CH 54

Chidori and Her Younger Brother

Translated by LyraDhani

Edited by LyraDhani

Let’s talk about the barrier accident at Tenma Amusement Park [5].

~~~~

666 : Anonymous

If we follow the order and organize the timeline, it would be like this

Demonic Beast Alert. Dispatch Magical Girl confirmed (Takasaki).

A barrier accident occurred. Six people were involved (two of them are Magical Girls).

Takasaki defeated one of the Demonic Beasts. The Irregular Demonic Beast ambushed her and caught her by surprise and rendered her inoperable.

The Demonic Beast discovered Girl A and Girl B.

Boy D rescued Girl A who was being chased.

The six people involved were all together.

Mibu attacked the Demonic Beast. She succeeded in weakening it.

Boy D led the Demonic Beast to the maze. He and Suzushiro went inside.

They burnt the Demonic Beast and succeeded in trapping it in the burning maze.

The Demonic Beast revived from the flames. At this point, the two Rikka’s were out of action.

Girl C made a Magical Girl contract with a Rabbit.

The transformed Girl C engaged the Demonic Beast, but had a hard time.

Boy D thrust a dagger into the neck of the Demonic Beast from behind.

They were rescued. Everyone survived.

I’ve broken down the details.

667 : Anonymous

>666 B

It’s bad when you put them all together like this.

Is this some kind of new horror attraction?

668 : Anonymous

>666 B

I guess they left out Mibu’s undressing and Suzushiro’s nail-stripping.

They were blurred out on TV too.

669 : Anonymous

I’m sure it was stopped by the people on top anyway.

Maybe the government doesn’t want to show too many bad scenes of Rikka.

670 : Anonymous

>>668

All that happened!?

Rikka is not half bad, after all…

671 : Anonymous

They can’t even transform inside the barrier, right?

From what I’ve heard, they can’t even use their powers.

Under such circumstances, how can Rikka even think of fighting a Demonic Beast?

672 : Anonymous

I mean, many Magical Girls are basically crazy…

673 : Anonymous

But still, except for Rikka, they don’t give their faces and names.

I think it’s okay at least if Girl C, who became a Magical Girl, shows her face.

674 : Anonymous

Personally, I’m concerned about Boy D, who only has black points.

Isn’t it amazing that he can put a stop to a Demonic Beast even though he’s just a regular guy?

I kind of admire him.

675 : Anonymous

He’s probably Girl C’s boyfriend or something.

If she were right in front of him, he’d be dying to try.

676 : Anonymous

>>674

No, I’m full of envy, you know?

I’m too jealous to see Yurie-chan’s service scene and holding hand with Ran-chan.

677 : Anonymous

In the dedicated thread, some jealous guys even made death threats.

Well, I’m sure those idiots will be caught soon.

678 : Anonymous

>>677

Some of them were grateful, you know?

And if it wasn’t for Boy D, both of them could have died.

679 : Anonymous

But I’m sure every guy has fantasized about this at least once.

Encountering a Magical Girl in a pinch.

680 : Anonymous

>>679

I’ve had that one too.

It’s a delusion as common as terrorists in the classroom.

681 : Anonymous

But you guys can’t actually be as active as this boy D.

682 : Anonymous

You never know.

You might awaken some hidden power.

683 : Anonymous

>>674

If I were Girl A, I’m sure I’d fall in love with him.

He’d come to the rescue just in the nick of time.

684 : Anonymous

By the way, Girl A and Girl B seem to be students of that prestigious Asuka Academy.

The guys in the specific thread assured me.

685 : Anonymous

Wow, too scary for the specific threads…

686 : Anonymous

I guess everyone is curious about their backgrounds.

I’m sure they’ll all be identified and reporters will be at their homes by tomorrow.

687 : Anonymous

I can’t help but wonder what would happen if I were Boy D.

I don’t think I would be able to live a normal life anymore.

