The Strongest, but the Genre Is Magical Girl

First off, since the carrier wasn’t ours, we started pulling out clothes and items one by one.

Fiddling with the carrier that oddly still smelled like Japan, I tossed all the worn clothes into the laundry basket at once.

…Making sure Joonie’s claws didn’t touch them.

After emptying the carrier, I lined up various snacks and chocolates bought from the duty-free shop on the dining table.

“Oh, chocolate!”

Of course, Gomteng reacted like a ghost the moment the snacks were laid out.

Ignoring him, I casually shook out the carrier and said,

“Some are for gifts, don’t touch them.”

“Ah, yes…”

At the firm warning, the rustling of plastic stopped as if it might tear any second.

Continuing with the cleanup, it was already 11 PM.

With the carrier finally emptied after 3 nights and 4 days, I felt the trip was truly over.

And the fact that I had to go to school tomorrow was legendary.

Finishing the cleanup a step ahead, I checked Siyeon’s carrier, wondering if she had bought something from the duty-free shop too.

There were colorful plastic wrappers everywhere.

“What’s all this?”

“Hehe, chocolate snacks.”

Turns out, she bought the same thing in different flavors.

Two big K’s on the wrapper, a somewhat familiar brand.

She had bought a bunch of the same snack in different flavors.

Proudly, Siyeon grabbed the snack bags and moved them to the table.

She did buy a variety, but was this really it?

“Did you just buy a ton of this?”

“Mari will buy the gifts, hehe.”

Even after hearing her answer, the thought “Is this really it?” lingered in my head.

Shrugging it off, I sprayed deodorizer into the wide-open carrier.

“Can I eat this!?”

“Yeah, we bought it for us to eat.”

“Yay, Siyeon, you’re the best!”

The current time, still soaked in the afterglow of the trip, was 11:10 PM.

For mobile gamers, it’s the perfect time to stay up past midnight for daily check-in rewards.

But dropping by unannounced felt rude, so I sent a message to Taehyun and Ji-eun first.

[You up?]

[Unnie, you awake?]

I stared at the screen, curious who’d reply first.

A notification slid down—was it Taehyun or Ji-eun? The awaited protagonist was…!

[Your energy is full! Log in and dash!]

It was just a game notification.

‘Ugh, so clueless.’

Annoyed, I swiped down and cleared all the random YouTube and miscellaneous notifications.

As soon as I hit delete, a new notification popped up.

[Why?]

[The school trip’s over.]

[I’m bringing snacks and the carrier back.]

[K]

[I’ll come get it.]

[You must be tired lol.]

Ji-eun unnie was the first to reply.

Hearing I brought some snacks from Japan, she said she’d come get them herself since I must be tired.

Such a considerate person.

Meanwhile, Taehyun, that guy, must be asleep—why isn’t he replying?

[Yeah?]

‘Of course, no way he’s asleep at this hour.’

Just as I thought the reply was late, a short message arrived.

After Ji-eun’s message, Taehyun’s reply came, and I moved my fingers, which had been resting.

Of course, a high schooler wouldn’t be asleep at this hour.

[Are both Aunty and Uncle awake?]

[Just Mom.]

[Why?]

[I’m back from the school trip.]

[I’ve got something to give you.]

[Oh]

[You can come.]

[K]

The word “됌” (a typo for “됨”) was annoying, but I let it slide and packed some snacks.

Seeing me hurriedly putting on clothes, Siyeon asked,

“Where are you going at this hour?”

“To Taehyun’s, gotta deliver this quickly.”

Answering her, I neatly stacked the boxes.

A box of banana bread, a 36-pack of snacks, and a box of fresh chocolates.

Holding the three types of Japanese snacks neatly in both hands, I told Siyeon,

“Unnie’s coming home, so when she does, give her one of each of these, okay?”

“Yeah, got it.”

Siyeon replied while rustling a snack bag.

Approaching the front door, I shifted the boxes to one arm, held them with my chin, and opened the door with my free hand.

The sensor light in the dark hallway flickered on, signaling the late hour.

Calling the elevator from the 1st floor, I pressed the button for the 17th floor.

Tapping my heel and standing on tiptoes, I couldn’t stay still.

Arriving at the 17th-floor hallway, the sensor light welcomed me again.

Passing unfamiliar doors, I spotted a familiar door lock.

Pressing the doorbell, a familiar melody played.

Thud, thud, thud—heavy but playful footsteps approached.

This had to be Aunty, no doubt.

The heavy front door creaked open, and sure enough, Aunty greeted me warmly.

“Oh my, come in! You went to Japan for the school trip, right?”

“Hi, Mari.”

“Hi, oh, yes. This is just a little something, but I hope you enjoy it.”

Aunty’s over-the-top reactions were her trademark.

Taehyun peeked out from his room to greet me, and I handed over the three-tiered snack set first.

“Oh my, what’s all this? Even if it’s not tasty, I’ll eat it happily… Come in, come in.”

Accepting it without refusal, she joked that she’d eat it even if it wasn’t to her taste.

With a bright smile, Aunty grabbed my arm.

“Ah, no, it’s okay.”

Still not used to Taehyun’s family’s habit of inviting guests in, I quickly declined.

It was almost midnight, too late to hang out at someone else’s house.

“It’s late, so I’ll head back and sleep…”

“Late? Oh my, it’s already this late?”

Mentioning the time, Aunty looked around and noticed the clock in the hallway, surprised.

At the same time, her grip on my arm loosened.

Patting my back gently, she added,

“Oh my, you must be tired, go home and rest… Taehyun, turn off the computer and go to bed!”

“Ah, why?”

Taehyun, who had been quiet, suddenly got scolded.

With Taehyun’s grumbling as the final note, the front door closed with a clank.

‘Sorry about that.’

Taehyun would probably have to sleep an hour earlier because of me.

Leaving him behind, I headed back to the 4th floor with lighter steps and empty hands.

Back home, Ji-eun unnie’s carrier was already gone.

Given the time, she must have taken the carrier and snacks and left quickly.

Still, I asked, just in case.

“Did unnie come and go?”

“Yeah, she said she’ll enjoy the snacks.”

Hearing that unnie had come and gone, I sat at the dining table.

Casually tearing open a piano-shaped chocolate snack Siyeon bought, I popped it into my mouth.

Crunch, crunch—the familiar sound of chocolate snacks breaking in my mouth.

“If Juwon asks for more, we’re in trouble.”

“Yeah, pfft.”

Joking with Siyeon about the price difference between Japan and Korea.

“…Yawn.”

Siyeon yawned mid-laugh.

The fatigue from the trip was hitting us both.

Gomteng, who had been eyeing the snacks, pointed at the Dole banana on the table and spoke up.

“This isn’t for gifts, right?”

“Ugh, go ahead and eat, you little bear.”

“Yay yay!”

Gomteng let out incomprehensible exclamations.

As soon as I gave permission, he dove into the neatly packed box like a bear tearing into salmon.

Watching him greedily devour the snacks, I warned him,

“We haven’t had ours yet, so leave some for us.”

“I’ll leab some, dwon’t wowwy.”

His slurred reply wasn’t convincing.

Watching him stuff his face like a greedy squirrel was utterly pitiful.