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No matter how you look at it, planning to attack the Federation inside a restaurant seems a bit off.

Even if the Federation already anticipates our actions, it doesn’t really support them knowing all the details.

Honestly, whether the plan fails or succeeds, it’s not that crucial. We’ve always just rolled with the punches, even when we were destined to fail.

What I really didn’t want was for others to overhear our conversation.

Suddenly, my number of friends seemed to have increased, but deep down, I still felt like the same old introvert. I was in a school that had already seen better days.

I didn’t want anyone else to overhear us or try to interfere.

Fortunately, it wasn’t raining or anything, and the weather wasn’t unbearably hot either, so we slowly walked around the playground. Luckily, because of my presence, there was no one following us.

“Alright, let’s come up with a plan.”

I could see a few people spread out in the distance, but I figured they wouldn’t be able to hear our conversation like this.

“So, where’s your circuit?”

At least Ha-yoon still had her circuit at home, well… um, anyway, she could bring it, but I had no idea where these guys’ circuits were.

“Maybe it’s with the Federation? My mom and dad took it. They said to return it to the Federation.”

I was momentarily stunned by Rose’s words.

“Wait, how can you ask for something that’s already gone to the Federation?”

“I know where it is.”

Jua chimed in.

“There’s a building we often hang out in. It’s usually just a lounge, but it also serves as a headquarters.”

“I get that it serves as a headquarters, but at the end of the day, that means we have to go into the Federation building.”

Even if everybody is clueless about what to do with the government and the Federation right now, barging in and trying to bring things back could lead to unknown consequences.

Honestly, thinking about what I did at Ha-yoon’s house yesterday was quite reckless.

No one’s tried to mess with me yet, but if you think about it, I’m basically an armed militia—much more dangerous than even the militias walking around with guns in the U.S.

Sure, magical girls and heroes are technically just like militias legally, but there is one crucial point: there’s still the backing of the Federation behind those people.

The chaos is currently confined to South Korea. Noir Corporation, of course, has overseas branches, producing and selling various goods, but at least ‘for now’, those facilities and ‘inventions’ have only been found within South Korea.

Within this country, the name of the Federation is seriously tarnished, but that’s not the case in other countries. It’s a global issue, but other than Noir Corporation, no other company has seemed to cause such a major incident.

Well, it might come up later, but for now, the ‘heroes’ of the Federation are still needed in those countries.

It’s kind of ironic.

“We’ve received contact from heroes in other countries.”

“Huh? Really?”

“Yes. Actually, as soon as our communication network was restored, we started getting contact again. Until then, we mostly ignored the official contacts from the Federation.”

“What kind of contact?”

“They said they would actively protest against the Federation.”

“Protest?”

“Yes. After all, that’s what happened to us Earthlings. The Federation is just saying they’re ‘investigating’ the aliens that came from Earth.”

Most of them must have been recovered by the national government. That said, to truly understand how those aliens were created, we’d end up needing help from the Federation anyway.

“So, they’re saying they’ll put pressure on us to get a clearer and more detailed understanding of the situation.”

Rose responded.

“There’s no reason for the perception of these Earthaliens to be anything but bad, so right now, the only card left for the Federation is the heroes. They need people who keep looking at ‘hope’ with a bright outlook to keep the energy flowing. And most of those people are the ones angry at injustice.”

Dalia then supplemented the explanation.

Hmm, I get it now.

It’s like, even the aliens with completely different vocal cords can communicate with us naturally if they have translation devices. So, communicating with foreigners should be much easier.

“So that’s the deal.”

After listening to the conversation, I paused for a moment and then spoke up.

“Are we waiting for them to pressure us, and then we’ll strike when their interest dies down a bit?”

“Yep. And we don’t even have to wait. They said they would protest starting today.”

“Technically, they’ve been doing it for a while now. Since your incident.”

Rose and Dalia explained in turns.

It was clear that even though I was making a fuss, the Federation was curiously slow to respond. Multiple factors, like them battling their upper ranks and the discontent from people they thought were on their side on Earth, as well as the Korean government getting ready to cut off relations, combined to make them hesitant to touch me.

