Mahou Shoujo Ikusei Keikaku - Volume 11 - Chapter Pr

PROLOGUE

There was no end in sight to the flurry of activity as the magical girls under Puk Puck’s command all put their noses to the grindstone. One group was in the dojo, having sparring match after sparring match; another group was in the studio for choral practice; another was carrying a bunch of large tires; and yet another was taking apart television sets. All the while, encouraging cries of, “If now isn’t the time to give it our all, then when is?!” could be heard throughout.

Magical girls clad in brilliant costumes of every color were being forced into tedious, unappealing tasks, but not a single one was whining or complaining about it—and not only were they avoiding such talk among themselves, but privately, too. In fact, they probably didn’t think to complain. They were able to put everything they had into this work for the sake of their great leader, Puk Puck. To these girls, this labor was not a hardship, but a joy.

Some of the girls were carrying boxes from the storehouses.

These boxes were packed with valuable art pieces and rare magic items, but more important than their simple monetary value were the precious memories Puk Puck associated with each object. As the girls loaded the wooden boxes into the large trucks lined up in the front yard, some sighed woefully at the tire tracks drawn over the beautiful white sand or gazed at the starkly emptied storehouses with tears in their eyes, while others sat in the drivers’ seats of the trucks and leaned against the steering wheels as they bit their lips.

This estate had been full of so many memories for all of them: when they’d gotten into a fight over a magical-girl anime and then made up the next day; when one girl set a record in combat training and everyone congratulated her; that time they’d all huddled around a campfire together in the garden, gazing up at the world tree as they stuffed their cheeks with barbecued meat on skewers; that time one girl had been so entranced by how adorable Lady Puk Puck was that she became flustered and awkward when Lady Puk spoke to her. The dire situation unfolding at the estate was attempting to destroy those memories. The girls couldn’t help feeling emotional.

And yet they soldiered on, taking care not to linger on such emotions. They had their comrades encouraging them, their bosses patting their backs, or the image of Puk Puck rising in their minds. No matter how much it hurt right now, once the Puk Faction had accomplished its goal, theirs would be a blessed future, and this would all settle down into stories of the struggles of days gone by. “It was tough back then, huh?” they’d say as they laughed to each other, proudly telling the younger ones their tales of woe.

What they needed right now was not old art pieces or magical items for noncombat use. It was magical gems—gemstones filled with magic power that mages used for various ceremonies. In order to acquire as many as possible, the girls were exchanging their valuables, fully aware that they wouldn’t get their money’s worth. The bigger and more dazzling the gem, the more magic power could be stored in it, so the better the gem, the fewer there were in circulation. Puk Puck’s girls went to merchants, researchers, collectors, and the nouveau riche to negotiate for their gems, then hired mercenaries and stocked up on TV screens. Mercenary magical girls were not worthy of serving someone as noble as Puk Puck, but one couldn’t be picky at a time like this—and besides, they’d hired mercenaries in the past who had become smitten with Puk Puck and come to live in the estate. Even if these types had initially been drawn purely by monetary reward, when they came into contact with Puk Puck’s greatness and her charm, they could change. People changed once they got to know Puk Puck. Magical girls changed. The world changed. These girls were working as hard as they could for the sake of a new world where Puk Puck would reign supreme.

But not all the magical girls were like this.

Uluru, who had lost her two younger sisters, was still on standby in her room, as she’d been ordered. She wasn’t moving and she wasn’t working. She wasn’t seeing anyone or showing herself to anyone. She was just sitting there. The other magical girls were kind and sympathetic enough not to blame her for that. Premium Sachiko, who had run away from the estate at such an important time, had painted a clear picture for them in bringing about one’s own demise, but she’d still been dear family to Uluru. Including Sorami, who had lost her life fighting the enemy out on a mission, the trio had often gone out with Puk Puck, so they’d become the subject of jealousy and envy, but now that Uluru was alone, all she gathered was pity.

Puk Puck’s estate in W City was right in the middle of a whirlpool of turmoil, the origin of a storm. Various powers were watching the Puk Faction’s activities, and this information had made its way up to Puk Puck, the leader of the faction, but the situation was already such that they couldn’t be worried about how they appeared in the eyes of others. Puk’s goal was close at hand. She had absolutely no time or attention to spare.

Puk Puck herself was working harder than anyone else. But she showed no sign of struggle, and seeing her with the same smile as always invigorated many of the girls, making them think, If Lady Puk is so earnest about this, then how could I not work even more?

But it wasn’t as if Puk Puck were doing this to heighten the morale of her forces. She was joining in because she had to. The smile was an added bonus.

