Episode 80 – Unstoppable (10)
“Wait, wait a second!”
Just as I was about to leave, someone bravely raised their hand. I didn’t expect anyone to be so bold after I said no questions would be taken.
“What?”
“I’m Director Lee Min-hyung of the Management Bureau. There’s not enough information! What on earth do you mean by saying a chaotic era is coming?”
Director Lee Min-hyung, startled by my gaze, mustered some courage to speak. In the silence that followed, I took a moment to calculate in my head.
Thinking back, I realized I might have been a bit vague. I had spoken in a one-sided, Demon King-style manner.
“Want me to simplify it? I took down the monsters that came through the Dimension Gate this afternoon, and I managed to secure testimonies from them. At least hundreds of monsters have seeped into this land in such a short time. The Corrupted Bug Collective, a colony that devoured the insides of healthy people and laid eggs inside them to reproduce.”
I laid it all out plainly. A stir of commotion spread among the crowd. It seemed like they were finally starting to grasp the situation.
“Is that clear now? I’m leaving.”
“Wait! What about Casilena?”
But in that moment, someone else grabbed my ankle. Frowning, I looked at the person near Director Lee Min-hyung—an overweight middle-aged man.
“Who are you?”
“W-what?!”
“I asked who you are.”
When I asked again in a gruff voice, he flinched and stumbled. All eyes in the crowd turned to him as well. Of course, I had a rough idea. Several people in black suits and badges were surrounding him.
“I-I’m Jeong Su-hyuk, a four-term Member of Parliament of the Republic of Korea. I’m 56 years old this year.”
“Why mention your age? Trying to be respected with that?”
I scoffed at his self-introduction. 56, huh? I suppose that’s an age when one should be lively. But just as I expected, his face scrunched up.
“True respect comes from strength, not from age that just eats away at time. So, I don’t respect those weaker than me. But I might extend ‘mercy.’ Why are you asking about Casilena?”
“Ugh…”
“I know that Rene, the head of Casilena, is a Magical Girl like you.”
Just to provoke him further, I casually rubbed salt in the wound, and he trembled even more. Finally, it was the young member next to him who spoke up.
“That’s right. But so what? We may belong to the same group, but I have no interest in them. Similarly, they wouldn’t dare touch me. Is that a satisfactory answer?”
“That can’t be…”
“But I’m already disappointed.”
I had to make it clear that I had no connection to Casilena at all, so I just responded.
What irritated me, however, wasn’t that question.
“Is this really the time for you to be worrying about such things?”
I could barely hold back the annoyance creeping into my voice as my eyebrows twitched.
“What did I just warn you about? Didn’t I say that we can’t predict when or where monsters might pop up? People might be dying as we speak.”
“But if the Magical Girls in our country divide into factions, it weakens our power to counter the monsters.”
“Don’t underestimate them. Even if they rot, they’re still Magical Girls; they won’t sit still in a real crisis.”
I hated hearing such pointless excuses.
Each time I saw their ridiculous attitudes, I couldn’t help but wonder where this rising irritation stemmed from, but now I knew it all too well.
It was my workaholic instinct kicking in. I shouldn’t care, but seeing rulers making inefficient and pointless decisions while managing the group made me feel like I could snap their necks.
“You all should just do your jobs. At least don’t disturb those who are working properly. Hey, you, answer me.”
“U-ugh…”
I pointed at him, Jeong Su-hyuk. But for some reason, he clenched his teeth.
“Can’t you say? Is it so hard to say you’ll work harder and avoid making foolish statements? Can’t you say a single word to the citizens watching all this?”
“I got it! I understand!”
Suddenly becoming my target, he couldn’t withstand the pressure and turned to the camera, speaking up. It was a cliché statement, but… it was better than nothing.
“But you all should do the same.”
I looked at the camera while he spoke.
“You all—the ordinary people watching this, the members of this society—you need to get your act together.”
In the demon realm, it was enough for the rulers to wake up.
But not here. This place had laws that treated everyone as equal entities.
