An Exorcist Magical Girl!

《Are you sure you want to delete

【Talent: Magical Girl (Aspirant)】

?》

 

A pure white pop-up appeared in front of my eyes.

 

《Yes/No》

 

I didn’t hesitate to click on it.

 

《Delete: 【

Talent: Magical Girl (Aspiring)

】

》

《In Progress>>》

《

【

Talent: Magical Girl (Aspiring)】

Deletion completed》

《You can now have a new Talent》

 

I chose the talent that was in the queue from earlier.

 

《Are you sure you want to keep

【Talent: Exorcist (Aspiring)】? 》

《Yes/No》

 

This time, I immediately clicked Yes.

 【Talent: Exorcist (Aspiring)】【Name: Baek, Iri】【Rank: S】 

A whopping S-rank talent. There was no reason to hesitate.

 

I could still feel the shiver that ran through my body when [Talent: Exorcist (Aspiring)] first appeared in my status window.

 

I had spent seven years of my eighteen years of life with my eyes fixed on a magical girl.

 

But sadly, my talent ranking was unremarkable and humble.

 

That was to say, my abilities as a magical girl were insignificant.

 

In all my years of training as an aspiring magical girl, I never once excelled at anything.

 

This life-changing opportunity came out of nowhere and without warning.

 

I closed my eyes and remembered the day.

 

The day when I was still a wannabe magical girl, when I was gifted with an incredible talent that I could only dream of.

 

It was a particularly miserable day for me, a day of no progress, only sinking.

 

Skill scores that didn’t go up. Skills I hadn’t mastered. Evaluation scores always stayed the same.

 

And then…

 

‘Your name is not on the list of successful candidates.’

 

Hunkered down in the corner of a deserted top-floor restroom, I checked the results: Failed.

 

I didn’t do any of that stupid emotional stuff, shocked by the results and reeling from disappointment.

 

I had no reason to be sad because I hadn’t had any expectations in the first place.

 

The list I had just checked was for the “First Division Magical Girl Alpha Team” recruitment.

 

It was the most competitive of the recruitment categories, so it was only natural that I would be rejected.

 

I flipped the window to the side and wrote my name and examination number in the other recruitment section.

 

Last Name / First Name: Baek / Iri

Examination number: XXXXX-XXXXX

 

With a trembling hand, I pressed the query.

 

‘Your name is not on the list of successful candidates.’

 

The second and third department alpha teams also failed.

 

Should I move on to the beta team?

 

In high school, I was able to apply to the state-run magical girl department.

 

If you were accepted and officially debuted as a magical girl, you could remove the

‘Aspiring’

mark after your talent name.

 

Anyway, within the division, there were teams, and the Alpha team was the most coveted, the one where you could show off your heroic side the most.

 

The Beta team was, well, a backup to the main character.

 

I paused for a moment, wondering if I should check out the Fourth Division Magical Girls Alpha Team or the Second Division Magical Girls Beta Team first. But soon, the cheers that echoed through the Academy made my head spin.

 

That’s it, dammit.

 

I turned off the screen immediately.

 “Dude, crazy, she made it to senior class!” “Where? Where?” “First division alpha team, of course!” 

I didn’t want to know the details, but there was no stopping the shouting.

 

My pulse raced.

 

I knew who she was talking about even if I didn’t hear her name.

 

Someone who deserves to be on the First Division Magical Girl Alpha Team.

 

Who else but Narea?

 “Ah… haha.” 

Laughter escaped me.

 

I don’t know if it’s envy or heartbreak.

 

One thing’s for sure, the feeling in my heart is not jealousy or rivalry. Such luxuries as a rival might have been not worthy of infighting.

 

Narea was a genius magical girl.

 

A genius who was admired by everyone and was always the center of applause and praise. She was not someone a mere mortal like me would dare to compete with.

 

But once upon a time, I dreamed of being her. I thought I’d forgotten all about the ideals of my youth.

 

I thought I had. 

 

But now that I’ve gotten myself into this mess, I realize I’ve just buried it.

 

I was horrified to realize how inadequate and incompetent this gift I had been given was.

 

I don’t know if I’ve ever felt so cursed.

 

Not only that, but I don’t like to drown in my feelings, but the pit of emotions that gripped my ankles kept dragging me down.

 

Yeah. Let’s just be honest.

 

I wanted to be in that position, the one that everyone looked up to, the one that only those with uncommon talent could occupy.

 

That’s when it happened.

 

《New talent has arrived. 》

 

An unexpected notification popped up in my status window.

 

The S-rank Exorcist talent had magically appeared when I was at my lowest point.

 

After that day, I spent weeks pondering and researching, and finally, I decided to switch talents.

 

And today was the day I realized it.

 

The Exorcist talent only asked me to do one thing.

 

《Delete the talent you’ve been aspiring to.》

 

The concept of deleting talents was new to me.

 

However, I didn’t hesitate to comply with the request, as I was eager to get rid of the tired magical girl talent rather than turn it into a hobby.

 

I was willing to do anything to become the owner of an S-rank talent.

 

Even to the point of ruthlessly throwing away an existing talent that had been with me for seven years.

 

I could do it, and I did.

 【Talent: Magical Girl (Aspiring)】

was filling the void left by

【Talent: Exorcist (Aspiring)】

in the status bar.

 

《Loading

【Talent: Exorcist (Aspiring)】

into the status bar. 》

 

——————99%.

