"It feels pretty good," I said, gently stroking the wound on my calf. While I was fighting, a wasp was lucky enough to hit me, but luckily, it was only a flash. The edge of its stinger must have bitten my leg just right, leaving a long, diagonal cut in my calf that ran through my tights. The sensation is not particularly deep, and careful poking will only cause slight discomfort. It was worrying how much blood had seeped into my tights around the wound and almost spread to my feet.

One glance at my HUD, my health hovers around 70%. The accompanying body outline, or what Selina calls a health map, shows a yellow-orange line along my right ankle, black spots on my stomach that I left from my first fight, and a few yellowish spots along the left side of my body. d Fell. Strangely, pressing my left side also didn't feel any pain.

Selina jumped to where I was sitting on the ground. Seeing the confused look on my stomach as she lay on my side, she tilted her head at me.

[The painkiller inhaler you take will still work for a few hours.] Unfortunately, the larger regenerating gums are no longer effective, so you won't be able to heal anymore. The wound on your ankle will continue to bleed and will be severe enough to require stitches. ]

"Oh...... I should...... Uh-huh......" I muttered to myself.

After the battle, my mind became confused. I think I have at least a little bit left before the adrenaline is completely drained from my system because I don't feel that safe. Of course, I just killed fourteen cursers, but I'm still in the midst of usurpation. There's a lot more around, and there's almost the possibility of more people coming in at any time.

[Since there is nothing between you and the Vault, I recommend not buying anything to cure it.] ]

I blinked, and turned my head to look at Selina in confusion.

[When you come in, the people inside will undoubtedly care about your appearance and bloodline. If you don't have obvious wounds, it's suspicious, and some people may find out your magical girl identity. ]

I smiled wryly and nodded. I was splattered with black cursed pus from the first hound I had killed, and everything around my stomach was soaked in my own blood. It wasn't too noticeable due to the darker color of my blazer, but the shirt underneath me was dyed a deep scarlet. I frowned through the small hole in my clothes.

Since I used the emergency clot spray, the strange foam is gone, revealing a patch of pink skin. Gently, I took my hand and pressed it on it. There is no pain other than slight tenderness.

…… It makes sense.

Because of painkiller inhalers.

Right.

I shook my head and forced myself to stand up, trying to clear my mind. I'm starting to lose motivation, but I still have a lot to do before I'm healthy and really safe. My legs trembled slightly, and I forced myself to ignore them and try to concentrate.

"Okay," I said aloud. "First, go back to Brian."

"May I suggest you retrieve the ammo you dropped?" Celine asked. [It would be better to consolidate the few resources we have.] ]

"Oh. Yes. Hmm...... "My voice faded and I took a moment to reorient myself. I blinked as I tried to orient myself to glowing arrows made of green particles on the ground.

[I took the liberty of setting waypoints on your HUD.] I've also placed markers on your minimap that show the location of all your empty magazines. I recommend picking them up now. ]

"Why? To hide the evidence that I might be a magical girl?" I asked as I started walking along the arrow.

[Section.] You can also reuse discarded magazines. It is cheaper to replenish them with ammunition than to buy separate magazines. ]

When I arrived at the first location, I nodded. There was an "X" icon on the circular minimap in the upper right corner of my field of vision, and when I reached it, I found the empty magazine a few minutes later. I shook off my backpack and started putting the magazines in, but I stopped when I saw the symbol on the metallic black rectangle. There is a crescent moon inside the silver circle, and two rabbit ears protrude from the circle.

"You...... Or even want to do a branding for my magazine? I vaguely remembered Selena mentioning this earlier, and asked.

[Indeed!] Please let me know if you have a different symbol that you prefer. Developing a personal brand as a magical girl is an important step, and it's best to start early. ]

I shook my head gently as I walked on. To me, being a magical girl is still not very real. Sure, I just fought a ton of curses and defeated it, but what does it actually mean, all the realities of how my life is going to change...... The thought of it feels surreal.

But that's something to worry about later. Now, I have to fulfill my mission.

It didn't take long to collect the rest of the magazines, although long enough for me to realize how sweaty I was as the air got cold. I spent some time managing my ammo, sorting out the bullets in the half-empty magazine. All in all, I got three full magazines and one with seven rounds left. When I finished, my mind was starting to clear again. The blade barbed net pressure in this case has completely relieved my lungs and I am moving quickly.

Thankfully, the return to Brian went smoothly and the door didn't seem to be touched. I knocked hard, drew a small pattern on the door, and waited. After a few movements, the handle clicked and the door slowly opened. Brian looked through the open crack, the look of fear on his face turning to joy and excitement. I gave him a gentle smile and pushed the door open to enter, and when Serena rushed in, I closed the door again.

"You're back!" Brian exclaimed, almost jumping up and down. "Are you still fighting with them? How much? Are we going to be gone soon? ”

I looked at him with a smile. Deep down in my heart, I've always worried that leaving him here would lead to a serious mistake. Even though I didn't really have a choice, the thought of him getting scared and leaving to come to me, or a cursed person who was just lucky enough to meet him by chance made my heart ache.

