A Magical Girl? I Got Tricked into It!

"I was afraid you'd run away the moment I told you."

Hearing that, Ando Meiko shook her head helplessly.

Rin was right. If Ando Meiko had known things would turn out like this from the start, she definitely would not have stepped outside her home.

But now that she had boarded the pirate ship, how could she back down from a fight? Besides, judging by the lack of hostility Rin showed, they simply wanted to understand how she fought.

Ando Meiko's guess was mostly right.

Every Magical Girl who joined had to go through this at the beginning. It was not Rin's idea, but something Commander Yōichi had deliberately arranged.

Because this was the most direct way to observe a Magical Girl's fighting style.

Only after understanding a Magical Girl's fighting style could they assign her a tactical role and make future tactical arrangements more accurate and convenient.

With that in mind, Ando Meiko stopped hesitating. She pulled off the necklace around her neck and let it transform in her hand into an exquisite magic wand.

"Since Three Purities is in the mood, then of course I'll oblige."

"Mei... Go, Ruby!" Nanako, who was watching from the side, had wanted to cheer Ando Meiko on. But she suddenly remembered that Sister Rin had changed how she addressed her after entering this strange space, so she hurriedly corrected herself.

Looking at the adorable little girl, Furate asked curiously, "Little sister, who are you? How did you come here with Three Purities?"

"Nanako is Sister Ruby's familiar!"

"A... a familiar?" Upon hearing those words, every Magical Girl besides Ando Meiko and Rin, who had already assumed their stances, revealed shocked expressions.

Aika, who had met Ando Meiko once in the command room, was especially puzzled as she muttered, "But isn't Ruby Obsidian-Type like me? Why does she have a familiar?"

Thinking of that, their gazes all shifted toward the graceful figure in the distance.

"Take this, Ruby." Rin stepped forward, darting ahead as she raised her sword and charged straight at Ando Meiko.

Watching the completely unadorned slash coming toward her, Ando Meiko's face grew serious. "At least give me some time to prepare myself."

She hurriedly raised her magic wand and transformed it into the hardest, most shield-like object... a frying pan.

"What an unusual weapon..." Rin paused slightly at the sight of the frying pan, but quickly recovered. The wooden sword in her hand came down without mercy.

The wooden sword struck the frying pan, instantly producing a strange ringing sound like someone beating a gong.

After flipping through the air and landing, Rin took a sideways step and violently kicked out with her long right leg. Like a solid iron bar, it slammed into the body of the frying pan with a thunderous boom.

"You're seriously going all out!"

Seeing the dent Rin's kick had left in the frying pan, a chill ran down Ando Meiko's spine.

She did not think Rin would hurt her, but if that stepping side kick had landed on her, she would probably have gone down and lost her fighting ability in an instant.

She shot backward while swinging her magic wand, which had returned to its original form. A large amount of magic power gathered in the air, eventually forming tiny red dots that looked like starlight.

"Ruby Splash!"

Under Ando Meiko's control, the tiny red dots that had transformed into bullet-like projectiles sped forward, all converging on Rin.

Rin occasionally swept aside a few red bullets with her sword, but more often, she relied on her speed to evade the attacks flying toward her as much as possible.

Watching Rin's movements, Ando Meiko finally breathed a slow sigh of relief.

Back when Marugang had faced her Ruby Splash, he had stood completely still and cut down every one of her red bullets with a single sword, all while protecting Xiphias behind him.

Though she had become a Magical Girl, Rin was still human after all. Naturally, she did not possess the terrifying reflexes of a familiar, so she could not replicate what Marugang had done that day.

If this works, then I'll use this move to keep her suppressed.

After thinking for a moment, she flicked her magic wand. More red points of light gathered in the air, then joined the pursuit of Rin as reinforcements.

Facing the increasingly dense barrage of light, the girl calmly dodged without much tension in her eyes. Instead, she casually took out a red Talisman Script and flung it toward Ando Meiko.

Volume Two: The Vanished Everyday Life: Armament

Seeing the red talisman, Ando Meiko was immediately startled. She instantly leaped backward, trying to put as much distance between herself and it as possible.

During the Void Spider extermination battle, Ando Meiko had witnessed just how powerful red talismans could be.

