NOVEL NEXT Episode 11 – Code Red (2)
“Are you okay? How do you feel, Dr. Heo?”
“Of course, I’m fine, Oh Director! I can personally… cough.”
“It’s not bad, really.”
The attending physician, who had been checking her condition in the hospital room, grimaced as something thrown hit her face. Oh Yoon-seo approached Aria, who lay on the bed, with a bitter smile at this familiar scene.
“Still, you’re in pain.”
“…That’s true.”
Oh Yoon-seo looked at her body wrapped in bandages and smiled sadly. This high school girl, who now looked like an ordinary girl with long black hair, was the S-ranked Magical Girl, Aria. She was also a subject actively cooperating with the Republic of Korea’s Management Bureau.
“Ugh… Don’t say it so easily. My internal organs are severely ruptured. If it weren’t for the Magical Girl’s unique regeneration, I would have died right there.”
He approached, clearing his throat, brushing off the mascot that had stuck to his face when he fainted, unable to see it himself. At his serious tone, she shut her mouth.
Dr. Heo Seung-hoon. He was the most famous researcher and doctor in the country concerning Magical Girls. Although she had actively cooperated, without his treatment, such a quick recovery would have been impossible.
“What about that girl, Takilas?”
“Well… we still haven’t found her.”
Oh Yoon-seo lowered her head and muttered weakly at Aria’s attempt to change the subject.
She felt ashamed. After all, she couldn’t do much without the director’s approval from the Management Bureau.
“That girl is…”
“She’s in danger. She will definitely die.”
Aria declared firmly. Oh Yoon-seo bit her lip.
Logically, it was a reasonable statement.
“I also saw the footage that was smuggled from the police. Her arm was really messed up. Even with proper treatment, it will take a long time.”
“…The other Magical Girls won’t have seen that.”
At Dr. Heo Seung-hoon’s words, Aria nodded. It was obvious to them. While it’s common for Magical Girls to band together, they often also clash.
It had been 20 years by the calendar. Once pure Magical Girls had aged and gradually become worn-out adults.
When it came to power and interests, reality became brutal.
It meant that eliminating competitors was an easy task. Especially if that opponent couldn’t get help from the law and was in a wounded state.
“Lulu! Where is that girl’s company? Can we protect her?”
“Hik! I think I’ve heard of that mascot doll before… but it’s probably not a big company.”
Aria summoned her mascot, Lulu.
The winged, bun-like mascot Lulu quickly put her head together, wary of Aria’s fist.
“It’s probably a small company called Rana Land. But their headquarters isn’t located on the Korean Peninsula… I don’t know why they suddenly dropped here.”
“That’s not good.”
She clicked her tongue and frowned. Generally, the most reliable allies were the Magical Girls from the same company. Companies needed to protect their assets, which were their Magical Girls.
Currently, the building where she was quietly hospitalized was being guarded by a Magical Girl from the same company.
“Yoon-seo, you really want to save her.”
“…I believe everyone should seize opportunities.”
Oh Yoon-seo, who had been silently listening, proudly patted her head.
“Just like me, to redeem myself.”
“You did nothing wrong.”
Oh Yoon-seo hugged her as she lowered her head. Their relationship was special.
It was Oh Yoon-seo who first persuaded Aria, whose real name was Lee Eun-seo, to switch to the Management Bureau. Oh Yoon-seo had been recognized for that achievement and had risen to become the youngest policy director in the bureau.
“But since Director Oh came so urgently, it seems you had different thoughts from the director?”
“I won’t deny it.”
Oh Yoon-seo nodded at Dr. Heo Seung-hoon’s comment as he watched them.
“Please help us, Doctor. I want to find at least the location of that girl until Eun-seo recovers.”
“I’ll do that. But I’m a bit worried.”
Dr. Heo Seung-hoon nodded easily, but shook his head at the same time.
“That girl… from my perspective as a doctor, it might be tough for her.”
“She’s just a child.”
“…Is that so?”
He shrugged with a bitter smile. Oh Yoon-seo was firm, but the expression on Aria’s face, resting in her arms, hardened at his words.
“A child? That’s definitely not the case. That girl was looking out for me.”
In the Code Red incident, during the first clash with Takilas, she felt the wall. Not just a wall of skill, but one of many aspects.
At the very least, the madness hidden behind those red, bloodshot eyes that had been grinning at her was not inferior to any monster or madman she had ever encountered.
“Is that girl capable of repentance?”