But somehow everything turned out to be more or less smooth. Even now, he looks more excited than scared. All that's left is to talk to Serena before we hope for the last departure.

"I managed to find a safe path to the shelter," I told Brian gently, deciding not to tell him the details. "We'll go out after I'm done with the bathroom, okay?"

His eyes were wide open and he nodded. As I was about to walk to the bathroom, he suddenly gasped in surprise.

"You're bleeding!"

I looked down at my legs. Sure enough, my shoes were completely soaked, leaving small bloodstained footprints. I started panicking inside me until I checked the HUD and found out that my health was 67%. Walking around may aggravate the wound, but I don't have much risk of bleeding.

Probably.

"It's just a small wound," I gave him a tight smile, trying to reassure him. "Don't worry. It doesn't hurt, and I can go to the shelter for help. ”

Brian didn't look entirely convinced, but he nodded to me anyway. I moved into the small bathroom, and before I could close the door, Serena rushed in. I sighed, took off my backpack and placed it on the floor, and looked at myself in the mirror above the sink.

A girl looked back at me, her unkempt mid-length hair soaked with sweat. My overly pale face was covered in black droplets, probably caused by my first encounter with the Cursed, and a smudged red streak under my right eye. Although my eyes looked wary, the muscles in my face were tense, giving me a sense of wear and tear and despair.

It was a familiar face, and I recognized it at a glance. I'm at the end of my rope.

[The shelter is close at hand, maybe we can discuss how to hide the identity of the magical girl.] Suppose you want to keep your identity right now? Selene said, and I nodded to her.

[Very good.] I think it's enough to just hide the gun and ammunition in a backpack. Unless there is any insensitivity, I suspect they will search it. ]

"What do you mean?" I whispered.

[You're a teenage girl who came to the vault with a little boy, covered in blood.] It's been over an hour since the usurpation began, and I'm sure anyone would rightly think that you've gone through quite a painful experience to survive. While they may be curious about how you survived, they should not bother you if you just tell them you don't want to talk about it. It's also a large refuge, which means it has a small but professional security team to manage. Their protocol regarding the arrival of survivors in the shelter should be very clear. ]

"I can live this long, they won't think I'm a magical girl, right?"

[Nope.] The biggest reason is that you come in with injured clothes and are wearing modest clothing. Most people would think that if you were a magical girl, you would be dressed in full costume and simply drop a civilian before returning to fight. Because they don't know the special circumstances you can't convert, the logical conclusion is that you're a resourceful survivor. However, this will cause varying degrees of concern from insiders. ]

I nodded. It makes sense. Misdirection has long been my go-to method of escaping attention, and it always works best when I have something else in store that is more attention-grabbing.

[Although you will cause you medical problems when you come in.] When they see a hole in the abdomen of your clothes, they will be curious about what happened and why you weren't hurt. I recommend stopping at a clothing store along the way to change your shirt and maybe a blazer. ]

My gaze fell on the fist-sized hole above my navel. As I started nodding, I suddenly remembered my backpack and why I was bringing it to the mall. I crouched down next to it, put down my gun and started moving things. Ice axes, empty magazines, and even the baseball I originally used to distract Brian. At the bottom was what I was looking for: a neatly folded outfit.

Taking another look at my clothes, I decided I could keep my blazer by doing some creative twists to the holes. Of course, the lower body is still soaked in dried blood, but due to the dark color of the blazer, it is passed off as an A

It shouldn't be too hard to athema instead of mine. The scarlet shirt had to be replaced, though.

[Clothes?] Selina asked, sitting on top of the sink and staring at my backpack.

"Hmm." I whispered, pulling out my clean shirt and not concentrating. "I've kept a spare set of clothes since Katie started spilling things on me, and since this was a field trip, it seems like she'll probably take the opportunity to ......"

As I slowly began to realize what I was saying, my voice faded. My cheeks burned and my mouth felt dry. Slowly, I turned my head to look at the people I knew. Her bright red eyes and crescent-shaped pupils looked back, her tail fanning out behind her, but otherwise motionless.

[I only observed you for twenty-three days before we signed the contract.] Selina said, her voice surprisingly quiet, [but she did seem to have ...... Clumsy hobbies. around you. ]

My throat tightened as I stared at my demon, and I swallowed.

"I don't want to talk about it," I thought to her, but I didn't believe I could speak.

The tip of her tail slackened and drooped slightly. She nodded, but said nothing. I turned away from her, my back to my shirt, and found myself clutching at it. After another moment, I cleared my throat.

