Bzzzz—.
Schne, who had been reviewing the subjects she had learned in morning classes during lunch break, heard her smartphone vibrate.
Luxtierra High School did not collect the students’ electronic devices, but even so, Schne, being a model student, tended to keep her phone on silent mode while on campus.
The only contact for whom even vibration was enabled was Papirun. After all, monsters did not care whether class was in session or exams were underway when they ran wild.
At least after Dine enrolled, most attacks had shifted to after school—more precisely, to late afternoon, around the time she would stop by a café after school, have a bite of cake, and part ways with her friends.
‘What is it?’
The contents of Papirun’s text were far removed from any urgent matter like the appearance of a monster. They were merely a little unusual.
‘She wants me to call Ihyeon.’
Couldn’t she just text her directly like now? Schne’s question was answered by the next message that arrived.
「Dine and Inian are inside the counseling room.」
“Ah.”
If that was the situation, it couldn’t be helped. If, by some chance, Dine discovered her contacting a mascot, the fact that Ihyeon was Magi Black would be exposed.
Schne immediately rose from her seat.
At the end of her hurried steps, the sliding door of the counseling room drew near.
From beyond the door came a low voice.
“The remodeling of the villa in the forest… I look forward to seeing it completed. Would you invite me someday?”
***
“Counseling, huh. Sounds nice. I’ll come since it’s in the contract, but do you really think I’m going to comfortably spill my personal affairs to you?”
Dine had compromised because there was no helping it in the face of the realistic threat of Ochanja’s return, but she was not pleased to be dancing in the palm of a mascot’s hand.
Looking at Dine huffing for no reason, Raban instead found himself smiling.
‘You’re so young, little one…!’
Even the irritation she vented like that was already sweet. It was high-purity negative thought. For the first time in ages, Raban felt inclined to admit to Inian that he had been wrong.
‘As expected of an archduchess of the Demon Realm. Her heart was so petty all this time that I thought she was at best a Demon Realm baron or perhaps a Demon Realm squire, but to think she possessed such insight.’
He could not carelessly reveal those inner thoughts. Recalling the contents of cultural books he had picked up and read on Earth, Raban did his utmost to act like “a mascot striving to make a magical girl’s dream come true.”
“Even that sort of conversation is still, for the time being, a ‘conversation.’ There is more possibility in it than in not communicating at all.”
“You really aren’t in your right minds. We’ll just end up confirming the differences in our positions and nothing more.”
“Perhaps. That, too, is fine.”
***
At that easy admission, Salamandine frowned. Her enemy, Magi White, possessed something resembling pride in her own way.
“What, you didn’t believe in Magi White’s dream either? How realistic. Is spending effort on something impossible just for raising the magical girls’ morale?”
For some reason, something surged up from deep within Dine’s chest. The Ivory Tower might be one thing, but mascots weren’t supposed to laugh at magical girls.
Raban replied with a serious expression.
“If that is how it sounded, then I regret it. What I meant to say is that even such an unproductive conversation is better than silence.”
Raban’s voice recited each word slowly, in a low tone, with clear precision.
“If we make no attempt at communication with one another, then there will be no possibility of the relationship between you and the magical girls changing. But even the worst conversation contains the possibility of change. We are trying to grasp the hope that exists, however faintly, rather than a complete zero percent.”
“……”
It was idealism that sounded like chasing clouds. And yet the sincerity clinging to each word carried enough weight to momentarily render even Salamandine speechless.
After swallowing once, she replied with a snort.
“You’re spouting dreams.”
“If we don’t look after dreams and hope, who will?”
Salamandine suddenly understood why the mascots’ official title was “guardian fairies.” They were guardians who protected dreams and hope.
Somehow, she no longer had the energy to keep picking at his words. Salamandine rose from her seat.
“I’m leaving. When should I come back?”
***
He had succeeded. Raban muttered inwardly. No matter who looked at it, his words and actions had been perfectly befitting a magical girl’s friend spreading dreams and hope.
But ending it here would be third-rate. A seasoned con artist took preventive measures before reaching a situation that invited suspicion.
Of course, Raban himself was not a seasoned con artist, having navigated the harsh Demon Realm with honesty as his weapon (according to him).
However, he did have experience working under a wicked boss, an archduchess of the Demon Realm who exploited people for meager pay and had even committed magical-energy dine-and-dash fraud. Had Inian heard Raban’s assessment, she would have been furious, but she was beyond the door and had no way to peer inside Raban’s head.
Raban added one more line to prevent any unforeseen incident that might possibly occur.
“I will give you my personal contact information. And let me add this: you would be better off not trying to use this ‘conversation’ as a weapon. It won’t work.”
Salamandine had a battle maniac streak. It was a tailor-made provocation prepared for her.
