Chapter 23: 23

Meaning of The Smile

Translated by LyraDhani

Edited by LyraDhani

–At the same time, a helicopter landed about ten kilometers away from Hakone.

Out of it came two girls. No, one of them was more like a woman than a girl.

Suzushiro Ran, ranked third on Rikka’s order. And Hitsugi Airi, ranked fifth on the order. These two girls were the backup girls dispatched by the government.

Hitsugi, a woman who looked between the age of a university student and a working adult, got off the helicopter and asked the local disaster response staff who greeted her about the situation.

“What is the situation right now?”

“The C-class Magical Girl who came to help us are still fighting back. But at this rate, it looks like it will be your turn soon.”

“I see… Where is the mirror? We would like to see how the battle goes so we can consider our future response.”

“Yes, sir. This way, please.”

The staff member replied, and Hitsugi and Suzushiro walked along behind him.

Suzushiro, a high school-aged girl who had been listening to them in silence, pulled on Hitsugi’s cuff, and her mouth twitched in dissatisfaction.

“Hey, Ai-chan. Why is a C-class girl fighting? Some kind of roundabout suicide or something?”

“…Ran-san. You, you didn’t listen to the explanation in the helicopter at all, did you? I have explained it to you properly. There was something wrong with the government and a child with Transportation skills rushed in with good intentions. You can’t talk like that.”

Hitsugi said this accusingly with a furrowed brow. But Suzushiro didn’t seem to mind.

“Really? But it doesn’t change the fact that the child will die. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have been invited here.”

“There are two sides to every story. You are in a position of authority over others, so you have to be careful with your words-“

“Yes, yes, I understand. I’ll be careful next time.”

Interrupting Hitsugi’s words midway, Suzushiro responded curtly and made a gesture of covering her ears in annoyance. Seeing this, Hitsugi let out a sigh of exasperation and turned around, saying the story was over.

–I wondered what was going on when I was suddenly summoned on my day off, but I didn’t expect to be with this girl.

Hitsugi thought to herself in her mind. Although Hitsugi was older, Suzushiro was chosen for Rikka one year earlier than her. She was also higher in rank than her, so she couldn’t say anything too strongly.

–I wish the people in the government would take a little more consideration of our compatibility.

She thought so, but she heard that the situation in Hakone was so urgent that every second was counted so she couldn’t complain.

“We’ve arrived. The mirror is this way.”

As she thought about this, she arrived at the place where the mirror was located.

In a small shrine-like building, two large mirrors were placed facing each other. The mirrors were placed in various locations in Japan and automatically reflected the battle of the nearest beasts.

Normally, these mirrors were open to the public, but in cases such as this one, where a higher level of monsters must be dealt with, government officials were given priority in their use.

Hitsugi and the others looked into one of the mirrors – the mirror in which the Demonic Beasts were mainly reflected.

“Thank you for the guidance. …This is terrible.”

“Wow, that’s so gross. Isn’t that really gross?”

Hitsugi and Suzushiro raised their voices almost simultaneously. Although the words were different, the meaning they refer to was almost the same.

The first thing that caught their attention was the fearlessness of the Demonic Beast.

The undulating thing stretched across half of the lake — a tentacle-like thing made of multiple entangled snakes that twisted like a whip and destroyed mountains and towns. The snakes were emitting rays of light from their mouths, causing more damage.

The mass in the center of several tentacles–the snakes leaned their heads back as if they could afford to do so.

“Here is a summary of the details of this individual. Please check it.”

She received a document from a staff member with the names of individuals and battle details, and hurried to look it over. In the document, Hitsugi found a note that the weak point was probably poison, and she stared at Suzushiro involuntarily. Her aptitude was [Poison]. She was exactly the kind of person who was tailored to this enemy.

Suzushiro also noticed the description and looked relieved in an easy-to-understand way.

“What is it? If this is the case, it would be faster if I fight next time. Oh, or did you want to fight, Ai-chan?”

