NOVEL WEB Chapter 27
Going to the Magical Girl Academy
That day, the Japanese branch of the Magical Girl Academy was bustling from early morning……
This commotion was due to Kaede, who ranked 1st the previous night, visiting and submitting a single sheet of paper.
The paper itself was an unremarkable transfer application, but the first cause for concern was that both Kaede’s and Taragon’s names were written in the guardian section.
The second issue was the name of the transfer student.
It was the name of Inny Flowering, who had been reported dead.
On the official website, Inny Flowering, who was ranked 18th, had disappeared and inexplicably reappeared as a new recruit with a “new” mark attached.
Various speculations were flying around, but no one truly knew what had happened.
Of course, her monster elimination count was still at zero, and most of her profile remained undisclosed.
Her depicted appearance showed her wearing a white robe with a hood pulled over her head, just like when she was ranked 18th.
Today, this mysterious girl would be coming to take an entrance exam at the Japanese branch of the Magical Girl Academy, accompanied by her guardian.
“It’s almost time,” muttered Prizes, a teacher at the Japanese branch of the Magical Girl Academy and ranked 21st as a magical girl, standing at the academy’s main gate.
She had become a magical girl after being tricked by a fairy and, losing the right timing to quit, somehow ended up becoming a teacher.
Being relatively high-ranked, she was classified as highly skilled among the academy’s teachers.
However, at one point, the Inny Flowering coming for the test had outranked her.
Moreover, since her guardian was also a top-ranking individual, Prizes sighed and felt a pain in her stomach.
The class of rookies she was currently handling consisted of problem children, and she didn’t want any more trouble.
Prizes prayed silently that Inny Flowering would turn out to be a serious student.
Then, two figures appeared within Prizes’ line of sight.
One had striking red hair and was Magical Girl Taragon, ranked 5th among magical girls.
Her fiery red hair was not only her trademark but also a source of trauma for some magical girls.
Prizes had luckily never fought Taragon in simulations, but one of her friends had faced Taragon and became traumatized as a result.
The other figure wore a white robe with a hood, obscuring their face, yet making quite an impression as a magical girl.
Her name was Magical Girl Inny Flowering, a magical girl officially declared deceased.
In Japan, it had been a long time since anyone had encountered such irregularities—an S Rank monster known as M·D·W was defeated alone by her, though she vanished afterward as part of the cost.
And now, she had come to visit the Japanese branch of the Magical Girl Academy…… hand-in-hand with Taragon.
While Inny Flowering seemed slightly embarrassed, Taragon appeared unusually cheerful in contrast.
Prizes, who had been suffering from stomach pains earlier, tilted her head in confusion.
As the two arrived before Prizes, she gathered herself and took a small deep breath.
“Are you Miss Inny Flowering and Miss Taragon?”
“Yes, that’s correct. And you are?”
“I’m Prizes, a teacher here. I’m in charge of the rookie class that Miss Inny Flowering is scheduled to join.”
While being scrutinized by Taragon, Prizes inwardly rejoiced at having started off well.
Some people tend to pick unnecessary fights right from the start, so it wasn’t always possible to introduce oneself properly.
“Aah, I remember now. You’re the person ranked 21st. I wouldn’t have guessed you’d become a teacher.”
“You really know me well… despite me being so unknown…”
Prizes let out a dry laugh, wondering how someone like her could be so well-known.
Prizes had never managed to rank in the top ten and usually hovered around the twenties.
“Well, your appearance is quite memorable…”
Standing about 150 centimeters tall, with pink and blue gradient hair tied into a ponytail, Prizes was already quite distinctive.
Even then, there was something else about her that stood out even more.
Yes, on her back were enormous wings.
At this moment, Inny Flowering looked far away, thinking, “Oh no, my homeroom teacher seems tough.”
“Cough. So, today’s schedule: we’ll begin with an academic test. Is Inny Flowering 11 years old?”
“Just call me Inny. The age is probably correct.”
While responding with “Is that so? Thank you,” Prizes tilted her head wondering, “Probably? What does that mean?”
She wanted to ask again, but sensing pressure from Taragon, she couldn’t bring herself to do so.
“After the academic test, we will assess combat skills and conduct an interview. It should take about three to four hours. Is that okay?”
Inny nodded in response.
“As for guardians, they can tour the academy until the test is over. Would you like to do that?”
“Hmm. Since I have nothing planned today, I’ll tour and wait.”
“Understood. Please wear this identification badge while you’re in the academy.”
Prizes snapped her fingers, and a lanyard with a visitor pass appeared before Taragon.
This phenomenon was caused by her magic, called “Dropbox,” which allowed her to summon items from specified locations.
By the way, snapping her fingers wasn’t necessary, but she did it because she thought it looked cooler.
“Before we proceed… may I ask you to remove your hood?”
After a brief pause, Inny removed her hood with both hands.
The first thing Prizes saw was beautiful turquoise hair. Then came the delicate features of a young face. Finally, her eyes caught Prizes’ attention.
When she saw those eyes—eyes that didn’t match such a youthful face—Prizes couldn’t help but scream.
How could someone so young have eyes so dark and clouded? What experiences had this child gone through at such a tender age?
But despite screaming, Prizes had her pride as a teacher.
“Ah, I’m sorry… hii!”
Attempting to apologize for her scream, Prizes screamed again upon feeling Taragon’s anger.
Prizes lamented why all these things kept happening to her.
“Um… anyway, let me guide Inny to the examination room.”
Feeling uneasy, Prizes fluttered her wings slightly and fled toward the academy with Inny Flowering, trying to escape from Taragon.
Once inside a room in the academy, Prizes seated Inny.
Several test papers were already laid out, and everything was prepared.
“The test covers language arts, mathematics, science, and magic studies. The duration is two hours. Do you need to use the restroom or have any questions?”