Done.

 

S-rank talent was about to fall into my lap.

 

The status window flashed with a loud beeping sound.

 

It was an error.

 

Several pop-ups appeared in rapid succession.

 

《

【Talent Type: Warden】

》

《This talent is not yet available for ownership.》

《It will be converted to a one-month rental type.》

 

‘What? Unavailable?’

 

I rubbed my eyes, hoping I’d misread it, but nothing changed.

 

The ridiculous phrase “one-month rental type” flaunted its presence.

 

…what a crazy scammer.

 

***

 

“Talent rental”

, a word I’d never heard before in my life, followed by talent deletion.

 

When I first saw the phrase

“arrival”

of the talent, I carefully checked to make sure it wasn’t a virus or a new scam.

 

I’d heard of new talents blossoming, but I’d never heard of them

‘arriving’

.

 

I had to check dozens of times to make sure it wasn’t a scam, that it was a legitimate talent, albeit one that had a unique way of appearing in the status bar.

 

It’s like when you suddenly have 10 billion won, and it’s not illegal, it’s not counterfeit, and it’s not crappy, so you’re excited to spend it, but there’s a condition that you have to return it in one month.

 

What a stab in the back!

 

“Holy…”

 

I could do nothing but stare at the status window until my eyes glazed over.

 

“Why…”

 

Oh, I hate to think about this.

 

I wanted to distract myself somehow before my damn brain finished the sentence of its own accord.

 

Luckily, the familiar pure white glow filled the status bar screen again, interrupting my train of thought.

 

It was a new pop-up.

 

《Reason for inability to file.》

 

Before I had a chance to think about it, another message popped up.

 

《Reason for unavailability:

Mission not completed.

》

《Upon completion of the mission, you can switch to the permanent collection type.》

 “…!” 

Done. It’s still a dirty, dirty give-and-take scheme. However, it did open up the possibility of not getting it.

 

I quickly spun the positive circuit.

 

Okay, so getting an S-rank talent for free in the first place was a bastard.

 

There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to have this shining talent.

 

As if reading my thoughts, a mission pop-up appeared.

 

《Mission:

Prove It

》

《Show me that you are worthy of this gift. 》

《Do you want to accept the mission? 》

《Yes/No》

 

Of course.

 

At that moment, my vision was filled with a brilliant light.

 

My eyes opened to a ringing in my eardrums.

 

It was pitch black, and I couldn’t make out anything. I could only vaguely recognize that I was in a room.

 

*

cough*

 

I tried to cough into the unreality of the situation, but no sound came back.

 

I couldn’t even hear the announcement that woke me up anymore.

 

Sure enough, as soon as I accepted the mission, the status window glowed, and I opened my eyes to see…

 

‘Oh, no?’

 

I panicked, racking my brain, and blurted out the first thing I could think of.

 “Ah, ah, ah, ah! Kanadaramabasa. Kanadaramabasa!” 

Ahhhh, thank goodness.

 

My voice was right. The hair was the same length, and the hands and the calluses on my fingers were the same.

 

It didn’t seem like the whole switching bodies thing had happened. I know. This isn’t a novel, it can’t be.

 

Once I realized how ridiculous the idea was, I felt my body twitch with embarrassment.

 

I ran a hand through my hair. 

 

Once I realized that it wasn’t, I felt strangely calmer.

 

I sat where I’d woken up, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the darkness.

 

The stale smell of dust filled the air. Cautiously, I reached out and felt the stiff texture of the carpeting.

 

From where I sat, I couldn’t reach the bare, carpeted floor.

 

I moved my hand more boldly. Something cold and distant brushed my fingertips.

 

I pressed harder where it continued, and felt a fluffy sensation.

 

‘…A cushion? No, a bundle of clothes?’

 

Slowly my eyes adjusted to the darkness and I began to make out large objects.

 

The pillow I’d just pressed down on was a crushed pillow. Behind it was a bed with only the frame left, flanked by a chair and a table. Against the opposite wall was a long piece of furniture that I couldn’t recognize.

 

Ah, a dressing table. Beneath the vanity was a pile of broken mirrors.

 

If I reached over there, I would have hurt myself.

 

Anyway, this room is too plain to be a family room, and the furniture design and arrangement are too sophisticated for a dorm.

 

This leaves me with,

 “…hotel?” 

The texture of the pillow I touched earlier was very fluffy. It felt like a hotel pillow.

 

I’d have to wait until I got out to find out more, but there was something I needed to check before I moved forward.

 

I pulled up the status window.

 【Talent: Exorcist (Aspiring) (Rental)】【Name: Baek Iri】【Rank: S】 

The Exorcist talent is clearly labeled as being on loan, but it’s still there in the status bar.

 

And next to it is….

 

《Mission:

Prove It.

》

《Show that you are worthy of this talent. 》

《Mission in progress》

 【04:09:35】 

A message informing me that the mission is in full swing.

 “Hey, you crazy…”

I laughed out loud in disbelief.

 

No, it doesn’t start as soon as I accept, ‘You reward less mission bastard’.

 

Furthermore, there was no explanation of the mission other than

“show that you’re worthy of your talent”

.

 

I was thrown into the middle of a mission without knowing anything about it!

 

But there was no time to complain.

 【04:08:58】 

That’s a timer.

 

That meant I had about four hours to decide whether this S-rank talent would leave my hands or not.