Magical Girl? I Got Tricked Into It!

What... what had she seen through?

Even if this kid looked a little slow, she was still an Evil God. She was sensitive to certain things.

"Don't worry, Nanako. I'm fine."

In truth, Ando Meiko had not been injured. She had collapsed because Xiphias had planted her magic power inside Meiko's body and used Meiko's magic to carve magical patterns, ultimately draining all of her magic power.

"Cough, cough..."

"You've been asleep for so long. You must be thirsty, right? Wait here. I'll go buy you something to drink."

"Nanako's coming too."

"Sorry to trouble you. I'll lie down a little longer, then go back to class..."

"Rin already told your homeroom teacher about that, so once you've recovered, we can go straight home."

"Then I really need to thank Rin. I'll thank her properly when we get back."

"You definitely should. When you fainted, Rin was the one who carried you back."

Fuko left the infirmary with Nanako, and the cramped space fell silent.

Ando Meiko had forgotten how long it had been since she had enjoyed such a peaceful feeling.

As expected, peace was the best.

The infirmary door suddenly opened with a creak. Instantly on guard, Ando Meiko grabbed the Ruby Necklace around her neck.

Fuko and Nanako had left less than a minute ago. The nearest vending machine was by the athletic field, and even running there would take some time. There was no way they could have returned so quickly.

Could the infirmary teacher have come back?

But Ando Meiko quickly realized that her guess was wrong.

The person who walked in was neither Fuko nor the infirmary teacher, but a silver-haired girl with a single ponytail.

The silver-haired girl wore no expression. Her lowered eyelids made her seem indifferent to everything.

Compared to the slightly delinquent vibe of tying her school uniform jacket around her waist, Ando Meiko found herself more interested in her appearance.

After all, everyone loved beauty.

Coming to the infirmary after school probably was not slacking off. Ando Meiko assumed the girl had come for medicine after getting scraped somewhere.

A breeze drifted in through the window, sending the girl's silver hair fluttering. Every strand was crystalline and clear, as though reflecting the sunlight.

Her silver hair is so beautiful... Ando Meiko thought.

Her skin was as white as milk, making her look like a delicate porcelain doll. As far as Ando Meiko knew, naturally silver-haired people without some medical condition were probably more common in Russia.

But Ando Meiko had never seen this girl before. If she really attended this school, there was no way word of someone with an appearance like an angel descended to earth would not have spread.

The girl raised her head slightly. Her incomprehensibly red eyes locked onto Ando Meiko, and she slowly walked toward her.

As the girl drew closer, Ando Meiko instinctively leaned back, only to remember that she was lying on a bed.

But she could not exactly get out of bed and leave, and acting frightened of someone she had just met would be far too rude.

I should at least say hello first... Maybe she just found it strange that someone was lying in the infirmary at this time.

"Hello... Is something the matter?"

"I can see your true nature."

"Huh?" That sentence completely threw Ando Meiko off.

My true nature? What true nature could I possibly have? Could she have discovered that I used to be a guy?

"W-What do you mean?"

The girl standing beside Ando Meiko bent down and brought her face closer.

Too close. Way too close.

In anime, at this distance, people either started fighting or kissing.

Of course, Ando Meiko was not stupid enough to think a stranger she had just met would kiss her.

Staring at each other from such close range made Ando Meiko notice the girl's unusual eyes. They were somewhat eerie, but also remarkably captivating.

"The girl beside the outcast still carries half the scent of humanity... A Half-Aether Body? Interesting."

"Wha... You, you are..." She instinctively pressed a hand against the necklace on her chest again.

[Ruby? Ruby! Where did you run off to? Get out here already! If you don't, I'm finished!]

[Hey, aren't you usually so good at showing off? Why have you disappeared at the critical moment? Where are you? Hey, can you hear me?]

Ever since earlier, Ruby had seemed as though someone had cut the network cable. No matter how Ando Meiko called out through their mental link, Ruby gave no response.

Has the depletion of my magic power affected the mental link between Ruby and me?

The silver-haired girl had realized that Ando Meiko was the red magical girl who had stood behind Xiphias and escaped the Void World amid the chaos.

Ando Meiko also remembered the silver-haired, red-eyed witch who had ambushed her and Xiphias with a beam cannon.

"Orbital..."

"Let me formally introduce myself." The silver-haired girl took a step back. "My name is Kajieliena, a Starry Magical Girl whose theme is the Space-Based Weapon System. I am also the strategic-class witch you call God's Staff—Orbital."

"Magical Girl Ruby. My name is Ando Meiko." Since she had already been exposed, she saw no reason to keep hiding it.

Besides, if Kajieliena could see through her identity at a glance, then it would probably be just as easy for the Witch Organization to find her.

"I'll be staying here for a while. Let's get along... amicably."

The red glow in Kajieliena's eyes gradually faded, returning them to normal green eyes. At that moment, the only thing separating her from an ordinary person was that beautiful silver hair.

"What is your goal?" In response to Ando Meiko's question, all she got was the sound of the infirmary door sliding shut.

The infirmary door had barely closed before someone pulled it open again.

Could people stop bothering me and let me rest already... Oh, it's Fuko. Never mind, then.

"Meiko, the person who just left the infirmary was so pretty. She looked like a doll. Can someone really be born with silver hair?"

"Thanks." She accepted the drink Fuko handed her, quickly opened it, and took several gulps to soothe her dry throat.

"Come to think of it, you two must have met when you were in the same room just now, right? What did she come here for?"

