Chapter 1: She’s a magical girl

The morning air carried a damp chill.

Hearing the alarm ringing from his sister’s room, Yanase Naoto unhurriedly turned on the stove, picking up his phone with one hand and clamping it between his shoulder and ear.

The voice of a woman came from the other end of the call:

–…Thank you for your hard work yesterday. Are your injuries any better?

–They’re nothing serious. Thank you for asking.

Naoto took an egg from the refrigerator, tapped it lightly against the back of a knife, and let the liquid slide from the cracked shell onto the frying pan, where it soon began to sizzle.

He poured half a spoonful of cooking wine along the edge of the pan, skillfully flipped the contents with a flick of his wrist, sprinkled salt over it, and watched it turn from transparent to a golden yellow.

–Um… Dr. Nishizaki asked me to forward the diagnostic records to you. Should I bring them over later?

–No need. I’ll be back at headquarters tonight, so I’ll get them then. More importantly, what’s the situation with Maesagawa now? Any new findings besides the two survivors?

–Nothing… and the follow-up work isn’t going smoothly either.

The person on the other end sighed.

–Without a ‘Sakahi,’ our people can’t make any headway. Seiran and the others have already returned from their investigation, so we’ll probably have to postpone it for now… Anyway, let’s not talk about that. Right, you should just stay home and recover for now. We’ll leave the rest to Seiran and the others for the time being. However, if it’s possible, I’ll still have to trouble you with Shion. You know, that child seems emotionally unstable, so…

–I understand. Leave this side to me.
Naoto glanced behind him.

–But my sister is about to wake up…

–Oh~ I get it.

The person on the other end chuckled.

–Talk to you later then~

–Yeah.

He finished and hung up the phone.

Naoto put down his phone and sighed silently to himself.

A rustling sound came from the room off the living room; his sister was awake.

In this large house, there were now only the two of them, he and his sister.

Their parents hadn’t been home in two years, and during that time, looking after his school-going sister had become his duty and habit as an older brother.

But in the last two years, his relationship with his sister had grown distant.

They went from being inseparable and talking about everything to barely exchanging a few sentences a day.

It wasn’t that they treated each other poorly or couldn’t get along due to personality clashes.

Rather, because of certain unavoidable events, a distance had slowly grown between them.

Everything started to change after Yanase Naoto began his work on “that side.”
Because of matters on “that side,” he had left university, and the time he spent at home grew shorter and shorter.
Naturally, he had little time left to spend with his sister.

Yanase Naoto would sometimes console himself—after all, it was a phase every child goes through while growing up, and it was probably a good thing for his sister to become less dependent on her older brother sooner rather than later.

But at the same time, he knew in his heart that he was the real reason for all these changes.

He was the one who had started to distance himself from his sister, which made their relationship as siblings increasingly awkward.

Yet, between his “work on that side” and his sister, he always found it difficult to strike a reasonable balance.

Because it concerned the future of the entire city, and even more so, his sister’s future life.

The one thing he didn’t want was for his sister to step into danger.

Therefore, he couldn’t back down one bit, even if it meant his sister would come to hate him for it.

The omelet slid onto a plate.

Naoto brought out grilled tomatoes, sausages, bacon, a slice of fruit pudding, whole wheat bread, and oatmeal milk mixed with crushed nuts and honeyed dates.

In this desolate era, where human society had been cornered and was barely surviving, such ingredients rarely appeared on the dining table.

However, his salary from “that side” was substantial, and with the living expenses their parents regularly sent, he could easily afford these costs.

He took his sister’s mug from the cabinet.

It was a cute mug that his sister used as her everyday drinking cup.

However, its design seemed more suited for display, with exquisite and pristine workmanship.

It was one of the “merchandise gifts” his sister had brought home a while ago.

Printed on its side was a chibi illustration of “Magical Girl Ephnel,” with exaggerated words written in her signature color.

Yanase Naoto examined it from all angles with a peculiar expression, then shook his head and put it down.

He knew some of his sister’s after-school hobbies.

His sister really liked “Ephnel.”

