Congratulations on Your Magical Girl Duties

31 – Beautiful, and Radiant.

Rage clouds judgment.

Rage is primal, passionate, and intense in its nature. Therefore, those consumed by it tend to lean towards biased thinking.

A given, really. From the moment reason is consumed by anger, it is practically impossible for an individual to make sound judgments.

But.

Even with his reason half-paralyzed by rage, Leader Futanari realized instinctively.

‘Damn!’

He didn’t know what that was, but he shouldn’t be in the path of whatever weapon was being swung.

If he didn’t…

‘I’ll die!’

He would be brought to the precipice of death.

The craving for life made Leader Futanari throw himself flat on the ground and roll.

A so-called “Naryatagon.” An undignified and ugly posture, unbefitting a Neo-Human (Futanari).

But he did not regret the decision.

‘That was close!’

If he hadn’t, he would have collapsed, spurting blood. Just like the two Futanari beside him.

Just as before, elaborate wounds were etched onto the bodies of the two incapacitated Futanari.

This time, the wounds were deeper, but still narrowly avoided being fatal.

The meaning of those wounds was twofold.

That he could easily kill them, but would restrain himself to subduing them.

However, he would most definitely not let them get away unscathed.

At that moment, the Reaper aimed his blade, which had grown slightly brighter, and calmly declared.

“Four more in front.”

The death sentence of the remaining four Futanari.

At this point, even Leader Futanari was forced to concede. He didn’t want to admit it, but he had to, since the man had single-handedly taken down half their numbers.

That man has something.

Possessing a method, potent enough to easily wound a magical girl’s flesh, and delicate enough to modulate the severity of those wounds.

Its precise nature remained unknown. Yet, it felt oddly akin to the magic of a magical girl.

Except… it strayed from the path of true magic.

It didn’t seem designed to face monstrous beings.

‘This is…’

Wasn’t this meant to utterly kill a person?

Such a thought surfaced unbidden, so chilling was its essence.

But, that wasn’t the core of the matter.

That man was no ordinary man.

Practically a magical girl in his own right, one might argue.

Therefore, what needed doing to that man was no different than what needed doing to any other magical girl.

Kill him, then flee.

‘And, if possible, violate him.’

Nothing more, nothing less.

This, perhaps, wasn’t only the leader Futanari’s sentiment. From the eyes and lower bodies of the other three Futanari, determination dripped like water from a saturated sponge.

Determination to harm a stranger whose name they did not know.

One of the Futanari swiftly swung their magic wand vertically, weaving magic into being.

“Lightning strike!”

A single bolt of lightning flashed silently from the night sky, plummeting toward the man.

─!

However, the lightning only scorched the innocent earth.

The man had already moved beyond its effective range. Likely, he’d been moving since the wand first began to swing.

A grand spell, but the results were lackluster.

A situation that might invite a touch of disappointment.

But.

‘Now you’re playing the game.’

Not one of them faltered in their resolve.

“Everyone, now’s the time!”

For this was precisely what they had been aiming for.

“Leave it to us!”

“Let’s go.”

At the leader’s signal, the two futanari flanking him scattered swiftly to either side, each conjuring magic directed at the man.

“Wind Fang!”

“Stone Wave!”

From one side, the wind snarled and bit. From the other, rocks surged in a jagged swell.

“Lightning Strike!”

And from behind, another bolt of lightning flashed.

To evade the onslaught of magic closing in from the sides and rear, the man moved quickly forward.

The leader futanari smiled.

‘Got him.’

The operation was proceeding better than anticipated.

Even magic that didn’t hit wasn’t useless.

Didn’t it force movement like this?

Which meant, sooner or later, they could naturally drive him into a position where they surrounded him.

Then, gradually tightening the net, they would repeat their actions. Until the moment the target realized it, there would be no escape.

Repeatedly driving him like that.

Until a situation was reached where evasion was impossible.

Then, magic from all directions, simultaneously invoked.

This was the futanari’s gambit.

‘Perfect.’

A kind of driven hunt.

The prey: the man.

The hunters: the futanari.

Of course, control of the pace was crucial.

Pushing too hard, to the point of desperation, was a mistake. A cornered animal might act unpredictably. Creating unnecessary variables was unwise.

But the assault itself must continue seamlessly. So that the prey, harboring no thought of counterattack, would be wholly consumed by evasion.

And now, now.

The perfect hunt was unfolding.

As it always did.

“Leader!”

Just then, the signal arrived.

“Good.”

As planned, the futanari had surrounded the man, maintaining a prudent distance.

The leader futanari stood directly ahead.

The others, to the sides and rear.

Escape, should he desire it, was now impossible. This space was more than sufficient to blanket entirely with the magic of the four futanari, including their leader.

The leader futanari’s face blossomed into a smile.

“Then, everyone, begin—!”

