Magical Girl? I Got Screwed Over!

Her skin was as white and delicate as milk, but beneath that exquisite appearance lay not fair skin, but a sickly pallor seemingly devoid of any trace of blood.

She couldn't possibly be a magical girl with a hidden identity too, could she?

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 once again stared off at something unknown.

Yuna could only shrug at Ling Ye, who clearly had no intention of paying them any attention, and didn't press the matter.

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

Many students hadn't gone far into the back mountain before deciding that the closer they stayed to the school, the better. As soon as they entered the camping area, they set up their tents and prepared to settle in for five days.

Looking at the classmates bustling around them, Yuna asked, "So many 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 there might... might be wild animals near the river," Hui said softly, somewhat worried.

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

She had picked up on Sister Xia's final remark, which seemed to be intended as a hint. In other words, wild animals probably roamed this mountain.

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

"Relax. If anything really happens, won't that person who maxed out the grip-strength tester handle it?" Rei glanced at Kajieliena and teased.

"Mm, it's fine. I'll handle it." There wasn't the slightest emotion in Kajieliena's voice despite Rei's teasing.

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

These two should have only met for the first time, right? Why did they feel like explosives with the fuse burned almost all the way down, ready to blow up at any moment?

Deep in the dense forest, they arrived at a water source. Although it was quite far from the mountain school, it was one of the few decent campsites nearby.

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

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

"It's better to prepare for the worst. Danger itself isn't scary. What's scary is not being prepared to deal with it."

"You really do think fast. Everything you say makes sense."

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

Watching the two trade barbs, Ando Meiko turned back toward the two girls who had already put down their luggage and sighed softly.

"Kajieliena and Ling Ye, don't just sit around. Hurry up and set up the tents. Otherwise, when we go look for food later, we're not taking you with us."

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

What puzzled Ando Meiko was that although the two had similarly detached personalities, they were both extraordinarily skilled at setting up tents.

Especially with Kajieliena's monstrous strength, it took less than fifteen minutes for two exquisite tents to appear before Ando Meiko.

That was much faster than the three people on Rei's side taking to set up just one.

"What's inside the other three backpacks?"

They opened the three remaining backpacks aside from the tents. Once everything was taken out and laid together, they found a simple set of cooking utensils, tableware, and a whole bag of rice.

Looking at the set of tableware for each person, Yuna slowly let out a breath. "I knew it. There's 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 request permission to gather firewood."

"Of course, but it would be safer if you went with someone else."

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

"I'll go with her."

Hui had just been about to speak when Ando Meiko's eager self-recommendation cut her off. She carefully lowered the hand she had been about to raise.

Ando Meiko was somewhat helpless at the sight. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't have minded letting Hui go with Yuna.

But their campsite was a little too deep in the forest, and with the possibility of wild animal attacks not ruled out, it was better for Yuna to go with someone capable of fighting than with another ordinary person.

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

"Sure." Kajieliena answered without refusing, quickly stood up, walked over to Hui, and held out her hand. "Let's go."

"Um..." Looking up at that cold, expressionless pretty face, Hui's body shrank back slightly.

So scary... What should I do... Is this person really okay? She isn't some kind of delinquent, is she? She isn't trying to drag me somewhere no one can see and threaten me, is she? L-Look, she's staring at me without moving...

As her mind directed and acted out an entire scene on its own, Hui's body trembled slightly in fear, yet she didn't dare meet Kajieliena's eyes.

"Um..." Her hand had only just started to move when Kajieliena grabbed it and pulled her up from the ground. "Eh!?"

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

"O-Okay..." Hui answered weakly. Though she wanted to resist, she couldn't break free from Kajieliena's hand, which gripped her little hand as tightly as a pair of pliers.

"Going... going this far..."

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

Although Hui was still somewhat uneasy after being pulled into the dense woods, she didn't know why, but whenever she looked at this cool-looking girl, she felt an inexplicable sense of safety.

Kajieliena, who was sorting supplies, turned and happened to see Ling Ye sitting off to the side with her eyes closed, resting. She handed her a small pot.

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

Without nodding or saying a word, Ling Ye took the pot, stood up, and slowly walked toward the river. Before long, she returned carrying a pot full of clear water.

"Good. As long as we boil it, the water will be safe to use."

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

The division of labor among the six was fairly clear. At the very least, everyone had something to do. After Ando Meiko and the others gathered enough dry firewood, Kajieliena also 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 handed over to Kajieliena and Ling Ye.

