Magical Girl? I Got Tricked Into It! Chapter 26

"According to feng shui, mountain ranges carry the flow of qi through their veins. They gather wind and store water, rising and falling like dragons—these are Dragon Veins."

Although Ando Meiko looked utterly confused, Kajieliena continued without offering much explanation.

"Mountains are a dragon's momentum, while water is a dragon's blood. Tokyo used to be the origin point of the surrounding Dragon Veins, but a battle in the Void World turned this place completely upside down."

"Huh?"

A battle in the Void World could turn the real world upside down? Were there gods fighting gods in there or something?

"Although the mountains were leveled, the underground river—the dragon's blood—remained. In the Void World, this Dragon Vein manifested as a flow of magical power."

If what Kajieliena said was true, then a hidden undercurrent brimming with magical power lay beneath the Void World.

So she, Ando Meiko, was actually living atop a Dragon Vein?

"The organization detected that the Dragon Vein, which had been stable for years, was flowing and converging in a strange manner. That's why they sent me to investigate this city."

"Then why did you fire a cannon straight at Xiphias?"

"I thought she would definitely interfere with me. Just in case, I wanted her to spend a few months in the hospital first."

Sis, was that cluster cannon really supposed to put someone in the hospital for a few months? It had punched through triple anti-magic defense enhancements. If it had hit a person, it would've scattered even their ashes.

"Forget it. These topics are giving me a headache. I should head home..." Ando Meiko turned back to glance at Kajieliena. "You're not planning to follow me home too, are you?"

"No. Proper rest helps the brain relax and improves the precision of research. Though your behavior at home may possess more research value than usual... See you tomorrow, Ando Meiko."

"Oh, right."

"What is it?"

"Stop calling me by my full name. It sounds weird."

"Understood, Ando Meiko."

"Just call me Meizi! Kajieliena! Bye!" Ando Meiko was so irritated she could barely contain herself.

She had practically spelled it out for her—just call her by her name! Did Kajieliena seriously need her to say it outright, like, "Yes, Your Majesty, I understand, Your Majesty"?

Was Kajieliena nothing but a block of white wood outside of research?

"I'm home!"

The moment Fuko heard Ando Meiko's voice, she rushed out of the living room and gave her a solid bear hug.

"Welcome home, Meizi. Do you want to take a bath first, eat first... or eat me first...?"

Kajieliena had nearly driven her mad that morning, and once she relaxed at home, Ando Meiko suddenly felt so weak that she couldn't break free from Fuko's embrace.

In that case, I'll eat you first... Nom!

"Ah~!"

Ando Meiko tilted her head and gently bit Fuko's chest. Perhaps sensing something unusual, Fuko released her and let her sit on the floor.

"Honestly, Meizi, tell me before you do something like that. If it's you, I wouldn't mind going a little further, you know."

"I only did that because I didn't have the strength to push you away."

"Mm, so that was it."

What was with that slightly disappointed expression, Fuko? Did she really want to do that? This body of mine was a girl's body, after all.

"Then let's eat first. You need to eat your fill to recover your strength."

"Forget it. I don't really have an appetite right now. I want to take a bath and unwind first."

"Then go ahead. Run some hot water while you're at it."

"Okay. Don't wait for me. You guys can eat first."

"Okay~"

Once inside the bathroom, Ando Meiko showered while filling the bathtub. By the time she had cleaned herself off, the tub was nearly full.

She tested the temperature with her foot, and after confirming it wasn't too hot, she lowered her entire body into the water.

"Ah, this feels great..."

Just as she was savoring the moment, the door to the partition suddenly opened. When she turned around, she saw a red-haired little girl with twin tails entering the bathroom.

"Oh, it's Ruby."

"Master, sob... Let me bathe with you too. I really want to snuggle with you, Master."

Ando Meiko did not refuse—not because she didn't intend to, but because Ruby gave her no chance. Before she had even finished speaking, Ruby had already slipped into the bathtub.

The hot water she had worked so hard to fill overflowed because of the extra person, but Ando Meiko did not scold her over something so minor.

Whenever there was nothing to do in class, Ando Meiko would usually chat with Ruby. Yet Kajieliena had only been here for a day, and she had already left both of them feeling stifled.

Was that woman some kind of walking jammer? Being able to interfere even with telepathic communication was way too ridiculous.

Still, with someone sitting in front of her, the bathtub—which had not been very large to begin with—didn't feel that crowded. Ruby was tiny, the kind of little girl people would mistake for an elementary school student if no one told them otherwise.

In the hot water, the ambiguous sensation of their bodies touching began to heal the emotional wounds Kajieliena and Xiphias had inflicted on her.

"Ruby, can you not move or talk for a while?"

"Master?"

Ruby did not understand what Ando Meiko meant. Just as she was about to ask, she was tightly pulled into the arms of the girl behind her.

"Eh? Master? Wh-what's wrong?" Ando Meiko ignored her startled question.

This was enough. Just let me hold her for a little while. Even if it was Ruby, holding a beautiful girl in my arms felt really healing.

"Come to think of it, I never got to look in a mirror while transformed, but don't I look like you do now after I transform?"

"Yes. The form you use after transforming into Magical Girl Ruby is me."

"Eh?"

"What's wrong, Master? Don't you like it...?"

"It's not that..."

Ando Meiko's silence clearly made Ruby nervous, but she was enjoying the time being held by her master, so she did not dare make any rash movements.

