Mr. Magical Girl

Chapter: 181. Question

“Librarian?”

Is this some kind of hidden camera prank? Did Unho secretly sign me up for a variety show while I was asleep?

A multitude of questions and thoughts, and a hope wrapped in a playful inquiry.

“If you don’t believe it, take a look at this.”

The blonde woman in front of me gave a wry smile and extended her right hand.

The moment her hand was stretched out straight—the breathtaking moment. Clang!

With a metallic sound, a massive silver armor appeared on her hand.

An armor I recognized. Although only the part of her right hand appeared, it was clearly the Librarian’s armor.

“Huh…

Wow, just woke up and now this guy’s a woman? What kind of crazy talk is this?

Friend.

Then I must have turned back into a man too.

I wished for it and shook my head, but only my silver hair swayed side to side, obstructing my vision.

As for escaping reality, let’s stop that here.

Alright, let’s keep the questions coming.

“Librarian?”

The emotion wishing for denial surfaced from my heart, passed through my throat, and was vocalized as a question.

“Yes, I am the Librarian.”

That wish was betrayed far too easily and cruelly.

Thus.

“No, what the heck is this? A man turns into a woman and appears in front of me, what the heck is going on?”

I exploded in anger, causing the hospital room to echo with my shouts.

“Or did I end up in some parallel world? Huh? The first world crashed, and have we regressed like that curator? Did something go haywire while I was asleep?”

It sounded like something that could actually happen, making it even scarier.

“Or maybe while we were gone, some fresh 0-class showed up. (Life is abundant) such a monstrous Otherworld invasion…”

Negative imaginations began to spiral endlessly.

If such an Otherworld invasion occurred, it would be the worst.

Everyone would be stuck with these horrendous bodies, and with no successors, the world would crumble.

What kind of hell would that be?

“Or… or…”

Not stopping there, I heard from the countless illusions spewing from me.

“Sorry, but I heard everything.”

Sigh.

It’s much simpler than that. You remember that biotechnological machinery, right? With that, I created a new body. Since I’ve completely turned into a machine, and realizing my essence is an electronic chip, I just swapped it out.

Oh, is that so?

Yeah, I’ll let that slide. Crafting a new body and swapping in a chip is fine, I guess.

But then,

“Why did it happen like this? Why. Why a female body?”

This is the crux.

My friend’s mental state can’t be corrupted like this, so with a special accent on “why”.

“Oh, about that. If you don’t specify a gender, it comes out randomly. I didn’t want to waste the new creation, so I just decided to use it.”

“No, just toss it out, you crazy fool.”

Do you think it’s funny being in a woman’s body? Huh?

This is a senior’s advice. You might want to quit that now.

Otherwise, you’ll end up playing dress-up with infants.

“Isn’t this all experience? I’ve always been interested in the life not lived by Haram, you know? How about a thesis on the mental states of victims of bodily transformation?”

As she said this, the Librarian started to chuckle.

With the usual annoying tone, her annoying gestures, and her annoying way of speaking.

Yet for some reason, my feeling of nausea was less.

Maybe it’s because it wasn’t a guy saying it.

Perhaps that’s it.

Just by her appearance being somewhat neater, the Librarian’s negative image might have washed away.

But still…

“Then go ahead and try it. You’ll receive some truly crummy treatment.”

Being kicked out of bars.

Having cops sticking to you.

Getting candy from a security guard.

And so on.

Who would stop someone wanting to experience such crummy situations?

“Well, so far there haven’t been any major problems. Ah, but the people around seem a bit nicer. Even the juniors who used to use the same excuse feel strangely polite…”

Ah, that’s already gone down the drain.

The Librarian didn’t notice, but the gazes of those around her had already begun to change.

Eventually, the male Librarian would be disposed of from their minds, and only the female Librarian would remain in their memories.

There’s no turning back now.

Even if we went back to the way things were, they would give looks like, “Why are you a man?”

“I can understand your concerns, Haram. Looking back at their behaviors, it seems there’s a likelihood of you being treated badly in the future as well.”

Yeah, yeah. So hurry up and quit that.

With such thoughts, I desperately nodded to the Librarian’s words.

Then she said:

“You don’t need to worry about that. Like this.”

As she spoke, the Librarian cracked her knuckles.

Click, click.

A massive gear noise echoed throughout the space.

In an instant, the Librarian transformed back into a man’s voice.

Returning to a man’s form, the Librarian displayed this delightful transformation.

“That female appearance, it’s my auxiliary unit…”

Click, click.

Once again the sound of gears was heard.

– “You can transform freely, you see.”

Once more, the Librarian spoke in a woman’s voice, showing her female form.

As if to show off the new powers she had just gained.

In front of me, she transformed in an instant.

At that moment, what popped into my head was:

“Wow. What’s that? I want one too.”

Even for just a moment, I want to relish in being a man and drink heavily.

Just for a little while.

With such a hope, I asked the Librarian, “Can’t you use that skill on me?”

Of course, without much expectation.

Attempts to regain my original body had been made many times, yet each time I was betrayed.

I now knew reaching out for hope was more of a loss.

Still…

“You can.”

The Librarian answered with that transcendent response.

“Wait, for real? Can I actually do that?”

Despair.