But before the leader futanari could finish speaking, the sword in the man’s grip moved with savage speed.

Left, back, and then right.

“Crescent Moon.”

Following the path of the blade, a half-moon descended.

There was no change to the environment like the futanari’s magic, no sound of cutting, not even the whisper of a blade cleaving the air.

However, it wasn’t without consequence.

The futanari who stood within the arc of that crescent moon abruptly collapsed. And in the spot where each had fallen, a shallow pool of blood began to form.

‘What…is this!’

The leader futanari couldn’t comprehend it.

Their plan had been flawless, undeniably so. They had slowly tightened the noose, leaving only the final step.

That strange technique from before?

They had accounted for that in their formation.

Even if he managed to land a blow, at most only two would be affected. If he could strike at multiple targets simultaneously, he would have done so already. There was no reason to conceal his capabilities.

In that moment, the man fixed his gaze on the leader futanari.

“You think I haven’t met your kind before?”

“Futanari?”

“…Never mind, damn it. What am I even saying.”

Then, a sneer twisted the man’s lips.

“One more left.”

No sooner were the words spoken than his form blurred.

By the time his silhouette sharpened, the man was already within arm’s reach of the leader futanari.

“This time, try to stay alive.”

Taking a forceful step.

Sword shining brightly, swung in a wide arc.

“With my current condition, this is a bit of a strain.”

It was too late to conjure magic with a wand.

However.

“Ma─”

“Hornet Cannon!”

It was enough to conjure magic with his manhood.

– Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

Several globs of thick, milky fluid erupted fiercely from the leader futanari’s lower body.

“Ah, that dirty son of a b*tch.”

The man hastily retrieved his sword, creating distance, dodging the milky projectiles. Deprived of their target, the globs hammered the ground with spite.

– Kwaaang! Kwaaang! Kwaaang!

The earth exploded as if struck by artillery. The shattered ground was soaked with the viscous, white fluid.

This was one of the reasons the leader futanari was called ‘leader’ by the others.

The other futanari hadn’t yet managed to conjure such potent magic from their manhoods.

The leader futanari sighed.

“Hoo.”

Relief at survival, and the exhaustion that followed ‘squeezing out’ the magic so urgently.

‘I almost died.’

Anyway, he had barely escaped this crisis.

But he couldn’t be complacent. If he gave even a sliver of an opening, that man would surely attack again as before.

Then.

‘Without giving him an inch.’

He had to keep the pressure on. The leader futanari came to a swift conclusion.

The follow-up action was immediate.

“Float like a hornet!”

The leader futanari conjured wings on his back with magic, and began to fly erratically.

“Sting like a hornet!”

Then, descending from a blind spot, he plummeted downwards.

When she was known as Creamy Hornet, the leader, Hutanari, had a particular way of fighting. And now, it was being resurrected here, on this very ground.

All to kill one measly man.

– *Shhhwwwiiiiiiiik!*

A vicious thrust descended diagonally from a blind spot in his vision. A trail of murky white carved, no, *tore* through the air.

By the time he heard the tearing wind, the swift thrust was already unavoidable, destined to pierce him.

It was a truly unilateral, absurd attack.

“Knew it, you son of a b*tch.”

But the man, stubbornly, reacted.

“You types, you all think the same.”

His eyes held genuine pity, and he even wore a leisurely sneer.

Then, he swung a faintly glowing sword horizontally.

“Waning Moon.”

A sharp crescent deflected the onrushing thrust.

Leader Hutanari, her attack thwarted, swiftly tried to ascend into the sky, to execute another unilateral, absurd attack.

“Float like a hor—!”

In that instant, the sword, now faintly brighter, slashed vertically.

“New Moon.”

An eerie crescent severed one of the wings on Leader Hutanari’s back.

Without a sound. Utterly silent.

“Oh, bother!”

Leader Hutanari lost her balance and began to plummet. The man was already waiting at the spot where she would fall.

Quietly brandishing his glowing sword.

“Half Moon.”

A half-moon began to be etched upon the earth.

But Leader Hutanari didn’t panic. She even wore a faint smile.

For two reasons.

She had, to some extent, anticipated that the man would respond like this.

And.

“Huge erection!”

There was still another ‘magic wand’ at her disposal.

– *Vwuurrrllll!*

A milky white fluid erupted from his lower body, forming a large sphere centered on the man, trapping him within.

Like some kind of net.

The hastily drawn crescent moon erased part of the sphere, but only half. Precisely, only the front.

Now that things had come to this, there was no escaping.

‘Got him!’

Leader Futonari exulted inwardly.

She hadn’t even expected the earlier magic to deal a decisive blow. Binding the man’s feet was enough. That had been the sole purpose from the start.

The real magic began now.

“Cum in hive!!!”

The tide of white fluid surged forth savagely.

– *Vwaaat!*

The recoil was almost too much for the magical girl’s body to bear. Though she dug her heels into the ground, she was slowly being pushed back.

