Ch.98Chapter 17. Questions (1)

As I spent time like that, there was one thing I was worried about.

It was an obvious concern—the type of energy I was using had completely reversed.

I’m not naturally someone who can think positively, so I’ve never even considered something like ‘how to summon hope.’

Despairing is simple.

Just compare yourself to others.

Imagining what I can’t do or can’t have is enough.

There were many people around me who were better than me. Hayun was the prime example, and most of the kids around her were better than me too.

I had to study incredibly hard to get into the same high school as Hayun. Even then, I couldn’t be first place.

Fortunately, I could continue attending the same school as Hayun thanks to the donations that came to the orphanage.

It wasn’t particularly pleasant to see kids who attended that school as if it were their birthright while I had to earn money by getting beaten up here and there.

And the fierce inferiority and jealousy that flared up whenever those kids approached Hayun.

Perhaps the reason I responded so sharply to those kids was because that was the only way I could find even a shred of self-esteem.

…Well, I could actually see hope too.

Having a friend like Hayun.

The fact that if I worked hard, I could achieve those kinds of grades.

That even though I was poor, I wasn’t starving.

But no matter how I looked at it, despairing was easier than holding onto hope.

“…”

So, I pondered.

How could I possibly obtain this thing called hope?

Thinking about when I was in battle, Hayun played the biggest role. It seemed I found hope in the thought that Hayun would always be by my side.

It was embarrassingly sentimental—my face would flush just thinking about it—but what could I do? That’s how my mind worked.

The problem was that right now, even with Hayun hugging me, I couldn’t generate that kind of energy.

“Hey, could you let go of me for a moment?”

Thankfully I was already awake early in the morning, otherwise I might not have made it there on time, which sent chills down my spine.

Since I’d already transported once, I thought I could do it again the same way. Should I have tested it properly the day before?

“Why? I think charging energy like this should help you transport.”

Hayun, who was tightly hugging my waist, said.

Well, that might be true… but.

My wrist circuit was already emitting a bright light. I could feel quite strong vibrations, but it didn’t seem like they would get any stronger.

Thinking about it, had I perhaps adapted?

That’s right.

Despair was the same. When that despair became routine, the stimulus weakened over time, and the circuit’s output weakened too.

Beyond that, the problem was that shocking things kept happening to me.

Could hope be the same?

Hayun is my hope, and I feel hope from the fact that she’s by my side, but perhaps I’ve become too accustomed to her always being there.

Come to think of it, that makes sense. If my circuit went haywire every time Hayun hugged me, I should have been transported far away every morning when I woke up. And with Hayun and Ju-a too.

The description sounds a bit strange, but there’s no other way to describe it, is there?

Yes, that must be it.

If so, the method is…

As I stood there blankly, Ju-a, who had been standing at a distance, approached me and gently grabbed my sleeve.

Then, just like she did every night, she rested her forehead against my body. This time it was against my arm, not my back.

“J-Ju-a?”

“If I do this, the circuit worked better before.”

I just closed my eyes.

I couldn’t bear to look at the other magical girls standing around the three of us. Especially because I could imagine what expression Rose would be making.

It’s good that the children don’t look at us strangely. True to the rumors that magical girls are righteous, they’re quite open-minded in many ways, so they didn’t look at us strangely for doing this.

No, they did look at us strangely in a different sense. But it was more of a weirdly warm gaze than a “strange look,” which was embarrassing and annoying in its own way.

“…”

But you know what, even with Ju-a clinging to me like this, it still wasn’t working.

For the same reason as with Hayun—if Ju-a sticking to me was enough to make me transport through space, I should have been far away every night.

I keep using suggestive words, but I mean them literally.

When Jihye hugged me, it worked immediately.

I gently opened my eyes to look at the circuit on my left wrist. It was still spinning intensely and emitting white light… it was definitely powerful enough energy to attempt a strong attack in battle, but it didn’t seem sufficient for spatial transportation.

When Jihye hugged me, was it because it had been so long?

Jihye is the most ordinary person I know. Ironically, because of the location of the school I attended and my current situation, there wasn’t anyone completely ordinary among those I was personally close with.

That’s why it made me happy that Jihye, that ordinary girl, was there for me even in such moments.

If you have power or authority or money, you can ignore the pressure from others.

