Magical Girl? I Got Tricked Into It!

"If eating could replenish my energy, that would be great." She sighed softly and slowly pushed herself upright through the pain.

Ruby promptly took on her human form, helped her up, and found a pillow to prop behind her back.

"Thanks."

"If you're going to thank me, then treat me better, seriously. Master, this is what I'm supposed to do. There's nothing to thank me for."

Those words stirred the faintest hint of emotion in Ando Meiko's heart... but if Ruby usually weren't such an airhead, she might have happily accepted that gesture.

"Sorry." Some time had already passed, and she figured she couldn't keep holding onto the fact that Ruby had forced her into making a contract.

Besides, judging from how Void Beasts could affect the Material World through Aether, perhaps gaining the power of a magical girl had been arranged by fate.

As she thought, an itch on the back of her hand made her raise it unconsciously. She lowered her head and looked at the little cat slowly walking across the bed.

"You really do love climbing onto my bed." She smiled and gently stroked Yue's head.

The bed Yue had in the living room had cost Ando Meiko a small fortune, and it even had a soft cushion. No matter how she thought about it, it shouldn't have been any less comfortable than this bed.

She simply couldn't understand why this little one always loved burrowing into her blankets.

Still, the kitten hardly shed, and she wasn't allergic to cat fur. As long as Yue didn't disturb her, she didn't really mind.

She looked toward the mirror beside her and immediately saw what state she was in.

Her clothes had all been removed, replaced by tightly wrapped bandages. They bound her so snugly that her two basketballs looked as if they had been flattened.

Although plenty of pain still lingered, it didn't affect her ability to move.

"Where are Fuko and Nanako?"

"Fuko took Nanako out to buy some things."

"Meow~"

"Yue, I'm fine. Don't worry." Ando Meiko smiled and patted Yue's head. As soon as she opened the door, the little white cat jumped down and ran out ahead of her, disappearing around the bend in the stairs.

"Don't push yourself so hard, Master. Your magic power will turn into Aether and repair your body, but the process will take a while."

Not healing, but repair...

Ando Meiko shook her head. "It's fine. I'm not pushing myself. My body has mostly recovered already."

Still, this incident had made her realize something. She was seriously lacking in exercise, perhaps a consequence of spending too much time cooped up at home in the past.

Her body was different from an Ordinary Magical Girl's. She still retained her physical body, so damage sustained after transforming would be reflected onto it.

Without a strong body, if she suffered injuries worse than today's, they might be beyond what she could endure.

With Ruby supporting her, she walked down the stairs. When she heard knocking, Ando Meiko slowly made her way toward the entrance.

"Ruby."

"Got it." Ruby obediently transformed back into a necklace and hung around her neck.

"Coming. I wonder who it is?" She was about to open the door when she suddenly remembered that she was only wearing a thin shirt, practically nothing more, without even a skirt.

She was about to return to her room and get properly dressed before coming back out, but a familiar voice stopped her.

"Meiko?"

"It's Rin. Then it should be fine, right?" she muttered to herself as she opened the door.

"Huh? Meiko? Why are you dressed like that?!" Startled by Ando Meiko's outfit, Rin quickly ran into the entryway and closed the door behind her.

"Honestly, you're way too careless! What if someone else saw you?"

"I thought it was a little inappropriate too, but when I heard your voice, I opened the door."

Her answer left Rin speechless. Rin took off her shoes and walked straight into the living room as though she were returning to her own home.

"Honestly, it's been so long since she last came over, yet she acts like she's not a stranger at all."

"Meiko, what did you say?"

"N-Nothing." Realizing she had voiced her complaint aloud, Ando Meiko hurriedly covered her mouth.

"Seriously, even if you're home alone, you should still pay attention to your appearance."

Rin seemed to have mistaken Ando Meiko's outfit for loungewear, but she had only thrown it on because she hadn't been wearing anything underneath.

"Koichi's room hasn't changed much, but it is a lot cleaner than before. That's thanks to you, Meiko, right?"

In the past, Rin probably would have lectured Ando Koichi while helping him clean up his messy room. But now that Fuko was around, housekeeping was no longer something Rin had to worry about.

"Why did you suddenly come over today?"

"Oh, right. My family just received a bunch of fruit, so I brought some over."

"That's too kind. This stuff must be expensive, right?"

Rin set down what she was carrying, and plump fruits rolled out one by one, looking incredibly appetizing.

"It's not expensive. My grandfather grows them, and whenever harvest season comes, he sends us plenty. But there's something I've been wondering about since earlier..."

"What is it?"

"What exactly is this?! It's moving around so openly that it's making my eyes dizzy." Catching Ando Meiko off guard, Rin darted behind her and grabbed those two magnificent jade peaks.

"Huh?"

No, why did you have to care so much about those inconvenient lumps of fat? Rin, your own figure is great too! You're clearly the petite and cute type, so could you stop worrying about this so much?!

D-Don't keep kneading them! This is way too embarrassing... ngh...

"I never expected Rin to have this side to her."

Come to think of it, ever since becoming a girl, Ando Meiko felt as though she had seen many things she could never have seen when she was still a boy.

It wasn't as if she would thank Ruby for it, but it was pretty interesting.

Still, when Rin had ambushed her just now, she realized her back no longer hurt as much. It looked like she had almost fully recovered.

Not long after seeing Rin off, Fuko and Nanako returned from their outing as well.

"Huh? Meiko, why are you out here? Is your body okay?"

"I'm fine. Look."

