CH 50

Black Suspicion

Translated by LyraDhani

Edited by LyraDhani

After being protected by the paramedics, Tsugumi was taken to the hospital for an examination of his injuries. It was just a small cut on his skin, but the injury was in his head. Even if he was fine now, there was no guarantee that it would not affect him later.

The government probably did not want to let the victim, who had just been saved, die because of a minor mistake. He felt that he was treated with great care during the transportation to the hospital.

The others were taken to a government-appointed hospital in the same way. Coincidentally, it was the same hospital where Tsugumi had been hospitalized until last month.

Chidori and Yumeji, who were not injured, were also taken to the hospital to get examined as a precaution. After that, the government would interview each of them individually, but Tsugumi and Itadori who were badly injured would be sent at a later date.

The two Rikka would explain the details. Tsugumi would add what happened when they weren’t unconscious.

Luckily, no one died in this case.

The Magical Girls who had been torn to shreds seemed to have recovered to some extent as the Demonic Beast was defeated. However, it seemed that the resources recovered in the barrier were not enough for them to reach full recovery. The doctor lamented that there might be side effects, but it was also a sign that their lives were saved.

The head injury that Tsugumi suffered was also examined and there were no abnormalities in the brain or bones to be found. The wound itself was not that deep, and it would become less noticeable in a while. But the blood loss was more than expected, so he was currently resting on a bed with an intravenous drip.

–The accident ended safely, but he was more worried about the public’s reaction.

The hospital was completely isolated and no information from outside was coming in. Even Bell, who was his only confidant, had not returned after saying, “I’m going to do a little negotiation.” He couldn’t help but feel curious.

–About whether the world had found out the identity of Hagakure Sakura. Whether Chidori’s contract God had told her about Tsugumi. Such worries swirled around in his head. He had no regrets about his actions, but thinking about the future made him quite depressed.

“Well, that’s quite a sloppy look on your face. You don’t look like you’ve just been saved.”

“… Asakura-sensei?”

The doctor who called out was the elderly male doctor who was in charge of Tsugumi when he was hospitalized last time. Additionally, he was also the deputy director of this hospital.

His specialty was supposed to be psychiatry, but before realizing it, he had settled as the doctor in charge of Tsugumi. Perhaps Tsugumi was considered to be a troublesome patient since he had been referred to the hospital by Mebuki, a relative of the manager, during his last hospitalization.

At first, Tsugumi was nervous about how to respond, but by the time he was about to be discharged from the hospital, his treatment of him had become quite crude. A doctor who peeled and ate the fruit from visitors without permission, no matter how great he was, couldn’t be respected.

However, Asakura himself was quite an excellent doctor and was said to be capable of treating and diagnosing patients in other fields. His usual aloof demeanor made him somewhat unreliable, but he never gave any strange diagnoses as far as Tsugumi remembered.

“What’s the matter, Sensei? Are you perhaps bored?”

When Tsugumi asked this in a troublesome manner, Asakura said, deliberately exasperated,

“What are you saying? I come all the way out here even though I was on vacation to see you when I heard you’re in the hospital.”

“Yes…?”

–What is this old man talking about out of the blue?

Tsugumi looked up at Asakura with a dumbfounded look and made a puzzled sound. Though it was probably a joke, he didn’t know how to react. Somehow he understood that he was loved like a grandchild, but in this case, what kind of words he should say in return?

Perhaps unable to see Tsugumi’s bewildered state, the nurse in charge of the treatment interrupted.

“Deputy Director Asakura. You were originally supposed to come in at noon, weren’t you? You shouldn’t make fun of children so much.”

“Yeah. I was just making a light joke.”

Asakura cowered his shoulders.

The nurse looked disappointed and left the hospital room, telling him to behave moderately. Being left alone with Asakura, Tsugumi let out a sigh and let his shoulders drop.

–I’m grateful you come all the way to my hospital room, but it’s a bit much for me to deal with when I am so tired.

But he had to go to work at noon, which meant he might have seen at least one news report in the morning. With that in mind, Tsugumi asked Asakura.

“Um, Sensei. Did you see anything on the news about the accident involving me and Chidori? I don’t think that might be the case, but they didn’t mention Chidori’s names and mine, right?”

“Well, I don’t know that much about it, but the media seems to be making quite a commotion. They won’t be able to reach this room, but there is a lot of press outside the hospital. It may be natural for them to gather since there are two Rikka’s here, but if they’re going to make a fuss, they should think about where they’re going.”

Asakura let out a tired sigh and continued speaking. Maybe he had a bit of an agony outside to get here.

“Well, don’t worry. The videos on the TV were terrible because of the noises. It seems that the projection equipment doesn’t work well when foreign objects – other people – enter the barrier, so as far as I can tell, there are no good images left. And even the part where you and the others were filmed was mosaiced in consideration of portrait rights, except for the two Rikka members. Unless you know them, you won’t recognize who they are.”

“I see.”

–Noise.

Maybe that time, as well as this time, the part of the image that showed Tsugumi was invisible to the outside world.

But Asakura’s words couldn’t be taken at face value. Now that Chidori had become a Magical Girl, the media would stick to her, and information could easily leak out. The fact that Chidori’s brother, Tsugumi, was there would soon be exposed to the world.

