Chapter 9 : Trying to Change the Genre of This Novel

I watched Haruko use her bloomed ability in the apartment’s empty lot together.

Of course, it was basic to put up an illusion curtain on the empty lot so that no one could see.

[Fairy Tale] Magical Girl’s Unique Skill

Oral Storytelling

“Mr. W-Wolf! Hold the drum and do 10 s-squats!”

Scribble scribble

From the tip of Haruko’s unique weapon, an earth-colored feather pen, earth-colored starlight came out like ink, allowing her to leave writing in the air.

The small stories she wrote down in the air. Summoned creatures moved to make those stories a reality.

A 2-meter-sized paper werewolf that looked like it was made by crumpling origami. It repeats awkward squats while holding a drum on both shoulders, making a low howling sound.

A ridiculous posture with the buttocks sticking out far back.

With its crude paper body, it was at its limit to slowly perform such stiff actions.

Clang!

After repeating the squat 10 times, the wolf threw away the drum as if it had been waiting for this moment, and returned to its original posture of standing with all its strength relaxed.

“N-No! Where do you just s-stand up right after the command ends!”

“Busujima-san, I think the sheep got hit by what the wolf threw?”

“Uwaaaah!! Mr. Pig, heal!!”

Scribble scribble

The command that Haruko hastily scrawled in the air glowed. The hastily written letters were a mess, almost like a scribble, but the summoned creatures understood the command.

When the paper boar touched the crumpled paper sheep that had been hit by the drum with its tusk, the paper sheep returned to its original plump state like a paper balloon.

Even without commands, the summoned creatures tried to act naturally while observing Haruko’s reactions in their own way.

‘It’s not a powerful ability, but summoned creatures that move completely autonomously on their own are quite unique.’

For magical girls who have completed blooming, the attributes of their basic magic also change, influenced by the characteristics of their unique skills. However, types where the basic magic itself changes into summoned creatures were extremely rare even in the original work.

‘The protagonist Shikishima Yuki’s basic magic only went as far as producing flame shapes.’

The magic of the [Fairy Tale] magical girl was a unique form comparable to the level of the [Machine Gun] magical girl who performs all magic with machine guns.

My magic, which has the attribute of illusion magic due to the characteristic of [Deception], can be considered unique, but Haruko’s magic, which even changes its activation conditions, was more and more fascinating the more I looked at it.

‘There weren’t many bloomed magical girls appearing in the original work to begin with.’

Scribble scribble

Haruko, who had been writing in proper handwriting, now changed to writing in cursive, roughly conveying just the intention. Rather, the summoned creatures moved more naturally to match those commands.

An order to properly show each of their abilities once.

The wolf exercises physical strength, taking on the characteristics of psychic power.

When the wolf took a front biceps pose with both arms bent above its head, the drums scattered around the empty lot rose at an incredible speed.

The wolf’s chest swelled up. And from the chest that had swollen to a level comparable to the paper sheep, earth-colored starlight burst out along with its breath.

Whoosh

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

The drums, wrapped in starlight, were neatly arranged at an even faster speed.

A completely tidied empty lot.

“Busujima-san, then shall we try using Blink again?”

“Hehe! Y-Yes.”

Scribble scribble

Baa-

The paper sheep hopped over and rushed at us with its limbs spread wide in a pose, and with a feeling of being dragged somewhere, we had moved from our position facing the apartment to in front of the shabby metal stairs.

“It’s really unique no matter how many times I see it.”

“Hehe. I-I didn’t know I could use something like this either.”

“It’s an ability that magical girls can originally use.”

Right now, it was much earlier than the prologue mentioned in the original work.

Most magical girls were at a stage where they were just barely starting to handle telekinesis, let alone blooming.

However, if nothing is done, in a few months, the average level of magical girls will rise, and a time will come when bloomed magical girls appear in various mass media.

From then on, it can be considered that the allied forces’ research on magical girls’ abilities will be completed, so it can be said that it’s still a very early stage.

“B-But Shirogane-san, there’s something I’m curious about.”

“What is it?”

“Y-You always commute by subway, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Wouldn’t it be more c-convenient to use teleportation?”

“It’s too much from Shibuya to Yokohama.”

“T-That’s not what I mean…”

Haruko gestured as if appearing in several parts while fiddling with her two fingers and said.

“If you go like this, whoosh! whoosh! whoosh! Y-You could save on transportation costs and it would be good, right?”

“Busujima-san, you could also always run instead of walking normally, it would save time and be good, right?”

“Ah…”

Haruko twisted her body awkwardly, seeming to have understood the implied meaning of ‘it’s troublesome.’

I slowly looked at Haruko’s bloomed magical girl outfit.

The outfit of another bloomed magical girl I’ve seen in 2 years, excluding myself, the first bloomed magical girl. It was a modest appearance wearing traditional clothing made of green linen like a European mountain girl, with mountain boots.

In the original work, there were descriptions of bloomed magical girls sometimes having their hair color changed due to the influence of starlight. But Haruko still had her brown-tinged black braided hair.

‘It’s really a modest appearance.’

