About Becoming a Magical Girl

"Stay safe, you two."

Muttering to herself, Efnir pressed her lips together, her breathing gradually quickening.

Supporting herself on her spear with one hand, she slid down and sank to her knees amid the half-collapsed ruins.

Though she did not want her juniors to see her looking so disheveled, there was a limit to suppressing pain with "pills." They were unreliable; taking too much or too little could cause problems.

After enduring two hours of intense combat, the wound at Efnir's waist had torn open again, blood dripping from the hem of her clothes.

There were no medics or emergency supplies nearby. The sharp agony from her wound was tightly coiled around her, slamming into her mind like a stone pendulum.

Cold sweat covered her forehead.

"It really hurts..."

Efnir complained softly, pressing down on the wound and tying the bandages as tightly as she could.

The battle had already lasted two hours.

Qinglan and the other seniors who had joined the battle at the beginning were all nowhere to be found. Efnir was now leading the remaining agents in holding the line.

Of course she was exhausted. Fighting without reinforcements was like a lone boat crashing into the sea, surrounded on all sides by endless depths and waves watching hungrily for a chance to swallow her whole.

Her field of vision was a complete mess, thick smoke mingling with red light.

Efnir tightly covered her waist with her other hand, her body trembling faintly as she swayed on the verge of collapse. She forced herself to take deep breaths, hoping to ease the stabbing pain radiating from her injury.

But she did not have much room to rest. Her presence was crucial to the course of this battle. Efnir being called the "chief" was not just for show. Her combat ability alone could turn the tide; without her, headquarters would have fallen long ago.

She was not only the most experienced agent currently on the battlefield, but also the pillar of victory. Right now, she had to act like the dependable senior she was supposed to be.

If it were my little sister... would she expect this kind of brother?

Efnir lowered her gaze as Yukina's figure flickered through her memories.

"Master... Master, are you all right...?"

Fifina's anxious yet weak voice came through the earpiece, interrupting Efnir's thoughts.

She tightened her grip on the spear, paused, and only then replied.

"I'm fine. Are you worried about me, Fifina...?"

"O-of course... Master, it's about time you paid more attention to your own condition. If you push yourself too hard and become so mentally exhausted that you lose Synchronization in battle, that would be terrible..."

"Mm..."

Efnir lowered her gaze, staring blankly at the cracks splitting the ground without confirming or denying it.

If prolonged combat caused one's mental and physical strength to fall behind the demands of such intense exertion, the eventual outcome would be losing Resonance with the Order Force, losing Synchronization, and returning to one's original body.

Of course Efnir knew that.

She had seen it with her own eyes.

Efnir's former senior had been a bright, considerate girl in everyday life... During a major disaster mission a year ago, relentless fighting day and night had finally exhausted her. She lost Synchronization and was forced to release her Exile Form, leaving her unable to use the Order Force. Naturally, she could no longer resist the infection of the Erosion Entities. In the end, despite being an agent, she was defeated in battle and became Dregs, turning to attack the people she had been meant to protect.

Efnir had witnessed that ending herself, and then personally Exiled her.

Things like that happened from time to time. It was just far too ironic a way for an agent to die.

But it made sense.

"Um... Master... the cleanup is almost finished now. How about you get some rest? We juniors can handle what comes next..."

"Fifina."

Fifina continued trying to persuade her, but Efnir quickly interrupted.

Thinking of her outstanding junior, Efnir raised the corners of her lips, though her words were stern instead.

"The closer we get to the end of a battle, the less we can afford to let our guard down... I taught you that, didn't I...?"

"But Master, you..."

Efnir drew a deep breath, forcefully suppressing her ragged breathing.

"I'm really fine. I am tired, but my Synchronization is still stable for now, so don't worry. More importantly, tell me the current situation... We can't delay for too long. There are still many wounded waiting to be rescued, and everyone's stamina is starting to run low too, right?"

Fifina seemed to want to say something more, but she appeared to understand Efnir's intentions and ultimately did not continue.

"Just tell me the current situation."

"Yes... Master."

The voice on the other end of the earpiece paused before continuing.

"Thanks to you... defeating the Whale-type Erosion Entity in the sky, no more Erosion Entities are pouring out now..."

"The area inside the defense perimeter has basically been cleared..."

"But outside the defense perimeter, Erosion Entities and Dregs have suddenly appeared at the East D District intersection, East A District, and West Ring Road. They are rapidly advancing toward the civilian evacuation points..."

"I have already contacted Senior Katrina, Vivian, and Cheris, who were nearby. They are heading to East D District and West Ring Road respectively to intercept and provide support..."

"Besides that, Furan was also injured. I had her withdraw to the headquarters building with Lily, where they have joined up with Elincia..."

"..."

Fifina's voice was somewhat weak, becoming almost inaudible toward the end. Efnir said nothing and listened carefully.

After a long while, she spoke.

"Follow your arrangements. Also, notify the Special Disaster Action Force to watch out for Corruption attacks, increase the evacuation speed, and complete the withdrawal as quickly as possible."

"I'll relay that immediately..."

"On my end, I'll continue moving after resting for a bit. Keep an eye on the situation here for me... If any Erosion Entities that slipped through appear, tell me immediately."

"Yes, Master..."

Efnir tilted her head back and leaned against the rubble, letting her body relax slightly.

With Qinglan missing, Efnir naturally took over command, as her seniority, combat power, and field experience far surpassed everyone else's.