“No, it’s better to fight when you can definitely win.”

If you don’t have to risk your life for anything, so much the better.

Hitsugi had been chosen as Rikka, the highest level of Magical Girls, but her ability itself was not that high. If her skills were not matched well, she could have a hard time even with B-class opponents.

Even Hitsugi herself didn’t know why she was chosen as a Rikka. Was it luck or bad luck? In the first place, no matter how much the selection is made from Magical Girls of A-class or above, how is it that they choose it by public vote and not by merit?

Hitsugi was now depressed to think about the vote that would be held in January next year. No matter who was chosen, it would be troublesome in the end.

–The signboard of “Rikka” is too heavy for an ordinary Magical Girl.

While thinking about this, Hitsugi was lightly patted on the back by Suzushiro.

“Ai-chan. Look at this for a minute.”

“What is it?”

Hitsugi twisted her head at Suzushiro, who sounded unusually stiff. It was really rare for her to sound this serious.

Then, Hitsugi stared at what she pointed to – a mirror in which a Magical Girl was reflected. The sight took her breath away.

–Why is the child smiling ・・・・・・?

Reflected in the mirror was a Magical Girl with wounds all over her body. Her clothes were shredded and covered with mud, and her arms and legs were covered in a number of not-so-shallow scars.

The difference in strength was obvious. The reason she – Sakura Hagakure – was still alive was because her “Transportation” skill was excellent.

A single transport skill that ignored distance. Its cooling time was about five seconds or less. It was an outstanding skill even among various Magical Girls. That’s why it’s a shame. If only this had not happened, she would have continued to be active as an excellent Magical Girl.

She boldly challenged the main body of Radon, but even when she reached it, she didn’t seem to have the means to attack it enough to give it a decisive blow, so she didn’t do much damage. Sometimes her body was bounced off by the tail and she was flung into the air.

However, the mouth was always arched in a joyful manner. It was as if she was enjoying the fight with all her might.

–This is not the expression of a person who is about to die, no matter how you look at it. Hitsugi suppressed her voice that was about to tremble and said quietly.

“She still intends to win, doesn’t she?”

There was conviction in her voice.

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–This Sakura Hagakure had not given up on anything. From the bottom of her heart, she believed in her victory. Is this really an act of bravery born of ignorance, or is there some other strategy? Hitsugi couldn’t make a decision.

“That’s too bad. If I’d known she was like this before, I would have wanted to be friends with her.”

Suzushiro said so. She had her shoulders down and seemed blatantly depressed.

When Hitsugi looked at Suzushiro curiously, Suzushiro smiled a little shyly.

“Heh heh. We love people like this who never give up no matter what. Isn’t she cool?”

Suzushiro told her innocently. Her straightforward words, without any ulterior motives, seemed a little dazzling to Hitsugi.

“…That’s right. I don’t dislike it either.”

But Hitsugi knew. Magical Girls are the ones who die first from such courage.

Most of the Magical Girls who had survived for years in this harsh environment were cowardly and headstrong. Hitsugi was one of them.

–That’s why it’s hard to see the ‘real thing’ like these girls. Because I feel like I am being blamed for my own diminutive size.

“Hagakure Sakura has stopped her action. She is currently using her skills to hide her appearance, and seems to be talking something with the contract God on the Torii gate near the lake.”

The staff member who was observing the mirror told them so. When they looked in the mirror, they saw a faintly blurred image of Hagakure Sakura, staring intently toward the lake, talking to a cat-like object floating next to her.

–The cat-like thing seemed calm, as if it were making small talk. The expression on its face, which changed from one moment to the next, made it seem as if it was not on a battlefield.

And then, Hagakure Sakura smiled a heartful, happy smile and gently thrust her left hand forward.

-Immediately afterward, everyone present could not believe their eyes.

◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆

The serpent’s head was dropped and then released – hit and away repeatedly for several dozen minutes.

