episode_0001

This is not a wasteland.

Underneath the great communal pit dug into the ground, dirt and dust settle towards the floor.

Among the dust, various chunks with different properties scatter like gray concrete ashes.

Below that.

Deep beneath the sinkhole that extends tens of kilometers underground, two wounded individuals face each other, pointing their weapons.

A figure in a torn black suit.

Possessing the physique of an adult male, but instead of a human head, the skull of a goat rests atop the figure’s head as they twist their body while fiddling with a broken glass sundial in their hand.

Puschii.

Between the goat skull, cracks, and eyes, emerald flames flow out.

The murky emerald flames, sharp like a beast’s pupils, glare fiercely as if about to kill a girl on the opposite side.

[Malkuth.]

“…….”

Commonly referred to as a ‘monster,’ the emerald demon faces off against the girl.

[Sandalphon.]

“…….”

[Magical Girl.]

With ash-colored purplish hair resembling ash and a crimson jacket torn in several places, revealing her skin underneath.

“Will you not hold my hand?”

The demon reaches out its hand.

With nearly half of it severed, green flames leak out like a leak, extending forward towards the girl.

“Humanity is too cruel for you to protect alone. Join us, Magical Girl.”

“…….”

“Humanity has imprisoned beings like you in Sephirot’s stone. They do not understand your worth. Only Keterman, rumored to be the strongest, acknowledges your strength, yet remains silent. Why?”

The demon snickers, curling its lips.

Its jaw joint dislocates, flames licking its ears.

“That woman fears you will take her place. She fears losing the title of humanity’s strongest magical girl.”

“…….”

“Join hands with me, Magical Girl. If you join me, I will give you half of the Earth.”

“Half…?”

The girl known as Sandalphon slowly speaks up.

“Yes. Half. Let’s divide the world along the equator. Your country was in the Northern Hemisphere, right? You can have the North. I will take the South.”

“Huh….”

“Sephira and Klifort must oppose each other to achieve perfection. It is the repetition of an endless history of conflict.”

“Yeah.”

The girl, Sandalphon, raises her hand high.

“Dominate? I’m not interested in that.”

Anger and hatred fill the girl’s eyes.

“I will defeat you.”

“Why? Why? Why don’t you understand? Killing me is what protects humanity, isn’t it? Why?”

“I don’t need anything else.”

As the girl clenches her fist, shadows beneath the great communal pit begin to darken.

“There is only one reason why I will defeat you.”

“Mad…! Are you planning to destroy this planet!”

Something massive falls from above the communal pit.

“What I’m destroying is your skull. And…”

It’s shaped like a sharp blade at the end, not quite an asteroid.

“If I kill only you, I can finally go home.”

“What are you saying…!”

“Goodbye. Final boss.”

The girl, Sandalphon, smiles brightly at the demon as she lowers her hand.

“This is the ending.”

*Kwaaang.*

* * *

In the past.

That is, in 2020.

“There was a city called Dongtan in Korea. About ten years ago from now.”

Amid panels filled with Japanese characters, a man in an impressive white-bearded suit speaks seriously to a journalist on a screen.

“Dongtan disappeared. Ten years ago, with the death of Naheema, the last demon of Clifort, Dongtan vanished from history.”

*Poof.*

Data screen fades away.

This is the place where the old Dongtan used to be. There are only craters as if an asteroid had fallen, and it’s a place where the ‘Flames of Death’ left by the Sower of Discord, Naheema, still linger, preventing even a blade of grass from growing.

In a certain new city in South Korea, there is a hole over 5 km in diameter deeply dug, with a sinkhole that goes even deeper into the center.

[And the existence that brought down the Sower of Discord, Naheema, the one-seat of the ten magical girls.]

The old man pointed to the panel beside him.

Ten spheres connected by their respective lines, forming a shape resembling a ‘tree.’

[The ultimate stage where only the top 10 strongest magical girls can ascend. There are various disagreements regarding whether the current rankings of these 10 align with what is officially known, but I firmly believe that at least this one thing is incorrect.]

The old man pointed to the bottom of the tree.

[Malcute’s position. She who received the title of magical girl ‘Sandalphon.’ I truly believe she is the greatest magical girl in history.]

Beep.

[Very regrettable.]

A data screen appeared.

The people walking down the street began to focus on the photo on the screen.

