Ch. 11 - Preparation against terrorism (3)
I Became a Magical Girl In a Harem MangaThis chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
Notes
idk who i feel worse for, the friendzoned team leader or the overworked section chief
This chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
idk who i feel worse for, the friendzoned team leader or the overworked section chief
Yoo Mi-Young was in an unusually good mood today because Shin Hye-Rim had asked her to go out with her. It was a rare occurrence since Shin Hye-Rim typically kept her distance from others.
No matter what, she always moved alone and didn't attempt to socialize with others unless it was work-related.
Despite Yoo Mi-Young's efforts over the years to break through Shin Hye-Rim's walls, it had taken a long time for them to even share a drink after work. Although Shin Hye-Rim seemed more relaxed now, Yoo Mi-Young still considered it premature for them to spend time alone together.
Yet, to her surprise, Shin Hye-Rim had suggested they go to an amusement park, just the two of them.
"I can treat this as a date, right?"
Although it didn't feel like a romantic date, who cares?
Anything two people who liked each other did together could be considered a date in her book.
Their day at the amusement park had been enjoyable. They shopped for clothes, held hands, and rode roller coasters. They acted like old friends, comfortable and carefree in each other's company.
'I never imagined I'd get to spend this kind of time with Hye-Rim.'
She is happy. Yoo Mi-Young thought back on the past few years. She remembered how hard she had worked to get to know Hye-Rim, going out of her way to greet her every day, offering her drinks after work, always smiling and telling her silly jokes, and breaking down the wall she had built around herself.
And her efforts finally paid off.
"Team Leader 1, why don't we go over there?"
Shin Hye-Rim pointed to a flower garden walkway in the amusement park, a popular spot for couples. For couples, it's a great place to take pretty pictures. For non-couples, it's a place where holding hands and walking together bring them closer.
That's the place Shin Hye-Rim suggested to Yoo Mi-Young that they go.
"......You want us to go there?"
"Yeah."
Yoo Mi-Young's heart skipped a beat at Shin Hye-Rim's immediate response. Was this the beginning of something more between them?
'W-wait. Isn't it too fast? I don't hate it, or rather, I like it, but... is she implying what I think she is? Can I interpret it that way?'
Trying to quell her racing thoughts, Yoo Mi-Young took Shin Hye-Rim's hand and followed her lead. As they walked, surrounded by couples, she couldn't help but ponder how they appeared to others.
'How do we look in the eyes of others?'
A woman and a woman walking in a place like this might appear to be just best friends, and perhaps that's what Shin Hye-Rim is thinking. The purpose of this walk is literally to digest food with no other meaning.
'Maybe I’m just overthinking.' That thought crossed Yoo Mi-Young's mind.
'But I can at least hope for it.'
She's a woman, too, and she can imagine things like that. Of course, the connection between Shin Hye-Rim and her wouldn't be between a man and a woman, but rather two women can love each other, too.
Yoo Mi-Young looked at Shin Hye-Rim while thinking that.
Unlike her, Shin Hye-Rim was neither nervous nor concerned about others. It was the same Shin Hye-Rim she had always seen. There was no sign of her wanting to walk this path to get closer to her.
Yoo Mi-Young was looking forward to it, but it didn't feel that way for Shin Hye-Rim.
Despite her hopeful thoughts, Shin Hye-Rim seemed unfazed, her demeanor unchanged. Yoo Mi-Young couldn't discern any indication that Shin Hye-Rim shared her sentiments.
'...Yeah, I was just imagining things.'
Yoo Mi-Young decided to give up on going further today. While they might have gotten a little closer, anything more is still off-limits.
"Team Leader 1, do you want to go rest on that bench for a while?"
"Sure. Let's go."
Once she neatly gave up for today, she was able to feel comfortable with Shin Hye-Rim again. The two of them sat side by side on the bench and admired the scenery for a while.
"I guess this place is famous for a reason. The flowers are so beautiful, aren't they?"
Yoo Mi-Young looked back at Shin Hye-Rim, purely admiring the view of the flower garden. However, Shin Hye-Rim didn't respond.
"Team Leader 1."
