Episode 497 – Magic vs Magic

Some may wonder.

If the path is blocked, can’t you just beat them and move on?

The result is clearly decided, so do we really have to hold a rematch?

Is there really a need for Hyeji to fight that girl?

But this is something that simply can’t be avoided.

First of all, at the beginning, Hyeji was the one who readily said she would gladly accept a rematch if someone stepped up.

In a situation where no one else was stepping up, only Haruka was bold enough to challenge Hyeji.

Though it may have been reckless, Hyeji isn’t one to back down from what she said.

Plus, she had provoked Hyeji at the end with some ridiculous taunts.

All that remains for Hyeji now is to thoroughly crush that girl.

After all, as the queen that Hyeji is, there’s no option of running away.

Anyway, as soon as things settled down to a degree, everyone returned to their places.

The Japanese returned to the stands they were seated in.

We hadn’t even started the match yet, so we made our way to the center of the arena.

The silver lining is that this time, there wouldn’t be any live commentary.

Perhaps due to the chaos earlier?

The people in the commentary booth were grumbling as they could be seen settling into the audience seating.

[Ayeon’s business is totally ruined now.]

‘Well, I guess so. Everyone returned to the arena.’

However, unlike the Japanese comfortably taking their seats while waiting for the match.

“Shinwoo, do you even know what that girl is up to?”

“Well, isn’t Kyoukyou the one who would know?”

“I don’t know either.”

We were still left questioning that woman named Haruka.

“Is that so?”

“It’s a mystery, isn’t it…”

“I guess the time isn’t right yet.”

Not long after we arrived at the center of the arena, Haruka made her appearance.

“Is everything ready?”

“Just hold on a minute. There’s a condition.”

“Now you’re adding conditions? Just spit it out!”

With a confident smile, Haruka looked at Caressy with a rather serious expression.

“Are we sticking to the betting arrangements as they are?”

“Yep. Instead of AI Ninja, it’s me, and instead of that harmful species, it’s Hyeji. Why? You wanna change things now?”

“Nope. If I lose and you make a fuss for a rematch, then I’m just not doing it.”

“I knew you’d say that; I got a letter of understanding from the academy.”

As she said that, Haruka took a white envelope from her pocket and tossed it onto the ground.

“Pick it up, bugs.”

“Shinwoo, ask her.”

Of course, I caught that before it even hit the ground as soon as Hyeji closed in on her words.

[……What if I react to that.]

‘Ah, f*ck. It’s like a reflex…’

Haruka smirked at me as if I were ridiculous.

“You’ve got skills. Does your younger sibling happen to be a dog?”

“He’s my brother!”

“……Oh…”

My words wiped that smirk off her face and replaced it with a look of disappointment.

But that wasn’t my concern, so I quickly pulled out the paper from the envelope and read it through.

It stated that this rematch would finalize the result, and no further objections would be raised.

With a rather clear stamp of the academy’s Chief, indicating it hadn’t been long since it was signed.

“So that settles it, right?”

“Hey, one more thing.”

“Ugh, what now?”

At Hyeji’s words, Haruka scratched her head irritatedly.

However, the content of this was a bit more serious than just passing over.

“If I fight, everything will be ruined. Can you handle that?”

It was a valid concern regarding the potential damage from this fight.

After all, Hyeji had never finished a fight neatly.

“If you complain over this, I’ll unleash our Hyeji unnie on Japan!”

“This time, I’m letting Shinwoo’s leash off too. Are you really that confident?”

“……Why am I being dragged into this, you crazy dog.”

“The third nuclear option, www”

[Isn’t firing a real nuke more humane?]

‘You already shot the ‘Hal(“HAL”) bomb,’ remember?’

[So just fire a real nuke!]

Still, Haruka responded nonchalantly.

Her tone was rather filled with certainty rather than just vague confidence.

“You sure worry a lot. Don’t worry, the country will take responsibility for all of it.”

Of course, to us, that was hardly a satisfying answer.

After all, we’d just met this chick, and her ‘don’t worry’ was rather amusing.

It seemed Hyeji felt similarly; when she demanded another answer from her.

“Quit messing around; actually say it.”

“Well, you’ll understand better when you see it in action.”

In response to Hyeji’s question, what came back was a completely incomprehensible answer.

Yet upon hearing that, we couldn’t even attempt to refute it.

The next words from Haruka were so out of the blue and utterly incomprehensible.

“Transform!”

The moment she said that, Haruka’s entire body glowed a bright pink, stealing our sight.

After a moment, the light faded, revealing her in a completely new form.

It was so outrageous that it was hard to believe it was the same Haruka with her previously subdued appearance.

A ridiculously gaudy outfit that was white with red and black lace, quite akin to a frilly mini skirt.

Yet rather than thinking it was childish, it felt more embarrassing due to the exposed thighs and chest area.

Among other changes, her eyes had turned bright yellow, and her hair was a mix of red and pink.

As we stared, dumbfounded at the absurd sight unfolding before us.

Haruka suddenly struck a pose and yelled cheerily.

“Behold! The strongest magical girl! Haruka! Has arrived!”

At that abrupt display, a heavy silence descended for a moment.

