Published at 16th of August 2019 9:28 pm

Volume 5, Chapter 7: Magical Girl ☆ Rainbow Yurika

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

Part 1

Sunday, November 29

Koutarou pulled out a sea creature from the water tank and put it in Harumi's hand as she was closing her eyes.

“Kyaaa! S-Satomi-kun, what is this!?”

“It's a sea urchin.”

Surprised by the thorny sensation, Harumi opened her eyes. As she did, she discovered the sea urchin in her hand. It was much smaller than she had imagined when it had been placed in her hand.

“Nahahaha, there's no need to be that surprised.”

“Satomi-kun, don't laugh that much please.”

“I refuse.”

“Satomi-kun!!”

Koutarou continued to laugh at the panicking Harumi. Meanwhile, Harumi was pouting. Their appearances were slightly different from how they normally looked.

“Satomi-san really is a bully.”

“In Kou's case, it's more that he's a kid rather than a bully.”

Koutarou and the others were inside an aquarium, at a section where they could touch some of the sea creatures. It was an exhibition where harmless creatures had been gathered in a small water tank so that visitors could enjoy themselves. Koutarou had found this section of the aquarium and brought an unsuspecting Harumi with him to play a prank on her. Seeing that. Yurika and Kenji sighed.

But everything seems to be working out well. Good thing you mustered up your courage and invited Satomi-san, Sakuraba-senpai...

Yurika might have been amazed, but she looked at Koutarou and Harumi with a smile. Right now, they were different from how they normally were; they were heading in the direction Yurika had hoped for. Koutarou was less reserved around Harumi, and Harumi was more open with Koutarou. The refreshing environment worked wonders for the two.

Today, Koutarou and the others were using tickets that Harumi had been given to visit an aquarium. In total there were four of them: Koutarou with Harumi, and Yurika with Kenji. They were in groups that Harumi and Yurika had planned beforehand.

“If you're going to say that much, I'll show you the terror of kids.”

“Crabs?”

“Do it, crab army! Defeat Mackenzie!”

Koutarou's next target was Kenji. He handed off four crabs to Kenji and began poking their shells.

“Uwah, ow, ow ow ow!”

Sensing danger, the crabs used their pincers to counter attack. But since Koutarou hurriedly stepped back, their pincers pinched Kenji's hand instead. Having his fingers pinched, Kenji wanted to quickly shake off the crabs, but since they belonged to the aquariums exhibit, he couldn't. He ran back and forth by the water tank while screaming in pain.

“Hehehe, learned your lesson, Mackenzie?”

“Satomi-san, isn't that too much...”

“Then I'll give one to you too.”

“Eh?”

Koutarou put a crab in Yurika's hand as well. As he did, before she was even pinched, she ran back and forth around the water tank like Kenji.

“Kyaaa! Kyaaa! Kyaaaaa!”

Just having powerful pincers was enough for the cowardly Yurika to be frightened.

“There you go, run around together like good friends.”

“Satomi-kun.”

Koutarou put his hands on his hips and looked at Kenji and Harumi running around with a satisfied expression. At that moment, Harumi pulled on Koutarou's sleeve.

“Hm? What is it, Sakuraba-senpai?”

“This is for you.”

At the same time Koutarou turned around, Harumi put a hermit crab in his hand.

“Eh?”

Before Koutarou realized the situation, Harumi poked the hermit crab with her slender finger. As she did, the hermit crab brought out its large pincers.

“Ouch, owowowow!”

The hermit crab pinched Koutarou's finger with all of its might. And before long, Koutarou was running around the water tank alongside Kenji and Yurika.

“W-What are you doing, Sakuraba-senpai!?”

“Fufu, Fufufufu.”

Harumi happily looked on as the three ran around in circles.

Thank you, Nijino-san. This is all thanks to you...

She felt grateful towards Yurika. Having come out to play with Koutarou, Harumi had become a bit bolder than normal. The refreshing environment of the aquarium allowed her to do that. Harumi felt that she had gotten a little closer to Koutarou.

But I wonder why? Nijino-san seems unhappy in some way...

Yurika was as noisy as always. But to Harumi, Yurika's expression looked sad somehow.

I just hope nothing has happened...

Harumi looked at Yurika running around and began thinking if she could be of help to her.

Part 2

“Yurika is depressed?”

“Yes. That's what it looks like to me. Did you notice anything, Satomi-kun?”

As Harumi said that, she looked at Yurika's back as she walked next to Kenji. Yurika was talking to Kenji as she looked around the aquarium with sparkling eyes.

“Hmm...”

