Kehai? I blinked in surprise.

Wait, did he just say "cute"?

"What about my politeness?" He interrupted my flustered thoughts. "Nice to meet you."

"Oh, I-" I began to bow my head quickly.

[Sorry,] Selene interjected smoothly. [But my magical girl has not yet transformed, and she does not have a code name.] Maybe a name can be excluded now? ]

He frowned and quickly nodded in agreement.

"Of course. My bad, I should have thought about it. Please wait a moment and I'll make sure our conversation stays private. ”

He held his hand into the air, and a green, translucent rectangle appeared. I could make out almost the buttons on a keyboard, his fingers darling through the buttons, dancing so fast, that with a slam of the slam the keypad vanished, and the already blurry background behind him suddenly became completely enveloped, as if a thick film had fallen.

"Let's get started. I'm currently working with a few other Guardians and a bunch of Operators in Guardian Command, so I've set up a privacy shell. We now have conversations without worrying about any accidental eavesdropping. ”

[Thank you very much,] Selina paused, her tail twitching. [I don't mean to be rude, but I want to insist that the details of this conversation be kept as confidential as possible, and I want to ask you to swear-]

He held up a hand and interrupted Selina's words. A gentle, almost amused smile appeared on his lips.

"I want to be clear, in order to help others, I see it as a sacred task. Therefore, not only do I swear by my soul gem that I will help while maintaining complete confidentiality with your specific details, but I am also happy to inform you that the system has given me some important tasks to help you. Did this help you decide? ”

[Indeed,] Selina let go of her tail with relief. [Thank you for your understanding.] Before we get into anything else, perhaps we'd better get an update on the situation in Arcadia as a whole and whether the shelter on the third floor of our building is likely to be rescued. ]

E

o

Nodding his head a few times, the holographic keyboard reappeared as his hands moved. It's strange to watch his fingers move. It's not just that they're moving so fast that they're almost blurry, as if I'm watching multiple versions of his hands at the same time. I can only describe it as transparent afterimages, in a hazy illusion of movement.

I looked away from the picture and turned to Selena.

"What do you mean by 'I swear by soul gems'?"

[This is the Guardian's most binding oath.] If he breaks his promise, he will lose points and a lot of experience, and he will lose a lot. ]

My eyes widened in surprise, but before I could speak, E

o

Turned to us, his face gloomy.

"So...... I guess these two officers – by the way, hello – have already briefed you on the general situation? ”

"Arcadia has been usurped multiple times at the same time, right?" I answered.

"Yes. There are dozens. In this case...... Well, the good news is that we haven't come across anything more powerful than our commando, and all the latest generation of Guardians registered with the Academy have already been inventoried. Of course, we advise them not to participate, and most seem to be listening. Even those that are not, thanks to the tasks issued by the system, insist on doing non-combat roles. ”

He sighed, leaned back in his chair, and tapped the table with a slow metronome. He went on before I asked him what he meant by "academy".

"We've also managed to recall some troops from the mainland, leaving us with nearly eight hundred Guardians working together to clean up Arcadia. Of course, this doesn't take into account that all of our magical soldiers are also hard at work. ”

Eight hundred!? My eyes widened at the sight of this number. I don't know how many magical girls usually call Arcadia home, but it seems that there are quite a few. E

o

He must have noticed my expression, because the corners of his mouth lifted up to reveal a funny expression.

"Unfortunately, given how urbanized Acadia is, it will take a few days to completely clean up Arcadia," he shrugged. "I mean, we're talking about actually going door-to-door, or at least having Guardians with advanced detection capabilities sweep through the areas.

The last thing we want is to leave a cursed one behind and risk nesting and starting a rebellion. ”

He shuddered, and Selina gave me a look.

[Rebellion is much more dangerous than a normal usurpation.] The Cursed did not open the rift from their side, but created it from this reality. Let them bring in more powerful forces from the start, and with the Lair, they already have a base of operations to assemble more curses. ]

"They must be eliminated completely." Agree. "As for your usurpation...... Well, the biggest problem is that the Cursed are doing their best around your area, and they are able to keep getting more reinforcements without the shield generator activated. It takes a lot of time and manpower to solve these problems.

With this in mind, the upper echelons of Guardian Command decided to focus on cleaning up the other usurpers first. Of course, this will take a few days to complete. ”

Hearing this, a spark of anger ignited in my chest, and my hands clenched in pain.

"So no one came?" I blurted out, unable to extricate myself. "What about all the people in the shelter who will die in a few hours? They can only ...... Sacrificed? ”

He was silent for a long time, and as he stared at me, the tapping of his fingers disappeared. Eventually, he let out a long, tired sigh.

