Chapter 62 : Group Life (3)

Of course, I have no intention of staying friends with magical girls forever.

However, since I ended up staying with them temporarily, some rules were necessary for easier communal living.

After all, I was only allowed to stay briefly, not to take them as slaves.

For some reason, Hayoon said something similar to me, but as a reasonable modern person, I had no intention of taking her words 100% literally.

“First of all, this is a radio.”

I said as I placed the radio in front of the kids.

It looked like just a speaker, but it had two knobs: one for volume control and one for frequency adjustment.

There was a small screen below to display the frequency settings.

“No need to worry about electricity. I can power it with my weapon.”

Magic and electricity operate in quite different ways.

With electricity, you need a generating mechanism and a charging device.

Even if you work hard to generate electricity, you can’t store excess energy for later use unless you have a proper storage system.

Magic, however, is different.

Once created, it lingers around to some extent.

While you can extend its lifespan with condensers or batteries, you can sustain it steadily without a storage system as long as a circuit is constantly active.

Think of it like a video game.

In survival games with generator mechanics, you don’t need to build wires and other installations in detail.

Structures simply work within a certain range—this is akin to “circuits.”

Aliens typically employ people who can handle magic or use portable generators to charge batteries, making things simpler than humans generating and using electricity.

But even for aliens, having an individual serve as a “generator” is revolutionary.

This is why magical girls and heroes unique to certain countries exist only on Earth and why building generators is difficult—it requires immense power and stability.

Anyway, thanks to this, I could solve quite a few problems inside as long as I made the necessary equipment.

[The locations of the magical girls are still unidentified. Authorities are working with the Galactic Federation—]

The story on the radio suggested that the government hadn’t yet figured out why the magical girls had fled with me.

Even discussions with the Federation yielded no results.

“Don’t they usually have counseling or something?”

I quipped sarcastically—

“Oh, so you had regular counseling sessions with your company?”

Rose’s reply left me speechless.

“Why would you think so?”

When I looked at James, he reacted with disbelief.

Why? He had done something similar.

Oh, not counseling—blackmail. Come to think of it, he was partly responsible for my current situation.

“Just so you know, the adult rat aliens have more bones than meat. You’d never feel full eating them.”

Despite how plump they looked—soft and squishy when held—it was probably due to their fur or hide.

If you removed their organs and drained the blood, there might not be much meat left after all.

Still, there was a potential solution.

A large part of my food reserves consisted of nuts.

The reason was simple: both James and I could eat them. I didn’t want to bring things like dried mealworms.

So, I could force-feed James the nuts to fatten him up before butchering.

That way, I could double the portions.

If that didn’t work—

“How many offspring do your kind have at once?”

I almost used the term “litter” instead of “offspring” but remembered that James was considered “people” among aliens.

The magical girls’ faces turned pale, seemingly catching the implication of my words.

“…Please don’t joke about such gruesome things, even in jest.”

Rose shuddered, despite being the villain.

Hmm.

Rodents can have numerous offspring at once and live only about two years.

They mature quickly.

If I could secure enough, I thought I could mitigate food shortages by breeding them.

Then again, James isn’t a real rodent.

Even if he has multiple offspring, assuming they’d mature in a couple of months might be a stretch.

“If we don’t solve the food issue, it’ll run out in a few days—with those kids here.”

I glanced at the magical girls.

They avoided my gaze, showing they still had a conscience.

“You can’t surrender either, right? You don’t want that.”

“Surrender is still better than being eaten.”

True enough.

“…Uh, excuse me…”

As I shrugged, Dahlia raised her hand slightly.

There are many hair colors in this world, but Dahlia’s wasn’t red.

In magical girl shows or superhero series, the “Yellow” character isn’t always blonde or golden-haired.

Dahlia’s hair was orange.

Though she had a bubbly personality, that vibe wasn’t apparent now.

Her shoulder-length hair was somewhat untidy, with long bangs tucked behind one ear.

Even though she hadn’t bathed properly, her hair was neatly arranged, showing she had made an effort.

Impressive.

I had only washed my face in the stream that morning.

The water was still too cold for serious washing.

“I-I might be able to help with the food issue.”

“How?”

I tilted my head, and Dahlia, still looking nervous, replied.

“You’ve prepared the field in front, right?”

She seemed to have noticed the furrows outside the building.

Actually, I hadn’t prepared them; they were already there when I arrived. It must have been a vegetable garden before.

If it were midsummer, the field might have been overgrown with unidentifiable plants, but after winter, most of the vegetation had died.

