Regarding the fact that my best friend is a magical girl

"are you OK?"

He shook his head.

"Let's go hide in the air-raid shelter first. It's too disadvantageous to fight her in the jungle."

While I might not be a match for them even in an air-raid shelter, I currently have no way to deal with enemies that can easily break through my bubble...

Are we going to suffocate her with seawater?

wrong.

For the robot, it's probably a short circuit.

Putting aside the fact that it looks like it's IPX8 waterproof, even if it were possible, I wouldn't dare to try it, since Miss Spica requires witches to be captured alive.

They were our predecessors, magical girls.

Huh?

When we arrived at the entrance of the air-raid shelter, there were already people waiting for us.

Chapter 47 The Hunter/Betelgeuse

(Albinocotyledon)

He emerged from the burning window on the east side of the mansion.

Seruno and Ui-31, who were with Sirius, were nowhere to be seen. In their place was a white ring above their heads.

"Where are Seruno and the others?"

“Spica is coming, so I told Ryu to hide. Seruno said she wanted to protect him, so she went with him.”

Protecting the weirdo?

What's wrong with that idiot? Besides, UI-31's strength might be above hers, and it's hard to say who was protecting whom in the past.

The buzzing sound amplified, and Miss Mummy, wrapped in a white silk scarf, fell out of the wormhole. That was a bit too daring…

boom--!

My fears soon came true. A long burst of gunfire erupted from the northern rainforest, birds scattered and flew through the night, casting large, noisy shadows. A Spica in the sky was sniped and snapped in half by a large-caliber bullet. Its lumbar vertebrae seemed to be shattered, with only a piece of silk scarf connecting its upper and lower body...

wrong.

It was a hollow target made of silk scarves. Only then did the real Spica pass through the wormhole and fall. The assassin seemed to have no time to prepare for the next attack and gave up.

"That's really tragic."

The mansion was engulfed in towering flames, which Spica could clearly see from the air, so she landed precisely in front of Sirius and me, and the silk scarf that made up the mannequin was also taken back onto her body.

"Communication was lost, but the satellite detected an explosion and fire here, so I used a wormhole to come and check the situation... What do the enemies look like?"

Sirius shook his head.

"I don't know yet, but it's very likely that guy."

Wait, who is that guy?

"...As expected? Dealing with her at night is too troublesome."

Even though they had just arrived, Spica seemed to understand, but to me, their conversation was like a riddle.

"Excuse me, who is this 'that guy' you're talking about?"

"Betelgeuse, or rather, the former Betelgeuse."

Sirius only gave me a name, and then said, "I don't have time to explain in detail. Seruno-chan went to the air-raid shelter on the north shore. As for the detailed information, you can ask the Magical Girl Encyclopedia."

"No, I do know something about such a famous magical girl..."

After all, I do go online sometimes.

One of the seven legendary magical girls nicknamed "Hunter," Betelgeuse is the code name she was given.

Seven years ago, he led a team to "the other side" with Fomalhaut and Aldebaran, and was also a former comrade of Sirius and Spica...

Of course, she has now been transformed into an enemy witch.

Following Sirius's words, Spica asked, "Then do you know what the hunter's magic is?"

"...I'm not entirely sure about that."

All we know is that she is an assassin-type magical girl skilled in assassination. Magical girls of that era rarely left behind audio or video materials, let alone jungle guerrillas like Betelgeuse who carried out secret missions.

"Go ask Seruno-chan, she'll definitely know~"

I nodded and said, "Miss Melissa is with the maids trying to salvage the documents in your study, and she told you not to worry."

"...How could I not be worried? Magical girls aren't immortal."

“I’ll help too. First, stabilize the building structure on the east side to prevent the study from collapsing… Use your light and my ribbon to reinforce it, then isolate the fire source for those children and build ventilation ducts… Miluno, you go find Seruno first. Once things are settled here, we’ll go over to provide support.”

"Okay, then I'll leave it to you."

Although Betelgeuse's primary target was not Seruno, UI-31 was also with it.

I'm still wearing Serono's protective film. It's not the most robust because it's designed for fire protection, but it's enough to allow me to accelerate more than twenty times.

In the instant I accelerated, everything around me slowed down and became quiet. I dodged the traps on the ground as I sprinted toward the air-raid shelter Sirius had mentioned.