"Yes," he whispered. "Yes, that operation would require a lot of resources, and Command believes that in the long run, it could ultimately lead to more lives being lost than more lives saved."

"If we can remove their shields, it won't be a problem." Sergeant O'Malley whispered thoughtfully.

"That's right," E

o

frowned. "Deactivating the Emergency Shield requires authorized personnel and an unlocking key that can only be made at Guardian Command. I can't safely hand it over to you. ”

"Why don't you send Team Magical Girls to restart the generator?" Ji-woo asked. "Is this an option?"

"They can't cross the border," E

o

Shake your head. "Some of the more secretive girls might be able to do that.

After that there was a silence and I felt E

o

moved his gaze to me thoughtfully. No one spoke, I swallowed, and my heart began to beat faster.

But...... "I uncomfortably shifted my body's weight." What if there is already a magical girl in the area who can restart the generator?"

E

o

His eyes sparkled and he smiled.

"Oh? Now this may be possible. I don't want to say anything that makes you feel compelled, but yes. You can do this almost without any problem, and if you use your pet as a scout, you can easily avoid anything that might be too powerful, and most high-level cursers will be sent to the periphery-"

[Sorry to interrupt,] Selina said, her voice strangely flat.

[But here I have to tell you something that needs to be kept secret.] First of all, the reason we are talking about now is that we had to fight all the way to this shelter due to the lockdown of the shelter on the third floor. That being said, I also have to tell you that this is an urgent contract and ...... The Blacklight Protocol has come into effect. ]

E

o

Stunned, the smile on his face disappeared. The hands on the table slowly clenched into fists. I could see anger flashing in his eyes, and the deep, fiery flames turned his face into a vicious gaze.

His sheer anger made me flinch, and my instinct screamed. I reflexively looked down at the table in front of me, lowered my head, and forced myself to be as quiet as possible. My heart was racing, and I was desperately trying to figure out what suddenly triggered E

o

。 The "Blacklight Protocol" sounds familiar, but ......

Because "the Blacklight Protocol is already in force". In the midst of the chaos, I never took the time to ask Celene about it.

A frustrated sigh finally broke the silence, and my muscles tensed painfully in anticipation.

"Officers," E

o

To put it simply. "I'm going to ask you to wait outside the room for a while, and I'll discuss something with my juniors. Department of Command. ”

Sergeant O'Malley saluted and immediately prepared to leave.

"I assure you, officer," E

o

The voice was cold, "She's not in trouble." We just need to discuss a few things that only Guardians have the proper privileges for. ”

"Damn it......" E

o

Growling, I ventured back to look at him.

His shoulders were a little hunched as he combed his hair with his hands, and there was a tired, frustrated look in his eyes. He stopped halfway through his movements, tilting his head as if listening to something. When he looked back at me, his eyes suddenly widened. I quickly withdrew my gaze, hoping he hadn't noticed.

", I mean, well, nonsense. I'm sorry, I'm not mad at you, and I didn't mean to scare you. I was just...... I know what you might experience without the astral transformation, and even if it's just so much it would be enough to make me angry...... Especially when all this can be easily avoided. ”

There was a hint of bitterness in his words, but they didn't seem to mean anything directed at me. Slowly, I held my breath and looked back at him. E

o

With a weak smile, he nodded to me as reassured.

This...... It makes sense. Good. So you can't use your astral transformation, but you still make it to the first floor of the shelter? ”

[This is not the case, and we have a child.] ]

"Are you on an escort mission?" He chuckled, a glint in his eyes again. "Now it's not just impressive. But...... When it's all over, you'll be rewarded with a lot of rewards. ”

I raised an eyebrow, and Selina turned to reply.

[The area cuts off most of its communications, making it impossible to maintain active contact with the system.] You won't be able to receive system updates except for major events, and just like in the game, you can earn rewards by performing missions. ]

"But......" I frowned. So how do I summon things? If nothing is sent, how can I earn points for defeating the curse? ”

"Clever girl!" E

o

Suddenly I grinned and scared me to my feet. "Most people don't even think about that. The simple answer is that when you summon, you actually use some mana to send the "message" you need. For lower-tier items, each summon won't exceed one or two mana, but some more advanced technology or more expensive items may take up a significant portion of it. Basically, you use mana to make a hole in the usurpation zone in order to send the item to you. ”

[When your Soul Gem is formed, your contract ritual unleashes a wave of mana, allowing you to gain access to the system and gates in the first place.] That's why you'll be rewarded immediately for past achievements. As for the point rewards, your soul gems will issue rewards directly. It's a bit like having a computer but not having access to the internet: you have many features, but some advanced features require information that isn't stored locally. ]

E

o

With a blink, his mouth opened and closed a few times.