Trying to recover from her earlier mishap, Prizes spoke briskly, though her agitation was evident as her wings flapped nervously.
“I’m fine.”
“Understood. I’ll be over there, so please call me if you finish or have any issues.”
Prizes gave a slight bow and moved to the side of the room.
Summoning a chair without snapping her fingers, she sat down.
(Though I was startled earlier, it’s good that Inny seems normal despite those eyes.)
Newcomers often become problematic due to feelings of superiority or self-importance, but so far, Inny seemed earnest, putting Prizes at ease.
Still, Taragon’s earlier display of anger left a stronger impression, and Prizes hadn’t fully calmed down yet.
Recalling the video of the M·D·W battle she had seen recently,
The footage showing Inny Flowering fighting was brief, but based on the information available, defeating M·D·W was deemed impossible—even if Inny had awakened like Marin.
With black and white wings fluttering, using various kinds of magic, it was impressive, but the opponent was simply too strong.
Though Inny was officially reported dead during the M·D·W battle, she was now sitting right in front of Prizes taking the test.
Prizes wondered what had happened but decided not to ask anything risky lest she anger Taragon again.
Prizes, who dreaded exploding, remained silent.
“I’m done.”
About forty minutes after Prizes had started zoning out, Inny announced she had finished.
(Hmm? That was rather quick.)
“One final check and you’re done, but are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
“Alright. I’ll grade it quickly, so please wait a moment.”
Prizes took the papers from Inny and began grading them rapidly.
(Ah?! Ah?!)
As she graded, Prizes’ excitement grew.
Surprisingly, every answer so far was perfect. Despite being 11 years old and taking a test designed for 12-year-olds, Inny answered everything correctly.
Language arts: perfect score. Mathematics: perfect score. Science: perfect score. Finally, magic studies…
The scores themselves were flawless. However, Prizes hesitated at the last question’s answer. It was an essay-style question asking, “Why did you become a magical girl?”
(“Because I had no other choice”… huh?)
Prizes concluded that there must be something significant about Inny.
Though she wanted to ponder further, she couldn’t keep Inny waiting.
Further tests awaited as well.
“Your academic abilities are excellent. Next, we’ll move on to the combat ability assessment. Are you ready to continue?”
“I’m ready.”
“Alright… We’ll conduct the test using the academy’s simulator, so please follow me.”
Just like heading to the classroom for the academic test, Prizes led Inny to the simulation room.
Whether it was good luck or bad, they didn’t encounter anyone along the way.
The simulators in the academy were older models compared to the latest ones used by top-ranked individuals but were far superior to the headset type Inny had previously used.
The two lay down in capsule-like structures and began the simulation.
“This test involves two D-class monsters. Is that alright?”
Normally, they would start with F-class for observation, but considering Inny’s former rank of 18th place, D-class seemed more appropriate.
Though at rank 18, Inny could likely defeat B-class or even S-class monsters, the test content adhered to the academy’s rules.
“Do the strength of the monsters affect the test score?”
“When new extermination requests are assigned to rookies, the strength of the monsters varies. Since we’ll conduct another test after enrollment, successfully defeating these monsters will not impact your score regardless of their strength.”
“I see, then this is fine.”
Prizes nodded in agreement with Inny and started the simulation.
“O ice, become a sword and pierce the enemy.”
As soon as the monsters appeared, Inny cast a spell, impaling and defeating both with an ice sword.
Prizes could only think, “Well, that was expected.” For an ex-18th ranked magical girl, dealing with D-class monsters was akin to squashing ants.
Watching Inny’s combat performance, Prizes noticed something odd.
She wasn’t carrying the staff she had in videos of the M·D·W battle or others.
Among magical girls, those who primarily rely on magic often wield staffs or books.
Without these tools, their spells might lose power or fail to activate altogether.
Yet, Inny effortlessly cast spells without any weapon and defeated the monsters.
Prizes, slightly taken aback by this, quietly wished for the future peace and success of this promising magical girl.
But Prizes wondered what such a magical girl was learning by coming to the academy now.
Moreover, she herself was going to be Inny’s homeroom teacher.
Unable to quit teaching or being a magical girl at this stage, Prizes flapped her wings anxiously, lamenting the unfairness of life.
Reuniting with Inny after the simulation ended, Prizes summoned Taragon for the final interview.
Honestly, Prizes thought there was no need for the interview, but rules were rules, and they had to be followed.
“Since Miss Taragon has arrived, we’ll proceed with the final interview. Here are the results of this test.”
Prizes guided Taragon to sit beside Inny and handed her the summary of the test results.
“Hmm. Regardless of combat skills, the academic results are fine. This is a good outcome.”
“To be honest, I don’t feel the necessity for Inny to attend the academy. Why has she chosen to enroll?”
In response to this question, Taragon pointed to her own eyes and then looked at Inny.
Through this gesture, Prizes understood.
To improve those eyes that didn’t suit her age, she was sending Inny to the academy…
If there was a proper reason, Prizes nodded, acknowledging there was nothing more to say.
“Understood. Regarding the transfer, you’ve requested dormitory living. Will it be alright to start living there from the day of transfer?”
“We’ll have her stay at home until then, so it’s fine. How many people live in the dormitory now?”
“There are three in the rookie class, and I believe around fifteen in total.”
Additionally, if re-education was required, the number of residents in the dormitory could increase during that period.
“And the transfer date will be next Monday. Please come to the main gate around 8 a.m.”
Inny nodded in understanding.
The interview lasted only a few minutes, and they disbanded for the day.
Inny returned home with Taragon, who insisted on discussing the test content while leading her by the hand to her water-based home.
That evening’s dinner was a homemade cheese-stuffed hamburger by Taragon, but that’s a story for another time.