Capitalism.
Even in the world of Magical Girls, it’s no exception.
Ordinary citizens whom I don’t know at all feel like NPCs, yet they are definitely concerned about the finances of the main magical girls.
Burning with a sense of justice and passion, they might rot their bodies away; that’s fine for elementary students, but…
By the time they reach middle school or high school, the harsh reality comes crashing down in front of them.
Delaying the anxiety of advancing to higher education or getting a job, even just for a moment, is…
Money, money.
Only money.
“Ahaha! Can’t say that’s wrong!”
The owner of the Star Café, who had been silently listening, laughed heartily from behind the counter.
Before long, a warm bowl of honeybread and a cup of hot chocolate I had just ordered arrived.
The steaming warmth wafting up made it look delicious.
“Isn’t coffee ready yet for Sun and Moon?”
The topic of conversation for the girls exposed to this harsh environment.
It’s the same question as asking an elementary student if they’ve ever had coffee.
‘It’s not that I can’t drink it, but…’
Considering caffeine, it’s not really something suitable to drink at this age.
Building a tolerance to caffeine at this age is just a no-go.
Upon hearing the question, Siyeon boldly blurted out her thoughts in a straightforward manner.
“I don’t like it!”
Only Siyeon would give such a pure and simple response befitting her appearance.
Since I was included in the subjects of the question, I expressed my honest opinion.
“If I develop a caffeine tolerance already, I think I won’t be able to handle it later.”
“Ah, true… wait, how do you know that so well?”
“Ahaha.”
The light jab was brushed off with a dry laugh.
With a big sip of sweet hot chocolate,
I tore off a piece of the moist honeybread to cover the remaining moisture with its overwhelming sweetness.
The artificial yet intense sweetness filled my mouth with happiness.
“Ugh…”
A short groan came from the side, and I could hear the clinking of utensils as they lovingly approached the bread.
I tore off another piece for Siyeon, who was still clumsy with the fork and knife.
Like a baby receiving food, Siyeon popped the piece of bread on her plate into her mouth and took a bit of hot chocolate right after.
“She’s acting just like Sun Unni.”
The others were watching her with fond smiles.
Even just a little assistance draws an enormous commotion at this age.
‘It seems I can’t just enjoy snacks comfortably.’
With a sigh, I let out a quiet breath through my nose.
The conversation was circling around when Orion muttered,
“By the way, they said the monster appearance rate is low where Sun and Moon are.”
The conversation unexpectedly veered and directed towards us.
The monster appearance rate.
This topic is certainly not one that those involved in this business can easily ignore.
Other magical girls seemed to be concerned about this subject too, turning their attention this way as they spoke.
“Ah, right! I wanted to ask about that!”
“When we’re taking an exam, if the alarm goes off, it’s really over.”
“What about at night…?”
“It went off during my interview, it was the worst…”
This part resonates with all magical girls, regardless of age.
If we could reduce the monsters that appear at night even by one more.
In our daily lives, we want to be interrupted as little as possible.
Their desire to reduce the frequency of monster appearances is something they’re intensely focused on.
Lack of sleep is a given, and they are constantly tormented by the tension of not knowing when the alarm might ring.
Therefore, even just two monsters might appear in a day, and it’s natural to be curious about that secret.
Moon… in other words, it’s not like I expect detailed answers to come from Siyeon.
Their gaze turns to me, who speaks fluently for my age.
“Honestly, it’s not a big deal.”
“What is it, what is it?”
“Well, in your area, monsters that have appeared once tend to come back, right?”
“Uh… usually, that’s the case?”
Stella’s nonchalant response of “usually” indicates the root cause already.
The return rate of monsters that have appeared once.
In this absurd world, monsters do not die.
They merely turn into magical powder and return somewhere.
In this child-friendly portrayal where red blood does not flow, they never truly reach a complete death.
Even if we struggle and manage to drive them off, or instantly defeat them with a ‘mysterious pink beam from a wand’, it only provokes their desire to challenge us again.
If we barely drive them away, it leads to thoughts like ‘Ah, they can put up a fight.’
If they perish in an instant, it raises questions like ‘What just happened?’, and since they felt no pain, they only come back for more.
The key is that if we deliver thorough pain and fear, they won’t even think about returning.
The curious stares of the seniors eager to hear the secret method feel intense.
But really, I’ll speak soon enough without needing those daggers of gaze.
“In our neighborhood, those don’t happen. As in, they don’t come back.”
“Eh?! Really!? How come?!”