But there were too few agents participating in this operation, and most were inexperienced juniors. Their combat strength was severely lacking, while the number of Erosion Entities was enormous. As the agents' strongest fighter, Efnir had to repel Erosion Entities while commanding the battle, all while her physical condition worsened. Even she was struggling to cope. The situation was extremely tense; the agents had already given everything they had just to deal with the Erosion Entities, and they had nearly suffered a total collapse at one point. But in the end, they held on.

Fortunately, the Special Disaster Action Force's support had arrived in time, sharing much of their burden.

At the very least, part of their fighting force could be freed from covering the civilians' evacuation and join the battle.

The situation had improved, but it was still far from optimistic.

She had shot down and purified one of the three Floating Islands. The other two Floating Islands had fled east and west, and Efnir had only managed to catch and kill the one heading east toward the densely populated area.

The severe injury to Efnir's waist left her unable to give chase.

In other words, one had escaped.

Besides that, the headquarters building had been infiltrated by Erosion Entities. The central command had suffered heavy casualties, and many wounded urgently needed treatment. The commander was unconscious, while Elincia alone was holding back the Dregs and Erosion Entities while protecting the injured. Several agent advance team members, including Qinglan, were also still missing, and people urgently needed to be sent to find them and confirm their conditions.

The only good news was that the Whale-type Erosion Entity Efnir had shot down seemed to be the source of this disaster. After it disappeared, no more Erosion Entities had appeared. Thanks to that, the cleanup had smoothly entered its final stage.

Wish

"Um... Master..."

"Mm?"

Fifina's voice suddenly came through the earpiece.

For some reason, Efnir felt that Fifina's tone was strangely listless today.

"The story you told me before, about your hometown... could you continue telling it to me...?"

"Huh? Why bring that up all of a sudden...?"

"It's just... I suddenly wanted to talk to you, Master. You've been so busy lately... Other than missions, it's been a long time since we had a proper chat... Is that... okay?"

"Why wouldn't it be?"

Efnir laughed softly and gently closed her eyes.

Had she been busy lately? Though Fifina said so, Efnir herself had not really noticed.

As an agent, Efnir had always been quick to act. More than half of her usual missions were handled by her alone, and calling her a workaholic would not be an exaggeration. But to her, these were simply things that had to be done sooner or later, things she could not avoid. Rather than passively accepting them, she preferred to take the initiative.

Besides... as long as she could eliminate danger, fewer people would be hurt because of it. That had always been the force driving her forward.

"Is that so..."

She lowered her head, braced herself on her spear, and rested her forehead against the back of her hand.

"Well, anyway, my hometown is a very boring place. There aren't really any stories worth telling... Compared to me, what about you, Fifina? I heard you got a pretty good ranking in a competition. Is that true?"

"Eek... Master knew about that?"

"So? Now that you finally got a trophy, did you tell your mom and dad?"

Fifina's parents worked in a neighboring city. She had lived in Xijing City with her grandmother, and after her grandmother passed away, she had chosen not to cross the dangerous areas outside the city to return to her parents. Instead, she planned to remain here and finish her first year of high school.

Fifina had told Efnir all of that.

"It's hard to bring up something like that..."

"What does it matter? It's the violin you love, and you earned everyone's recognition too. It's fine to have a little confidence."

"That's true... but... when it's something you really love, and one day you finally get to hold it in your hands after wishing for it so long, you can't help feeling at a loss, right... Like it might slip away at any moment. It just doesn't feel real..."

"What's wrong with that?"

Efnir smiled.

"Joy and happiness aren't anything special. Just enjoy them as a matter of course."

"Um..."

Fifina suddenly fell silent.

She probably did not know what to say next. Fifina had always been a little awkward about expressing herself, and Efnir knew that well.

After an unknown amount of time, Fifina's delicate voice came through again.

"Master... have you ever had that happen...?"

"What?"

"A gift you dreamed of getting, someone you wanted to grow close to... suddenly appearing before you one day... A wish finally coming true... something like that..."

"Well... I don't really remember."

Leaving gifts aside, the first person Efnir thought of when she heard "someone you wanted to grow close to" was her little sister. But unfortunately, because of a series of events, her relationship with her sister was nowhere near what it had once been. Thinking carefully, all she could recall were ordinary memories of living together. It was probably no longer a time that could be called a "dream."

Though they were siblings and lived under the same roof, the distance between them had only grown wider and wider.

"I see. That does sound like something Master would say..."

Fifina's voice seemed to drift nearer and farther away, and then she stopped speaking. Silence returned to the air.

"By the way, Fifina."

Efnir paused, then suddenly asked.

"I was a little concerned earlier, so I'll ask just to be sure... Are you all right?"

"Huh?"

The other end of the earpiece seemed startled. After a brief silence, an unreadable laugh came through.

"I'm fine, Master. What do you mean?"

"I mean... something sounds a little off about your voice..."

"Maybe... it's signal interference? Master, are you feeling a little tense?"

"Are you starting to feel tired?"

If fatigue continued to build and she could no longer focus, she might eventually lose Resonance with Order. The result would be being forced to release her Exile Form and lose the enhancement of the Order Force.

"A little, I guess... Keeping up Synchronization, it can't be helped... But! This much is completely fine!"

Fifina answered, and she really did not sound like she was lying. Efnir quietly breathed a sigh of relief.