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“Speaking of wands…”

It seems that my plan to make wands with Jua and Ha-yoon has spread all over the place.

Well, when I say “all over,” it mostly includes the facility staff, Cherry and a few federal people, and us magical girls. And if we’re talking about rumors, they only circulate within our group or among the employees—nothing too wide-ranging, considering we don’t interact that closely. The wall between teenagers and adults is higher than one might think.

…That said, I suppose I’m not really in a position to comment, but anyway.

Seo-hee chimed in on our conversation.

“How about gauntlets like mine? You do like to swing your fists after all.”

Seo-hee was trying to pitch that idea to me.

Did she want to create a comrade like herself?

Thinking about it, Seo-hee’s ‘wand’ is honestly not something I could just call a “wand.” It’s quite different from what the word implies.

It’s something she holds dear, so I can’t really say anything against it, though.

“Um… definitely.”

I nodded seriously.

Although Jua’s concept was set on guns as in the original, I don’t really need that many types of weapons. To be honest, it would just complicate things given my capabilities.

“Ji-eun.”

But while I was nodding, Ha-yoon jumped in.

Ha-yoon said with a gentle smile, “How about a sword instead?”

“A sword?”

“Yeah. I use a sword. It’s not too hard to handle, and it’s long enough to keep distance from the opponent. Plus, since the blade is made of magic, you don’t have to worry about the direction of the edge either.”

That was somewhat plausible.

As I nodded along, it somehow made Seo-hee angry and she interjected again.

“But swords are harder to handle than you think. You’ve trained hard to build your fighting skills, right? Don’t you think it’d be a waste?”

Well, that’s true.

To be honest, Ha-yoon’s laser sword was a bit more of a fantasy weapon.

After all, isn’t she a magical girl?

Oh, not that it has a heart or star shape at the end like a magical wand or anything, but a sword feels a bit more fitting for a magical girl, right? I think there was a manga like that somewhere, where even robots were piloted.

Jua was watching our intense debate swap back and forth. Jua seemed a bit flustered, as it didn’t look like a very wholesome discussion to her.

Yeah, somehow, it felt like these two were trying to sway me. Not sure if I’m just overly self-conscious, though.

“…Wait a sec.”

After observing for a bit, sensing the debate might get heated, I decided to jump in.

“I’ll think about it a bit more before making my decision. No need to fight about it just yet, I’ll think of a weapon suitable for my role.”

“Ah, okay.”

Ha-yoon reacted immediately to my words.

“I showed a foolish side.”

Seo-hee scratched her head.

“But isn’t it fine?”

I said to Jua, who nodded vigorously.

“Yes, of course!”

For some reason, Ha-yoon and Seo-hee were staring at Jua’s response with bright eyes.

*

On my way home, pondering carefully about the wand’s form, I finally decided on something.

“How about a blunt weapon?”

Ji-hye seemed to have already thought of something while I was considering the shape of my wand, and she asked me that.

“I read somewhere that blunt weapons are a bit quicker to train! As long as you swing it hard enough to hit the right spot, it’ll work.”

That sounded quite similar to swords, I thought, but then again, maybe not exactly. Though Ha-yoon said there was no need to worry about the blade’s direction, I would have to focus on that if I were to make a sword without the magic power Ha-yoon has. It wouldn’t be sharp enough otherwise.

In the end, I decided on a weapon that was easy to swing around while having decent reach. After all, both swordsmanship and martial arts require a good deal of technique. For something I could learn and use, a ‘weapon that you can just swing wildly’ seemed appropriate.

Above all, I didn’t want to make Jua, who was already busy researching various firearms, stress herself too much. Let’s keep it simple, and ensure I can use it effectively when needed.

As a result, Ha-yoon and Seo-hee seemed to nod in slight disappointment at my conclusion.

“Hmm.”

But, there was one more person wanting to jump in on my wand design.

“If you release it that way, it’ll just fly back at you.”

It was Yeon-woo.

