The Magical Girl, the Demon, and NigoShiro…
After leaving Kaede’s office, I moved to a place where no one would see me before transferring back to my dorm room.
At least I managed to retrieve a staff to use as a weapon, but this still isn’t enough power… I wish I had something strong enough to completely seal away Thalagong.
I don’t know how powerful the Witch is, but even just from what NigoShiro said, it’s clear they’re strong. At the very least, at the level of a Ranker… Ah, so that’s why the Demon included becoming a Ranker as their first goal.
Even though they said they ran away, they must have been extra cautious.
“So, what happened?”
Before the Demon could fully release their possession, they approached me to talk.
I understand their impatience.
(When I connected to the staff, there was a presence within.)
“Huh?”
Yeah, that’s expected.
I told the Demon to release their possession and started brewing some coffee.
Well, what should I do…
To be honest, I don’t know who that NigoShiro really is, but I have an idea of what kind of being they are.
Should I tell the Demon about it honestly?
With the coffee beans running low, I ground them and steeped them for a bit longer than usual.
I brought orange juice for the waiting Demon.
(Now, let me explain what happened…)
“Hey, isn’t this not the place to have a normal conversation? Why are you acting as if everything’s fine?”
Honestly, because I’ve been talking with NigoShiro, I’m getting tired of talking anymore… But there’s no other way, so I’ll explain.
“Most likely, I met someone like the Demon’s superior. It seems they were disguised as me.”
“—Did they say anything?”
“Nothing about the Demon. However, in exchange for obtaining the staff, I made a contract.”
The Demon’s atmosphere darkened… There must be something going on here.
Come to think of it, NigoShiro never introduced themselves.
“What kind of contract did you make?”
“To defeat Witches. In return, I received this staff. As for how to defeat them, we’ll figure that out gradually. For now, I doubt I can win.”
At the very least, I need to reach the level of a Ranker before starting.
The problem is that I can’t think of any way to get stronger.
“Does that include Witches from other worlds too?”
“Yes. So, it’s fine to put the matter of returning to my original body on hold.”
“You were so eager to go back before, are you sure it’s okay?”
Yes, that’s right.
Now, I can say these words easily.
As the Demon, I probably intended to protect this world and stay by my side until I die.
Or perhaps, I wanted to spend peaceful days until the end of time.
I don’t know what lies ahead, but the Demon has also run away.
They’ve likely given up on saving all the worlds already.
A fleeting peace—perhaps that’s what the Demon truly desired.
Anyway, it was decided that I would fight the Witches. It will just take a little longer now. Well, if I lose, that will be the end.
“But hasn’t anyone ever won before? Even if you defeat the Witch…”
Everything will be destroyed by the Monsters anyway.
“If you dislike it, Demon, you can leave me alone and escape somewhere else.”
Though, that’s impossible, right?
If what NigoShiro said is true, the Demon must have lingering feelings for the girl in this body. Even if the inside is different, they couldn’t abandon her.
I feel bad for the Demon, but I need them.
I am weak… I don’t have enough strength yet to fight alone.
“…You know that already, yet… Haruna has suddenly become insolent.”
“I’m the Demon’s partner, after all. Please allow me to accompany you for a long time.”
…No, this sounds like I’m confessing or something.
Though I look like a girl, I should be fine.
“We’ve already made a contract to be together until death, so it’s nothing new. So, do you have any plans to win? You’d need to take down all the Rankers except Kaede, and that’s impossible.”
“No, I don’t.”
Yesterday, I said I’d try my best, but I never thought I could win.
“…Are you alright?”
“As always, I’ll do whatever I can. But… I don’t intend to lose.”
I just want to fight. It’s neither an attachment to life nor a longing for death.
In the battles, I’ve found my own existence.
Just as my sister said, I must be stupid.
At first, I didn’t like it, but now I’m glad I became a Magical Girl.
It’s frustrating not having physical strength in this girl’s body, though.
“You’re such an idiot, Haruna. A complete idiot.”
“I know. But it’s the Demon’s fault for turning me into a Magical Girl in the first place.”
