The police had deemed the monster uncontainable.
Its shell was a type they had seen before.
Firing bullets at it risked ricochets that could hit the hostage.
Using wires wasn’t an option either, as the hostage wouldn’t survive.
Clenching her teeth, Hayoon flew as fast as she could toward the scene.
As she got closer, more people began to gather.
They exchanged glances, silently greeting one another, and formed a squad.
Once they captured the monster, they would finally get a chance to regroup and share their thoughts properly after so long.
That thought gave her a glimmer of hope—
—until she saw the scene.
The first thing Hayoon noticed upon arriving was Jieun, pinned under a net of steel wires alongside the monster.
*
“You crazy bastards.”
I couldn’t stop myself from swearing.
Seriously, even if they’re terrorists, how can they treat people like this?
I had just freed a minor hostage, and now they were dropping a heavy wire net on my head?
How does that make any sense?
Did they think the monster would retaliate against Ji-hye because its arm had been destroyed?
Were they blind?
Then again, if they were blind, they wouldn’t have been able to time the net drop so precisely.
“Evacuate! It’s escaping!”
Someone shouted, but it didn’t seem like they’d had much success.
Think about it—how could you expect to deal with something that has giant pincers using just a net? It could tear through it with those pincers.
Although, considering Ji-hye’s waist wasn’t sliced in half earlier, the pincers didn’t seem to be that sharp.
“Are you okay?”
I asked James.
Before the wires could fully ensnare me, I had bent my left arm to shield my left shoulder with my hand.
James was caught beneath my palm and fingers but at least wasn’t crushed into pulp by the wires.
Even without my hand, he might’ve been fine.
Maybe the magic surrounding his body would’ve prevented the worst-case scenario.
Still, I didn’t want to take the risk of having chunks of flesh sticking to my shoulder.
“I-I’m fine,” James stammered, sounding a bit flustered.
“Good.”
I tried to straighten my bent back, but I couldn’t completely lift the weight.
I barely managed to keep from falling, ending up in a precarious half-crouched position.
But I still had the hammer in my other hand.
And the circuits were still running.
The situation wasn’t good.
Stepping in to improve the image of our team had clearly been a bad idea.
But I didn’t regret it.
If I had waited for the magical girls to arrive, Ji-hye would have been in real danger.
In fact, she had already been in grave danger by the time I got there.
Buzzing noise
As I thought about the situation, I could feel the generator spinning back up.
Even under the wires, the floating components in the air remained intact.
Some parts of the wire even hovered slightly above the hammerhead.
Could it be magnetism?
No, maybe this was another result of my half-baked scientific knowledge.
Just like how I saved someone before with a physically impossible feat, perhaps this too was something completely unscientific but made real because I thought it seemed “plausible.”
Well, plausible enough, I guess.
With alien technology mixed with who knows what else, it’s no surprise James would find it absurd if he heard about it.
Clenching my teeth, I spun the hammer.
Chiik—
The output from the back of the hammer began melting the wire.
The wire, touched by the blue flames, quickly turned red-hot and started snapping one by one.
I could hear someone shouting again, but I decided to just ignore it.
Whatever I do, they’ll probably just try to interfere anyway.
Was there something heavy attached to the ends of the wire mesh?
As I spun my body around, cutting through the net, I could lift the wire that was draped over me with just one hand.
As soon as I cleared it away, my eyes met Hayoon’s, who was floating in the sky.
“…….”
What should I say?
At least I was thankful that it wasn’t the kind of situation where we’d awkwardly exchange greetings.
Having an enemy to fight was a blessing in a way—it meant I didn’t have to think too much and could just focus on what needed to be done.
Still… the moment I saw Hayoon, my heart started pounding like crazy.
Our eye contact didn’t last long.
A white arm lunged toward Hayoon.
The monster clearly wanted to grab and bring her down from the sky.
That was a problem.
To be honest, I don’t feel particularly compelled to help the magical girls.
After all, they’re the ones who beat me to a pulp before.
But still, I couldn’t just stand by and watch Hayoon get hurt.
I don’t want to talk to her, but at the same time, I want to see her, to meet her.
I want to win against her, but I don’t want to fight her.
