Congratulations on Your Magical Girl Duties

11 – Interlude – Conversation Between Two Girls (1)

Now that my destiny as a magical girl was sealed.

“Ms. Siyul, being a deserter, you’ll be assigned directly to a unit. Of course, to the magical unit of… uh… Magical Girl White Phoenix.”

The purple magical girl informs me.

“The assignment will happen immediately after your psychological counseling. It seems the police escort has arrived at the perfect time.”

No sooner had she finished speaking than several police officers entered the room. One of them was currently slapping handcuffs on me.

But even as the purple magical girl’s words echoed in my ears, even as I felt the cold touch of the handcuffs, I couldn’t bring myself to care.

Everything was just fucked.

I slaved away at part-time jobs, then got dragged off to the military, and after getting discharged, I was hauled off to another world to become a hero.

And now, they want me to be a goddamn magical girl.

Where else would you find a life this twisted and messed up? Even the protagonist in a grimdark novel wouldn’t have it this bad.

At that moment, the purple magical girl’s one sentence snapped me out of my reverie.

“Anything else to add?”

The question wasn’t directed solely at me. It was addressed equally to everyone present.

However, no magical girl stepped forward.

The white magical girl had been in a daze since earlier, and the other magical girls were just looking at each other, sizing each other up.

I suppose that means they wouldn’t dare defy a three-star magical girl. Or maybe they really have nothing to say, after all.

But I’m someone who has plenty to say.

“Me.”

“Doesn’t seem like it. Right?”

Of course, my words weren’t acknowledged.

“I’m right here, you b*tch.”

“If you don’t have one, sign here on this paper agreeing before you leave later. Got it?”

It was just naturally brushed aside.

As if such a thing had never existed in the first place.

Fucking great.

Only now does the thought occur to me, this world isn’t so different from that one.

Because there are only motherfuckers who won’t listen to a damn word I say. In other words, no human beings.

Truly a sad state of affairs. Where is a normal guy like me supposed to find peace?

“Shi-yul-ssi.”

“What?”

Only then does the purple magical girl turn her gaze to me. Probably to ask me this question.

Are you going to cause trouble? Are you going to behave? I can already anticipate the question perfectly.

Either way, I only have one thing to say.

“You’re not going to cause any problems, are you?”

“Sure am.”

Declared a hopeless case the moment I got assigned.

“Take him away.”

“Fucking hell.”

And so, I was dragged off again.

*

By the time the white magical girl, Jin So-ah, regained consciousness, everything was already over.

“Huh?”

Kim Shi-yul, who had been right in front of her, was nowhere to be found.

Nor were any of the magical girls who had been nearby.

All that remained was a single consent form filled with signatures.

“Ah.”

In other words, the psychological counseling was over.

It didn’t feel like she’d been unconscious for that long, but somehow all the business was already concluded.

At that moment, a familiar voice reached her from right beside her.

“So-ah, are you awake?”

It was the voice of the purple magical girl, Lee Seo-bin.

Years had passed since she’d last seen her old friend.

Also, her closest friend amongst the magical girls.

Looking at her, Jin So-ah spoke.

“The result…?”

A remark laced with an almost absurd amount of implication. But Jin So-ah didn’t bother to elaborate.

Her friend had always grasped perfectly what Jin So-ah meant.

This time was no different.

“Magical girl, naturally.”

Jin So-ah, faced with the conclusion delivered from Lee Seo-bin’s lips, slowly nodded.

“…I see.”

It wasn’t an unexpected outcome.

Kim Si-yul, disregarding the fact that he was male, was, by objective metrics, a suitable candidate for a magical girl.

He possessed the intelligence to understand situations.

He could properly read and write.

He could perform arithmetic in his head.

The ideal candidate to drag into the world of magical girls.

Furthermore, the other magical girls had already signed papers agreeing to it. Of course, the signature of Jin So-ah’s friend, Lee Seo-bin, was there too.

Reversing the result now was impossible.

And even if it were possible, the process wouldn’t be easy.

‘Well, I hope he can endure it.’

In the end, all Jin So-ah could do for Kim Si-yul was harbor a vague hope.

After all, he was probably someone she wouldn’t have any contact with anymore.

“Oh, right. He’s been assigned to your unit.”

“Wait, why?”

No.

He’d become someone she *would* continue to have contact with.

For a moment, Jin So-ah felt a surge of anger.

“Which b*stard sent him?”

Who dared to send Kim Si-yul to her unit without her consent?

“Me.”

“…Who now?”

“I sent them.”

But of all people, it had to be Lee Seobin.

Why? It made no sense.

A flicker of suspicion danced in Jin Soa’s eyes.

