Transformation or Death

Chapter 54

Call My Name (5)

“Ah! It’s because of Ms. Davi!”

“Why is this my fault! It’s Senpia’s carelessness! Dog girl! Enjoy!” 

“Enjoy…? Ah, anyway, clean this up quickly!”

Seeing the fallen can spilling its contents on the ground, the two scolded each other. Joo Ah-yoon was staring blankly at the screen of her smartphone. The machine wasn’t ringing, but she alone was ringing. Vibrating.

“Hey, what is this?”

“By the way, what is Gyeonnyeo…?”

“Oh right! Not a dog girl, but Jignyo! I got confused with Gyeonnyeo! I’ve somehow fused with Jignyo!”

White Davi let out a meaningless laugh while giggling, and Baek Ahee nodded her head as if she understood what she meant. Then, Joo Ah-yoon, who was shaking her body restlessly while holding her smartphone, shouted.

The scolding stopped and silence fell. The two bickering teenagers had to shut their mouths at the fury of their senior.

“What, what is it…?”

“Your boyfriend!”

“Not my boyfriend! Plus, if I date that adult, I’ll get arrested!” 

“Ooh! A lover of older men!”

“No, I’m not!”

White Davi tried to liven up the mood without any tact, but failed. Baek Ah-hee swallowed hard in tension, and Joo Ah-yoon growled while clutching her smartphone.

It was fortunate that the smartphone didn’t break, given her normal human strength before transformation.

‘What, what is it…? Did she mistake me thinking the magical girl became distracted by dating…? No, there are quite a few seniors who do that too…’

Dating for a magical girl is a big deal. There is a possibility that personal feelings may interfere with the hero’s rescue activities, leading to discriminatory words and actions.

However, a magical girl is a person before being a hero. She has personal desires, likes and dislikes, and varying degrees of favorability towards different people.

Telling people in their prime not to love is a form of abuse. Of course, most of their work consists of mental and physical abuse anyway.

Still, love is a part of human life that is difficult to give up. But magical girls find it difficult to live human lives. They are the ones who receive more attention than anyone else in today’s world.

Therefore, dating for magical girls is quite secretive.

Learning from past breakups that occurred without anyone being particularly at fault, and taking a few other incidents as lessons, they came to one conclusion.

If you’re going to date, let those around you know about the relationship first, and then cooperate to keep it discreet.

It’s similar to dating for idols.

Unlike in the past when they hid relationships regardless of friend or foe only to have sudden articles expose them due to paparazzi and the like, these days they inform the company about the relationship first, and then the company actively cooperates in maintaining secrecy.

This is the reality of how magical girls date these days. The Magical Girl Association has departments like public relations and media management. There are also quite a few talented magical girls with useful abilities.

Attempting secret dating while receiving collective cooperation is the recent general dating method for magical girls.

Above all, public perception has changed significantly, with quite a few opinions saying not to make a fuss about mere dating.

Baek Ah-hee herself knows a few seniors who have boyfriends.

‘I heard one of them recently broke up, though… Ah, is that why?’

Unfortunately, most of those love stories end in disaster. It’s common for them to meet catastrophe even before the news spreads to the media.

Because the work of a magical girl is perilous. Going to the hospital is as common and natural as going to a cafe, and they often face stress from the outside as well.

It’s not just them suffering. Those around them suffer too. Seeing a loved one in pain is always agonizing.

In that sense, the lover of a hero could be considered an emotional laborer.

Some magical girls also frequently vent their complaints to their lovers, unintentionally treating them like emotional dumpsters.

Above all, they have very little time to meet. Any child playing with a magical girl toy knows very well how busy a magical girl’s life is.

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It’s almost natural that a hero’s love burns as hot as fire yet as brief as a candle in the wind.

That’s why dating is generally discouraged for magical girls. While they try their best to support existing relationships, there was an ethical agreement to prevent such relationships from happening in the first place.

But Pink Deneb’s current rage wasn’t about that.

“Why is Bro Jae-jung… no, Han Jae-jung here!”

“Huh? You know Han Jae-jung?”

“…Han Jae-jung?”

The three were simultaneously surprised. Red Vega was surprised that an acquaintance knew her acquaintance, White Davi was surprised by the unfamiliar name, and Pink Deneb was surprised that Red Vega, who knew nothing, was surprised.

“Ah, ah! I know him!”

The first to speak amidst the strange astonishment and silence was White Davi. Raising her hand with a bright voice no different from before, she shouted.