Koutarou stared at Yurika and recalled the past few days.

Now that I think about it, she seems to have been feeling down since that day she skipped school...

He couldn't notice anything specific, but Koutarou could feel that her overall cheerfulness had diminished.

“You're right. That might be true.”

“I thought so... I want Nijino-san to return to her normal cheerful self.”

“Sakuraba-senpai...”

Koutarou understood what Harumi was saying. Regardless of what she was doing, Yurika should always be cheerful.

“I'll try to cheer Nijino-san up. So I want you to take care of her too, Satomi-kun.”

“I understand. I'll talk to her when I get the chance.”

Koutarou had no objections.

“Thank you, Satomi-kun.”

Harumi began smiling again. It was a beautiful smile filled with trust and gentleness.

She really is beautiful...

Her looks didn't matter. Koutarou fell for her inner beauty.

“Kou, you're telling me to go buy juice with this hand?”

“Ugh.”

Kenji opened his hand and showed it to Koutarou, who slightly flinched. Kenji's palm was covered in wounds from the crabs’ pincers.

“I guess it can't be helped, I'll go.”

“Of course you will.”

Since the crabs were Koutarou's fault, he reluctantly took on the job of getting everyone something to drink.

“Satomi-kun, should I come too?”

Harumi asked Koutarou if she should accompany him, but he shook his head.

“Sakuraba-senpai, just rest here.”

Having enjoyed the aquarium, Koutarou and the others had decided on taking a short rest before going home. The one who needed the rest the most was of course Harumi, who had a weak constitution. Koutarou wanted her to rest as long as possible.

“But...”

Harumi still persisted. Since she understood Koutarou was worried, she felt like apologizing.

“It's okay, Sakuraba-senpai.”

However, when Koutarou took a peek at Yurika, Harumi realized his intentions. On top of letting Harumi rest, he was planning on taking Yurika with him to talk to her.

“I understand.”

Having understood his intentions, Harumi nodded and smiled at Koutarou.

I'm counting on you... Satomi-kun really is... fufufu...

Her big smile showed her complete confidence in Koutarou.

“Alright, Yuri―”

“I'm coming too, Satomi-san.”

Before Koutarou could call out to Yurika, she had asked to come with him.

“If I leave it to you alone, you'll definitely buy something strange for me, Satomi-san!”

“Nijino-san, make sure he buys a proper one for me too.”

“Leave it to me, Mackenzie-san!”

Both Yurika and Kenji were used to Koutarou's pranks.

Leaving Harumi and Kenji behind at the waiting room by the entrance, Koutarou and Yurika headed towards the stand. Although there was a vending machine at the waiting room, the stand had a wider range of stock. On top of that, it was more convenient to walk the short distance to the stand if you wanted time to talk.

She does seem kind of down...

Once Harumi and Kenji were out of sight, Yurika dropped her shoulders and looked down. Yurika had been putting on a brave face in front of those two but, once it was just her and Koutarou, she let her guard down a little.

“Yurika, did something happen lately? You seem a bit down.”

“Satomi-san...”

Surprised, Yurika looked up, but once she caught a glimpse of Koutarou's face she looked down again.

“Sakuraba-senpai is worried too.”

“...I see...”

Still looking down, Yurika sighed.

“I'm just having... troubles with my friends...”

Yurika was depressed because Koutarou and the others were treating her as a cosplayer again.

Maki's last attack had erased several hours’ worth of memories from Koutarou and the others. Because of that, they had completely forgotten about their fight with Maki and the fact that Yurika was a magical girl.

Yurika was once again being treated like a cosplayer. Because she was so happy that the people around her had finally understood her, the recoil was even bigger.

If it was going to be like this, I wish my memories had been erased too...

Maki's spell didn't have an effect on Yurika. That was thanks to the resistance that her outfit and cane had, but right now, Yurika felt nothing but unhappiness by the fact that her memories had remained intact. Her short lived joy, followed by depression cast a shadow on Yurika's feelings.

Knowing that everyone but Yurika had lost their memories, Maki was still going to Kitsushouharukaze High School while feigning innocence. So normally, Yurika should be focusing on that, but now was not the time for that.

Part 3

“Human relations?”

“Actually, some people had a misunderstanding about me... and when that was finally about to be resolved, they misunderstood me again by chance...”

“I see... I'm sorry to hear that.”

Yurika's story was a little vague, but Koutarou understood that it was about magical girls and cosplayers.

Maybe she was scolded by her teacher after she skipped school...