Since I had plenty of time, I had pulled out all the rooted plants.

Though I hadn’t plowed the field myself, I had seen how it was done and shaped it into what I thought a “field” should look like.

It seemed the area had been well-maintained before the people left; there were barely any large stones.

When I nodded, Dahlia looked a bit relieved.

“So that means you also have seedlings.”

“…And?”

There weren’t many types, but I had a few things I thought could be grown from seeds: cucumbers, eggplants, zucchini, and some alien vegetables.

Some planets have natural environments similar to Earth, and many of the flora and fauna there are edible for humans.

It’s the same logic as James being able to eat Earth-grown nuts.

To be honest, I hadn’t packed these seeds with serious farming in mind—just thought it’d be better to have them than nothing.

It would take at least a few months to grow anything, and since I’d never grown anything before, I wasn’t sure I’d manage to harvest anything.

Still, Dahlia’s face brightened, as if she had an idea.

“If that’s the case, I can handle it.”

“…You know how to grow plants?”

“Not exactly, but I can do something better. I can accelerate plant growth.”

I stared at Dahlia for a moment, then glanced down at James.

“It’s possible. However, it’s not my area of expertise, so I can’t guarantee success.”

Indeed, after contact with the Galactic Federation, vegetable and fruit prices had significantly dropped.

I thought it was because they could cultivate plants on countless planets.

“If there are alien vegetables, that’s even better. Some species are bred specifically to be grown with magic, making it natural to sell them.”

Dahlia continued to explain.

“It’s similar to the work done in treatment facilities. Since we made contact with the Federation, even severe injuries can heal within a day. They’ve developed techniques to enhance healing without major side effects, maintaining the lifespan of the treated area.”

So, they can regulate the speed of growth for humans too? I guess in some places, this is normal.

I had heard that aliens often live much longer than humans.

Though it’s only been five years since contact, it’s too early to discuss lifespan differences seriously.

It might already be deeply ingrained in Earth’s culture, but since there’s no one near me who fears death, I hadn’t felt its impact.

“Got it.”

I nodded, not wanting to think about it anymore.

Well, if she says she can do it, she probably can.

I doubted she’d lie about this in our current situation.

I glanced at Hayoon, who was smiling brightly.

Somehow, her smile made her more trustworthy.

“I’ll help too.”

Seeing Dahlia get up, Delphinium also stood.

Weren’t the two of them rivals?

Though they seemed to clash in webtoons, they weren’t sworn enemies.

They could set aside their differences when necessary.

I eventually stood up as well and went into the tent to retrieve the seed packets.

There weren’t many seeds, but if we harvested and multiplied them, we could manage.

Worst case, I could stop by a store the next time a villain appeared.

After handing over the packets, I turned to find Iris and James talking.

“If we can harness energy, wouldn’t it be possible to make a stove or something?”

“I hadn’t considered staying long enough to set up, but that’s a good idea.”

So, they were planning to set up a stove. Not a bad choice.

I had a sleeping bag, but the kids didn’t even have that.

When I checked in the morning, they had wrapped themselves in leftover plastic and huddled together.

Seeing Hayoon among them was unsettling.

I had spare parts stored in a subspace.

Since I could access them now, I figured James and Iris could handle the rest.

James had been able to build all sorts of things on his own.

“Then shall we make a bathtub!”

Hayoon suddenly stood up, her voice enthusiastic.

“Oh, that sounds nice. I was feeling a bit grimy too.”

As Hayoon got up, Rose followed suit.

“The bathtub is broken, but… I saw a large basin. You could sit in it.”

“Was there something like that?”

I hadn’t bothered to check the completely ruined areas when I first arrived, exhausted and mentally drained.

“If we find more containers and fill them with boiled water, we won’t have to fetch water every time. We can boil a large amount at once and store it.”

“Yes, that would work!”

“If we can build a motor, we could draw water as needed. Let’s look into that.”

Iris replied as she listened to the others’ conversation.

Watching them move with such purpose left me slightly bewildered.

Why was everyone so earnest about this?

I could understand Hayoon wanting to stay.

It felt awkward to admit, but we were quite close.

Hayoon had relied on me at times, and I had relied on her.

Because I’d been a bit possessive, there weren’t many people particularly close to Hayoon.

Most of those who approached her had ulterior motives, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t become genuine friends.

Even if a bad first impression caused friction, people often ended up getting along without major issues.

In some sense, I might have been the reason Hayoon had so few friends.

While I stood there with my mouth slightly agape, the kids had already started moving to tackle their tasks.

