled.

Keeping up the momentum, I grabbed her leg with my right hand and pulled hard, successfully making Blossom fall.

Rat-tat-tat!

Beams of light hit my right shoulder, abdomen, waist, thigh, and foot. The one that hit my toes was especially painful. My toenails must have cracked. …I’ll remember this, Iris. I’ll make sure you feel the same.

But whether it was the adrenaline rushing to my head or something else, I was able to ignore the pain and climb on top of Blossom.

I firmly held her waist between my thighs. Blossom’s knee jabbed into my back with a thud, but human joints have limited range of motion. It wasn’t as painful as Iris’s beams.

Click!

The battery popped out.

However, I didn’t have time to insert the next battery. Even though she was pinned beneath me, Blossom wasn’t staying still.

Her sword passed through where my face had been.

Though they said it was a sword that couldn’t cut people, that meant it could cut through everything else.

No matter what armor you wore, it would cut through the armor and hit your body directly. No matter how you covered or hid yourself, when hit, it would be like being struck by a metal club on bare skin. She would probably control her strength to leave you in a treatable condition, but it was still dangerous.

As Blossom tried to swing her sword in the opposite direction, I quickly grabbed it.

Clang!

The sound of metal hitting metal rang out.

76 percent.

A tingling pain shot through my right hand, but since I had blocked it before the sword had fully gained momentum, nothing seemed to be broken.

A sound like electricity flowing irregularly, fiercely sparking, filled the air as my hand felt like it was burning.

While blocking it with all my strength, I raised my fist.

Hayun’s face came into view.

She wasn’t even surprised.

She just looked at me with firm resolve.

How could Hayun make such an expression?

Getting hit would definitely hurt. No matter how hard you try, people often don’t appreciate it. The Galactic Federation was just trying to use the magical girls.

She must know that.

Even if they develop using the energy of hope, she must know all too well that they’re the only ones suffering.

But why did Hayun—

My thoughts lasted only a moment.

But Hayun didn’t hesitate. As always, she acted according to her beliefs.

Thud!

My helmet shook violently. Fortunately, it didn’t break. That mysterious black energy absorbed some of the impact.

But I couldn’t prevent my head from turning.

For a moment, my vision blurred and I lost my balance.

Hayun grabbed my collar and rolled to the side.

I frantically struggled to escape backward. Fortunately, I avoided ending up underneath her.

BOOM!

Immediately after, an explosion erupted right beside me.

Dalia.

It was Dalia who had launched the prepared mana mass.

I was thrown sideways, hit the floor, and slid.

Getting up again and raising my head, I saw most of the magical girls looking in my direction.

Many combatants had fallen while Blossom and I were fighting.

There were still quite a few left, and reinforcements were arriving, but…

Somehow, I felt that time was on their side.

…I have to admit, the Hope Circuit’s efficiency is truly impressive.

80 percent.

And our circuit was still only at this level.