“The god of school violence, dating violence, and gaslighting, ‘that bastard’! I’ve seen photos of him online back then…”

Before she could finish, Pink Deneb glared at her. It wasn’t the cute grumbling or affectionate anger and cursing she often directed at her juniors.

It was a sharp gaze close to murderous intent, as if she wanted to turn her into a corpse and devour it rather than just devour an existing one.

“Hey.”

A voice of extremely low temperature reverberated in her eardrums. Even Joo Ah-yoon herself was surprised by her own words. But she didn’t show it and quietly finished venting her anger.

“Watch your fucking mouth, you crazy bitch slut.”

White Davi immediately stood at attention and saluted.

“Yes~!”

“For fuck’s sake….”

Dismissing her unsatisfactory and playful attitude with just a sigh, she glared at Baek Ah-hee again.

“That bastard…? Jae, Jae-jung? Why?!”

“That bastard… yeah, that’s right. It’s only natural you don’t know, Ah-hee.”

The Dating Incident of Blue Sirius. One of the major scandals even among the dating incidents involving magical girls. 

Thinking back now, it’s surprising how much malicious gossip was spread, but that fire was soon extinguished. Or rather, it would be more accurate to say it was transferred elsewhere.

Han Jae-jung conspired with a reporter to take all the blame on himself. In the article, he was portrayed as an abuser who suppressed his girlfriend’s behavior, a trainer who controlled her actions, and a coward who did not admit any responsibility.

A clear, distinct, and obvious culprit was created.

People who cursed Blue Sirius, those who dismissed it as an overreaction, and even the indifferent ones all came together to curse him.

In some dark corners of the internet, they even committed illegal acts such as sharing his photos and spreading his address, making efforts in their justified hatred.

Of course, since this was a typical game among internet losers, it was not strange that the still young and informationally vulnerable Baek Ah-hee did not know about it.

After this incident, Blue Sirius showed good activities and achievements, and acquired an irreplaceable external image among the magical girls.

To that extent, her past relationship with ‘that bastard’ was hushed, and anyone who brought it up was considered a malicious troll.

The name Han Jae-jung was hidden, defaced, and deconstructed, as evidenced by the fact that he became known as ‘that bastard’, as if his name itself was an insult.

In some lowly places, they even vulgarly worshipped the idea of having their way with a magical girl like that.

However, the fact that even that worship did not mention his name and referred to him as ‘that bastard’ suggests that most of it was just a game for satire and humor.

Now, it has been several years since that dating incident. Too much information has piled up like sand over it for anyone to dig it up anew. Not many people would make an effort to dig up trash that’s not even a treasure.

Baek Ah-hee must know about Blue Sirius’ dating incident, but she certainly does not know the details. There’s no way she would know his name or face. In fact, even the netizens from back then have probably forgotten by now.

Among the magical girls, those who know the atmosphere from that time do not even casually mention it, and those who don’t know follow the lead of their seniors and don’t bring it up either.

There’s simply no reason to bring up or dig into a colleague’s private matters in the first place.

“You don’t need to know.”

“Huh? Then what did Ms. Davi just say…?” 

“I said you don’t need to know!”

Joo Ah-yoon was extremely emotional right now. Baek Ah-hee had never seen her this enraged before. She always raised her voice as if she were angry, but there was always a calm composure behind it.

She couldn’t even guess why she was so furious.

“Anyway, this guy. Is he your boyfriend?”

“I told you he’s not!”

“Yeah, I figured. This Bro would never date you… Well, even when he was dating that senior… Ah, never mind. So where did you meet him then?”

“It’s written on the back, just like it says…”

“What?”

By the back, she must mean… This question was resolved without even needing to voice it.

A gift card with a message like ‘Congratulations on completing Red Vega’s suicide counseling!’ was visible behind the couple in the photo.

“Sui…cide…”

For a moment, her brain stopped functioning. Or rather, it would be more accurate to say she refused to understand.

“…Suicide?”

Joo Ah-yoon repeated that word in an extremely composed manner, like a child hearing a new word from its mother for the first time.

“Uh, sister…?”

“…No, wait. Shut up for a bit.”

“Sister, calm down first…”

“I told you to shut it!”

Only after venting her anger at the helpless opponent did Joo Ah-yoon accept that word.

“He tried to… commit suicide…? That brother?”

She recognized it, accepted it, and understood it.

After understanding the weight and symbolism of the word suicide, the remaining process was imagination.

Suicide.

She imagined the various pains he must have endured before attempting that act. The numerous hardships he must have gone through without family or friends, without anyone to rely on, the countless hostile gazes and slanders, the various curses she had seen on the internet.

