Chapter 27: Breathe

[You should have expected this. Just run away or surrender.]

The ghost brat’s buzzing was even more grating than the blaring siren, but I ignored it and moved quickly.

No, I was sure I landed without triggering any surveillance.

It’s so unfair it makes me feel resentful.

If I remember correctly, the section for consumable items should be this way.

I walked through the dark warehouse, relying on the faint light.

The sound of my footsteps was drowned out by the blaring siren, making me feel dizzy.

“What the hell is this?”

Instead of the familiar brand of magic cigarettes, the shelves were filled with even more familiar boxes of preserved food.

Solid white carbohydrate blocks.

Did they change the storage layout?

Well, it has been about half a year, and they’ve done some expansion, so the internal structure might have changed as well.

Just the thought of having to search from scratch is overwhelming. I don’t have time for this.

I have no intention of fighting magical girls right now.

If possible, I need to find a map or a directory quickly.

Otherwise, I’ll have to catch someone and force them to reveal the location.

Judging from the distant sounds of hurried footsteps and the ongoing siren, the latter option seems impossible.

“What’s this…?”

As I glanced around the interior in dismay, something strange caught my eye.

Bright red, heart-shaped objects, resembling grenades but with safety pins attached and a pineapple-like texture.

The safety pins were tied with wire, and the heart grenades were bundled together and attached to the boxes.

Too intricate to be a toy, and the unnatural placement raised suspicion.

Some of the grenades had small electronic devices attached, flashing red lights intermittently.

It looked just like a bomb setup from a spy comedy movie.

A bombing attack?

Sometimes, while zoning out in the morning, I would half-listen to the news.

There were occasional reports about bombing attacks targeting major facilities overseas.

News about rogue magical girl organizations conducting terrorist acts also appeared.

I’ve never heard of such an incident happening in Korea, but I can’t just ignore the evidence right in front of me.

Could the ones who set this up be the ones who triggered the siren too?

Now that I think about it, there were reports about a bombing targeting the Magical Girl Association’s headquarters.

Whoever the terrorists are, I just wish they’d focus on catching them and leave me alone to live quietly and peacefully.

[Let’s get out of here first. If this really is a bombing attack, staying here might drag in the people who came to capture you.]

I retorted, asking if it wasn’t worried about me, and slowly made my way out.

Yeah.

I can endure for a day or two.

It’s not like I’m going to die just because I don’t smoke.

…Instead of smoking, I could just hold Yujin’s hand one more time, or hug her one more time.

I felt stupid for thinking that.

The whole reason I started smoking again was to put some distance between us.

But if it’s like this, then what’s the point?

I don’t know anymore.

I should get out first and think it over slowly.

As I stepped out of the warehouse—

I ran into them.

A girl with sky-blue hair tied to the side, wearing a frilly, childish pink dress covered in ruffles.

She held a black star-shaped staff and had a strange smile on her face.

Next to her was a tall, slender woman with wavy pink hair, an eyepatch covering her left eye, and a cigarette in her mouth.

As soon as she saw me, she grabbed the massive black harpoon gun that had been resting on her shoulder, aimed it at me with both hands, then slung it back over her shoulder.

[You should have expected this. Just run away or surrender.]

The ghost brat’s buzzing was even more grating than the blaring siren, but I ignored it and moved quickly.

No, I was sure I landed without triggering any surveillance.

It’s so unfair it makes me feel resentful.

If I remember correctly, the section for consumable items should be this way.

I walked through the dark warehouse, relying on the faint light.

The sound of my footsteps was drowned out by the blaring siren, making me feel dizzy.

“What the hell is this?”

Instead of the familiar brand of magic cigarettes, the shelves were filled with even more familiar boxes of preserved food.

Solid white carbohydrate blocks.

Did they change the storage layout?

Well, it has been about half a year, and they’ve done some expansion, so the internal structure might have changed as well.

Just the thought of having to search from scratch is overwhelming. I don’t have time for this.

I have no intention of fighting magical girls right now.

If possible, I need to find a map or a directory quickly.

Otherwise, I’ll have to catch someone and force them to reveal the location.

Judging from the distant sounds of hurried footsteps and the ongoing siren, the latter option seems impossible.

“What’s this…?”

As I glanced around the interior in dismay, something strange caught my eye.

Bright red, heart-shaped objects, resembling grenades but with safety pins attached and a pineapple-like texture.

The safety pins were tied with wire, and the heart grenades were bundled together and attached to the boxes.

Too intricate to be a toy, and the unnatural placement raised suspicion.

Some of the grenades had small electronic devices attached, flashing red lights intermittently.

It looked just like a bomb setup from a spy comedy movie.

A bombing attack?

Sometimes, while zoning out in the morning, I would half-listen to the news.

There were occasional reports about bombing attacks targeting major facilities overseas.

News about rogue magical girl organizations conducting terrorist acts also appeared.

I’ve never heard of such an incident happening in Korea, but I can’t just ignore the evidence right in front of me.

Could the ones who set this up be the ones who triggered the siren too?

Now that I think about it, there were reports about a bombing targeting the Magical Girl Association’s headquarters.

Whoever the terrorists are, I just wish they’d focus on catching them and leave me alone to live quietly and peacefully.

[Let’s get out of here first. If this really is a bombing attack, staying here might drag in the people who came to capture you.]

I retorted, asking if it wasn’t worried about me, and slowly made my way out.

Yeah.

I can endure for a day or two.

It’s not like I’m going to die just because I don’t smoke.

…Instead of smoking, I could just hold Yujin’s hand one more time, or hug her one more time.

I felt stupid for thinking that.

The whole reason I started smoking again was to put some distance between us.

But if it’s like this, then what’s the point?

I don’t know anymore.

I should get out first and think it over slowly.

As I stepped out of the warehouse—

I ran into them.

A girl with sky-blue hair tied to the side, wearing a frilly, childish pink dress covered in ruffles.

She held a black star-shaped staff and had a strange smile on her face.

Next to her was a tall, slender woman with wavy pink hair, an eyepatch covering her left eye, and a cigarette in her mouth.

As soon as she saw me, she grabbed the massive black harpoon gun that had been resting on her shoulder, aimed it at me with both hands, then slung it back over her shoulder.