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In fact, if we are being strict, South Korea in this world wasn’t exactly a unified country, so flying around like this without permission could be seen as illegal.

Or maybe other countries are similar? I’m not a drone just buzzing around; I’m a person. Well, as long as I don’t go higher than the buildings, I shouldn’t collide with planes or anything.

A breeze brushed past my face swiftly, carrying with it the scent of flowers.

I couldn’t tell if it was the smell of the shampoo Ha-yoon used while showering, or if it was because I had been working hard as a magical girl and had somehow taken on a floral scent myself, but without realizing it, I found my focus drawn to that fragrance.

“Are you cold?”

I asked Ha-yoon, worried that my voice would get lost in the sound of the wind.

She shook her head.

It was quite strange. Even while flying in the sky, her gaze was fixed not on the scenery around us, but rather on my face.

Hmm. Honestly, even if we are close friends, being stared at like that makes me a bit shy. After all, the outfit I was wearing was somewhat embarrassing. I don’t care what others think, but it’s a bit mortifying to have someone I know staring at me like that.

Where should we go?

Since we were flying, it shouldn’t take long to reach anywhere in Seoul. We could literally go “anywhere.”

I thought seriously about going to land on a building rooftop, but decided to simply descend instead.

Just as we landed, Ji-hye followed behind us.

“…Hey, Ha-yoon.”

I spoke while looking at Ha-yoon, who was still wrapped around my neck.

“Could you let go for a second?”

There were quite a few people around, after all.

We didn’t land here to show others how close we are.

Seeing me genuinely uncomfortable, Ha-yoon finally released her grip from my neck.

“Hmph.”

Ji-hye’s sniffling sound from beside me was a bit scary, but I tried my best not to show my embarrassment.

I didn’t really revert from my transformation. We might have to fly again soon… even though my outfit was like this, there was no reason to hide it now. It had already been revealed to the media nationwide.

Also, before our transformations, we had been in our pajamas. I’m not sure how the mechanics work exactly, but when transformations are undone, you revert back to the outfit you were wearing before. If I were to revert my transformation, I’d end up standing in the middle of Hangang Park in just pajamas.

I wondered if Ji-hye knew this and therefore didn’t revert her transformation. Fortunately, Ha-yoon didn’t seem to be thinking about going to sleep yet, or maybe she was too downhearted to even think about changing clothes, as she was still wearing the same outfit from last time I saw her.

So when I thought about it, I guess in this embarrassing outfit, I was the only one feeling that way. At the very least, Ji-hye wasn’t wearing something as revealing as I was.

…Thinking about it made me feel shy for no reason, so I decided to get to the point.

“Let’s wait here.”

Where we landed was a park by the Han River. Even though I’m a Seoulite, I’m not knowledgeable enough about the surrounding environment to pinpoint our exact location, but it must be one of the parks along the massive river flowing through the middle of Seoul.

I hadn’t particularly been here before.

…In my past life, I didn’t have the hobby of wandering around, and in this life, while I thought I had traveled around here and there with Ha-yoon and Ji-hye, now that I was out, I had no idea what place this was. Looking at the golden building in the distance, I could only think it must be near Yeouido.

“Ji-hye, wait a minute—”

“Nope.”

Ji-hye replied sulkily without even listening to me.

She didn’t look particularly furious, so I wasn’t too scared, but the problem was the gazes around us.

Isn’t this a park by the Han River? There are quite a few people around even at this hour. Just the sight of me kissing another magical girl would make headlines, so what would happen if we actually showed ourselves fighting?

If the organization that retrieved Ha-yoon’s circuit was the federation, they would certainly be quite aware of us magical girls. After all, Cherry had even suggested making us a third force.

I wasn’t thinking of any political action, but I felt it wouldn’t be a good idea for us to seem like we’ve fallen out with each other.

“Ha-yoon?”

“…”

When I looked over at Ha-yoon, she had her arms wrapped around herself. Come to think of it, Ha-yoon was in short sleeves. No wonder she’d be cold, seeing as she came out without a coat.

