Chapter 15 : Landmine-type Magical Girl

If you ask me if I have a hobby, there isn’t anything special to mention, but if I had to pick one, maybe it’s walking?

Running and exercising feels bothersome, but I tend to like walking.

I wander around for the fun of seeing the surrounding scenery and people.

Even when passing the same place, what catches my eye changes each time, which is part of the charm.

Now, there’s also the thrill of observing a changed world.

“Yelp……!”

During a walk, a dog belonging to a woman walking from the opposite direction whimpered.

It lowered its tail, hid behind its owner, and started trembling.

“What’s wrong with this guy?”

The owner pulled the leash, but the dog was frozen, not moving at all.

“I’ll pass by.”

I made a wide detour to avoid her and the dog.

A tiny, cute little dog.

It’s adorable enough to want to pet, but I can’t get close. The monster’s smell clinging to its body causes fear.

No matter how much I wash or how many days pass, that smell doesn’t seem to go away. It’s one of the downsides of being a magical girl.

Maybe it’s a story that only applies to me, who has been to the demon realm.

Feeling sad, I kept walking, when I got a call from Gil Ha-eun.

“Lily, dozens of gates are opening all at once. Can you come?”

A tense voice.

I closed my eyes and focused my consciousness.

Although faint, as Gil Ha-eun said, I could feel presences everywhere.

There are quite a lot.

“I can make it, but—”

“That’s great! We were short-handed anyway.”

“I was free anyway.”

“Well, Lily is basically unemployed!”

This one has no filter.

“Want to taste the Scarlet Beam?”

“Ugh, please spare me that!”

I heard destruction sounds over the speaker.

“Are you fighting?”

“Yeah, most of them are E or F rank, so the 5th generation kids are handling it.”

Maybe they’re conserving strength in case of a stronger enemy.

Or maybe they’re the type to use people when they can.

If it’s Aurora Lola, maybe both.

“Oh right, I heard from the support office, this incident might have been intentionally caused by someone.”

“Intentionally?”

“It seems to be different from the usual pattern. Just speculation though.”

The cause of the gate openings is unknown.

No known technology to open them artificially has been developed.

Aurora Lola said it casually, but I was concerned.

“I’ll head over as soon as I’m ready.”

“Thanks!”

I hung up and turned towards home.

Aurora Lola was fighting with the juniors.

“Prioritize evacuating people! It’s okay to just keep them in check!”

Monsters popped out everywhere, and the city fell into chaos.

All magical girls who could be dispatched had been sent out, each struggling in their assigned areas.

“Aqua, hold back on long-range attacks! People might get hit!”

“Ah, got it……!”

Aqua, who had been shooting Water Bullets, switched her magic staff to a sword.

Clumsy swordsmanship.

But she fought with all her might, buying time for people to escape.

“I’ll take this area, you all head to Aqua’s side!”

Following the order, the other juniors moved.

In terms of magic power control, tactics, and combat sense, there is an undeniable experience gap between Aurora Lola and the 5th generation.

They divided roles appropriately and continued fighting.

“Ahh! Save me!”

Looking toward the screams, a man was being chased by a monster.

He couldn’t run far and fell down.

He looked up at the shadowy monster with a desperate expression.

A calm person would get up quickly and escape, but not everyone is brave.

When faced with a giant monster, your body freezes.

Aurora Lola was the same when she was a rookie.

“Yaaah!”

She ran at full speed and swung her hammer.

Bang!

The impact sounded like hitting a car.

The monster flew away, narrowly escaping danger.

“Are you okay?”

I reached out and helped him up.

“Thank you……!”

The man sighed in relief and quickly left the spot.

No matter how many monsters we catch, it never ends.

There’s no time to rest.

“Aurora Crush!”

The hammer swung in a dazzling trail of light, crushing the monster.

Powerful enough to crack the floor.

Most monsters can’t withstand a single blow from Aurora Lola.

The weapon isn’t efficient for fighting multiple enemies simultaneously, but its power is unmatched.

“There haven’t been many like this……”

The lingering sense of discomfort hasn’t disappeared since earlier.

It’s not rare for multiple gates to open at once, but this scale is abnormal.

The words from the support office echoed in my head.

“No use worrying, it won’t solve anything!”

Distractions make the hammer sluggish.

Aurora Lola raised her momentum again.

