Magical Girl? I Got Tricked Into It! Chapter 47

Her skin was as white and delicate as milk, yet beneath that refinement lay not a fair complexion, but a sickly pallor utterly devoid of color.

Could she also be a magical girl hiding her identity?

The strange thought surfaced in Ando Meiko's mind, but she quickly shook it off.

"Mm." Ling Ye let out a soft sound from her throat in acknowledgment, then shifted her gaze away from Ando Meiko and stared off somewhere unknown again.

Since Ling Ye had no intention of paying them any attention, Yuna could only shrug and let it go.

Amid the discussion and chatter of only four people, this somewhat strange group of six collected two tents at the back entrance and followed the other students into the mountains behind the school.

Once in the back mountains, many students had not gone far before deciding to stay as close to the school as possible. As soon as they entered the camping area, they set up their tents on the spot, preparing to remain there for five days.

Watching their classmates busily running around, Yuna asked, "A lot of people have already picked their spots. Where should we set up camp?"

"If we have to solve our own food and drinking water problems, I think camping by the river would be better."

"T-that makes sense, but maybe there'll b-be wild animals by the river." Hui said softly, sounding worried.

But if there was one thing deep in the mountains never lacked, aside from wild vegetables and fruit, it was animals.

She had also picked up on the hint in Sister Xia's final words. That meant wild animals would probably appear on this mountain.

And when it came to places wild animals frequented, there was only one answer: water sources.

"Relax. If anything really happens, that person who maxed out the grip-strength tester will handle it, right?" Rei glanced at Kajieliena teasingly.

"Mm, it's fine. I'll act." There was not a trace of emotion in Kajieliena's reply to Rei's teasing tone.

Ando Meiko looked at Rei, who seemed like a completely different person, then at Kajieliena, who looked utterly calm, and tilted her head in confusion.

These two should have just met for the first time, right? Why did they feel like explosives with their fuses already burned down to the end, ready to blow at any moment?

Volume Two: The Vanished Everyday Life: Chapter Nineteen: Camping Begins

After venturing deep into the woods and reaching a water source, they found that although it was some distance from the mountain school, this was one of the few decent campsites nearby.

After checking the terrain, Rei nodded in satisfaction. "Mm-hm, this place isn't bad. It's close to water, has a wide field of view, and plenty of space. We can cook here or run away if we need to."

Yuna patted Rei on the back and laughed. "Hey, Rei, don't talk like we're definitely going to be in danger. That's bad luck."

"It's better to be prepared. Running into danger isn't scary; what's scary is not being prepared to deal with it."

"Your mind works fast. Everything you say sounds reasonable."

"I'm not like you, with nothing but romance dramas in your head all day."

As the two traded jabs, Ando Meiko turned toward the two people behind her who had already set down their luggage and sighed softly.

"Kajieliena and Ling Ye, don't just sit around either. Hurry up and pitch the tents. Otherwise, when we go look for food later, we won't wait for you."

Hearing Ando Meiko's words, the two expressionlessly picked up their luggage and moved closer to her. They then took out the simple tents and began setting them up.

What puzzled Ando Meiko was that although these two had similarly detached personalities, they were unusually skilled at pitching tents.

Especially with Kajieliena's monstrous strength helping out, two neat tents stood before Ando Meiko in less than fifteen minutes.

That speed was far faster than the three people on Rei's side setting up a single tent.

"What's in the remaining three backpacks?"

They opened the three backpacks other than the ones containing tents. Once everything had been taken out and laid together, they found a set of simple cooking utensils, tableware, and a whole bag of rice.

Seeing that there was a set of tableware for each person, Yuna slowly breathed a sigh of relief. "I knew it. There was no way they'd make us use leaves as bowls."

"Don't overthink it. Anyway, go gather some dry branches nearby first."

At that, Yuna immediately raised her hand. "Teacher Rei! I volunteer to collect firewood."

"Of course, but it would be safer to go with one more person."

"I-if you don't mind..."

"I'll go with her."

Hui had been about to speak, but after Ando Meiko's self-recommendation interrupted her, she carefully lowered the hand she had just begun to raise.

Ando Meiko felt a little helpless at the sight. Under normal circumstances, she would not have minded letting Hui and Yuna go together.