Still, I’m glad the heroes on Earth are actual ‘heroes’. If they were treasonous rats, Earth would have fallen into the hands of the Federation long ago.

Or, not treasonous but—traitorous? Well, whatever.

“So today is the day, huh.”

I muttered to myself.

I couldn’t just drag things out unnecessarily; it would be troublesome if the circuits moved elsewhere.

Heroes aren’t just any readily available cards. But that doesn’t mean replacements are entirely out of the question. After all, among the tens of millions in this country, at least a few must hold on to that hope.

“Well… alright.”

I nodded.

To be honest, I was already deep in reckless territory, so there was no reason to sit quietly now.

If the Federation decides to strike me, then we’ll do the same in return.

In the end, they’re the ones who wanted to use the Earthlings for their own aims.

…

Somehow, thinking like this makes me feel solemn.

“By the way,”

I turned to Jua and spoke.

Ha-yoon has been sticking around frequently, so I’ve gotten used to that dynamic.

Personally, I don’t have any desire to push Ha-yoon away.

But somehow, on the opposite side, Jua was sticking to Ha-yoon just like she was.

Is it because Ji-hye is at another school, and that’s why there’s room?

Nah, even if there is room, it’s a bit weird to stick this close.

“Umm…”

But when I finally opened my mouth, I had no idea what to say.

I still don’t know much about Jua. I don’t even know what Jua thinks about me… or why she likes me like this.

For now, we’ve kissed, and we’ve become close enough to tease each other, but still, I can’t quite grasp her ongoing feelings.

It makes things all the more confusing with those who’ve been drawn to my side.

But I can’t just ask someone who’s stuck to me like this, “Why are you sticking so close to me?”

No matter how innocent that question is, hearing it would definitely hurt someone who has feelings for me.

“…Do you… not like it?”

But it seemed that even without me saying much, Jua caught on to what I was trying to say.

The grip of the hand that was tightly wrapped around my arm loosened slightly. It wasn’t fully released, but if I actually said I didn’t like it, Jua might actually let go completely.

In the past, I wouldn’t have cared if she did, but now it feels different.

Feeling a gaze on me, I turned my head to find Rose grinning at me. I kicked in her direction, but naturally, Rose dodged effortlessly. I couldn’t even move properly, being held on both sides like I was.

“Do you not like it?”

…I was just trying to mumble through it, but Jua didn’t seem ready to give up on hearing my answer.

“…No.”

Yeah.

It’s not that I dislike it.

But…

The right side of my cheek felt hot. It wasn’t really an increase in temperature; it was more of a psychological thing.

Ha-yoon was staring straight into my eyes.

I recalled how the two of them had been playfully wrestling with their chins on my chest yesterday, and I broke into a light sweat.

Eventually, with no more words to say, I found myself vacillating between the two girls, and it wasn’t until just before lunch ended that I returned to the classroom.

*

I only realized it was wrong to unilaterally make plans without Ji-hye, who attends another school, after seeing her face at home.

“Uh, well, it’s fine.”

As I knelt down, Ji-hye surprisingly answered in a flustered manner.

“Actually… um, should I be honest?”

Nodding at her question, Ji-hye plopped down directly in front of me.

“I recently just became a magical girl.”

And right after becoming a magical girl, she went through something huge.

Frankly, I found it somewhat unbelievable that a magical girl was fighting in a space battleship. This seems more like a special effects story than a magical girl tale, doesn’t it?

Well, if we nitpick, I guess there are monsters in magical girl stories that originated from this world or came from distant space.

“I don’t know what you guys, who have been magical girls for a long time, would think, but for me, going from almost no activity to ‘let’s just run with it’ feels kind of off.”

Hmm.

I think I can understand her feelings.

Of course, from my experience running around everywhere, I might feel quite sick of it apart from being able to transform.

Still, watching American superhero movies, doesn’t anyone ever wonder about wanting to be a hero? No matter how hard it is for the heroes in those films.