“Yes, through cell culture, we can create a male body, can’t we? That should be pretty easy. Though, since I’m not human but a biotechnological entity, my lifespan will be short and my body weaker than a regular human…”

Whatever she was babbling about, those flaws wouldn’t matter to me.

“Just let me have it. I’ll decide if it’s uncomfortable or not.”

Even if just for a moment.

I want to stop looking up and feel what it’s like to look down on life once again.

With that hope, I threw both my hands and words at the Librarian.

“You need to hear the whole story. To use this technology, certain conditions are necessary.”

The Librarian cut me off with a light laugh, shaking her finger as if trying to teach me.

“What condition?”

I was about to explode due to her attitude, but managed to swallow it back, and posed my question.

That technology was crucial to me.

“Yes, it’s a very simple condition. To separate from your physical body, you have to abandon it like me and insert an electronic chip…”

“Get lost, you idiot.”

Before the Librarian even finished, I understood in an instant.

The Librarian was messing with me.

Knowing my desire, she had meticulously crafted this ruse to tease me.

Though it might have started by accident, she surely planned this prank after seeing the results.

That’s why, I hurled a flower vase next to the bed at her.

The vase flew toward the Librarian at a high speed, and I thought it would hit the annoyed expression on her face.

But…

“Oh dear, isn’t that dangerous?”

Just as the vase approached, the Librarian quickly tilted her head and dodged it.

What a shame.

I could’ve seen that scoundrel’s face drenched in water.

Thinking that, I clicked my tongue.

But the missed vase crashed against the wall and, with that, shattered into countless pieces.

The catastrophe was something we both stared at in shock.

About ten seconds passed.

“…Did you really mean to kill me?”

The Librarian remarked, flabbergasted.

“Sorry.”

I apologized to them, not quite able to control my emotions.

“So, how long have I been asleep?”

The first question I threw at her once she returned after fixing the wall.

“You haven’t been asleep for long. Just about thirty hours, I’d say.”

“Then is this the Soviet Union?”

“No, this is the Korea Association. They lent us a military aircraft willingly.”

Oh, really?

Even though they’ve been such jerks, they’re treating us well since we received the hero title.

Thanks to that, my perception of the Soviet Union improved a tad, but they had done so many horrible things to me that it didn’t really help much.

Putting off those foul bastards’ stories for later…

“Everything in your body okay?”

“Yes, in fact, I was amazed at how quickly I recovered. Did you learn rejuvenation magic or something?”

“No, I meant my body, not yours.”

I didn’t care about dying anyway.

What mattered now was whether the Librarian’s machine body was intact.

“Oh. You mean my body? It might be faster to show you than tell.”

The Librarian cut off her speech and immediately grabbed her shirt, lifting it up.

Just before her shirt reached above her chest, something was revealed.

In contrast to her white skin, a pitch-black metallic sphere was embedded.

“What the heck did you embed in your body?”

“It’s a special bomb derived from Macbeth’s Otherworld teleportation magic. When it explodes, it launches me into the Otherworld.”

The moment I heard that, my mind went blank.

“Isn’t it interesting? Oh, and the power source comes from me, so it won’t suddenly stop or anything.”

Even though her lively comment meant to soothe my chaotic mind, it only stirred my anxiety further.

“…Who installed it?”

With a hint of anger in my words.

Yet, I must have shown a remarkable degree of restraint.

The moment I saw that. It reminded me of the tracking devices past governments had planted on us.

Was it really Macbeth? Or those trash bastards in the Association?

Whoever it was, it didn’t matter.

I had to confront them right away.

“I implanted it myself. Though the Association tried to stop me.”

And just like that, that fury lost its path before the Librarian’s repentance.

“…Why?”

The lost fury transformed into a single word within me.

“It was necessary as a safety device. Now that I’m no longer human, I have no guarantee I won’t become like—”

The Librarian, with a continuous smile, answered.

“I doubt it’ll happen. But you know, there’s always a possibility.”

Still, she kept grinning.

“Don’t make that face. This is something I deemed necessary.”

What kind of face am I making?

I don’t even know.

“By the way, there’s good news.”

Could my expression have been that grave?

The Librarian, making a ruckus, took out the core attack from thin air.

A silver marble the size of a adult fist.

Now the Librarian held something heavy enough that she could barely lift it with one hand.

“Here’s the reality stabilizer you requested. Surprisingly, there’s 25% more energy left than expected.”

She handed it to my hand.

Without any particular response.

To me, staring at the Librarian’s face.

After pulling my unmoving hand, she slipped it between my fingers.

“Well then. I have a lot to do, so I’ll excuse myself for today. I haven’t submitted the report yet, and I need to participate in a meeting about how to deal with the biotechnological entities living there.”

The Librarian said that while stepping back.

Waving goodbye with a smiling face.

“If you want to hear more about it, come to my office tomorrow. I’ll hopefully have everything wrapped up by then.”

The Librarian turned her hand backward.

Gently tugged the doorknob.

Creek.

The door opened, and the Librarian began to hide her body behind it.

“Cheer up a bit. Everything that happens to me is my choice. You don’t need to feel guilty, Haram. In fact, I’m grateful.”

And so she cheerfully left.

“Well then, I’ll see you later. Oh, I placed the game on the side in the bag…”

Clang.

The door shut.

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