Congratulations on Your Magical Girl Duties

26 – Tale of Two Magical…Girls?

“Haa…”

A thick sigh echoed within the room.

“So-ah, stop sighing already.”

Lee Seo-bin’s chiding did little to improve Jin So-ah’s expression.

“But…I’m worried about everyone.”

“Because you’re not there?”

“Yeah, why does this meeting have to be *now*?”

Because of some urgent meeting, unlike before, she’d been forced to pull out of the operation this time.

That was the reason for Jin So-ah’s current litany of sighs.

“And it’s not like there’s anything actually important…”

“I know, right? They could’ve done this later. So-ah, did you hear anything?”

“No, I only found out about it today, too.”

An utterly pointless meeting, in reality.

Thanks to it, Jin So-ah had been openly displaying her anxiety from before the meeting even started.

“Maybe it’d be better if I went, even now?”

Desperate enough, even at this late hour, to offer joining them.

“Forget it, everyone will do fine. Just in case, they added more people this time, so don’t worry so much.”

“Still, I wanted to catch those b*stards myself…”

Well, there was a personal grudge involved, as well.

Seeing Jin So-ah still fidgeting, Lee Seo-bin gave a bright smile.

“Love does have its merits. Our Soa has never worried about others to this extent before, has she?”

“W-What are you talking about! I wasn’t worried about Siyul at all! I was worried about the magical girls!”

“Oh my, I didn’t mention Siyul’s name, did I?”

“Eh? N-No! Th-That’s…! Never mind!”

Jin Soa abruptly trailed off, mumbling.

Lee Seobin feigned a hurt expression.

“So, you weren’t worried about Siyul at all? Was pulling him back to the rear lines just to abandon him? Poor Siyul.”

“N-No, it’s not like I wasn’t worried at all, I was a little… anyway!”

Lee Seobin grinned mischievously at Jin Soa’s flustered state.

“Who would’ve known? That our Soa, who initially bared her fangs at him, would be so flustered around him now.”

“Th-That’s… true…”

Jin Soa reluctantly nodded.

Indeed, Jin Soa and Kim Siyul’s first encounter could not, even charitably, be called pleasant.

Back then, Jin Soa had unreservedly displayed her fury at Kim Siyul. More precisely, at his claim of having seen a grandmother engaged in carnal acts.

If Kim Siyul had actually said he’d bedded them, Jin Soa would have killed him right then and there.

Well, she couldn’t be blamed.

Jin Soa had assumed the grandmother Kim Siyul spoke of was a magical girl.

The very existence she loathed the most.

“I understand. Thinking he was involved with those b*stards, it’s natural to react like that.”

“Seobin, even you’re swearing now.”

“Well, I was a victim too, you know.”

Naturally, Lee Seobin also abhorred them.

Those damn geezers who masqueraded as magical girls. Former magical girls who were all too eager to feast on the lifeblood of other magical girls.

The hags now categorized as Magical Major Offenders.

“Truthfully, it’s not entirely a good thing that all women awaken as magical girls.”

Lee Seobin’s words held weight.

It was a problem born from the fact that every woman was a magical girl.

Jin Soa nodded.

“Indeed.”

Upon awakening as a magical girl, the body would transform into its most efficient form for channeling magic, and then become fixed.

Naturally, their appearance shifts, too, morphing into a beauty most suited to their transformed body. Though individual variations do exist.

In short, a magical girl simply does not age.

Her lifespan increases dramatically compared to her former, ordinary self, and she gains maximum immunity from all manner of illness.

It is a tale bordering on miraculous. The very peak of physical condition, sustained until death.

However.

This holds true only so long as she remains a magical girl.

If a magical girl submits her personal magic wand to the Magical Association and retires, all the advantages she possessed as a magical girl vanish.

Of course, such regulations aren’t in place without reason. The stated justification was the potential for misuse in criminal activities. Instances of that happening have occurred, repeatedly, in fact.

But.

“Seo-bin, a magical girl handing in her wand upon retirement isn’t *only* because of the dangers, is it?”

“Of course not. But don’t go spreading it around. I’m telling you this because it’s you, So-ah.”

The regulation’s real reason lay elsewhere.

The purpose was singular. To prevent magical girls from retiring, to keep them active.

Because if they are no longer magical girls, they cannot escape the process of aging, no matter what they do.

Do the work, and stave it off or become decrepit.

“I figured as much. Even if the body’s preserved after retirement, sooner or later, the appearance and lifespan revert to match their actual age, or so I’ve heard. Learned it from a few friends lately.”

“Honestly, I wanted to change the regulations, but there are so many issues that there’s no touching them.”

“It’s fine. I know how much you’re suffering.”

Thus, for retiring magical girls, there exist only three methods to halt the advance of age.

Wait for the magical equivalent of mandatory retirement, a stage no one has experienced, to receive ownership of their wands.

Achieve feats on par with the most accomplished magical girls of all time, earning a prestigious magical honorary discharge.

Or else.

Flee without surrendering the magic wand.

The third option was predominantly chosen by the elderly. Simple selfishness, the desire for the benefits of a magical girl, absent the need to act as one.

For them, it was a risk-free gamble.

Life was already nearing its end. If they were going to wither away in a frail body after submitting their wand and die soon after, they might as well take the chance.

Failure meant death, success meant immortality.

“People should grow old gracefully, those sons of b*tches.”

