I Became a New Magical Girl Priest

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I mean, I don’t really like the idea of thinking rationally.

That’s not to say it’s meaningless. It might be beneficial to nitpick the minor facts and consider how we should act, so we can move in a way that leads to the best outcome.

But, to be honest, once you start dissecting things like that, you end up having to give up too much.

Trying to have it both ways is just foolish compared to choosing one and locking it down. If there are two rabbits running in opposite directions, it’s obviously better to catch one than to try catching both, because if you hesitate, they’ll both disappear from view.

But still, you know.

Aren’t I a Magical Girl?

Not just any girl. A ‘Magical’ Girl, no less.

I hate Noir Corporation. They’ve been messing up my life one way or another. In fact, if we’re being precise, they were closer to being invaders, but that doesn’t mean that Noir Corporation, on the opposite end, is not evil.

Moreover, the fact that I can use such monsters this way means that non-Earthlings are using them recklessly too—

Bang! Bang!

I could hear those sounds from every direction. I heard someone scream too. Had a monster come out again? Or had other combatants been deployed alongside it?

“……”

Suddenly, that thought crossed my mind.

If I can move the monster this way, then…

Could it be that the monster appearing near the orphanage last time was for the same reason? What if the Noir Corporation’s combatants were nearby at that moment and ended up rescuing the children… Is that a completely nonsensical assumption?

No, now is not the time to be thinking like that.

First, I need to find Ji-hye.

And anyway, I need to find that generator too.

I had to evacuate the public officials stationed here, and keep an eye on the surrounding situations just in case.

Should I bring in more Magical Girls? But if I did that, the people in the complex might die.

We are Magical Girls after all.

A Magical Girl is a being who saves people using much stronger magic than others, just like those Magical Girls from the cartoons, appearing in front of people in danger and spreading hope.

…Although the true goal of the Federation lies elsewhere, at least this is my reason for fighting.

And it’s not that different from why Ha-yoon is fighting.

“Move aside!”

The Safe Room—that is, among the several Safe Rooms within here, I knew which one Cherry was using. Of course, it’s Cherry’s office. The thick wooden door was essentially just a thin layer, while inside was made of thick metal.

Bam!

I threw aside one of the combatants that had entered the building already and, nearby, smashed the head of the monster disguised as a robot with my hammer.

Clang! A refreshing sound of metal clashing echoed. With a thud, the bear-like monster toppled over.

The circuit was active. The door of the Safe Room visible in the distance was dented in several places but still firmly closed.

So, Ji-hye is safe. Just that was enough to fill me with hope.

“Ha-yoon!”

“Yeah!”

At my shout, Ha-yoon immediately turned and stabbed her pink lightsaber into the monster’s jaw. The tip of the blade even showed beyond the monster’s forehead, honestly looking like a rather violent scene from a Magical Girl show aimed at adults, but in reality, she hadn’t pierced through its head.

Ha-yoon’s magic could discern those things.

She had crushed the mechanical device controlling the monster’s head. The monster screamed wildly, its head mechanism destroyed, preventing it from turning properly.

She treated the other joints just the same, quickly immobilizing the monster for now. Certainty over the monster I had knocked aside stumbling back up was definitely preferable.

“Let’s go!”

But right now, that’s not the most important thing.

First, we need to either get into the Safe Room or escape with Ji-hye—though I don’t even know where we should go, we needed a way to deal with the situation somehow.

Could it really be about the generator? Is it really worth starting a war with the entire Federation over such a thing?

No matter how big the corporation spanning the galaxy is, it can’t be larger than the Federation itself.

When Ha-yoon heard my shout and quickly dashed over to me—

Creak.

Had it heard us coming?

The door to the Safe Room opened slightly from the inside.

But before we could reach the door, a monster was already charging towards it. No, at this point, I’m not sure if it’s even right to call it a monster. It had the appearance of a snake.

I couldn’t tell who threw it or if it had gone berserk and was rushing down fast like crazy.

