Episode 70 – Light and Darkness (10)
“Wow, damn…”
“What are you looking at… Ah! Why are you watching this stuff?!”
It was already late. A small commotion surged in the office, dominated by lethargy and fatigue due to overtime.
The source of the commotion seemed to be the department head, who had apparently given up on going home today. The other staff members’ reactions escalated as they saw the video he was watching on his phone.
“Kids these days have guts. They just post this kind of stuff on social media.”
“That’s horrible…”
Excluding the absent manager, even the deputy head, the highest-ranking person in the office, was engrossed in the video.
The video showcased the brutal and merciless ‘judgment’ that Rene had enacted at a middle school earlier that day, filmed by one of the students right next to the scene and spread online.
Naturally, there was no censorship or editing.
The raw sounds of the scene—screams, voices—were all captured on film.
“…Those bullies were the ones who left a perfectly healthy kid crippled two years ago and got away with it just because they were minors, right?”
“I think I saw that article. They came out all indignant when the internet was ablaze, but in the end, it all blew over.”
“Right? That’s why it feels oddly refreshing.”
The deputy chuckled as he made a joke. The peculiar thing was that despite his defending this gruesome judgment, no one really opposed him. Perhaps it was because the most senior person, the deputy, had taken the lead, but there were even employees nodding in agreement.
“Honestly, if they had punished them properly, this wouldn’t have happened. What’s the point in just talking and making creative works that serve as catharsis when nothing changes in reality?”
The deputy, usually talkative, seemed to gain confidence from the supportive attitude of his colleagues, raising his voice.
This was one of the areas Rene had calculated—properly scratching where the public desired, gaining their support.
Even on the internet, where fierce debates about Casilena’s actions were unfolding, almost half of the commenters supported them.
“People generally need to be beaten to listen…”
“Deputy Park, you need to check this. I sent it by email, but you never seem to look.”
It was then that the gathering of employees in the office dispersed.
Seizing the opportunity, the deputy continued his passionate rant about the absurdities of society and his ideals, only to be called back to his desk by a young office clerk.
“Um, it was just a short break. Don’t misunderstand.”
“Of course, I won’t.”
“By the way… what do you think about this whole issue, Seonah?”
Even as the deputy sat down and checked documents, he stole glances at her. Her expression, as always, was emotionless, framed by her black bob.
“What issue are you referring to?”
“The magical girls who are claiming they will judge the criminals. Casilena, I think.”
Despite how cold she seemed, the reason he kept talking was simple; in his late thirties, he was still unmarried, and this clerk was widely regarded as the most beautiful woman in the company.
“I don’t really know. I’m busier with work right now.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Her slightly furrowed brow as she looked down on him from her seat made him abruptly shut his mouth and lower his gaze.
Of course, the overwhelming pressure weighing on the deputy was not merely from the cold demeanor of a beautiful woman. With a tremendous magical power intentionally radiating from her, anyone of ordinary standing would feel crushed.
“Are you alright?”
“Yes, thank you. Please make sure to check your emails on time from now on.”
“…Understood.”
As she handed him documents and turned to leave, she suddenly stumbled as if she had kicked something in mid-air.
Thinking she might have twisted her ankle from the high heels, he stood up in surprise, but she didn’t even glance at him, maintaining her impassive expression as she shot him a glare to sit back down.
“I swear it’s true. That guy looks at you with eyes full of desire every time he sees you. Especially on days when you wear something short…”
“Just because of that, relaying it to me is just to tease me, right?”
On the rooftop dominated by the cold night air, clerk Seonah had come out to finish her work before heading home, only to find herself alone here. But one peculiar aspect was that she conversed as if someone was beside her. She wasn’t making a phone call.
“But if it weren’t for that, I’d have nothing to do… it’s boring.”
“Then just go, please.”
Chuckling, she expertly pulled out a cigarette from her pocket and lit it.
Beneath her, a pudgy creature that resembled a pig character was rubbing its recently kicked bottom while shuffling around. It was her mascot, which she had been with for twenty years.
“Ah, and I do have something to do today.”
“Honestly, I was surprised. You made such a big deal about retiring… I didn’t think you’d want to get back into it.”