It didn’t end with convincing Ha-yoon and Seo-hee. Yeon-woo took issue with the ‘booster’ I was planning to attach to my hammer.

“No matter how weak your magic is compared to Jua’s, if you spray your magic like that on a nozzle, it’ll be too strong. You’ll probably get knocked back. Also, that explosion could be problematic.”

“Y-you’re right!”

Ha-yoon quickly seized the moment.

“Let’s make the head of the hammer smaller instead, and ensure that part can be maintained by magic!”

“Um… yeah, I guess that sounds appropriate.”

Yeon-woo answered with a tone of disbelief at Ha-yoon’s suggestion.

So, Ha-yoon meant for the head of my hammer to be purely composed of magic, just like the blade of her sword.

After considering Ha-yoon’s idea for a while, I thought it might be a bit difficult for me to maintain that part purely with magic. It would be more suitable for me to have a head a little smaller than the design, coated with magic to reinforce it.

“…”

Seo-hee pouted at the fact that her ideas weren’t reflected at all.

“…Jua, could you make a pair of gloves for emergency use? With the knuckles sticking out.”

It wouldn’t be a complete gauntlet, but just in case someone got too close while wielding the hammer, I might have to throw a punch.

Hearing me talk to Jua, Seo-hee broke into a bright smile.

…It seems like she thinks of me as her apprentice or something. So, every time I don’t follow her guidance, she gets a bit upset.

Well, until now, I’ve finally found someone to spar with while training, so it’s no wonder she’d be disappointed if I tried to escape.

I planned to keep training even after making the wand, but whether or not I could actually put that into practice is another matter entirely.

*

Inside the facility, there really are all kinds of equipment.

There was even something like a forge, which was powered by magic. In emergencies, we could also reroute the circuits to use it ourselves, but it usually operates with mana stones.

The technology of aliens is more fascinating the more you see it. If a teenage girl were to build equipment in a forge, it’d basically be a story out of a fantasy world.

…

Ah, this world is indeed a fantasy, huh?

Just a few years ago, there was nothing like this.

But it’s only been a few years since we met aliens, and the Earth’s environment is slowly starting to recover. The environmental issues aren’t completely resolved, but scientists say it might be restored within ten years.

Thanks to that, all the projects aimed at protecting the Earth have pretty much vanished right before our eyes. When trash comes in, we just toss it into space, and the energy problem is being resolved perfectly well.

Yet, even so, we haven’t arrived at a utopia. After all, humanity has never governed a world where the mountains are good, the water is good, and the air is good in a peaceful manner.

“Ji-eun?”

“Yeah?”

As I drifted lost in thought, Ha-yoon called for me.

“What are you thinking so deeply about?”

Not much at all.

“About the environmental issues on Earth.”

“…Really?”

At Ha-yoon’s follow-up question, I blinked.

Why?

Is it problematic to think like that?

Ah, I did think it was a bit fascinating to see Jua sweating while working. In cartoons or animations, it’s not that weird to see a slightly smaller kid swing a hammer without it looking strange. That’s how I felt when reading webtoons.

But seeing Jua work hard while sweating gave me a strange feeling. It felt like… guilt. Even though we’re the same age.

Is it because she uses honorifics with me and treats me like a senior?

“Hmm.”

For some reason, Ha-yoon’s risky words made me tilt my head, then I just placed my hand on Ha-yoon’s head.

As I stroked her hair, Ha-yoon’s face turned red.

“That’s not fair.”

“Oh, is it?”

Is it really something to be embarrassed about? She just looked so cute, appearing to be jealous.

When I shifted my gaze back to Jua, it felt like she was glancing at me with anticipation.

It looked like she was expecting something.

…

Could it be that she’s hoping for a head pat? When I asked if she needed help, she said she wanted to handle the equipment by herself first, so I didn’t think she’d want me to do anything for her. She was acting too casually and smoothly to even imply that.

Hmm, if she really is hoping for a head pat and thinks that’s a fair trade, I’d have no problem doing it for her.

I’m just not sure how I ended up receiving such attention.

 

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