I Became a New Magical Girl Priest

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For some reason, I left Rose, who burst out laughing even in this situation, as well as Dalia and Delphinium, who wore expressions that seemed puzzled or flustered.

I stared fixedly at Ha-yoon and Jua, not really sure whether they had been fighting or not.

Jua’s face was red. It didn’t seem like she was angry. But usually, I would think she wouldn’t show much change in expression, except when she was angry or annoyed.

However, Ha-yoon wasn’t the type to casually throw around such insults either.

I scratched my head.

“… Let’s talk.”

Since none of the kids here seemed to have the intention to mediate between the two, I decided to take Ha-yoon with me to the tent.

In the meantime, it was strange that Rose burst into laughter again, and Jua was looking at us with a somewhat peculiar expression.

Ha-yoon entered the tent with her face entirely flushed.

I closed the door and we sat facing each other.

“……”

Ha-yoon, with her face completely red, couldn’t even meet my gaze. She looked like she had shown an incredibly embarrassing side of herself.

If she’s going to make that kind of face, then she shouldn’t have said such a thing.

No, wait.

Thinking it over again, it didn’t seem like Ha-yoon would have intentionally said something like that. There are plenty of words in Korean that have that pronunciation, so the issue might have arisen because I didn’t catch it all.

But still, I had to hear her out. Anyway, if Ha-yoon reacted this way, it probably wasn’t a normal comment.

“What were you talking about?”

As I asked, I felt stupid.

Just a short while ago, I hadn’t even thought about the notion of myself being involved with someone other than Ha-yoon.

No, to clarify, there had been instances, but typically, I kept people who approached her at a distance because she didn’t want them there in the first place.

The magical girls all had a good relationship with Ha-yoon. If I were to label it, they could be called friends.

Of course, it was often those who got hurt the most when Ha-yoon fought.

… Just like how I had hurt her.

“That’s… um…”

I patiently waited for Ha-yoon to piece together her words.

I was familiar with this. When Ha-yoon fell into deep contemplation, this was usually how she responded if I asked her.

Most times, it had to do with household matters, and there wasn’t much I could do about it. All I did was hold her hand and lead her around, sometimes buying her sweets to eat.

We couldn’t do that here, so I needed to think of a different approach.

“I like…”

“I like?”

“Someone…”

“… Someone you like?”

Ha-yoon nodded.

For a few seconds, my brain went blank. The moment it thawed as time passed, I began to logically sort through what Ha-yoon had said a moment ago and the situation I had just witnessed.

Actually, once my reason stopped, my thoughts became clearer.

What? Is that what it is?

Thinking about the word “like,” I could somewhat understand why she had exclaimed in surprise.

It seemed that Ha-yoon wasn’t very adept in that realm. It wasn’t like we had ever had those kinds of conversations… hardly ever.

Yeah, really.

“Someone you like?”

I muttered it again. It wasn’t intentional.

Someone Ha-yoon likes?

I figured there could be…

She is a high school girl, after all. Not every high school girl has a boyfriend, but for someone like Ha-yoon, having a boyfriend wouldn’t be surprising.

Wait, is that weird?

Yeah, it is weird. Ha-yoon was often with me, both in and out of school. We were almost always in touch, and when Ha-yoon went somewhere, unless it was due to a school event, it usually meant she was going with me.

But if I dug deeper… there were plenty of times she wasn’t with me either.

Especially when Ha-yoon was on magical girl duty.

The only time I could meet other magical girls in private was when that stalker monster was following me. So, I had no idea what Ha-yoon was like when she was doing “federal work.”

I knew just a bit, enough to see on webtoons, but what the author portrayed was more like piecing together funny moments rather than depicting daily life in detail.

Moreover, considering my existence, there might be differences from the original.

“……”

So, even if they weren’t dating yet, it wasn’t surprising if Ha-yoon had someone she liked.

Actually, wouldn’t it be weirder if she didn’t? Everyone experiences love at least once, and unrequited love is also a possible scenario.

However, understanding that and feeling jealousy are two completely different things.

I felt jealous of Ha-yoon. Seeing her talent brought me a sense of despair many times.

But at the same time, Ha-yoon was also my hope. She was the person I admired most in this world.

Thinking it wouldn’t be odd for her to be popular with boys, if Ha-yoon wanted, it’d be nothing for her to find someone and start dating.

Yet, as much as I understood, I didn’t like it.

Here, both she and I were the same gender, and even if it were different genders, I didn’t think Ha-yoon would ever consider me as someone of the opposite gender.

Over time, our relationship might gradually fade. If Ha-yoon started dating a guy and began going out frequently, that would surely create a conflict.

More than that, I had no clue what kind of person the guy she liked might be.

… No, in fact, the reason I felt this way wasn’t due to such complexities.

It was—

“Do you have someone you like?”