“I’m not getting back into it. It’s just a look-see. What? Does it make sense for a 33-year-old to be a magical girl? I worked like a dog from 13 for fifteen years. That’s enough.”
She frowned as she exhaled smoke. At this point, her identity as a magical girl felt like shackles.
In her younger days, she had proudly embraced it and worked hard. But her excessive dedication to magical girl duties had disrupted her school years and even caused her to fail at college, making her life plans unravel. Now, she regretted her time as a magical girl.
“I really suffered in my early days. Monsters, criminals, nagging from you guys, and even fighting society. But seeing it now, with you all smashing it from the start and boldly capturing people’s hearts, it’s impressive.”
After five years of ceasing her activities, five years since she transformed, she had made up her mind to move again for one reason.
Curiosity and interest in Rene. But above all, Seonah, who cherished the normal life she had just managed to obtain after retirement, worried whether Casilena’s rampage would affect her.
“Our cute juniors are struggling too. What can you do? Compared to that psycho monster Takilas or whatever, it doesn’t seem too bad.”
“Looks like Aria couldn’t fill your shoes.”
Throwing away the burned cigarette, she rummaged through her pocket to take out something else. What she pulled out was a ring, invisible to others. As she slipped it onto her finger, she instantly summoned her magic, activating the connector.
“Oh… how long has it been?”
Her mascot jumped around excitedly. With a gust of wind, an entirely different presence appeared.
“Ugh. This feels so weird.”
Though her speech was the same, her voice had a slightly different tone.
The mature office lady, who towered over 170 cm, disappeared, replaced by a cute silver-haired girl resembling a teen barely in her early mid-teens, pouting her face in annoyance, dusting off her fancy white frilly skirt.
“Let’s hurry up and get there.”
Just like that, she easily returned to the world as the magical girl Karin after five years, soaring into the sky.
Even if she complained it felt awkward, her body was unfazed. Her physique, quickly adapting to her past sensations, zipped through the space at a remarkable speed, heading to the designated meeting spot.
She had already contacted the destination through her mascot. At the bunker entrance in the mountains, Director Lee Min-hyung from the Management Bureau and his employees were secretly waiting.
“Looks like the new director. I guess you must have been quite frustrated to not reject my proposal?”
“…Pleasure to meet you, Magical Girl Karin.”
As she landed, Director Lee Min-hyung awkwardly faced her. Though her appearance was that of a young girl, he had to constantly remind himself that she was, in fact, an adult over thirty.
“We are facing some serious issues lately with some magical girls rampaging. Please persuade them. We simply don’t have the power to manage this, and if it continues like this, we won’t be able to avoid extreme conflicts.”
“Well, I’m not really into such grand ideas anymore. I’m completely over justice and all that. I just want to figure out what’s going to happen before it spirals out of control and affects me. If you plan to use me as a hunting dog, that won’t work.”
Karin scoffed, clearly drawing the line.
She once was the inception of the Management Bureau before Aria, but that was in the past.
Having realized her own strength in adulthood, and now being in a position of power rather than subservience, no one dared to issue commands to her anymore.
“So, what are your thoughts, Aria?”
As the director fell silent with nothing to say, Karin turned her head in another direction. There, Aria, who had arrived earlier, stepped out from the shadows with a serious expression to face her.
“I do think we have to stop this. I just don’t think their will is wrong, so I’m not angry. I don’t pity them either. But I can only be in one place at a time. I may be running around, but I can’t deny my shortcomings.”
“Right, and you’re a high school student now. You’re becoming… an adult.”
Karin sighed as she looked into Aria’s unwavering eyes. Since the beginning, she had always been solitary, but the reason she held special affection for younger Aria, one of her distant juniors, was simply because their personalities and actions resembled hers so closely. And she saw the growth in her.
It was the journey from a literal child, accustomed to moving in the will of adults and societal pressures, to one who acted on her own volition and beliefs as she approached adulthood.
Karin felt a sense of camaraderie witnessing her cute junior’s coming-of-age story.
“From the start, we magical girls have always been paradoxical beings. We are inherently incompatible with this complex, developed world called Earth. That’s why I threw it all away, but seeing my junior struggle like this, I can step in once mindlessly.”
With a chuckle, Karin suddenly took off into the sky once more.
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