Ji-hye and I were protected by magic, but still…

Before I could repeat my request to wait, Ha-yoon quickly approached and hugged my arm.

Seeing that, Ji-hye’s eyes sharpened, and she pressed herself against my side. Of course, she hugged my arm too.

…

I closed my eyes for a moment, let out a deep breath, and said.

“Okay, let’s go together…”

I had planned to go to a convenience store to buy ice cream and come back.

Well, I guess it’s better to pick it out rather than asking.

*

Considering the chilly weather, the three of us bought warm coffee instead of ice cream.

We then sat side by side on a nearby empty bench.

People didn’t seem to be watching us as much as I had thought. Maybe they knew well that watching us here would only make things more embarrassing.

Or perhaps they were aware that I was the one who smashed the aliens’ heads with a hammer. After all, they wouldn’t want their heads smashed.

Gulp.

The warm coffee went down my throat, warming my body.

I wasn’t particularly cold, but that didn’t mean I didn’t appreciate the warmth of the coffee.

Also, speaking of warmth, what caught my attention more than the coffee was Ji-hye and Ha-yoon, who were snuggled up against me. Naturally, since their arms were exposed, I could feel the warmth from Ha-yoon’s bare arms or Ji-hye’s sleeveless attire.

That sensation was far more distracting than their body heat.

The two of them were blushing embarrassedly but still, it was quite… nice being close like this.

Gulp.

Well, sitting like this did seem to finally calm my heart down.

…It all started when Ha-yoon invaded my tent, and since then, someone has always been clinging to me whenever I sleep.

Whether it be Ha-yoon, Jua, or Ji-hye.

Until then, even when sharing a room with Ji-hye, I hadn’t slept close to her.

Thinking about it, I should have found it much more comfortable now that the appropriate number of people had returned to the room, but for some reason, I hadn’t adapted to it.

Was it really just because it hadn’t even been a day yet?

“Ha-yoon.”

After thinking for quite a while, I called out to Ha-yoon.

“Yeah?”

It was like she had been waiting for me to call.

“…If you want, do you want to run away again?”

Whip.

Ji-hye’s face turned extremely terrifying at my side. Although it was just for a moment, I thought I saw her eyes widen.

“W-wait, Ji-hye. Just take a moment and hear me out.”

As I turned my head to Ji-hye, I could feel Ha-yoon’s gaze piercing into my left cheek.

“So what I mean is, I’m not saying I want to live alone with Ha-yoon.”

“Not to live alone?”

She spoke in a voice that seemed to indicate my fate would depend on how I finished that sentence.

I started to sweat a little as I replied.

“I mean to hide Ha-yoon.”

“…In the orphanage we live in?”

“Uh… that’s right?”

I was a bit flustered by her very disgruntled tone as I answered.

Ji-hye’s eyes narrowed.

“On the very same afternoon, after saying we’d separate? To go back to our respective places?”

“…”

I had nothing to say to that.

I wasn’t sure how to respond.

Honestly, I just felt sorry for Ha-yoon.

This feeling was similar to the way I would feel when I grabbed Ha-yoon’s wrist, which was drooping down from her sadness for various reasons, and tried to lead her somewhere no one could see.

I wanted to keep her from being subject to those gazes.

Deep down, I had jealousy and wanted to compete against her, yet at the same time, she had been with me so naturally since our childhood.

I knew Ha-yoon’s weaker side that others didn’t.

“But still.”

As I said that, I turned my head back toward Ha-yoon and trembled my shoulder slightly.

Ha-yoon’s expression had changed a little. It was clearly different from her previous expression.

Shocked, perhaps?

No, it seemed a bit different from that too.

I couldn’t quite express how she looked at me with her wide-open eyes and her mouth slightly agape.

Her face was very red, and her eyes were sparkling. Typically, the word ‘shock’ would carry various negative emotions, but her expression was closer to that of being moved.

