Congratulations on Your Magical Girl Duties

83 – Each Their Own Night

The treatment at the Magical Infirmary was nothing special.

In truth, it wasn’t even treatment. It consisted of merely tapping the wound with something resembling a magic wand. And with that, the injury was healed.

Even though I’d hastily applied some first aid, I hadn’t expected the treatment to end so anticlimactically.

Of course, it couldn’t be all benefits, it stung like hell. It felt like receiving all the pain at once.

“All done. How are you feeling?”

“Everything’s great, except it’s really painful.”

“Oh, right. I forgot the Magical Anesthetic.”

“You son of a b*tch.”

Well, if it weren’t for the trash heap they called a nurse in the Magical Infirmary, I wouldn’t have felt any pain.

Anyway.

By the time I’d returned from the Magical Infirmary, the stars and moon were already peeking out.

“I’m back.”

After trials aplenty, I returned to the dorm, where Sora and Nakji welcomed my return.

“Senior, you’re here?”

“It seems you’re thankfully unharmed, as well.”

“Well, I wasn’t hurt as badly as you might think.”

Meanwhile, Whitedog and Lez were already asleep.

This struck me as odd.

Even though it was night, it wasn’t yet lights out.

“Did something happen? They’re completely knocked out.”

“Not really. Just that Magical Girl White Phoenix went on a few Magical Dormitory Patrols while you were gone.”

“Truly, it was nothing much at all, as well.”

“How is that ‘nothing much at all’?”

It was a story too grave to simply brush aside.

A surprise dormitory inspection by generals, something that happens at least once in the military. And it happened while I was away.

“So, is the dormitory patrol finished, then?”

“Well, officially it lasts until tomorrow morning, but realistically, it’s practically over now.”

“That’s a relief, at least.”

They must be exhausted, body and mind.

So, it was only natural they’d be sleeping like that.

I was rather grateful that Sora and Nakji were still awake, seemingly unfazed.

I gave a wry smile and spoke.

“Sora, Nakji. You’re tired, aren’t you? Go ahead and sleep first.”

“Senior…”

“Low… no, Mortal…”

Sora and Nakji trailed off, gazing intently at me.

I waved my hand dismissively, as if it were nothing.

“It’s alright, everyone go to sleep first. I’m still full of energy.”

This much, at least, I could certainly do.

“Who said you could take the first watch for Magical Night Duty? Senior, are you crazy?”

“You wanna fucking die for real, as well?”

“Damn b*tches, always so quick on the uptake when it suits them.”

A waste.

Could’ve snagged the first watch.

Remembered it was my turn before heading out today, tossed a feeler out there, but no dice. Dealing with rejects who still have some smarts left is such a drag.

Meanwhile, Sora and Nakji, each having completed their transformation, rose from their places.

“Anyway, we’re off to do our Magical Guard Duty. Don’t you go pulling any shenanigans and get some sleep.”

“We shall return to wake you later.”

I swiftly caught them both, handing over my request.

“If I don’t wake up easily, use drastic measures to get me up.”

“Understood. We’ll wake you for sure.”

“Leave it to this maiden.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

The silence that fell as soon as Sora and Nakji left allowed me to quietly mull over my thoughts.

First off, concerning those magical girls.

Of course, after they were transferred to the Magical Capital Hospital, what happens to them is no longer my business.

It was a close call, but I adjusted it enough, so they shouldn’t die, at least.

Yeah. At least they won’t die.

Being in pain is a different matter.

I trashed everything but their heads, after all.

The recovery process alone won’t be simple. It took me a while to recover from my injuries, didn’t it?

At this rate, even if they barely manage to make a comeback, they won’t be causing any trouble anymore.

And if they do, I don’t mind. I just won’t end it as nicely as I did this time.

Anyway, back to my original train of thought.

Those magical girls were instigated by someone to harass Taishi and, harboring a grudge against me for interfering, used this opportunity to retaliate.

