Chapter 153

Magical Girl and the Counterattack of Nightmare

I realized I had lost and was back inside the pod.

I don’t even know what I was saying, but I got utterly annihilated.

In a way, it was an expected outcome, but this is harsh.

I’m not sure exactly what happened, but I have a rough idea.

The takeaway from this experience is that I shouldn’t face her head-on.

In this kind of match format, I lose before I can even unleash my full power.

If I don’t take the initiative or hold back from the start, it won’t be much of a fight.

She truly deserves her second-place ranking.

After spending a little time in the pod to gather my thoughts, I returned to the waiting room.

There, Ren was giving me a peace sign.

…I felt somewhat irritated, but I decided to forgive her with a broad mind.

“Didn’t I tell you it would be like this?”

“Yes. What did you freeze on me?”

“That’s a secret. It’s more fun this way, isn’t it?”

It is amusing… Knowing wouldn’t change the result anyway, so there’s no need to press further.

“I see.”

“Since I granted your request, how about you consider mine next?”

Did we talk about that?

Asking a ranker as an individual for a battle is quite a big favor, but I don’t mind listening. Still, I hope it’s a normal request.

“It’s fine, but what is it?”

“If something happens while I’m in England, you’ll cover for me.”

“Cover, you say?”

I usually think I’d be the one needing coverage, so what does she mean?

“Yes. Since I rarely care about others, I tend to upset people. That’s why I avoid interpersonal missions, but Arongante insisted…”

We’ve only spoken for a short while, but Ren seems like an odd person.

In work terms, she’s highly competent but struggles immensely with social interactions.

Because she’s good at her job, even her superiors find her difficult to handle.

While I’m not great with people either, I believe I manage the basics.

Being freelance might have been part of the reason, but I’ve been decent at reading others’ feelings.

Of course, I’ve faced challenges, but I rarely end up in arguments or heated exchanges.

Ren clearly knows her weaknesses and avoids them, but it seems Arongante finally told her to do something about it.

“Are you sure it’s okay to rely on someone like me?”

“If I were to handle everything myself, England might turn into an ice country.”

That’s a heavy responsibility… Ren probably doesn’t get jokes.

This mission in England sounds like it will give me ulcers.

But maybe it’s good to regain some adult sensibilities here.

If I let my instincts run too wild, I might make a mistake somewhere down the line.

“I’ll try my best, but don’t expect too much.”

“Thank you. See you tomorrow.”

When Ren left the simulator room, my terminal buzzed.

“It’s a message from Arongante about tomorrow’s preparations. She says they’ll prepare clothes and supplies for us. Also, she wants us back in the office at 7 AM.”

(Noted.)

Since we can teleport, money alone should suffice, but basic preparations are necessary.

Leaving England too often isn’t ideal, so packing the residence Arongante mentioned might not be a bad idea.

Well, that was an anticlimactic battle. What should I do today…

Normally, I’d hunt monsters, but I feel a bit deflated after fighting Ren.

Tomorrow’s preparations will likely be handled by the Demon before bedtime, so I’m unusually idle.

A high-rank monster could show up, but they never seem to appear when you want them to…

For now, staying in the simulator room feels awkward, so I’ll leave.

“Oh, isn’t that Inie?”

Walking through the hallway past the second simulator room, I heard a familiar voice.

Familiar meaning I know the person, so I kept walking without acknowledging it.

“You can hear me, so don’t ignore me!”

I ignored her for a few steps, but she quickly ran up and grabbed my shoulder.

Reluctantly turning around, there was Nightmare… along with Strauf from Russia, who ranked first there.

Judging by the location, they must have been training together.

Out of politeness, I bowed to Strauf first since I inadvertently ignored Nightmare.

Nightmare looks composed, but her personality is anything but—she’s fiery, impulsive, and somewhat troublesome.

“Don’t yell in the hallway.”

“Uh… sorry.”

As expected, Nightmare got scolded by Strauf for raising her voice.

This is our second meeting, and I still feel the pressure of a powerhouse.

She wears military-like attire with a matching hat,

and carries both a gun and a sword on her waist.

One might assume she fights with those, but she’s actually a hardcore magic user.

Like me, she’s more of a rear-support magical girl.

She looks intimidating, but the fact that she takes care of Nightmare suggests she might be a good person…

…Oh right, I need to pick up the promised magic rifle later.

“Do you have any business here?”

“Well, wait a moment. You seem free, don’t you?”

I wanted to say no, but she’s right.

I was just thinking about grabbing coffee at a café or visiting Jeanne for some coffee, so I am free.

“I won’t deny it.”

“In that case, come with us.”

I glanced briefly at Strauf, who shook her head.

What does that mean?

“She’s telling you to state the purpose of the conversation first… Sorry about that. Earlier, we detected signs of an irregular monster, and we planned to go exterminate it. But this child started throwing a tantrum, claiming it was impossible.”

I see. While using the simulator, a monster extermination request came in, and Nightmare intended to go along with Strauf but refused because she thought it was too tough.

They pulled Nightmare out of the simulation room, then encountered me.

“It’s not a tantrum! I just said it’s weird to go with only two people!”

“Normally, you should be able to handle it alone, but here we are… Anyway, we’ll offer extra rewards, so would you care to join us?”

This is, in a way, convenient.

Though I prefer leading the charge, fighting random mobs would be less enjoyable than this.

“I just finished a mock battle and was free, so sure.”

“That’s a relief.”

“Who did you fight in the mock battle?”

Under normal circumstances, the opponent would come out together, but I was lost in thought and left the simulator room much later than Ren.

When Nightmare looked around, there was no sign of anyone else.

“The second-ranked person in Japan: Freiren Schrauf.”

Nightmare made a displeased face, and Strauf tipped her hat slightly to hide her laughter.

Both seemed to know Ren, but their feelings toward her differed.

“Do you know her?”

“I was part of the team that went after her a long time ago… It was traumatizing…”

(Something happened?)

‘Back when a dangerous monster appeared, Ren led the extermination team. Apparently, she froze not only the monster but also the entire group of magical girls.’

I can imagine her doing something like that…

“This recluse participating in a mock battle is rare. Did something happen?”

“Recluse?”

“Don’t you know? She doesn’t join any parties, handles most hunts alone, and hardly talks to anyone, hence the nickname ‘recluse.’ I’ve only exchanged a few words with her myself.”

Well, calling her a recluse isn’t far off from labeling her a Sleeping Beauty.

It makes sense that she’d earn such a title.

“Anyway, we’re running out of time, so let’s move. We’ll talk later.”

“…Yes.”

“Understood.”

Sometimes monsters appear suddenly, while other times, like now, we can detect early warnings and prepare accordingly.

I hadn’t noticed, but the stronger the monster, the longer it seems to take for them to appear. However, in Australia, they showed up without warning.

There’s probably a difference between natural occurrences and artificial setups prepared by witches, but ultimately, defeating the monster remains the same goal.

I walked behind the two, trying to stay inconspicuous.

I felt the fairy at the reception desk staring strangely, probably noticing my lack of teleportation records.

…I probably should have informed the two about teleporting. If I had, their records from the base would also vanish.

Teleportation logs are important, after all.

Speaking of which, just as I was about to ask where we were going, the teleporter activated.