READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 176
Upon hearing that the culprit was inside this building, Snowa looked at me with a face that screamed disbelief.
“The culprit is in this building?!”
“You must have a guess, Snowa.”
“…Ayle.”
“Exactly. As you know—Ayle is an Evil Magical Girl.”
And at the same time, she was also an otaku who adored Magical Girls too much.
When the Fairy Queen was eliminated and the World Enemy vanished, Ayle feared that Magical Girls would lose their purpose. Magical Girls must remain Magical Girls forever; she couldn’t accept becoming a mere tool for adults or turning into a terrifying entity.
So, for her sake, I created a new World Enemy and transferred all production rights to her. Of course, I never imagined she’d be able to modify the World Enemy I made with her level of knowledge…
‘What on earth did she pull off?’
As an adult, and as the one who turned her into an Evil Magical Girl, I had an obligation to resolve this situation. It was definitely not because I was curious about how Ayle modified the World Enemy without my permission.
“And Ayle just ran to my room a moment ago.”
“So Ayle is also inside this building during this mess?”
“Right.”
Hearing my words, Snowa nodded, seeming to grasp the gist of it. If the culprit was in here, there was no way she could flee as a Magical Girl. Though she was already an adult and poised for retirement, she still remained a Magical Girl.
Snowa stretched her body once more and confidently took the lead. A radiant, snow-white light emanated from the staff she held, illuminating her surroundings.
“Alright, Professor. Lead the way.”
The genuine Magical Girl, not a mere imitation, said this with a bright smile.
A smile of justice, determined to save the citizens trapped in darkness.
“─I have to go give my friend a good smack.”
Her targets knew no distinction between good and evil.
***
“Huh~ Wow, I see-.”
Ayle was watching the happenings within the building through the darkness from her room.
Of course, the focus of her attention was Eight.
“─She turned down my confession so coldly, yet she’s getting along so well with that girl.”
Ayle’s view captured the image of Snowa, glued to Eight. That piece of trash. That bimbo. Just look at her swaying her hips in front of a guy. The scientist was a fool for falling for such nonsense, but the most detestable was Snowa playing the vixen.
With that pathetic display, and her appearance that only knew how to seduce men, how many guys had she devoured all this time? The scientist was truly pitiable.
─Let’s kill her.
“Die… just die, you damned girl.”
Malice blossomed in Ayle’s heart. Ensnared by that whisper, she began to draw forth pure evil from the depths of her being. A malice that she had never once felt throughout her life.
The will to kill, reborn as a true Evil Magical Girl, was enough to take a life. In a room where someone could drop dead from a heart attack upon getting too close, Ayle started to generate World Enemies.
Like flowers scattering their seeds, evil sprouted monsters.
While Ayle was busy creating World Enemies yet again, a voice emerged from a video lying in a corner of her view.
─Ayle, you can hear me, right?
“…Scientist?”
It was the scientist’s voice. Could he possibly even see her? Impossible—though he’d acquired knowledge and technology far beyond humanity’s comprehension, he was still just an ordinary person.
That extraordinary tech wouldn’t even allow him to pierce through her newly emerged powers… However, Eight continued his dialogue unperturbed.
─I’ll be there soon. Wait for me.
Ayle felt her heart waver for a moment at his beaming smile, but she gritted her teeth and held on.
That was a trick. A creature that entraps and shakes people’s hearts. One must never let their guard down.
“Huh, he’s coming, is he…?”
Ayle tried to act aloof to fend off the creeping mix of excitement and dread.
“Well, come on then. I’ll be waiting, however long it takes.”
In the next moment, Ayle saw Eight smirk in response to her words.
Even though her voice couldn’t possibly reach him…
***
─Kyaaaaah!
A monster lunges forth. It’s a grotesque creature that makes you cringe just by looking at it. It swung its arm like a whip, and the speed was such that an ear-splitting sonic boom filled the building.
Shwaaaak!- The sound of tearing air echoed as Snowa, unfazed by the noise, charged forward with her staff raised.
Snowa, spewing snowstorms as she charged, finally collided with the World Enemy, shattering the creature that had been frozen solid upon impact. The sight of the frozen enemy breaking in pieces reminded her of a horror movie she’d watched as a child.
