“The circuits…?”
“If they think about what happened last time when they tried taking our circuits, they won’t be so quick to try again,” Rose said confidently.
Oh, she must be referring to the incident when Ji-Hye was taken hostage.
That time, the magical girls were slow to respond.
If it hadn’t been for me, the situation could have spiraled into a much bigger disaster.
Ji-Hye might not have come out unscathed.
Actually, from the perspective of an ordinary person, you could argue she already wasn’t “unscathed.”
Normal people don’t usually find themselves caught in life-threatening hostage situations or threatened by people intent on harming them.
“Besides, where we’re heading seems completely different this time. At least it doesn’t look like a federal building. Could it be someone from the government?” Iris speculated.
“Why would they suddenly take action now after keeping quiet all this time?” Dalia questioned.
“Maybe it’s precisely because they were silent for so long that they’re acting now,” Rose suggested.
Something had happened in the company.
While I was the one who broke through the wall, the ones who poured out were the enemies.
Unlike before, these enemies clearly resembled humans.
…No, maybe “clearly” is too strong of a word.
After all, you wouldn’t expect a human to be three meters tall.
Still, despite their appearance, the fact that they could directly manipulate circuits meant they weren’t aliens.
Aliens manipulate magic directly, though their magic systems are far removed from what we’d call “fantasy.”
They rely on complex devices to amplify their magic, and only specially trained individuals can harness it.
In contrast, Earth’s life forms, including humans, cannot directly manipulate magic.
On other planets, however, it’s common for living beings to have a slight affinity for magic, and even fossils can contain concentrated magic energy, much like how we use coal or oil as fuel.
If the company created human-like enemies to use as “fuel,” then they’ve essentially crafted living oil wells—beings capable of generating circuits powered by human emotions, producing energy levels comparable to magical girls.
Judging by our victory against a larger number of them, they’re not quite at our level yet, but they have the potential to rival us.
As I remained silent, the other magical girls seemed lost in their own thoughts, saying nothing.
After about an hour of driving, we finally reached our destination.
“Where is this?”
“I don’t know. It’s not a building I recognize,”
Hayoon answered my question.
I looked at the others just in case, but they all shook their heads.
Even if you’ve lived in Seoul for a long time, it doesn’t mean you know every corner of the city.
I wasn’t paying much attention to the outside scenery, anyway.
To be honest, I was a little scared.
The last time I got involved with the government, I nearly became a research subject.
I still don’t know whether they wanted to arrest me or move me to a different lab for experimentation.
Who knows—maybe I could’ve ended up like the enemies we fought earlier today.
I glanced at James.
He was sitting across the aisle from me, taking up a seat that was far too large for a hamster.
Even so, I didn’t feel like letting him sit on my hand, and he wouldn’t have liked it anyway.
Cherry sat in the seat next to him, further reinforcing that the police seemed to treat them as individual “people.”
James seemed to notice me staring but didn’t say anything.
Was it because he had nothing to say?
Or was he just as shocked by the situation as I was?
Either way, I appreciated the silence.
Even after the bus stopped, we remained inside for a long while without being let out.
I couldn’t see the driver’s seat clearly, but I could hear faint murmurs of conversation.
About ten minutes passed before the front door of the bus finally opened, and the person sitting in the front seat stood up.
He was still wearing a bulletproof vest and had elbow and knee pads on, likely with ammunition still stored in the tactical pouches.
He’d taken off his helmet, revealing clear marks from where it had pressed down on his hair.
Judging by his appearance, he seemed to be in his early forties, though he might’ve been in his late thirties if you accounted for the weathered look people in his line of work tend to have.
“We’ve arrived,” he announced.
“This isn’t my home,” I quipped deliberately, curious about his reaction.
I expected him to get upset, but his response was surprisingly polite.
“I’m very sorry for the inconvenience, but it seems there are people who want to speak with you.”
“Are we under arrest?”
He didn’t answer that question.
I decided to interpret his silence as “nothing has been decided yet.”