Right now, the top priority was to reduce the number of monsters as quickly as possible.

“What about Lily?”

Parfait Alpha, who joined along the way, asked.

“She said she’s coming soon!”

If Scarlet Lily comes, she will surely be a great help.

With the efforts exceeding that of ten people, we might be able to resolve the situation all at once.

She was a colleague and senior who gave me that confidence.

Aurora Lola suddenly recalled something Lily once said.

That it was close to a miracle that she could return to Earth.

Having endured for the past ten years, now the juniors alone should be able to manage well, she had said.

Scarlet Lily also believes in herself.

Moreover, the third generation is at their prime.

Relying on a legendary magical girl would be unworthy.

Aurora Lola wanted to show a performance worthy of that trust.

“We can do it ourselves! Everyone, hang in there!”

Those words encouraging the juniors were also meant to steady herself.

At the top of a skyscraper, there was a girl.

A place where only authorized personnel are allowed.

A location that cannot be accessed without using special safety equipment.

She sat dangling her legs there.

There was a risk of falling if she was careless, but there was no sign of fear.

Because the girl could fly.

“The gate really duplicates.”

She muttered as she looked down.

From here, the entire city was visible at a glance.

It was like a great observation deck to watch where the monsters were
and how the magical girls were responding.

“I thought it was nonsense.”

The girl took a small accessory from her pocket.

A magical gem that every magical girl has.

But the one she held was different in appearance and color from the usual.

The crystal embedded in the center was dyed black, and inside it shimmered like ink dropped in water.

This was an item she received from someone else, not hers.

She heard it had the effect of duplicating gates.

She doubted it, but it really was true.

“If they can mass-produce these, it would be a huge deal.”

She felt a slight chill down her spine.

She received this a few days ago.

A package arrived from an anonymous sender, inside was a letter and a magical gem.

The letter contained simple instructions.

It said to use the magical gem on the designated date.

Then, she would be recognized as a member of the organization.

“I don’t know what kind of group it is, but it seems more competent than the support office or magical girls.”

To predict when a gate would open, and even duplicate it.

If that were possible, no one could stop the forces of evil from running rampant.

At this point, she maintained neutrality, but one thing weighed on her mind.

“Where is Scarlet Lily and what is she doing?”

She couldn’t ignore the rumors about her.

Her combat power easily defeats even the S-rank.

It sounded so unrealistic that the girl thought it must be exaggerated.

Even if not entirely false, that was all.

The limits of what one human could do were clear.

If gates opened simultaneously everywhere, they would be powerless.

“Now, show me how you’re going to protect people!”

Would she exceed imagination?

Or would she prove she was just a slightly stronger magical girl?

The girl smirked and looked down at the still chaotic city.

Aurora Lola said they were short-handed, but it seemed manageable.

The supporters handled it skillfully, and the situation was gradually calming down.

“What is she doing over there?”

I stood on the rooftop, looking at a girl.

The tallest building nearby.

There was someone leisurely resting at the very top.

“I can’t see clearly, but she looks like a magical girl. Probably Angelic Luna.”

Frozen Princess, who was with me, squinted.

“Do you know her?”

“She’s a junior. Not close, but I know her face and name.”

I heard Angelic Luna was part of the fourth generation.

“Why is she dressed like that?”

A black miniskirt with black over-knee socks.

She coordinated her black outfit to contrast with her silver hair.

A rare image color among magical girls.

Her outfit didn’t look magical girl-like at all.

“It looks closer to a minefield fashion.”

“Minefield…?”

“It’s been in trend for a few years now.”

“You wouldn’t know.”

I don’t know why it’s called a minefield, but maybe she changed because her magical girl outfit was no good?

I once hated wearing girls’ clothes and tried to take them off, but…

“That makes her look like a villain, not an angel.”

She can’t live up to her nickname.

Besides, I’m still wearing a frilly skirt, and she dares to change her outfit at will?

Kids these days are too undisciplined.

“She might hold some clue.”

I accidentally detected her magical power.

I brought Frozen Princess because I thought her intelligence would be helpful,
and it was definitely an excellent choice.

“Can you catch her?”

“I’ll know when I try, but it doesn’t seem difficult.”

I activated levitation magic.

“I’ll be right back.”

Cutting through the wind, I flew straight toward the girl.