Back then, the spider cocoon woven from Demonic Aether had been broken open entirely because of the explosive talisman. The Silver Impact Ando Meiko released had merely followed the opening blasted into it and forced its way inside.

There was even less need to mention the Fire Talisman. Once even a little Samadhi True Fire stuck to something, it would unreasonably burn its way upward along the Aether.

Whether this red talisman was an explosive talisman or a Fire Talisman containing Samadhi True Fire, she did not want to clash with it head-on.

Before her backward leap had even ended, Ando Meiko's magic wand transformed in her hand into a red recurve bow.

However, this bow was nowhere near as large as the one she had used against the Void Spider for the first time, which had been even taller than her transformed self.

After all, this was a fight against a person rather than a Void Beast. If she conjured such a large bow, not only would it restrict her movements, but whether she could even draw it against someone as fast as Rin was uncertain.

When Aika, who was watching the battle, saw Ando Meiko's magic wand switch forms, her gaze sharpened. Her faint smile froze on her face as she stared blankly at the red recurve bow that had suddenly appeared in Ando Meiko's hands.

"N-No way... That makes no sense..."

Furate, who was holding Nanako's hand beside her, heard Aika muttering to herself. She looked at Aika in confusion, then at Ando Meiko in the distance as she drew her bow and nocked an arrow.

"What is it, Aika? You look so shocked. Did you notice something?"

"Yeah." Aika nodded, pointing at Ando Meiko in disbelief. "Her weapon turned into a bow."

At Aika's reminder, all the Magical Girls froze slightly. Then, as though they had thought of something, they turned their gazes back to Ando Meiko.

But when they looked at Ando Meiko again, a strange glint flashed through their eyes.

Unaware of how the girls watching were discussing her, Ando Meiko was currently pouring all her attention into the sparring match.

The magical arrow formed from condensed red magic power rested on the bow, ready to fire the instant the string was pulled taut.

The arrow of magic power flew from the string and shot straight through the red talisman rushing toward her.

The pierced red talisman shuddered unnaturally, and the surging magic power spreading across it triggered a violent explosion.

However, as soon as the blast rang out, Ando Meiko realized that its power was far inferior to the explosion from the day they fought the Void Spider.

Though it looked imposing, Rin had deliberately held back during this normal sparring match.

Since she was holding back, Ando Meiko no longer needed to panic so much.

The bow returned to its magic-wand form. Just as she gathered magic power and tried to use Ruby Splash's properties to suppress Rin again, the girl's nimble figure suddenly burst through the thin smoke kicked up by the explosion and charged at the unguarded Ando Meiko.

"Wah!" Facing Rin's charge, Ando Meiko hurriedly pulled back her magic wand, transforming it into a frying pan and raising it before herself.

But the defensive move she made in her panic proved useless.

Rin's lively eyes blinked slightly. She tapped the ground with her toes, and her suddenly increased speed allowed her to slip easily past Ando Meiko.

Stopping abruptly half a meter behind her, Rin leaned back and pressed her back tightly against Ando Meiko's.

"Huh?" Before Ando Meiko could react, the faintly cool sensation on her neck made her freeze.

Rin held a wooden sword in a reverse grip, bringing it over her own shoulder and resting it against Ando Meiko's neck.

The victor had already been decided.

"Sister Ruby, you lost."

"I lost." After saying those words, Ando Meiko let out a breath. "Wow, Three Purities really is amazing."

Though she praised Rin aloud, Ando Meiko's heart was filled with confusion.

She might have been a rookie in actual combat, but Rin was far too proficient at fights between Magical Girls. She was as practiced as a battle-hardened veteran, never wasting a single motion when she fought.

"Both big sisters were amazing! Watching made Nanako want to play too."

Smiling, Ando Meiko patted Nanako's head, but her gaze settled on Aika, who was walking toward her with a somewhat gloomy expression.

"Aika, what's wrong?" Ando Meiko asked.

She and Aika could be considered acquaintances, so Ando Meiko did not hold back. Seeing that something seemed off about Aika's expression, she directly asked.

"Ruby, can you tell me how you did that just now?"

"How I did it? You mean... Ruby Splash?"

"That's the name of your magic. No, I mean how did you turn your magic wand into a bow?"

"Oh, that? It was just imagination..." As soon as she said that, not only Aika, but Furate and the other Magical Girls as well looked at her in astonishment.

