Chapter 31: Harbouring Hope (7)

Relationship.

In that fleeting moment, what Ianna recalled was her relationship with Byeolmuri.

To Ianna, Han Byeolhwa had been an ordinary girl who hadn’t left much of an impression.

If there was anything unusual, it was that she was always alone.

Worried that she might have been ostracized or wondered why she didn’t interact with the other magical girls, Ianna had asked her directly.

The only response she ever received was:

“I don’t need them…”

Han Byeolhwa seemed to struggle with approaching others.

She seemed clumsy when it came to expressing emotions.

That was why—

Ianna had wanted to teach her about the hearts of people.

After all, humans couldn’t live alone.

Someday, Byeolhwa might make friends, or find someone she liked.

But it wasn’t as if Ianna treated her any more specially than the others.

Just like with the other magical girls, she took care of her in various ways and spoke to her often, hoping Byeolhwa would get a little more used to conversation.

The more they talked, the more Ianna could feel Byeolhwa opening her heart.

She realized that Byeolhwa was a good kid—albeit with some childish tendencies.

Strong-willed, emotional, and hot-tempered.

That was the evaluation Ianna had given Han Byeolhwa.

Still, when it came to her sense of justice, she was second to none.

She couldn’t stand to see injustice.

She had clashed with the Bureau multiple times for disobeying orders, and each time she stuck firmly to her convictions and never backed down.

She was a commendable child.

In many ways.

“…W-What are you doing?”

“Byeolhwa is a good kid. I know everything.”

What Ianna said was simple.

“I know everything.”

Of course, she didn’t know anything at all.

It was just a high-level tactic to avoid confrontation. Most naïve magical girls would open their hearts with just that one line.

Ianna’s hand reached out toward Byeolhwa’s head.

Startled, Byeolhwa almost dropped Ianna’s body, but Ianna didn’t mind and simply patted Byeolhwa’s head.

Flustered, Byeolhwa was momentarily at a loss for words.

And Ianna became convinced she had made the right choice.

She didn’t understand why Byeolhwa was so angry at her and her adjutant.

She didn’t know what kind of gaze she had used to look at Byeolhwa.

She had always worn the same dazed, unfocused eyes.

If that gaze was unpleasant, then Byeolhwa could just look somewhere else.

Ianna’s mind was clearer than ever.

The excessive sedatives injected into her system were calming her whole body.

Of course, there were side effects—horrifying ones she couldn’t even begin to list.

Ianna was regaining her clarity at the cost of what little life she had left.

And the side effects wouldn’t manifest immediately.

There was still time.

Even if only a little.

All the random thoughts that had been weighing down Ianna’s mind were gradually vanishing.

Her emotions, too, were disappearing one by one—fear, sadness, anger.

It was as if Ianna’s “colour” was disappearing.

In Byeolhwa’s eyes, Ianna now appeared to be a being of pure white, devoid of any color.

Ianna’s mind was working more sharply than ever.

The shackles of her past traumas and the traces of her regression into childlike behaviour had temporarily disappeared.

The magical girl of Janwol.

Calm, composed, and always thoughtful—that was the version of Ianna that seemed to have returned.

Ianna had always been relatively smart.

Otherwise, she would’ve long since been devoured by Misangche or died from a sneak attack in the shadows.

“A-Answer me! Why… why did you look at me like that…?”

Byeolhwa shouted with all her might, resting her head in Ianna’s cold hand.

“…What kind of look?”

“L-Like… like everyone else… scared of me… that kind of look…”

For a very brief moment, through Byeolhwa’s agitated words, Ianna grasped the full picture.

What she had been feeling was fear of magical girls.

Right now, with her system flooded by sedatives, she felt nothing at all—but earlier, she had indeed felt fear when looking at Byeolhwa’s magical girl form.

To overcome it, she had tried initiating conversation.

And paranoid Byeolhwa, perceiving that fear, had reacted explosively.

Around Byeolhwa, there was a strange presence of Ether energy.

Even ordinary people who couldn’t see Ether would instinctively feel discomfort at the overwhelming energy surrounding her.

Ianna could now fully understand.

What had triggered this.

Why Byeolhwa had gotten so worked up.

She figured it all out in just a short moment.

