Chapter 23: The Interview and a Favor

A new recruit’s first days in the military often involve an interview with the Sergeant Major—a chance to make a first impression and ease some of the initial tension. In reality, it’s often an opportunity for superiors to identify scapegoats for undesirable tasks. Si-yool’s otherworldly experiences had been so traumatic, he’d initially suspected the Sergeant Major of sending assassins after him.

Now, as a magical girl, he was facing a similar interview, only this time with a much higher-ranking officer. He entered the room expecting the Magical Sergeant Major, but instead found Jin So-a, the three-star White Magical Girl.

“Um…hello…?” Si-yool stammered.

“Hello,” Jin So-a replied. While it was unusual, it wasn’t entirely surprising given her position as his superior. However, the presence of two three-star magical girls, including Lee Seo-bin, the Purple Magical Girl from another unit, was harder to explain.

“How are you finding life as a magical girl, Si-yool?” Jin So-a asked.

“It’s garbage,” Si-yool answered honestly.

“So, you’re saying it’s fine. That’s good to hear,” Jin So-a replied, her interpretation completely missing the mark.

“Did you drink last night, Si-yool?” she asked suddenly.

“N-no? Why?” Si-yool blurted out, surprised she knew.

“Just a hunch,” Jin So-a said, her sharp gaze making Si-yool uncomfortable. He was indeed feeling the after-effects of his first experience with alcohol. He’d been too eager to accept Sora and Ray’s “Magical Water” and now felt slightly nauseous.

“What are you doing here? Aren’t you from a different unit?” Si-yool asked quickly, changing the subject.

“Just curious. Why? Am I not allowed to talk to you?” Jin So-a asked, her tone a mix of playful teasing and veiled authority.

“Well, it’s just…” Si-yool trailed off, giving her a questioning look.

“Hee hee…we said hi…” Jin So-a giggled, her behavior increasingly erratic. Si-yool was grateful she seemed to have forgotten their previous unpleasant encounter.

Lee Seo-bin intervened.

“Let’s move on. We’re actually here to ask you something,” she said.

“Me?”

“Yes.” Lee Seo-bin smiled. Both her and Jin So-a’s expressions turned serious, suggesting the question’s importance.

“You encountered a talking Kaijin last night—or rather, early this morning, correct?” Jin So-a asked.

“Yes.”

“Could you tell us more about it? We haven’t received a detailed report.”

Si-yool nodded and summarized the events: subduing the potted-plant Kaijin, the other magical girls’ attempt to steal credit, the Kaijin’s sudden ability to speak, and its subsequent suicide using Ray’s staff. He omitted any mention of the other world and anything that might paint him in a negative light.

“So the Kaijin just started talking? No warning signs?” Jin So-a asked, surprised.

“Yes. It was…unexpected,” Si-yool replied.

“Anything else?”

“That’s it.”

“Just to confirm, this Kaijin wasn’t unusually shaped or anything? Just a regular Kaijin with a flowerpot on its head?” Jin So-a asked again.

“Is a flowerpot on its head not unusual?” Si-yool countered.

“Well, we’ve seen that type before. But not one that talks. Especially since it didn’t say anything at first,” Jin So-a explained.

“It shot at us as soon as it saw us.”

“Then it’s the same type…hmm…” Jin So-a pondered.

“Did the Kaijin say anything unusual before it died?” Lee Seo-bin asked.

“Um…” Si-yool hesitated. The Kaijin had said some rather pointed things about him not being human, but he couldn’t reveal that without explaining his otherworldly experiences.

“I have a feeling there’s more to this,” Lee Seo-bin pressed.

Si-yool racked his brain. There was one thing…the Kaijin had referred to itself as a person.

“Well?” Lee Seo-bin prompted.

“Yes,” Si-yool said.

“What is it?” Jin So-a asked.

“Um…”

“Just call me So-a.”

“Okay, So-a,” Si-yool said, meeting her gaze. He saw curiosity and a simmering anger.

“Did the Kaijin ever refer to itself as a Kaijin?” she asked.

“No, it called itself a person.”

Jin So-a’s eyes narrowed.

“Interesting…” she muttered.

Lee Seo-bin spoke up.

“Thank you for your cooperation. I specifically asked them not to put you in harm’s way, and this is what happens.”

“The Battalion Commander sent me.”

“I see. I’ll remember that,” Lee Seo-bin said, a chilling smile spreading across her face. The Battalion Commander had just made a powerful enemy.

“That was all we wanted to ask. Do you have any questions for us?” she continued.

“Actually, yes. I have a favor to ask,” Si-yool replied.

“Go ahead.”

Si-yool sensed that Lee Seo-bin held considerable influence and connections.

“I’d like to ask for help finding someone.”

“Who?”

“My parents. They disappeared from all records after the Kaijin attacks. I haven’t been able to find any information about them.”

“I see. I have some contacts who specialize in this sort of thing. I can reach out to them,” Lee Seo-bin offered.

“Thank you! How much will it cost?”

“No charge. But…” Lee Seo-bin smiled, “I’ll need you to do something for me in return.”

“What is it?” Si-yool asked, a flicker of unease running through him.

“Spend your entire next leave with a magical girl I’ll set you up with.”

Si-yool was taken aback. He had no interest in getting involved with magical girls, and now he was being asked to spend his precious vacation time with one?

“Which magical girl? And how many?”

“That’s a secret. It’ll be more fun that way.”

She wouldn’t even tell him who it was. He glanced at Jin So-a, hoping she might offer a clue, but she avoided his gaze. This meant they all knew the identity of the magical girl in question, except for him.

Si-yool felt a growing sense of dread.

“So, what do you say? Not a bad deal, right?”

To spend his limited vacation time with an unknown number of magical girls…it sounded like a recipe for disaster.

“What am I supposed to do on this vacation?” he asked.

“Just hang out, have meals together, go sightseeing, maybe have some drinks in the evening…”

“What if things go further than that?”

“Oh? I wonder how far things will go,” Lee Seo-bin said with a strange smile. It felt like a challenge, an invitation, and a manipulation all at once. Si-yool felt uneasy, as though he was a pawn in a game he didn’t understand.

“I don’t know…”

“I’ll make sure you get extra vacation time,” Lee Seo-bin added.

“How many of them am I supposed to…have fun with?” Si-yool clarified.

“Just one. And ‘have fun’ might be a bit of an overstatement,” Lee Seo-bin replied, her expression laced with disdain.

Emboldened by the promise of extra vacation time, Si-yool pushed his luck.

“Can I get a promotion too?”

“No. That requires actual merit.”

“Too bad.”

“Do you think promotions are that easy to come by?”

“Not really.”

Undeterred, Si-yool was satisfied with the extra vacation. He could handle one magical girl.

“If you have nothing else to ask, we’ll conclude the interview here,” Lee Seo-bin said.

“Very well.”

As he turned to leave, Jin So-a spoke in a small voice, “B-bye, Si-yool.”

“Goodbye,” Si-yool replied, stepping out into the hallway. He could hear the two magical girls talking, but their voices were too muffled to understand.

“Hee hee, I already called him by his first name.”

“You’re disgusting.”

Si-yool’s first interview was over. It was unsettling and strange, but much better than any he’d experienced in the military.