Mizuho: “You there?”
Mizuho: “Are you there?”
Mizuho: “?”
Mizuho: “I saw the stream. Eight monsters. Were you possessed by Raven today?”
About ten minutes later —
Yuan Qing: “Not possessed. Just felt like fighting.”
Mizuho: “Felt like it? That’s it?”
Yuan Qing: “Yeah.”
Mizuho: “What are you doing now?”
Yuan Qing: “Lying down. Tired.”
Mizuho: “…You’ve changed.”
Yuan Qing: “?”
Mizuho: “Raven said you made a new bet? If you lose, you have to be my dog and its dog? How come I didn’t know about this?”
Yuan Qing: “It added that part on its own.”
Mizuho: “And you agreed?”
Yuan Qing: “I’m going to win anyway, so it doesn’t matter.”
Mizuho: “Who’s going to win?”
Yuan Qing: “…Going to sleep.”
Mizuho: “This early?”
One minute later —
Mizuho: “?”
Mizuho: “Where’d you go?”
Another minute later —
Mizuho: “Goodnight.”
—
Mizuho put her phone down and stared at the ceiling for a long time.
Eight monsters.
A single-strike kill for each.
The monsters of the entire Tokyo Metropolitan Area had been cleared out by a single person.
She had just finished scrolling through social media, and “Miss Raven” already occupied the top three spots on the trending searches.
“Miss Raven’s Eight-Kill Streak”
“Tokyo Metropolitan Area Monster Count: Zero”
“Just How Strong Is Miss Raven?”
Clicking on the tags revealed nothing but screen recordings and screenshots of today’s stream. There was the moment “Crane” pierced through a monster, the trajectory of “Falcon” as it dived through the air, and every frame of that black figure flashing under the setting sun.
The comment section looked like this:
“Are all the other Magical Girls out of a job now? Has anyone noticed that Miss Raven is even faster than before?”
“Miss Raven will definitely one-shot Miss Kazama!”
“I heard Miss Raven will have another match with Miss Kazama. Miss Kazama’s position is in danger this time.”
In short, it was nothing but praise.
While she was browsing the comments, a message from Idol Life arrived.
Sachiko: “Mizuho, come to the office. I have big news.”
Mizuho: “Okay.”
She washed up in a daze and changed her clothes. Before heading out, she checked her phone one last time.
There were no new messages from Yuan Qing.
‘Figures. That lazy bum is probably still sleeping.’
When Mizuho arrived at the company and pushed open the door to the lounge, she saw Sachiko sitting on the sofa. Sachiko held a freshly lit cigarette between her fingers, and a thick stack of documents sat on the coffee table in front of her.
“You’re here?” Sachiko looked up at her with an unreadable smile. “Sit.”
Mizuho sat down across from her, her gaze sweeping over the pile of papers. “What are these?”
“See for yourself.”
With that, Sachiko went back to smoking with an air of indifference.
Mizuho picked up the document on top and flipped it open. It was an invitation for a variety show—a reality program specifically for Magical Girls that always boasted high ratings.
She flipped to the second one. An invitation for a magazine cover shoot.
The third was a contract for an advertisement endorsement.
The fourth was an invitation for an interview program.
The fifth…
Mizuho flipped through a few more before looking up. “Are all of these for me?”
“They’re for Miss Raven,” Sachiko said, exhaling a cloud of smoke. “For the Miss Raven who pulled off an eight-kill streak yesterday.”
“Do I have to accept all of these?” Mizuho asked suddenly.
“Not necessarily,” Sachiko replied. “Whether to take them, which ones to pick, and when to do them—all of that is up for discussion. In your current position, you have the right to be picky.”
“I see.”
Mizuho nodded without saying much else.
Sachiko watched her for a moment. “That trainee Magical Girl, what was her name again… Sakuma Seidai?”
Mizuho looked up. “Hmm?”
“She got beaten pretty badly during yesterday’s stream,” Sachiko said, flicking her ash. “And then you appeared and saved her. This morning, she posted an update. Take a look.”
Sachiko handed over her phone. Mizuho took it and saw a short message on the screen.
“I almost couldn’t hold on yesterday. Thank you, Miss Raven, for saving me, and thank you for showing me how strong a Magical Girl can really be. I’ll keep working hard! One day, I want to protect others just like Miss Raven!”