"Uh...... Would you mind turning around? Or...... What does this do to you in my head? ”

[Manifested, my primary senses were tied to the body I had constructed," Celine began, regaining her normal, soothing voice. [While I have access to your important information, I don't have direct access to your sight or hearing.] Now it's enough to just turn around, but when I'm not manifesting, I do my best to cut off direct sensory feedback when appropriate. ]

"Okay," I said, giving me a quick glance back to make sure she had turned around before I started to change clothes. "This ...... It might be a little weird to want this when you're stuck in my head, right? ”

[Not at all.] It's normal for new Guardians to want clear and strong boundaries. As a magically built AI, though, many of the human concerns simply don't apply to me. It's more important to make you feel comfortable and nothing else. Many Guardians tend to relax restrictions after becoming more accustomed to their pets. If you wish, we can discuss the appropriate boundaries later. ]

"Okay," I agreed, and in a moment I was finishing my shirt. When making sure my jacket sleeve was pulled up to the gauze wrapped around my left forearm, I was surprised that it had remained relatively intact since it all started. When I arrived at the shelter, though, I had to be extra careful and hide it. The last thing I need is for them to think it's a wound I took from the curse and ask more questions.

I looked at my discarded blazer and now realized how dirty and disgusting it was to wear clothes stained with my own blood. Still, it was necessary, so I pulled it back, but didn't buckle it up. Looking at myself in the mirror, the only thing that looked out of place was how round the hole in my blazer was.

I went back to my backpack and opened one of the smaller bags. I pulled out the knife Lily had given me, and I frowned when I saw the broken phone next to it. It was damaged during my first fight with the hounds, which I found the first time I made room in my blazer pocket for ammo. When I saw its state, I tried to ignore the slight fear and instead opened the knife and got to work.

After some creative tailoring, it took me more effort than I expected to finally make the hole in my blazer less rounded. Now, it looked like a tattered tear, as if something particularly vicious had tore it apart. Damaging my blazer made my heart drop further because I knew it was one of only two blazers I had, but it was too damaged to be repaired. At least, that's what I told myself.

With that, I stuffed the knife back into my backpack. After a moment's hesitation, I decided to put the bloodstained shirt in another pocket. Leave it with you for later sensations...... It's weird. When someone clears the mall after the usurpation, someone realizes that its idea doesn't feel right. Besides, if what Selene said was correct and they didn't look through my backpack when I arrived at the shelter, then I should be fine.

In any case, this gun could raise more questions.

"So," I said, turning to face Selina, slung my backpack on, and picked up the gun from the floor. "Is there anything else you need to do before you go?"

[Must talk to Brian and convince him not to reveal your firearms.] ]

I thought about it, then nodded.

"That'...... Actually, maybe it's not too difficult. I can tell him it must be our secret, and if he tells anyone I might be in trouble. I think I could get him to stop talking about it. ”

[Indeed.] He seems to be very fascinated by the idea that you are a stealth operation hero. Reinforcing this idea should do the trick, and I suspect that the puppet you've already bribed him will help keep him silent. ]

I blushed and glanced at her. Her tail wagged innocently behind her.

"That's right...... Do you have any advice on what to do once we get there? What should I do? ”

[I believe it's best for you to do what you feel naturally.] Alert, worried, nervous, generally quiet and reluctant to reveal details should work. In general, your usual quiet attitude should be effective. ]

"Wouldn't that really be suspicious?" I frowned.

Selina tilted her head to look at me curiously. [How do you think they will react?] 】

"Hmm." I thought with a frown. "Paranoid and cautious, I guess? Once they see me, I want to ...... They would pull me aside and ask me a lot of questions, wondering what was going on, how serious the usurpation was, and anything else I could tell them. I guess they won't be happy when I don't give them what they want. They would get a little angry and try to intimidate me. It probably won't be too bad, but I guess it depends on how far they think they can push me. ”

Selina was silent for a moment, her tail curling slightly downward.

[try to think from their point of view,] she said in a strangely gentle voice. [A young girl has just survived a usurpation and has protected a child for over an hour.] She was covered in blood and wounded, and they couldn't even imagine the painful experience she had to go through in order to survive. I expect their reaction to be ...... Very different from what you expected. ]

I looked at her for a moment, then shrugged. I didn't quite understand what she was trying to say, but I believed her. In my opinion, this is what I went through: what I went through. Whatever I felt, it was I who handled it, not them, and that didn't really change what they wanted to know, or even needed to know. I don't understand why they care about other things, but Selina seems to know what she's talking about.

"Okay...... So that's it...... Behave naturally? I asked, my tone undisguised with suspicion.

[... Yes. Just be yourself and everything will be fine. ]

There was something in Serena's soft tone that I couldn't fully decipher, but I decided to ignore it for now and move on.

"Anything else?" I asked, putting my hand on the doorknob as I prepared to leave.

[Nope.] You can store your firearms and ammunition in a backpack at the top of the stairs leading to the shelter. Holding the ice axe in your hand should be enough to convince them that this is your primary weapon. I must also dispel my apparitions before you go downstairs, as the cameras in the Vault will be able to see me. ]

I nodded. The ice axe is still stained with the blood of the Cursed and looks very similar to that part. I forgot about the camera in the shelter, but I'm glad Serena was on it.

"Okay," I took a deep breath. "Then let's go to the shelter."