Chapter 98

The struggling magical girl, Arongante (near death):

“Fly away!”

Thalagong makes the monster explode and defeats it.

Once all the monsters are eradicated and Thalagong takes a breath, the barrier is released.

Following the tea party after the New Demon War, the ranker Thalagong has been fully occupied with monster hunting missions.

Uninterrupted requests for monster extermination keep coming in, and they’ve been tackling them one after another without rest.

Thinking that the quicker they defeat them, the sooner they can relax, yet since the day of the New Demon War, another ranker has gone missing, and due to this ripple effect, there’s no relief at all.

“There are too many monsters compared to our numbers… We need to destroy the root source, but we don’t have the time for that…”

As Thalagong pulls out her terminal, it conveniently rings, signaling an incoming call.

The screen displays “Jeanne.”

“Hello? What’s up?”

“We finally got some action from the Magic Bureau. Inie has officially been designated as a targeted species for extermination.”

Flames burst out of Thalagong’s body, scorching the ground beneath her feet. She is not only angry at the Magic Bureau but also upset because Zeahrfil—Zea—had promised to do something about it but failed to deliver.

“Did Zea say anything?”

“They said to give them three days. Until then, they requested that other magical girls be restrained.”

“You’re useless. It might have been better to force Arongante to do it instead.”

“Don’t say that. If we assign more work to Arongante, she’ll lose even the little sleep she gets… or rather, she may already have none.”

Currently, Japanese rankers are divided into combat teams and miscellaneous task groups.

However, the combat side requires more personnel, so apart from Jeanne and Arongante, everyone else is deployed as combatants, moving around various locations.

Even Jeanne has been called upon due to a shortage of recovery magic users, meaning Arongante is essentially handling things alone.

And Zea operates individually, so she isn’t counted here.

“Are any magical girls making dangerous moves regarding Inie?”

“If by dangerous you mean the destructionists, their movements are completely elusive. Yet, they always seem to hit where it hurts us most.”

“If we pursue the destructionists, the monster attacks will increase; but if we ignore them, these guys will just do as they please… Has Kaede said anything?”

Given our reactive position, humanity risks being wiped out according to the witch’s plans. The forces fighting the witches are busy battling the monsters summoned by the witch.

Meanwhile, the destructionists are operating freely.

It remains unclear how the witch managed to alter the program of the New Demon War.

Additionally, neither the total strength nor the technological aspects allow us to win against them.

“Kaede is guarding the North Pole alone. And as for covering the gaps left behind, we should try to handle as much of that ourselves.”

“It’s frustrating, but what can we do? Anyway, if there’s no result in three days, let them know we won’t hold back.”

“I’ll pass on the message when I get it. Take care, Thalagong.”

“I know.”

Thalagong ends the communication and heads toward her next mission.

“—Is it just Inie?”

Untethered by anyone, ranking among the top individual fighters, and capable of instantaneous movement—such a magical girl is only Inie.

Moreover, Inie possesses transformation abilities equal to or surpassing those of the rankers.

While the current situation can still be managed by the rankers alone, it’s clear that asking Inie to fight is inevitable.

However, Inie is currently at odds with the Magic Bureau.

The Fairy Bureau merely observes, wanting to understand the details of the situation, though this state of affairs is far from ideal.

Despite the silence from the Fairy Queen, the fairies clearly harbor dissatisfaction but refrain from overt actions.

The three-day period given by Zea…

This could be the turning point determining the fate of the world.

1

“Absolutely. This witch is doing whatever she pleases…”

Though Zea had promised to do something during the tea party, they were at a loss.

In Zea’s view, witches generally fall into two categories: those who act immediately and those who proceed gradually.

Initially, Zea thought this was a case of the latter type, but regarding Inie, the witch moved swiftly.

As a result, they were caught off guard and made a mistake.

(The remaining Arcanas aren’t even contacting me. What am I supposed to do…)

Ranked tenth. Magical Girl Zeahrfil is not your typical magical girl.

She exists to assist Arcana and its contractors quietly, whenever they appear.

At least, that’s how it’s supposed to be. However, despite expecting orders or communications from higher-ups or the Arcanas, nothing has come through.

Zea learned that Inie was the contractor during the New Demon War when Inie transformed.

Although Zea had sensed the troubling movements within the Magic Bureau, recognizing this too late led to falling behind the witch.

If only the Arcana contracted with Inie would communicate, it would make things easier for Zea, but there’s been no word.

With no choice, Zea decided to take action independently.

(Well, is there any information available…)

Zea is a magical girl capable of using shadow magic.

Among the shadow magic abilities is one that allows movement between shadows, which Zea uses to search through the rooms of the Magic Bureau’s dignitaries.

(This is just regular corruption material. That’s money laundering records. This guy’s useless.)

Corruption runs rampant in the current upper echelons of the Magic Bureau.