"She was probably looking for the infirmary teacher. Who knows?" She shrugged, avoiding the subject.

One week later

The school festival had passed, and Ando Meiko had enjoyed a period of peace in the meantime.

Even after being closed off for so long, there was still no word that Fuko's school would be reopening.

That made her worry whether the school would still be safe even after the lockdown ended and they could return.

As for Kajieliena, the witch who had suddenly entered the infirmary that day and seen through both Ando Meiko's Half-Aether Body and magical girl identity, there had been no news of her since. It was as if she had never appeared at all.

That was what worried Meiko the most. Kajieliena was an Orbital Weapon, after all. With her true identity exposed, who knew whether Meiko might get blasted into nothing but ash by a beam cannon from an extreme distance?

There was something else Ando Meiko found strange: when she saw Kajieliena, her communication with Ruby had been cut off.

At first, she thought it was because of her lack of magic power, but when she asked Ruby later, Ruby said that was not the case.

Her mental communication with Ruby had been established through their contract, and it did not require magic power.

According to Ruby, Kajieliena seemed to have a special magnetic field around her that interfered with their communication.

Still, those were side matters that did not even count as an interlude.

If there was one major recent change, it was that studying materials in the library until curfew had become Ando Meiko's daily routine after school.

It was worth mentioning that after seriously studying more books on physics and chemistry, Ando Meiko's knowledge had expanded considerably.

Whether it would be useful was still unknown... After all, not having any chance for actual combat was what mattered most to her.

Early this morning, as usual, Ando Meiko said goodbye to Rin at the school gate and returned to her classroom.

"Morning, Meiko."

"Morning~" Ando Meiko responded easily to the girls' friendly greetings.

After all, she had been a substitute student for quite some time. She had completely grown accustomed to both the things she should and should not have gotten used to.

She did not resist becoming friends with the girls, but she deliberately kept a little distance so she would not get too close to them.

At the end of the day, Ando Meiko was only filling in for someone else. If she developed feelings deeper than friendship, saying goodbye later would be painful.

Of course, Rei and Rin, whom she could not avoid, did not count.

"Morning, Meiko!"

Among the boys, Yuya was the only shameless guy who still enthusiastically greeted her.

And from Yuya's undisguised gaze, Ando Meiko could tell that he did not merely want to be friends with her. This guy had genuinely fallen for her.

He was the son of a major company president, reasonably handsome, and despite being rich, he had no airs and often mingled easily with his classmates.

Hirata Yuya, who stood above others in both status and position, could choose any girl he wanted in the future. Yet he had fallen for the one person he absolutely should not have.

How ironic was that?

Even now, Ando Meiko wanted to shout at him: Please act normal! I'm your brother! Stop looking at me like that—I seriously can't take it anymore!

She casually responded to Yuya a couple of times, and then the bell for morning class rang. Teacher Chihaya Ji entered from outside, but... today was different from usual, because she had brought someone else with her.

The moment Ando Meiko saw the person following behind the teacher, her eyes widened, and she nearly cried out.

"Let me introduce a transfer student from Russia. Kajieliena, please introduce yourself."

"Understood." Yes, this so-called transfer student was the witch Orbital, Kajieliena.

Needless to say, the boys in the class immediately exploded with excitement. The shock was even greater than when Ando Meiko had first entered this classroom.

It could not be helped. She had naturally silver hair. Standing beside the podium, she looked like an exquisite, adorable foreign girl who had stepped out of an anime or video game.

Her entire body radiated the dazzling protagonist aura.

Especially since Kajieliena had tied her school uniform jacket around her waist. The contrast made people imagine that this seemingly pure, well-behaved girl might have an unexpectedly rebellious side.

After taking the chalk Teacher Ji handed her, Kajieliena wrote her name on the blackboard.

After writing her name, she added katakana above it to show the pronunciation, allowing the class to barely manage to pronounce it.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Kajieliena. Please take care of me."

Her unhurried introduction showed no trace of nervousness. Her expressionless manner made it seem like she was simply going through the motions, creating a huge contrast with Ando Meiko's first introduction.

Isn't her Japanese a little too fluent? Is she really a foreigner, or did she grow up here?

"Kajieliena, you can sit..."

From the moment she entered the classroom, Kajieliena's gaze had remained fixed solely on Ando Meiko. So after finishing her introduction, she walked directly toward Meiko without waiting for Teacher Ji's assignment.

Her movements were utterly decisive, without the slightest hesitation or wasted motion, leaving even the normally strict Teacher Ji stunned.

Kajieliena stood before Ando Meiko and looked at her, while Ando Meiko stared back without backing down.

"What's going on? It looks like something happened between Ando and the new beauty!"

"The air feels really tense."

"Judging by how she's dressed, she's probably a delinquent, right? Can Ando beat her?"

"Go, Ando!"

Hey, hey! Boys! Can you stop watching like it's a show? And girls, don't encourage them! What tension could there possibly be between Kajieliena and me? We're just looking at each other, that's all.

Ando Meiko grumbled inwardly, but before she could speak, Teacher Ji's slightly angry voice came at her. "Kajieliena?"

Hey! Silver-haired beauty over there, Teacher Ji's tone is getting pretty dangerous, you know! If you want something, then say it! No matter how hard you stare at me, I'm not transforming here!

Kajieliena did not speak to Ando Meiko. Instead, she turned toward Hirata Yuya beside her. "Could you please move? I want to sit here."

"No!" Yuya refused without hesitation.