Nothing Left to Fear

Boom!

A wall came crashing down, and a monster in a black bodysuit and hood, its face impossible to make out, stepped out from the rubble.

"Because I desperately craved girls' panties, I was corrupted into a monster! I'm going to collect every pair of panties in the world!"

The monster appeared before the crowd and began talking to itself. It looked around as though searching for prey.

"It's a monster! Everyone, run!"

The moment they saw the black-clad monster, the people nearby screamed in terror and fled.

The area instantly descended into chaos.

Watching the costumed monster that looked like it had wandered off some tokusatsu set, Zhou Mo broke out in a cold sweat.

She took a step back, deciding to run with the crowd.

Just as she was about to move, Rabi's voice sounded beside her.

"Is that really okay? You're the only one here who can deal with it."

Zhou Mo, who had been about to take off, frowned at that.

"What do you mean? No other Magical Girls are coming?"

Rabi merely closed its eyes slightly.

"Unfortunately, no other Magical Girls will appear in this area, and they can't come here either."

"Why?"

Zhou Mo asked.

"Because I took on this monster incident for you. Once a monster has been assigned to a Magical Girl, no other Magical Girls may interfere without permission. Those are the rules."

Rabi hopped onto a nearby shelf and looked down at the fleeing crowd, utterly unconcerned.

"You bastard!"

Zhou Mo clenched her fists and glared at Rabi through gritted teeth.

She had thought Magical Girls would eventually come rushing over after hearing the news. She never expected this outcome.

"Fine. You really think I don't have a way out?"

She immediately pulled out her phone, opened the dialer, and called a number.

"Hello, is this 110?"

"..."

Rabi watched her seriously call the police and fell silent.

Just then, Zhou Mo suddenly saw the monster begin to move in the distance.

It had found its first prey.

"Mommy... where are you..."

It was a little girl who had been separated from the crowd, still clutching a teddy bear.

The fleeing crowd had separated her from her mother, leaving her alone where she stood.

The monster noticed the helpless little girl and began walking toward her step by step.

"Oh no, that little girl!"

"Someone save her!"

"Where's the Magical Girl? Why hasn't she come yet?"

Someone noticed the scene and immediately cried out in alarm.

The little girl was still looking around for her mother when the light above her suddenly dimmed, and a human-shaped shadow fell at her feet.

When she looked up and saw the monster in its black bodysuit, she burst into tears.

"Kukuku."

The monster let out a chilling laugh. Its right hand then warped and swelled, extending into a huge palm that reached for the little girl.

"M-Mommy..."

The little girl called for her mother in a trembling voice, but no one could help her.

Watching the palm draw closer, she hunched her neck and squeezed her eyes shut in despair.

Smack!

A folding stool suddenly came flying through the air and smashed into the monster's head.

The blow knocked its head to one side, and its outstretched hand paused.

Then the monster slowly turned its head toward the direction the folding stool had come from.

A young woman stepped out of the crowd. It was Zhou Mo.

"Take your filthy hands off her, monster."

Gripping the folding stool in her right hand, Zhou Mo raised an internationally friendly gesture at the monster.

"..."

The monster ahead stood still for a moment. Then its body rapidly warped, the black bodysuit clinging tightly to its surface like skin as its entire body swelled larger.

Provoked by a weak human it considered an ant, the monster instantly flew into a rage.

"You're dead!"

Seeing the monster get so worked up from one sentence that it seemed to enter a second phase, Zhou Mo's throat bobbed.

Maybe I pulled too much aggro.

But she did not retreat. Instead, she took a step forward.

"Gah!"

The monster let out a strange cry, dropped onto all fours, and charged at Zhou Mo like a wild beast.

As the monster rushed toward her, Zhou Mo made a snap decision. Gripping the folding stool, she viciously swung it at the monster's face.

Clang!

The sound of metal striking stone rang out. Zhou Mo felt as though she had collided with a speeding truck, and she and the folding stool were instantly sent flying backward. She smashed through a wall behind her as dust billowed everywhere.

"Puh—cough, cough..."

Zhou Mo lay sprawled over the rubble, her whole body feeling as though it had fallen apart.

The monster's strength far exceeded her imagination. An ordinary person could never defeat it.

Even now, Zhou Mo still believed she was just an ordinary person. Even after experiencing this series of fantastical events, she had felt they had nothing to do with her.

But when she saw that unfamiliar little girl about to be endangered, her body moved on its own.

Why had she chosen to step forward?

Magical Girl.

That was it. This thing called a Magical Girl must have changed the way she thought without her even noticing.

"If you want me to transform, then I'll transform for you."

Zhou Mo clenched her teeth and struggled to her feet. A trace of blue radiance gradually bloomed within her dark brown eyes.

"There's... nothing left to fear!"

In a corner of the city.

On the rooftop of a high-rise building, a girl in casual pink clothes, with a streak of pink in her bangs, stared worriedly at her phone.

"People are in danger right now. Why can't I go?"

The girl urgently questioned the figure beside her.

Beside her, a magical creature entirely pink, resembling both a cat and a rabbit, floated in midair. A pair of wings fluttered on its back.

"No, An Xia. There's already a Magical Girl assigned there. I sent a support request just now, but the other party's fairy rejected it."

The pink creature shook its head and spread its hands helplessly.

"Is there really no other way?"

An Xia stared at her phone. A regional map was displayed on the screen, with a red dot appearing over a shopping mall.

The map indicated that a monster had been detected and handed over to another Magical Girl.

But so far, she could only see the monster's signal. There was still no sign of a Magical Girl's magical energy.

"No, if this continues, the crowd will be in danger!"

An Xia knitted her brows tightly, deciding to go even if it meant breaking the rules.

She immediately leaped from the rooftop and raced toward Wonima Supermarket.

"Hey, hey, An Xia! You can't go over there!"

Seeing the girl head toward the monster, the pink fairy hurried after her and continuously tried to stop her.

But she had not run far before stopping again, because a blue dot abruptly appeared on the map.

The Magical Girl had finally appeared.

"Kuhihihi, this is what happens when you oppose me! None of you are getting away."

Having effortlessly taken down one person, the monster stood where it was and swept its gaze over the frightened crowd, letting out a smug, strange laugh.

It then turned back toward the little girl collapsed on the ground and began walking toward her once more.

Seeing the big sister who had saved her get killed by the monster just like that, the little girl's eyes filled with despair.

Tap, tap, tap.

Just then, crisp footsteps suddenly sounded nearby.

The monster looked over in confusion.

A figure slowly emerged from the dust.

With its vision obscured by the thick smoke, the monster could not make out the figure's appearance.

At the sight of that figure, the monster froze.

The wall had collapsed. How could an ordinary person still stand after taking an attack like that?

Having already lost much of its reason, it could not understand it at all.

Just as the figure was about to emerge from the dust, two words slowly left her lips.

"Transform."