The post was accompanied by a selfie of Sundae. She was wearing her pink and white outfit, flashing a slightly awkward peace sign at the camera with a bright smile.
“She’s… working quite hard,” Mizuho could only offer that much of an evaluation.
“Effort is effort,” Sachiko took another drag of her cigarette. “…But talent isn’t something that can be made up for with effort. I watched the video of you saving her. I didn’t bother to keep track of how long she fought that monster, but I didn’t need to keep track of your one-hit kill. That is the gap.”
Mizuho remained silent. She knew there was a gap, of course.
‘But that gap isn’t between me and Sundae. It’s the gap between Yuan Qing and Sundae, and the gap between Yuan Qing and me.’
“Let’s not talk about that,” Sachiko said, stubbing out the remains of her cigarette and standing up. “Look through those invitations first. Let me know if any interest you.”
“The magazine shoot, then. The one that can be done tomorrow.” Mizuho tossed the document back to Sachiko.
Sachiko caught it, glancing sideways at Mizuho before cracking a smile.
Mizuho smiled back.
—
The next morning at 6:00 AM, Mizuho arrived at the company right on time.
The magazine shoot was at 9:00 AM, but she was used to arriving early to warm up, prepare, and get into character.
The practice room was empty, her reflection in the floor-to-ceiling mirror the only company she had.
Mizuho changed into her athletic gear and stood before the mirror to begin her warm-up.
She stretched, bent, and spun.
Every movement was perfect, every detail executed precisely. This was a habit she had cultivated over the past ten years.
No matter how tired or busy she was, she never missed her daily practice. If talent wasn’t enough, she would make up for it with hard work.
She wasn’t like Yuan Qing, who could make 2,000,000 people hold their breath on a whim. She could only rely on practicing over and over again to make herself shine on stage.
Mizuho began to dance.
She had been practicing this particular routine recently. The movements were complex and the tempo was fast.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Sweat began to bead on her forehead, but she didn’t stop.
Recalling Sachiko’s words from yesterday, she continued to dance.
Four times.
Five times.
Six times.
Sweat soaked her athletic wear and her breathing grew ragged, but she maintained the standard for every movement.
The girl in the mirror was focused and determined.
That was the expression she was most familiar with, and the thing she was most proud of.
Seven times.
Eight times.
Nine times.
Finally, Mizuho stopped. She leaned over with her hands on her knees, gasping for air as sweat dripped onto the floor with a soft pattering sound.
She looked up at her reflection. Her hair was a mess and her makeup was ruined, but her eyes were still bright.
“Whew…” She exhaled a long breath and straightened up again. “Again.”
—
At that moment, the sun had not yet fully risen over Tokyo. A grey-blue dawn light leaked through the gaps in the curtains.
Yuan Qing opened his eyes.
He didn’t roll over to go back to sleep like he usually did. Instead, he sat up.
The blanket slid down, revealing his faded white shirt. He sat on the bed, staring blankly at the sky brightening outside the window.
Raven was still perched on the windowsill with its head tucked under its wing. It was fast asleep, occasionally letting out a soft gurgle as if it were in the middle of a wonderful dream.
Yuan Qing glanced at it but didn’t wake it.
He quietly climbed out of bed and walked into the bathroom to wash up. Splashing cold water on his face helped him wake up significantly.
He looked at himself in the mirror. He still had that world-weary face, still looked like he hadn’t slept enough. After drying his face, he walked out of the bathroom and changed his clothes.
It was still the same faded white shirt and ordinary casual pants.
Then, he walked over to the windowsill and poked Raven.
“Hey.”
Raven didn’t react.
He poked it again.
“Hey, wake up.”
Raven shifted, changed its posture, and went back to sleep.
“…”
Yuan Qing went silent for a moment, then he pinched Raven’s beak.
“Gwah!” Raven jolted awake instantly, its wings flapping wildly. “Who! Who is it! Is it a monster invasion?!”
“It’s me.” Yuan Qing let go.
Raven stared at him blankly, its brain clearly still booting up. “You… why are you up so early?”
“I’m hunting monsters today too,” Yuan Qing said, looking Raven in the eye.
Raven blinked, then blinked again. It saw that Yuan Qing’s eyes seemed to be craving something.