READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 174
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While I was blankly watching Ayle’s transformed self, someone with pure white hair peeked over her shoulder.
Ayle’s first friend, whom she finally made after going to college. Snowa.
“Nice to meet you, Professor.”
“…Snowa? What are you doing here?
“What do you mean, ‘how did I get here’? Who do you think is responsible for dressing up Ayle like this?”
Indeed—.
I couldn’t help but nod at Snowa’s words. I never thought Ayle would do all this by herself… but was it really not her own will?
But regardless of whether it was her own will or not, a change in appearance always carries some intent. I looked at Ayle and smiled softly.
“You look pretty, Ayle. Wouldn’t it be great if you went around looking like this all the time?”
“R-Really?”
“Of course. You could get married right away!”
“Ehehe, ehehe… Well, that seems a bit early for me, but… if it’s someone like you, I’d be okay with it.”
“Huh?”
Since I didn’t catch the last part, I asked again, and Ayle, with her face all flushed, took a deep breath and cautiously opened her mouth.
“I said it’d be nice if it was… the Scientist.”
“…Ah.”
I never imagined Ayle would be able to reveal such feelings.
I found myself at a loss for words, merely flapping my lips.
At the same time, I understood why she went to such lengths to dress up.
In my mind, I kept spinning thoughts about how to refuse her without hurting her—after all, despite her beauty, I had never harbored such feelings for her.
From the moment I joined the Evil Organization, Ayle was simply someone I had to take care of. I had never once thought it would lead to something like this.
“Um, well, so—.”
“…Is it a rejection?”
“Um, that’s—.”
It was a rejection. But those words wouldn’t come out easily. Seeing Ayle’s face already brimming with tears made it even harder.
But some things are communicated without words. Ayle began to smile as if she somewhat understood. Tears flowed down her cheeks.
“Ah, I get it! I’m so sorry for bringing this up suddenly—.”
“Ayle, it’s not that—.”
“I-I’ll just go!”
Ayle dashed out without waiting for my reply, while Snowa, who had been standing behind her, looked exasperated. She glanced back at Ayle, who exited the room, then carefully turned to me and spoke.
“Professor, you really are a sinful man.”
“…Snowa? Do you also have something to say?”
“Yes. I do have something to tell you. In fact, it’s also why I helped Ayle get dressed.
Snowa, having said that, began making her way toward me, a stark contrast to Ayle, who had been dithering by the entrance. She approached until we were close enough to touch, bending her upper body slightly as she neared.
“So, Professor, you rejected our pretty Ayle? How about me?”
“…Are you joking with me right now?”
“No. I’m serious! Even if you’re a bad boy, you are certainly not a lacking man, right?”
“I’m sorry, Snowa, but the reason I got close to you is—.”
“Because I’m Ayle’s friend? I know.”
Though my intent to decline was clear, Snowa just kept smiling. It was a completely different attitude from Ayle, who had run out crying after being rejected.
She shrugged her shoulders as if inviting me to refuse her as much as I wanted, inching closer.
“I want you, Professor. And up until now, I have gotten everything I’ve ever wanted.”
As she said this, Snowa let out a small ‘just for a moment’ and cautiously reached a hand towards my head, saying something about having something on me. Suddenly, she brought her face close to mine, as if to kiss me.
Had I not been monitoring her movements and prepared to act, I would’ve been kissed right then and there. I felt the touch of lipstick on my palm and frowned slightly.
“If you go any further, this won’t just end with words, even if you’re Ayle’s friend.”
“Hmm… What a pity. I was really hoping to just snatch you away here… ”
Seemingly unfazed, Snowa returned to her original posture and smiled mischievously at me, her eyes holding the fierce desire of a hunter who wouldn’t let go of what she caught.
Suddenly, we heard footsteps running away from the laboratory, sounding all too familiar. Snowa chuckled once more at the sound and twirled around elegantly, waving her hand.
“Well, I’ll take my leave now. See you next time, Professor.”
“Didn’t I say there wouldn’t be a next time…?”
Honestly. I just don’t get why kids nowadays are so bold. In my day, this kind of thing was unimaginable…
I turned back to the monitor, leaving Snowa, who was now quite a distance away. I had a ton of work to get done. I was still in the middle of a conversation with the Observer—.
* * *
‘W-Wait—?’
At the moment Snowa attempted to kiss Eight—Ayle was peeking inside the laboratory. We had promised not to disturb each other, but she was concerned about how it would turn out.
As Ayle peeked into the lab, what she saw was—Snowa and Eight sharing a kiss.
‘A-Aah—.’
From Ayle’s perspective, all she saw was their backs, but there was no reason for them to be that close otherwise. Ayle dashed out of the lab.
After running for a while, she arrived at her room. The office used by the executive of the Evil Organization. It was a place where no one could trespass without her permission.
In her dark, gloomy, and somewhat eerie room, according to her taste—Ayle buried her head in her bed and started to weep.
‘Yeah, I guess it’s true. The Scientist wouldn’t like a gloomy girl like me, but someone pretty, lively, and popular like Snowa…’
Once trapped in such a predicament, her mind spiraled endlessly, throwing up reasons why she wasn’t chosen. Like someone who falls into depression, Ayle found it hard to crawl back out.
Think about it—every day, she had to see that ugly, grotesque, and broken version of herself. If she were a guy, she would definitely avoid someone as crazy as herself.
A magical girl otaku, completely clueless about trends, devoid of femininity, knowing nothing of how to dress up, seduce a guy, or please him—a mere meat doll born of the female gender.
Yes. That was her identity.
‘I want to die—.’
She wanted to die. She wanted to hang herself right there and end her life. The only reason she hadn’t was that it wasn’t a lack of desire to die, but rather that she lacked the will to live.
If she had a button that could take her to the afterlife, and pressing it meant simple death—she would have hesitated not one bit, tapping that button repeatedly. And she would have welcomed a peaceful death.
‘I want to die…’
The sweet temptation of death called to Ayle. At that moment, her mind was no longer fully hers. And beings in such a state are often swayed by external temptations.
Just like the demons of the Baphomet Society, or the Fairy Queen of Heaven’s Company, or the Divine Spirits of the Spiritual Center.
‘Oh, let’s just die—.’
—I hate it.
‘Let’s just die…’
I despise those who have abandoned me, betrayed me, and taken from me…
‘Yeah, all of them…’
In Ayle’s heart, malice began to take root.
Given that her identity was also that of an Evil Magical Girl, it became all the easier for her to become stained by her own evil.
—Let’s kill them all.
‘Let’s kill them all—.’
The Evil Flower that bloomed craved Ayle’s soul.
Moments later, Ayle transformed into the Evil Magical Girl and shook off the depression that had once enveloped her, standing up.
On her face was a smile so wicked it was a far cry from what she would normally wear.
“Aha, ahahaha—!”
Ayle was an Ability User. Though that was a serious problem people in this world deemed a disability… in fact, Ability Users aren’t simply users of abilities.
From a high dimension, Ayle’s body was an empty vessel. A sacrifice ready to receive something.
That’s right.
Ability Users are like Sacred Vessels.
A vessel that accepts those who mock even the gods.
“I was such a fool….”
The Evil Magical Girl smiled brightly.
“It should have been like this from the beginning.”
In the next moment.
Ayle’s magic enveloped the city.
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