Magical Girl and Plan A
I don’t know why Marin is here, but first things first, extermination comes first.
“Demon”
“Yeah.”
The moment Demon integrates, the Fool’s ability is unleashed.
“What? This is… what?!”
Demon looks confused, but it’s probably Hermes’ doing.
To be honest, I’m also confused, but there’s no time to waste.
I cast a random spell, causing ice flowers to bloom all around, wiping out the monsters and buying some time for conversation.
While at it, I heal Marin’s injuries.
She’s pretty beat up, but as long as she’s alive, we can manage.
“Inie”
“Marin was watching over you while Inie was down.”
Demon answered before I could ask.
Though we kept saying there wasn’t much time, we’ve been talking quite a bit, so it must have been a decent amount of time in reality as well.
Even lying unconscious for just a few minutes in Australia now would mean being attacked by monsters.
“You’ve been helped, it seems.”
“It’s fine. I was helped in the past too.”
“I see. We’ll thank you later. Right now, we have something we need to do, so Marin, I’ll…”
I was about to say I’d send her back outside the barrier, but her eyes silently spoke of her intention to fight as well.
“I’ll send you to a friend who’s a magical girl. Please take care of her. Don’t overexert yourself.”
“I don’t want to hear that from you, Inie, but alright.”
Normally, I’d find this rude, but today, all I can do is sincerely apologize.
If not for Hermes and Sora, I would definitely have died already.
“Then I shall send you. By the way, the magical girl’s name is Nightmare. I believe mentioning my name will suffice.”
Marin briefly shows a bewildered expression but quickly returns to a serious face.
“I understand, but make sure to explain everything that happened later.”
“I’ll tell you what I can. Good luck.”
(Inie, I’m counting on you.)
“…Ah, yeah. Understood.”
Placing my hand on Marin’s shoulder, I ask Demon to teleport us.
This may sound rude—though it is—but now that we’ve managed to get rid of distractions, we’re finally alone.
(There’s a lot I want to talk about, but right now, let’s defeat the monsters.)
“Understood, but we really should talk later.”
(Ah.)
We can’t afford to waste time.
Well, even if there are casualties, it might not matter, but since I was asked by Arongante, I should try to help properly.
Honestly speaking, defeating irregular monsters appearing all across Australia is impossible.
I only have five minutes to use the power of Arcana.
Instantly eliminating irregulars is difficult even for someone like me.
Asking me to defeat them all within five minutes is rather harsh.
However, now that I’ve fully recovered by taking nutrients from Sora, I feel like I can push myself a little harder.
The Fool’s ability is “possibility.”
The Lover’s ability is “form.”
The Devil’s ability is “soul.”
Though mastering all three perfectly is impossible, it feels like an oddly targeted combination.
Though fully unleashing everything is still beyond me, right now, I feel like I can execute Plan A.
(Inie, let’s implement Plan A.)
“Are you sane? Your current state is unprecedented, and are you sure it’s safe to do this?”
(I think it’ll be fine. Besides, I’m feeling great right now. Let’s do it before more damage occurs.)
“Huh… Haruna really is stubborn… For some reason unknown, the Lover’s ability has always been optimized for Haruna from the start, so anything works.”
That guy has been parasitizing me since long ago.
Though it was sealed, he must have been maneuvering behind the scenes.
Sora said it affected my mental state as well.
“Number 0 Fool. Number 15 Devil. Simultaneous release.”
I feel as if my internal organs are floating, and my white robe changes rapidly.
It transforms into a long skirt with holes here and there, mixing black and white, with the clothing flaring out around my navel.
A yellow muffler wraps around my neck, swaying in the wind.
Ideally, I’d prefer to keep the white robe, but why does it change?
Moreover, aside from the Fool and Devil, this outfit also slightly exposes more skin than usual.
It’s embarrassing, but for the sake of battle, I have to accept it.
The two orbs that appeared during the Fool phase have increased to four, and the scythe I used when channeling the Devil’s power has become slightly less ominous but remains large.
I don’t feel any pain or discomfort.
Though I still can’t fight for long, with increased overall firepower, the time needed to defeat monsters can be shortened.