But their camp was rather deep in the mountains, and since they could not rule out the danger of wild animal attacks, it was better for one of them to go with someone capable of fighting than for two ordinary girls to go alone.

"Kajieliena, how about you take Hui to gather some wild vegetables nearby?"

"Sure." Kajieliena agreed without refusing. She quickly stood, walked over to Hui, and extended a hand. "Let's go."

"Ugh..." Looking up at that cold, expressionless pretty face, Hui shrank back slightly.

So scary... What should I do... Is this person really okay? She isn't some delinquent girl, is she? Is she going to drag me somewhere nobody can see and threaten me? L-look, she's staring at me. She's just staring at me without moving...

As her mind directed and acted out a whole scene of its own, Hui's body trembled slightly with fear, yet she did not dare meet Kajieliena's eyes.

"Um..." Hui had barely moved the hand she meant to offer when Kajieliena grabbed it, pulling her up from the ground. "Eek!?"

"If we don't prepare the ingredients quickly, we'll go hungry at noon."

"O-okay..." Hui replied weakly. Though she wanted to resist, she could not break free from Kajieliena's hand, which gripped her small hand as firmly as a pair of pliers.

"G-going this far..."

"It's fine. There's no scent of wild beasts nearby."

Though Hui still felt uneasy after being dragged into the dense forest, she did not know why, but whenever she looked at this cool-looking girl, she felt an inexplicable sense of security.

While sorting through the supplies, Kajieliena turned and happened to see Ling Ye sitting nearby with her eyes closed, resting. She handed her a small pot.

"Ling Ye, can you help fill this pot with water from the river?"

Without nodding, agreeing, or saying a word, Ling Ye took the pot and slowly rose to walk toward the river. Before long, she returned carrying a pot full of clean water.

"Good. As long as we boil it, we can ensure the water is safe."

Rei glanced at Ling Ye, who had returned to her original spot, and frowned slightly. She truly regretted it. This is so awkward. If I'd known it would turn out like this, I should've gone to gather firewood with Meizi.

The six of them divided their tasks fairly clearly. At least everyone had done something. Once Ando Meiko and the others had gathered enough dry firewood, Kajieliena returned with a pile of wild vegetables whose names none of them knew.

The task of taking the wild vegetables to the supervising teacher was left to Kajieliena and Ling Ye.

When they turned around, they found that Rei had already piled broken stones into two small makeshift stoves for cooking.

"Now we have wild vegetables. What about meat? We can't possibly eat vegetarian food for five days, can we?"

"If we don't go hunting, there's as much meat in the river as we could want."

They understood what she meant, but even if there were many fish in the river, so what? They could not catch them with their bare hands. They could not exactly sit in the water waiting for fish to bite.

Rei guessed what the two were thinking and stopped beating around the bush. She picked up a fairly straight branch, took out a small knife, and shaved its tip sharp stroke by stroke.

"Where did you get that thing? Won't you get punished for bringing things in without permission?" Ando Meiko looked at the small knife in Rei's hand, feeling faintly uneasy.

"It came as an extra. You could collect one beside the tent pickup area. I guess you were too eager to leave and didn't notice."

"Huh? We could do that?"

"But each group could only collect one, so I didn't tell you."

Ando Meiko smiled and shook her head, generously giving Rei a thumbs-up.

Thanks to Rei's careful observation, they had not overlooked these little tools that could make survival easier.

After handing the two sharpened branches to Ando Meiko and Yuna, Rei stood and gave them a slight salute. "Private Second Class, Private Third Class! The camp's meals are entirely in your hands."

"Yes, ma'am!" Yuna was in the mood to play along with the joke.

"U-understood." After replying simply, Ando Meiko silently stared at the branch in her hand, unable to say another word for a long while.

You've got to be kidding me. I'm not Superman. How am I supposed to spear fish with a branch?

Volume Two: The Vanished Everyday Life: Chapter Twenty: None of Your Business

[Master, catching fish can also count as training.]

[Training? How would I train?]

[Practice focusing your attention, practice finding your opponent's openings, practice the angle of your attacks, and so on.]

[That actually sounds kind of reasonable. Since you put it that way, I'll give it a try.]

