Mr. Magical Girl

Chapter: 143. Public Authority. Descending.

After finishing the negotiations, I dumped the remaining paperwork onto the organization and returned to the sewer.

Gurgle.

Welcoming me was the gently flowing, light black wastewater.

It seemed largely unchanged, but there were a few noticeable differences.

First, it was flowing slowly, which would be normal for an ordinary sewer, but it’s something I had never seen in the Nanjido sewer before.

Additionally, the stench hitting my nostrils was much more tolerable compared to before.

“Now it’s bearable.”

For a person to live, it had to be at least this much.

Of course, it was still an inadequate environment for a kid like my son…

Soon, I would be taking him to a better place.

The orphanage created by the organization.

The school run by the organization.

Though those kids were a bit crazy as a group, they were full of well-meaning maniacs who would take good care of him.

The help I owed to my Unni, Yeon, ended here.

From now on, it’s up to them.

Thinking like that, I walked towards the lodging where I had spent a few weeks.

Clomp, Clomp.

The sound of boots echoed lightly through the sewer.

How long has it been since I started walking, listening to such a rhythmic sound?

“Abin Unni! Please show me again, but a little softer this time! That hurt a bit!”

“Okay, got it! …How about now?”

“Make it a bit louder this time!”

Those cheerful voices came through the gray cloth.

Laughter of the students and kids echoed from beyond the barrier.

Unlike the past, where every emotion was swallowed by the murky air of the sewer, the bright energy pierced through the stench.

Hearing those voices, a thought crossed my mind.

Isn’t this enough?

I came to Nanjido and saw the dirty state, and though I reaped no harvest for the effort, isn’t it enough that the kids can feel this bright atmosphere?

Such thoughts.

It’s been a while since I felt this sensation.

Chasing away the darkness and reclaiming the light.

Isn’t it a funny story?

A story that could only be created because it was a garbage dump.

Not a complete victory, nor a total defeat.

A slight victory that allows the trash to exist while securing a right to exist.

Thinking back, I used to fight for such things.

The right for humans to survive. The future of humanity.

To gain even a sliver of land where humanity can survive against the armies of the Otherworld.

How ironic.

Only after coming to this garbage dump, Nanjido, do I feel that sensation again.

After sending those emotions floating away, I lifted the cloth.

“I’m back.”

Ding!

“Teacher is back!”

A dual reaction dashed towards me.

Han Abin, who sent a telepathic message, and Baek Sihyeon, who ran to greet my return.

A wild boar collided with my hand.

Thud.

As I shook my hand, the boar that charged at me got shoved into the corner.

“Get lost, you pest, it’s 54.”

Then, I answered Abin’s question.

“…It was a wrong message.”

Embarrassed, Abin blushed as she said that, but it wasn’t a bad sign.

“Looks like your training is going well.”

“Yes… It was a bit difficult at first, but once I got in sync with Yeon, it went well.”

“Good. She said you absorbed well.”

Yeon also spoke up in her clumsy speech.

“Right. Both of you did well.”

I instinctively reached out to praise them.

Oh, wait.

I pulled my hand back.

No matter how much of an animal kin she is, she’s in a situation where she dislikes me.

There’s no need to pat her head, is there…

“Why? Isn’t it praise? You can do it.”

Instead, she leaned her head against my hand.

A soft sensation rushed towards my palm.

Not human hair flowing down but rather, the stiff yet fine, smooth fur of a beastkin.

As that sensation touched my hand, I waved it back as a reward.

…Didn’t you dislike me?

Of course, getting housing in this strange situation raised some questions; I asked.

But my question fell flat; Yeon just closed her eyes and made a sound.

Could that sound be the result of her thinking, or was it an instinctive sound of animals?

“It’s nice to see you getting closer.”

“Yeon’s fur is so soft!”

The students watching the scene threw in their comments.

But really, I can’t make sense of this situation.

Just a while ago, the beastkin who raised her claws at me runs over asking to be petted? What’s going on?

After stroking her fur a few more times.

“Maybe it’s because the atmosphere around here feels a lot more relaxed.”

A small voice from the back reached me.

“What an interesting statement.”

I turned towards the direction of the voice to ask.

“Umm, I’m not really sure how to explain… I suppose it feels like something I was suppressing has disappeared… I feel a bit lighter, maybe?”

Leaning against the wall, I could see Dam answering while drinking water.

‘Feeling lighter,’ hmm.

Is that because of that being that emerged from the black slime well?

According to Baek Sihyeon and Han Abin, the residents of Nanjido couldn’t even go out.

In fact, Nanjido was probably on the brink of being swallowed by the Otherworld.

The residents might have been gradually going insane without realizing it.

At least the more perceptive beastkins would have sensed it.

Everything seems to add up.

Thinking so, I turned back to my students.

“Are you all feeling any discomfort?”

“No!”

“As I mentioned before, we haven’t fought properly yet…

We’ve just encountered the Black Marauder, aka Yumil.”

Yet, I continued to ask questions.

“Nothing strange? Like bugs flying in the corner of your vision. A face appearing in the corner of the room whispering… Suddenly, a black voice starts whispering or candy turns black.”

All of those were hallucinations I often experienced, but excluding the last.

“Nothing!”

Sihyeon, who was always lively, responded to my question.

