Magical Girl? I Was Set Up to Become One! Chapter 35

Ando Meiko clearly saw the figure dart past her. She sighed, then slowly shook her head.

Well, someone really did dare to charge in.

Honestly, why was this kid in such a hurry? But just watching wasn't an option either. Once that spider absorbed all the Demonic Aether into its body, who knew how much stronger it would become.

"Conserve your magic power and choose the best attack positions yourselves! Get as close as possible before attacking, or you'll just be wasting magic power for nothing."

"Three Purities, I'll cover you."

"Okay."

The Void Spider noticed the two magical girls approaching. Still absorbing Demonic Aether, it turned to face them, raised its front legs as the muscles contracted, then viciously stabbed forward.

"Ruby Splash!"

Specks of red starlight gathered with the swing of her magic wand. As Ando Meiko thrust forward, bullet-like red points of light shot out at incredible speed and struck the spider leg.

Her attack hadn't injured the Void Spider, but Ruby Splash knocked that spider leg slightly off course, allowing it to brush past Rin.

And that was the perfect time to attack.

Once she entered her range, Rin held nothing back as she flung the talismans in her hand at the spider. Some of the talismans that struck its body exploded violently, while others transformed into flames that rapidly spread across the spider's entire body.

When the Void Spider shook those flames onto the ground, not even the liquid Demonic Aether could stop them from continuing to burn.

The flames released through those talismans could actually burn even Demonic Aether?

[Could those flames be the legendary Samadhi True Fire?]

Ruby's surprised voice reminded her of the xianxia stories she had read online. Come to think of it, Rin could use talismans, and yin-yang symbols decorated her battle outfit.

Kajieliena had also mentioned that the inheritance of Three Purities, this magical girl, had not come from this land, but from a great nation across the sea.

In that case, could Rin's Star Tarot theme, Three Purities, be something related to Taoism?

Yet Ruby's guess was correct. The flames contained within those talismans were Samadhi True Fire, able to burn away all things and continue blazing without end.

That was also why Rin believed she could burn all those cocoons clean.

Gigigigigigi...

A fierce gust swept in. The flames on the Demonic Aether had completely dispersed, and pitch-black energy erupted from the Void Spider's body. It merged with the Demonic Aether that had not been fully burned away and began spreading from the ground, soon engulfing the entire area.

This was an ability possessed only by God-Tier Void Beasts: a domain.

"Impossible! A domain? How could a Ghost-Tier Void Beast possess a domain that only God-Tier ones have?"

Yōichi's incredulous voice echoed in the girls' ears, but they had no spare attention to consider his question.

Rin, the closest to the spider, became its first target. Once the domain fully formed, its speed nearly doubled, and in less than a breath, it had reached Rin and Ando Meiko.

"Three Purities, watch out!" Her magic wand transformed into a massive frying pan. Ando Meiko raised it in front of herself to block the thrust of a spider leg, then tilted the pan to redirect it aside.

At the same time, the knocked-back Ando Meiko gripped the frying pan's handle with both hands in midair, used her waist as a pivot, and swung it with all her strength.

Volume One: How I Was Set Up to Become a Magical Girl: Chapter 62: Physical Magical Girl

With an ear-piercing metallic clash, the frying pan collided with another stabbing spider leg, knocking that attack off course as well.

The immense recoil smashed Ando Meiko from the air to the ground. The feeling of solid ground beneath her feet brought her no joy, because both her hands and feet had already gone numb from the impact.

Rin forcibly grabbed the collar of the temporarily immobilized Ando Meiko and pulled her out of the Void Spider's attack range.

As the spider moved in pursuit, three consecutive light cannons struck its face with precision. Hit in the eyes, it raised its spider legs to shield its face in an almost human-like manner.

"Nice support!"

The two missiles descending from the sky made the spider's advancing body jerk suddenly. It raised its abdomen toward Furago, firing a white sphere from its silk-spinning organ. The sphere transformed into a massive net that blanketed Furate.

"You think you can catch me at that speed?"

The thrusters on her external gear erupted with blazing exhaust. Her explosive acceleration quickly carried Furate beyond the net's reach.

Having successfully lured the Void Spider from the mall into this area filled with obstructing high-rises, the magical girls' offensive officially began.

"Leave your positions immediately after attacking. Move using the buildings as cover, and keep the Ghost-Tier Lord Spider contained here for extermination!"

"Understood!"

"Attack!" The magical girls launched their attacks together, every strike hitting its target. No matter how agile the spider was, the cramped city gave it little room to maneuver.