I said it deliberately in a teasing manner.

Ha-yoon’s face turned bright red as she hung her head low. It seemed she was serious about it.

The noise from the circuit was gradually diminishing. It hadn’t been that loud from the start, but now it felt like it might stop soon.

“That’s…”

Once again, Ha-yoon hesitated to speak.

I leaned a little closer to her face, just like the time I had pushed her against the wall.

Back then, she had said she would do anything she could. Even though I didn’t know what I might do, she hadn’t run away.

Now, to bring up that matter after doing nothing back then, I felt like a coward.

“Why? Is it hard to say? Is it not okay to tell me who you like? You’ve already mentioned it in front of them earlier.”

What was I trying to get at?

If it were someone I didn’t know, it wouldn’t mean anything to me. What could I do about that person?

Even if it were someone I knew, that would still hold no meaning. Would I threaten them to keep away from Ha-yoon? That would be the worst choice of all.

No matter what answer I received, I would get hurt.

But it was hard to hold it back. For some reason, I desperately wanted to know.

As I deliberately got closer to Ha-yoon’s face, she finally couldn’t bear it and pulled back.

Ha-yoon finally raised her head to look at me. Her face was so red it seemed like it had reached its limit.

“…… You.”

“……”

It took me a moment to grasp Ha-yoon’s words.

Could her crush’s name possibly be ‘You’? That kind of name could exist, right? I wasn’t sure. With so many names in the world, especially as the universe definition was becoming vaster, it could very well be possible.

Could her crush be an alien?

“It was about you, Ji-eun…”

Ha-yoon said almost explosively, speaking so softly while appearing incredibly embarrassed.

“About me?”

“…… Yeah.”

“So, you like me…?”

“…… Yeah.”

Ha-yoon nodded as if to confirm her own death sentence.

How should I take this?

I slowly pulled back my head.

Carefully placed my hands on my knees in a lotus position, and only then did I feel my face heating up.

It was the first time in either life that I heard such a confession from a girl.

However, at the same time, having lived my life like this, recalling the meaning behind those words wasn’t that difficult.

When someone lives defensively, they tend to think of ways to avoid misunderstandings with the opposite gender. Therefore, those words couldn’t possibly mean she liked me as anything beyond a friend.

It’s not that I didn’t have feelings, but… let’s face it, there had been no mention of Ha-yoon liking the opposite sex in webtoons.

Though I had fantasized about potential couples in my imagination.

“… So, that means… Friends, right?”

Just same-gender friends of the same age.

Moreover, childhood friends who had known each other since they were little.

We shared many memories, and while we hadn’t gone far, those weekends spent out and about enjoying various treats were definitely happy times.

Being considered one of Ha-yoon’s closest childhood friends, it wouldn’t be strange for us to feel ‘affection’ for each other.

Given how Rose had been loudly laughing just moments ago, this certainly means a fun conversation had taken place, right?

“……”

Yet, strangely, with her face flushed red, Ha-yoon just continued to stare at me without saying anything.

The longer that silence stretched, the more anxious I felt. It seemed like I had intruded for no good reason. Thinking about it, the weather wasn’t that cold anymore, so perhaps it was time to dismantle the tent.

It would have been fine to talk to Ha-yoon outside the building. Even though the night was still chilly, it would have been enough to offset my flushed face.

There was no need for me to be in a dark place, staring at her reddening face.

As I continued to shake one knee nervously while watching her, Ha-yoon’s gaze slowly shifted down.

“… Um… since we’re talking about friends.”

Ha-yoon said it quietly.

“Jua said the same. Friends, so, we like each other.”

“… Jua did.”

Hearing that settled me a bit.

Ha-yoon seemed similarly reassured.

I began to understand why she had been stuttering. Though she confidently fought with a bold and clear expression as a magical girl, she oddly displayed clumsiness when it came to human relationships.

One reason I had kept those who approached Ha-yoon at bay was to prevent her from getting used.

Surely, upon hearing that Jua liked me during our conversation, Ha-yoon might have felt a sense of competition—

“……”

Thinking that triggered a slight flush on my face once again.

Why?

Even Ha-yoon feeling jealousy as a friend made me react this way? Was it because I liked Ha-yoon that much?

“… Should we sleep soon?”

The atmosphere had become immensely awkward, and lingering here to have another strange conversation would be silly. So, I suggested that.

We had eaten, and skipping washing for a day wouldn’t kill anyone. The inside of the tent was cleanly arranged.

“… Okay.”

Ha-yoon merely nodded at my words.

I got up to prepare for bed, and Ha-yoon awkwardly lay down on the floor.

Tonight, Ha-yoon was looking towards the entrance as well.

We lay there, backs touching, in silence for a while.

“……”

However, outside, there were others around.

Where could Cherry and James be?