If my transformed appearance was Ruby's, then I was way too cute, wasn't I?

Volume One: The Story of How I Got Tricked Into Becoming a Magical Girl: Chapter Forty-Five: It Should Be Fine, Right?

"Going straight from a mature woman's figure to a little girl's body... This Ether Body is way too versatile, isn't it?"

"Not really. Only Master can do that."

"Hm?"

"Once someone transforms into Aether, their Aether form becomes fixed. Transformation only changes the battle outfit, hair color, and hairstyle. Aside from changing hair length, the most it can do to the body is alter the face shape."

"So in the end, it's the Half-Aether Body's fault again."

"Exactly. Master's Ether Body hasn't taken a fixed form, so it is highly malleable. If you use my model to replace your own during battle, it can also prevent your true identity from being discovered."

"True."

She had to agree with Ruby. This smart wand was genuinely clever. If she changed into an entirely different person after transforming, who would know her real identity was Ando Meiko? They might even think she was an elementary school student from some nearby school.

It was just that this method of hiding her identity seemed completely useless against Xiphias and Kajieliena.

Could higher-ranking magical girls possess a skill like the one called True Sight in games?

But if that were the case, Xiphias would not have used charm magic on Marugang to test her back then.

Kajieliena, on the other hand, might possess such an ability. When they had met for the second time, her eyes had suddenly turned red as she looked at Ando Meiko. That was clearly unusual.

Ando Meiko could only hope that such an ability was extremely rare. Otherwise, if every witch could use it, she would have no way to hide no matter how hard she tried.

Of course, compared to those trivial matters, Ando Meiko cared more about what Kajieliena had told her concerning the Dragon Vein.

Though she had never encountered one herself, hearing about something so interesting had stirred up quite a bit of curiosity.

"Did you hear what Kajieliena said today?"

"Mm..."

"That so-called Dragon Vein? What exactly is it?"

"My memories of it are vague too. I only know that the magical power within that Dragon Vein is far from simple. It might contain the legendary Primordial Aether."

"Primordial... Aether?"

"Master?"

"Sorry, I spaced out for a moment."

She had taken in far too many new terms today. The CPU in her brain had been running at high speed for so long that it was about to crash, yet she still had not fully processed everything Kajieliena had said.

"Aether, Demonic Aether, Primordial Aether... What's the difference between all these different kinds of Aether, anyway?"

"You should ask Kajieliena about that, Master. I'm not omniscient and omnipotent."

"Forget it. I don't want anything to do with that person anymore. Just kill me." Whenever she thought about having to face Kajieliena every time she returned to school, she wanted to die.

She was clearly an executive of the Witch Organization. Couldn't she straighten out her position a little? Why did she keep coming to bother me...?

No... If she straightened out her position, wouldn't I be the first one she killed? She can't straighten it out. She absolutely can't. Forget it, I'll just endure for a while longer.

While Ando Meiko was still locked in an internal struggle, Ruby turned around to face her.

"Master."

"What?"

"I'm sorry."

"You..." Just as she was about to say something, she was cut off.

She... she actually injected magic into my magical crest. This girl was getting way too carried away!

A strange sensation spread outward from the crest, quickly flooding through her entire body. The surging feeling overwhelmed her in an instant, and even her attempts to resist became weak and powerless, more like flirting than struggling.

"No, mm..."

She wanted to push Ruby away, but the slick sensation left her nowhere to place her hands.

Like an open-world map, she was constantly explored by a player named Ruby. In the game dominated by Ruby, Ando Meiko's sense of presence grew weaker and weaker.

"Meizi? Are you done? The food's going to get cold."

That final straw broke through her last line of defense, and the frustration she had nowhere to vent only made the sensation more intense.

Ah... already... nothing... matters anymore.

"Master~ I knew I liked you best."

Although Fuko received no response from outside, fortunately she had no intention of coming in. After saying that, she left.

Yet Ruby pounced on her again like a starving wolf.

Wait, you don't have a cooldown period...?

The next morning, Ando Meiko returned to her seat weakly. The moment she sat down, she collapsed limply over her desk.

Kajieliena beside her noticed that something was off and asked curiously, "Meizi, what's wrong with you?"

"Eh? N-no, it's nothing. I'm just a little tired." Even her answer sounded guilty.

"Your blood and qi are unstable, your steps are unsteady, and you seem to be deliberately hiding something. This scent... I see. Last night..."

"Wah! Stop, stop, Kajieliena! Stop!" Ando Meiko made strange noises to forcibly cover up what Kajieliena was about to say. "Honestly, even if you notice some things, you can't just say them out loud."

It was her first time experiencing something like that after becoming a girl, yet Ruby had given her no chance to rest and continued her exploration for an entire hour.

That damn smart wand was way too bold.

By the time Ando Meiko came out of the bathroom, she was practically dehydrated. On top of that, she had to pretend nothing had happened in front of Fuko while her legs were weak. It had been utterly miserable.

"I understand. But are you really okay? Today is the physical fitness test."

"Eh? It should... be fine, right?" Ando Meiko replied awkwardly.

She really had forgotten about it. Luckily, she had recovered from yesterday's exertion by now. Otherwise, with her legs that weak, forget a physical fitness test—just getting to school would have been torture.

Fortunately, compared to yesterday, Kajieliena was much more restrained.