These conflicting emotions ultimately lead to despair.
Wanting something but not wanting to act—it’s a contradiction that only results in me running away.
If I think about how I’ll probably do the same today, it’s unavoidable.
“…….”
In that case, I’ll just channel that frustration somewhere else.
I began to run.
One step, two steps, three steps.
With each stride, I jumped higher and higher.
This wasn’t a retreat but a charge toward confrontation.
With all my strength, I leaped and brought down my hammer with the momentum of my propulsion.
Boom!
But I hit the ground again.
Was the enemy evolving with every dodge, learning to predict such obvious attacks?
Just then, a beam of light cut through the air and severed the monster’s left claw—the one it had just regenerated after I smashed it.
Turning my gaze, I locked eyes with Iris.
Iris quickly averted her gaze, her expression somewhat awkward.
“Ho-ho,” James muttered, intrigued.
Well, I didn’t dwell on it. I just focused on the battle.
I didn’t want to think about anything else, either.
No matter what they think of me, they’ll ultimately see me as someone to confront.
On that note, the enemy’s output seemed weaker than when it fought me.
The same went for Hayoon.
While she could still summon her sword, its glow was unstable.
Hayoon’s sword, which used to shift from an elegant Eastern blade to a hefty two-handed Western greatsword, now appeared as nothing more than a thin beam of light.
Clang!
But her fighting instincts hadn’t dulled.
Even though her magic output and destructive power had weakened, her experience remained.
The magical girls had fought monsters many times before, including faster ones.
They’d have developed strategies for dealing with them.
Instead of circling directly, they relied on propulsion to arc around at high speed.
Weapons like mine, designed for blunt force, are most effective against solid objects.
Sure, the monster’s white flesh could be crushed just as easily if I landed a hit, but even with propulsion, I was still slower.
Was it air resistance? But magical girls don’t seem to care about that when they fly.
Does that mean there’s a magical solution?
Is it just imagination that makes it work?
While I was lost in thought, the monster turned its attention toward me.
It seemed to have determined that my hammer was the biggest threat.
Well, no surprise there.
After all, it had shattered the bulletproof armor with a single blow.
The monster clearly understood that if I landed a direct hit, it’d be game over.
Still, the magical girls weren’t letting up either.
I might be the second priority, but the monster was definitely the first.
I wasn’t happy that the initiative was in their hands, but I decided not to dwell on it.
Hayoon charged in, her sword slicing swiftly and precisely.
The monster, caught off guard, instinctively defended with its intact claw armor.
Of course, it was a beam of light.
That bare white flesh would’ve been torn apart on contact.
Meanwhile, Iris provided covering fire, keeping the monster on edge.
“Hah!”
Rose jumped in and landed a direct punch on the monster, widening the cracks in its armor.
“Graaagh!”
Frustrated, the monster lashed out, alternating its strikes on the ground where Rose and Hayoon stood.
Its clawed strikes were fast enough to force them to retreat momentarily.
As they withdrew, Dahlia hurled a magical projectile at the monster.
The monster tore into the magic with its claw, ripping it apart, but the white flesh of its arm was still scorched in the process.
The smell of burning seafood filled the air.
The monster grabbed its own arm with its claw and severed it.
In the distance, Delphinium was preparing a spell.
Police officers scattered, retreating to a safe distance.
Among them, Ji-hye was being dragged away, dazed and unresisting.
Seeing her like that made me hold back my frustration.
Crouching slightly, I gathered strength in my legs before launching myself forward with all my might.
The hammer’s propulsion sent me arcing in a wide leftward circle.
But it was enough.
Boom!
Distracted by regenerating its severed arm, the monster didn’t notice my approach.
My hammer struck its side with a resounding crash.
A disgusting, greenish liquid—something like crab innards—spurted out from the monster’s mouth.
Not that I’d ever want to eat it.
“……!”
At that moment, the monster’s claw was aimed at Hayoon.
I slammed my hammer into the monster’s flank, sending it flying, and sprinted forward.
For a brief second, my eyes met Hayoon’s.
Hayoon, startled, stood frozen as the monster hurtled away.
Suddenly, the pink blade of Hayoon’s staff burst into flames.
-Why?
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