Could it be that she liked my suggestion?

“See, Ha-yoon is looking at you like some prince on a white horse. Your outfit might lack elegance for a princess though.”

“It’s white, okay!?”

I answered nervously, and Ji-hye, still looking like she was not pleased, retorted,

“Her skin is quite fair, but it still looks like flesh color.”

The laughter from the surrounding people made me lower my voice.

I really should have chosen a place without people.

Or, more importantly, did everyone just hear what I said about “running away”? That thought made my face start to heat up a little.

Ji-hye looked at me with a face that seemed to be all “What was that?”

Just a little while ago, she had been speaking in a tone that sounded like a frightened hamster, but now she seemed to be reverting to her old self, maybe even further. Did becoming a magical girl increase her confidence?

“Anyways.”

Ji-hye said, pouting.

“If you bring home a cat, you have to take care of it. That’s the rule, right?”

“No way! I never said anything about bringing home a cat, and we aren’t allowed to keep pets in the orphanage.”

“Who’s talking about bringing home a cat?”

Ha-yoon answered, showing absolutely no interest in my response.

Ha-yoon, who had been sitting next to me, was now once again tightly clinging to my arm. Earlier, we were only shoulder to shoulder, but now she had fully turned her upper body toward me, making it somewhat awkward.

Additionally, she had even rested her chin subtly on my chest as if she wanted to look at the opposite direction.

“Who said anything about a cat?”

Ji-hye replied.

“Seriously, doesn’t it sound weird to say ‘who’ when it comes to a cat? What, do you have something else on your mind? Anyway, whether it’s a cat or not, it’s only right that the person who brought it takes responsibility.”

That voice had a sharp edge to it.

No, more importantly, Ji-hye, I wish you wouldn’t rest your chin on my chest. It would be fine if you were wearing your uniform or something else, but the current outfit is what it is.

No matter how enchanted the clothes may be, if my body shape becomes embarrassing, the shape of the outfit would certainly become embarrassing with it.

“Hmm, so what you’re saying is if Ji-eun brings something in, Ji-eun has to take responsibility, right?”

Ha-yoon spoke in a tone I seldom heard from her.

It wasn’t a voice that sounded outright angry, but it felt eerily chilling.

“The responsibility has its limits,” Ji-hye said.

“For example, you might have to provide a separate house. But I doubt there would be any spare rooms left.”

“Can’t we just live together in Ji-eun’s room? There’s plenty of space.”

“But if we did that, things would get complicated. It might be fine to take care of it for a few days, but for food and other supplies, we’ll need money.”

“…”

I felt that if I continued listening, the topic might get gruesome, so I pulled their waists and dragged them both closer.

“Ow!?”

“Eek!?”

Both of them yelped in surprise at my sudden action.

Maybe they had been that focused during the conversation. Though, the subject was becoming increasingly concerning.

“It’s about time we take off again. If we stay here, more people are going to gather.”

By now, people had started to linger around since they were curious about our conversation.

I had to have my pictures posted online at this time, right? If the two of them kept fighting, rumors about our relationship being strained would spread.

…Well, the truth is I had simply forgotten my original purpose.

I stood up abruptly with both of them in tow.

Fortunately, we had all finished our coffee. I quickly tossed the cans into a nearby trash can and flew into the sky, holding both of them.

“Can’t Ji-hye fly by herself?”

“Oops.”

I had forgotten that in my hurry.

But even with Ha-yoon’s reminder, Ji-hye didn’t seem intent on letting go.

“Ji-eun had been holding onto you this whole time. I figured you’d be getting tired, so I was just helping out.”

“…”

Ha-yoon seemed unable to refute that point.

Thanks to the magic, it wasn’t particularly tiring, but I figured if I interjected sensibly, I’d just end up getting hurt, so I held onto both of their waists tightly as I flew through the sky.

…Wasn’t there still plenty of time left before Ha-yoon’s parents fell asleep?

We still had a few more hours of flight time ahead.

…So where to go next?

 

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