Chapter 5 : Pajama Room

I didn’t go to the demon world just to get a magical elixir.

It was more of an accident.

The trigger was Stella’s death.

After losing a comrade in the final battle, I swore revenge and crossed the gate recklessly.

I left the aftermath to another comrade, Spica.

I thought I had fulfilled my duty as a magical girl by defeating my arch-nemesis.

A lot happened over the past 10 years, and the monster invasions have started again.

In the end, it didn’t turn out much differently from when I just debuted.

“Tot…”

I sighed, staring at the empty glass bottle.

I had used the elixir I had somehow obtained.

The plan to finish my transformation and graduate was shattered, and unless I found another way, I was going to live my life as a magical girl forever.

“I can’t even say it’s a waste…”

I used it to save a person’s life.

Frozen Princess is my junior.

I couldn’t turn my back after seeing her life hanging in the balance.

Even though I was there to watch how well she fought, I had been lounging around, so it was my own fault…

[Title: Frozen Princess Discharged from the Hospital]

They say she’s fine.

• Did she withstand that beam?
• It wasn’t the Scarlet Beam, it was a monster beam.
• Don’t hurt! T_T

Hearing that she was safe, I was relieved too.

Although not as much as before, magical girls still have an air of mystery about them.

She must have visited the hospital under her civilian identity.

Or maybe she had a specialized medical team.

Anyway, it was rewarding to have saved her at the cost of my retirement rights.

“She’s treated like an idol.”

Looking around the community, it seemed like Frozen Princess had a lot of fans.

They were pouring out their affection and worrying about her health.

“Well, even in my time, there were figure-type goods…”

While I was thinking about it, I searched my name.

Typing “Scarlet Figure” into the search bar, several sites came up.

“Used… 20,000 won.”

Despair.

It’s understandable since I last worked as a magical girl 10 years ago, but still, it was bitter.

…Why am I so affected by these things?

I used to be embarrassed about the new figures when they first came out.

“Ugh… But maybe my value has gone up a bit?”

Could it be that the counterfeit Scarlet’s actions weren’t enough?

I thought maybe once my true identity was revealed, it might get re-evaluated, but honestly, I was a little nervous about facing a fanbase even larger than before.

If I were to debut again, I honestly wouldn’t have the confidence.

I’m an old-school magical girl who only knows the classics!

While surfing through the sea of information, a video caught my attention.

“VTuber…?”

It’s short for Virtual YouTuber.

It seemed to refer to streamers using 2D or 3D avatars.

It was a concept I wasn’t familiar with.

“There’s so much out there now.”

Now that I think of it, there were streamers even among magical girls.

I searched for them, and a few were streaming.

Among them was a familiar face.

“Aurora Lola, still doing it steadily.”

She wasn’t a top-tier VTuber, but she was just as popular among magical girls.

Aurora Lola had tens of thousands of followers.

She didn’t fall behind compared to most VTubers.

“Maybe I should watch for a bit.”

I had only briefly met her on the first day I returned to Earth, but for some reason, I was intrigued.

Maybe it was because she had taken a photo when we defeated the monster called the monkey not long ago.

The composition and timing of that photo were so perfect that it had become a meme.

As I kept watching, a message appeared in the corner of the screen.

[‘Pastel Taste’ has donated 10,000 won!]

So this is how they make money.

Just being a magical girl guarantees at least some viewers.

I would need to find my own concept.

Most importantly, interacting with fans seemed fun.

“I can see how they might fall into this…”

A little, but I could relate to the younger generation now.

It was a weekday afternoon.

As the sun began to set, the doorbell rang.

“Who is it?”

Yucia, who was preparing dinner, headed for the door.

Since I don’t have a wide network, I had a good idea of who it might be.

When I opened the door, there was Gil Ha-eun, grinning.

“Hehe, I was bored, so I came to visit.”

She had a plastic bag in her hand.

It seemed like she had stopped by a convenience store on her way here.

“Couldn’t you at least have contacted me before coming?”

“I live just nearby, so why bother?”

“It’s about manners!”

“You’re being picky. You were free anyway.”

“I wasn’t free, you know?”

Gil Ha-eun kicked off her shoes, walked in, and plopped down on the sofa.

“Yucia’s place is cozy. I could stay here forever.”

“Don’t even dream about it.”

Despite my disbelief, Yucia sat beside her.

“By the way, you look good and healthy! Is your body all healed up?”

“I’m better, but mentally, I’m still tired.”

“Is it because you used too much magic?”

“I don’t know. It could be because of the medicine I took that day.”

Yucia was a third-generation magical girl who went by the name Frozen Princess.

Her classmate and close friend, Gil Ha-eun, was Aurora Lola.

The two often met like this to strengthen their friendship.

“Is that the elixir you got from the demon world? Bringing someone back from the brink of death is impressive. If you had kept some, it might’ve revolutionized the medical field.”