But Leader Futonari didn’t yield.

Instead, she intensified her energy.

Manifesting new wings to anchor her retreating form.

A skill only a new-human (Futonari) wielding both a magical girl’s wand and a Futonari’s blade could accomplish.

The magic of a dual-wielding magical girl.

‘This is the end!’

A knowing smirk played on Leader Futonari’s lips.

The fluid from her lower body grew even more acrid.

Even if he wanted to dodge, the all-encompassing milky fluid made it impossible. There was nothing left to do but take the magic head-on.

Even if he somehow escaped from within, sooner or later, he would be swept up regardless.

A victory all but assured.

‘Just what is he doing…?’

But the man remained unfazed.

He would undoubtedly be engulfed in mere moments, yet he didn’t move an inch from his spot.

He simply.

‘He’s smiling…?’

He was smiling ferociously.

I couldn’t fathom it. What on earth was he putting his faith in? In just a few seconds, it would all be over.

‘…Wait a moment.’

In that instant, a thought struck me like lightning.

I’d been too preoccupied with fighting to notice until now, but upon further reflection, there was something rather peculiar about the man.

More precisely, it was the sword in his hand that was odd.

‘That sword… it’s been…’

Wasn’t it getting brighter? The thought occurred to me.

In a fleeting moment, Leader Futana mentally replayed the battle from beginning to end.

*Saketsu*.

*Shinetsu*.

*Hangetsu*.

Each time the man swung his sword, uttering those words, the blade had gradually grown brighter.

At first, it was faint, its form barely discernible, but later it had become slightly luminous, even shining with considerable brilliance.

And now.

From the sword, a radiance intense enough to sting the eyes poured forth without restraint.

As if it were a moon steadily waxing.

The beginning was *Sak*.

Next, the crescent moon.

Then, the half-moon.

If that were the case, then the end…

‘Surely.’

There could only be one possibility.

At that very moment, the man calmly proclaimed the final moon that Leader Futana had envisioned.

Wielding the sword that blazed with unruly light.

“Mangetsu.”

A dazzling full moon materialized in the world.

*

“Wh… at the…”

Leader Futana uttered the hollow words, almost as an afterthought.

She knew full well that speaking was futile in this situation, yet she couldn’t help but let the words escape.

“Just what the hell…….”

It was a sight beyond comprehension.

The instant a full moon materialized without a sound, Leader Futari’s magic simply vanished.

Cleanly gone. As if she hadn’t cast a spell at all, not even for a heartbeat.

Of course, she *had* cast magic. The lingering magical energy had dissipated from her body, and thick, milky fluid coated the surrounding area.

Yet, in the very spot where the full moon now hung, nothing remained but the man.

As if a chunk of reality had been carved away entirely.

Or perhaps.

“This is impossible…….”

As if the moon had ‘devoured’ the magic.

“Ha…….”

Strength ebbed away.

From her body.

From her lower body.

Certainly, she was reaching the limits of her physical endurance. She possessed not even a sliver of stamina to support her body, let alone magical power.

But that wasn’t the whole story. The resolve she had held just moments before had been completely shattered.

“Ha.”

Thinking it over now, it was truly a ridiculous notion.

Who was hunting who, or harming who?

How dare she utter such reckless words?

If he had possessed the intent to kill, she would have been the one to die. Where had that confidence come from?

‘If I had known it would be like this…’

She should have fled earlier. A sticky regret washed over her.

– Thud.

At that instant, a footstep sounded.

The man, wielding a fading blade, was slowly approaching Leader Futari.

Still slumped on the ground, Leader Futari managed to force a question out.

“Who… are you…….”

Just who was he?

Even the so-called Magical Felons were dispatched so easily by him. What was this being?

Even with such unreasonable and overwhelming power, who is this one who takes the side of the magical girl?

In that moment, the man spoke with placid calm.

“A hero.”

“…What?”

The leader, Futonari, voiced a question laced with disbelief.

The man elaborated, adding a sliver of flesh to his bones.

“The Lunar Hero.”

Of course, it was still incomprehensible.

A hero, a being glimpsed only in childhood fairy tales, if existing at all.

Why would such a word be uttered in this place, at this time?

“Just what the hell are you saying…”

The virtue of a leader is composure, but now not even a fragment of composure remained. That was how truly bizarre the man’s answer was.

However, the Lunar Hero showed no particular reaction.

“New Moon.”

He simply wielded his blade with chilling indifference.

A sharp moon, appearing then vanishing in a flash.

Blood droplets soaring towards the heavens.

A vision turned upside down, then fading into darkness.

“A hero, my ass…”

And then.

“Just a lunatic…”

A single question, heavy with a defeated hollowness.

“We lost to this kind of b*stard, goddamn it…”

That was leader Futonari’s last memory.