Chapter 54: Awakening

Before becoming a magical girl, Park Hyunseo was an ordinary girl without any outstanding qualities… no.

Even the phrase ‘ordinary’ was too good for this bottom-of-the-barrel girl.

It might sound like an absurd slander, but what could I do when that was the reality?

Her studies, the main duty of a student, never exceeded the average, and sports were out of the question due to asthma that had plagued her since birth.

Moreover, she had no talent for music or art, and no matter how hard she tried, even if she struggled with all her might, there was no miracle-like growth.

Then, was there hope in other areas?

For example, in innate factors like appearance or parents.

Unfortunately, Hyunseo was at the bottom in those areas as well.

First, I should describe her appearance.

Freckles covering her cheeks and a collapsed nose due to the thick lenses of the glasses she had worn since childhood.

Uneven teeth that had never been taken care of and a weight she had given up on controlling because she gained as much as she ate.

Furthermore, Hyunseo, whose body proportions were also unsightly, spent an unfortunate life where she received only malicious gazes, let alone confessions from the opposite s*x.

Her parents were the same.

Her father was a fool who didn’t know how great warm encouragement and praise were, so he constantly subjected Hyunseo to excessive strictness and intense beatings with a switch.

As a result, it was only a matter of time before the father-daughter relationship became distorted, and her mother never took her side even once.

It was fortunate, or I should be disgusted by the vile intention to heal her mind with material things.

The former might be the right answer for some, but it wasn’t for Hyunseo.

Just because her allowance was larger than other children’s didn’t mean that a home that was a replica of the middle of hell would turn into a comfortable shelter.

Therefore, sometimes.

Really sometimes it happened.

Or maybe it happened every time.

Every time she was subjected to discipline, Hyunseo secretly wished that her father would suffer a sudden death or a terrible disease, or be murdered, or be in a car accident, etc.

She desperately wanted him to disappear from the world in any way possible.

Then, she could feel a little comfort at home.

Then, she could smile at a little happiness.

Her timid personality, which didn’t even allow her to think about rebelling, harbored a resentment that was inappropriate for her young age.

But was it because she desperately wanted it?

The moment she had so longed for became a reality.

Her father, caught in a car accident, died instantly at the scene.

Hyunseo laughed at her father’s death, leaving behind her mother, who was crying mournfully at the funeral.

When others sighed with regret, she sighed with relief, saying that her home had become a little more comfortable and that she could smile at a little happiness.

By the time she realized that she shouldn’t have done that, it was already water under the bridge.

Contrary to the thought that she would become a little happier and more comfortable, the home that had lost its head of household was tossed around like a ship in a storm.

As the problems that had been hidden by her father’s authority slowly emerged, the time that Hyunseo spent with a smile on her face dwindled day by day.

The biggest problem was love and attention.

At a time that should have been more brilliant than ever, the life of a girl who received neither love nor attention was gradually losing its light.

Her mother had never taken Hyunseo’s side, but rather had no interest in her in the first place.

As the number of days when they didn’t even face each other or have a conversation increased, she ironically, and really paradoxically, longed for the excessive strictness and intense beatings with a switch.

In addition to that, several problems began to erupt, and the second most serious problem was her mother’s foolish investment.

She touched stocks with the wealth she had accumulated so far and her father’s death insurance money, but the result was disastrous.

Her mother, who had squandered her wealth with bad choices, suffered from depression that she couldn’t escape from, and by the time Hyunseo finished the first semester of her first year of high school, she had reached a point where daily life was impossible.

Even so, she continued to live her life.

Although she lacked the strength to look straight at the unhappy reality, she didn’t run away from home or commit the transgression of putting alcohol and cigarettes in her mouth.

She just said that it was her fault.

That it was her fault for not enduring a little longer.

That the dream she had so longed for was actually a curse that destroyed her family.

That she shouldn’t have done that.

She continued to, constantly abused herself.

Until she met the magical girl’s mascot, Runt.

The first meeting between the girl and the cat was extremely bizarre.

The fact that human language flowed from the mouth of a non-human creature was also a bizarre part.

However, it was more due to Runt’s conviction that Hyunseo had enough qualifications to be a magical girl than those trivial things.

