I Became a New Magical Girl Priest

---

“Signature?”

It seems that after being treated to some orange juice, I got home a bit later than I expected.

…It was a bit odd to think I got orange juice served to me. Well, this was my first time visiting someone’s house and getting treated like that.

Anyway, when I explained the situation to Ji-hye, who seemed quite irritated that I was late—she reacted to the word “signature” for some reason.

Why, though?

Isn’t it way more interesting to talk about a coffee-drunk alien or someone who’s legally allowed to drink coffee on Earth but isn’t in their own country, waking up sprawled on the street after downing too much?

“So… you got a signature?”

“…So what?”

When I replied with a somewhat skeptical expression, Ji-hye looked a bit shocked and dazed for a moment.

“Signature… right.”

After contemplating for a bit, Ji-hye hurriedly ran towards her desk.

And she came back with something.

…It was a sketchbook.

“No, no. This is too old.”

As I accepted it with a dazed expression, Ji-hye quickly snatched it back and clutched her head.

“Ah, yeah, that’s right. I had a signature. I suddenly became so famous I didn’t even think about it… I was just Ji-eun here.”

“No, I’m always just Jeong Ji-eun.”

“Nope.”

Ji-hye suddenly looked up and stared at me directly.

“You’re Happy Lily outside, right?”

“……”

C-Could we not refer to that name so casually, please?

Of course, I did write Happy Lily when signing for Pang-pang. I didn’t draw any flower doodles like Ha-yoon did, though.

But that was because I thought she would want that. The same goes for Ha-yoon, who asked for my signature. Naturally, people who ask for my signature do so because I’m a magical girl.

Thinking about it, I guess it’s a relief I didn’t sign with my real name. What if someone used it for fraud or something?

“Magical Girl Happy Lily.”

“No, I told you not to call me that.”

I replied incredulously as I dropped my bag next to the desk.

“Okay, we’ll call you Happy Lily outside. But here, I’m still Jeong Ji-eun. Your sister.”

“……”

At my words, Ji-hye went dazed again.

“What’s with you?”

My friends seem really strange today. There’s Ha-yoon, Ji-hye, and even Pang-pang I met for the first time wasn’t very ordinary. I mean, she’s an alien, so she’s not exactly the norm here on Earth. No matter how many of her kind there might be, they definitely don’t make up even one percent of our country.

“Hey, don’t say that all of a sudden…”

Why is her face turning red?

Is she getting flustered over something obvious?

I let out a long sigh and chose comfortable clothes to change into.

“Is it okay if I go take a shower?”

When I said that, Ji-hye nodded. At least for now, she didn’t seem to care about signatures.

I wonder if what made her happier than getting a signature was me calling her my sister.

Not because she’s the sister of a magical girl, but because she’s Jeong Ji-eun’s sister.

Hmm, that’s something that puts me in a good mood too.

Thinking that, I cheerfully went to take a shower and came out feeling great.

Then, Ji-hye suddenly shoved something toward me.

It was the signature I had seen at Pang-pang’s house earlier.

“……Where did you find this?”

“I saw it being sold at that store down the street.”

Ji-hye said, a little out of breath.

Did she run all the way there?

“Come on, sign it! This makes three, right?”

“Uh, um.”

After drying my hands with the towel again, I boldly signed my name on the piece of paper Ji-hye handed me.

Today was the first time I signed anything, but after doing it three times in one day, it was already starting to feel familiar.

“Awesome! So that’s how it looks, Happy Lily!”

I sighed deeply and spread a blanket on the floor while watching Ji-hye bounce around with the signed paper.

Well, I should understand her excitement.

After all, they’re still middle schoolers, right? If you have a famous friend, you’d want to brag about it at that age.

*

“So, how about we exchange signatures?”

After our promised break ended, I returned to headquarters and gathered the magical girls for a discussion.

They seemed to look at me with intense gazes, which surprised me a bit.