Yet even without dodging at all, the tough chitin covering its body withstood every magical attack, leaving it almost completely unharmed.

Should they say their attacks were too simplistic, or that they lacked combat awareness? How could such scattered firepower possibly break through a Lord monster's defenses?

Watching them fight in such a disorganized way, Ando Meiko slowly sighed.

Not only had their attacks failed to break the spider's defense, they had instead enraged the creature born from the Void even further. It curled its abdomen and wildly fired silk balls as though venting its fury. Every silk ball that struck a building burst into an enormous web.

"This monster's aim is terrible. Sisters, put in some effort! Focus your attacks on its legs first and reduce its mobility."

"Okay." Several magical girls answered in agreement. After landing, Furate, who had been handling harassment, also retracted her flight gear. Only the two combat cannons remained connected to her body.

She did this not only to conserve strength and magic power, but more importantly, because the area had unknowingly become filled with spiderwebs that prevented her from flying freely.

"Oh no!"

Ando Meiko looked at the giant web gradually covering the city. When she came to her senses, she instantly realized what the spider was trying to do.

It wasn't firing wildly at all. It was shooting with a purpose, and that purpose was to completely seal off this area with webs and trap everyone like turtles in a jar.

She turned and met Rin's eyes. Ando Meiko could see a trace of worry in them. Clearly, Rin had the same thought and had recognized the spider's tactics as well.

"Everyone, cover me."

Rin tried to launch another attack to interrupt the Void Spider, which was continuously releasing webs. As Ando Meiko accompanied Rin in charging toward the spider, she continuously gathered magic power inside her wand.

After landing, Furate was the first to fire two rockets. Propelled by magic power, the high-speed rockets flew past the two girls and slammed into the spider's head first.

The rocket attack briefly stiffened the spider's body, creating an excellent opening for Ando Meiko and the others.

This time, Rin took out four blue talismans completely different from the ones before. With a forward flick, the four talismans turned into four streaks of blue light and attached themselves to her limbs.

As she charged toward the Void Spider, Rin actually began forming a series of somewhat complicated hand seals.

"Lin, Immovable Wisdom King, its strength reaches the heavens!"

Once every hand seal was complete, Rin's body showed no visible changes, but the blue talismans attached to her limbs all lit up at once.

"What is this... huh?!"

Ando Meiko did not even have time to be surprised. Rin, having reached beneath the Void Spider, stomped fiercely against the ground. A burst of force erupted, spreading several visible cracks across the ground beneath her feet.

Using the recoil from shattering the ground, she shot upward from below like an arrow, driving straight into the spider's underside.

Her clenched fist struck upward like a rising dragon. The force was so great that it sent the Void Spider, as large as a two-story building, flying several meters into the air.

When Kajieliena had said she fought Rin before, Ando Meiko had wondered who could possibly defeat this physical magical girl. Now, she somewhat understood the principle behind it.

To defeat a physical magical girl, she had to become a physical magical girl first.

Leaping backward into the air, Rin finally drew out her Star Tarot. Yet Ando Meiko did not see her swipe the card at all. The moment she threw it out, the Star Tarot activated.

Magic power condensed into a wall behind the girl. Rin kicked off the wall of air and launched herself again like a spring compressed to its limit, spinning through the air with her waist as the pivot before fiercely sweeping out a kick.

The spider, struck squarely in its forehead's vital point, staggered backward repeatedly before crashing directly into a building, sending countless shards of glass flying everywhere.

The blue talismans completely dissipated. Back beside Ando Meiko, Rin's hands were trembling. Though the effect seemed obvious, the previous attack had placed no small burden on her.

"Rin, how was it?" Yōichi asked doubtfully through the earpiece.

"The chitin on its body is like armor. It's too hard. My attacks just now felt like they were hitting metal. I don't know if they did anything at all."

As soon as Rin finished speaking, the Void Spider rose from the rubble once more. Unlike before, there was now a sunken fist mark on its head.

The result looked obvious, but it was useless. Those attacks still could not break through the solid defense of its chitin.

"Rin, fall back for now and recover your condition."

"Okay."

"Furate, clear the spiderwebs around us. Everyone else, spread out. Azure magical girls, do your best to cast speed-boosting magic on everyone."

"Received."

Yōichi issued command after command to the girls in battle through the earpiece. Almost at once, everyone scattered around the Void Spider.

The Azure magical girls, who had not even obtained familiars yet, began chanting spells. Several beams of the same-colored light shot toward the scattered girls and all poured into their bodies.