She bit her lip. That power, which was undoubtedly the essence of a dark abyss that she could not see the end of, shook her belief for the first time since she realized her sins and changed after being persuaded by Oh Yoon-seo.
“Then where do we start moving? We can’t rely on the Management Bureau.”
“Well, we definitely need to find her true form.”
Turning at Heo Seung-hoon’s suggestion, Oh Yoon-seo was filled with certainty.
“We already have plenty of clues. We just need to find the injured child.”
“If we’re operating in secrecy like us…”
“…The likelihood of that is low.”
Of course, there were flaws. Nevertheless, Oh Yoon-seo decided that moving quickly was the most important and hurried to leave.
“Director Oh is always hardworking.”
“The director has also tried to help people like me.”
“From my perspective, it’s beneficial to increase the sample size for research.”
“…You do know my case has a high level of importance in that research, right? By the way, when will I be discharged?”
Aria shot a glare at the chuckling Dr. Heo Seung-hoon. After all, he had become an authority on Magical Girls because Aria had actively volunteered for physical examinations and experiments.
“You’ll be fine for daily activities by tomorrow. But refrain from any activities for a while. If the injury ruptures internally, treatment will be difficult.”
“Tomorrow…”
She silently clicked her tongue. She was annoyed that she had to take several days off from activities, and her mascot Lulu was sulking, covering her face with her wings.
“Performance… how many days… then the company rankings…”
“Shut up, Lulu.”
“But!”
“Do you want to get hit again?”
Early morning. Aria, with Lulu perched on her head, walked across the bustling hospital hall.
She was thinking about discharging herself and going home.
“Well, in any case, let’s ignore that crazy recruit from now on. I know that getting involved with that lunatic will bring nothing good!”
“…That girl might also be suffering inside.”
“Honestly, it doesn’t seem like you think so.”
“…”
She was at a loss for words.
Lulu’s observation was correct. No matter how she thought about it, the new recruit, Takilas, did not show the gloomy demeanor typical of negative Magical Girls.
“But murder is still not okay. Just like me… surely she could receive help.”
She shook her head desperately. It wasn’t because she was meddling mindlessly; she experienced it firsthand.
She believed she had found the true path since her meeting with Oh Yoon-seo, even more so now.
“Monster!!”
“Ahhh! Run!! Escape!!”
Just as she was about to leave the hospital, the once peaceful hospital erupted into panic.
With people’s screams, a strong shock from outside shattered the ground floor windows.
“This is…!”
“Quick, get to safety!”
In the parking lot appeared a hulking muscle-bound monster. Aria’s eyes widened in shock as she saw it.
The antagonists who came along with the Magical Girls—the monsters.
Their objectives varied. But the overwhelmingly high purpose, and the way to achieve that purpose, were through slaughter.
“But!”
“Weren’t you listening to Dr. Heo? He said to rest for the time being!”
Lulu, flapping her wings, tugged at Aria’s sleeve with her mouth. It was indeed true that Dr. Heo had warned her not to fight, and her eyes wavered.
There was an enemy right in front of her. It was hard to just stand by while people died.
“Ugh!”
“It’s a Magical Girl!”
At that moment, someone appeared from the sky, slamming a car into the body of the monster that was trying to harm people and thrusting a blue spear into it.
“Hena…”
She was a Magical Girl from the same organization, on standby to protect her.
The comrade who had successfully initiated the attack immediately pulled back the spear and aimed it at the enemy, launching herself forward.
“Oh no, that monster’s level is way too high!”
However, despite starting well with her attack, her comrade staggered from the furious roar of the monster and, soon after, was struck by a flying fist, losing her spear and crashing into a nearby car.
The monster twisted its grotesque face even more as it roared.
[Magical Girl! I will kill you!]
From its gaping mouth, green energy began to condense.
Seeing this, Aria instinctively moved to transform.
“Let go of this, Lulu! Hena is going to die!”
“Ah, no. Is your body yours?! Your body belongs to our company!”
Lulu stubbornly held on, biting the connector.
“Ugh…”
She felt it was too late. But the breath that erupted did not cover her comrade.
“Ugh…”
“Your breath smells, you bastard.”
With a shadow looming above her, a girl in a black uniform flapped her shoulders.
Her smug tone matched the overwhelming and powerful aura emanating from her.
A girl with red eyes had brought a swirling shadow over the entire parking lot, stomping her foot down on the monster’s head buried in the ground.