But without those things, it made me happy that she steadfastly supported me and considered me family despite the pressure from those around her.

Ah, the circuit glowed a bit brighter.

“Hmm.”

Hearing that sound from beside me, I turned my head to see Hayun looking up at me with half-closed eyes.

Hayun wasn’t the type to make such expressions.

If I had to compare, it was the kind of expression she made when I was teasing James, but for some reason she was making that face now.

Objectively speaking, Hayun’s expression wasn’t particularly scary. It couldn’t be. With her pure, beautiful features and pink hair, how scary could she look when angry?

I’d hardly ever seen her angry before anyway.

And yet, seeing that expression on Hayun’s face was a little frightening.

“…I see.”

What did she see? I wish she’d explain what she meant instead of just understanding it by herself.

But before I could open my mouth to say anything, Hayun stood on her tiptoes.

And then—

“Ah!?”

Who made that sound?

Was it Ju-a, who was sticking close to me and looking up at me like Hayun? Or was it Rose, who was grinning? Or Dalia or Delphinium?

Perhaps the same sound came from my mouth too.

My mouth wasn’t “blocked,” so I could make sounds properly.

But I definitely felt something soft brush against my cheek near my lips.

Hayun’s face, which had suddenly come close, moved back.

Her face was flushed red as if it might burst. Judging by her trembling gaze, even Hayun herself was extremely embarrassed by the kiss on the cheek.

But even so, seeing her face as she somehow managed to look at me with a bright smile—

—before I could even think about it, a white light enveloped us.

*

What just happened?

No, I think I understand the principle.

Of course, when someone you like does something that suggests they like you too, it’s natural to feel that kind of hope.

Whether it was really to use my power, or if she thought it was okay to do that much because we’re such close friends.

…But I didn’t have time for such concerns.

As you’ll remember, we were trying to transport to confront the Noir Corporation chairman who was being summoned to the prosecution.

And naturally, there were already a huge number of reporters lining the path the chairman would take.

As luck would have it, I appeared right in the middle of those reporters’ cameras.

If I had appeared quietly without any special effects, it might not have been a big problem. But whether it’s despair or hope, light emanates from the circuit either way.

And to appear holding a hammer, wearing a white dress with the upper chest slightly exposed, flanked by two beautiful magical girls…

“…”

I felt like I might faint.

I was already unable to collect my thoughts because of Hayun’s kiss just moments ago, and my heart was pounding as if it might burst.

On top of that, Ju-a was staring with wide eyes, her face bright red, and Hayun was also looking at me with a flushed face.

For reference, the chairman wasn’t here yet.

Click, click… no, there were so many shutter sounds that it almost sounded like “cha-cha-chak-chak.”

As I stood there blankly with my mouth open, I felt someone poking my back with their finger.

When I turned around, Rose was there.

Her face was also flushed red, but I couldn’t tell if it was because she was embarrassed after seeing Hayun’s actions or if she was on the verge of suffocation from trying not to laugh too hard.

“I think you should say something if you have anything to say.”

But her voice came out properly without breaking.

I slowly turned my gaze back to the reporters.

Where I was standing is commonly known as the “photo line.” It’s where prosecution officials come out to make announcements, or where people who have finished being questioned inside stand briefly in the spotlight.

“…”

Why am I here?

Ah, come to think of it, I’ve never actually been to a place like this. The closest thing to a government institution I know is the local police station and community center in my neighborhood. So I only know about places like the “Prosecutor’s Office” from internet articles.

If I unconsciously aimed for that place, I suppose I would naturally end up in the scene I’ve seen before.

What should I do?

Should I let go of Ju-a and Hayun first before speaking?

But actually, I’m not the one holding them. Rather, they’re holding onto me.

Hayun was tightly hugging my right arm, and Ju-a was holding near my wrist. So unless I deliberately shake them off, they would remain stuck to my side.

But if I forcibly detach them here, our image would be terrible. We need to appear as if we’re all cooperating and wanting to confront the chairman, but that wouldn’t work.

In the end, unable to do anything, I opened my mouth.

“…Today, I heard that the chairman of Noir Corporation is coming here.”

Once again, I heard the sound of shutters. It was still such an intense sound that it made me stagger.

“I apologize to those who are trying to investigate this person, but we want to confront this person in our own way.”