“So that means you got that signature and didn’t even bother to contact us?”

For some reason, Seo-hee said that in a really heated voice.

What contact?

Do I need to brag about giving someone a signature?

I rummaged through my memories.

Did the magical girls like to hold signings or something?

I think I remember hearing about it. I’ve never been, but I was interested in magical girls, so I checked a few times.

Isn’t that the group Ha-yoon will eventually join? It’s like an obvious plot device showing how I differ from Ha-yoon.

Whoever sent me here must have done it to mock me for not being able to be with Ha-yoon.

Now that I’m standing confidently next to her, though, it doesn’t seem to bother me much.

“So.”

Yeon-woo chimed in.

“So you made a signature, right?”

“Right?”

“And while we didn’t know, you gave that first signature to someone else.”

“And?”

“Then what about that?”

Yeon-woo mimicked my tone.

“Is that even important?”

“Well, of course it’s important—”

But Yeon-woo suddenly stopped in the middle of her sentence.

She looked like she was pondering her words and briefly stared up at the ceiling.

“Wait, it’s not like we hung your signature somewhere or need to register it, so why the fuss?”

At my words, everyone went quiet. They seemed to have nothing to say in response.

Maybe they wanted to have my first signature or something?

That’s a weird thought.

If I ever became a super famous person—like, the most famous magical girl ever, or a hero who saved the world, that first signature would probably be quite valuable.

Pang-pang’s appearance was so unique that I would remember it, and if she brought it up later, I could say it was mine.

But for now, it’s just the signature of a newly debuted magical girl. It doesn’t hold any significant value.

Plus, why would other magical girls be up in arms over a signature? Everyone else here generally comes from pretty well-off families.

How much could you even make from selling a single signed paper?

“…Well, fine.”

Seo-hee suddenly said, trying to wrap things up.

“So, since you’ve made a signature, and now we’ve formed the magical girl team, you’re saying you want to exchange signatures?”

I nodded at Seo-hee’s words.

“Sure, let’s do that. There’s no reason for anyone to refuse, right?”

When Seo-hee looked around, everyone nodded in agreement.

If I’m not mistaken, I could see eagerness in their eyes.

And I have no reason to misinterpret their eagerness. I’ve always been fighting alongside them.

Besides, I’ve experienced that eagerness first-hand, and I still get it often.

Why, though?

I hadn’t done anything particularly wrong to feel such a strange sense of guilt.

In the middle of all that, Ha-yoon’s expression was surprisingly upbeat, which was just baffling.

*

I have a total of four signatures.

Since I already gave one to Ha-yoon back then, I didn’t feel the need to create a new one. The same goes for Ha-yoon. Since I already had her second signature, there was no need for a new one. So, it’s just four.

It’s all a bit ridiculous.

Sure, I get that I gave my first signature to someone else, but the other girls have dealt with signings and such. They’ve probably done hundreds by now.

So why are they making such a fuss over me not giving them my very first signature?

“Okay, but.”

Seo-hee said.

“Do you remember the order you did the signatures in?”

“……”

For some reason, Seo-hee was still fixated on the order of signatures.

“I saw it.”

Jua chimed in.

Wait, Jua?

“From here to here, in that order.”

Jua laid out the four signatures in order as she spoke.

“Alright.”

This time, Yeon-woo added.

“Then, we just have to determine who gets which signature in order.”

…What?

What is this, lining up to collect bills like it’s money?

Are they perhaps overvaluing me? Do they think I’m going to become someone really important someday?

That’s understandable, because no one seems to give a hoot about Ha-yoon or Jua’s signatures. Plus, neither of them care that no one’s paying attention to their first signatures.

So, it’s this situation that I find utterly absurd.

Both of them are outstanding magical girls.

“…Let’s decide through a duel.”

At that point, Chae-yeon, who had been silently observing the situation, spoke up.

“Fighting would be fine too.”

 

---