Living with a Magical Girl, but a Monster Executive

Whether it was Sugisaki Hideo or the other staff members, they were all stunned. They looked at each other... Was this eighth-grader syndrome?

Still, it was indeed the age for eighth-grader syndrome.

"Haha, so he was driven by justice! It must have been [Before he could think, his body had already moved!]. Wind City is proud of him!"

Sugisaki Hideo laughed as he smoothed things over. Cong Yu gave him a surprised glance, impressed by the social skills of a working adult.

But the interview was not over yet...

"Then, may I ask how you subdued that monster? You do not seem to possess magical power, and you are not particularly strong physically."

Sugisaki Hideo asked this, then added, "I imagine this is also something our listeners want to know."

"..."

"Ah, it is not that I am strong. That monster was just a little weak. When it took me hostage, I felt like it was being far too careless."

Cong Yu spoke, offering an ambiguous truth. "Maybe it had confronted the magical girls for too long, then felt like it had escaped death and let down its guard around me. How could I put up with that? I had just learned grappling techniques, you know."

With Cong Yu's cooperation—or perhaps not—Sugisaki Hideo nodded in satisfaction, somewhat relieved that Cong Yu had not continued spouting chuunibyou nonsense.

"Still, I guess I was lucky... That monster had only just awakened, and it had already exhausted its strength and energy."

Cong Yu continued, minimizing his own role as much as possible. "If I had to do it again, I might not dare to. Everyone, please do not imitate me."

Apparently noticing Cong Yu's impatience, Sugisaki Hideo nodded understandingly and took over. "Thanks to our righteous young man. Just as he said, when faced with the danger of a monster, call for help whenever possible and wait for the magical girls. Recklessly confronting a monster head-on is..."

"..." Cong Yu fell silent, then left the commercial district after a radio station staff member waved and said, "That's over. Thanks for cooperating."

What could he say? His life really was full of twists and turns.

Cong Yu thought this with some emotion.

Still, it was not entirely without benefits... After saving that café owner, he could go there every day to eat and drink for free without feeling embarrassed.

The only trouble was that monster.

Cong Yu had made it sound easy earlier, saying things like, "The monster let down its guard," and while all of that was true...

It was unrealistic for an ordinary person to subdue a monster. Unless they were unbelievably well-trained, like Tyson.

Otherwise, it did not matter how many fighting videos they had watched or how much of a fitness expert they were.

A monster was a monster—a creature different from humans.

For an ordinary person to fight a monster, they needed a weapon with absolute stopping power... Such as a gun.

But Cong Yu obviously did not have one.

So, he had actually used a small trick to subdue and knock that monster unconscious.

Though that trick was subtle, the monster definitely knew about it. It could therefore figure out that Cong Yu was a monster hiding his identity.

To avoid exposing himself,

Cong Yu had also made preparations to tie up loose ends while subduing the other party.

"..." As Cong Yu walked home, he might have been a young hero who had just appeared on the radio, but fortunately there had been no video recording and not many onlookers at the time.

So even though he was handsome, he had barely attracted any attention from the passersby around him.

Cong Yu simply walked with both hands in his pockets, looking like an ordinary passerby... He wanted a peaceful, ordinary life now.

At least until he graduated from university.

There was no mistake about it. That guy was a monster too.

Having awoken from unconsciousness, the male monster found himself bound all over in shackles and chains. He gritted his teeth as he watched the scenery flash past outside the window.

Knowing that he was currently being taken to be judged, the monster recalled what had happened earlier.

The man who had subdued him had turned black magical power into little snakes, shoved them in through his waist, and then he had lost consciousness.

He seemed to have heard of that kind of power somewhere before.

Never mind that! Before anything else...

If I tell the police that guy is a monster, I should get a reduced sentence, right? There is no way they would give me the death penalty in this country anyway.

Thinking this, the monster spoke resentfully. "Officers, I do not know if you are aware, but actually, the man who subdued me is a monster..."

"..."

"???"

"That, that boy who knocked me out back then was a monster too... Damn it, why can't I speak?"

The male monster stammered, while what he tried to say came out in fragments. The police officers seated on either side of him exchanged confused looks.

To their ears, every time the monster said "actually," "back then," or "why," he simply stopped talking afterward.

Was there some reason he did not dare say it aloud?

Could there be some mysterious organization behind this? What a major contribution!

Thinking this, the officers looked at each other, and one of them spoke gently. "Go ahead and say it. We are professionals. We will protect you."

Then, under the two men's watchful gazes, the monster's face turned red as he said word by word, "My... magical power... is... going... out of control."

As he spoke, violent red light began radiating from his body... Countless glowing cracks also appeared all over him.

"What? Jump out of the car!"

"Get away immediately..."

"Damn it!"

"..." Watching the police flee in all directions, indescribable terror filled the monster's eyes... Those words had not been his own will.

He had been controlled!

Was it the magical power that man had injected into him?

And even more horrifyingly, the instability and rampage of his magical power were not fake... He really was about to self-destruct!

"No... No, no, no!!"

Amid extreme terror, the cracks across the monster's body began to glow even more fiercely, as though countless Light Beams were shooting out from inside him.

