by Asari Endou
When she heard about Nemurin’s death, Top Speed raged and cried. Ripple, however, calmly considered what actions to take in the future. Of course, she couldn’t deny she was angry at the mysterious force putting her life in danger, and the fear of death was so painful she wanted to clutch at her chest to suppress it. But still, she did her best to remain calm. She had to gather candy like her life depended on it, because it literally did. Everything that could be used, should be used. If Top Speed provided a unique advantage, she had no choice but to put up with the irritation in silence.
From Rapid Swallow’s rear seat, she zoomed around her designated area earning points. Top Speed’s dedication to survival was greater than expected. “I can’t die,” she’d declared to Ripple with an oddly serious expression. The silence she got in response had prompted an addendum. “I just need at least another six months,” she’d whispered. Ripple questioned this oddly specific amount of time, but Top Speed simply smiled wryly and didn’t answer. She wrote it off as more babbling.
“So today we’ll be flying along the national highway, okay?”
“Roger…”
“I wish there was a place we could earn a little more points, though.”
Ripple had suggested the red-light district would be more profitable, but the largest one in the city was in the Jounan district. That was Calamity Mary’s territory, and Top Speed had firmly rejected the idea. Ripple had questioned her lack of dedication, considering they could die if they failed, but Top Speed insisted it made no sense to put themselves in danger when the goal was to live longer. In the end, they settled on making do with the districts they’d been assigned.
Nakayado and Kitayado had respectable populations, but the militaristic air of their castle-town days was long gone. Truthfully, the people were quite mellow. This was not a bad thing—in fact, she preferred this—but that naturally came with a lower number of opportunities to assist.
The two of them stayed up all night searching for problems to solve, even skipping meals, and generally kept quite busy. Of course, once a magical girl was transformed, hunger and fatigue became nonfactors. But above all, they didn’t want to die.
While “annoying but useful, thus worth putting up with” was Ripple’s appraisal of Top Speed, something she’d obviously never say out loud, she couldn’t help but raise that evaluation a little every time they landed on the roof of the Seventh Sankou building after a ride on her magic broomstick.
Since each girl had her own unique ability, forming a team with trustworthy people was the best way to gather candy efficiently. But for Ripple, who preferred to be alone and had always avoided contact with her colleagues other than Top Speed, this was no easy task.
For this reason, Top Speed flew in two more of their number. With her wide network of connections as a regular chat attendee, it was no surprise she knew a few who could be trusted not to stab them in the back, at least.
The two introduced themselves as Sister Nana and Weiss Winterprison. Sister Nana’s appearance was obviously that of a nun. Her costume resembled the traditional habit, especially the veil and long skirt, and her face had an air of kindness to it. Yet a real nun would never allow a thigh-high slit on her skirt or wear a garter belt on top of white stockings. Ripple wondered if it was just magical-girl style to inspire lust with normally impossible combinations.
On first glance, Weiss Winterprison seemed to be a man. Her brown hair was trimmed short, and she was a head taller than Ripple. A coat covered in belts, almost like a straitjacket, draped over her body. The scarf around her neck was so long it dangled by her feet, and she used it to hide her mouth. Her austere garb was colored black from head to foot, and while her face was beautiful, as befitting a magical heroine, it was an androgynous beauty. The coat around her hid all signs of feminine lines. She most strongly resembled a prince of a foreign country.
“It’s good to meet you, Ripple. I am Sister Nana. Pleasure to make your acquaintance. This is Weiss Winterprison.”
“Hi.”
Sister Nana spoke softly, which to Ripple meant she was slow of mind. Winterprison’s voice was low, her demeanor curt. To Ripple, this was a sign of a superiority complex. Neither made an incredible first impression, but then again, no one had ever made a good first impression on Ripple. That wasn’t hugely concerning. What was concerning was Top Speed’s troubled expression as she dropped them off. After a few more formalities, Sister Nana began.
“I think this is wrong.”
She got straight to the point.