688 : Anonymous

But still, isn’t this the first time we’ve had a large-scale barrier accident?

The people involved seem to be random, and that’s a little scary.

689 : Anonymous

It doesn’t seem to matter if you’re a man or a woman.

Tomorrow could be my turn.

690 : Anonymous

>>688

Depending on the rank of the Demonic Beast, you could die instantly.

The government needs to come up with a way out of this.

691 : Anonymous

>>690

The government is doing its best too…

◆◆◆

Tsugumi let out a loud sigh as he sat in the back seat of the car provided by the government. He tried looking through some online forums on his cell phone, but it only made him feel depressed. Although Tsugumi had not yet been identified, this might only be a matter of time.

The most concerning thing was the behavior of Rikka’s fans – specifically, Mibu’s and Suzushiro’s fans. It was unlikely that he would be killed or maimed, but if his identity was discovered, he would get into trouble, for sure. It might be better to be prepared for some harassment.

Fortunately, like a blessing in disguise, the number of scenes featuring Tsugumi seemed to have been intentionally reduced. For example, the media did not seem to report much on the footage of the two Rikka being carried in his hands. Perhaps it was a consideration on the part of the government.

“We have arrived. Thank you for your hard work.”

“Thank you very much.”

The driver called out, and Tsugumi thanked him before getting out of the car. The house from the outside was dark, and there was no sign of anyone inside. It seemed Chidori had not come back yet.

He unlocked the door to the house and proceeded upstairs to his room. He should have slept well last night, but for some reason, his body was exhausted. Perhaps yesterday’s fatigue was heavier than Tsugumi thought.

Then, as he opened the door to his room and turned on the light, something shimmering caught his eye.

“You’re late.”

“…Bell-sama?’

There she was, sitting at his desk with a grim look on her face. Tsugumi let out an involuntary sigh of relief and rushed to Bell.

“Where did you go, Bell-sama? I have a lot of things to talk about.”

“I’ve been cleaning up your mess. Don’t complain.”

Bell let out a weary sigh and stared at Tsugumi.

It would have caused quite a bit of trouble, but he thought half of it was beyond his control. Even Tsugumi didn’t want to get involved.

“You should have stayed hidden and kept still instead of having a bad sense of justice. Why don’t you think a little about your own position?”

Bell said astonishingly.

“That’s true, but…”

Certainly, If he had hidden somewhere just as Bell said, it wouldn’t have been such a hassle. But even Tsugumi had something he couldn’t bend. If Itadori and Chidori had died on the spot, there would have been deep scars on his heart.

–I want to protect the people who are important to me, who are within my reach. He thought he was allowed to do that much.

But Bell clucked her tongue in frustration, perhaps sensing Tsugumi’s naive idea.

“–Don’t even think about it, Tsugumi. You are neither a genius nor a jack-of-all-trades. You’re arrogant if you think you can live without taking anything away. Don’t get carried away when you can’t even protect yourself!”

“…Yes.”

For Tsugumi, the rebuke was painful to hear.

This incident made him realize just how powerless he actually was. If he lost his power as a Magical Girl, he would be no match for an E-class Demonic Beast.

He was lucky to survive this time. Additionally, the two Rikka were there, as well as Chidori, who signed a Magical Girl’s contract to save him. It was truly a series of miracles.

…If he got involved in another barrier accident like this one, there was no guarantee that he would be safe the next time. In fact, it would not be surprising if he got himself killed as cruelly as he had done with the Gargoyle.

As Tsugumi looked down with a mysterious expression on his face, Bell began to speak.

“I’ve spoken to the other contract Gods who were watching inside that barrier. Your true identity will not be revealed to the other Magical Girls. …It’s not so much a matter of etiquette to tell others about someone who has kept their identity a secret–rather, If you’re dealing with the right God, all you have to do is nailing it with words..”

“Yes… That’s good.”

This at least prevented Chidori from discovering the true identity of “Hagakure Sakura”. Similarly, his existence was concealed from the government’s side. It was a relief to know that.