Probably, the Magical Girls who stood as backups had already arrived at Hakone. With this, he could say that he had done the minimum amount of work.

Thinking so, Tsugumi let out a small breath.

“I’ve got plenty of energy, but I’m actually close to a dead end. –I wonder if this is how I am going to die.”

Using his invisibility skill, Tsugumi stared at the rampaging Radon from atop the shrine’s torii gate. He had dropped dozens of heads so far, but it didn’t seem to be particularly effective, only slowing its movements somewhat. Even if he continued his suicide attack, Tsugumi would probably run out of power sooner rather than later.

The current Tsugumi was no match for Radon. He hated to admit it, but this was the reality. Even if he didn’t intend to give up the fight, he was losing the ground.

–But I am not out of options.

“Hey, Bell-sama. –What would you do if I told you I have a trump card ?”

“Is there such a thing? Then why don’t you use it quickly?”

When Tsugumi asked that question, Bell appeared next to him out of nowhere and replied. It was the truth but he had a good reason for not using it until now.

“I can’t go into detail, but I wasn’t sure it would work. In some cases, it was just a waste of death. …No, maybe that’s more likely.”

The method that Tsugumi came up with was not a proper means. It was nothing more than a theory, and it was too close to wishful thinking.

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He didn’t have time to go into detail here, but it was almost like a gamble. To be clear, the probability of self-destruction was higher.

“If it fails, I’m sure [Hagakure Sakura] will become a laughingstock. ‘Hey, hey, what did that idiot do?’ Even Bell-sama, the contract God, might have a funny word with the others. –Still, please forgive me for this outrage. I definitely want to win against it.”

Then, Tsugumi smiled apologetically.

He spoke softly, but his body was beyond its limits. He could collapse at any moment. The only way out of this hopeless situation was to take a gamble now.

…He couldn’t afford to cause any more trouble for Bell. If she said no, he’d gracefully give up and look for another way.

Seeing Tsugumi with his head down, Bell shrugged.

“–I’ve told you before. Have you forgotten already?”

“About what?”

“I have entrusted you with the battle. –So don’t bother asking me about such trivial matters.”

At Bell’s words, Tsugumi opened his mouth wide.

Then, as if he couldn’t take it anymore, he started laughing, clutching his stomach. Seeing this, Belle complained.

“Hey, what’s so funny?”

“No, no, because Bell-sama is too cool. I’m really glad that Bell-sama is my God!”

He wiped away the tears and looked straight at his enemy Radon.

–Oh, it’s good. Now I’m no longer worried. All I have to do is make a decision.

And with that thought, Tsugumi exhaled calmly.

–The current “Hagakure Sakura” was no match for radon. Then, he could win by becoming Hagakure Sakura.

The more he fought, the more his Magical Girl’s power–skills–would naturally strengthen. Now even the Thread skill could be applied in various ways, and even the Invisibility skill could be used in more ways than at the beginning. If he wanted to, he could erase not only his appearance, but also his temperature and even his existence.

However, there is only one skill that has remained unchanged. Tsugumi had never wondered about it, but perhaps the time had come for that to change.

–Develop the skill of [Gluttony]. Through the force of Tsugumi’s will.

Thrush believed in Bell. That’s why – the power skill from which his anecdote was derived couldn’t be the end of the story. He strongly believed it.

“–Hagakure is about finding a way out of a deadly situation.”

Now, this name fit Tsugumi’s current situation as if it had been arranged beforehand. It’s as if he had anticipated this future.

He smiled and pushed his left hand forward.

–I just need a little courage and determination. All that’s left is a miracle from God.

“I’ll pay in advance. Take it all, just enough so I don’t die. –Come on, eat… [Gluttony]!”

Hearing Tsugumi’s words, Bell screamed.

“Hey, you can’t be–!”

But it’s too late.

–The black beast’s mouth appeared with the declaration and ate off Tsugumi’s left hand and right leg.

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