However, there are quite a lot of traps. How did this hunter witch manage to set up so many traps in such a short time, while also having the ability to ambush Seruno and UI-31 and snipe Spica?

Does she have more hands than others?

"Ah, I see it."

Before long, I burst out of the dark rainforest and came to the north shore, which was also dark. It was almost a mudflat with a short shoreline, but there was a clear underground entrance at the foot of the mountain to the west.

That's the air-raid shelter Sirius mentioned. Since it's in Hawaii, it's most likely an abandoned fortification left by the US military during World War II.

"Ok?"

Only after decelerating did I hear a series of loud explosions coming from the jungle, the treetops shaking violently from the impact.

What trap did they fall into?

Although Serono's protective membrane is sturdy, it certainly cannot withstand the impact of such continuous explosions.

But with UI-31 around, it shouldn't be too bad... Wait, why should I trust that guy?

The past two days have indeed lulled me into a false sense of security. He's also an oddball from another side, and his words aren't trustworthy enough. Maybe this purge is just a ruse to gain trust.

I accelerated towards the location from which the explosion came, and from the towering acacia tree, I looked down at the battle below.

The ui-31 is locked in a fierce battle with a cloaked female mech... no, it should be said that it is being unilaterally and thoroughly defeated.

Betelgeuse, now known as the Hunter Witch.

Her combat experience far surpassed that of the UI-31. Although the latter had a faster reaction speed, the former controlled two flying mechanical arms to launch rapid, continuous, and multi-angle attacks. The UI-31 was overwhelmed and its armor was constantly being slashed away by the black dagger.

Although Seruno, who was also surrounded by four mechanical arms, was in a sorry state, she did not suffer any real harm. All that was left was a toilet peg stuck in her head. Although it did not cause any injury, it was extremely humiliating...

Just as I was about to jump down and join the battle, the hunter witch threw down a smoke bomb.

She noticed me, so she chose to run away.

I won't let her get away so easily!

Although I wanted to say that, I didn't see her rush out of the smoke. Seruno's compressed air dispersed the pervasive smoke, but I couldn't find any trace of the witch. She just vanished into thin air.

Stealth?

wrong.

If it's just about stealth, its size should be enough to dissipate the smoke, and I should still be able to see its outline.

Perhaps it's like Zara's ability to move from the projection plane?

It's tricky, I can't figure it out.

Seruno helped the kneeling UI-31 to her feet.

He was completely overwhelmed by the attack just now. Although he wasn't entirely defenseless, the hunter witch was able to seize every opening in his defenses.

Most importantly...

This witch really has several more hands than others.

With the help of those multiple mechanical arms, she can set up traps all over the jungle and launch sneak attacks from blind spots during battle, making her impossible to defend against.

Conversely, if those robotic arms are dealt with, even the UI-31 could overpower her with its reaction speed...

The laws of victory have already been determined!

perhaps.

Chapter Forty-Eight: A Lucky Mistake

(Albinocotyledon)

Although I peeked at the battle from the tree, I couldn't help, so I figured it was best to pretend nothing had happened.

"You two are too slow."

They even turned around and accused the perpetrator.

After all, Seruno is alright, and I'm just happy that she's alright. As for UI-31... he's tough and won't be bothered by a beating.

"We don't have Miss Miluno's speed! By the way, did you find Yezi at the fire?"

When asked about ui-31, I glanced at ui-31 and replied, "He's currently in the study with the maids, trying to salvage Sirius's important documents. Zara's magic can take him away at any time, so there's no need to worry."

This is a fairly reasonable explanation, but reconciling the accounts with Spica would likely expose the deception. Hopefully, Sirius can get rid of her as soon as possible.

"Why would an ordinary person like him get involved in this kind of thing?"

Even Serino wasn't entirely at ease; staying in the fire was risky, and she saw that I was in even the slightest danger... We were in the same boat.

"Let's go inside first."

I pulled open the heavy iron door of the air-raid shelter. Although it was rusty from the sea breeze, it was heavier than I had imagined, probably weighing more than ten tons. Seeing this, UI-31 came over to lend a hand, and together we opened a crack in the door for people to pass through.

The air-raid shelter, abandoned for many years, has no permanent lighting facilities; it is dark and has a damp, musty smell.