But doesn’t something seem off?

Using magic against a mere civilian?

Too much, even for revenge.

Before I drew the Moonlight Sword, they wouldn’t have even known I could use magic, so why would they even use their magic wands? They could’ve just come at me with their fists.

That would have been better, in fact.

They would have painted a picture perfect for me to play with them.

In other words, Taishi was likely just the bait. I was the real target.

And they even pulled a fast one, setting up two conditions. One of which the company commander had explicitly forbidden due to safety regulations.

Under normal circumstances, that would have been impossible.

They must have had some kind of special authority.

As messed up as magical girls are, even on par with the military, surely they wouldn’t grant some grunt-level magical girl the authority to manipulate things like that willy-nilly –

“No, damn it. Maybe they would.”

Anyway.

To summarize, the backers of these magical girls have enough power to pull something like this.

Hence, a new objective.

“I need to find them.”

To learn the identity of whoever orchestrated this.

Especially since the wild-haired magical girl’s reaction at the end gave me a sickening sense of déjà vu.

It wasn’t just that she reminded me of the knight commander I fought in another world, but that, fundamentally, something about her felt absolutely wrong.

I don’t know exactly what.

Just that it was familiar, yet utterly foreign.

This probably has something to do with whoever issued the order. She suddenly reacted that way the moment I asked.

Therefore.

I need to find out who gave the order, and then, I’m going to ask them.

Why they did this.

What their objective is.

Of course, if things don’t go smoothly, I’m prepared to fight.

“If necessary…”

Killing them is also an option.

I don’t know how strong they are, but honestly, I feel like I can handle it in my current condition. I’m probably at about half my prime.

It’s unfortunate that I still can’t use some of my magic, but this is good enough. At least I can create more variables than before.

Come to think of it, maybe lying in bed has completely relaxed me. Fatigue is hitting me all at once.

Well, even I have to admit that a lot happened today.

Guess I can finally get some real rest.

With that thought, I closed my eyes.

*

Sora felt a knot of unease in her gut.

“Ugh, jeez.”

Kim Si-yul and Ray weren’t making any headway.

If things had gone according to plan, a rosy-hued atmosphere should’ve been blooming between the two, but what was actually happening?

At best, they were trading barbs like old buddies.

Barely even reaching that level, if she were honest.

You wouldn’t be surprised if they grabbed each other by the collar any minute now.

Of course, it was inevitable, wasn’t it? Neither harbored any feelings of affection beyond mere goodwill, so how could their relationship possibly change?

‘Unless at least one of them held a secret crush.’

At this rate, it would just stay the same. Sora quietly sighed, her frustration mounting.

Just then, Taishi’s voice cut through her thoughts.

“Wouldn’t you say it’s about time we were moving along?”

“Taishi, what’s wrong? Where are we going?”

Sora tilted her head, perplexed by the sudden remark.

Taishi gave her a questioning look.

“Half-breed, do come to your senses. It is time to change the Magical Night Watch, is it not?”

“Oh? Already?”

Checking the time, she realized Taishi was right; it was already time to relieve the Magical Night Watch.

Thanks to that, Sora’s unease deepened even further.

The Magical Night Watch shift was quite long, yet she hadn’t come up with a single bright idea during that time, only endless worries.

Meanwhile, oblivious to Sora’s torment, Taishi wore a puzzled expression.

“Engulfed by Magical Angst, are we? The half-breed’s face is rather mangled, unlike usual, I must say.”

“No, it’s nothing. Really.”

“I comprehend, I comprehend. It is natural, I say, as there is a Magical Ramen scent lingering about.”

Come to think of it, there *was* a Magical Ramen scent.

Sora didn’t know who was eating Magical Ramen at this hour, but it wasn’t her concern.

Whether Sora’s worries bore fruit or some unknown person was enjoying ramen, what she had to do right now was fixed.

“Anyway, let’s finish our last Magical Patrol.”

“An excellent notion, I say.”

