Chapter 25 : Location (4)

What… what happened?

I heard there was a bomb.

I don’t know why it’s inside a pillar, though.

I only heard that there were researchers inside that pillar.

Could it be that those with alien technology are involved?

Making hidden rooms inside a pillar wouldn’t be difficult for them.

In fact, even without alien technology, it could be done.

The pillar, which is a key part of this massive complex, is quite thick, even if there’s a small research facility inside it.

If explosives are placed inside such a pillar, how much damage could it cause?

And, if the pillar in this giant complex were to explode, what would happen?

If just one pillar collapses, the entire complex won’t fall.

There would be some negative effects, though.

But what if the pillar explodes?

Collapsing is different from exploding.

Debris would fly in all directions, and shockwaves would spread everywhere.

That explosion would heavily affect the adjacent pillars, walls, and ceiling.

And if there wasn’t just one pillar with explosives inside?

Bzzt—bzzzt—!

The sound was unbearable, like circuits dangerously malfunctioning.

Could it be trying to overflow again?

I tried to get up but collapsed once.

I blinked several times.

My vision was red.

Blood was flowing above one of my eyes.

The numbers on the screen, indicating the despair levels, were like that.

10 percent?

Did I faint or something?

I guess that’s possible.

Everywhere was covered in dust, and my vision was obscured, making everything hard to see.

I heard someone shouting.

I stumbled to my feet and grabbed a hammer.

The situation didn’t seem suitable for a fight, but still…

I staggered outside.

People were running everywhere.

The building that had been dark was now brightly lit.

The light shining through the smoke was almost dreamlike.

Beyond that, there was an orange glow flickering.

My ears were ringing painfully, but on second thought, the sounds I was hearing weren’t just from my helmet.

The entire complex was shaking.

The lights up above were flickering and spinning.

They weren’t decorative lights; they were emergency lights.

Then, water started pouring from the sky.

The sound of rain and the smoke quickly began to clear.

What I saw was a devastating scene.

The thick pillar had cracked at its base, with debris scattered everywhere.

There were fires here and there, but not too many flames.

What was truly important, though, was that the pillars next to it had also collapsed, as well as the ones beside those.

Some parts of the ceiling had caved in, and there were holes where the sky could be seen.

There was a creaking, ominous sound.

“Everyone, get out!”

Someone shouted.

I turned to see Blossom evacuating people.

I also saw Iris pulling fallen soldiers out.

Iris was using her warp ability on each soldier, a skill she had developed personally, not meant for combat.

Dahlia and Delphinium were lifting debris to rescue people trapped beneath.

Rose was doing something similar.

She would lift the wreckage, set it aside, and gather the injured in one place.

Everyone seemed busy.

They all seemed to have forgotten about the fight, moving to save people—soldiers, magical girls, all running to help.

I heard groaning from nearby.

I looked over and saw a soldier with a cracked helmet, their leg trapped under debris.

I ran over.

I lifted the debris and propped it up with the hammer’s head.

When I pulled the soldier out, it was Gookppa.

“Again, you owe me one.”

“Stay still.”

I put Gookppa’s hand on my shoulder and helped him up, intending to go toward the magical girls.

“Uh, ah…! Wait!”

Gookppa shouted, extremely flustered.

“My leg’s fine, really.”

I thought Gookppa was saying that because his leg was hurting, but actually, it didn’t seem too bad.

The area where he’d been trapped was bent at an odd angle.

Still, with proper treatment, it should heal quickly.

This was a place where even severely crushed limbs could be fixed, so a fracture would be no problem.

It would take a little longer than other injuries, though.

Gookppa was no stranger to this.

“No, that’s not it!”

But as I tried to drag him along, Gookppa forcibly tried to break free, shouting.

He would probably fall again if I wasn’t careful.

“The wounded—”

“It’s not that! Your face…!”

My face?

The numbers on my helmet screen still showed something strange.

It wasn’t 10 percent.

It was simply “10.”

There was no additional number.

“…Huh?”

Before I knew it, I raised a hand and touched that part of the screen.

Normally, I would have felt the solid surface of the helmet before my hand reached my face.

But this time, my hand slid inside.

And I felt my face.

My bloodstained face.

“Oh, no…”

My helmet was cracked.

The upper right side of my face was completely exposed.

I hurriedly tried to turn around, but Gookppa was still clinging to my arm.

I couldn’t just drop him.

What if something happened?

I couldn’t take that risk.

Had he seen it?

I had gotten a little closer to Gookppa while dragging him to the magical girls, but still…

But that hope was quickly shattered.

Iris was staring at me.

Iris has excellent eyesight.

That’s only natural.

Her specialty is precise long-range shooting.

Iris, who had been warping soldiers that Rose had brought to safety, stopped and stared at me with wide eyes.

Bzzt—bzzzt—

A warning sound rang in my ears.

So that’s it.

If it had been just 10 percent, there wouldn’t have been any sound like this.

It wasn’t dangerous enough to warrant a warning.

