They lived longer than ordinary people, had greater strength, and even looked better.
It was inevitable that some scum would look down from on high and treat ordinary people's lives with contempt.
In fact, quite a few of her classmates didn't think much of ordinary people. Even if they didn't look down on them, they basically had no interest in them.
"By the way, Doctor, how do you know so much about magical girls?" Takanashi Shiori asked curiously.
She'd been wondering about that for a long time.
The Doctor was clearly an ordinary person with no magical powers, yet she knew so much about magical girls.
Doctor Kougami simply smiled nonchalantly.
"Oh, I used to be the leader of a Villain Organization. I fought quite a few magical girls."
"...Huh?"
Doctor's Day
Actually, Black Death Cult wasn't the only Villain Organization in Maple Plain City. It was just the most active one, and the one that had the greatest impact on ordinary people. Plenty of other Villain Organizations, large and small, were scattered throughout the city.
There was the Black Wing Society, which worshipped black magic, and the Ark Organization, which had caused the Dawn Crisis in Maple Plain City. Many years ago, there had also been a Villain Organization called Hanoi, which had been active online.
And the Doctor had once been the leader of a Villain Organization?
"But I quit ages ago, so don't worry."
Doctor Kougami leaned lazily against the desk.
"I see..."
Kirishima Ai lowered her head.
She hadn't known the Doctor for very long and didn't know much about her, but she didn't think the Doctor was a bad person.
When her younger sister's condition had worsened, it had been the Doctor who arranged for her to be admitted to the hospital she was in now.
Still, the thought that the Monster's leader had appeared, and that they didn't have enough strength to deal with him, made Kirishima Ai's mood sink a little further.
Takanashi Shiori looked much the same.
The atmosphere in the laboratory grew rather oppressive.
As a citizen of the city, Doctor Kougami didn't seem the least bit concerned about the Demon King's appearance. She poured milk into the coffee she'd just reheated, then added a few sugar cubes.
She swirled the cup, waiting for the coffee to cool a little.
"By the way, I have some good news. Want to hear it?"
The Doctor looked at Kirishima Ai.
Kirishima Ai lifted her head, puzzled.
Lately, she couldn't think of anything that could count as good news.
Doctor Kougami took a sip of coffee.
"Your younger sister's been getting better lately... It's almost unbelievable. Not long before you came, I got word that she can walk with a cane now."
She said it calmly.
To be honest, she'd been very surprised when she first heard. She knew about Kirishima Hina's condition, and even with the Kougami Foundation's medical resources, they'd only been able to keep it from getting worse.
But now it was as if a miracle had happened. Kirishima Hina's health had suddenly become almost normal. Aside from her legs still being a little weak, everything was improving.
Treatment had even become almost unnecessary; they were simply making sure there were no risks or complications.
When Kirishima Ai heard the Doctor, she thought she must have misheard.
"...Really?"
It was so unbelievable that Kirishima Ai didn't feel happy right away. It just felt like a dream.
Hina's condition had always fluctuated, but she'd never recovered to this extent before.
Doctor Kougami stroked the coffee cup.
"She also said she wants to go on the school camping trip on Monday. I heard your school has an event like that, too."
Kirishima Ai thought for a moment, then shook her head.
"I can't let Hina go on something so dangerous. She's finally recovered this much. What if something happens to her?"
She really wanted to go with Hina, and she understood how Hina felt, but it was still too dangerous.
"Her condition was caused by the Monster incident. It's hard to say."
"If you don't take her out to enjoy herself while you can, she might go back to how she was before soon. This could be her last chance."
Kirishima Hina's condition was very strange.
Even Doctor Kougami herself hadn't figured out what was causing it.
She couldn't treat it like an ordinary illness, either.
In her view, Kirishima Hina's inability to walk wasn't due to physical weakness or anything else. There was nothing wrong with her health, and yet she simply couldn't walk on her own two legs.
That was why they should seize this opportunity.
"But it's only natural to worry about your sister. Think it over some more, and ask her what she wants."
After seeing the two magical girls off, Kougami Kage had to get back to her own life.
As a mad scientist devoted to research, her daily routine wasn't anything special. She spent every day in the laboratory, conducting all kinds of research and monitoring the city for possible Monster incidents.
Other than that, she chatted online with her fiancée to ease the loneliness of living alone.
It felt like she hadn't seen Lily in ages.
