Chapter 50: Twisted Relationship

I know it’s a wish that can’t be fulfilled, but I still hoped that Hyunseo would ignore the smartphone ringing so loudly.

At least for tonight, I wanted her to ignore reality and realize how sweet the forbidden love that bloomed between the magical girl and the queen of the evil organization Dark Moon was.

“Hoo.”

The sigh I let out because I resented the reality that couldn’t be done was full of regret.

Then, I supported Hyunseo, who was collapsing onto the chair as if breaking down, and I also took the opposite chair.

“You called…”
[What time is it, and you’re still not home!]

The reason I was sure it wouldn’t come true echoed from Hyunseo’s smartphone.

I frowned at the mother’s attitude of completely ignoring phone etiquette and spitting out what she wanted to say in an overbearing tone.

“I’m sorry. I’ll be home soon.”
[I told you to be home before 10 o’clock!]
“I’m sorry.”

The good atmosphere was ruined by just one phone call.

Hyunseo’s body temperature, which was as hot as the heat of a summer day when she revealed the emotions she had hidden deep in her heart, subsided at the smartphone’s ringtone.

Even after receiving the call, it rapidly froze, and before long, her face turned pale.

If that magical girl was Happy instead of Hyunseo right now… No, Happy would have been the same.

Even she, who had finished all her awakenings and reached the point of easily suppressing me, had her personality change to Hyunseo the moment she faced her mother.

In the days when I couldn’t accept the magical girl’s love yet, I resented the reality that the breakwater that had been blocking the abuse had been transformed into a barrier that was interfering with love.

[It’s already 10:02! Where are you now?!]
“I’m almost home.”
[What were you doing that made you late!]
“That’s… I was just talking with a friend for a while…”
[Was it such an important story that you couldn’t keep your promise with your mother?! And did I teach you to make excuses first?!]
“I’m sorry…”
[How many times have I told you to apologize first!]
“I’m sorry.”

I almost couldn’t suppress the murderous intent that was slowly swelling in my heart.

I clenched my fists at the way of talking that was painful just to listen to, but I didn’t slam the desk.

I barely managed to endure it, thinking that I shouldn’t.

It wasn’t because I had lived a long life without parents, so I thought that even having parents like that was better than nothing.

I’m okay.

It was because of the sentence that Hyunseo wrote in the air by gathering light, suffering from nagging that was close to abuse.

[When are you coming home?!]
“I’ll be there in 10 minutes.”

What’s okay?

I felt like I wouldn’t be able to handle the surging anger if I listened any more, so I got up from my seat and walked aimlessly inside the pawnshop.

Then, I strongly grabbed my head with both hands at the memory of the 132nd life that suddenly came to mind.

Happy used to say that to me, slapping me on the cheek whenever I made a mistake.

She said that if I did something wrong, I should apologize first instead of making excuses.

I thought it was creative back then.

It wasn’t.

She imitated it.

She did the same thing to me that she had been subjected to.

Why?

Because she witnessed Hyunseo collapsing like that.

She must have thought that I would collapse like that too.

[Come quickly!]
“Okay… Haa.”

The unilaterally started call was unilateral until the end.

No matter how much this method had settled as a part of everyday life, Hyunseo sighed so loudly that even if I combined all the breaths I had let out in the pawnshop, it would not have been enough, as if she was fed up with it.

As a result, she drooped her shoulders and laid her face powerlessly on the desk.

“…Yeres unnie.”

Then, when she suddenly opened her mouth, the tone of voice that I heard was not at all like a magical girl.

It doesn’t mean that she was steeped in madness like Happy in the 132nd life.

It was as if she had never tasted peace, with not a single grain of hope buried in her.

“What if, you know.”

Like a reader who envies the simple way of thinking of the protagonist in a novel who overcomes crises with the power of love.

Her voice, which had become dry from crying, echoed pathetically inside the pawnshop.

“If I asked you to erase my mother from this world…”

She didn’t utter the last words, but I could easily infer what she was trying to say.

What would you ask of me, unnie?

She must have wanted to ask that.

I didn’t answer right away.

Rather, I wanted to pour out the anger that was filling my heart to someone.

“Runt.”

The target was her mascot.

I slowly walked to the desk that had become distant and spoke to Runt.

“The Magical Girl Management Department only manages the lives of magical girls and doesn’t care about anything else.”

Runt was the same.

He opened his mouth before I even asked a question.

“I reported it a long time ago. But they’re just standing by, saying that even that is a kind of trial, and if you overcome it, you can gain more power.”

“That’s quite a great idea.”

“I don’t understand either. But what can I do? So, I’m saying this… Yeres.”

Sitting across from Hyunseo again, I caught sight of Runt staring at me intently.

He opened and closed his mouth several times, like Hyunseo trying a forbidden love.

“If I make a deal with you… will you accept it?”

“What?”

“What do you want me to do?”

“I don’t want to see Happy being crushed by her mother anymore.”

I couldn’t help but be flustered this time.

That meant that the relationship between Hyunseo’s mother and Hyunseo was that serious, and I realized that I was the only one who could solve this situation.

…
…

Is it because I’m the queen of the evil organization Dark Moon, whose nature is messed up?

The moment I heard the words ‘let’s make a deal,’ I regarded this situation as an opportunity that had come to me.