“What’s wrong?”
“This situation. We were given power to bring peace to the world of man, not to hate, quarrel, and compete among ourselves. What good can this accomplish?”
She clasped Ripple’s hands and drew closer. Ripple frowned, but the nun paid her no mind and continued.
“It is during times like these that we must band together.”
“Yeah, but what exactly are we supposed to do?” Top Speed asked in Ripple’s stead. Sister Nana turned her head to face the witch, her hands still gripping Ripple’s, and smiled gently.
“That is what we should first consider. If we put our minds together, we can surely come up with a sound idea.”
Top Speed grinned awkwardly, Ripple tsked, and Winterprison coughed. It was entirely possible the cough was meant as a warning to Ripple for clicking her tongue, but either way, Sister Nana continued unfazed.
“Only the mind of a magical girl can solve this. I submitted a formal complaint to the management through Fav, but it was ignored.”
“Oh, you did?”
“Yes, but it did no good. Fav told me to give up because that’s just how things are… But this is not an issue we can afford to give up on! One poor soul has already fallen victim to this vicious system. Nemurin… What regret, what sadness, what pain she must have felt… The poor thing.”
A single tear spilled from Sister Nana’s eye. Ripple clicked her tongue. Just like the class president she’d had in second grade, Sister Nana expected people to flock to her side by spouting pretty words. Just like her seventh grade homeroom teacher, she pitied others in order to think of herself as kind. Just like… well, many women, but her mother most of all, she felt no shame in crying.
She also didn’t seem to be proposing they work together to gather candy.
Ripple wrested her hands free from Sister Nana, sending her toppling into Winterprison’s arms. The nun’s shoulders quivered as Winterprison held her close.
“Oh… The poor soul…”
Behind Sister Nana, Winterprison glowered at Ripple, her eyes ablaze with anger. The gesture was returned with murderous intent. The taller girl narrowed her glare, and Ripple moistened her lips. Winterprison stepped in front of Sister Nana as if to protect her. The ninja moved her right hand to her back and found the hilt of her sword.
“All right! I see what you’re trying to say!” Top Speed shouted, and clapped her hands loudly, attempting to dispel the tension. “I need to discuss things with my partner, so let’s leave it at that for today. Okay?”
“We need to act fast to prevent any more victims—”
“Yeah, I know. Understood! Which is exactly why we want to talk things over first. We know how important this is, and that’s why we don’t want to decide lightly.”
Sister Nana seemed unsatisfied but grudgingly nodded, and the two girls hopped on Top Speed’s broom and zipped away. Upon her equally rushed return, Top Speed put her hands together and bowed deeply to Ripple.
“Sorry.”
“Go to hell.”
“Seriously, I’m sorry. They just said they wanted to talk, so I was like, why not? I didn’t think you’d get so pissed. And on the off chance they had a good idea, why not go along with it? I really don’t want to die either. At least not for six months.”
Why was she so insistent on six months? Ripple clicked her tongue. How many times had she done that today?
“So irritating…”
“It’s not
like they meant any harm, y’know? You guys just didn’t gel, I guess. Don’t go starting any fights here. No way I’m gonna let myself die. I’m not getting caught up in some brawl between you and Winterprison.”
It seemed to Ripple that Top Speed’s insistence on survival wasn’t because she was simply afraid of dying. Six months, huh? What’s in six months?
Ripple pointed at Top Speed.
“Your back…”
“Hmm?”
“It says ‘No Gratuitous Opinions.’”
“Oh…”
“You have no spine…”
“Yeesh, you’re harsh. I really don’t recommend fighting Winterprison, though. Remember what I said before? Apparently she saved Sister Nana from Calamity Mary by tackling her head-on. Sister Nana told me all about it with a little blush.”
Ripple remembered Sister Nana’s tears as she lay in Winterprison’s arms and scowled. That they didn’t “gel” wasn’t even the half of it. The point was Nana’s plan wouldn’t do any good.
“She’s not a bad person.”