Lily seemed to have been busy with work lately, and wasn't in a great mood, either. She hadn't had time to go on a date with her.
That left Kougami Kage feeling a little lonely.
She sat in her swivel chair and looked around. This was the place she lived in every day: a cluttered, somewhat cramped laboratory. Apart from the occasional visits from a few high school girls, she was alone most of the time.
On her desk was a framed photo of her and Lily together as children.
"..."
Kougami slowly laid her head on the desk, picked up the frame with one hand, and stared blankly at the two girls in the picture.
She was gifted at scientific research, but in everyday life, she was practically useless.
She was clumsy and didn't know how to communicate with people.
Sometimes, she didn't know how to make her girlfriend happier.
Even though she'd created Haro, an AI with immense computing power, it still couldn't understand people's hearts the way a human could.
It was a rare weekend, but for Kougami, it was no different from any other day. Her life was the same as always, with night and day turned upside down and no sense of time.
Kougami touched the ring on her finger.
She wanted to see her girlfriend.
The Doctor quickly brought up a screen and opened her chat with her girlfriend, then sent a message:
Cyber Immortal Girl [Lily, are you there?]
About ten minutes later, a reply came.
Magical Girl Lily-chan☆ [What is it?]
As soon as she saw her girlfriend's reply, Doctor Kougami quickly responded.
Cyber Immortal Girl [I miss you~ What are you doing?~]
As far as Kougami knew, Lily usually went out on Saturdays and stayed home on Sundays.
But Lily's answer this time caught her by surprise.
Magical Girl Lily-chan☆ [Having drinks with someone.]
"Having drinks?"
Kougami Kage blinked in confusion.
Having drinks with someone?
With whom?
If she was going to have drinks with someone, why hadn't she asked Kougami to come along?
Cyber Immortal Girl [With who?]
Magical Girl Lily-chan☆ [A coworker. That new girl from last time invited me for drinks, so I came.]
A female coworker had invited her girlfriend for drinks?
Kougami Kage immediately became wary.
She quickly typed out another message—
Cyber Immortal Girl [Be careful, and don't drink too much.]
Magical Girl Lily-chan☆ [Yeah, I know.]
Still, her girlfriend would be careful on her own. She probably didn't need to worry too much.
She looked at another screen.
"Haro, what should I talk about in a situation like this?"
After a moment, her AI assistant came up with a few suggestions.
Cyber Immortal Girl [How's your new coworker?]
Magical Girl Lily-chan☆ [She's pretty cute, but she can't hold her liquor.]
Cyber Immortal Girl [Haha, does she get rowdy when she's drunk?]
Magical Girl Lily-chan☆ [Haha, yeah. The little thing even kissed me when she got drunk.]
Cyber Immortal Girl [Hahaha]
Cyber Immortal Girl [?]
Cyber Immortal Girl [???]
Childhood Friends
That Sunday, the Doctor stepped outside the laboratory for the first time in a long while.
After asking around, the Doctor found out the name of the bar Haihara was at. Once she searched the city map, Haro quickly navigated her to the location.
She'd made a device that allowed magical girls to teleport around the city, but it could only be powered by magic, so she couldn't use it herself.
She got into the driver's seat of her car, though it was actually self-driving.
As the car started moving, the streets outside the window shifted constantly. The crowds she hadn't seen in a long time appeared before her again. Kougami felt a little uneasy, but she was more concerned about Haihara.
Going out for drinks with a female coworker she'd only just met... and not even telling her...
The thought made Kougami Kage uneasy.
Lily wouldn't get into trouble, would she?
The drive took less than ten minutes. By then, it was already nighttime. The bar was in a bustling part of the city, and even at that hour, people were coming and going.
The Doctor got out of the car, feeling a little out of place.
Quite a few people around her seemed to be looking at her, perhaps because she was dressed strangely.
She was still wearing the dirty lab coat she'd had on in the laboratory. Her hair looked like she hadn't even brushed it. On the crowded nighttime streets, she stuck out like a sore thumb.
The Doctor lowered her head and started looking for the bar, but she still couldn't find anything nearby that looked like one. She wasn't sure what to do.
"Um... excuse me, do you know where there's a bar around here?"
Her eyesight wasn't very good, either, and she had trouble making people out at night. She waited until someone who looked approachable passed by before speaking up.
The young woman she'd stopped thought for a moment.
Before you continue