So in that sense, Ji-hye is saying that even after going through such things, she still wants to continue being a magical girl.

To be honest, I think she’s much more admirable than me.

“Even if it means going head-to-head with the Federation?”

“Yep.”

Ji-hye said.

“I know how much you’ve suffered. So I wanted to be there with you. I want to strike back at those who troubled you. And the same goes for those from the Federation, right?”

“…”

I squeezed my eyes shut.

Because I felt like my emotions might explode.

Honestly, it was a good feeling. Knowing there’s someone who thinks so much about me in this world is truly a blessing.

I felt a bit embarrassed for thinking I was alone in my suffering, considering there was someone right next to me caring for me.

Noticing me closing my eyes, it seemed Ji-hye thought I was about to cry, and she wrapped her arms around me.

I think it was Ji-hye. The person right in front of me hugged me tightly.

Of course, Ha-yoon didn’t just stand there either.

As Ji-hye hugged me in front, Ha-yoon came up behind me, wrapping her arms around me as well.

Being hugged from both sides made me feel somewhat awkward.

I might be sounding a bit perverse by saying this, but there was a fragrant scent coming from Ji-hye. It wasn’t a floral scent, but rather an earthy aroma.

Could it be that magical girls emit a plant scent? Even with the scents from both Ha-yoon and Ji-hye intertwining, I didn’t really find it strange. If anything, it felt more fragrant and pleasant.

“So, it’s okay then?”

I asked while still enveloped in Ji-hye’s embrace, and she nodded.

“Since when?”

“Oh, starting today. Probably in about an hour.”

“…What?”

Ji-hye’s voice changed slightly at my response.

As if her arms that were hugging me loosened suddenly, Ji-hye moved away from me.

When I opened my previously closed eyes, I found Ji-hye raising her eyebrows suspiciously.

“Huh.”

“So, you’re saying you planned this for today and didn’t tell me until just an hour ago? And I don’t even know where you’re going or what you’re doing?”

“…”

Hmm.

That’s…

“Sorry. I guess I messed up.”

I thought Ji-hye accepted my apology just because I was a bit late. It seems she was actually thinking about it more rationally.

After all, leaving one person in the dark about plans agreed upon ahead of time is… kinda bad.

Ha-yoon must have realized the situation too because she quietly loosened her arms around me.

Then she knelt beside me and sat down quietly.

“At least give me a call to ask for my thoughts. I wouldn’t have said no, you know?”

That’s true.

It was a habitual behavior.

Since Ji-hye and I go to different schools, I tend to forget about her presence when talking to someone at school. Of course, I don’t completely forget about Ji-hye. It’s just that I’ve hardly talked to anyone else besides Ha-yoon within the school.

Besides, I’ve spent quite a long time living with the other magical girls. Naturally, talking and exchanging stories became a habit.

The overlap of these two habits is what caused the misunderstanding today.

There’s not much time left before the plan kicks off.

But even so, I had to apologize and move on.

“…It’s fine.”

Ji-hye sighed and said,

“Lift your head.”

As soon as I lifted my head—

*

A soft thing touched my lips.

Ji-hye’s face withdrew, and my gaze met hers.

“I’ll let it slide for today. But if you mess up even more next time, you’ll need to apologize properly.”

…How?

As various thoughts popped into my mind, Ji-hye stood up.

“So, let’s talk. What exactly are you planning to do?”

“Ah, that…”

I glanced at Ha-yoon as I slowly stood up.

At the very least, I recognized our side was in the wrong, and Ha-yoon sighed softly but didn’t say something like ‘I want a kiss too’.

I somehow felt a tinge of expectation; if we proceeded with the plan, I figured we would probably end up needing to kiss at some point.

“Let me explain.”

I shook my head to clear out those distracting thoughts and responded.

Yet, seeing Ji-hye’s playful smile after noticing my reaction eased my mind a bit.

…I suppose I’m just too indecisive. No one should give up just yet.

Even if I have to come to terms with it eventually, I want to keep this time going for as long as possible.

 

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