CH 7

A Matter of Feelings

Translated by LyraDhani

Edited by LyraDhani

–The Demonic Beast was furious.

Demonic Beasts didn’t know right from wrong. There’s only pure lust for destruction.

A Demonic Beast that had landed on earth was, in other words, a terminal of a concept that existed in another world. By destroying things, harming people, and exhausting the land, the Demonic Beast gained its sustenance. After a certain amount of destructive activity, the Demonic Beast disappeared like a haze in order to return the energy it had gained to its main body in the other world.

For a Demonic Beast, destruction is an act to satisfy its own greed – like a meal, so to speak. The “Magical Girl” who interfered with this was the first obstacle to be defeated.

Besides, “Magical Girls” were also a mass of high-density energy. Killing one of them was a much more efficient way to consume energy than killing a hundred ordinary humans. Either way, the priority of killing them was still high.

The woman who fled up the tree – the Magical Girl – had yet to be found.

No, it had found her. But every time it raided the place where she was hiding, her presence somehow disappeared… So annoying.

Low-grade Demonic Beasts were not very smart. They didn’t have the resources allocated to intelligence. Hence, this boar beast was endlessly rushing at the tree where the woman was supposed to be. But that pointless attack would soon come to an end

— Ah, I found it.

The Demonic Beast had finally found the woman. Perhaps she stopped hiding and came out.

The woman was standing comfortably on top of an overturned tree, pointing with her index finger as if she were trying to provoke it. The woman’s steeple-colored eyes shot straight at the Demonic Beast.

The beast knew that the woman was trying to do something to him. But the beast did not care about that.

–The woman’s hind legs were straining. At the same time, its entire body was filled with silvery-white light.

The shockwave from the fighting spirit cloaked rush – this was the only attack the Demonic Beast had, and it was a special attack. There’s no strategy for a low-class Demonic Beast. It just killed with all its might. That’s all.

The woman did not run away. She just pointed at the beast, with her arm.

And then the Demonic Beast started to run.

Its huge body, shot out like a bullet exceeding the speed of sound, was like a cannon that destroyed everything it hit. No matter how magical the girl was, if this attack hit her directly, she would probably die.

–I got it!

The moment the beast was convinced of this, the woman swung her arm down.

–The vision blurred.

At that moment, the beast somehow rolled to the ground and before it realized, it was looking up at the woman.

It stood up and tried to attack, but its limbs would not move. Huh, why is that?

The woman’s face was contorted and she looked down at the Demonic Beast. Her expression looked as if she was in pain. Why would she make such a face when she herself was not even injured? The Demonic Beast had no idea.

–Ah, but…

–The Demonic Beast thought in its foggy head.

–It felt a little full.

◆ ◆ ◆

He didn’t know why…

“What’s wrong with your face? You did a good job, didn’t you?”

Bell asked curiously.

Tsugumi looked down at the limb-amputated Demonic Beast and, feeling bad about his attitude, clicked his tongue.

“Oh, I feel sick.”

As he said this, he gripped his right hand tightly. In his hand, countless threads were entwined.

The knowledge that skill brought to Tsugumi–Thread–was a versatile force that used thread as a weapon, a means of attack, defense, and sometimes even a means of espionage. It may be inferior to Magical Girls with large-scale extermination skills such as fire and lightning, but it was still an excellent skill.

First, he hid the threads with [Invisibility], and with a single action, a delicate movement of his fingers and a swing down of his arm with the threads entangled, he cut off the leg of the Demonic Beast that jumped forward like a bullet. Then, by instantly creating a wall of woven threads, he was able to catch the beast as it rushed forward.

Bell felt that it was a satisfying spectacle. However, she was annoyed by the Tsugumi’s dismissive attitude, and spat out a sarcastic remark.

“Sick? Don’t tell me you’re not good with blood. You’re not even a real girl, you are so sensitive.”

“No, at least I’m not a real girl, am I? …It’s not that, it’s just a matter of ethics. I don’t think I did anything wrong at all, but it’s a creature like this… It was the first time I killed an animal-shaped object, so I have some thoughts.”

Tsugumi gently patted his own right hand. He could easily kill a living creature with such a single movement. That must be very frightening, depending on how you look at it.

Well, it wasn’t as serious as it sounded, since he could afford to talk about it lightly.

“Don’t think you can quit now. Your fate is in my hands – don’t forget that.”

In a strong tone of voice, Bell said reproachfully.

Even Bell would be annoyed if Tsugumi were to say, “I’m quitting,” right here and now. He knew how she felt.

–But her fears were unfounded.

“I’m not going to say I’m quitting.  What I don’t like is that I didn’t feel as much as I thought I would. I’m just a little sickened by my own thin-skinned self. Oh, maybe this is the effect of that [Optimization] thing in your skillset?”

Then Tsugumi tilted his head.

If so, it’s a pretty useful skill for a Magical Girl, he thought with a light heart.

Under normal circumstances, a guilty conscience was a pretty ridiculous disadvantage. The best way to fight was to be cheerful and happy and enjoy the process of killing Demonic Beasts.

However, although there was no way for him to know, the skill of [Optimization] was originally a skill of motion assistance and did not affect the mind.

I don’t feel anything. So… I don’t feel good. What an extravagant statement that would be.

Hundreds of Magical Girls a year break their hearts and quit, and Tsugumi had no idea how rare of a talent it was.

Most likely he wouldn’t notice it unless someone pointed it out to him.

“–But surely, at this rate, I’m suited for it. Being a Magical Girl.”

Then Tsugumi looked at Bell and smiled. There was no hint of sadness on his face.

He had no choice but to continue as a Magical Girl. He already died once, and it would be a waste of his life to worry about every little thing.

For Tsugumi, if he could continue to work without hesitation, there was nothing wrong with it.

Seeing such a bright Tsugumi, Bell smiled with satisfaction.

–This may have been a good pick-up.

Thinking this way, Bell narrowed her eyes. If this man continued to be a useful toy for Bell, she would eventually grow attached to him. She was looking forward to that time.

“I’m not sure how to use the other skill, [Gluttony]. It says after the battle, so should I use it now?”

“Let’s see… Why don’t you try to declare it?”

Gluttony, a term that felt quite familiar to Bell. But she had no intention of telling Tsugumi about it. It was an event that Bell wasn’t very happy about.

“Hmm.-Then, activate the skill [Gluttony]!”

As soon as Tsugumi said this out loud, the space around the Demonic Beast shook a little. Then, a number of large beast mouths appeared from the ground and bit into the remains of the Demonic Beast.

The appearance of the beast was a bit gruesome, to be honest, even from Bell’s point of view. She glanced at Tsugumi and saw that he was holding his mouth with his hand, revealing a very pale face. The first time she saw him, she thought he was a bit of a monster… To be frank, he was more expressive now than he was when he defeated the beast.

The beast’s mouth chewed all but the core of the beast and its silvery-white fangs, and then disappeared into the ground, looking heartily satisfied.

At the moment, she was not quite sure what kind of effect this skill had, but it must be that kind of skill because she felt that the strength of Tsugumi’s vessel standing next to her had slightly increased.

Tsugumi rubbed his belly anxiously and opened his mouth discreetly.

“Bell-sama, I might want to quit being a Magical Girl after all…”

“…No.”

“I know, right? …Huh.”

Then Tsugumi lowered his shoulders dejectedly. His black hair, which had been left untouched and unbound, fell out.

Bell stared at his profile. She hadn’t been paying close attention until now, but this one wasn’t bad at all.

–The way this Magical Girl defeats monsters with grace and cruelty will surely be a spectacle to behold.

Thinking this, Bell smiled with satisfaction.