“Phew! Is this the right way? Professor.”
“Hmm… the direction is right, but something’s off.”
“Well, we’ve already walked a few hundred meters, right? Haven’t we?”
Nodding to Snowa’s words, I couldn’t help but chuckle. The Evilus Corporation building was indeed vast, but it shouldn’t stretch out into the hundreds of meters. It was smack in the middle of the city, after all. At this rate, it wouldn’t be surprising if we reached from one end of the building to the other.
But even though we had walked far beyond a few hundred meters, not only did walls fail to appear, but Ayle’s room was nowhere in sight. It felt like the building had turned into a labyrinth.
“Is this some kind of magic…?”
“Does an Evil Magical Girl possess magic like this?”
“On paper, it’s not in her specs.”
“On paper…?”
“Oh, did I not mention it? I’m the one who made the Evil Magical Girl.”
The Evil Magical Girl was crafted purely through technology, unlike other Magical Girls who drew strength from love and other nonsensical reasons. Thus, she couldn’t exceed the initial specifications.
In other words, Ayle is merely a Magical Girl in name and appearance; in reality, she’s closer to a Kamen Rider or a tokusatsu hero.
As I threw that tidbit out casually, Snowa looked at me, trembling in disbelief.
“You, Professor, made the Evil Magical Girl? You were the one who made her?!”
“Oh, did Ayle not mention it?”
“I heard you both worked part-time together, but could it really be…?”
Seeing Snowa look at me incredulously, I wondered if I had spoken out of line. After all, to a genuine Magical Girl like Snowa, Ayle, the Evil Magical Girl, must have felt like a complete outsider.
And as for someone like me who created an Evil Magical Girl, I must have seemed like a threat to their very existence. Just like those laborers during the industrial revolution, she could feel the same emotions. If I said the wrong thing, I could find myself facing a Luddite movement.
“Anyway—there’s no function like that in the Evil Magical Girl I created. No ability to blackout the whole city or generate World Enemies.”
“Then what is this…?!”
“That’s why I’m here, to find out. Exploring the unknown. Isn’t it fun?”
Snowa made a face that clearly said she was fed up with my enthusiasm.
“…You’re truly something, Professor. Even in a situation like this, you find it thrilling.”
“Haha! Being able to laugh anywhere is the secret to adulthood.”
“Then I guess I’m still a child. I just can’t find the heart to laugh…”
While Snowa spoke and continued walking, she suddenly lifted her staff and waved it around. Out of nowhere, something appeared and was struck by her staff, rolling across the floor.
Snowa stood in front of me as if to shield me and unleashed magic at the creature that had just revealed itself. There was no hesitation, just the finality unique to a Magical Girl.
─Kik, kick, kiki-kick-.
But-.
The monster, instead of being scared, erupted with a bizarre laughter as if this was all part of its plan. In a split second of confusion, Snowa, who had been casting spells, suddenly winced.
“Ugh-!”
“Snowa?!”
“My hand…!”
Snowa said as she gazed at her palm. A flower-shaped tattoo that looked hollow was drawn there. One of the petals started to darken, turning pitch black.
It was clearly a bad omen. A tattoo that appeared after killing a monster. Who knew what would happen once it filled up? Snowa seemed to realize this too, looking at the tattoo with a serious expression.
“…This is.”
Realizing that she had been restricted from killing any more monsters, Snowa looked at her tattoo, a hint of despair in her eyes, while I pulled out a spray bottle and a handkerchief from my pocket and took her hand.
“Just a moment.”
“Huh? What’s going on all of a sudden…?”
Shhhh-.
After spraying antiseptic alcohol on her hand and gently wiping it with the handkerchief, the once dirty-looking tattoo began to fade rapidly.
After a few more rubs and realizing the tattoo had completely disappeared, I put the spray bottle back and spoke up.
“All done, let’s go.”
“…Professor, what was that?”
“Huh? Oh, just antiseptic alcohol. It’s harmless to the body, so no worries.”
“No, that’s not what I mean…”
Faced with Snowa looking at me in disbelief, I simply smiled warmly. Eventually, lost for words, Snowa began moving forward again.