They could have been mere imagination, or they could have been more than just imagination, more than she could have imagined.

This imagination then led to the source of that pain.

Herself, who had thought she could just forget about it by optimistically assuming he would be fine, who had averted her gaze and tried to move on with reality.

A chill ran down her spine. She even felt disgusted.

“…Photo…shop…?”

She approached Baek Ah-hee with a smile, who flinched and shook her head in bewilderment, afraid of being scolded again.

“It’s photoshopped, right? Damn it. No, it can’t be. Why, why did this brother go there? Why would he even think of killing himself… There’s no reas…”

Joo Ah-yoon closed her mouth. There was a reason. In fact, there were too many.

They were still welling up. The numerous reasons to die, the various pains he must have endured, flooded her mind.

She thought it would be better for him to be away from her. Since he had suffered because of his closeness to a magical girl, she thought it would only hurt him more if she approached him unnecessarily.

To her, Han Jae-jung was a strong person. Someone who could overcome such pain and find his own answer.

But he was not.

He too was a frail human. Too weak and ordinary to endure all that pain alone.

She had been idealizing him in the very way she had despised. She had optimistically and hopefully imagined him based on the assumption that he was superhuman.

What a ridiculous idea that he might have opened a store somewhere quiet. It was an absurd optimism.

What nonsense to make such assumptions about someone who had contemplated suicide……

The strength left Joo Ah-yoon’s body. The smartphone she had been tightly gripping fell to the floor with a thud.

“…”

Baek Ah-hee quickly picked up the smartphone before the spilled beer could seep into it.

“This, this can’t be photoshopped…”

“It’s not photoshopped! I’m a professional, so I can tell! This is definitely a real photo!”

White Davi backed up Baek Ah-hee’s claim. The more she did, the more strength drained from Joo Ah-yoon’s body.

“This… this is here, right…?”

She forced strength into her body that was about to drop to its knees and staggered back with stumbling steps.

“Don’t, don’t ever tell Senior Sirius about this, got it?”

“Yes…?”

“That girl over there will explain the reason to you. Hey, bitch. Explain it to Ah-hee. You know, don’t you?”

“Of course I do! I will certainly explain that bastard’s dignity…”

“I told you not to talk about him like that… Ugh, never mind. You shut up. Ah-hee. I’m sorry about today. I’ll explain everything to you later, okay?”

Baek Ah-hee was greatly surprised. The eyes of her senior, who had seemed devoid of blood and tears, now looked more gloomy than she had ever seen. But that was not all. Cold droplets of water were forming in those eyes.

“I have… someone to meet… someone to find right now…”

Childlike tears befitting her outward appearance. Pure sorrow, without any mask, armor or thorns.

She rushed out of the lounge without waiting for a response.

“…Huh?”

Baek Ah-hee muttered weakly toward the empty space. Of course, there was no answer.

She never imagined that a single photo of herself and him could cause such a stir.

She realized there was a secret hidden about him, beyond just her own ignorance.

Baek Ah-hee still did not know Han Jae-jung.

***

Ippotranslation

***

Han Jae-jung let out an incredulous laugh.

“I seem to be quite popular. I didn’t expect to have so many people looking for me.” 

He clicked his tongue and looked around.

“What business do you have with me? Jason, Botis.”

The response to his mocking tone was a pleasant smile.

“Hm, I’m glad you addressed me by my name right away.”

“Um… why did you just say Jason’s name properly? Call mine properly too.”

The villain from the Bootes constellation moved his characteristically loose clothing and placed his hand on his chest. 

“Call me Bo, not Botis.”

“You’re being ridiculous.”

An accompanying mocking laughter came from further back.

“Yeah, really ridiculous.”

It was a cool, bluish smile.

“For you trash to be creating names for each other. Isn’t that right, Green Villain?”

“Your words are harsh but I agree, Sirius.”

“Do not take my name in your mouth so freely. It offends me.”

The ground slowly began to freeze with her at the center. Not just the ground, but the air as well. The frozen air was no different from fine blades. Merely breathing could draw blood, making it akin to a disease.

“Is that so? What a coincidence. I too get offended just by looking at your face.”

Watcher pulled his scarf up over his mouth as he continued speaking.

“But you can say my name as you please. I’m not so petty as to be offended by such trivial things.”

Not his real name, but a name that could serve as an alias.

“Call me Watcher.”

Han Jae-jung introduced himself this way, ignoring the villains in the middle to focus his gaze solely on one person.

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