"The point is, once you leave the usurpation zone, the system throws away piles of points for your achievement. It's a way for the system to show that you've done something that would normally qualify for a task, but it can't give you a task. ”

I nodded thoughtfully. It's still weird to apply so many game concepts to the real world, and it also makes things ...... Simpler.

"Anyway," E

o

said that, the smile disappeared from his face. "Generators. If there is no astral transformation, you will miss ...... A lot. With your pet and gate, you may still be able to manage it depending on the weapon you use, but it will be much more difficult. You should still operate within a relatively safe range of dangers, but nothing is certain in this line of work. So, I ask you: are you sure you want to do this? ”

He looked at me with an uncomfortable look in his eyes, and I gently shifted my center of gravity.

"If I had done nothing, hundreds of people would have died," I shrugged.

"That's not your fault," he said sharply. "No one will blame you."

I looked at him blankly, then shook my head slowly. A lot of people can and will blame me. Even if no one finds out, it doesn't change that it's my fault that I don't do anything when I can. Most of all, I would blame myself. Moreover, both Selene and Bug seem to think that as long as Selene is scouting ahead, I will be safe. How could I refuse to go?

"I'm doing it," I told him firmly. "I want to ...... What else should I know. ”

He gave me a deep look before he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, there's not much I can tell you. It's true that the mana generator shouldn't be offline in the first place, but once you turn it back on, the shield station should automatically recognize that it's powered up again and start restarting. When this happens, it will start absorbing a lot of mana, and the cursed will flock to it like a beacon.

It will give you a nice, clear path back to the shelter. You have five minutes left for the shield to rise. ”

It's good to know that. If I give the cursed in the basement a minute or two to walk up, I'll be able to get back to the shelter without worrying about anything.

"Oh, you should start thinking about your magical girl names! I can't keep calling you "Xiaohai". A lot of magical girls like more flashy names, and I don't think you have any ideas yet, do you? Or is it a theme? "Not exactly," I shook my head. But Selina kept helping me draw a rabbit head outline with a crescent moon. ”

He burst out laughing, and I looked up in surprise.

"Moon Rabbit?" He grinned. "Hmm...... Maybe it's the Moon Rabbit? Luna? Lunalia? Or something a little darker. Erode? But given the way you look, it's probably too edgy......"

He snapped his fingers, his eyes sparkling, and pointed at me with a smile.

"Moon Rabbit! You know, because rabbits are smaller, cuter rabbits. ”

"Say whatever you want, Shadow Bunny. Night Rabbit. Moonlight. ”

"It's really time for me to go." My cheeks were hot.

"Okay," he smirked at me one last time. "See you later, Black Rabbit."

And just like that, his feed was cut off, and I was relieved.

I took off my blindfold. I blinked a few times as my heads-up monitor rejuvenated in my field of vision. I felt something was wrong, as if something wasn't quite right.

"Can I customize the layout of the HUD?"

[Indeed.] With a little willpower to focus, change will happen. ]

I concentrated, the heads-up monitor flashed briefly, and then returned in the pattern I'd been thinking about...... Besides it also adds something that I didn't expect.

Now, in the upper left corner of my field of vision there is a long red bar, and a slightly shorter blue bar underneath. The red one says "80%" in the middle, and the blue one says "300/300". Both bars are fixed to a sphere in the far corner of my field of vision, with a crescent moon symbol and the number four in the center.

A translucent circle appears in the upper right corner, and a minimap blooms inside, revealing the layout of the Vault I've passed through so far. A small purple arrow marked my location, and a blue dot next to it seemed to indicate Serena's location.

Satisfied, walked over to where I put my gun and picked it up. When I hold it in my hand, the outline of its shape appears in the lower right corner of my field of vision, along with "0/15" next to it.

All I really changed was moving my health and mana bar to the top left, and if it was true, I already knew where I was hurting, which felt a bit unnecessary.

I'm a little unsure why the sphere with the "4" and crescent moon symbol is there, though, because it's not something I've been actively trying to add, even though it does look good.

Curiously, there seem to be some cosmetic changes to the HUD, such as the outlines that make up the health and mana bars appear to be smoother, more polished textures instead of the simple flat lines that used to be.

"Why did my HUD make some changes that I didn't intentionally do?"