My left wrist was vibrating.

It seemed like the circuits were spinning too fast, and they couldn’t handle the speed.

When Iris stopped, Blossom turned to look at me.

Our eyes met.

No, maybe not?

I quickly raised my hand to cover the broken part of my helmet, but I wasn’t sure if Hayoon saw it or not.

Gookppa pushed me away and toppled to the side.

I took a few steps back.

My head was in chaos.

I felt nauseous, like I might vomit at any moment.

Crack, crack.

Sparks were flying from the circuits.

I covered my face with both hands and wanted to run, but for some reason, my legs wouldn’t work.

10.

It wasn’t 10.

It was 100.

The section showing the last 0 and the ones above it were completely shattered.

Blood was flowing from above my right eye, restricting my vision, and I hadn’t noticed it in my dazed state.

It was hard to breathe.

“Wait! What the hell are you doing!?”

A voice shouted, someone who didn’t understand the situation.

From the sound of it, it was a woman’s voice, so it must have been one of the magical girls.

Did she think I was going to start a fight?

Black substance dripped from my body.

“Ugh.”

I vomited the black substance.

The helmet was suffocating.

But I couldn’t take it off.

There was no way I could.

The black liquid continued to spill from where I had been covering.

It was transforming my body.

With a cracking sound, the exoskeleton around my arms was moving, slowly becoming sharper.

No.

I wasn’t going to fight.

I…

I…

What was I trying to do?

I had come this far, trying not to be discovered.

I wanted to finish the fight with the magical girls as best as I could and then hide and come back.

I turned my gaze.

People on other floors were watching us. Some of them were holding smartphones.

But that sense of calm didn’t last long.

Boom!

The building started to collapse.

The ceiling, already caving in, came down.

People screamed and scattered in all directions.

Who did this?

Even the Noir Corporation wouldn’t go this far.

Destroying the entire complex and putting minors inside in danger?

It was an immoral company, but at least they would have managed their image.

Were they trying to blame it on the magical girls?

I wasn’t sure.

One thing I knew for sure was that no matter what I had planned, it was all over now.

I heard someone running toward me.

I felt a hand on my shoulder.

I raised my gaze to the side that wasn’t covered.

Beyond the helmet, I saw Blossom’s face.

Her face was pale.

Blossom spoke in a trembling voice.

“Jieun…?”

“Ah…”

“Why?”

The expression on her face was one of confusion.

Why was I here?

Why was I dressed like this?

Why had I fought against her?

Her face was full of questions, all of them visible.

The number “10” that had barely been visible on my helmet screen vanished.

With a loud sound, my circuits exploded.

And then—

“Blossom! Subdue that one!”

“Huh? Why?”

“Why? Just look at the one in front of you!”

“Wait, wait, no, no, Rose!”

Blossom tried to stop something.

Crack, there was a sound beside my head, like something breaking.

My vision was briefly lifted into the air, then crashed down.

Thud.

I had been knocked to the side.

“…!”

I heard Blossom’s scream.

It was a scream that couldn’t form words.

The percentage still wasn’t visible.

Despair.

If I had given up, I would never rise again.

But why was my vision still being covered in that liquid?

This…

Ah, could it be that this is despair about me?

Was this the result of my twisted choice?

My petty pride, wanting to defeat someone far better than me?

Is this the outcome of thinking that as long as I used my position for good, it didn’t matter?

My vision turned black.

The nature beyond reason flowed out and enveloped my body.

I felt myself rising.

It was hard to think.

I just wanted it all to end, I thought for the last time.

“Blossom!”

Hayoon snapped out of it when she heard me shout.

When she came to her senses, she was already charging toward Rose.

She was struggling to hold her arms and even wielding her staff.

“What are you doing!?”

Rose was almost about to slap her, but Hayoon finally saw what was in front of her.

“Do you know her?”

Rose asked.

Hayoon couldn’t answer.

She didn’t know why Jieun had reacted like that.

No, she didn’t even know why they had fought this much.

Hadn’t Jieun just been charging at her with all her might a moment ago?

She had even been holding a hammer, ready to break everything.

“Why?”

“I’m not one to comment on whatever relationship you two have, but still, look over there.”

I looked in the direction Rose was pointing.

There, a black mass was present.

“I don’t know what that is.”

Rose spoke.

“I don’t know how dangerous the thing inside is either. But at least, we know we can’t just leave it like that.”

That’s right.

It was an instinctive aversion.

We didn’t know what kind of energy Noir Corporation was using.

But the magical girls could almost instinctively tell that the result of using that energy was not going to be good.

“Ha, but I…”

“Fine.”

Rose said.

“If we can’t help it, you stay back. Don’t get in the way. We’ll take care of this first, get everyone out, and once it’s safe, we’ll talk then.”

Without waiting for Hayoon’s response, Rose ran toward the black mass.

Iris followed her but then stopped to glance at Hayoon.

Their eyes met.

Both of them had expressions of confusion.