Sora and Taishi completed their Magical Patrol in a perfunctory manner before preparing to relieve the Magical Night Watch.

The next Magical Night Watch was Kim Si-yul and one other magical girl from a different Magical dormitory.

Just then, Taishi pointed it out.

“Now, to wake the mortal and one of the lesser kind for the Magical handover, then my work is finished, it is.”

“That’s right.”

Sora nodded vaguely.

Just as Taishi said, that was all that remained.

‘…Oh, wait a moment?!’

Then, a certain incongruity suddenly dawned on her.

“Taishi.”

“What is it, it is?”

Sora quickly opened her mouth, voicing the sense of unease she had felt a moment ago.

“You’re not calling Senior a lesser kind anymore?”

“Uh…”

The point was that Kim Si-yul was being addressed with a different term than before.

‘Surely, just a moment ago, she didn’t call her a lesser kind either…’

Sora gave Taishi a questioning look.

Taishi subtly averted her gaze.

“Well, it just sort of happened, it did. After all, she’s been performing so well up until now, continuously calling her lesser just doesn’t feel quite right, it doesn’t?”

Taishi tried to gloss over it with a plausible-sounding excuse, but Sora only narrowed her eyes further.

This was highly unusual.

Even when she addressed Sora, wasn’t it “half lesser kind?”

And yet, this Magical religious discrimination enthusiast wasn’t calling Kim Si-yul a lesser kind. On the contrary, she was treating her as a member of the same Magical religious affiliation.

‘This is unsettling…’

The feeling was chilling.

It didn’t seem like… liking, but rather just a slightly greater feeling of favor than usual.

But she couldn’t let her guard down.

For affection, after all, begins with favor, doesn’t it?

She could easily become a Magical rival.

How did things end up like this? What on earth happened between the two of them?

‘Surely, there weren’t any signs of anything unusual…’

However, Sora’s worries didn’t last long.

For Taishi had already flung open the door to Kim Siyul’s Magical Dormitory.

As if it were the most natural thing in the world.

So utterly without a second thought.

Sora quickly grabbed Taishi.

“T-Taishi. Just a moment.”

“What troubles you? Perhaps you’re unwilling to relieve the Magical Night Watch?”

“No, it’s not that, but why Taishi of all people….”

Going to wake them. Sora mumbled the rest of her sentence.

Regardless, Taishi responded in a tone as if stating the obvious.

“It matters not who awakens them, does it? Is there some issue?”

“No, it’s not that….”

It wasn’t that there was a problem.

No, rather, it was quite reasonable.

Kim Siyul was next on the Magical Night Watch roster. Whomever woke them up was irrelevant; it wasn’t necessary for Sora to do it.

Still, she couldn’t simply let him go, could she?

A situation where Kim Siyul was alone with him needed to be avoided. It was best to nip any potentiality in the bud.

In the end, Sora made her decision.

“Then, let’s wake our senior together.”

It couldn’t be helped.

‘I have to stop him.’

If she wanted to halt Taishi’s Magical one-sidedness, she had to intervene, even now.

Kim Siyul, who hadn’t even linked with Rei yet, couldn’t be left to a Magical underperformer like Taishi.

It might be a Magical overreaction, but wouldn’t it be right to prevent any unforeseen issues?

Meanwhile, upon hearing Sora’s words, Taishi tilted his head, questioning.

“Why is that? It is truly inefficient. Everything is best handled ‘efficiently’, as if processing a perpetrator.”

Setting aside the slightly odd emphasis on a certain word, he was certainly right.

It would be far more efficient for Sora to wake someone else instead of waking Kim Siyul together.

Irrefutable Magical Logic.

‘Why does your brain only work like this at times like these…!’

In the end, Sora offered an excuse that even she considered rather flimsy.

“Senior might have a hard time waking up; going together, we can make sure she does, right?”

“Hmm… that makes sense, it does.”

Thankfully, Taishi nodded.