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

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

"If we don't go hunting, there's plenty of meat in the river."

They understood what Rei meant, but so what if there were plenty of fish in the river? They definitely couldn't catch them barehanded. It wasn't as if they could sit in the water and wait for fish to bite.

Rei guessed what they were thinking, so she didn't keep them in suspense. She grabbed a fairly straight branch, took out a small knife, and shaved its tip into a point.

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

"It came with the supplies. You could collect one beside the tent pickup point. I guess you were in too much of a hurry to leave, so you didn't see it."

"Eh? You could do that?"

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

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

Thanks to Rei's careful observation, they hadn't missed these little tools that could make survival easier.

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

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

"Y-Yes, ma'am." After giving a simple response, 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?

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

[Training? How?]

[Practice focusing your attention, finding your opponent's openings, and adjusting the angle of your attacks, among other things.]

[That actually makes some sense. Since you put it that way, I'll give it a try.]

Within this forest of unknown depth ran a stream over ten meters wide. No one knew where it originated, nor where it ultimately flowed.

After arriving at the stream with Yuna, Ando Meiko removed her shoes and socks and stepped barefoot into the slowly flowing water.

Though the current wasn't swift and the water was only about half a meter deep, fish could faintly be seen swimming upstream against the current or heading downstream with it. Some also rested beneath rocks.

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

In order not to startle it, she crept forward slowly until the little fish gradually entered her attack range.

Her grip on the branch naturally tightened, and 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 gradually swim away from her, Ando Meiko slowly exhaled.

Of course it wouldn't be that easy.

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

Splash, splash, splash.

The impatient girl beside her repeatedly smacked the water's surface with her branch. Judging by her method of trying to knock a target out by sheer luck, she had clearly grown angry after failing too many times.

[Focus and feel the flow of the stream, the fish's movement and trajectory, then adjust your breathing and movements.]

[Even if you say that...]

[When practicing the Synchronized Armament, don't you often sense the flow of magic power inside your body? It's actually the same principle.]

[All right. I'll try again.]

Watching the two girls still working hard in the distance, Rei's lips curved slightly into a captivating smile.

Then, as if she sensed something, the smile on her face gradually faded and was replaced by a cold expression. Turning around, she stared icily at Kajieliena, who had returned to camp carrying a pile of wild vegetables.

Did these two have some kind of history?

Hui keenly caught the change in Rei's aura and naturally noticed her looking at Kajieliena. Her little mouth opened and closed several times, but she still didn't say anything.

Looking at Kajieliena, who was also gazing at her, Rei's words came out cold and piercing. "Why can someone like you, who hurt her so badly, be so close to her?"

"None of your business."

Those simple words instantly made Rei tighten her grip around the knife handle. Magic power overflowing with emotion spread from her body.

Unable to see the fluctuations of magic power, Hui was affected by the impact hidden in the air. Her body tipped to one side, and she fell to the ground after failing to sit steady.

"Ugh... Why did such a strong gust of wind suddenly come up?"

Ignoring Hui's complaints, Kajieliena said calmly, "If you want to fight, I'll indulge you. But if you want to lay a hand on her, don't blame me for not playing fair either."

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

"You should worry about yourself first." Kajieliena placed the teacher-approved wild vegetables to one side and casually found a place to sit. "Iris has come looking for you, hasn't she?"

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

She didn't 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, while she was hunting Void Beasts in the Void World, that female pervert had suddenly attacked her while Marugang was separated from her and fighting Void Beasts elsewhere.

If Marugang hadn't noticed that something was wrong and returned in time, she would probably already have been imprisoned at God's Staff headquarters by Iris.

Seeing Rei's uncertain expression, a gleam of schadenfreude flashed through Kajieliena's eyes.

They had once been companions in the same organization, and both knew each other inside out. Their relationship hadn't actually been this stiff, even though Kajieliena had indeed attacked Rei while investigating the Dragon Vein.

But Rei should have understood perfectly well that Kajieliena had held back. Even after this matter was over, Rei wouldn't have harbored such hostility toward her as she did now.

From Rei's actions just now, as well as that sudden burst of hostility toward her, Kajieliena guessed that Rei might have special feelings for Ando Meiko.

After all, this was the extreme emotion called Envy that arose when a woman became jealous.

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

She really couldn't defeat Iris, but against Marugang, even if she couldn't win, she could at least remain undefeated.