Chapter 30
I briefly asked Reina for permission and entered Hong-ryeon’s quarters, sitting across from her. After that, I opened my mouth.
“Why did you call me?”
“Oh, it’s nothing much. Remember that someone I know asked a question last time?”
Ah, does she think I don’t know that it was about her? I nodded willingly.
“I sent the reply you mentioned to that person, and they said thanks. They’re still a bit confused, but they feel like things have improved a little.”
“…Is that so?”
Even after speaking, I continued to think. Was I really not saying anything unnecessary? Even if I knew her story from the original work, I was ultimately viewing it from someone else’s perspective; was what I said truly what Hong-ryeon needed to hear?
But judging by her reaction, it seemed to have been okay. I smirked and smiled.
“Well, if that’s the case, I’m glad. What’s important for everyone is themselves.”
Having said that, I looked around. Is it because it’s the quarters of an A-rank magical girl? It definitely seemed better than Reina’s and my own quarters.
“Wow, is this your first time in such a place? You should tell the newbie to get settled. Once you rank up, they’ll move you to a better place,” she said.
“No, that’s a bit much.”
Now that I think about it, there’s no reason to stay in the North Korean area. The monsters in North Korea have mostly been dealt with, and Reina has also earned her B-rank. Moving up from B to A will require another method.
Upon hearing my decisive rejection, Hong-ryeon chuckled softly.
“Aren’t you rejecting that a bit too harshly?”
“Ultimately, it wouldn’t be good for the magical girl I’m in charge of, right? It’s better to head south quickly.”
“That’s true. What good would staying here do? There’s nothing here anyway. In fact, I’m planning to stay here a few more months before heading south.”
At that remark, I was taken aback and gasped, “Really?”
In the original work, Hong-ryeon didn’t move south until a major problem arose in Seoul. The North Korean area was the fiercest frontline, so she had stayed put until something worse happened. But now…
“After all, there aren’t many monsters left, right? Once the North Korean area is sorted out, there won’t be any more reason to be here. I’ll head to Seoul and have some fun. What’s the use of working hard to earn money if there’s nowhere to spend it?”
“…Yes, that sounds nice. Please buy me something delicious when you get down there. Something expensive.”
“I’m not buying something delicious for a brat who talks back every time I say something!”
With a playful smile, Hong-ryeon then shrugged her shoulders and continued speaking.
“I’m just joking. Sure, I’ll treat you to something. Besides, I owe you one. And I’ll fix that attitude of yours. Maybe if you get stepped on by me, you’ll learn to behave?”
…That’s a bit creepy.
After she made her chilling joke, Hong-ryeon and I faced each other. Then, her voice turned serious.
“Don’t you two want to join our management?”
“What?”
“Though it’s called management, you can really think of it as factions. Reina has also become a B-rank, right? Once you reach B-rank, whether you like it or not, you’ll have to deal with politics. That’s the grade that the association pays special attention to.”
…That’s right. In the original work “Magical Girls Don’t Fall,” the political relations and factions among magical girls were often depicted.
Currently, the large management companies are in a three-way battle. The Dawn faction, to which Hong-ryeon and Artilleri belong, the Murungdo-won, which has two A-rank magical girls, and the Mirinae, which has another A-rank and… Bing Seol Hwa.
Among them, the company with the most achievements and recognition is naturally Mirinae.
The problem was that such large management companies could wield ridiculous power. It was these management companies that helped B-rank and higher magical girls, who had found it increasingly difficult to care for their star status nationwide and achieve meaningful results.
In particular, the industry leader, Mirinae, was notorious for tormenting promising magical girls affiliated with small management companies to steal their opportunities. There were even rumors that they would exclude any magical girl who dared to offend them from achieving results.
In the end, Reina found herself entangled in such political cause and effect.
“Especially Reina; she literally performed her best this time… Of course, she would have to be in the spotlight. There’s ultimately a limit to what you can do as an individual,” Hong-ryeon said.