But for some reason, Bell’s expression didn’t clear up. Seeing this, Tsugumi remembered Rikka’s new framework–the “Jukka”. If Bell had anything to worry about, it must be that.

“Perhaps, Bell-sama also heard about ‘Jukka’ in the government?”

“Hmm? Oh, that story. I heard a touch of it, but I don’t think you need to worry that much. Even if six people change to ten, the other four are just spares. Basically, things will proceed as before, with Rikka playing a central role. Whether or not you decline, it will not affect us that much.”

“Do you mean I won’t be assigned to anything too important?”

“In the first place, Hagakure Sakura is ranked tenth. The government probably doesn’t think it’s very important.”

Bell said so matter-of-factly, and Tsugumi was convinced with it.

And as Tsugumi and Bell were exchanging information about this and that, the sound of the front door opening could be heard from the first floor. Then came the sound of Chidori’s tired voice, “I’m home-“

When Tsugumi put his hand on the door to greet her, Bell discreetly tugged on his sleeve and held him back.

“Wait. There is one thing I have to tell you.”

“What’s the matter, all of a sudden? Is it something you forgot to mention?”

When Thrush turned around and asked, Bell began to speak haltingly.

“I said earlier that I had talked to the other contract Gods, but one of them put on one condition.”

“What, so suddenly? Does it have to be at this time? …No, maybe.”

Then Tsugumi glanced at his feet. Chidori was on the first floor. –Which meant that Chidori’s contract God could be with her.

When Tsugumi looked up and gazed fearfully at Bell, she nodded with a somber look.

“It’s exactly as you imagined. …I don’t want to go into detail, but it’s not that bad. All you have to do is to keep quiet and listen to him.”

With these words, Bell disappeared from the room as if she had nothing more to say. Subconsciously, he reached out to her, but his hand cut through the air. Tsugumi stood there in a daze and moaned like an abandoned puppy.

“Wha-what are you talking about?”

For a while, Tsugumi held his head as if trying to escape reality, but then he heard Chidori’s voice from downstairs, “Tsugumi? If you’re here, I’d like to have a word with you.” Now that this happened, he couldn’t escape anymore.

Tsugumi clenched his fists and braced himself, and slowly made his way down the stairs.

He opened the door to the living room and saw Chidori sitting on the sofa. Chidori stared at Tsugumi with a somewhat nervous expression, and the air was somehow heavy.

–It was most likely due to the white rabbit sitting on her lap.

Tsugumi stared at the rabbit in surprise. From the way Bell spoke, he had expected contact from him sooner or later, but he had not expected him to show up like this with Chidori. What on earth is this white rabbit, God, thinking?

And as Tsugumi looked alternately at Chidori and the rabbit with a puzzled expression, Chidori broke the silence and began to speak.

“Hey, Tsugumi. I have something important to tell you, is that okay?”

“Well, yeah. That’s fine.”

In all likelihood, she was referring to the being on her lap. As Tsugumi prepared himself for what she was going to say, Chidori turned away from him, gently picked up the white rabbit with both hands, and opened her mouth with an embarrassed look.

“His name is ‘Shiro’. He is going to be my little brother from today on. Well, I guess you can say that he’s going to be a big brother for Tsugumi?”

And the white rabbit, lifted up to Chidori’s chest, let out a deep breath through his nose and said to Tsugumi in an irreverent voice.

“I’ll be counting on you from now on, Otouto.”

Hearing these words from a person and a God, Tsugumi waited a full ten seconds before quietly tilting his head.

“…Eh?”

–Become Chidori’s younger brother. And the white rabbit called Tsugumi his younger brother. He understood the meaning of those words, but he had no idea what they meant. Perhaps, he had gone crazy.

He turned around and asked Bell for help, but no one was there. He felt like crying for no reason, but reality would not wait for him.

“…Give me more details, please.”

Tsugumi gulped down everything he wanted to say and spat these words out.

–The strange encounter had only just begun.