After all, being a subculture work, the exposure level and costume concept of bloomed magical girls in the original work were generally designed to match otaku tastes. Among such magical girls, Haruko’s modest design that could appear in a Swiss documentary was rather fresh.

‘My outfit also has low exposure, although it does reveal the body shape…’

It’s a suit that emphasizes the chest in contrast to the thin waist, so anyone can tell it’s a woman. Above all, even the pants are so tight they’re almost like stockings, so it’s closer to a concept costume than a real suit.

When I first bloomed, I wasn’t used to such tight-fitting clothes and walked around with my legs crossed, but now I’ve gotten used to it.

“Hmm, anyway, Busujima-san. Let’s stop practice here and I’ll be back.”

“Ah. Y-Yes!”

I transformed while hearing Haruko’s somewhat brave response.

Colorless starlight.

Brilliant light of various colors enveloping my whole body.

As a magical girl, I am a magician who deceives people.

Even after transforming, the remaining starlight became a white mask covering my face.

The smooth white mask that could appear in a performance like The Phantom of the Opera is a crystallization of [Deception] starlight gathered together. It helped prevent observers from seeing my true nature.

I’ll need to always wear the mask from now on, as it would be troublesome if my face is exposed for what we’re about to do.

* * *

Tokyo Port, where marine goods gather in Tokyo, Japan’s central city.

Here was located the logistics warehouse of Fujimoto Heavy Industries, the core field of the Fujimoto Group.

Japan’s number one city.

Japan’s number one port.

Japan’s number one company.

Among them, the warehouse of Fujimoto Heavy Industries, boasting a scale like the lungs moving the breath of Japan’s economy, boasted an overwhelming size befitting its reputation.

Dozens of huge cranes.

Huge cranes dozens of meters in size that lift and lower hundreds of thousands of goods every day.

People shouting to move logistics and endless vehicles under them.

This place was always full of noise.

It was noise large enough to drown out the voices of a few innocent girls.

“Huff, huff…”

“Test subject number 11, 21 instances of supernatural ability manifestation, ending the 3rd test.”

This could be used as material to send to the Planning Director.

The research facility staff member who muttered this recorded something on the paper in his hand.

The girl who had been exhausted from repeatedly using her supernatural ability until just now looked at such a staff member and shouted.

“Ugh, I exceeded 20 times as promised! Hurry…!”

The research facility staff member in a white gown looked at her with cold eyes and then nodded to one of the guards escorting him.

Thud

What fell to the floor was a single piece of cheap bread.

Bread that can be bought with a single coin at any convenience store.

But for the girl, that bread was so precious.

More precisely, the people who confined her had confined her in an environment where even that bread would be considered precious.

The test subject girl who had been exhausted until just now hastily hugged the bread packet that had fallen at her feet to her chest.

“Then go and stand by.”

“…”

The girl only looked at the bread because she felt miserable.

After confirming that she walked into the darkness, the staff member again recorded something on the paper.

Trudge trudge

It was the seventh day of confinement life in the basement of the warehouse where not a single ray of sunlight entered.

The girl was getting used to this miserable life.

The sound of cranes on the ground that made her head throb.

Confinement life in a closed room assigned as quarters.

Oppression that doesn’t even allow comfortable sleep.

Everything had become numb after about a week.

The only thing that wasn’t familiar was.

Growl

“…”

For the first three days, they focused on raising her to a set level by repeating training without feeding her anything except water.

‘You won’t be able to eat if you don’t show results here.’

The girls who had been crying out to be released soon succumbed to extreme hunger and cried while hastily swallowing the first meal they had in 3 days.

The 11 test subject magical girls who had been quietly sharing stories of the outside world during break times from the first day to overcome hunger discovered their common points.

-Were you an orphan too?

-Y-You too?!

Damn it.

It’s always like this.

This damn world was desperate to squeeze out people like them who had no power.

“Damn it.”

The girl looked around the way to her quarters while holding the bread packet.

CCTVs were running here and there in the corridor leading to the quarters, and the only passage was guarded 24 hours a day by armed guards with their eyes wide open.

‘The quarters are probably under 24-hour surveillance too.’

Some children had gained the ability to heal someone in addition to the power to move objects through confinement and meaningless repetitive training.

But because the healing ability couldn’t solve hunger, the watchers were keeping the girls confined by threatening them with guns and bread.

‘Even so, I will definitely get out.’

Freedom.

The moment she muttered that desperate word, a green light flashed in the girl’s eyes but soon disappeared.

‘It’s not time yet.’

At least for now, it seemed like a very distant story.

The girl finished her thoughts and returned to reality. And she walked out weakly, preciously holding the bread to share with her friends who would be holding their hungry stomachs in the quarters.

When she was abandoned at the orphanage, a single flower was placed on the blanket covering the baby.

That’s how she was given the name Ichika.

Later, she would become the leader of FLAG, the rebellion group of magical girls, and a born 2-star.

She would become the [Freedom] magical girl who blooms while fighting against the allied forces led by the [Protection] magical girl.

The corridor Ichika passed through was filled only with silence.

But if she had turned her gaze from the bread packet, she might have seen a faint starlight twinkling and disappearing in a corner of the corridor.