“Magic supply is doubled… The amount of magic power has risen to an unimaginable level. Yet, there’s minimal strain on my body, and no other side effects besides that… Just what is Haruna…?”
(Don’t worry about it now. More importantly, can you show me the map again? Display only the irregulars, and cover the entire range.)
“Alright.”
That’s good. Now, I can teleport on my own and will target those closest to urban areas first.
“Teleport.”
So, the first one is a plant-type monster.
It uses a large number of minions in battle. Vines wrap around buildings, and the cries of fleeing people can be heard.
Magical girls are fighting too, but losing is only a matter of time.
Let me test the feel of the magic first.
“Gray Flame”
I incinerate the approaching monster with a wave of flames.
Hmm. The power is significantly greater than when I was using just the Fool’s abilities.
Moreover, this magic steals magic power through the Devil’s ability, even with a mere graze.
I can take down C-class monsters without a direct hit.
“Who are you!?”
“I’m Inny Flowering, here to assist. Due to certain circumstances, I arrived late, but I’ll take care of the rest. Please focus on rescuing civilians.”
“All of them…?”
Despite facing such overwhelming numbers, the unity among everyone in battle is impressive, though it seems the damage has already reached unacceptable levels.
“Paradise of Tranquility”
I rain healing magic across the entire city, restoring all living beings and sharing some magic power with the magical girls.
At the same time, this slows down the monsters, so leaving the streets to these creatures won’t be a problem.
“This should suffice for now. Excuse me then.”
I must quickly finish here and move on to the next location.
Though this place is the worst, others will soon follow suit.
I faintly hear someone muttering something, but it’s not worth worrying about.
By the way, isn’t this newcomer from the New Demon War?
Impressive that they survived.
Flying through the air towards the main body of the monster.
Perhaps realizing I’ve taken down its minions, all the monsters are now heading towards me.
The four orbs shine with the light of four attributes, releasing various spells.
The monsters can’t even approach me before turning to dust, allowing me to bring their main body within range.
Though using magic might be standard, plant-type monsters have strong vitality.
Thus, the specialized anti-magic power of the Devil’s ability comes in handy.
Simply burning them takes too long, so I strip away all their magic power instead.
Holding the scythe with both hands, I position it high above.
By channeling magic power into the scythe, it forms a massive blade stretching high into the sky.
Though it might be visible to the magical girls defending below—it spans several hundred meters—but it’s necessary because the enemy is so large.
“Annihilation Slash”
Swinging the scythe, I bisect the monster.
Tendril-like vines snake towards me, but they all turn to dust, and the monster disappears.
“The vines attacking the city are gone, but it seems there are still remaining monsters. It might be tough, but what should we do?”
(I don’t intend to deal with all that trouble. Besides, there are still irregulars left. Let’s prioritize them.)
After teleporting again, I spot a floating fortress-type monster in the distance.
Unlike M·D·W, which summons mechanical monsters that explode upon defeat, this one’s explosions remain within reasonable limits.
Visually, M·D·W seems scientifically reproducible, but this one looks straight out of a science fiction world.
Though knowing its name might be helpful, it’s not really necessary.
Fewer summoned monsters compared to the plant-type ones, but they launch missile shells filled with magic power, making them quite troublesome in real life.
Already, fires are breaking out everywhere due to this monster.
There seem to be fewer magical girls fighting here compared to the previous town, but the missiles fired by the monster aren’t gunpowder-based—they explode magic power, damaging the magical girls too.
Even without direct hits, injuries can occur from blast waves or flying debris, making them particularly problematic in urban areas.
Moreover, most of the monsters can fly, making it tough for magical girls unable to fly.
Even if they somehow defeat the monsters, unless the main body is destroyed, they’ll just keep multiplying.
“Paradise of Tranquility”
I rain healing magic, extinguishing fires along the way.
“High magic reaction from the monster!”
A powerful laser is fired from the floating fortress.
They could have wiped everything out with that from the start, but they likely refrained to steal magic power from magical girls.
It’s too late now for such attacks.
Unfolding a magic circle from the orbs, I intercept the laser.
Its raw firepower is somewhere between my Heaven Strike and God Strike, but it’s enough to create a massive crater or turn this area into wasteland.