Over the past five years, it has deteriorated significantly.

Coincidentally, this period aligns with Kaede ascending to the top rank.

Kaede went too far.

Previously, the basic structure was for the Magic Bureau to take the lead over magical girls’ tea parties.

However, with Kaede’s rise, the focus shifted to magical girls taking charge.

Compared to the era when the Magic Bureau was dominant, fewer people suffered from monster attacks, and dangerous creatures were dealt with by top-ranked individuals like Kaede from all over the world, bringing a semblance of peace.

Despite the busy days dealing with monsters, having some breathing room gave rise to ill intentions—not just among members of the Magic Bureau, but among magical girls as well.

Rank manipulation, stealing kills, disputes among magical girls…

Kaede tried to address this situation, but she acted too late.

The current outcome reflects that.

It’s not entirely Kaede’s fault.

People are simply foolish…

“Oh, finally found it!”

Zea finds the evidence she needs and smirks.

She gathers numerous pieces of evidence of misconduct and dissolves into the shadows.

(Giving this directly to the Magic Bureau might cause trouble for Inie, so maybe I should pass it along to Arongante…)

The current actions of the Magic Bureau blatantly favor the witch.

If allowed to proceed unchecked, it would hinder progress, so Zea decides to dismantle the Magic Bureau.

However, dismantling the bureau recklessly would inconvenience many.

Thus, Zea chooses to hand the data over to Arongante, whose recent activities have been suspicious.

Though unskilled in combat, Zea excels in information warfare and covert operations.

This is natural, considering her role was originally to support contractors.

Shadow magic is versatile but has certain limitations.

For example, direct travel between Earth and the Fairy Realm is impossible, and long-distance movement consumes magical power.

Though direct travel between Earth and the Fairy Realm isn’t possible, entering others’ shadows enables movement, leaving no trace of Zea’s travels.

Moving through the shadows, Zea emerges from a nearby shadow after Arongante finishes her job.

Emerging directly from Arongante’s shadow risks accidental attack, so Zea appears at a distance.

“Hey, Arongante.”

“—Is that you, Zea? Is something wrong?”

Arongante was processing stacks of documents on the table and projected electronic files in the air, so she identified Zea by voice alone without looking up.

“I’ve brought proof connecting the witch to the upper echelons of the Magic Bureau, along with evidence of corruption. Please use it for your project.”

Arongante stops her hands and looks at Zea.

Arongante’s current plan involves establishing a new organization to replace the Magic Bureau—a sort of rebellion.

If discovered by the wrong person, it could result in a situation similar to Inie’s.

Therefore, it was supposed to remain a secret, yet Zea somehow knew.

Arongante’s gaze is sharp.

“Don’t look at me like that. I won’t tell anyone, and I’m not interested. More importantly, please use this information to ease the pressure on Inie.”

“…Understood, but couldn’t you have brought this at least two days earlier?”

Due to the recent news report claiming Inie killed Blue Colette, Inie’s global reputation has taken a hit.

Had Inie mercilessly exterminated the target as a monster, the outcome might have been different, but it’s too late now.

The witch anticipated this and sent a letter to the Magic Bureau.

“I didn’t expect things to turn out this way. Besides, gathering information without being noticed is difficult.”

Arongante scans through the materials Zea provided.

(These are good. With this much evidence, we can launch an offensive soon.)

Exhaustion-induced laughter threatens to escape, but Arongante suppresses it.

“Thank you for gathering the evidence. Is there anything else you need to do?”

The sharpness in Arongante’s eyes fades, revealing a tired woman with prominent dark circles.

Zea understands what Arongante is implying and grimaces.

“No.”

“At least help me here. Honestly, it’s impossible for me to handle nearly all the rankers’ paperwork alone.”

Since Kaede, Arongante has taken on almost everyone’s documentation tasks.

She also manages the preparations for the new organization alongside her sister while continuing her usual duties.

Not only has she sacrificed sleep, but she’s even skipped meals to keep up with the workload.

“Do you really have the audacity to say that after seeing my state…?”

Magical girls are barely holding on due to sheer willpower; normal humans would have collapsed long ago.

No, they might have died.

If Arongante collapses, the mountain of work will return to its rightful owners.

That could shorten the rankers’ operational time and allow the destructionists to gain even more influence.

Though Zea protests, helping Arongante is necessary for supporting Inie.

“—Fine. I’ll help you. You should get some rest while I take over.”

“Thank you.”

Wobbling slightly, Arongante stands up and leaves the room.

Sitting in the chair Arongante previously occupied, Zea continues the work.

(…Hmm? Could it be that nothing related to the Magic Bureau progresses until Arongante wakes up?)

Zea could technically proceed, but keeping her existence hidden from the witches is advantageous.

Her role is to stay in the shadows and provide support.

Arongante woke up six hours later.