“Delusional religious fanatics disgust me…”
“I don’t think she’s exactly delusional. More like rotten, I think. Well, either way, we’re back to patrolling the roads for candy.”
“We’ll still need to defend ourselves…”
“We can just run away. I’m the fastest in town, y’know. They don’t call me Top Speed for nothing. I’ll always leave the rear seat open so I can swoop down and rescue ya. No one’ll ever catch us. That’s why I’m playing this game fair and square. I’ll keep watch from the skies and intervene when something happens. That should be enough to land us tons of candy.”
Ripple knew any further discussion would only prove fruitless, so she silently sat behind Top Speed and wrapped her hands around her waist.
N City’s Nishimonzen was crowded with temples. From grand, enormous structures to tiny ones tucked away in between buildings, shrines lined the streets. And of all the temples in Nishimonzen, Ouketsuji was the oldest—or rather, the most decrepit. It was not some ancient and storied place, and it had no one to look after it. It had simply been left to rot. And as far as the middle of town went, it wasn’t a bad place to hide magical girls. Specifically, five of them.
Ruler fingered her tiara, then adjusted its position and sat down, using her long cape as a cushion.
“As you know, our magical phones have received an update.”
As she spoke, Ruler focused on a decapitated statue of a bodhisattva. Kneeling there was a girl in swimwear. Ruler found herself thinking that if the pure white school swimsuit and goggles dangling from her neck reflected her identity as a swimmer, then the headphones and curls were pointless additions serving as her magical-girl chic. The swimsuit meant for younger kids combined with that voluptuous body made for a morally indecent picture.
“This update allows us to move magical candy between us.”
A few feet in front of her was a girl with doglike ears, only her head visible above the hole in the dirt floor. According to her, she felt most at home in holes she dug herself. She wore a hooded cape, and her dog ears peeked out from holes on the top. Paw gloves covered her hands, and around her neck hung a collar. The patches of fur on her outfit and tights were white with black polka dots, and her shorts had a hole in them near her butt to allow her tail to poke through.
“Does everyone understand what this means?”
Perched on a beam was a crow wearing a ruby necklace. The next second, it was a black cat in boots. The second after that, two magical girls sat in its place, swan-like wings on their backs and rings of light above their heads. Despite their many forms, this was their true one. They appeared to be ten years old. Their dresses and headbands were a matching navy blue, their blouses and drawers white, perfectly matched like members of a choir. There were only two ways to tell the girls apart: whether their short bobbed hair flipped under or out, and whether the ribbon each wore around her ankle was on the left or right.
“Those who have lots of candy should share with those who don’t?”
The dog-eared Tama cocked her head and made a suggestion, to which Ruler responded coldly, “Zero points.”
“We should form teams and try to make sure we all have enough candy?” “Oh, that sounds right. Sis, you’re so magi-cool.”
The twin angels Minael and Yunael, known as the Peaky Angels, pointed at each other.
“Thirty points,” Ruler announced. “Swim Swim, what do you think?”
The girl dressed for the pool, Swim Swim, said not a word but shook her head. Her sizable breasts shook in unison with her head. Ruler spat silently. She was not particularly endowed, neither as a regular human nor in her transformed state, and had a considerable complex about it.
“I’m surrounded by idiots.” She glared at them all. “Idiots, every last one of you.”
The Peaky Angels looked away, Tama lowered her ears apologetically, and Swim Swim continued to stare at Ruler without moving. They weren’t the only idiots Ruler was referring to, however. Every last magical girl running around to help others in an effort to save themselves after Nemurin’s death was an idiot.
“This is a message from the management. They’re telling us to steal from each other.”
“What? We’re allowed to steal?” “Really?”
“We don’t need anyone’s permission. We can just take their magical phone and perform the transfer ourselves. I’ve already tried it.”
“Seriously?” “That’s amazing.”
“If all you’re capable of is kissing ass, then shut up, you obnoxious idiots.”