She’d provided private rooms for all the magical girls she had assembled for the ceremony, starting with Shadow Gale.

“Hold on a bit longer, ’kay, big sis?” said Puk.

“Yes, I’ll be waiting a little bit longer,” Shadow Gale replied.

“And everyone else, wait a bit longer, too, ’kay?”

Puk Puck could adjust the strength of her magic and how quickly she could befriend each individual target. If she turned up her magic’s power too much, then it wasn’t much different from brainwashing, and since that caused symptoms like personality changes and intellectual stunting, she normally preferred to take her time becoming friends. If a target got separated from Puk Puck, the effects of her magic would gradually fade, but she liked that, since it gave their friendship a sense of realness. But this was an emergency, so it wasn’t the time to be prioritizing her personal taste. She would meet frequently with those she wanted to maintain the friendship effect with, and if it was necessary to befriend a person all in one go, then she had to do it.

“If we go out, let’s play together,” said Puk.

“Yes, let’s play together.”

Seeing Shadow Gale looking entranced, repeating her words practically like a chant, Puk Puck nodded several times in satisfaction, patting Shadow Gale’s head on the way out before she left. She hated to part with a new friend, but there were lots of other things on her agenda. She showed up in every one of the guest rooms and met with each of the friends in “custody” there. She had to go see them regularly, otherwise their friendship would fade, even with Puk Puck’s magic at full force. Friendship was not something that simply forced allegiance one-sidedly; it took work on Puk Puck’s part.

The magical nail artist Illunail; Beastwoman Brandia, who had very strong claws; Ann Sardi, who could control people without their realizing; and Verstice, who could give machines hearts—all of them were important friends.

“Hello, Lady Puk.”

“You’re so cute today.”

“Thinking about you puts my heart at ease, Lady Puk.”

Puk Puck spoke to each one and cordially petted their heads. Once she was out of the dungeon area, she stripped off her apron dress, and her attendant magical girls immediately adorned her in a toga and arranged her hair without missing a beat. Puk Puck exited the underground of the east wing and passed through the mansion hallways before heading for the west wing.

To get there as quickly as possible, she took a shortcut through a room with sliding doors. When the doors to the next room slid open, there sat Uluru with her shoulders slumped. That reminded Puk Puck that she seemed to recall Uluru’s room being around here.

“Cheer up, ’Luru,” said Puk.

“Lady Puk, about Snow White—”

Puk Puck restrained the attendant who tried to take Uluru to task for rudely not offering so much as a greeting. Her head drooped sadly as she said, “So the one who got Sacchi was a friend of Snowy’s, huh? Puk heard about that, too, but…but listen, there’s no point in blaming Snowy Sis for that now, you know?”

“But—”

“Puk will make sure to talk to her, too.”

Despite having just managed to bring herself to her feet, Uluru dropped to her knees on the tatami again, hugging her arms to her chest. She moaned like she was in pain, and droplets hit the floor one after another. Uluru was crying.

“’Luru.”

“I…I…”

Two minutes and thirty seconds had passed since Puk Puck had stopped. Right now, she couldn’t spare even one minute and one second.

“…Sorry.” Puk went around Uluru, and her attending magical girls silently followed. Uluru’s sobs behind Puk gradually drew away, muffled by the rustling sound of paper being crushed.

Puk automatically turned back. Cutting through her attendants, she saw Uluru was absentmindedly gazing at a piece of paper she had pulled from her pocket. “’Luru, that’s…”

“This is all Sachiko left behind.”

Puk approached Uluru in large strides and took the paper from her. The name column, the question column with yes/no options—she’d seen this before. There was no mistaking it—this was one of the contracts needed to activate Premium Sachiko’s magic.

“There was one! There was one left!” Puk cried.

“Lady Puk, that’s…”

“This is it! All we need is this! Thanks, ’Luru!”

Uluru was still trying to say something, but Puk’s mind had already flown off somewhere else. With this—with Premium Sachiko’s contract—the odds were way higher the ceremony would succeed.

Puk Puck handed the paper she’d taken from Uluru over to one of her attendants and strode onward through the rooms so fast she was nearly running, but then, after taking five steps, she turned back. “Hey, so even though Sacchi’s gone, she’s helping us. We’re all in this together. You come join us, too, ’Luru.”

Without waiting for Uluru’s response, Puk Puck walked off. She didn’t turn back. No, she didn’t have the time to be turning back. The fulfillment of her two longstanding desires—reviving the Magical Kingdom and being able to make friends with all magical girls forever—was right there in front of her.