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Chapter 78
Chapter 3 — Dry scrape, burn and perforate! • Episode 3–1 — First Participation ②
Translated by KaiesV
Edited by KaiesV
I don’t know what Doppelganger-san’s true intentions are, but it is not every day that you get a chance to talk to the person in charge of the Department of Magical Arts, in other words, the highest authority in the Magical Girls’ business. I get a light impression from the little I talked to him, but I have never met him before, and even this time he didn’t contact me on his own, but came out of the room because he was called by Doppelganger-san.
「You’re called Earth, right? I have something I want to say to you——」
「Well, take it easy. It’s hard for you to talk here, isn’t it? That girl has a good sense of what’s going on. She’s worth making fun of, and it’s a shame she’s retiring.」
「Wha—!?」
As I listened meekly to the story of Earth, who interrupted me and began to speak, the scenery around me suddenly changed without warning. It was not the bleak, government-like room we were in a few minutes ago, but a place like a courtroom in a courthouse. It was as if I blinked and the room was switched, and I couldn’t help but scream.
「Transition, is it?」
「I can afford it. Now, you have something to say to me, don’t you? Say it, Mizukami Ryōichi.」
「…As expected, you know something.」
「What the hell, you’re calmer than I thought you’d be.」
I was not surprised to hear the name come out of Earth’s mouth.
I have no way of knowing the inner workings of the fairy world, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the highest authority in the world would know the identity of each witch individually. Besides, it’s more natural to think that the bigwigs know and are tacitly approved of what Jack has done than to think that no one knows what he has done. I have filed once with the audit organization as well, so that should be the reason why there is still no movement.
After all, it was useless for me to say anything. From the very beginning, I had no choice but to fight until that moment when it was all over. But I am not going to rehash that now. Either way, I will keep fighting until Elephant-san returns to her peaceful routine.
The question is what happens afterwards.
「I’m going to be straightforward since it doesn’t seem necessary to talk about the premise. Please put the sex change pills back in the giveaway. Jack or perhaps you, must have had a hand in it.」
「Kuku, well, that’s the story. Believe it or not, I’m out of the loop on this one. Too bad.」
「That’s a blatant lie…! There’s no way that such a sellout at such an opportune time could be so convenient! Don’t worry, I’m not going to quit being a Magical Girl until this battle is over. I just want assurance!」
「That’s what they say. If there is no demand in the first place, there is no way it can be a prize from the beginning. As for the timing, I can only say it’s a coincidence, you know.」
「Do you expect me to believe such a convenient story?」
「It doesn’t matter either way what you believe or don’t believe. You may have misunderstood something, but I have nothing to do with the incident in which you became a Magical Girl, I only found out about it after the fact. You called the police on yourself, didn’t you? It’s over for him. The culprit has been brought to justice.」
I was getting more and more annoyed with his attitude toward other people, which I didn’t think of him as the person in charge of Earth, but when I heard his last words, I couldn’t believe my ears.
The culprit has been brought to justice…? What do you mean by that…?
「…Where is Jack? What do you mean, judged?」
「Didn’t you hear from the new fairy? The fact that he forced you to become a Magical Girl has become quite a problem here. The higher-ups of the Magical World, including myself, have discussed and decided on the punishment. A demotion in rank, an initialization of memory, and, well, a reset. So the personality of the crime fairy who turned you into a Magical Girl is dead. How’s that? Feeling a little better?」
「Dead…? Jack is dead? That pumpkin, to be in such an easy…」
The pumpkin monster who was always aloof, elusive, and had a fatness that didn’t seem to die even if you killed it, is dead?
It was a somewhat unfeeling word. After saying all that, surprise, big success run! I feel that it would not be a surprise if I could come out of nowhere and say that.
「It doesn’t help to lie about something like this. They’re probably starting over in a different part of the country by now.」
「I see… then…」
I also thought that Earth was lying to protect Jack, but on second thought, the idea that Earth and Jack were in collusion was just a hasty assumption on my part, and I have not yet decided that this is the case.
It is also quite possible that Earth knew about my situation, not because he was in on it, but because, as Earth said earlier, he investigated my report and learned of Jack’s guilt as a result.
If Earth and Jack were connected, why did Earth have to come all the way to me? It would have been fine to ignore Doppelganger-san just because he wasn’t there when he was called.
Perhaps I was a bit skeptical just after something inconvenient for me had happened. Come to think of it, neither Doppelganger-san nor Earth has acted in a way that can be determined to be as blatantly vicious as the Devil or Jack.
「That Jack is gone already, isn’t he?」
I thought I would feel more bouncy and excited, but I don’t know why. I don’t feel joy or happiness about the fact that Jack died in judgment, even though I hated him so much.
Considering what that guy did to me, I should have felt more refreshed, but instead I felt like there was a small hole in my chest…
I would be lying if I said I was sad. Nor am I mourning the loss of Jack. But just a little bit, I felt a blur that I can’t express in words.