That was certainly true. I couldn’t provide Reina with the kind of support that a large management company could offer, and I was merely acting as a personal manager who helped out with household chores.
Therefore, Hong Yeon-hwa was hinting for us, Reina and me, to join the Dawn.
“Unless it’s Dawn, it won’t roll without me, so with just one word from me, you won’t have any problem coming in at Dawn. I can just say you’re quite close to Reina. Then that’ll be the end of it. Reina will be protected.”
Hong-ryeon’s gaze was cold and settled. It seemed to exert pressure at a glance, but I could tell. These were words spoken sincerely for me and Su-hui.
“…Sure, it seems like a good opportunity, but…”
After a moment of contemplation, I spoke up.
“It might be a bit difficult. I want to let my assigned magical girl have a bit more freedom.”
Being affiliated with a management company meant, in other words, that there were enforced obligations. And for me, I couldn’t easily make such a decision. There was a reason I shouldn’t be bound by such rules.
At my words, Hong-ryeon let out a sigh. It was a voice that seemed to say she had expected this.
“Well, if that’s the case, there’s nothing we can do. Even the governor of Pyongyang can just let it go if he dislikes it, so what’s a management company?”
Saying this, she suddenly grabbed me by the collar.
“It’s annoying that you don’t even want to accept a courtesy I’m trying to extend… but I figured that would be the case. Instead, just make sure not to cause any trouble with ‘Mirinae.’”
“…Yes.”
Mirinae, as the name suggests, held the most powerful power even within the magical girl industry, but the reason for that wasn’t solely because they possessed Bing Seol Hwa.
Mirinae’s second weapon was none other than the financial power and strength that came from their parent company, the Galaxy Group, one of South Korea’s conglomerates.
“Those bastards… they’re really the worst. If things don’t go their way even a little, their lives could be ruined. Reina is a talented B-rank magical girl, but you’re just an ordinary person.”
As I heard those words, I suddenly felt a throbbing pain in my head.
I held my throbbing head and replied slowly.
“…Yes.”
“Alright, then, you’ve worked hard in this shitty place for a short time. That’s all I wanted to say.”
“Thank you for your consideration. You’re really kind. It would be nice if you just spoke a little more nicely.”
At that, Hong-ryeon’s face turned red as she shouted at me.
“…How I speak is my none of your business?!”
With that, I left Hong-ryeon’s place and returned to the lodging shared by Reina and me.
…
A few days passed. Reina was overjoyed to receive the news that she had indeed become a B-rank magical girl. No, she truly flew. She transformed.
She chose to leave the North Korean area immediately, and shortly thereafter, Reina and Baek Seung-hyun moved again.
“Thank you so much, Hong-ryeon-nim….”
Hong-ryeon, who had come out to see them off, smiled slightly at those words and said,
“How long are you going to call me Hong-ryeon-nim? Just call me Yeon-hwa unnie.” (“Unnie” is a Korean term used by females to address older sisters or female friends, and it conveys respect and affection.)
After saying that, she glanced at Baek Seung-hyun.
“And in a few months, I’ll be coming down too, so let’s meet again then.”
“Yes!”
As Baek Seung-hyun watched the two magical girls say their farewells, he smiled softly.
Lee Su-hui and Baek Seung-hyun, or magical girl Reina and the Black Knight, headed back south after a month in North Korea.
And when they returned, they had become much more famous than they had imagined.
[S-ranked monster defeated by the biggest contribution… Magical girl ‘Reina,’ who passed the B-rank magical girl test in the shortest time.]
[Magical Girl Prospects Report – A super prospect born following Bing Seol Hwa?]
[Monster ‘Black Knight’ officially recognized as S-rank… The whereabouts of the elusive Black Knight found in ‘North Korea.’]
[Did a monster rescue a magical girl? The inexplicable actions of the Black Knight.]
The entire country was paying attention to Reina, the newly emerged prospect, and the ‘Black Knight,’ who possessed a risk beyond imagination.
However, this attention was mixed with some that were certainly not welcomed.
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