The twin angels once again averted their eyes. Ruler snorted, then continued.
“I’m going to have you follow my orders. Work hard if you don’t want to end up like Nemurin.”
“Orders?” “What are you going to make us do?”
She wanted to yell at them for trying to kiss ass again, but Ruler decided it was more important to proceed than to give the twins a tongue-lashing.
“Simple. We’ll steal from the one with the most candy: Snow White.”
Sanae Mokuou had been so happy to become a magical girl and finally attain the greatness she deserved. She’d gone to highly acclaimed elementary and middle schools, then it was high school, university, and straight into employment at a top-class company. All the while, she had been surrounded by idiots. She constantly wondered why she was forced to work with morons who couldn’t understand her value, and she even said so out loud. Because of that, she had no friends and had spent her whole life alone.
She’d picked up Magical Girl Raising Project as a pastime, and when she transformed, she finally had a clear answer to her eternal question of why all the stupid people around her couldn’t recognize her worth: She was the ugly duckling. Though she was a swan among them, none of the ducks appreciated her beauty. That day, Sanae quit her job.
The heroine in the mirror filled her with pride. Her lustrous satin cloak, encrusted with jewels, flowed all the way to the floor; an eagle with a jewel in its claws topped her yard-long ivory scepter; and long gloves fit for a party and a tiara finished off the set. The tiara was small and simple in design, but the diamond embedded in it was of unnatural size and clarity. Ornaments held her regal purple updo in place, while her feet rested in glass slippers. Her eyelashes were so long you could almost hear them when she blinked. She had no need for foundation or makeup. She was free of all the miscellaneous chores she’d hated as a normal human. Now she could join her fellow swans. But Sanae’s joy vanished when she met her mentor, Calamity Mary.
The other girl smoked a cigar, blowing the smoke in Sanae’s face, and knocked back her bottle of booze at regular intervals. The minute Sanae decided she’d had enough of her delinquency and stood up to leave, a gunshot rang out, and an explosive roar boomed from behind her. She turned to see a hole nearly ten feet wide in the wall behind her.
“Do not go against me. Do not give me trouble. Do not piss me off.
Okay?”
Sanae was frozen, half sitting, half standing.
“Okay?”
At some point, Calamity Mary’s gun had made it to her hand. The only explanation for the hole in the wall was that a bullet from that gun had created it. But no pistol was capable of such results.
“Is this… your magic?”
“Why are you asking me that? I asked you a question first, little girl, so answer. Nod like an idiot if you have to. Okay?”
After a long, long time, Sanae nodded deeply.
“Okay, okay. Good answer.”
Her quick draw was fearsome. Sanae hadn’t even seen her take out her weapon, let alone cock the hammer or fire. By the time the wall had exploded, everything was over.
Calamity Mary blew away the smoke trailing from the barrel of the gun with a quick puff, spun it a few times, then holstered it in one smooth motion. Then she tilted back her bottle of booze and gulped loudly. The amber liquid dripped from the corner of her lips and splashed onto her breasts.
Sanae’s blood boiled from the humiliation, and she bit her lip. She’d been powerless, cowed by violence. She understood her own magic, of course, and was satisfied with its strength, but Calamity Mary completely outclassed her in speed. If she tried to use magic on her, she was more likely to end up with a hole in her, just like the wall. She understood her own body. While it wasn’t as fragile as a wall, the best she could hope for was a critical injury—at worst, she’d die instantly. Basically, she was no different from a normal human facing a normal gun.
The moment she thought she’d become a swan, her head had been grabbed and shoved underwater. Sanae chewed on the humiliation and learned her lesson. What she needed were bodyguards, she realized—human shields that could withstand punishment until she could cast her magic on Calamity Mary and exact her revenge. Thus, every time a new girl joined, she volunteered whenever she could to be their mentor, solicited the easily manipulated ones, and formed her own faction. It consisted of the slow-headed Tama; the Peaky Angels, who blindly followed any and all orders; and the taciturn Swim Swim.