Then, in the next instant, his rampaging magical power completely lost control.

BOOM!!!!

Along with a deafening explosion, the monster's words vanished into death together with the car, which had turned into a ball of fire.

The scattered magical power reduced the car to wreckage and tore the monster's body into pieces, which then became charred remains.

They weathered away into dust with the wind.

Lantian Zhu! Gloriously Revived!

"I'm back."

After Yaochuan Guang returned home, she greeted the others while changing her shoes. "Little Lan, did you know? Today, Cong Yu..."

As Yaochuan Guang changed into slippers and looked toward the living room sofa, she was startled.

Before her lay Lantian Zhu, peacefully sprawled on the sofa, pale-faced and completely motionless.

She could practically see a faint soul drifting from the corner of her mouth, ready to leave Lantian Zhu's body at any moment.

She looked as though she was about to pass away.

"Little Lan! What happened, Little Lan?!"

Yaochuan Guang anxiously shook Lantian Zhu by the shoulders. She immediately realized something and shouted, "A monster attack! It must have been a monster attack!"

As Yaochuan Guang looked around for the enemy, Lantian Zhu struggled to speak. "I'm... so... hungry..."

After saying that, Lantian Zhu rolled her eyes back and fainted outright.

"!!!" Only then did Yaochuan Guang realize what she had forgotten... Usually, she was the one who cooked at home.

Today, she had gone out with Cong Yu to eat cake and cookies for lunch.

No one had taken care of Lantian Zhu at home!

"Oh no, I should have known this would happen! I should have made lunch before going out! Little Lan, hang in there! I'll make you some congee right away!"

Yaochuan Guang shouted as she rushed into the kitchen. Then Lantian Zhu's not-at-all-weak voice came from the living room. "I want takoyaki and tempura."

"..."

"Didn't you already faint from hunger? Why are you still making requests? If you wanted that, you should have told me yesterday!"

As Yaochuan Guang fiercely complained, Lantian Zhu replied in her signature flat tone—

"It's all Little Guang's fault. Before going out, you should have prepared lunch for me in the 'automatic feeder.'"

Yaochuan Guang was utterly speechless and completely ignored Lantian Zhu's suggestion. "What automatic feeder? Are you some kind of puppy?"

Lantian Zhu: "Woof woof—"

"Barking like a dog won't help! I was already planning to make congee for dinner. We only have ingredients for seafood congee at home!"

When Cong Yu returned home, it seemed Yaochuan Guang had already come back. After changing his shoes, he looked at Lantian Zhu, whose fate was unclear.

"Ah... Did she starve to death?"

Cong Yu realized something as he set the plastic bag in his hand on the coffee table, recalling what Yaochuan Guang had said before.

Usually Yaochuan Guang cooked, so... Had Lantian Zhu not eaten anything for lunch? Wasn't that a little strange?

Couldn't she buy something to eat herself?

Thinking this, Cong Yu sat beside the sprawled-out Lantian Zhu and lightly poked her cheek... Each poke left an adorable little dent.

Then, when he moved his finger away, the dent bounced right back.

His finger was met with a soft, cool sensation. It was unexpectedly interesting.

"Hungry... So hungry..."

Faced with Lantian Zhu's wail, Cong Yu sighed and said, "If Yaochuan Guang isn't here, can't you just go buy some bread or something yourself?"

Lantian Zhu shifted her gaze away, then gave Cong Yu a very simple, brief response. "No money. Not even a cent."

As she spoke, Lantian Zhu glanced toward the kitchen, then quietly told Cong Yu, "I owe Little Guang a lot of money. I still haven't paid her back."

What kind of parasite are you?

A blue-themed girl, a magical girl senior, always borrowing money from others... That character setup seems awfully familiar.

Though Cong Yu was not really qualified to criticize her in that regard.

"Mm, then have some cake... The owner of a café gave it to me to thank me."

As Cong Yu spoke, he took several small boxes of cake from the plastic bag on the coffee table. "Do you want some? If not..."

Before Cong Yu could finish, a confident voice without any intonation came from beside him. "Thank you very much."

Cong Yu turned his head, only to

find that at some point, Lantian Zhu had already sat upright on the sofa.

Her legs were together and angled to one side, her hands folded over her stomach, making her look like a dignified Yamato nadeshiko.

What was this supposed to be? Hadn't she been about to starve to death?

Cong Yu did not quite understand, but he still gave her some cake and explained, "Yaochuan Guang knows about this too. We originally saw that the café offered free snacks and coffee, so we went in to eat, but then..."

While Cong Yu spoke, Lantian Zhu nodded. "I know. I saw it on TV... And I heard the audio of your interview."

As Lantian Zhu ate the cake, Yaochuan Guang stopped working in the kitchen. The moment she came out, she saw Cong Yu.

"You're back? Seriously... You didn't make a sound at all."

As Yaochuan Guang complained, she noticed Lantian Zhu eating cake and looking like she had come back to life.

After thinking for a moment, she understood where the cake had come from.

After all, Cong Yu did not seem like the kind of person who would realize Lantian Zhu had skipped lunch, then specifically buy cake to bring home.