“Oh.”

“Sandalphon, not coming back?”

“No monsters or demons showing up, that’s why. Maybe she retired and is living quietly somewhere?”

People looked around.

If there was anyone resembling the girl on the screen, it was likely her.

“Surely after retiring from being a magical girl, she wouldn’t become a ‘witch,’ right?”

“Nah, impossible. Would she choose to become a ‘chicken coop’ herself?”

“……”

Streets filled with Japanese signs.

“……”

A woman in a black baseball jacket and cap, her face covered with a black mask, stared intently at the image of magical girl Sandalphon that appeared on the screen like a data screen.

“If Sandalphon returns, she’ll at least surpass 2nd place… Will she surpass Raziel?”

“What’s 2nd place? Metatron should come down and secure 1st place. That woman cheated her way up there.”

“Shh. Watch your words. Regardless of 10 years ago, it’s a fact that Metatron has been as active as 1st place for the past 10 years, right?”

“Being active against villains doesn’t matter. It’s not like she faced demons, monsters, or even giant monsters.”

“……”

As the conversation among the people began to escalate.

Boom!

“What, what is that?!”

In the sky, a massive sphere appeared.

The sudden appearance of the sphere resembled a demon’s eyeball, with the central part tightly closed like an eyelid.

“T-That…!”

“Aaaah!! Clifftorrrr!!”

Clifftor.

An unprecedented demon that had never appeared again since the last demon, Neheema, fell 10 years ago.

Monsters, beasts, villains, demons—all ultimately originated from Clifftor.

“All 10 demons were defeated by Sandalphon, could it be… a resurrection?”

“This is not the time to think about that!! Run away!!”

Panic ensued.

People abandoned their cars and fled, some getting injured and bleeding while trying to escape from the huge sphere in the sky by crawling, struggling to get away even with broken legs.

Phooosh!

Something began to burst out of the giant egg floating in the sky.

Like strawberry seeds being ejected outward, car-sized spheres began to fall all over the city of [Neo Dongtan], starting to destroy the city.

“Aaah!! It’s a cocoon!! The devil’s egg!!”

“Insane, it’s Satan’s kin! H-How?!”

“Run!! If caught, we die!!”

As soon as people saw the fallen eggs, they immediately realized what those eggs were.

Who wouldn’t know.

The demon who erased a city called New York in the United States.

“If you keep going-”

[Gotcha.]

Thud.

Behind the woman dodging down the alley, a huge demon, seemingly over 5m tall, blocked her path.

With limbs unusually long and a thin torso, the demon, looking like bones forcibly stretched, pushed its face towards the woman with eyes narrowed like a mask.

“Who are you?”

“Me?”

The woman replied as she removed her mask.

“Just a retired magical girl living off my savings.”

“…Retired and living off your savings?”

Even amidst the chaos, the woman remained calm, piquing the demon’s interest.

“Do you think the magical girls will arrive? Will they make it in time while my nails pierce your heart? Hehe.”

“Oh, right. Hurry up and tell me about ‘that.’”

“Speak.”

“…Tell me your wish.”

The demon growled, pushing its beastly masked head towards the woman.

“Reveal your desires. I will grant that wish.”

“How, by killing me?”

“Hehehe…!”

Exhaling heavily at the demon’s laughter, the woman said,

“I just wish one photo disappeared from the internet.”

“Huh?”

She pointed at a swimsuit photo of a magical girl still displayed on a partially broken screen.

“Is that possible?”

“……. ”

“It seems you can’t do it either. In that case…”

Something slender extended from under the woman’s hand.

“That spear tip…!”

Crack!

A hole pierced through the demon’s head.

After effortlessly dissipating the purple slender object formed under her hand with magic, the woman turned her gaze quietly towards the end of the alley.

“Ha, really.”

In the distance.

Seeing five clusters of light flying from the outskirts towards the city center, the woman sighed again as she put her mask back on.

“I can’t even turn back from a woman to a man, let alone return to the Earth I used to live on.”

“You, you’re…”

“Oh. You’re not dead yet? I haven’t written in so long that I couldn’t control my strength.”

The woman lightly waved her hand towards the disappearing demon.

“It’s nothing special.”

Above the mask.

“Just a retired magical girl passing by.”

The color that briefly touched her eyes shone with magic, no different from the color of the magical girl still visible on the screen.