Their speed increased slightly. Although Ando Meiko and Rin had retreated earlier than anyone else, the spider had no intention of giving them even a moment to catch their breath.

The moment it saw their intention to retreat, it let out a roar. Its eight legs swung back and forth, becoming blurry afterimages as it rapidly closed in on them.

"Wow, this guy is really angry."

It was obvious that this giant was not merely angry. It looked like it was about to explode with rage.

Volume One: How I Was Set Up to Become a Magical Girl: Chapter 63: Holy Gear—Starlight Brilliance

Two rockets streaked past the girls.

Unlike the ones from before, these two rockets were entirely red and carried unusual magical fluctuations. They were clearly magical attacks transformed from Star Tarot.

The rockets did not strike the spider's body. Instead, they landed beneath its feet. The violent explosion overturned the ground itself, and billowing dust instantly spread through the area.

"That..." Ando Meiko glanced toward the spider. Using the smoke and dust from the explosion as cover, she did not hesitate to pull Rin into the alley between the buildings, causing the Void Spider to lose sight of them.

Once the dust settled, the Void Spider had lost its two targets, Rin and Ando Meiko. It did not search for them, instead transforming its long spider legs directly into blades and wreaking wanton destruction on the surroundings.

"This is bad. If it keeps destroying things like this, it'll have a huge impact on the real world too." Rin thought to herself. Ignoring her own physical condition, she charged straight out from behind cover.

"Hey! Don't go..."

Four blue talismans once again transformed Rin from a magical girl into a physical magical girl, but the moment she charged out, an incoming spider leg struck her head-on.

Even though she had raised a defense, she was still knocked backward. She flew past Ando Meiko, hit the ground, and rolled several times miserably before coming to a stop.

The repeated use of the blue talismans had already pushed Rin's body to its limit. Even after getting back to her feet, she swayed unsteadily, barely able to stand.

"Three Purities, stand down. You've reached your limit!" Yōichi shouted. Before the spider could catch up, Ando Meiko hoisted Rin onto her back and sprinted toward the cover of the buildings.

To cover Ando Meiko and Rin's escape, the other magical girls attacked at the same time. Even Furago switched her external gear into a fighter jet and resumed her harassment, temporarily drawing the spider's attention.

However, the sky filled with webs restricted her movements everywhere, preventing her from fighting at full speed like she had at the start.

"Ruby, can you still perform that attack from last time?" Yōichi's voice came through the communication watch.

That arrow? That arrow had possessed an unmatched force concentrated at a single point. If she could recreate it, it should be enough to break the spider's defenses. Even if it could not kill the creature, with a little guidance, severely injuring it was not impossible.

But for Ando Meiko alone to perform triple charging, magic power was not the only thing she needed. She also needed time.

"Is there an ideal shooting position?" She peeked out from behind cover to observe the entire battlefield, only to find that no matter where she stood, she would be spotted immediately if she stayed still to charge...

"The rooftop. Ruby, forget about me. Get to the rooftop and find a firing position." Rin's reminder made Ando Meiko hesitate for a moment.

Then she gritted her teeth, set Rin down, and ran up the stairs all the way to the rooftop of the tenth floor. From there, she observed the Void Spider and roughly confirmed her field of view.

"Bow, bow, bow!" After such an intense battle, the Aether she could control now was far too little. If she could still enter that state...

"Eek!"

A scream from the distance interrupted her thoughts. Ando Meiko leaned over the railing and looked toward its source. Furate's external gear had dissipated into Aether after exhausting its magic power, and because she had not landed in time, momentum carried her through the air and stuck her onto a spiderweb.

The spider was approaching Furate. Bound by the web, she could not break free at all!

To save Furate, who was trapped in the web and unable to escape, Rin, whom Ando Meiko had left behind cover, revealed herself again. She once more attached blue talismans to herself and tangled with the Void Spider.

"This is bad." Ando Meiko inwardly cried out, then closed her eyes where she stood.

Her consciousness drifted back to the moment she had drawn the great bow, the moment she had broken through the limits of her own magic power.

It was an elusive feeling, as though it did not exist at all. Yet after changing the flow of magic power through her body, it brought an indescribable sense of exhilaration.

But in that instant, she also recalled the first time she had seen Three Purities in the Void World, when the Void Spider's leg had pierced through her.

Only, in her mind, Three Purities' face had been replaced by Rin's, while the scattering Aether had become splashing crimson blood.

Hurry... hurry, there's no time left...

No matter what happened, she would protect Rin. That was what she had promised Rin before entering battle, and Rin had also trusted her enough to leave her back to her.