Channeling absorbed and my own magic power into the orbs, I deploy four magic circles, angling them upwards.
Since the opponent is floating, it’s fine, but firing parallel or towards the ground would lead to catastrophic results, so caution is necessary.
“Magnus Ray”
Four lasers pierce the floating fortress, splitting into two beams each to the sides, turning other monsters into dust one after another.
Of course, I ensure none of these hit other magical girls.
With the toughest monster dealt with, I’ll clear out the ones swarming the city before moving on to the next destination.
(How’s Nightmare and Marin doing?)
“For now, they’re okay. They’re cooperating to fight an SS-class monster. Winning seems tough, but enduring seems possible.”
Winning is indeed unlikely.
Both Marin and Nightmare are weapon-focused magical girls.
They might be able to handle monsters like Mastidizaya, who are individually strong, but not against ones that summon numerous minions like the ones appearing now.
Moreover, they have to defend, so this is different from their usual battles.
I’d love to just blow up everything with explosions, but doing so would leave behind countless craters.
Using lasers to sweep the ground might be tempting, but it would result in cliffs that are hard to fill.
(If things seem okay, I’ll save them for last. On to the next place.)
“Alright. Just checking, but are you sure your body is okay?”
(Right now, there’s no issue. In fact, I’m still feeling great.)
I’ve started feeling slight discomfort since the beginning of the battle, but I can still fight.
Once this is over, I need to eat a lot so I can have a trump card ready when needed.
Repeating the process of spreading healing magic and eliminating enemies, I reach the final one.
Though unavoidable, I can’t deny having done too much.
Today alone, I’ve defeated dozens of irregulars, and counting the lesser ones would be bothersome.
If my memory serves, this is the biggest incident since the beginning creature.
Though there have been several global crises, never before have so many monsters appeared at once.
Even if magical girls caused incidents, the sheer number of deaths and damages makes this event worse.
(About how much damage do you estimate?)
“Tens of thousands of civilians. Around dozens of magical girls. Though witches can’t sustain events of this scale multiple times, it’s concerning where this leads.”
Given that the Magic Bureau has practically collapsed amidst this chaos,
should this escalate into a national crisis involving more than just magical girls, the situation will grow even larger.
The world will likely unite to fight, but that won’t go smoothly…
Well, that’s fine.
For now, let’s focus on defeating the monsters.
Upon teleporting back to Sydney, I see two figures battling a massive dragon-type monster.
Indeed, winning against that thing seems tough.
Though I could defeat it myself, let’s give these two a chance to shine.
Difficult as it may be in their current state, with support, they should be able to win.
“Paradise of Tranquility”
Rain falls from the magic circle, healing people and magical girls alike.
“Ice, descend!”
The four orbs ascend high into the sky, spreading out to form magic circles in all directions.
From there, homing icicles rain down, turning the monsters into dust one by one.
Street battles are troublesome, so I’d prefer to leave them to other magical girls, but I’m clearing these quickly to observe the duo’s fight.
In the meantime, I’ll eliminate the monsters approaching from outside the city and newly spawned ones…
And before that, I need to provide support.
After retrieving the orbs, I move closer to the two, enclosing the dragon in a barrier to immobilize it.
“You’ve been putting in a lot of effort, haven’t you?”
“Really… huh… we’ve been trying hard…”
Nightmare looks pretty battered, breathing heavily, while Marin, though not visibly injured, is panting heavily.
“Is everything else okay?”
Thanks to this, this will be the last battle here. Since it’s a special occasion, how about the two of you take down this monster together? Of course, I’ll provide support.
Healing the two’s injuries, I move two of the four orbs closer to them.
Then, I connect the orbs and pass on magic power to them.
“This is…”
“Now you should be able to fight, right? Then, good luck.”
I dissolve the barrier and teleport to a spot where I can observe their battle.
Having fought alongside many, including Shengxi this time, my impulsiveness has calmed considerably.
I’ve grown calm enough to delegate fights like this.
Since I’ve set up barriers to prevent attacks on the city, the next step is post-battle cleanup.
Well, my plan is to pass everything off to Arongante and let them handle it.
While pondering such thoughts, I continue observing the two until their battle concludes.