[Your HUD is an enhancement given by your astral body and is an integral part of making you a magical girl.] As a result, your HUD adjusts itself as you grow]

"Okay," I shook slightly, forcing myself to keep going. "Next...... My data points. ”

Status, I thought, wants my status menu to appear.

status

Name: Mai Kuroki

Aliases: None

Grade: 4

Credits: 137

Health: 80%

Mana: 300/300 (5/min)

basic

Source:[hidden]

Aspect: [REDACTED]

Category: Locked

Signature: Unawakened

Statistics

Intensity: 10

Dexterity: 10

Vitality: 10

Dexterity: 10

Willpower: 30

Spirit: 1

Earn 30 stat points!

Permissions

Grimoire/Vault

Capacity/Enhancement

є̶̘͇̀́г̷͇͖̥̏͐г̸̝͖̩̠̑๏̶͈͇̌̌̀̉г̷̩̪͔̐̓̄̍:̵̪̦̥̒ ̵̖̠̆͛̄̇ย̸̝̰̣̈͒̀͝ภ ̶̟͙̋͆ค̴̡̋๒̷̮̔ɭ̵̮̇́͆́͜є̷̞̆́ ̶̶̨̖̞̮̀̑͋̇̊͒̾๏̵̗̾๏̵̗̞̣̈́́̂ͅ ̶̜̰̻̊ค̴͘ ̰͙̄ς̶͚̗̀̐̀ς̶̥̹̈́̂̈є̶̨̲̤̍̎ร̵̮̔̆̄̚ร̵̢̩͎̽

Sable Wanderer's Demon Eye [MAX]

First Aid Garage (General)

Kinetic Pistol (Normal)

stocks

weapons

equipment

Umb

A P30 Model A - Magic

Once again I had a strange feeling that something wasn't quite right. After spending some time tidying it up, I wanted the menu to change as perfectly as my HUD.

status

Name: Mai Kuroki

Aliases: None

Grade: 4

Credits: 137

Health: 80%

Mana: 300/300 (5/min)

basic

Source:[hidden]

Aspect: [REDACTED]

Category: Locked

Signature: Unawakened

Statistics

Intensity: 10

Dexterity: 10

Vitality: 10

Dexterity: 10

Willpower: 30

Spirit: 1

Earn 30 stat points!

skill

ability

Enhancements

Sable Wanderer's Demon Eye [MAX]

Permissions

Vault

Grimoire

First aid bank (generic) є̶̘͇̀́г̷͇͖̥̏͐г̸̝͖̩̠̑๏̶͈͇̌̌̀̉г̷̩̪͔̐̓̄̍::}̸̈̈̈̄̍:}̈̈̄̍::}͈̈̌̌̀̉г̷̩͔̐̓̄̍::}:̵̪̦̥̒ ̵̖̠̆͛̄̇ย̸̝̰̣̈͒̀͝ภ ̶̟͙̋͆ค̴̡̋๒̷̮̔ɭ̵̮̇́͆́͜є̷̞̆́ ̶̶̨̖̞̮̀̑͋̇̊͒̾ ̇̊͒̾ ̇̊͒̾ ̶̶́͜є̷̞́ ̶̶̨̖̞̮̀̑͋̇̊͒̾̾ ̇̊͒̾ ́͆́͜є̷̞̆́ ̶̨̖̞̮̀̑͋̇̊͒̾̾ ̇̊͒̾ ̇̑͋̇̊͒̾ ๏̵̗̾๏̵̗̞̣̈́́́̂ͅ ̶̜̰̻̊ค̴͘ ̰͙̄ς̶͚̗̀̐̀ς̶̥̹̈́̂̈є̶̨̲̤̍̎ร̵̮̔-�̄̚ร̵̢̩͎̽

Kinetic Pistol (Normal)

This looks better. I removed the inventory section.

Pleased with the new layout, my eyes swept to my stats. Looking at each one, I considered my options.

Guns, power is almost useless. Considering that I didn't use magic, the help of willpower and spirit was also limited. Of course, when I activate the Silence Rune, I use one mana for every bullet I fire, but I have 300 mana and nothing else can drain it except to manifest Selene.

All that's left is agility and dynamism. My gun is aligned with agility, which means that the more points I enter into my stats, the more powerful my gun becomes. It also allows me to aim better, reload, and agility seems to be just as important, it makes me and I react faster. At the same time, vitality increases my body's resistance and overall health.

In fact, it could mean that I would have a harder time getting hurt.

After much consideration, I made the decision and turned to Selina.

