Chapter 3 : To leave work (2)

My younger sister was sulking.

Well, to be honest, I did do something worth sulking over.

“Hey, come on, don’t be mad.”

“F*** off.”

When I cautiously tried to talk to her, I was immediately greeted by a middle finger.

Hmm.

Normally, I would’ve smacked her with my “manners enforcement stick,” but this time, I knew I was more at fault, so I stayed quiet.

“How am I supposed to f*** off when I don’t even have one?”

“You crazy bastard, seriously.”

I shot back with words instead, only to get called a lunatic in return.

“You’d be adorable if you’d just keep your mouth shut.”

“What? Who’s cuter than me?”

I grabbed both sides of my hair, making twin tails, and acted cute.

Hayun let out a small chuckle and turned her head away.

“Okay… you are kinda cute.”

I hate to say it, but my looks are pretty incredible.

In fact, you could call me the epitome of a magical girl.

Sure, all magical girls are usually stunning, but I’m on a whole different level.

If most adult magical girls are beautiful and elegant, then I look like someone straight out of an anime or manga.

“Would I become that cute if I transformed too?”

“Please, no. I’m a special case… and besides, you only get prettier when you transform, so why bother?”

It’s true, though transforming does make you prettier.

That’s why a lot of girls get excited when they realize they have magical potential.

Of course, since you only transform when monsters appear, and you still look the same in your untransformed state, most of them realize after enlisting that it’s pointless.

“I keep telling you, you need to be more aware of yourself. At the very least, could you stop swearing? Imagine how I feel, watching my own sibling who looks like a little kid walking around with a filthy mouth.”

“Try living like this for twenty years and see if you don’t end up like me.”

I glanced over at the stuffed bear sitting next to me, laughing while scrolling through their phone, with ramen broth smeared around their mouth.

I should’ve just smacked them and refused when they first approached me with the contract.

But now, it was far too late to undo it.

“That’s…”

“And besides, I’m stuck like this for life now. Considering that, I think I’m handling it pretty well.”

They call me the strongest magical girl.

The mother of all magical girls.

A soldier treated at the rank of a general.

The guardian of South Korea.

None of that matters.

In the end, only results remain.

And the only result that matters is this: If I want to keep living in South Korea, I have to stay enlisted for life, looking like this.

It was half my choice, but I didn’t really have an alternative.

If my sacrifice means everyone else in the country can live in peace, then so be it.

No more kids, barely past eight or nine years old, being forced to fight monsters and demons.

The attacks from these creatures aren’t something to be taken lightly.

Sure, as long as a magical girl defeats them, the fairy-tale kingdom’s power can restore everything, making people think it’s no big deal.

But if things go wrong, my loved ones could be in danger.

If I had to choose between abandoning this power to live a normal life or keeping it to ensure peace, anyone would choose the latter.

I don’t think my choice was wrong.

And I don’t regret it.”…OL.”

Hayun had a sorrowful look on her face.

Ugh, not this again.

I always get all sentimental after night duty.

“Wouldn’t emigrating be better? If it’s for you, I’d be willing to do it.”

Hayun asked cautiously.

Emigrating.

Yeah, honestly, it would make things easier.

If I moved abroad, I’d be treated even better far better than here in South Korea.

I’ve already had offers from foreign officials, secretly approaching me with proposals that make South Korea’s support look like a joke.

But, come on.

I’ve lived with Hayun for years.

I know exactly what she’s thinking.

I frowned and asked,”You just don’t want to enlist, do you?”

“Ah, you got me.”

“You haven’t even taken the test yet.”

The aptitude test.

Every South Korean woman in their twenties has to take a mandatory magic aptitude test.

If their aptitude surpasses a certain threshold, they’re automatically enlisted as magical girls under the Ministry of National Defense.

It’s basically just military service.

That’s why I was pulling night duty at the base earlier.

“Don’t worry, you won’t have to go. I’ll make sure of it.”

“Of…”

“And stop talking nonsense about emigrating. You’d have to cut ties with everyone here and start over in a completely foreign country. That’s not easy.”

Besides, it’s not like I’m being treated badly here.

How many people my age get the perks of a general?

Well, actually, that’s not a good example.

It was pretty easy.

At least for me.

‘Still, if I’m supposedly on a general’s level, why the hell do I have to pull night shifts…?’

Though, to be fair, I only do them when dimensional instability spikes.

And even then, it’s more like being on standby I can rest however I want as long as I’m ready to deploy if necessary.

I should stop overthinking.

It just makes me more frustrated.

Yeah, China is offering me however much money I want, and the U.S. isn’t far behind.

But I don’t care about money, so I have no reason to leave.

Moving to another country means learning their language and following their orders.

Honestly, South Korea is just more comfortable.

For now, at least.

More than anything, though, the real reason I won’t leave is simple.

“Mom and Dad don’t want to move, remember?”

If they won’t leave, I won’t either.

“Oh… I feel kinda bad now.”

“What are you sorry for? Still, I’m kinda touched that you’d follow me if I left.”

I smirked and walked over to my cute little stuffed bear, sprawled on the bed.

The tiny plush figure was furiously tapping away at the phone screen.

Earlier, they were scrolling through forums.

Now they were playing a game.

I had no idea how a tiny, doll-like body could tap the screen so quickly, but I let it slide.

“Hey, bear.”

Iron Claw activated.

Even with my small hands, I could easily grab the head of a doll-sized bear.

“Wait a sec! This is an important moment…! Ah, AHHH!!!”

Because I lifted them up, they were forced away from their phone.

A series of “MISS” messages popped up on the screen, and their character immediately died.

“Wait, you’re playing a rhythm game?”

I’ve seen a lot of things in my life, but this is a first.

“Sniff… why are you so mean to me.”

“You had your break while I was on duty.”

Oh, right.

“Phone confiscated.”

I stuffed their phone into my pocket.

The bear looked absolutely devastated.

“No way!!”

“Yes, way.”

They could cry all they wanted.

I had work to do.

I turned to leave for my room when “Wait.”

Hayun stopped me.

She placed her hands on my shoulders, smiling down at me.

“My ramen.”

“Hmph.”

“Nice try.”

Damn.

After making ramen for my sister, I finally returned to my room and turned on my computer.

Night duty and gaming go hand in hand.

As usual, I picked jungle and queued up.

Game start.

Then—Bzzt!”Oh, come on. I just finished my shift.”

Who the hell is it now?

I checked my phone.

Hanshinwo, Colonel: Miss Min Hayul?

Sorry to contact you this early, but do you have a moment?

“Why is this guy calling me at this hour?”

Calling me right after I finish my shift?

Ignoring this is totally justified.

I turned off my phone screen.

Time to game.