“That’s true… But back then, I wasn’t quite myself either. After running away and all…”
Wouldn’t you hate becoming a Magical Girl? Or wouldn’t you hesitate to suddenly turn someone into one? Under normal circumstances, you wouldn’t do that.
Approaching someone who looks like they’re about to die while singing a cheerful tune—it’s insane.
“Well, if I die, feel free to leave. Maybe the world can be saved because the Demon is here.”
“…There hasn’t been a single instance so far.”
Ah, that’s right, we’ve only been losing…
“Let’s make this the first one.”
“Ugh… I’m worried…”
While sipping the orange juice slowly, the Demon smiled wryly.
Until now, there have been countless Magical Girls far stronger than me, noble-hearted Magical Girls who couldn’t beat them.
I understand why the Demon feels uneasy.
“Since failure is certain anyway, let’s just relax. As long as we don’t die, we’ll probably be fine.”
“It sounds so light-hearted, but yeah… I’m counting on you, Haruna.”
“Of course. Let’s go for Witch hunting instead of just Witch extermination.”
With renewed determination, I resolved to fight against the Witch Extinctionists.
There is no justice or righteousness in this.
Deep within me, the thirst for battle ignited.
For that purpose, I, who was once played with by the Demon, will now use the Demon.
I don’t feel bad about it… after all, what I’m trying to do benefits the Demon and NigoShiro as well.
—If I survive after all the battles are over… No, that’s something to think about later.
Because surely, the end of the battles will never come…
1
“Absolutely, it’s astonishing how crazy that person was.”
In an empty space, a man complained alone.
This was the man called NigoShiro by Haruna.
“There’s Eve, Hermes, Sun, Fool… and the Demon left.”
Summoning each card one by one, NigoShiro confirmed the remaining Arcana.
Out of the original 21 Arcana, only five remained.
Among them, only the Demon had contracted with a Magical Girl.
However, NigoShiro had already given up on the Demon when they fled.
Yet, the Demon made a contract with a Magical Girl and used their powers.
Everyone, including NigoShiro, rejoiced at that moment.
But… the contracted Magical Girl wasn’t particularly strong.
A Magical Girl who uses magic.
She’s far too ordinary.
That such an ordinary Magical Girl defeated M·D·W, who caused chaos across countless parallel worlds, was indeed terrifying.
And now, this Magical Girl and NigoShiro had met.
“What do you think of her?”
In the supposed empty space, NigoShiro asked.
Suddenly, a woman dressed in ceremonial robes appeared.
“She’s just plain stupid. Not very strong, yet she acts cool. If defeating Witches were that easy, we wouldn’t be struggling so much.”
“Hehehe. But everyone who came claiming justice and righteousness ended up dead.”
“—So, are you entrusting this to someone like her?”
The woman looked at NigoShiro with disdain, but NigoShiro simply laughed without taking offense.
Still, neither the woman nor NigoShiro had any room for complacency.
Not once, among the 21 of them, had they defeated a Witch.
If the world perishes, the Witch in that world will perish as well.
But if the world ends, there will be no future.
NigoShiro stopped laughing and erased all the cards he had summoned.
“If she defeats the Witch and that Monster, we’ll give her the battle she desires. Besides, we’ve already taken out insurance in case of emergencies.”
“Insurance?”
“Yeah. We’ve already reached a dead end. If she loses and the Demon dies, there will only be four of us left. Then, we’ll just wait for all the worlds to end.”
Looking up sadly, NigoShiro gazed into the dark void.
This dark void was once a world.
It was destroyed by the Witch and the Monsters, leaving only emptiness behind.
“We’ll give her what Haruna wants, and in return, she’ll defeat the Witch. The probability is almost impossible, but we have no choice but to cling to it.”
“…Alright. Then, let’s commit ourselves too.”
Leaving those words behind, the woman dressed in ceremonial robes departed from NigoShiro.
“I’m counting on you, Eve.”
The battle that began with the calamity known as “The Day of Beginnings” was about to enter a new phase.