In any case, if they tried to detain us the moment we went inside, they’d be putting themselves at risk.
My circuits also function as despair circuits, after all.
As long as I was feeling “hopeful,” everything was fine.
But the moment I despaired, a black hole could appear and allow us to escape.
They probably didn’t even understand how any of this worked.
To them, it would just look like I could summon light and create black holes.
Clinging to that faint hope, I placed my hand lightly over my circuit.
I felt a faint vibration.
Was it really possible that the design had changed?
In the end, we decided to follow the police officer’s instructions without resistance.
Where we were taken wasn’t an interrogation room—it looked more like a break room.
The space was quite spacious, with tables arranged in a layout that resembled a slightly messy café.
In one corner was a section for snacks and instant coffee, stocked with various items.
We occupied the largest round table and sat quietly, waiting.
Before long, the break room door opened, and someone entered.
I expected some intimidating figure, but the man who walked in looked more like a weary bureaucrat.
“Hello.”
He greeted us, attempting to sound friendly, but his fatigued voice betrayed any warmth.
He carried a thick file and hesitated when he saw us occupying the six-person table.
After a brief pause, he dragged over a smaller table and took a seat.
Carefully placing the file in front of him, he straightened up and began speaking politely.
“My name is Kim Soo-Hyung, and I’m here to explain a few things to you. Pleased to meet you.”
Whether that was his real name or not, I had no idea—he didn’t mention any affiliation.
As we silently stared at him, he moved straight to the point.
“I’m not sure if you fully understand the situation at hand.”
“The company is conducting shady activities under the radar, the Federation has its own agenda, and the government is scheming as well. Isn’t that why you dragged us here?” I replied bluntly.
The man blinked at my words.
“And the government is pulling its strings, too. That’s why we’re here, right?”
It might have come off as rude, but I didn’t feel guilty.
I had no idea how high-ranking this guy was or how involved he had been in my troubles—if he had been involved at all.
But that didn’t mean I wanted to have a friendly chat with a government official trying to win us over.
After all, the only reason we were here was because I couldn’t create a black hole.
“Well… if we don’t dig too deep, you could say that’s the gist of it.”
“We know the Federation is working with the company on something shady, and the government is turning a blind eye to it.”
“True. But if you look closer, you’ll see the three groups are actually competing against each other.”
It didn’t seem that way to me.
“Even if you don’t believe me, I understand. But we wanted to make a proposal to you.”
“A proposal?”
“Yes. Have you considered… forming an alliance with the government?”
Of the three factions, the government seemed the weakest and most clueless.
What had they done so far besides send police to monitor us? Everything else they’d done had caused me problems.
“Ahem.”
The man cleared his throat, perhaps embarrassed by my unimpressed expression.
The other girls stayed silent.
Whether they were leaving the conversation to me or simply had no objections, I couldn’t tell.
“Let’s hear it out,” I said.
“It’s not about coming under our authority,” he clarified quickly. “To be precise, we’re proposing a sort of service agreement.”
“A contract?”
“Yes. The government would provide certain benefits, and in return, you would assist us to a reasonable extent.”
“…What kind of benefits could the government possibly offer?”
“Services that neither the Federation nor the company could provide you,” he said, gaining confidence as he spoke.
“For example, we could help you return to school. We could ensure you live peacefully without fear of arrest, and we could provide spaces specifically for magical girls.”
“…So you dragged us here just to tell us to sign a contract under those terms?”
“It’s not something you have to decide immediately,” he said hastily.
“We understand the unfair treatment you’ve faced so far, and resolving those issues is our priority. Contracts take time, so for now, we suggest discussing this further and negotiating details before making a decision.”
Fair enough.
After all, the situation involved both the Federation and the company.
The circuits other magical girls used were developed by the Federation, while mine came from the company.
This conversation was going to get complicated.
I placed my hand over my circuit, pondering.
Should I focus on something despairing?
Could I find a way to use this man to our advantage?