The question was whether or not anyone would associate Tsugumi with Hagakure Sakura.

The woman’s appearance itself would not have been seen, since he used Invisibility to disappear when he transformed at the time, but still, he couldn’t let his guard down.

It would be fine if they were just mistaken for siblings or relatives just as it had been, but it would be bad if they were judged to be the same person. In the first place, the existence of Hagakure Sakura was an extraordinary miracle.

First of all, If it got exposed, Tsugumi would die socially. This was a very unreasonable thing to say, even though he had done nothing wrong, but it was the reality of today’s society. It was easy to imagine being toyed with by the world for being a cross-dresser.

Second, a “man” could become a Magical Girl if they met the conditions.

Although the female body was preferred as the receptor of divine power, the foundation could be a man as long as they had the aptitude. This fact would definitely shake Japan in the future.

–This country was slowly turning into a female-dominated society. The reason for this, needless to say, was because only women could be Magical Girls.

They protected the country, served God, and enriched society. In the last 30 years, all of these important roles had been played by women. It would be strange if they didn’t have the upper hand in the normal course of events.

…For the government, there was a section that promoted Magical Girls in a different dimension, like idols, rather than as military personnel, to prevent animosity from the general public who were not suitable for them. By daring not to treat them as ‘the same person,’ they were deflecting public dissatisfaction. The selection of Rikka as a popularity contest was probably the best example of this.

–But what would happen if a “man” were added to this already completed society?

At least, Tsugumi couldn’t imagine it at all. Male Magical Girls might be treated as idols, just as it had been in the past, or the balance that had been so exquisitely maintained might be lost, and discontent might erupt from all sides.

…He didn’t want to realize how troublesome it was. It seemed Magical Girls were truly a black existence. In any case, there was nothing Tsugumi could do at this stage. It would be best to avoid gaffes at tomorrow’s interview.

Perhaps thinking that Tsugumi was concerned about tomorrow’s interview, Asakura began to speak in a cheerful tone.

“The government will take immediate action on this one, as there’s no guarantee that something like this won’t happen again. Tomorrow’s interview will be fine. You must be tired because of your injuries, so take a good rest today. The two Rikka will tell most of the details since that’s part of their job.”

“If possible, I want to go to the interview with Chidori tomorrow.”

When Tsugumi muttered this, Asakura shook his head a little.

“It’s impossible. If you want to go talk, it’s possible, but as a doctor, I can’t allow it.”

“Well, of course.”

He understood the government’s urgency. This time not only Magical Girls, but ordinary people were also affected.

Tsugumi didn’t want to think about it too much, but there might be more irregular damages in the future. He didn’t know what was happening in the space between the skies. However, things would not remain as peaceful as they were now forever–that was how he felt.

“By the way, you were the last one to put a stop to that Demonic Beast. Just out of curiosity, how are you feeling right now? You see, I’m a psychiatrist. I’m a little curious about that.”

Tsugumi titled his head in response to Asakura’s question. He didn’t have any particular thoughts about it. The only thing he could say was that the feeling of cutting meat with his hands was more unpleasant than he had expected.

“Even if you say it like that… I’m glad I  was able to beat it properly, but I don’t really think about it.”

“Hmmm? You don’t feel elated or guilty?

“No, not really.”

Asakura put his hand over his mouth and looked thoughtful.

“It’s fine if there’s no sign of PTSD, but it seems dangerous. I’ll have to observe this. …By the way, are you interested in heroes?

“Does it look like that?”

When Asakura asked this question fearfully, Tsugumi replied with annoyance, and Asakura exhaled in a relieved manner.

“I’m glad to hear that. I can’t handle a kid with a desire to be a hero, you know. You can live an ordinary life, just as you are. It’s better not to have extraordinary things.”

“Hmm…? I am not sure, but I think being ordinary is the best.”

As usual, this doctor had a strange and difficult way of speaking. Tsugumi didn’t understand half of what he was saying, but it would be fine to just nod for the time being.

Tsugumi looked up at the ceiling in a daze as he gave appropriate responses.

–I wonder if Bell-sama will come back soon.

When Bell returned, he would certainly get a lecture, but even so, Tsugumi couldn’t wait. Chidori, Tsugumi’s eyes, and future plans. He had a lot to talk about, such as his future plans and policies.

–I hope she doesn’t abandon me because of this incident.

With this thought in mind, Tsugumi let out a small yawn. It seemed the fatigue had reached its limit.

Tsugumi turned his back on Asakura, who was still talking about something, and pulled the covers over his head. It probably wasn’t anything important, so he might as well just go to sleep.

Thinking so, Tsugumi closed his eyes at least. Then, his consciousness fell into the darkness. As if something was guiding him.

Then, when Tsugumi entered the dream world, Asakura, who had been sitting on the side of the bed talking, looked at Tsugumi’s sleeping face with narrowed eyes.

“A hero, or perhaps the destroyer of the age? –Nanase, what a troublesome kid that has been pushed to me.”

Asakura chuckled and put his hand on the door of the hospital room.

“Good night, Tsugumi-kun. Please have a good dream.”