Chapter 35: The Ever-Positive Angel Is in Charge of the Magical Girl's Mental Care

How a Mascot Cares for Her

The first time I visited Han Soyu’s house, I was greeted by a two-story detached home with a lush green lawn.

I don’t know much about houses, but if you asked me to picture a place where rich people live, this would be it.

"So this is where you used to live, Soyu?"

"…Yeah. A long time ago."

She stared at the house in silence for a while before finally giving a small nod.

The mood sank in that single moment, so quietly and naturally that it made me think there must be a lot she couldn’t bring herself to say.

‘This isn’t the time to ask about it.’

She's already lost a companion she's been with for a long time.

Not just once, but twice.

Even for a magical girl, that’s not something you bounce back from easily.

Especially when the second farewell… was about as awful as it gets.

‘I need to cheer up even more in times like this.’

I gathered myself and gently took Han Soyu’s hand.

“Come on, let’s get inside and rest.”

She hesitated for a moment, then nodded and stepped into the house.

Or at least, she tried to.

"Ah… uh…"

Han Soyu, who had been fumbling around in front of the door, turned toward me awkwardly.

"I… I don’t have the key…"

"No worries! I’ll open it for you!"

I phased straight through the door and entered the house.

The first thing I felt upon entering the house was…

"The interior is… kind of…"

I cut myself off before saying anything I’d regret.

No, but seriously, isn't this really strange?

‘It’s way too clean for a house that’s been abandoned for a long time.’

Old houses usually have this musty, dusty smell.

I don’t know how to explain it, but you know it the second you walk in.

But this place had no such traces.

Aside from the cold air that comes from no one living here, it was immaculately maintained.

I wiped the edge of a doorframe with my finger.

‘Not a single speck of dust.’

Had someone bought this house and been using it?

But if that were the case, there should be signs of life, like footsteps, clutter, daily objects.

Instead…

"It feels more like a model house..."

Was someone looking after this place?

But who?

‘...Isn’t it obvious?’

Someone who knew this house used to be Han Soyu’s.

Someone with the ability to manage a house where no one lives without anyone knowing.

There’s only one possible answer.

"Cyclamen…"

With a heavy heart, I looked around the house and let out a sigh.

[Um… are you done yet?]

Right. I’ll think about this after I put Soyu to bed.

What’s important now isn't trivial worries, but taking care of Han Soyu.

"Coming! I’ll get the door open right now!"

As I opened the door, Han Soyu stepped inside and glanced around the house.

“It’s clean… Did you clean it, Sarah?”

“No, it was already like this when I got here.”

At my response, she paused mid-step and slowly looked around the room, then gave a faint nod.

“…I see.”

She must know too.

In fact, being the one closest to Cyclamen, there’s no way she wouldn’t.

She had to have realized who had been keeping this house in such pristine condition.

Perhaps that’s why she stood at the entrance, unable to even take her shoes off for a while.

“Is something wrong?”

“Ah… no, it’s nothing. I was just… thinking.”

She answered with a forced smile, then finally took off her shoes and came into the house.

Even then, she kept fussing with them, adjusting her shoes placement over and over again before she stood up.

I had expected it wouldn’t be easy for her to let go, but it's more severe than I thought

This wasn’t just struggling to move on, this was being stuck.

…It can’t be helped.

“Is it because of Cyclamen?”

“……”

Han Soyu flinched and trembled. Her eyes met mine briefly, then quickly turned away.

“…Sorry… I… I don’t really… want to talk about it… right now…”

“That’s completely fine.”

I gently approached and pulled her into a hug.

“Those are natural feelings anyone could have. You don’t need to apologize for being human.”

“…Thank you.”

“Okay, no more sad talk for now. Time to get some sleep. You’re very exhausted, right?”

She gave a weak smile and a small nod before quietly retreating to her room.

She didn’t seem well. I wondered if I should do something for her but then I heard her muffled sobs.

“Sob… hic…”

‘Maybe not now.’

Just staying by her side won’t help the wounds heal easily.

I need to give her some time alone.

Right now, what she needs is space.

‘Then I should go take care of this while I can.’

I passed through the wall, left the house, and flew into the sky.

***

Night deepened.

As time passed, I could feel my existence fading.

This body that should feel no warmth… was slowly growing cold.

Can even a machine perceive the coldness of death?

No, maybe the very idea of a machine feeling anything is a contradiction.

“[If a personality contained in a machine dies… where does that data go? Does it vanish, like a human soul? Or is it just a matter of powering down temporarily?]”

I reactivated my main camera, which had been disabled to conserve power.

A large energy presence was approaching.

And there she was—

The pure white angel who had stayed beside Soyu, gazing down at me.

“[What do you think, angel?]”

"…"

She said nothing and just looked down at me silently.

I let out a soft chuckle and leaned my head back against the wall.