For some reason, Shin Hye-Rim looked at Yoo Mi-Young with a stiff expression.
"Huh?"
Then, unexpectedly, Shin Hye-Rim leaned in closer to her.
"...Uh, what?"
Shin Hye-Rim's face is approaching. She shows no sign of stopping. Why is she suddenly doing this?
'N-no way. Is this really what I thought it was? And Hye-Rim is acting like this right from the start?'
Yoo Mi-Young gasped at the sight of Shin Hye-Rim's face drawing closer, then closed her eyes in anticipation of what was to come.
Thump. Her heart was pounding loudly. She was trembling. But more than that, she was feeling excited, so she decided to accept whatever Shin Hye-Rim was about to do. A moment later, a soft touch on Yoo Mi-Young's lips is sure to co-
"Team Leader 1, look at this."
...didn't come at all, only the sound of Shin Hye-Rim calling out to Yoo Mi-Young. When she opened her eyes, Shin Hye-Rim had already moved away from her, holding a strange mechanical device in front of her.
"...What is this?"
"It was hidden in the bushes behind Team Leader 1. I don't know exactly what it is, but I think it's a device to attract monsters."
"......"
Yoo Mi-Young's realization struck her like a bolt of lightning. Shin Hye-Rim hadn't been attempting to kiss her; she had simply leaned over to get the mechanical device behind her.
In an instant, the thunderous pounding of her heart ceased, and her heart immediately cooled.
What's a device that attracts monsters, anyway?
"How do you know that?"
"Well, I'm a magical girl, and one of the spells I know allows me to sense the power of monsters. I detected something similar emanating from this device, so I'm guessing that it's likely used to lure monsters with some sort of strange power. I've encountered something similar before when I was capturing the members of the Monster Association."
"Aha, I see."
So a magical girl can do such things; that's interesting.
"I've been feeling something strange on this walkway since earlier, and it's coming from this device."
"Huh, Hye-Rim, so you brought us to this trail to find this thing?"
"Yes. It's been bothering me."
'I see, she asked to come here not for the reason I thought, but just because of this mechanical device.'
Yoo Mi-Young felt somehow irritated.
"This must have been placed here by the Monster Association. Perhaps they're attempting to use this device for terrorist activities."
The Monster Association...it's because of these bastards that she was getting false hopes.
The hatred for the Monster Association grew in Yoo Mi-Young's heart.
When I explained the mechanical device to Team Leader 1, she grew visibly angry, understandably so upon realizing the gravity of the situation involving the Monster Association's terrorist plot. This was a serious matter, after all.
Of course, I wasn't entirely truthful when I claimed to possess the ability to sense the power of monsters through magic. Such a spell simply doesn't exist.
"I'm sensing similar powers elsewhere in the park, so there might be more devices like this scattered around."
"Then I guess we can't just ignore this."
"Yes. I'll search elsewhere and see if I can locate more of these devices."
"We came here for a weekend outing, and now we're stuck working. This sucks."
She looked genuinely disgusted. Yeah, it must suck to suddenly have to work extra shifts while going out to play. After all, Team Leader 1 came to play.
"Let's track down more of these devices."
"Okay. I suppose there's no other choice."
I immediately got up from the bench and moved on to the next device. We proceeded to scour the park diligently, and after about an hour, I managed to uncover a total of six devices. Remarkably, the number matched exactly with the count in the manga, which means that we hadn't missed any.
"Team Leader 1, I'm going to report this to the chief right away. It's a shame we didn't get to enjoy our outing fully."
"I understand. But given the circumstances, it's unavoidable. Let's plan a proper outing together next time."
"Yeah, Sure."
Next time, let's actually go somewhere to have fun with Team Leader 1. It's summer, so we can go to the beach or something.
After bidding farewell to Team Leader 1 and leaving the amusement park, I promptly contacted the chief.
I'll be back soon with a bunch of work for you. Let's be diligent public servants who work faithfully on weekends together!
Chief Lee Beom-Soo was in a good mood today. Normally, the stress of dealing with the Association's troublemakers left him feeling as though he might lose his hair, but today was different—it was his beloved daughter's birthday.