*

Though Jua had defined the meaning of ‘like’, for some reason, listening to the conversation between Ha-yoon and Ji-eun made her keenly aware of the word’s significance.

She hadn’t been eavesdropping.

It was just that by coincidence, the place where Jua was was not far from the tent.

Ji-eun had entered the tent with Ha-yoon without closing the door.

Even if they had locked it, in reality, that tent wouldn’t offer much soundproofing. Unless they truly whispered inside, the sounds would inevitably escape outside.

Rose, sitting next to Jua, also quietly listened in.

If she got too close, her shadow might reveal her eavesdropping.

Dalia and Delphinium had also come over and were leaning in to listen.

It was merely a conversation among friends, yet for some reason, their faces reddened strangely. Even Rose, who had been laughing openly just moments ago.

Even the older girls looked as if they were just two ‘girls’ of a similar age to Jua.

Of course, they weren’t people whom she leaned on heavily as seniors.

“… You.”

And when Ha-yoon said that, Jua was also taken aback.

It felt strange and ticklish, and her ears turned red.

They must have been having a conversation along the lines of what they’d been discussing just moments before. They were probably talking about a friend and how feelings of affection are closer to the good than the bad in friendships.

Yet, why did something feel so off?

Her heart raced.

Thinking this way about two people seemed way too strange, but Jua couldn’t help but ponder if there was more meaning behind Ha-yoon’s words than just as a friend.

And at the same time.

If the two actually liked each other, what would happen?

The world had turned into one on a galactic scale. Naturally, there were aliens married to each other, and though rare, stories of aliens married to Earthlings did come in as well.

Though Earth was still within the protective range, which meant Earthlings were also among the protected, the tolerances were still quite limited.

Because of that, conversations about gender were truly trivial.

If both like each other, they could date. While some people might express reluctance, one could still say those conversations are simply outdated.

Jua, in turn, couldn’t oppose it, being in the position of following the idea of equality.

However, this wasn’t a relationship that matched anything she had seen before.

If these two became lovers, could Jua maintain her friendship with Ji-eun?

That kind of peculiar relationship, unlike any other, had only just begun.

Various ‘common sense’ notions came to mind.

For instance, true friendships between the opposite genders are seldom maintained easily; if an opposite-gender friend began to date someone, it was worth contemplating that they wouldn’t meet as often.

But does that apply to same-gender friends as well?

“A bit… incredible.”

Jua was pulled from her thoughts by Rose’s remark.

“Would those two really just be friends?”

“… I’m not sure.”

Dalia tilted her head.

“I still can’t tell.”

“While jumping to conclusions may be bad, I believe…”

Dalia said in response to Delphinium.

“… It’s true they must be important to each other.”

And the conclusion came forth neutrally.

Jua decided to follow that conclusion.

For now, no conclusions had been drawn. It seemed that Ha-yoon’s distance from Ji-eun was somewhat different from the usual friendship, yet she hadn’t shown any signs that suggested she wanted anything more.

Misunderstanding might lead to larger and more dangerous misunderstandings. And such things often led to her own conflicts.

That was a lesson learned through various careless mistakes once she had become a magical girl.

So, for now, she decided not to draw any conclusions.

Whether that was truly “looking at the situation objectively” or if Jua herself had some internal hesitation about acknowledging the truth was something she couldn’t be sure of herself.

*

I woke up due to the heat.

It was as if Ha-yoon, who had been sleeping with her back to me, had flipped over towards me.

She even had her arm wrapped tightly around my waist like usual.

Realizing that immediately surged me awake. Just moments ago… no, not even moments ago, I had barely fallen asleep after fretting over it all by myself.

So, I was a little annoyed.

Annoyed that only Ha-yoon seemed comfortable.

That she could casually say she liked me.

There was no way I could do that.

That was only natural.

I liked Ha-yoon.

… Maybe, I’ve liked her for a long time.

Isn’t that something unavoidable?

No matter how much I feel jealousy or wish to win against others…

It’s only natural to have feelings beyond mere affection for someone who is beautiful, kind, righteous, and smiles back at me many times.

…

And so, I felt annoyed.

Feeling that way led me to turn over this time.

It wasn’t easy to hug her tightly, but in the end, that’s how it turned out.

Due to the height difference, it ended up with Ha-yoon burying her face in my chest.

“Ugh…”

Was it hard to breathe? Ha-yoon let out such a sound.

I felt so embarrassed. Even if Ha-yoon was asleep, facing her like this—I couldn’t handle it.

Even in such a tense position, I couldn’t outright hug her like she was doing.

I took much longer than I had before to fall back asleep.

The next morning, I didn’t need an alarm to wake up.

Ha-yoon screamed in my arms as she bolted upright, causing me to twist sideways from her grip around my waist.

I was a little hurt by that scream, but that was a secret from Ha-yoon.

There was also a hint of satisfaction.

 

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