"What do you think of 15 Agility and 15 Agility?"

[Funny,] she tilted her head. [I'd love to hear your reasoning.] ]

"Uh...... Strength doesn't work much for me, agility is the obvious choice, and the more points I put into agility, the more benefits I get. ”

[I see,] Selina wagged her tail violently.

[The only thing I would like to add is that I currently need at least 180 mana to manifest.] Each level you up, this value increases by 10. You are currently full of mana]

"Wait......" I looked at Selina with concern. What happens if you get hurt? ”

[Not serious.] I also don't suffer any wear and tear. I can even immediately reappear without any repercussions. Rest assured, I don't feel any pain at all, and the only way to "kill" the pets is to destroy the soul gems they inhabit. ]

"It's in my brain...... So there is no need to worry about this. Anything that can kill you will kill me too. ”

[Exactly.] Sick thoughts, but keep in mind that while I may look like a simple stuffed animal, I actually can't be killed. Haha

For some reason, it did put my mind at ease, and I turned my attention back to my stats and spent my points.

Statistics

Intensity: 10

Dexterity: 25

Vitality: 10

Agility: 25

Willpower: 30

Spirit: 1

I blinked, the status menu was gone, and only my stats appeared completely separately.

[Great,] Serena's tail began to wagging eagerly. [Now what should we spend our reward points on.] First of all, I recommend that you apply a recovery ointment to your ankle wound. 5 o'clock will be cheaper, and it only takes about ten minutes for the wound to heal completely. As for the remaining 132 points, there are plenty of options, but I recommend you unlock the Modern Terran costume. With it, you will be able to get clothes that not only fit but are also enhanced to provide protection. ]

"How much protection? Isn't it still clothes? ”

[Yes, they don't look any different from regular Earth clothing, but you can choose to purchase enhanced versions made using advanced materials and technologies beyond what humans are currently capable of.] Clothes are more durable, although they are useful because they do not stop powerful direct attacks. ]

I bit my lip and thought to myself. Doesn't sound much, but it's better than nothing. Remains...

"How much does it cost to unlock different types of ammo? More offensive options may help. ”

[Unfortunately, even the cheapest option costs $100]

"Okay. So what's the best thing to wear? ”

[It should be comfortable and maximum skin coverage...... Enhanced hooded sweatshirts, enhanced jeans, and combat boots are the best, costing a total of 25 points. By combining unlocking the Treasury and buying regenerative ointment, you'll have 57 points left over to buy ammo and keep healing items. ]

"Sounds good," I replied. "Then let's go buy five more magazines of ammunition."

[Alternatively, you can buy a box of 5 diverging bullets for 100 points to replenish your empty magazine.] If your five magazines are empty and the sixth has only seven bullets in it, you'll have 17 rounds left when it's full. 16 rounds, if you load one round, then add another one to reload the magazine. ]

I blinked and bowed my head in approval. I forgot about Sele

e told me that it was cheaper to refill the magazine, and that 100 rounds of ammunition were almost equivalent to two full points of "free" ammunition.

"Okay. So let's get it all out of the way. ”

[Purchase: Regeneration Ointment]

[-5 points]

[Modern Terran Costume (Normal) Unlocked!] ]

[-50 points]

[Purchase: Enhanced hooded sweatshirt]

[-10 points]

[Purchase: Reinforced Jeans]

[-10 points]

[Purchase: Enhanced Combat Boots]

[-5 points]

[Purchase: 100 pieces of 9mm silver bullets]

[-5 points]

[Points Remaining: 52]

After a purple seven-pointed star and a radiance, there were three briefcases of different sizes. Of course, they are all black except for the coat of arms, the silver crescent, and the rabbit head silhouette that Selina adds to other things.

[Once you've applied the ointment and put on your clothes, I recommend having Sergeant O'Malley and Officer Wu come in and help you load the empty magazine.] Show how to do this correctly]

I nodded, put the gun on the table, opened the two latches on the box, and opened it. There are two dents inside, and inside are a pair of folded jeans and a sweatshirt, both dark black. I picked up the sweatshirt and unfolded it, stopping halfway through. It was sewn with the familiar badge on the back, but it was the ...... that caught my attention Hood.

"Selene...... So what's the hood all about? My cheeks were hot and I asked cautiously.

[Oh?] She pretended to be innocent. [The hood acts as head protection and can be easily removed if it obstructs your view]

"It's not that!" I hissed, and as I turned to look at her, I became more and more flustered. I lifted the unpleasant parts of the hood and poked them with one finger.

"Why are there two soft bunny ears on it!?"