Their reaction left Ando Meiko confused. She did not think she had said anything wrong. Turning her magic wand into a frying pan or a bow—wasn't it all done through her imagination?

"Wasn't it... through imagination?" She repeated herself, this time even sounding like she was asking a question.

Clearly, their stares had made even her lose confidence. Still, Aika's question struck her as strange.

As fellow Obsidian-Type Magical Girls, Aika should have known the characteristics and fighting style of Obsidian-Type Magical Girls. Why would she ask such a pointless question?

"Don't Obsidian-Type Magical Girls fight through imagination? What's wrong? Did I say something wrong?"

"Huh?" Aika made an incredulous sound. "Ruby, what are you talking about? The ability of Obsidian-Type Magical Girls is Armament. What does imagination have to do with it?"

"Armament?" Ando Meiko's brows furrowed slightly as suspicion and surprise blended across her face.

It was like spending a long time seriously writing code, only for a coworker to suddenly come over and tell you that it was full of bugs.

Though she did not understand what this so-called Armament was, Ando Meiko did not believe there was anything wrong with the way she fought.

After all, she had fought several times already, and she had indeed relied on her imagination to guide the magic power in her body and produce the results she wanted.

[Ruby, what's going on?]

Volume Two: The Vanished Everyday Life: Training Space

She asked Ruby in her heart.

Ruby had personally told her the day after tricking her into signing the contract that Obsidian-Type Magical Girls fought through imagination.

But according to another Magical Girl, the ability of Obsidian-Type Magical Girls was fixed Armament.

The two statements could not be called completely contradictory, but unless she understood the actual situation, Ando Meiko did not think she could calm down.

[That's not right. According to the memories passed down from the previous master, Obsidian-Type Magical Girls really do fight through imagination. And didn't you experience it yourself, Master?]

Clearly, Ruby was also skeptical of Aika's claim.

[Don't worry yet, Master. Let's hear what this Magical Girl has to say first.]

With one shocked and the other confused, Rin watched the two of them speak as though they were being deliberately mysterious. She could not help shaking her head before stepping forward and patting Aika on the shoulder.

"Aika, tell us what you know too. Even though we've partnered up many times, my understanding of Obsidian-Type Magical Girls is still rather vague."

Feeling the equally curious gazes of her sisters, Aika adjusted her emotions and slowly said, "This is also what the senior who guided me told me..."

When Obsidian-Type Magical Girls first began their journey, they obtained an ability called Armament Prototype.

Their magic wands would transform into highly unusual cold weapons based on their owner's Aether characteristics and compatibility rate.

After the magic wand was successfully transformed into a weapon for the first time, that weapon form would become fixed to the wand and become the Obsidian-Type Magical Girl's exclusive weapon.

This was the ability of Obsidian-Type Magical Girls: Battle Armament.

In battle, as long as an Obsidian-Type Magical Girl used magic power, it would resonate with the Battle Armament in her hand, activating different combat magic and physical enhancement abilities from that cold weapon.

Unlike Azure Magical Girls, the physical enhancement abilities of Radiant Stone Magical Girls could only be applied to themselves through their Battle Armaments.

Therefore, Radiant Stone Magical Girls who used cold weapons and could enhance their bodies were basically all close-combat types. Rather than Magical Girls, calling them physical girls would be more fitting.

"Battle Armament, cold weapons, close combat, physical enhancement." Ando Meiko muttered those words, beginning to understand.

The three factions of Magical Girls, each with different abilities, could actually form a suitable team.

Radiant Stone Magical Girls enhanced their bodies and fought Void Beasts at close range, serving as tanks in the team. Starry Magical Girls used long-range magical attacks and mobility, serving as the main attackers.

And there was even less need to mention how obvious the support abilities of Azure Magical Girls were.

She possessed ranged magical attacks, yet they were not as powerful as those of Starry Magical Girls. As a Radiant Stone Magical Girl, she not only lacked Battle Armament, but also had no physical enhancement abilities.

Instead, someone like Ando Meiko, who fought through imagination magic, was the greatest oddity among them.

As Aika patiently explained everything she knew, Ando Meiko awkwardly brushed aside the hair hanging over her forehead.

After hearing someone put it that way, the confidence she had felt before instantly turned into the feeling that everything she did was only half-baked.