So each and every one of those members had to keep their heads clear. If not, the many would suffer because of a few crazies.
‘Not that it will be easy.’
Of course, I wasn’t expecting much. It was clear things would go downhill. Giggling, I flew straight up into the sky.
*
“No way.”
“But how arrogant. Speaking informally like some middle school brat…”
Just after Takilas’s shocking press conference wrapped up, an extraordinary wave rippled through. Not just in Korea, but internationally as well. Monsters from outer space weren’t considerate of borders.
“Is this the usual reaction? What’s public opinion, O?”
“…It’s almost split down the middle. No, about 60-40.”
“Is the 40% the one that sees it lightly?”
Standing in place, Director Lee Min-hyung overheard a conversation from people passing by and turned to Oh Yoon-seo, who had just bought coffee from a convenience store.
“No, it’s the 60% that leans that way.”
“That’s grim. Or is it a miracle that it’s even that good?”
He smiled bitterly. Perhaps because it was so soon, very few took Takilas’s words seriously in light of the reactions.
People were already used to monsters and Magical Girls. Even if Takilas warned that things were incomparable now, the response from the public remained tepid.
“Many people know Takilas as a teenage girl. But it’s probably because she has built quite a notorious reputation that her words are getting any reaction at all.”
“Do you know the problem with people today, Director? They know too much without real understanding. This society pursues rationality and dislikes cowards. Thanks to that, people get unwittingly arrogant, holding onto meaningless beliefs. I don’t care about it, but it’s annoying in situations like this.”
He sighed as he took the coffee.
Those who knew what Takilas really was wouldn’t take her words lightly. But to the vast majority, who wouldn’t cross paths with Takilas, she was just an interesting oddity.
In reality, the internet was flooded with posts trashing and mocking Takilas.
“Contact Aria, Karin, and all other Magical Girls we can reach.”
“What are you planning to do?”
“We have to do everything we can. We need to cooperate with Casilena too.”
He set the policy. It was an independent decision made without discussing it with the higher-ups. It was also proof that he had no expectation from the upper echelons.
“Is the Management Bureau Director not saying anything?”
“He is moving busily.”
“Foolish.”
But while Lee Min-hyung and others were preparing, they weren’t the only ones taking action.
“We should take this opportunity to restructure the Management Bureau. Soon the Magical Girls will lose their place in this land.”
Member of Parliament Jeong Chan-hyuk said, glancing around and awkwardly smiling.
“That crazy little girl is a variable, but hey. She did give us a good reason.”
However, among those present, the first-term members had little influence.
In the presence of several influential figures in politics and business, they began to formulate a larger plan in this private gathering.
“By the way, things really won’t get out of hand, right? It’s a bit atypical, isn’t it?”
“The continuously plummeting stock market is unchanged, and the unpredictable international political climate remains. Do you really think the world would go haywire just because of the words of a child?”
One of the oldest men let out a hearty laugh, raising his voice. Though retired from politics, he was one of the real powers in the meeting, commanding many factions.
“What’s surprising is the deadline being shortened. They said they were still gathering materials since the experiment wasn’t completed.”
“Don’t worry. Understanding sometimes comes suddenly.”
He changed the subject. His gaze landed on the young woman in a white lab coat, O Insun, a researcher from The One Road.
“The next generation of warriors to replace the Magical Girls. If your loyalty is intact, even this tiny archipelago can benefit from that grace.”
“Then I’ll believe it and start planning gradually.”
Her eyes sparkled, and he chuckled as someone approached him. It was a young male member who looked quite tense.
“Everyone, let’s give applause. We’re about to have heroes that will gloriously self-destruct in the face of those who would obstruct our path.”
“Self-destruct? Come on, sir?”
“Isn’t there a few irritating ones lately? This guy here—Member Kang—will expose a few of them for sexual misconduct. Hahaha!”
He laughed heartily, suggesting it was a clever move to bring others down during the confusion.
Despite Takilas’s warning, the rampage of the monsters emerging from the Dimension Gate was merely another opportunity for some.
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