“I concur, So-ah.”

And so, a magical felon was born.

Of course, magical girls stepped forward to apprehend them, and, as a result, most were captured.

However, there was considerable bloodshed in the process.

And I don’t mean that figuratively.

I mean it in the literal sense.

During the arrest, the offenders struggled violently, leaving the majority of the magical girls with injuries, both large and small. Some even died.

“Seo-bin, is that injury from back then alright now?”

“No problem. It’s all healed, obviously.”

Lee Seo-bin waved her hand dismissively, but she was one of the magical girls who had been seriously injured at the time.

The aftereffects were so severe that once, she nearly miscarried while giving birth. That’s how bad it was.

That’s how much innocent blood so many magical girls had to shed.

All because of those selfish b*stards who deserved to be torn limb from limb.

“Still, it’s a bit disappointing that we couldn’t catch them all.”

Nevertheless, some magical mega-criminals managed to escape the magical girls’ encirclement.

“Sorry, Seo-bin. I should have done better.”

“Why are you apologizing? It’s not your fault, you idiot.”

“But…”

“Forget it, you b*tch. It’s all in the past.”

Of course, the Association wasn’t going to stand idly by. The Association might be a bunch of morons, wherever you go, but the power of a collective can’t be ignored.

They couldn’t seize their bank accounts, but they made normal economic activity virtually impossible. Naturally, they blocked basic living allowances for the elderly, and magical pensions too, long ago.

In the end, the magical mega-criminals who stole wands and ran away to hide had to choose one of two options to survive:

Work in a brothel.

Or upload videos to Magical OnlyFans.

Either way, they were selling their bodies.

That was why Jin So-ah was so genuinely furious with Kim Si-yul.

What other reason could there be for those goddamn b*stards, who deserved to be ripped apart, to still be alive?

It’s obviously because of the people who keep giving money to those sons of b*tches. Those idiots, blinded by their pretty faces, trying to relieve their lust.

As long as there’s demand, the supply will be maintained.

“This will be the last time, right? Don’t you think, So-ah?”

“I hope so.”

Of course, this wasn’t really relevant to Jin So-ah, an outlier of strength.

Of course. Who would dare wrest a personal magic wand from Jin So-ah, considering her penchant for just taking what she wanted?

It was the same reason no mouse volunteered to bell the ferocious cat.

“But So-ah, aren’t you… eligible for Magical Emeritus status? I seem to recall something like that.”

“That’s right. It’s been mentioned a few times, actually.”

Truth be told, Jin So-ah could apply for Magical Emeritus retirement even now, and be readily accepted.

“So why are you still here?”

“Well…”

Simply put, Jin So-ah hadn’t retired for two reasons. Or rather, she *couldn’t* retire, which was closer to the truth.

Her inherently good nature was the first.

“Is it because… if you leave now, it’ll be harder on everyone else?”

“Well, I mean… there’s that, too…”

“Or is it…”

And.

“You’re still here because you haven’t found them yet, haven’t you?”

“…Yeah.”

She still hadn’t found the ‘peculiar’ monster that had attacked her younger sibling. That was the second reason.

The nation had driven her brother to a near death.

But it was the ‘peculiar’ monster that had turned him into a walking corpse.

And so, Jin So-ah hadn’t retired.

Remaining a magical girl offered even the smallest of increases in her chances of finding that ‘peculiar’ monster.

It was easier to exert influence as an active member than as a retiree, after all.

And.

“I’m going to kill it…”

It made achieving revenge just a little bit easier.

“…”

“…”

A heavy silence descended.

To dispel the suddenly somber mood, Lee Seo-bin clapped her hands lightly, forcing a smile.

“Ah, well, anyway, it’s a relief that things worked out with Kim Si-yul. I thought things were going to go horribly wrong back then.”

But Jin So-ah did not smile.

Instead, she spat out the confusion, unfiltered.

“But I don’t get that either. Who’s looking up naked pictures of some grandma, who isn’t even a Magical Girl, and nobody even knows? Are they totally out of their mind?”

“That’s true, but…”

Lee Seobin trailed off, forcing a smile as she continued. Though she couldn’t quite stop the twitch in the corner of her lips.

“Well, they didn’t see it on purpose, right?”

“So, who’s going to deliberately show them that kind of crap? And is there even a place you *can* see that kind of thing? Is it a garbage dump? Or actual Hell?”

“Yeah… I guess so.”

The two Magical Girls fell silent, lost in an endless maze of bewilderment.

It couldn’t be helped. Being a bit older, they weren’t as familiar with the latest gadgets and trends.

At that moment, Jin Soa slowly began to speak.

“Anyway, I hope everyone’s okay. Siyul, of course, too.”

“Soa-ya, is that all?”

“If I had to say one more thing…”

Jin Soa hesitated, then slowly continued.

“I hope Kim Siyul doesn’t get charmed by those b*stards and…you know…get *intimate* with them.”

“Why are you worrying about that? There’s no way that would happen.”

“Really?”

“Of course. Don’t you trust me?”

“Of course I do.”

And so, two small blossoms of laughter bloomed quietly in the bleak room.

But even the two Magical Girls didn’t know.

That Jin Soa’s concern was, surprisingly, valid.

Because, in reality, Kim Siyul was on the verge of getting intimate with Magical Felons.

Only…

“Ah, shit.”

It was just a difference in the direction of the, *ahem*, insertion.