"Happy birthday, my darling~ Here is a gift from dad."
"Thank you, Dad!"
Watching her smile so brightly after receiving the doll she had always wanted brought a smile to Lee Beom-Soo's face. Moments like these, spent with his loving family, were what kept him going through the challenges of each workday.
Seeing his daughter eat the cake in front of him, smearing cream around her mouth, made him smile. There is no cuter creature in the world.
"So, honey, how's work going?"
Lee Beom-Soo’s wife approached him as he wiped the cream from his daughter's mouth.
"Work? It hasn't been too bad lately. I'm having a headache because one of my guys knocked down the wall of a civilian's house while fighting a villain, but that's not a big deal."
"Really? Isn't it normal to cause a little bit of destruction while fighting villains?"
"Of course, but we're government employees. It's just kind of annoying when you're getting yelled at by superiors while trying to compensate them when that happens." Lee Beom-Soo let out a small sigh as he said that.
Everything's been fine, but he was worried that if they continue like this, other employees from the Awakened Crime Division will also have accidents like Shin Hye-Rim.
Shin Hye-Rim. Lee Beom-Soo thinks of her as the problem child of the Awakened Crime Division. Her skills are extremely good, but she has too much power. He considers himself lucky if she breaks only a wall while subduing a criminal.
Lee Beom-Soo always thinks that forty percent of the stress he feels at work is due to his boss, and sixty percent is due to Shin Hye-Rim.
"But honey, let's not talk about work. Today is our beloved Seo-Hee's birthday, and we should just spend a happy time with her."
"Fufu, yes, let's do that."
The couple smiled warmly and looked at their daughter.
"Oh, honey. Your phone's ringing."
"My phone?"
In the middle of this family moment, Lee Beom-Soo's cell phone rang. He looked at his phone and froze for a moment.
[Shin Hye-Rim (Team 5 Leader)]
That's strange. As far as he's concerned, Shin Hye-Rim would never call him first. Moreover, today is the weekend. Why is she calling her boss on a day off when she should be resting?
"......"
He's scared. Extremely scared. His instincts are warning him that he shouldn't answer this call.
"Honey, aren't you going to answer it?"
"What? Ahh. Haha, right. Of course."
He thought about ignoring it, but then shook his head.
This is Shin Hye-Rim, a person who thinks about how to make her work and time more comfortable. It's unlikely that she would call him on a weekend like this for work.
With that in mind, he picked up the phone.
"Yes, Hye-Rim, what's going on?"
[Chief, what are you doing now?]
"It's my daughter's birthday, so I'm celebrating it. Why?"
[Your daughter's birthday? Are you having a birthday party at home?]
"Uh, yeah, I guess so. Why do you ask?"
[Ah, that's good, because I'm on my way to your house right now.]
"...... You're coming to my house?"
How does she say such scary things so casually?
Lee Beom-Soo cried out in his heart to not say something so terrible.
"Wait, for what reason......"
[Well, I'll see you soon].
He tried to ask, but Shin Hye-Rim immediately hung up. Lee Beom-Soo stared at the disconnected phone for a long time.
"Honey, what's wrong? You look so upset."
"No, my subordinate is coming to my house right now."
"What? Why?"
"...I have no idea." He wishes he knew.
"Hmm. Then I should finish the dishes and make some tea for the guest."
"No, you don't have to. I'm sure it's just a joke. If you're doing the dishes, I'll help you."
Even at work, the last person Shin Hye-Rim wants to see is Lee Beom-Soo. To take time out of her weekend to visit her boss is preposterous.
'She was probably bored and wanted to prank me.'
Lee Beom-Soo thought that way and washed dishes with his wife. As they were washing the dishes, they made some small talk.
"Whoa! Dad!"
His daughter's high-pitched voice came from the living room.
"Yes, Seo-Hee. What is it?"
"There's someone outside the window!"
"What?"
Lee Beom-Soo's house is on the 20th floor of an apartment building. It's impossible to see a person outside the window. With that thought in mind, he went to the living room.
"Chief, open the window!"
A magical girl was flying outside the window.
"Seriously, why?!"