To prove it, she moved around a few times in front of Fuko. But in her smug excitement, she pulled a muscle in her back and grimaced in pain.

"And you still say you're fine."

"Hehe, I just can't make any big movements yet."

Grrr...

Blushing, Ando Meiko covered her rumbling stomach in embarrassment.

She hadn't felt this way just moments ago, but seeing Fuko return was like seeing dinner float right before her eyes. Her internal temple, which had gone so long without offerings, promptly began protesting on its own.

"It's getting late. Let's have dinner first. Afterward, I still need to apply medicine for you."

"Eat up. Meiko needs to eat her fill so she can recover properly."

Ando Meiko reached out and patted the bouncing Nanako, smiling. "So you went out together to buy medicine. Thanks for your hard work."

After dinner, Fuko applied medicine to her back, and Ando Meiko collapsed into bed and fell asleep.

The first thing she did upon waking was stretch her body as though doing yoga. Only after she could no longer feel even the slightest pain did Ando Meiko stand before the mirror, take off her pajamas, and carefully inspect her injuries.

The scrapes and bruises that had been reflected onto her body from crashing into the utility pole had all disappeared. The skin on her back had returned to being smooth and delicate.

"Everything's completely fine now. Let's go, Ruby."

"Huh?"

"Hmm? What's wrong? Don't you want to get up?"

"N-No, no, no, no! I'm coming right away, Master! I'm coming!" The moment Ando Meiko said she was taking her out, Ruby, who had still been sleeping, immediately sprang up from the floor full of energy.

Nanako and Fuko had gotten familiar with each other already. Even without Ruby watching over her, Fuko alone probably wouldn't let that little Evil God incarnate turn into a house-destroying husky.

My constitution really is too troublesome. If only I could find out what conditions pull me into the Void World.

Ando Meiko had thought long and hard before deciding to take Ruby out with her.

Although the hairpin Ruby had given her allowed them to communicate anytime and anywhere like a phone, and Ruby could learn about her current circumstances, the problem was that Ruby needed quite a bit of time to teleport over.

If she kept getting dragged into the Void World by Void Beasts for surprise attacks, then if her luck ran out one day, it could cost her life.

So before she thoroughly understood the situation, she felt it would be safer to keep Ruby by her side at all times.

After Ando Meiko got dressed, Ruby obediently transformed into a necklace and fell against her chest.

"Hehe, Master's chest is warm and soft. It wraps all around my body. Staying here really does make me feel safe."

Having grown used to Ruby's nonsense, Ando Meiko had built up considerable immunity to her verbal attacks. While Ruby entertained herself, Ando Meiko simply ignored her.

"Eh, Master really is cold. Did turning your body into Aether also get rid of all seven emotions and six desires? I'm being so direct, yet Master isn't reacting at all."

"If Master is feeling unsatisfied, you can just use my body whenever you want."

As she spoke, Ruby turned into a point of light and shifted from a necklace into the form of a magic wand.

Under Ruby's deliberate control, its tip vibrated at an extremely high frequency, producing a buzzing sound.

What kind of weird toy was this?

"As if I'd react to that. If you talked less nonsense, maybe I'd be willing to take you out more often." For the sake of her mental and physical health, she figured it was best to ignore whatever Ruby was trying to imply.

"No way. If you don't let me talk, how can I express my love anytime and anywhere?"

"Then take your time expressing it."

"Hey, Master, wait for me!"

After washing up and eating breakfast, she grabbed the lovingly prepared lunch Fuko had made for her early that morning and hurried out the door.

"I'm heading out." Once outside, Ando Meiko looked around. Perhaps because there was still plenty for the school to handle, Rin wasn't waiting outside for her today.

But today was the school festival. There were no classes, so she could stroll over at her leisure.

Although she had only gone through a hard battle yesterday, Ando Meiko was eagerly looking forward to today.

Because today was the day of her three-legged race with Rei. She had already struggled to suppress her excitement during practice, and even thinking about it now made her a little thrilled.

She had gotten up earlier than usual today and thought she had plenty of time, but when she returned to the classroom, she found that she was almost the last one there.

Nearly all her classmates had arrived, and the decorations needed for the school festival had already been set up.

The beautifully decorated Class One looked completely different, so much so that she almost thought she had entered the wrong classroom.

The other students had already formed their own groups and were discussing their plans. With few friends, Ando Meiko found herself with nothing to do after returning to her seat.

However, the wait did not last long. The long-awaited announcement finally echoed through the school grounds. "All students, please gather in the auditorium."

The school festival was about to begin.

Ando Meiko, who had been staring out the window all this time, turned around excitedly and found Yuya staring intently at her. His gaze made her feel awkwardly uncomfortable all over.

"What is it, Yuya? Is there something on my face?"

"N-No..." Yuya shook his head and waved his hands before continuing, "I was just wondering what Koichi would think if he found out you got paired with Nakajima Rei. Hahaha, he's been hoping to hold her hand for who knows how long, but he's never had any chance."

The jab left Ando Meiko speechless.

Best buddy, do you really want to see me make a fool of myself that badly?

Of course, the real Ando Koichi was standing right in front of him and had even become a petite, adorable magical girl. There was no way Yuya could possibly know that.

So Ando Meiko smiled, stood up, and walked out the door.

"Koichi... he's been gone for days, and he hasn't even replied to my messages... where did he go...?"

Yuya's worried tone made her pause. She wanted to say something to him, but in the end, she could only sigh softly and quicken her pace as she left.