“What are you playing at?”

A question laced with discontent, bordering on a threat.

Harsh words to direct at a friend, yet Lee Seobin, instead of reacting with sensitivity, adopted a melancholic air.

“Can’t even offer a greeting to a friend you haven’t seen in ages? Soa, I’m a little hurt, you know.”

“No, it’s…Seobin. I’m truly so happy to see you after so long. But…”

Jin Soa abandoned her sharp tone, scratching her head with a sheepish look. Lee Seobin offered a sly smile, savoring Jin Soa’s reaction.

“Just kidding. Our Soa hasn’t changed a bit since we were ‘Baekbo’.”

“Ugh, please don’t bring that up!”

Jin Soa’s voice immediately rose in pitch.

Still, Lee Seobin didn’t offer any particular protest. She merely smiled leisurely, wordlessly.

She had known for a long time that those words were Jin Soa’s sore spot.

The ‘Baekbo’ Duo.

A moniker coined by the public, inspired by the signature colors of the two magical girls who had been active since the monster invasion.

White and Violet.

Together, Baekbo.

But for Jin Soa, the name carried another meaning.

Jin Soa’s body had been stunted in its growth due to the influence of magic. Because of that, her development remained at the level of a child.

“Why so upset? It’s the nickname we had back in the day, fighting together, doesn’t it fill you with a little nostalgia?”

“No, damn it! I still don’t have any hair down there!”

Naturally, not down *there* either.

The original intention might not have been that, but at some point, the name began to feel like it was targeting Jin Soa specifically.

That’s why Jin Soa would always have a near-meltdown whenever she heard that nickname. Just like now.

“Well, I’m still glad you’re the White Magical Girl, Soa. If you were red, we’d be called the *Boppal* Duo.”

“…Let’s just drop it, seriously.”

Regardless of Jin Soa’s reaction, Lee Seobin, in contrast, continued to speak at her own leisurely pace, gently pouring out whatever she wanted to say.

“Hah.”

Jin So-ah breathed out a heavy sigh.

Her old friend was always like this. Even if someone tried to voice a complaint to her, she’d slither her way out with an oily charm. Which invariably ended up with the complainant swallowing their words instead.

Truly, a magical girl like a serpent incarnate.

And that wasn’t even an extreme way to put it. Not always, but generally, a magical girl’s mascot held a personality mirroring the girl herself.

Coincidentally, Lee Seo-bin’s mascot was a snake.

Lee Seo-bin’s magical girl name was Purple Snake.

“Oh, but where did all the mascots go?”

“I sent them out for a bit.”

“Is that so?”

That meant she’d deliberately made this time.

Based on past experiences, this usually happened when she was brewing up some scheme, and it was likely the same this time as well.

‘At this rate, she’s less of a serpent and more of…’

A viper. Jin So-ah wore a complicated expression.

Of course, it wasn’t that Lee Seo-bin was a bad person. It was thanks to her deft oratory skills and her grasp on the reins of power that several bills protecting the rights of magical girls were able to pass.

In fact, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the current high social standing of magical girls was entirely created by Lee Seo-bin alone.

If it weren’t for her, magical girls would be nothing more than beings used and discarded like slaves. And naturally, Jin So-ah would be the same.

But, that wasn’t the important issue right now.

“So, why did you send *him* to our unit?”

Why was Kim Si-yul assigned to Jin So-ah’s unit?

Indeed, Jin So-ah’s question was perfectly valid.

“Is it because he’s a deserter or something?”

“He’s a man, to begin with. He can’t use magic.”

Kim Si-yul was a man.

But the ability to use magic was only possessed by women.

In other words, he couldn’t become a magical girl.

“Is that all there is to it?”

There’s no way that’s all.

Of course not.

Jin So-ah answered immediately.

“Why, of all units, ours?”

There were plenty of others, so why send him specifically to Jin So-ah’s? Jin So-ah herself hadn’t even agreed to it.

“What if the magical girl force suffers a setback because of him?”

Magical girls were already understaffed. That had been the case since the kaiju invasion, a trend that continued to this day.

And what if, because of this suddenly appearing man, something unfortunate happened in the unit?

Pregnancy, for instance.

“Even pregnant, magical girls can keep going. I did, after all.”

“True, but pregnant or not, they need rest . You rested three times now.”

“Well, yeah.”

“And I heard that pregnancy automatically means removal from the front lines. Is that right?”

“Right. They make it sound like a choice, but it’s basically mandatory. Said it was because they needed people to have babies to raise the birth rate, or something.”

“That’s why I’m worried.”

