The icy, unyielding ground was a harsh replacement for the soft familiarity of her bed.
Enzawa Kaoru's eyes snapped open. Above her stretched not the wooden ceiling of her home, but an unnervingly vast, alien sky of brilliant blue.
"Where… am I?"
She struggled to sit up, finding herself nestled in neatly trimmed, foreign shrubbery. Her coarse, homespun clothes were in tatters— a pitiful contrast to the vibrant, well-dressed pedestrians who moved with purpose around her.
Their gazes, a mix of curiosity and indifference, felt like physical barbs against her skin, making her wish she could disappear.
Fear seized her throat. What would her brother think when he found her gone? The terrifying truth was, she didn't even know where she was.
I have to get back.
The thought gave her a sliver of strength. Evading the crowd like a startled fawn, she staggered along a path of smooth marble.
The scenery was surreal— a crystal-clear lake, birch trees swaying gently—a world apart from the perpetually snow-clad Goutou Village.
But when she finally reached the park's exit, her courage shattered completely.
Beyond lay a kaleidoscopic nightmare.
Towers of glass pierced the clouds, reflecting a harsh, artificial light. Metallic beasts roared past on wide roads, their deafening growls shaking the very air.
A tidal wave of loneliness and disorientation crashed over her, obliterating her defenses.
The memory of her brother's warm smile surfaced in her mind, only to dissolve like mist in the city's haze. Tears welled up and overflowed.
Helpless, she slumped by the entrance, sobbing.
"Hey! Vagrant!"
Two large men in cyan uniforms spotted her, stomping over to loom like twin towers.
"No entry to the National Park for non-citizens! Get lost!"
Their voices exploded in her ears, leaving her mind reeling.
Kaoru trembled, her body too paralyzed by fear to even stand.
One of the men spat in annoyance. He strode forward, and with a brutal, practiced motion, hooked an arm around her waist and hoisted her off the ground like a sack of garbage.
"Let me go! I'll walk! It hurts!" she shrieked, struggling futilely against his grip.
Ignoring her, he carried her to the gate. With a nasty grin, he hurled her frail body aside like trash.
"Aaah—!"
She felt weightless, like an arrow shot from a bow, before her back slammed violently into a metal lamppost.
"Cough...!"
Agony erupted from her chest. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, staining her ragged collar. The world rapidly darkened at the edges before her consciousness plunged into an abyss.
Dusk fell. She lay motionless on the cold street, a discarded doll. The few passersby quickened their steps, none sparing her a glance.
…
High above, a helicopter hung silently in the air.
"Lord Ryūseki. That girl… could she be the 'Vessel' the Magic Girls are searching for?" asked a sharp-eyed young man named Fidan, his sniper rifle steady, crosshairs fixed on Kaoru's skull below.
"Shall we eliminate her now and avoid future complications?"
The man addressed as Ryūseki, handsome and cold as a sculpted god, adjusted his glasses. A faint, amused smile played on his lips as he observed the tiny, unconscious figure.
"Unnecessary."
He waved a hand lightly, and a wave of chilling frost instantly encased Fidan's rifle.
"She remains an empty shell. For her to Awaken—to become the ultimate power foretold in the First King's prophecy, the one who could truly thwart our plans—would require an immense reservoir of hope energy. In this age of despair, she is no threat."
"This is raising a tiger to invite calamity!" Fidan protested.
Ryūseki took a sip of his espresso, his tone flat yet final.
"Killing is always the crudest solution. Besides… even if she did Awaken, do you truly believe our strength would be insufficient to handle her? No. Before that happens, I wish to see what kind of 'performance' she will deliver for us."
The helicopter pivoted and vanished into the forest of skyscrapers.
…
The moment it disappeared, a slender, swift figure clad in a cloak dark as night materialized on a nearby rooftop.
Maiyako, the enigmatic Magic Girl, gazed down at the dying Kaoru with a complex, yet weary familiarity. She raised her hand, a potent energy beginning to coalesce in her palm.
The preliminary work was done; now it was time for the next step— to retrieve Kaoru, to protect her. For Kaoru was her most precious existence.
But just then, the roar of an engine and blinding headlights cut through the moment.
To Maiyako's utter astonishment, a silver family sedan screeched to a halt right beside Kaoru. This was unforeseen!
In her fading consciousness, Kaoru heard a clear, frantic voice cry out, "Mom! Stop the car! Someone's collapsed over there!"
This was followed by the sound of hurried footsteps and blurry, warm figures gathering around her.
"Oh my god! She's bleeding from her mouth!"
"She's still breathing! Quick, help me get her into the car!"
A pair of arms, gentle yet strong, lifted her from the icy ground. A warmth she had never known enveloped her— a stark contrast to Maiyako's possessive, agenda-driven love.
This was the pure, uncalculated kindness of strangers.
Maiyako slowly lowered her hand, silently observing the scene below as the ordinary family hurriedly carried Kaoru into their vehicle.
"…A normal family?"
she whispered to herself, her mind rapidly calculating countless timelines.
"Why now? Has my script developed an error? After countless repetitions… how could it suddenly go astray? Has my ripe apple… begun to rot?"
She reached a decision.
"It seems the time for action is not now. My love… has encountered an anomaly. I must find the cause… and correct it."
A wave of anger made her clench her jaw, her face flushing crimson, before it all dissolved into a low, almost euphoric laugh.
She retreated, her form melting seamlessly back into the shadows as if she were never there. For now, she would withdraw and observe.