“Well…”
Just as I was about to speak about the countermeasures against monsters…
“Ugh!”
A dissonant alarm filled the café all of a sudden.
As the unpleasant sound rang out, I shut my ears with a brief scream, and the owner quickly turned off the alarm.
How long has it been since alarms stopped ringing in the apartment? That I would hear this unpleasant noise again.
It was like the alert siren blaring in broad daylight due to a broadcasting mistake.
Just like dumping cold water on my head, my mood soured sharply.
Others seemed similarly affected, letting out heavy sighs while hastily packing their things.
“Sigh… still, we have to go, right? Transformation, undo!”
“Yes, see you at the appearance point… Transformation, release!”
Each of us undid our transformations made to create a vibe and instantly stepped out of the café and into the street.
Like skilled veterans, we adeptly pretended to evacuate.
Following them, I stepped quickly through the crowd and moved into an alley between buildings.
People were bolting in a panic because of the monster.
There was no time to take in the sight of dead ends between buildings.
As the transformation lines were uttered in the alley, an adult’s relaxed smile reached us.
“Shall we see the skills of our little ones? You go ahead first.”
“Moon Power—! Transform!”
“Sun.”
Siyeon and I flew up into the sky together.
The magical girl, Crystal, who had said to go ahead first.
“Why did you tell us to go first?”
“Oh, well…”
She joined us a moment later, flying up, so I asked why she hadn’t gone first.
Scratching her cheek, she timidly confessed the reason.
“It’s really embarrassing to shout that at my mid-twenties…”
“Ah.”
“Why! It’s cool! The ‘Magical Crystal Power—!’ thing!”
“Urrgh…!”
Siyeon desperately dragged out the phrase she had hidden away.
Crystal clasped her chest where her heart was, feeling the anguish.
Was that a harmless stab to the heart?
“I made a transformation line after I saw that!”
“W-well… thanks.”
She said thank you for the pure-hearted gesture, but her expression looked like she could cough up blood.
Siyeon was really pouring salt on the wound.
It seems her mental damage might be considerable.
Most likely, her blanket won’t be safe tonight.
In any case, Crystal, who pretended to evacuate so skillfully.
Since we transformed first, we were the first to arrive at the monster appearance point.
“Cough! Are all of you running away in fear? Is the magical girl still not here?”
‘Whose voice does that sound like?’
As soon as we got there, a familiar monster’s voice reached us.
Before I could even think about what it was, I first laid eyes on the truth.
‘Oh wow.’
I wondered who it was, and it turned out to be the bipedal wolf from the triple-jajang ingredient I had seen recently.
Other magical girls started gathering one by one.
“Hey, we’re in fifth place, huh?”
It was strangely turning into a competition for rankings, with some appearing annoyed.
Perhaps it was because nearly ten magical girls had gathered around him alone; the wolf monster grew even more arrogant as he howled loudly.
“Haha! You came in a swarm because you can’t do it alone!”
“Sun, Moon, can we watch you defeat the monster at least?”
Of course, the magical girls had no interest in that.
They only came out to respond since a monster had appeared.
Everyone knew he wasn’t that great of a beast to charge in at.
“Yes.”
“Yep! We’ll do our best!”
“Hehe, let’s see our little ones’ skills.”
Approaching the wolf monster, who looked particularly upbeat while scratching the back of his head.
Without a mask, his long, orange hair swayed over his shoulders.
“That’s as far as you go!”
“Come on, kiddos! Khaha!”
It seems he has bad memory since he couldn’t even remember who I was standing next to Siyeon.
Amidst the bravado of gearing up for battle, I muttered loud enough for him to hear while scratching behind my head.
“Hah… man, you really have the worst luck. Seriously.”
My words were filled with genuine sympathy.
Somehow, of all the places to strike as a second target, he had to choose where the magical girls were gathering.
“…?! That voice…”
Realizing he heard my voice, he glared and pointed a shaky finger at me.
The trembling fingertip was enough evidence of how scared he was, and I need not say more.
“Oh hey, sis, have you been waiting long?”
“Why are you here?! This is definitely!”
“Hah, it’s just how things turned out.”
In the middle of it, that admirable little bastard was still trying to keep his promise.
But now that things have turned out this way, it was simply unfortunate.
“You should blame your dumb luck, huh? What can you do…?”
I advanced towards him, swinging my wand like a whip.
As I got closer step by step, I could see he was dramatically backing away, looking rather pitiful.
Let’s make sure he pays dearly for raiding our area today.
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