Gil Ha-eun joked, but it wasn’t a realistic idea.

“It was a potion that purifies and amplifies magic. If you weren’t a magical girl, it would’ve been just plain water.”

Even so, it was fascinating.

Thanks to it, Yucia, who had been prepared for death, was saved.

Her wounds healed within minutes, and she returned without needing to go to the hospital.

“Were you preparing dinner?”

“Yeah, but what’s in that secret bag?”

“Oh, this is just some snacks.”

Gil Ha-eun took something out of the bag.

She placed various snacks and a few cans of beer on the table.

“Are you trying to make the patient drink?”

“She looks fine, so what’s the problem? Maybe I’ll do a drinking stream today.”

She took her laptop out of the bag and powered it on.

“Don’t stream in my house.”

“I’m just kidding. I won’t do anything that’ll expose my identity.”

“I don’t really feel like transforming just for a stream.”

“Please, just let it go~.”

Gil Ha-eun, acting cute, made her way to the kitchen while Yucia stayed at the table.

“Are you going to eat?”

“If I can try Frozen Princess’s homemade cooking, that would be an honor.”

“Didn’t we agree not to call me that when I’m not in disguise?”

“Hehe, right.”

Voices started flowing out of the laptop.

“Is it fun?”

Yucia asked while chopping vegetables with a kitchen knife.

“What?”

“The stream.”

“It’s just something to do. I don’t really have anything else going on.”

“I don’t really get what’s fun about it.”

Not every magical girl becomes a streamer.

Not all contractors have a talent for entertainment, so those who are not suited for it can’t do it even if they want to.

“Why don’t you try it? You’d probably be really popular.”

She had heard this kind of thing many times, but Yucia wasn’t very interested.

“I can’t do it. I’m bad at talking in front of others.”

“You’re talking naturally now.”

“That’s different.”

“It’s a shame. I wanted to do a joint stream with Frozen Princess.”

Just because someone is a magical girl doesn’t mean they’ll do well in streaming.

Skills like speaking and a sense of humor are essential, and Yucia didn’t match that.

“About Scarlet, do you think we should grab her if we meet her again?”

The topic shifted.

Her voice carried a trace of concern.

“Well… I’m not sure we could even grab her, but I’m not sure if we really need to.”

Gil Ha-eun didn’t have a clear answer to this either.

“Even if she’s not on the list, Scarlet’s a magical girl. We should treat her as a comrade.”

“Didn’t you change your mind from last time?”

“At that time, I didn’t know what kind of person she was.”

“I understand wanting to defend her since she saved your life. Mmm.”

“That’s not the main reason. This has to do with our identity too.”

Other members had split opinions.

Some said actions shouldn’t be made unilaterally, while others argued that since she didn’t do anything wrong, they should let it slide.

“How about trying to talk to her?”

Gil Ha-eun made a random suggestion.

“Didn’t you not know where she is?”

“That’s true, but if I do it right, I might find out.”

“…?”

Gil Ha-eun turned the laptop towards Yucia.

“Look at this person.”

A girl with pink hair was lying on a hotel bed, apparently sleeping.

It looked like a live stream.

“She looks like Scarlet…”

“The nickname is Scarlet Lily. Looks like she made this account recently since she doesn’t have any followers.”

There were three viewers.

The videos and photos circulating around were blurry since they were taken from a distance, but Yucia, who had seen her up close, could recognize her immediately.

It was her.

“What’s going on here?”

“She’s doing a sleep stream. She’s just showing herself sleeping.”

“Why?”

“People have different reasons for doing it… I think she’s just a clueless newbie.”

Yucia stared at the screen for a while before standing up.

“I’ll go check it out.”

She hurriedly started preparing to go out.

“Where are you going?”

“To where Scarlet is.”

“Did you figure out where she is just from watching this?”

“Not exactly, but I have a way.”

Without hesitation, she opened the front door and left.

“Yawn…”

I stretched and raised my upper body.

I had wandered around the streets aimlessly, trying to adjust to this changed world.

After walking all day, I returned to my accommodation and collapsed into bed.

I tried a sleep stream as a side thing…

“What’s this?”

For some reason, a towel was covering the webcam.

I got off the bed, removed the towel, and checked my laptop.

I almost fainted.

“Why are there so many people?!”

[1039 viewers watching]

The number of viewers was far beyond my expectations.

• She’s awakeᄏᄏᄏᄏ
• Good morning
• Finally woke upᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏ
• You were being watchedᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏ
• Wow, so cute
• Frozen Princess didn’t even know she was sleeping so soundlyᄏᄏᄏᄏ
• What did you do yesterday to sleep so deeply?
• ᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏᄏ
• Frozen Princess was in the room earlier
• Let us hear more of your voice!

What the heck is going on…

My mind was racing, but I quickly gave up on thinking.

End of stream.