「That’s what I’m talking about. That’s why what I just said was a coincidence. Jack probably only knows about you as one of the Witches, and of course he have nothing more to do with you than that incident.」
「Even if that were true, as the director of the Bureau of Magic, as the one who stands at the top of the fairy world, don’t you think you would take responsibility for the deeds of your subordinates? I’m being changed into a body I don’t want because of that pumpkin, remember? Enough about Jack’s sins. But don’t you think there should be compensation for me?」
There should be nothing strange about what I am saying. Since Jack made me a girl and his sins were exposed, Earth, who is in charge of the fairies, should be responsible for turning me back into a man. On top of that, I am not asking him to give me the medicine unconditionally, I am asking him to give me the medicine because I will pay for it on the same terms as other Magical Girls. Unlike when I yelled at the lowly elf at the counter earlier, this is not a malicious complaint and should be a legitimate request.
「You hit me right where I wanted you to hit me. You’re a clever little kid, aren’t you?」
「I may look like this, but inside I’m an adult.」
「Kaka, an adult, huh…」
Earth’s laugh was with some overtones.
If he know what Jack did, then of course he knows that I am a thirty-year-old man. I didn’t mean to sound so crazy.
「…What’s funny?」
「No, it was too much of a gap between what you looked like and what you were now. And I’m sorry to tell you this, but there are no rules about compensation for Magical Girls in the Magical Girl today. In other words, I’m under no obligation to do anything for you.」
「Please stop kidding around!! There’s no way you can convince me that you’re right about that!!」
「Well, I guess you’re right. I was just thinking that it would be a little awkward for me to say, “I don’t know, I don’t have any rules either.” So there you have it, a good news.」
「W–What is it?」
Earth, who had been talking at a certain distance and in a somewhat serious tone earlier, suddenly changed his tone of voice and came suddenly close to my ear. It was a surreal sight because it looks like a floating globe, but if the other party had been a human being, the composition would have been as if he or she was secretly teaching the audience some useful information.
「The medicine you requested is sold out and we don’t have it in stock. It’s not easy to make new ones, so I don’t know when they will be back in stock. But that’s on the level of ordinary fairies or Magical Girls. A top-ranking fairy of my class, well, if I push myself a little too hard, I should be able to secure a bottle of medicine.」
「Then——」
「Hear me out. But that’s no good for me. You make a fuss about responsibility, but it doesn’t matter to me. In other words, if it benefits me, it’s a win-win situation for both parties.」
Do you mean a transaction?
As Extend-san said before, Magical Girls are only using magical powers mediated by fairies. A restrained head would mean that the fairies could take magic away from the Magical Girls whenever they wanted to.
If that is the case, there is nothing more I can do for him if he prodded not to compensate me because it’s not in the rules of the Magical World. It doesn’t matter who I appeal to.
I have no choice but to accept this deal in order to get the drugs, even though it is karmic.
I thought about finding the Magical Girl who bought the sex change drug and asking her to give it up in exchange for points, but realistically that would be next to impossible. I don’t know if it’s even possible to find out who bought it in the first place, and even if it were found, would a Magical Girl who would go to the trouble of buying a sex change drug be willing to give it away just because she was loaded with points? On the other hand, it makes sense. If I had access to that medicine, I surely wouldn’t give it away no matter how much money they offered me.
「You, do you know about the counterfights, right?」
「At least the name.」
Officially, was it a battle of the camps between teams of Magical Girls?
I believe it was a sport in which three people would form a team and four teams, or 12 Magical Girls, would compete against each other in a battle.
I had no interest in watching or doing it, so I don’t know any of the detailed rules and regulations, but I remember Jack giving me a light explanation when I was just starting out.
「I’m also the head of the steering committee for that one, and between you and me, we’re planning to hold a special Witches-only match in the near future. We want you to be one of the members of a team.」
「Is that all?」
「Of course, this is an entertainment event. It’s pointless to just show up and have a sleepy fight. Oh right… Win the championship or be the MVP, then if you get it, don’t use it until you defeat the King Of Distortion. That’s the terms of the exchange. Treat the drugs as a prize, no points, girl.」
「…I understand. I’ll do it.」
「Hey–hey, you’re very understanding, aren’t you? I thought you’d be barking a lot more.」
If that is the only option, I just have to be prepared to do it. I have made a lot of noise and let my emotions get the better of me. If I have arrived at this result on that basis, then I have no choice but to do my best.
I would be lying if I said I didn’t have a feeling of “why me,” but at the same time, I am glad that Earth’s request was so simple. In other words, we just have to beat up our enemies. My opponent is a Witch like me, so I know it won’t be as easy as usual. Still, if they stand in front of me, I will blow them to pieces.
「So, when are you planning to have that match?」
「The main competition will be in about a month, and we will have a qualifier before that. I’ll send you a message later with the details.」
Today is the last day of August, so the event will be held around the end of September.
In this way, it is probably a good thing that we had to practice against each other for the entire month of August as it turned out. Of course, when I think of Elephant-san and the others, I can’t let it go, but I think it would be different without the experience of the past month.
Speaking of which…
「Can you tell me about the Witches who will be participating in the competition?」
「I’m going to keep it under wraps until the day of the qualifiers that the Witches are participating in the first place. We won’t tell you either. So you’ll just have to open the lid and enjoy the show. Of course, you don’t tell anyone either.」
In the recent battle, I ended up not being able to settle with Simeracres-san, and I can’t say that I have a very good winning percentage against Extend-san. In person, Permafrost-san and the Devil seemed strong, and further training will be necessary if I was to achieve a sure victory against the Witches.