When I tried to stand, Hayoon spoke.

“Jieun, you should rest.”

“What?”

“We’ll handle it, so take a break.”

I looked up at Hayoon, her face smiling warmly, leaving me momentarily speechless.

Hayoon flashed me a bright smile and left the house.

Rose glanced at my face for a moment, then followed her out a little later.

Now, it was just me, Iris tinkering with something, and a hamster left in the house.

Naturally, those two were chatting amongst themselves, showing little interest in me.

Not that I minded—it was easier for me that way.

On Iris’s wrist was a watch similar to mine.

It was a slightly upgraded version of the backup watch James had made, powered by my energy.

According to James, the watch alone wouldn’t reveal the source of its power, but honestly, I wasn’t so sure.

Then again, at this point, it wouldn’t change much if it were discovered.

Things weren’t unfolding the way I had anticipated.

If I were to frame this situation the way magical girls might, it would probably be called “hope.”

Yet, for some reason, the despair circuits in my wrist didn’t stop functioning.

By evening, things had changed quite a bit compared to when I was on my own.

For starters, plants had been planted in the field.

While they weren’t ready for harvest yet, sprouts had emerged and some greenery had started to grow above the soil within just a few hours.

If what they said was true, we might be able to harvest soon.

“If we keep tending to them daily, it won’t even take a week. We’ll be able to harvest before the current food runs out.”

“We could add more menu options if we bought cultured meat.”

Listening to Dahlia and Delphinium, the situation didn’t seem entirely bleak.

They even seemed to subtly praise my foresight for securing food in advance, though I didn’t feel particularly proud.

I hadn’t made plans; I had just thought, “This might work.”

Without them, I might have faced disaster before harvesting anything.

Meanwhile, Iris and James had managed to construct a stove—one that raised the temperature using 100% eco-friendly energy.

If the temperature rises, we might need to adjust the design,” Iris said casually, her expression genuinely indifferent, as if it was no big deal.

It felt like she was saying anyone could do it.

Well, not me.

“Thanks to the backup unit Iris made, we can now heat water without firewood. It’s not enough to boil water, but it’s enough for warm water to wash with,” Hayoon said.

Her words made me feel even smaller.

Building a makeshift bathtub, at least, was something I could’ve done if I had put in a little effort.

Although Hayoon and Rose had spent hours scrubbing that tub clean, it wasn’t something I couldn’t have managed on my own.

Meanwhile, I had been lazing around, eating small portions from canned food every day.

“Jieun!”

“Huh?”

I was trying hard not to show my gloom, but Hayoon suddenly called out to me.

“Let’s take a bath.”

“Huh?”

I couldn’t believe my ears.

“There’s only one basin, and it’s just big enough for two people.”

“Then why not go one at a time?”

“Because we’re all taking a bath, and we don’t have enough water to waste.”

Oh, right.

Even though we’d secured some containers, the amount of water we had wasn’t infinite.

Since everyone needed to bathe, it made sense to conserve water.

If two people bathed together, we’d use half the water per person.

There were six of us.

If two people went in at a time, it would only take three rounds.

“That’s reasonable.”

Rose nodded, and everyone else seemed to agree too.

For a brief moment, I felt my brain freeze.

No way… could this really… be happening?

Surely, they’d understand if I wanted to bathe alone, wouldn’t they? It felt like they might.

But after seeing how hard everyone had worked all day, I couldn’t bring myself to say it.

It was efficient, after all.

“Unless you’d rather bathe with someone else?”

That shut me up in a completely different way.

So… that’s how it is.

No, thank you.

If I had to choose, I’d feel most comfortable with Hayoon.

The others were practically strangers to me.

Still—

Before I could sort out my thoughts, Hayoon had already pulled me along toward the hearth.

“Hayoon, have you ever bathed with someone else before?”

“…No.”

I answered blankly.

In my previous life, I had.

I’d gone to public baths, and when I was very young, I bathed with my parents.

In this world, though, I had no parents.

On school trips, we didn’t all bathe together in one big room; we went into smaller rooms in groups of a few.

I was usually grouped with Hayoon, so there were no major issues.

So, no, I hadn’t.

“Me neither. Honestly… it’s a little embarrassing to bathe with others.”

I thought magical girls would have their own facilities, maybe even bathe before heading home.

Were their facilities not communal?

No, that’s not the point—

“Do you not want to?”

Hayoon looked up at me with wide eyes.

I couldn’t answer for a long time and finally let out a deep sigh.