Because I can solve it.

Because I have the power to make it so that Hyunseo’s mother can no longer abuse Hyunseo.

By doing so, I hoped that she would love me even more.

I wanted her to be so dependent that she couldn’t live without me.

“Runt, I’m sorry, but I’m only going to make a deal with Hyunseo.”
“…Okay.”
“So, Park Hyunseo.”

I reached out my hand and lifted Hyunseo’s face, which had her forehead touching the desk.

Her eyes, which had become accustomed to abuse even before I abused her, were full of negative emotions.

I was just about to think about what kind of expression she would make if I distorted it even more.

I decided that the relationship might break down if I did that, so I decided to grant Hyunseo and Runt’s wishes.

“If it’s really hard, make a deal with me.”

However, I had no intention of volunteering.

“Then I’ll solve it.”
“If I do that… what will you ask of me?”

There were more than one or two requirements that came to mind.

“It’s a secret.”

The problem was that they were all so vulgar.

I decided that it was still too early to take them out of my mouth, so I vowed to keep my words to myself.

“…Okay.”

Even so, Hyunseo agreed, and perhaps remembering the past when she asked for sticker pictures and put restriction magic on Runt, she didn’t say let’s make a deal right away.

Or maybe it’s because it’s still bearable.

Whatever it is, she will demand a deal from me someday.

“Then….”
“This is the end for today.”

It was a pity, but it couldn’t be helped.

Hyunseo has to go home within the next 8 minutes.

“Shall we take sticker pictures next time?”
“…I’ll do that.”

Hyunseo got up from her seat, answering with a voice that didn’t have any strength in it.

Now, if I see her off, today will be over.

I couldn’t end our first meeting without leaving any traces, so I didn’t get up from my chair.

“Hyunseo, can you come to me for a second?”
“Huh…? Unnie, just a minute!”

Instead, I cast a spell and pulled Hyunseo.

I didn’t consume a large amount of water, so she could escape at any time, but she was just flustered at first.

After realizing what intention I had cast the spell with, she didn’t resist.

“I-I-I’m embarrassed!”

“Calm down. Stretch your legs out and sit comfortably on my lap.”

When I hugged her tightly, her body temperature, which had been coldly cold, became hot again.

I liked that her body temperature, even if it wasn’t comparable to the heat of a summer day, was higher than average, so I wrapped Hyunseo’s stomach with my left hand.

“Can you give me your smartphone? With the camera turned on.”
“Here… here it is.”

When I showed Hyunseo my remaining right hand, she operated the smartphone as I wanted and put it down.

“It’s okay to take a picture like this, right?”
“I like it.”

From that moment on, Hyunseo’s tone became noticeably softer, and she was also full of energy.

“Okay, cheese.”

Click

Was it one, two, three these days?

Whatever.

It’s enough if we take a pretty picture.

“Hyunseo. Your expression is too stiff. Smile brightly.”
“Like this?”
“Yeah, like that. Let’s take it again. Cheese.”

Click

“This time your hands are unnatural. Let’s take it one more time.”
“Okay, unnie.”

With the continued photo shoot, we were able to temporarily forget the abuse Hyunseo had suffered from her mother.

Smelling the fragrance of the smiling flowers that were slowly blooming on her lips, I cherished the feeling of loving and pitying her in my heart.

When I finally took a satisfactory picture, there were only 2 minutes left.

I was going to walk her home, but Hyunseo was considerate of me, saying that I didn’t have to do that.

“Then leave me a text when you want to meet.”

In the 132nd life, I received it as a gift, and in the 133rd life, I shook the smartphone I had stolen, and Hyunseo nodded.

“Okay, unnie. And…”
“Yeah?”
“Hug me just once.”
“As much as you want.”

I finished saying goodbye with a hug.

At Runt’s words that there was less than a minute left, Hyunseo hurriedly left the pawnshop, and I also moved my steps to return to the headquarters of the evil organization Dark Moon, even if it was slower compared to the two.

My heart fluttered while moving along the flow of water.

It was largely because I felt both regret for meeting the magical girl, even though I had vowed to forget her, and happiness that it was good that I met her.

No.

Don’t do that.

I decided to love Hyunseo in this life.

So I went to meet her.

Then don’t regret it again, Yeres.

Instead, no one should find out.

Just like the feeling of a magical girl loving the queen of the evil organization Dark Moon is forbidden.

The feeling of the queen of the evil organization Dark Moon loving the magical girl is also forbidden.

Absolutely.

Absolutely no one should find out.

…
…

I was vowing like that, but it just so happened that I had forgotten about Alpha.

“Queen Yeres.”

Opening the door to the private room after finishing my brief escapade, the fishy smell of blood stung my nose.

Looking at the floor, the water that had always been pooled there had disappeared, and the blood that was bubbling was replacing it.

“Don’t tell me you went to meet that magical girl?”

The cause was my loyal first subordinate, Alpha.

She had occupied the queen’s private room, which had disappeared without a word, and got up from her seat with the purpose of welcoming me.

No, she didn’t get up to welcome me.

As if she had forgotten that I was the queen, she was glaring at me with red eyes that were clearer than the blood boiling on the floor.

“I want to know the reason why you did that.”

She was about to devour me as is.