Having confirmed it, Ianna tilted her head slightly to check on the fallen adjutant.

Still convulsing, but it didn’t seem life-threatening.

Given Byeolhwa’s personality, Ianna didn’t believe she would kill someone so rashly.

It was time to clear up the misunderstanding.

It might take some time, but compared to their relationship, it was nothing.

Ianna had already decided what to say.

“It’s a misunderstanding, Byeolhwa.”

“…B-But you definitely looked at me that way! You were terrified of me…!”

“That’s true. But it wasn’t you I was scared of.”

Byeolhwa stared intently at Ianna, unconvinced.

And Ianna—

“I was scared of the magical girl.”

—spoke the truth.

Ianna was smiling faintly—a small smile she hadn’t worn in what felt like ages.

It was the smile Byeolhwa remembered.

Even though much had changed, even though their roles had been completely reversed, even though sacrifices had been made due to misunderstandings, Ianna was smiling brighter than ever.

“What do you mean…”

Byeolhwa trailed off unconsciously.

“This.”

Smiling softly with her finger pressed against her lips, Ianna removed her uniform to show her belly.

Her pale, small abdomen—still marred with unhealed wounds and surgical scars.

“…”

Byeolhwa was momentarily at a loss for words.

Trauma.

It wasn’t that Ianna feared her.

It was trauma, left behind by what she had suffered at the hands of Heosang and Cheonching.

Trauma against all magical girls, including Byeolhwa herself.

Byeolhwa, without even realizing it, pulled Ianna into her arms.

One hand on her waist, the other gently tracing her abdomen, she caressed Ianna’s cold body.

And then—

Clear, transparent tears slid down Byeolhwa’s slender cheeks.

What began as a slow trickle soon became a flood, pouring down like a waterfall.

Realizing she had acted out of a misunderstanding, realizing she had assaulted an innocent person in her anger, Byeolhwa felt so disgusted with herself that she could barely endure it.

Ianna gently wiped away Byeolhwa’s tears, soothing her with comforting words and stroking her head.

This wasn’t the first time.

On days when Byeolhwa made mistakes, on days when she was crushed by unbearable guilt, Ianna had always been the one to come find her and hug her tightly.

It wasn’t special treatment.

Ianna had kept an eye on all magical girls and comforted each one whenever their mental or emotional state became unstable.

A small act of kindness, but one that had been an immense comfort to the magical girls.

“It’s okay. Byeolhwa is a good kid. You’ve worked hard.”

Ianna patted Byeolhwa’s shoulder, and Byeolhwa, overwhelmed, hugged her even tighter.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sorry…… hng, ngh…….”

She couldn’t hold herself up anymore.

Byeolhwa collapsed to the cold floor soaked with Ianna’s traces.

Ianna hugged her tightly, stroking her head.

Even though her precious adjutant might have been hurt, she understood that it had all come from a misunderstanding.

She knew the Han Byeolhwa she remembered would never commit such acts out of malice.

She knew the situation Byeolhwa was trapped in.

She knew how far her mind had been driven.

She knew she had no one else to rely on but Ianna.

So she simply held her.

There was nothing more she could do.

She had already accepted she had nothing left to offer.

Knowing that death awaited her, she said nothing—and simply soothed Byeolhwa, holding her close.

She wanted to be a great comfort to Byeolhwa.

“Hng, ngh… huff, sniff…….”

Byeolhwa clung to Ianna, sobbing uncontrollably, and Ianna used her own clothes to wipe Byeolhwa’s tear-streaked face.

She said nothing, only continued to hold her tightly.

Her touch was cold, but she wanted to convey warmth.

To remind Byeolhwa that she was not alone in this world.

That somewhere, someone would always stand by her.

Parent.

Byeolhwa, who had never felt parental warmth in her life, finally felt it now.

Even though—

Ianna herself had never known a parent’s warmth either.

Byeolhwa finally became certain.

That this person could never have willingly led magical girls to their deaths.

That someone this kind-hearted could never have tried to kill them.

That everything had been part of some larger conspiracy.

That she must have been controlled. Threatened.

“Alright, Janwol-nim.”

As Byeolhwa struggled to speak, determined to uncover the truth—

“…Just what have you done?”

A grave-faced Hojoon appeared, accompanied by a group of artificial girls.