In these woods of unknown depth, a stream nearly ten meters wide ran across the forest. No one knew where it originated or where it eventually flowed.

Ando Meiko walked to the stream with Yuna, took off her shoes and socks, and stepped barefoot into the slowly flowing water.

Though the stream was not fast and only around half a meter deep, fish could vaguely be seen inside it. Some swam upstream against the current, some headed downstream with it, while others rested beneath rocks.

Focusing intently on the crystal-clear stream, Ando Meiko quickly locked onto a small fish lingering beside a rock.

So as not to startle it, she moved forward cautiously and slowly until the fish gradually entered her attack range.

Her grip on the branch naturally tightened, then she suddenly thrust it forward.

With a splash, the branch entered the water and kicked up droplets, but she felt nothing else.

Watching the fish swim farther and farther away, Ando Meiko slowly let out a breath.

So it really wasn't that easy.

Having two girls spear fish with branches was less practical than simply sitting on the shore and waiting for fish to bite.

Splash, splash, splash.

The impatient girl beside her repeatedly slapped the water's surface with her branch. Judging from her attempt to knock a target unconscious by pure luck, she had clearly become annoyed after failing too many times.

[Focus and feel the movement of the water, the fish's state of motion and its path. Then adjust your breathing and movements.]

[Even if you say that...]

[When Master practiced with the Synchronized Armament, didn't you often sense the flow of magic power in your body? It's the same principle.]

[All right. I'll try again.]

Watching the two girls still hard at work in the distance, Rei's lips curled upward into a charming smile.

Then, as though she had sensed something, the smile gradually faded from her face and was replaced by a chill. Turning around, she looked coldly toward Kajieliena, who had returned to camp carrying a pile of wild vegetables.

Did these two have some kind of history?

Hui keenly caught the shift in Rei's aura and naturally noticed that Rei was staring at Kajieliena. Her small mouth opened, then closed. She repeated this several times, yet no words came out.

Looking at Kajieliena, who was also looking back at her, Rei spoke in an icy voice. "Why can someone who hurt her like that be so close to her?"

"None of your business."

Those simple words instantly made Rei tighten her grip around the knife handle. Magic power spilled from her body with her emotions, spreading outward.

Unable to see the ripples of magic power, Hui was affected by the invisible impact in the air. Her body swayed to the side, and she lost her balance and fell to the ground.

"Ugh... Why was there suddenly such a strong gust of wind?"

Ignoring Hui's complaints from the side, Kajieliena said calmly, "If you want to fight, I'll indulge you. But if you intend to make a move against her, don't blame me for abandoning reason too."

"G-good. Very good." Rei sneered. "You'd better pray you never fall into my hands."

"You should worry about yourself instead." Kajieliena set the wild vegetables that the teacher had already inspected to one side, then casually found a place to sit. "Iris came looking for you, didn't she?"

At the mention of that irritating name, Rei's lips moved slightly before her brows suddenly knitted together.

She did not know where Kajieliena had gotten the information, but that executive-level witch had done far more than simply come looking for her.

Not long ago, when she had been fighting Void Beasts in the Void World, that female pervert had suddenly attacked her while Marugang had separated from her to battle a Void Beast.

If Marugang had not returned in time after noticing something was wrong, she would probably already have been imprisoned at God's Staff headquarters by Iris.

Seeing Rei's ever-changing expression, a gleam of schadenfreude flashed through Kajieliena's eyes.

They had once been companions in the same organization, and both knew the other inside out. Their relationship had not originally been this strained, although Kajieliena truly had attacked Rei while investigating the Dragon Vein.

But Rei should have understood clearly that Kajieliena had held back. Even after this matter was over, Rei would not have harbored such hostility toward her as she did now.

From what Rei had just done, and from the sudden hostility she had shown Kajieliena, Kajieliena guessed that Rei might hold special feelings for Ando Meiko.

After all, this was the extreme emotion known as jealousy, born when a woman became jealous.

Of course, Kajieliena had finally found research material valuable enough to let her leave the organization. Naturally, she would not let go easily. Even if she had to face Rei's hatred, that would not change.

She truly could not defeat Iris, but against Marugang, even if she could not win, she could at least remain undefeated.