Yeah, I thought she’d fall into a hole just like that.

“Well… I did have some hallucinations. Oh! But I’m fine now.”

Then Abin shared a slightly worried addition.

“What kind of hallucination?”

“Oh, it was nothing serious. It was that the teacher liked magical girls. In fact, that appearance was really his type. It felt ridiculous. I realized right away that it was a hallucination.”

“Haha, that is ridiculous.”

With a dry chuckle, I laughed.

Hehehe.

“Right? The teacher seems to really hate that kind of appearance, who would believe such nonsense?”

“Yeah…”

I laughed again.

Happiness Drop. Lisa Dalgren. I’m determined to drag this guy out and kill him somehow.

“Well then, I’ll come back another time!”

“Take care!”

“Bring some food next time!”

“Unni! Come again!”

“Thank you, Unni!”

The students and kids bid farewell, but I quietly stood there, choosing to remain silent and just watch.

Knowing that if it were a formal farewell, it was better not to do it.

After all, maybe I’d never see them again.

Leaving an impression on another’s heart is really not that fun.

After the farewell, the students departed far away, and when the kids quietly waved their hands,

I distanced myself from them and calmly spoke to Dam.

…”Thank you.”

“No, I owe you more. I never thought you would resolve it…”

Well, perhaps I got more from you.

In that final moment, the one who turned everything back was the text you sent.

That thing, which resembled me closely, had said.

Everything is up to the choices made.

What if I had handed that over to Baek Sihyeon or Han Abin instead?

Would they have been terrified and requested help from me amidst that chaos?

I didn’t voice such musings.

I simply slipped my hand into my pocket, pulled out a small object, and handed it over to Dam.

“Take this.”

As I spoke curtly, Dam reached out and took the item I presented.

…”What is this?”

With an awkward smile, Dam asked again.

I had expected such a reaction.

What I handed him was the iron ring I had once taken from him.

Originally, I had planned to take that to the organization for a request, but circumstances changed.

“Ask your school official about that. It should provide information about your parents.”

…“What? Parents? Wait, school? We don’t—”

Dam hastily responded, but…

You’ll find out.

I quietly turned my body, replying.

“Ah… um, you might not know.”

A voice called from behind me as I was leaving.

“Thank you!”

Thus, we left Nanjido.

“Waaah, home! Finally home…”

“Sihyeon, calm down… I get it, but…”

Once the house came into view, the two students began to speak, moving their bodies.

The way they moved was unusually strange, as they didn’t look fine at all.

To be specific, their backs were hunched, their necks poking out awkwardly, disheveled hair, and arms hanging limply to the ground.

It was a figure far removed from the stance a hero should have, resembling a half-dead person.

I knew the reason for that quite well; I had gone through it too.

Immediately after escaping from Nanjido, we were captured by the Association and subjected to forced cleaning until the smell was gone.

However, due to the stubborn stench, we had to undergo cleaning every two hours.

While this itself wasn’t a huge problem, what made it really difficult for us was something else.

The continuous interrogation procedures of the Association.

After the cleaning was done, we had to be questioned about the incidents that took place in Nanjido and fill out reports until the next cleaning.

I could manage as I had stamina and had experienced such things several times, but for my students, it must have been a tough ordeal.

Nevertheless, thanks to the long interrogation and report writing, we were able to glean the Association’s opinions about this incident, so it wasn’t such a terrible day after all.

What did they say? Due to the sudden outbreak of tremendous Otherworld’s Power, they dropped a nuclear bomb.

Above Nanjido, we observed monsters that didn’t seem to belong to this world, but they were quietly dealt with alongside the nuclear bomb, erasing any trace of that Otherworld’s Power. They decided to just keep it confidential.

Thus, it seems like the extraterritorial rights regarding Nanjido will somehow be maintained.

It seems they plan to quietly pass over the failure to repel the key targets, Umbra Lat and Octomun Duce.

If you think about it, maybe it’s a blessing in disguise.

What would have happened if they succeeded?

Even if Umbra Lat and Octomun Duce had been exterminated by the bomb, numerous entities from the Otherworld would have died, leading to a massive outflow of energy.

Given that Nanjido isn’t an area of contamination, it wouldn’t have been a major issue, but it just so happened that there was a hole the Association couldn’t detect.

It seems they controlled the information regarding the media as usual, but how do you hide a nuclear cloud?

With the nuclear cloud, and the hole opening, an invasion from the Otherworld was declared across all of Seoul.

What a perfect scenario.

Congratulations, Association! Your downfall!

Declaration of surrender by Seoul!

That should be enough rambling.

“Sir, you look terrible. Straighten your back.”

Even though the investigation was long enough for information to accumulate, that grotesque posture should be a different matter.

“How are you so sprightly…?”

“It’s because I’m the teacher!”

Fools.

I stopped matching my pace with the idiots crawling on the ground like zombies, and headed home alone.

At this state, I felt like I couldn’t even open the door properly.

Finally at the door of my house.

I opened the lid of my auto-locking device.

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

I entered the password.

Ding ding!

The door opened.

What lay before me was my living expenses.

A thick bundle of paper.

An item engraved with the mark of the Association.

…No. It can’t be that time already.

In a panic, I bent over to check the envelope, but the writing on the outside didn’t change.

Mobilization training notice.

That’s right.

That time has come.

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