But Iris didn’t say a word, turning her head and running forward, aiming her gun.

Dahlia and Delphinium’s magic struck.

Several huge explosions rang out.

The black sphere greedily devoured all the magic.

The sphere grew larger, and from within it, the shape of someone crouching began to emerge.

“Everyone, get out! Take the people with you!” Delphinium shouted.

“I’ll try to do something about it…” she added, raising her staff and opening a magic book.

She started chanting something.

“I’ll stay behind.”

Iris said.

“We still need someone to make sure everyone gets out.”

With that, she flew up into the air.

“Blossom.”

Rose called.

Blossom, with a dazed and empty expression, looked at Rose and nodded.

There was work to be done.

But Jieun…

Blossom gritted her teeth and ran.

Right now, saving people was the priority.

Dahlia and Iris would manage somehow.

For now, Blossom’s strength wouldn’t be of much use—well, maybe it would, but…

For the first time, Blossom made an excuse and fled.

She didn’t want to think at all right now.

Another massive explosion occurred.

Dahlia’s magic unleashed a white explosion.

The black substance, which had been slowly growing, lost its shape and scattered.

Iris didn’t miss the opportunity.

She fired at the person inside with all the power she could muster.

If the person inside still had their senses, it must have been excruciatingly painful.

They would have been injured as well.

But for now, this method was the only hope.

That hope paid off.

Because the being inside had lost consciousness, it became possible to warp it with Iris’ shots.

Perhaps because the main body disappeared, the black sphere slowly crumbled, losing its energy.

There was no time to examine what it was.

The building began to collapse quickly, perhaps due to another shockwave.

Delphinium, her face pale, fell to one knee.

Iris placed a hand on Delphinium’s shoulder.

The two disappeared.

The remaining traces were buried under the rubble as the complex collapsed.

After the battle.

The surroundings were a chaotic mess.

The large complex had collapsed.

It wasn’t completely destroyed, but the central part with the columns had caved in.

However, since the center collapsed, the rest of the structure wasn’t left intact either.

Miraculously, there were very few casualties.

Noir Corporation had prepared excellently for such a scenario.

Even for the students who had just arrived today, they had done an hour of emergency evacuation training, which allowed staff to quickly respond and evacuate everyone.

Thankfully, the students had been in the outer parts, so they were the first to evacuate.

There were many injured, and the tally was still ongoing.

They were still counting the minor and major injuries.

Even with a well-prepared evacuation manual, there had been so many staff inside the complex.

People who fell or collided while running were countless, and there were many injuries from the battle with the magical girls as well.

The treatment centers weren’t large enough to handle everyone at once.

People were taken to nearby general hospitals first, and once treatment was complete, they were moved back to the medical center.

However, some injuries couldn’t be treated quickly.

Hayoon sat by Jieun’s bed, staring blankly.

At first, other kids had tried to comfort her, but when Hayoon remained silent and unresponsive, they eventually gave up and left.

Only Iris stayed behind, attempting to speak, but she too left without saying a word.

Why had they fought?

Why had they been enemies?

Hayoon soon realized something far more shocking.

She had tormented Jieun multiple times.

Hayoon had been a magical girl for two years now.

That meant that for the past two years, Jieun had been among the soldiers Hayoon had regularly fought against.

When you subdue soldiers, they obviously get hurt.

There were times when broken bones were clearly visible.

Sometimes blood would flow from under the helmet around the neck, or the battle suits would tear, cutting through the skin.

Iris had explained that a warp shot could break ribs.

Dahlia’s staff was sturdy.

The magic that came from it was naturally powerful.

Rose’s gauntlets were no joke.

A hit from them wouldn’t just hurt—it would cause serious damage.

Delphinium’s magic was said to make it feel like your body was burning.

How many years had Jieun lived like that?

How many times had she crossed paths with Hayoon?

How many times had Hayoon broken Jieun’s bones?

Breaking, tearing, shattering.

Throwing, slamming, colliding.

There had even been times when she sliced Jieun with a knife.

Was she not part of the evil forces?

She could never die.

It was controlled that way.

If she was treated at the medical center, her wounds would heal without a trace.

So, Jieun… was the one who, after being beaten by Hayoon the previous night, went to the treatment center, got healed, and then smiled as if nothing had happened when they met again at school.

Her hands trembled.

A sour feeling rose from her stomach.

Covering her mouth with her hand, Hayoon couldn’t bring herself to look Jieun in the face.

Yes.

Hayoon had thought of her enemy as part of the forces of evil.

Even though she might have thought there could be a chance to talk, she had ultimately chosen to neutralize them quickly.

And Jieun had been among them.

Someone who could be an acquaintance behind the helmet, whose expression was hidden.

No matter how much she tried to understand that it was all unavoidable, no matter how much she tried to think Noir Corporation was evil, she couldn’t change the fact.

Right now, Jieun was lying in bed.

“Why?”

Hayoon muttered.

“Jieun, why…? Why…”

But there was no answer.