Sora inwardly let out a sigh of relief.

Her heart still felt uneasy, but at least she’d applied a magical handbrake, so to speak.

Presently, they cautiously approached the magical bed where Kim Siyul lay.

A figure, completely enveloped in a magical blanket, lay utterly still, coming into view.

At that moment, Taishi spoke to Sora.

“Just by looking, it seems like she’ll be difficult to rouse.”

“Indeed.”

To wear the magical blanket, which should be laid upon, over one’s head like that…

Usually, it’s one of two things.

Either they don’t quite understand what a magical blanket is, or they are simply too exhausted to even make that distinction.

Kim Siyul probably fell into the latter category here.

Well, it was understandable.

They had so much work today, after all.

‘There was a reason she asked us to wake her for sure.’

At this rate, she wouldn’t wake up to anything less than extreme measures. Unfortunately, they had no choice but to resort to drastic means, as Kim Siyul had requested.

After a moment of deliberation, Sora opened her mouth.

“What do you say to waking her up with that magical surprise method that was popular back then?”

“Which one are you referring to?”

“You know, the ‘Sleep well, my lady’ one.”

At Sora’s words, Taishi finally wore an expression of understanding.

“Are you perhaps speaking of that magical J-POP?”

That fucking b*tch.

Sora suppressed her surging Japanese identity with great effort, and calmly opened her mouth.

“It might look like magical J-POP, but it’s actually magical K-POP.”

“How strange. Zhong Sheng clearly told this one that it was magical J-POP. So, this one informed the magical Buddhist personnel as such.”

“Ah, you son of a b*tch.”

This time, it was too much to bear, and the words slipped out, just a little. Sora bit down hard, her gaze drifting to Kim Si-yul, sleeping soundly.

‘He’s done for.’

She’d only intended a gentle wake-up, but now a magical resolution filled her – a resolve to properly rouse him.

Just then, a rather decent idea struck her.

He’d *really* love it if she woke him up like this.

At that moment, Taishi spoke up.

“So, how will you awaken him, eh?”

“Let’s do this.”

Sora shared her plan with Taishi.

Taishi wore a faintly disgruntled expression.

“Even so, that is a bit much, eh?”

“Ah, you did say last time that Magical Buddhism was the religion of losers, crushed by Magical Christianity.”

“You little shit, I’ll kill you, eh?”

Well, even that didn’t last very long.

Presently, Taishi and Sora began to act according to their exchanged words.

“You remember the lyrics, right?”

“I know them roughly, eh. But must I speak in Japanese, eh?”

“So what? If we’re doing it, let’s do it properly.”

“Alright, eh.”

All to wake up Kim Si-yul.

In a somewhat extreme manner.

Sora began.

“Oji-sama.”

“It’s time to go to Magical Night Watch, desu wa.”

“Are you still sleeping, eh?”

Kim Si-yul’s bed remained still despite Sora’s words.

Then there was nothing else to do but continue.

Kim Si-yul had brought this on himself.

Sora spoke again.

“If you get up late, my beautiful skin will all be ruined, you know.”

“This is the final wa=rning.”

The last warning.

But Kim Siyul’s bed remained stubbornly occupied.

Therefore, it was time for more… extreme measures.

Taishi snatched away the Magical Mopho with a flourish, while Sora aimed the Magical Lantern at the space where Kim Siyul’s head should have been.

The so-called Magical High Beam.

“Yare yare.”

“That incorrigible old─”

“……Shit.”

Someone spat out a curse.

A multitude of questions scrambled urgently within Taishi and Sora’s minds.

Who had just uttered that profanity? Why was Magical Girl White Phoenix lying in Kim Siyul’s bed? And if *that* was the case, where in the world had Kim Siyul gone?

But, none of that truly mattered.

The real question was: how to salvage this situation?

That was the most pressing concern.

“Hey.”

Well, *that* was something that could only be said if there *was* a way to salvage things.