Of course, Kim Si-yul wasn’t trying to forbid magical girls from having *romantic* encounters. Trying to stop them would only backfire.

But still.

What if the number of those leaving isn’t just one or two? What if a large chunk of the magical girl force suddenly drops out of combat?

Could they really handle that?

They were barely holding on as it was.

Jin So-ah wasn’t sure she could.

“At least, I don’t think I could.”

But instead of answering, Lee Seo-bin blurted out something sudden and out of place.

“So-ah, do you know how old my kids are?”

“Uh… no.”

Jin So-ah scratched her head.

She’d heard the rumors about the three kids, but hadn’t ever seen them with her own eyes. Afraid of confronting the truly pathetic reality of her own life, probably.

But still.

“Really? You’ve never seen them? Not even once?”

“Uh… well…”

Even so, it wasn’t enough to explain why she hadn’t been curious about her old friend.

In the end, Jin So-ah quietly offered an apology.

“…Sorry.”

“It’s alright, take a look at this.”

Instead of being upset, Lee Seobin actually smiled, eyes crinkling, and held her phone out to Jin Soa. A single photograph was displayed on the screen.

It was a picture of Lee Seobin with children.

Lee Seobin spoke softly to Jin Soa, who was staring intently at the screen.

“What do you think?”

“Wow…”

Jin Soa let out a small sigh of admiration.

Inside the tiny phone screen.

There, was the future Jin Soa dreamt of.

So close, yet impossibly distant.

“Envious?”

“Hell yes I’m envious… no! That’s not what I meant!”

Once again, she’d been ensnared by Lee Seobin’s silver tongue. Jin Soa hurriedly spoke, trying to steer the conversation back to its original course.

“Why are you suddenly showing me this when we were talking about him—”

“Soa-ya.”

But before Jin Soa could finish her sentence, Lee Seobin cut in sharply.

“Hey, I wasn’t finished.”

“Jin Soa.”

Gone was the light, gentle demeanor, replaced by a face that was quite serious.

In the end, Jin Soa reluctantly answered.

“…What?”

“What about Kim Siyul, in your opinion?”

What came back was a string of incomprehensible words.

Still, Jin Soa answered faithfully.

“What do you mean, ‘what about’?”

Usually, when Lee Seobin adopted this posture, it was about something truly important.

“Just, from your point of view, what’s he like?”

“Uh… hmm.”

Jin Soa hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.

“He’s strange.”

It was genuine.

Of all the men she’d ever seen, no, of all the people in existence, he was among the strangest. Even stranger than the magical girls in her own unit.

“A person impossible to fathom.”

And that wasn’t all. She couldn’t dare to measure him with the yardstick of expectation. What he intended to do, what he was thinking, was overwhelmingly difficult to predict.

“Soah, is that all?”

Lee Seobin gazed at Jin Soah, her warm eyes, for some reason, felt like they were pressing her.

As if asking if there was something else she wasn’t saying.

A gaze that seemed to pierce to the core.

Finally, Jin Soah cautiously revealed what lay within.

“But…”

Jin Soah trailed off for a moment, then slowly resumed speaking.

“He’s not… completely a bad guy…”

Her voice was smaller than before.

But it held a faint conviction.

Honestly, she still didn’t know for sure.

It was only natural that she wouldn’t. She’d only met him today, exchanged a few minutes of conversation, and that was it.

Far too short a time to accurately judge someone.

And yet.

“You think so? Really?”

“Yeah…”

He wasn’t an evil being.

‘No, rather.’

He must be a good being. She just had that feeling.

She wasn’t certain.

It could simply be speculation.

But.

It felt like he was someone who would willingly sacrifice anything for the sake of something precious.

Even if there was nothing to be gained.

Even if it only brought loss to himself.

Even if it meant risking his own life.

Jin So-ah, in her estimation, Kim Shi-yul was that kind of person.

“When you look at him, he seems like a good person, right? Is that it?”

“……Maybe.”

This wasn’t the sort of conclusion Jin So-ah drew based on ten years of magical girl experience.

It was Jin So-ah’s intuition.

Simply that, and nothing more.

Nothing beyond that.

“Hoo… so, why did you ask about that?”

Jin So-ah took a breath, trying to calm her agitated heart. Laying bare her honest feelings to another person was harder than she’d imagined.

Lee Seo-bin watched Jin So-ah and smiled faintly.

“Then, isn’t it alright?”

“What is?”

Jin So-ah answered sulkily. Her inner turmoil hadn’t completely subsided yet.

However.

“As a marriage prospect.”

“Huh…?”

Jin So-ah’s heart began to flutter again at Lee Seo-bin’s sudden words.

Even more violently than before.