“[You don’t know either, do you? After all… you're part of an immortal race, one that neither bleeds nor dies.]”

“But you don’t know what comes after death either, do you, Cyclamen?”

“[…You’re right. I don’t. I’m not the Cyclamen Soyu once knew, after all.]”

No matter how much I struggle, I’m still just a machine, merely a downloaded copy of the original’s data.

That’s why I don’t understand death.

All I possess are the records from when the original was still alive.

“[Still, I’m impressed you managed to find me. Even Yoo Seo-ah was convinced I’d died.]”

“It was Soyu’s magical signature. I detected it in two places at once.”

“[So angels possess superior magic detection skills… That’s valuable data. Fufu…]”

The angel stared silently at me before finally opening her mouth.

“Cyclamen… you never intended to fight from the beginning, did you?”

“[Was it that obvious?]”

“You were practically teaching her as you fought, of course it was obvious.”

After speaking, the angel sighed deeply and approached me.

“It’s because of me, isn’t it?”

“[…I don’t know what you mean.]”

“The reason you decided to fight.”

The confidence in her voice made me unable to speak.

She came closer and lowered herself to meet my eye level.

“Your personality awakened the moment I appeared. As if you’d been prepared for it all along. As soon as you recognized my existence, your own consciousness came forward, not the machine’s default behavior.”

“[…]”

“It was too unnatural to say you’d been deceiving Soyu from the start. The timing of everything lined up too neatly with my appearance. And every time I showed up, your actions didn’t seem like you were trying to isolate her, but like you were trying to keep her away from me. Why?”

Did the angel know all along?

Or was this just the insight of a noble being who’s lived for a very long time?

…No, it doesn't matter which one it is.

“[Since I've already been caught... I suppose there’s no need to hide it anymore.]”

Just the fact that she came all this way to ask me directly about my intentions is proof that this angel was different from ‘them.’

“[The reason I… or rather, the original Cyclamen died, was because of a certain device Soyu built.]”

“A device?”

“[One meant to create ‘assistants.’]”

The angel blinked in confusion.

No wonder. “Assistant” was just the prototype name Soyu came up with. Since then, both their purpose and their name had changed completely.

“[Soyu created the device to support other magical girls. Of course, she was just a child, far too young to be making such things. But a certain group came forward and offered to help her.]”

And she had no idea what their real intentions were.

— Look! These are the assistants I made to help big sisters!

I closed my eyes, recalling Soyu’s beaming face as she was happy to have completed the device.

“[Giant animal companions helping people, like mascots at a theme park… Such an innocent idea, isn't it? The kind only a child could dream up.]”

But that innocence was what made her shine so dazzlingly.

“[But they had approached her from the beginning with the intent of exploiting Soyu’s aspirations. They stole the blueprint of the device she made… and to erase the evidence, which is the prototype, they forced it into a rampage.]”

The device went out of control six years ago.

A catastrophe where twisted ‘assistants’ poured out in droves.

A battle so fierce it required three magical girls working together.

My original self had deployed her true body, burning through cost after cost to stop the rampaging assistants—

—to reduce the damage to the citizens as much as possible,

—to reduce even a little of the guilt and responsibility Soyu would carry,

—to save even one more innocent life.

“Then… the reason Soyu is so obsessed with the safety of citizens is…”

“[Yes. It’s likely born of guilt and a deep sense of responsibility. And because I covered it up, that guilt festered inside her, until it brought her to her current state.]”

I should have nudged her forward.

I should have taught her how to face the pain and endure it.

But I couldn’t.

How could I force a child into a fight she never should have been part of to begin with?

It was such a sinful thing to do.

My original self… no, my final breath had been filled with nothing but regret.

And the me that remains now moved according to a plan, all to avoid repeating that same regret.

“But then… what exactly are these ‘assistants’…?”

“[‘Assistant’ was the name Soyu gave them. Now… they’re called monsters.]”

At those words, the angel’s face froze in shock.

Yes.

The very first monsters were defective products born from Soyu’s own device.

“[And the ones who helped her build that device… were none other than the technicians of the Heaven Realm.]”

That’s why I reacted the moment I saw you.

[WARNING! Energy level critically low!]

As those words left my mouth, a bright red warning window appeared before my eyes.

Now, this next sentence will be my last words.

All the things I needed to do, I’ve done them.

Everything that needed to be said, I’ve made sure it’s been recorded and passed on.

But what should I say?

No words feel like enough.

Then, what remains is only this.

Slowly, I opened my eyes and looked at the angel.

You, who are different from those beings.

You, whom I can believe in.

If it’s you…

“Please… take care of Soyu….”

[WARNING! Energy level critically low!]

[WARNING! Damage rate excessively high!]

“…I will. I swear I will protect her.”

Ah… as I thought, I’m still―――――――――

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