Somehow I managed to gather my thoughts and speak, and my voice came out. I wonder what I should think about to regain my composure in situations like this.

While thinking positive thoughts, I slowly regained my rationality.

“I don’t trust this country’s government.”

That’s what I said.

Was it too provocative?

But it was the truth.

“When I was in the hospital, falsely accused of being a terrorist, the people who tried to transfer me elsewhere were sent by the government. No, even if those people weren’t from the government, it’s still strange. Wasn’t the place where I was hospitalized clearly a national hospital? Whether it was Federation people trying to take me away or corporate people, whether it was agreed upon with the government or not, there’s no way I could trust the government.”

The reporters’ gazes were fixed on me. Flashes went off again, and shutter sounds were heard. Several smartphones bundled together were thrust closer to me.

Is anyone broadcasting live right now?

Cameras that were initially pointed toward the direction where vehicles would enter quickly turned toward us.

Even if they weren’t broadcasting live, they must at least be recording by now.

None of the reporters interrupted my words.

Do they think every word is newsworthy? Or are they following some kind of reporting guidelines?

“The people who followed me right after that were police officers. I was shot with live ammunition and wires several times, collapsed, and barely managed to escape. If I had been caught there, I might have met the same fate as those kaijin you saw last time. How could someone like me possibly trust the government?”

No one is trying to stop me.

Is it because I’m a magical girl?

No, I can feel the children standing firmly behind me.

Rose, Dalia, and Delphinium were standing behind me, watching my back.

If anyone tried to rush at me, they would surely be stopped by those three.

It’s reassuring.

Thanks to Hayun and Ju-a standing beside me, I could feel that I wasn’t alone.

The circuit was stabilizing, but that didn’t mean the energy was decreasing. Rather, it was extracting energy more stably and lending me strength.

“I can’t stop that person from talking to government officials. I can’t disregard the people of this country. But before that, I wanted to meet face-to-face and have a conversation. Before they possibly conspire with those in high positions to obtain immunity, I wanted to meet directly and ask.”

The reporters held their breath. Maybe it’s just my imagination, but the flashes and shutter sounds seemed to have decreased a bit.

“Why they treated me that way. Why they’re doing such things here. What exactly they’re doing to people.”

The flashes went off again. Shutter sounds were heard.

“I want to ask each question one by one. Face to face so they can’t make excuses. Because—”

My mind was completely clear now.

I stared straight ahead, almost glaring, as I spoke.

“—because it’s something I couldn’t do before.”

Yes. I couldn’t do it.

It’s almost impossible for an ordinary employee of a large corporation to face the chairman.

But even so.

If the company has truly wronged those beneath it, if it has treated lives as disposable as flies.

Shouldn’t they at least come and explain the reason to the person themselves?

It’s a world where money can buy people, but shouldn’t they at least offer proper value?

Getting injured while fighting as a combatant was unavoidable. I volunteered for it for the donations.

But framing me as a terrorist for something I didn’t do and trying to make me that way—I simply cannot understand it.

I probably wouldn’t forgive them even if I understood, but who knows?

If we meet, they properly explain the situation, there’s a plausible reason, and they sincerely apologize to me.

Maybe I could forgive them after just hitting them a few times.

“I have a question!”

Thinking I had finished speaking, a reporter who was holding a smartphone as close as possible to me raised one hand and shouted.

When I looked at them, the reporter said:

“If the Noir Corporation chairman saw the current situation, don’t you think there’s a possibility they would immediately turn the car around and flee? What do you think?”

That’s right. I had considered that possibility too.

I had even thought about the possibility that they might not come at all.

“It takes time to drive from Noir Corporation headquarters to here. And of course, I calculated that.”

We haven’t just been playing around for a week.

We confirmed the time the chairman would be summoned and calculated the travel time from headquarters to here. Actually, it took a bit longer to figure out how I would get here, so the timing was slightly off.

So the chairman would have come a little “further” than we expected.

Even if they turned the car around now, it would be too late.

“So, I’m going to go look for them now.”

I said.

There’s a high possibility that there’s nothing special at the headquarters. Maybe the chairman won’t even be there.

But, well.

It would be good if they’re there, and it doesn’t matter if they’re not.

That was the plan from the beginning, wasn’t it?

All I want—

Is for that chairman to wet their pants in fear.

To return to them in full the emotions I felt back then.