She always paid extra attention to anything related to “Ephnel,” treasuring them even if they didn’t quite match her own personal style.

Of course, there was nothing wrong with what his sister liked, and Yanase Naoto wasn’t the type to meddle in others’ affairs.
It was just… how should he describe this feeling? It was a bit strange.

“Magical Girl Ephnel”… the one who bore this title wasn’t some currently popular anime idol among students.

She was a real person, someone influential in various aspects of this city.

Her official designation was “Seikyo City Order Organization Chief Agent—Codename: Ephnel.”

“Agent,” formerly known as a “special agent,” was also called a “superhero” in some cities.

It was one of the terms that entered the public consciousness over the last twenty years with the disclosure of the “White Hole Erosion” phenomenon.

In this era, to maintain urban stability and to resist the disasters brought by the “White Hole Erosion,” every city was equipped with no fewer than ten “Agents.”

They were all uniformly managed by the “Order Organization” and were the bright stars who had taken charge of humanity’s future in this age.

Each “Agent” had a unique codename, and all of them were female.

They wielded magical powers that transcended scientific explanation.

Their most important and sole duty was to battle “Erosion Disasters” to protect the city from being devoured by the Erosion.

Occasionally, they would also fight crime.

Because their actions were difficult to define and their work was too specialized to be bound by common sense, they were also known by different names such as “Enforcers,” “Vigilantes,” and “Executioners.”

In a world threatened by the “Erosion,” the Agents who fought against it were humanity’s greatest safeguard.

It was this duty that made the Agents’ status so special.

The “Magical Girl” with the official codename “Ephnel” was one of the Agents active in this city for the past two years.
As the Chief Agent, her strength was indisputably the “strongest.”

Her unique battle attire earned her the moniker “Magical Girl.”

She wasn’t just a national idol; she was a hero in the eyes of the citizens.

Yanase Naoto’s sister, Shiomi Yukina, was a die-hard fan of Ephnel.

She had collected many Ephnel-related items, such as jackets, keychains, mugs, school bags, notebooks, and so on.

Most of it was merchandise distributed or sold by Ephnel’s official fan club.

That’s right.

Although Ephnel was an “Agent,” she also served as a spokesperson and promoter for the “Order Organization” in this city.

Thanks to her immense power and active presence, she gained considerable popularity among the public.

As a result, at some point, she became an idol-like figure.

Before anyone knew it, people had spontaneously organized things like “fan clubs.”

Shiomi Yukina was a member of one, and even one of its key figures.

These were all well-known facts…

But in truth, Ephnel herself had some reservations about this.

She felt that the word “idol,” a relic from a bygone era, didn’t suit her.

In fact, the original purpose of her public appearances was simply to improve the image of Agents in the city and to restore people’s confidence in fighting Erosion Disasters.

Instead, she inexplicably gained a massive following and unwittingly became a star Agent.

Ephnel herself had never publicly disclosed this matter, making it a little-known secret.
As for why Yanase Naoto knew all this…

Because, she was Ephnel.

Though it was difficult to admit, her other identity was none other than Ephnel herself, the very person her sister was so infatuated with—the genuine article.

Currently, she was cross-dressing as a man, simply to maintain her image as an older brother.

It all began two years ago.

Back then, Yanase Naoto, who had just started university, was caught in a “White Hole Incident” caused by a large-scale Erosion.

She unexpectedly turned into a woman and became a rare “Accommodator” who could resonate with the “Power of Order.”
It was then that she resonated with the “Power of Order” for the first time, entered her “Exile Form,” and became “Ephnel.”

After that incident, the “Order Organization” approached her, recruiting her to be active in this city as an “Agent.”
From that moment on, she was officially registered with the operational codename “Ephnel.”

Thus, her other identity, “Ephnel,” was born.

And she had never mentioned any of this to her sister.

*TL Note: Sakahi -Massive protective barriers that shield human cities from the White Hole Erosion.

White Hole Erosion- The primary existential threat to humanity. A phenomenon that corrupts and destroys,
creating monsters.