Having lost their memories, Koutarou and the others perceived the day when Yurika and Maki had fought as Yurika forcing Maki to skip school with her.

“...It's regrettable and sad...”

With Koutarou acting like that, Yurika got even more depressed. It was a natural reaction.

“What should I do? For example―”

Yurika stopped and looked at Koutarou with a serious expression.

“For example, how would I get you to understand that I'm a magical girl, Satomi-san?”

Harumi had told her that she had to keep going. So Yurika kept going and Koutarou and the others finally understood that she was a magical girl. But in the end, everything returned to normal. Everything had been in vain. It was if somebody had told Yurika that, and she couldn't help but feel depressed.

“I don't really know what's troubling you but...”

Koutarou knew that's why Yurika was depressed. But since she used it as an example instead, he pretended he hadn't noticed.

“If for example you want me to believe that you're a magical girl, then... let's see...”

“...Then...!?”

Yurika leaned in forward, and waited for Koutarou's next words.

“Then I don't think you need to do anything.”

“...Eh?”

However, his next words were completely unexpected.

Don't do anything?

At first she thought that she had misheard him. So Yurika stopped in place and raised her voice.

“J-Just wait, what do you mean I don't have to do anything!? Because up to now, you haven't believed me even once!!”

“That's certainly true.”

Koutarou stopped, and smiled wryly as he scratched his head.

“I've started to think that it doesn't really matter if you're a cosplayer or a magical girl.”

“It doesn't... matter?”

Koutarou's next words confused Yurika even more. To her, it was a very important problem.

“What do you mean it doesn't matter!? It's very important!!”

Yurika approached Koutarou, excited, but he stared at her with a calm expression.

“Is that so? I don't really think so.”

“Why!? You mean you won't believe me!?”

“I believe you.”

“Then why!?”

“It's because I believe you, Yurika.”

Koutarou continued talking in a gentle tone to the excited Yurika.

“I don't remember when... but there was a time when you covered Sakuraba-senpai and were enveloped in flames.”

“Eh...?”

Those were memories he was supposed to have forgotten. But when he said that, Yurika calmed down.

“When was that? Hmm? That's weird, I can't remember... Yurika, when did that happen again?”

Koutarou looked puzzled. He could clearly remember Yurika protecting Harumi, but he couldn't remember when that happened or why.

“Satomi-san... could it be...”

If my defensive spell was still in effect back then, Satomi-san's memories shouldn’t have completely vanished! I'm sure that's it!

Before Maki could cast her final spell, Yurika cast a spell on Koutarou to protect him. Since that spell was still in effect when they got hit, Koutarou may not have completely lost his memories of events that left a deep impression on him. But if Yurika tried to explain that, it would only confuse him. Yurika shook her head and decided to just keep him in the dark.

“I'm sorry, I can't remember either. So many things happen every day.”

“Really? Well that doesn't matter. Either way, after seeing that, I felt like it doesn't matter if you can use magic or not.”

“Why...?”

Yurika looked up at Koutarou with expectation. That might have been her reliance on Koutarou.

“No matter who you are, you're a good person. There aren't that many that would willingly throw away their own lives to protect others. I doesn’t matter if they're a magical girl or a cosplayer.”

What was important to Koutarou wasn't whether or not she could use magic, but if she would protect people when it really mattered.

“So, even if you can't use magic, if you say you're a magical girl, I don't really mind. You can do things worthy of being called a magical girl.”

“Satomi-san.”

People that can use magic, but don't save people. People that can't use magic but save people. Koutarou was more likely to believe in the latter if they called themselves a magical girl of love and courage. It didn't matter to Koutarou if they could use magic or not.

“Fu, fufufufu.”

The antagonizing feelings inside Yurika melted away, like snow bathed in spring's sunshine. And the melted feelings poured out of her eyes as tears.

That's right, that's why I looked up to Sakuraba-senpai...

Harumi was unable to use magic. However, from the day she met her, Yurika had wanted to become a magical girl like Harumi.

She couldn't become a magical girl like the genius Nana. However, she could become one like Harumi. Yurika had her answer from the start.

“However, I'd be worried having a careless girl like you using magic, so I'm hoping you'll stay as a cosplayer.”

Koutarou smiled wryly and dropped his shoulders. Hearing those words, Yurika recalled Koutarou's previous words.

Sunshine and rainbows suit you better.

Yurika understood the true meaning behind his words.

“With that in mind, I have something I'd like to ask, Yurika.”

“...Yes?”

Without wiping her tears, Yurika looked straight at Koutarou. She already knew what he was about to say. Her tears streamed down her cheeks and fell, while sparkling in the air.