When Hyunseo asked what the qualifications of a magical girl were, Runt uttered the word ‘purity.’

It was an ambiguous answer.

To be honest, Hyunseo at that time had completely forgotten what the dictionary definition of purity was, and was living her life believing that she was the opposite of a guardian who protects love and peace.

So, she thought it might be a kind of scam… for a moment.

The benefits of being a magical girl that he explained next shook Hyunseo’s heart.

Soon, she nodded.

Like the old saying, ‘If misfortune has found you, good fortune will also find you.’

For a girl who had been thoroughly broken and had forgotten what purity was, the visit of a mascot who wanted a magical girl contract was the good fortune that had finally arrived.

Looking back, it was a misfortune disguised as good fortune.

Just like back then, when she had wished for her father to disappear.

However, she at that time was a 17-year-old girl who didn’t blame others even after suffering all kinds of misfortunes.

She thought that she had to accept the magical girl contract in order to forget the bitter taste of the world that was filling her mouth.

It’s not that the world has to be destroyed or changed.

If I change, all the problems will be solved.

It was a foolish thought, but she thought that was how it was back then.

That’s because her life changed 180 degrees with the benefits of becoming a magical girl.

First, she gained the ability to see the world clearly without wearing glasses, and the freckles that marred her appearance disappeared.

Her messy teeth were evenly aligned, and all her unnecessary fat oxidized, as well as her beautiful features.

In addition, her terrible body proportions changed into a form suitable for a model, and even the asthma that had plagued her since birth disappeared.

It didn’t end there.

She gained an intelligence that easily exceeded the average just by skimming through textbooks.

As she gradually increased the amount of reviewing and previewing, her rank soared to single digits, and her talent for music and art overflowed to the point where she could captivate others in seconds.

The price for all these benefits was only to secretly protect love and peace.

…
…

The price couldn’t be paid with just that.

Jealousy and envy, resentment and expectation.

A trial came for Hyunseo to face the emotions that others poured out on her.

This damn world began to hate the fool who had suddenly become a genius.

When Hyunseo, who had been below average, became 3rd in the entire school on the second semester final exam in her first year of high school, strange rumors spread.

First, voices suspecting cheating grew louder.

In between, malice slowly revealed itself, saying that she had sold her body to a teacher to get the test papers in advance.

It was the same for her changed appearance.

Students who were jealous of Hyunseo formed a group and asked her vulgar questions about how much she had paid for a full-body plastic surgery.

They did that constantly every break time, and even more persistently during lunch.

Sports, music, art…

Even if she moved her body a little, even if she picked up a brush for a moment, even if she opened her mouth and sang just one verse, criticism that a high school student couldn’t handle poured out.

The first-place winners in each sport, who had their positions taken away from her, relentlessly slandered her, and there were even days when they poured out rough curses directly in her face without hesitation.

Even so, Hyunseo didn’t give up.

No. She couldn’t give up.

“You could have done it.”

“Why didn’t you do it like that until now!”

“What do you need? I’ll do anything for you, so keep doing that.”

“Don’t care about the jealousy of those retards and keep going!”

The love and attention she received for the first time was very sweet.

She became addicted to the praise of her mother, who had escaped from depression because she had changed.

She thought she would feel comfortable in a home that was like the middle of hell if she did this.

I’ll say it again…

The magical girl contract was a misfortune disguised as good fortune.

“Try harder.”

“More than today.”

“More than today!”

“More than today!!”

“More than today!!!”

“Try!”

“Try, I said!”

“Keep trying!”

“Keep trying without resting!”

“More!”

“More!!”

“More!!!”

One day, when she realized that her mother’s love and attention were gradually turning into abuse, she regretted accepting the magical girl contract.

But the reality was already water under the bridge that couldn’t be put back into the bottle even with the magical girl’s abilities.

So, at that time when she finally became disillusioned with the world.

“Excellent skills. I’ll retreat this time. But I’ll definitely win next time! Just you wait, magical girl Happy!”

New love and attention came to her.

The queen of the evil organization Dark Moon, Yeres.

Hyunseo couldn’t control her pounding heart at her praise.