“Ji-hye! Close the door…!”

Before my shout even finished, the door was already wide open.

And beyond that door, there was…

“Huh?”

Ha-yoon let out such a sound.

As for me, I even forgot to make a sound. I took a breath for a moment, but that was it.

Because beyond that door was Ji-hye in a form I could never have imagined.

Wearing a light green dress that matched the color of her eyes. Luckily, it wasn’t too revealing like mine. It was at a decent level, like Ha-yoon or Seo-hee. The atmosphere was truly that of a Magical Girl.

I thought that this wasn’t just a cosplay because she also had a shield in the same light green color on her arm. Not a material thing, but the very glimmering magic like Ha-yoon’s blade.

In her other arm, she held a generator, wedged into her side.

With Cherry perched on her shoulder.

Bam!

A monster charged at Ji-hye, but its body curled up from the hit as if it were a toy spring that had fallen to the floor. It might have looked a bit ridiculous.

“Eek!?”

That must have seemed quite alarming to Ji-hye. She had lived her life distanced from fighting.

Ji-hye’s flailing one foot in shock looked oddly comical.

“Ji-hye, what’s with that look…?”

“Hmm? Ah, um….”

Ji-hye’s eyes darted around for a moment before she said.

“That is… well, I guess I’m a Magical Girl now, huh?”

……

Well, I mean, it’s not like it’s completely unthinkable.

So, when Ha-yoon brought Cherry to me and put a circuit on me, I also concluded that I could become a Magical Girl, and that’s why I came here to train.

But even in such a hopeful situation, I wasn’t able to transform right away. I could hardly do it after quite a long training period—

Then, I once again looked at the generator that Ji-hye was holding against her side.

“That generator…”

It was glowing. Radiantly white.

How?

It should have been a generator that returned to despair.

“Ah, yeah. This generator’s energy seems to help with transforming.”

“The generator?”

Ha-yoon, who had the same puzzled expression as me, asked.

“I’m just guessing!”

Cherry raised one hand and shouted.

“What if despair and hope are actually not that different in emotion?”

“Huh?”

What on earth does that even mean?

In cartoons, they were forces that were completely opposite and couldn’t be interpreted.

“If you feel an extremely intense emotion, it might turn the other way! Just like if you supply power in reverse to a motor, it spins in reverse!”

“……..”

“Ah, Ji-eun, behind you…!”

Bam!

I swung my hammer backward without even looking. I heard something that was flying towards me get smacked down to the ground.

My head is already messy, so don’t come at me.

“Ji-eun.”

Ha-yoon quickly said.

“Right now is not the time to think about that. We can seriously ponder over it once the fight is over.”

Ah, right.

That’s true.

I needed to catch the two rabbits—no, all the rabbits scattering everywhere in front of me.

So, if there are wolves hindering me, I need to either knock them out or do whatever it takes to silence them.

“Okay, let’s go.”

“Oh, right, Ji-eun!”

Ji-hye suddenly thrust the generator towards me. The generator was still shining brightly.

“Hmm?”

“It seems to create magic power.”

“Okay. So, if we take turns holding it whenever we need it, we’ll surely be able to fight better. It’ll also make it harder for the opponent to take it away.”

Ji-hye and Cherry said in alternation.

“Just remember one thing, Ji-eun. Intense hope. As you’ve always done, intense hope. If you embrace that, it won’t just be a burden.”

I placed the generator on one hand, blinking rapidly, then looked at Ha-yoon.

“……Let’s give it a go, Ji-eun.”

“…….”

I look again at the shining generator.

The last time I held it, it didn’t do anything at all.

…Well, okay.

That’s how it is.

How did Ji-hye reveal this?

“Got it.”

If the rabbits scatter in all directions, there’s only one way to catch them.

It’s simple. It means that all I need to do is ride something incredibly fast and catch them before they can escape.

Let’s try out the generator as that engine.

That’s what I thought.

 

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