But what followed was an overwhelming roar of the audience that was just as dazzling as her appearance.

To call it a cheer would be a understatement; it was more akin to madness.

“Ahhhhhh!!!”

“The magical girl Haruka has finally arrived!!!”

“Look over here! Haruka-chan!”

“Now, do a shy pose!”

“I was really glad to be alive…”

Meanwhile, transformed into a magical girl, Haruka struck another playful pose, showing off an expression that totally clashed with the magical girl trope.

Seeing that, I couldn’t help but be startled.

“What’s your impression of seeing a magical girl?”

“Surprising.”

“Count yourself lucky. It’s rare to see a foreigner transforming like that.”

And it was indeed rare.

“At your age, calling yourself a girl, huh?”

“Shut up!!!”

[Acting like a girl when you’ve grown up is truly cringeworthy.]

‘……Why can’t you speak normally for a piece of junk?’

[Crazy dog.]

She looked far too old to be calling herself a girl.

“But what’s the connection between this and having no collateral damage, you old hag?”

“The damage caused by a magical girl’s battle is covered by the state! And don’t call me an old hag!”

“Thanks, guess experience counts.”

“Hey! Just come at me!!!”

Anyway, at least some of the questions we’d been carrying around were somewhat resolved.

Why the Japanese audience went wild when Haruka stepped up.

What kind of shallow confidence they dared to challenge Hyeji with.

Why the country would support the destruction of the surroundings.

And finally, that Kyoukyou didn’t know Haruka’s identity.

“But why didn’t you know I was a magical girl? Aren’t you Japanese too?”

“I was too busy studying to get into art school to even know, www”

“……”

Through Haruka and Kyoukyou’s conversation, I could glean a hint.

“If you’re feeling wronged, come to art school, www”

“K-Kisama!”

To begin with, Kyoukyou had no interest in magical girls or anything like that.

[Well, isn’t being a magical girl or a VTuber a bit of a niche hobby?]

‘Our emoji artist was a VTuber too; I never knew until now.’

[……What?]

At that moment, Hyeji, who had been silent, began to move slowly towards Haruka.

Seemingly lost in thought, her steps were a bit unsteady and uncertain.

Looking at Hyeji, Haruka wore a confident expression once again.

“Why? You seem a bit surprised?”

“Hey.”

“If you’re jealous, just say you’re jealous. If you work hard like me, you can become the strongest magical girl too!”

Before she knew it, that confident smile was replaced with a flustered expression.

“What the f*ck is this magical girl business.”

“Y-Y-Yo, you crazy lady!”

As Hyeji suddenly grabbed Haruka’s prominently exposed chest.

“And this chest… it’s magic…?”

“Let go, it hurts!!! And it’s natural!!!”

“You crazy b*tch.”

Haruka screamed in pain, but all Hyeji did was glare at her with eyes filled with hatred.

No, the word hatred seemed too normal to describe it; it was more like intent to kill.

Then, as Hyeji’s gaze slowly moved, perhaps due to Haruka’s sticky aura.

From Haruka’s rather ample chest that her hand couldn’t fully grasp.

“And you’re telling me you use magic in this outfit?”

“What’s wrong with my outfit? All I need to do is use magic!”

Toward Haruka’s magical girl outfit, which was both childish and vulgar.

“What kind of magic? Fire zone magic? Or riding position magic?”

“T-That doesn’t exist!!!”

It seemed like Haruka’s body was burdening Hyeji’s mind excessively.

“You’re a magical whore waiting to die.”

“This is official magical girl attire!”

[It’s not official attire, it’s off-the-record attire.]

‘Of course, you’d say that, you crazy b*tch.’

And watching that, Caressy and Kyoukyou began to mock.

“With that, Ayeon could work at her store, huh.”

“That’s not a magical girl; she’s selling pillows, www.”

Haruka was solely focused on getting away from Hyeji’s vice grip.

Finally, after Hyeji threw Haruka away, she was able to break free.

“Start right now! I swear I won’t let you go!”

With teary eyes, Haruka shot a fierce glare at Hyeji, but Hyeji ignored her and directly turned to Kyoukyou.

“Kyoukyou, seems like the Japan Hunter Academy is pretty big, huh? Is there even this kind of dog? Just as many people as when Shinwoo was here?”

“It might even be a tad bigger than the Kankoku Academy, www so of course there are idiotic dogs, www”

“So this is about the level of a South Korean Academy, huh? That means we’re right in the center of the academy?”

“Yeah, that’s correct, www”

This time she began to point at Elcia.

“Hey, little rabbit.”

“Yes, unnie!”

Elcia happily responded to Hyeji’s words, but her smile froze as Hyeji continued.

“Please chant the Order of Victory for me.”

With a look of disbelief, Elcia met Hyeji’s gaze and, realizing there was no escaping it, let out a big sigh and cheered solely for Hyeji.

“I want Hyeji unnie’s chest!!!”

Before the words even finished, we dashed towards the waiting room of the arena.

Carrying Hyeji’s furious shout clearly behind us.

“Shut up!!!”

That was the signal for the Demon King and the Magical Girl to clash!

---