“Who should I think of you as?”

The words that left Koutarou's mouth were exactly what she had expected.

“Fu, fufufu, fufufufufu.”

A warm feeling filled her up inside. This time, those feelings became tears and overflowed from her eyes. Yurika wiped her tears away and revealed a large smile.

“I'm Nijino Yurika...”

In the past when Koutarou had realized Yurika's identity, he had said that he wanted to graduate together with her-

“I'm your classmate, and a freeloading girl.”

-and now, Yurika felt that it wouldn't be that bad to graduate together with Koutarou.

I wonder why. I always wanted him to believe I was a magical girl, but now...

As if to grab a hold of her warm feelings, Yurika firmly grabbed the chest area of her clothes. Koutarou thought of her as a normal girl, even now. In fact, he even wished that was the case. While Yurika wondered why, she was also very happy.

“I see.”

“So... So, let's cosplay together next time, Satomi-san...”

That was most likely the only pitfall in the group date plan that Yurika had come up with-

“I refuse.”

“You're always so mean, Satomi-san, there's no need to be so embarrassed...”

-In Shoujo mangas, the girl that planned the group date was likely to fall in love with the boy she was trying to set her best friend up with.

Part 4

In a small office in a certain place…

It was a dull place with five office desks in it. Other furniture included lockers for five people and a dirty old TV. It was about as equally dull as Maki's room. However, the office had plenty of signs of someone living in it.

Leftover cups from cup noodles, candy wrappers and various other things were scattered about. In the past, the residents would try to clean up, but they had already lost their passion for that. It had a similar atmosphere to Yurika's wardrobe.

When brought together, it was a room that gathered the bad aspects of both Yurika's and Maki's rooms. Inside that room were five people. Those lazy residents laid down on their desks and lazily spent the afternoon.

“...Hey, we really were demoted, right?”

A short-haired young man muttered those words. Since the only other sounds in the room were from those of cell phone games, his voice sounded awfully loud.

“Don't say that, we're all trying not to think about it!”

The only woman amongst the five responded in a hysterical voice. Her eyes were burning with determination, and her large eyebrows only served to strengthen it.

“S-Sorry.”

The young man quickly apologized. Seeing the young man like that, the boy playing a cell phone game stopped and laughed.

“It's fine, really. It's the truth after all. I think it's great that I get paid for playing around though.”

The background music from the boy’s cell phone game continued playing as he spoke. The melody was full of suspense and tension; it was an absurd melody to have playing in this dull room.

“I thought this was a wonderful post when I was first assigned here too...”

“Are you stupid? In what world would you find invaders? We've fallen for the government's excuse of taking preemptive measures.”

The last two people, a man eating curry rice and a man wearing shades, got a word in. Like the other three, they also had a negligent atmosphere to them. They all knew. These troublemakers had been demoted and assigned here.

“The time keeps flowing, ignoring the five of us.”

As the man in shades dropped his shoulders, an alarm placed in the room noisily rang out.

“Uwah!? W-What!?”

“Nii-chan, fire! It's a fire!”

“In pizzerias overseas, their ovens let out this alarm to let them know when the pizzas are done.”

“You're wrong, this is the mobilization signal!!”

“So this is it...”

Over a year had passed since the five of them had been assigned here, but this alarm hadn't rung out even once. Because of that, everyone had forgotten all about it.

“Gentlemen, it's the enemy!”

The TV turned on by itself and an elderly man with white beard and a lab coat appeared.

“The time has finally come to show off our powers!”

“Professor, what do you mean by enemies!?”

“The underground people! The underground people are invading the surface to steal the sun from us!”

Along with the elderly man’s statement, the screen on the TV changed. On the screen, they could see a man in strange clothes stepping into a kindergarten and a woman in japanese clothes, giving orders.

“We got a report from one of the children! Hurry up! They're targeting the kindergarten!”

“What!?”

Hearing the elderly man’s report, the five people hurriedly stood up.

They were a secret organization, ridiculed as being a waste of money. But they had finally gotten a chance to shine.

“Alriiiiiiiigh!! It's time to show off my karate!”

“It's here, it's finally here!! Let the games begin!”

“It's finally starting, my romance with the beautiful enemy officers! Thank god, I thought I'd be single forever!!”

“The underground people, I hope they have delicious food...”

“Hmph, you're too naive kids. Those kinds of easygoing things won't happen. Hardboiled, rough days are about to start.”

The Sun Squad, Sun Rangers.

Their first enemy was the purely evil underground people that had come from the bottom of the earth.

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