“I understand very well that you want to defeat the magical girls even if you have to evoke their pity, but our magical girls are strong enough not to be shaken by such mental attacks.”
“What?!”
“No. Let me correct myself. You are welcome to try.”
To her ears, Raban’s words would sound like this:
‘Begging “We’re friends, are you really going to hit me?!” and then launching a surprise attack won’t work. You’ll only embarrass yourself if you use it, but if you’re that curious, go experience it yourself.’
“You damn cotton candies…! Even without using that crap, I can win just fine!”
Seeing Dine fuming, Raban opened the door for her with a silent smile.
It was perfect. Even if only because her pride was hurt, she would not open her mouth about this matter.
‘Thank you, Inian. Your generosity is below the level of a Demon Realm baron, but your management strategy truly was archduchess-class!’
Today had been a truly fruitful day.
‘…Huh?’
***
In front of the door that slid open stood a rather familiar student. Schne Heidel.
‘The mascot’s minion!’
The soundproofing of the inner room was so good that he had not even known someone had arrived. The survival instinct in Raban’s mind rang an alarm.
There was no physical evidence whatsoever, but Raban had provisionally deemed Schne, who was trying to bestow a shining youth upon Ihyeon, to be connected to the mascots.
“Oh, Ihyeon’s class president. What brings you here?”
Raban maintained a calm expression and asked in a friendly tone. Then he subtly signaled to Inian with his eyes.
‘Hey, you Demon Realm baron. What were you doing that you couldn’t stop something like that from infiltrating the counseling room?!’
Instead of sending eye signals like Raban, Inian sent a thought wave.
[She suddenly opened the door and came in, so I had no idea either! She barged in out of nowhere shouting, “Wait!” and the atmosphere abruptly turned icy.]
Schne was just as flustered. She had not been startled because Inian was lying in wait in the counseling room. She already knew that thanks to Papirun’s message.
The reason she was flustered was because of Inian’s voice that had leaked out into the hallway.
Unlike the inner room beyond the counseling room’s partition, the door separating the counseling room lobby from the hallway did not have very good soundproofing.
Because of that, Schne had been able to hear what Inian whispered to Ihyeon.
What was her intention in visiting Na Ihyeon’s villa? Could she have broken through all of the mascots’ protective magic and noticed Magi Black’s identity?
Schne hurriedly attempted to barge in to divert Inian’s attention.
“Schne, what do you mean, wait?”
Amid everyone’s inner worlds becoming a mess—though Dine’s had already become a mess from Raban’s provocation, so in her case it was not present progressive but past perfect—only Ihyeon remained calm. Looking at her close friend who had suddenly visited the counseling room, Ihyeon tilted her head.
“…The Black Forest is currently designated as a greenbelt. A villa built before the designation may be one thing, but rebuilding a new one there would be difficult in many ways.”
“Huh, is that so?”
So that was what she was objecting to. Ihyeon nodded thoughtlessly. Come to think of it, she had heard that various measures had been taken regarding the Black Forest after the Naju Pharmaceutical incident.
‘Maybe it’s because she’s the class president, but she really knows a lot.’
“But Head Class President, what brings you here?”
“I happened to meet Teacher Seogi. She was looking for Miss Ihyeon.”
Teacher Seogi was the code phrase for Papirun. Ihyeon bobbed her head, then looked at Raban.
“Mister. There’s still a bit of lunch break left, but can I go?”
Raban wanted to shed tears of blood. That mascot minion was once again obstructing his plans!
“Sure. Lunch break is almost over too, so you can just head back to the classroom. If any friends come saying they want counseling from you, I’ll let you know.”
Ihyeon smiled bitterly. Friends who would specifically ask to receive counseling from her were….
‘Pretty rare.’
Rising from her seat as she stretched, Ihyeon waved at Inian. Sipping her tea, Inian waved back in return.
Once the two girls left, Dine also glared at Raban and exited the counseling room. Before leaving, she did not forget to exchange a look with Inian. A confirmation that she must come see her after school.
Inian waved to Dine as well. Once she finally confirmed that even Dine had left, she whipped around and glared at Raban.
“Phew, things ended nicely enough with Dine, so what was that all of a sudden… Why are you looking at me like that?”
It was to check their surroundings. Inian thoroughly searched the area with her demonic eyes, and only after she was certain that the guardian fairies’ gaze was not currently here did she growl, full of resentment.
“How dare you try to deceive me with a false listing?”
“Huh?”
“I should never have trusted you!”
“Wait! Wait! Let’s use words, words!”
Raban felt even more unfairly wronged. It was true that he had sold a false listing, but he had sold it to Salamandine, not Inian.
‘That pettiness, as expected! A personality fit not for an archduchess of the Demon Realm, but for a Demon Realm baron!’