Case 16: Magical Helleborus & Club.
''A sudden surge in magical power... hm...''
''It probably has something to do with the marks that I've gotten.''
''Indeed. You've been a magical girl for five years; it doesn't make sense for it to spike suddenly. The trigger can only be the marks... or Omega magical girls are just built differently.''
''Probably both.''
An ordinary conversation.
Late at night, Moeka visited headquarters to report her encounter with Nacht. It had been some time since the world was turned upside down, so criminal activities were bound to be resumed at some point. Thankfully, nothing was out of the norm just yet.
''Come back here tomorrow.'' Casey said, ''We'll do a re-evaluation for you, Osbeckia.''
''I'll skip school tomorrow, then,'' Moeka replied.
''No need. Your study has already been affected because of this work. Besides... I want you to do something else at school as well.''
''...?''
Miss Casey had always made an effort to protect the private lives of the girls under her management. Unless it were something absolutely necessary, she would avoid touching their schools or families at all. Still, Moeka trusted Casey and ultimately decided to follow her words.
The next morning, Moeka made her way to her university early. Instead of lingering before class, she went straight to the administrative office and filled out a form to start a new club. The reason was simple enough—they needed a convenient place for the magical girls in need of relief to rendezvous with Moeka, the Omega on duty. Rather than doing it in obscure spaces, it was better to have a whole room dedicated to those acts.
'Again, she makes it sound like I'm selling my body...'
Moeka sighed as she applied for the creation of the new club. Since Casey said any club would do, Moeka chose chess, a board game she had played and watched regularly. Thankfully, the officer seemed to have been informed in advance, as she immediately approved the form the moment she spotted Moeka's name on it, despite the club not meeting the membership requirements.
Moeka only wrote her name and Fumiko's. Afterward, it was the job of other magical girls to apply themselves. Then, Moeka toured the club room. Following the officer's directions, she arrived at a far corner of the administrative building—a place she did not know existed until now. Since it was far from classes, and even the surrounding rooms were vacated as if to provide some sort of privacy... Moeka quietly tempered her expectations.
Yet, upon arrival, Moeka was pleasantly surprised. The club room they gave her felt quite nice.
The main space was well ventilated and well lit, thanks to the large windows opposite the entrance. Not only was it decently big, enough for a team to comfortably idle around, but an additional room connected to this area had been prepared—a small, dim chamber with a conspicuous bed tucked in the corner.
''...''
At least the interior was decorated nicely, Moeka thought.
Somewhat satisfied, Moeka proceeded with her classes as usual. She thought the others would receive notices soon and join within a week, but to her surprise, the club room was packed when she visited it in the afternoon.
''H-How could you say such shameful things...!''
''Shameful? Who decided they were shameful? Only uncultured plebeians like you don't understand the beauty.''
On one side, Haruno Himeko and Aikawa Yurika, Magical Marigold and Magical Lily, respectively, were openly bickering over random topics.
''Sis, that knight was protecting your bishop. If you move it like that—''
''Argh! My bishop...!''
On the other side, two girls with strikingly identical appearances huddled together on a phone, seemingly taking their first steps in the chess journey. Moeka actually knew one of them as Magical Helleborus, her direct junior magical girl in City O.
'I didn't know she had a twin...'
Both of them shared the same raven-black hair and glistening golden eyes; both had fair skin and an innocent impression. And while Moeka was zoning out, all four had already redirected their attention to her.
''...Shall we sit down and introduce ourselves first?'' She sighed, smelling imminent trouble from this squad.
Strangely enough, the four elements of chaos suddenly became very obedient under Moeka's words, gathering at the table sheepishly. For a moment, Moeka even questioned if she was secretly an Alpha all along.
Nevertheless, the introduction went normally. After Himeko and Yurika's turns, one of the twins, the magical girl, raised her hand, ''I'm Yui— Kogane Yui! And this is my older sister, Kogane Rui!''
Kogane Rui bowed her head, ''Nice to meet you.''
Before anyone could interject, Yui continued, ''I'm a rookie magical girl. The name is... Helleborus. Kind of a mouthful, heheh...'' She scratched her cheek, ''Ah, my sister isn't a magical girl yet, but she's apparently quite talented! I brought her here because... um...''
''She's also an Alpha and a magic user?'' Moeka said, meeting Yui's shy gaze, ''As long as you've got permission from Miss Casey, it's fine.''
''T-Thank you, senior!''
Kogane Yui—a polite and earnest junior whose admiration for Moeka was practically oozing out of her eyes. Among the few girls in City O, she was perhaps the one with whom Moeka got along the best, aside from Fumiko.
'Her sister seems well-behaved, too.'
Moeka quickly became convinced—maybe this club could work out, after all. Even the sulking Himeko and the smug Yurika were being quiet for once.
''Ahem.'' Moeka cleared her throat, ''Even though our club does not require you guys to actually play chess, I'd still recommend the game to you. It's fun once you get into it, and I, as the president, will be here to guide you should you decide to join the activities.''
At the mention of spending time with Moeka, all four girls simultaneously volunteered to learn and play chess. The moment their enthusiasm hit her, Moeka felt a pang in her heart. This was the first time so many people had shown interest in her favorite board game, which often carried weird stigmas.
''T-Then, I've bought two sets here. Shall we try it out?''
'''' Yes! ''''
Miraculously, the first hour or two at the chess club passed peacefully, with Moeka gently teaching the members the basics of the game. As if they were born prodigies, the girls absorbed the knowledge at a breakneck pace. After playing some games with them, Moeka was impressed. She thought they only needed to gain experience and learn some openings to become truly good players.
'Should we try competition...?'
Moeka did not like to boast, but she had been playing chess since kindergarten. Her late father taught her the rules, then accompanied her throughout... until he was gone. Even now, she had fond memories of playing with him as a child. Moeka had roughly the strength of a master-level player at around 2,000 ELO. Especially in casual tournaments, she could perform quite well. She had a hunch that, if she raised these kids right, the 'Chess Club' could actually bring medals back to the university...
''Miss Kisaragi.''
When Moeka was fantasizing about herself holding the medal, Yurika called her from behind, spotting a mischievous grin. She leaned closer to Moeka, unfazed by the scrutinizing gazes of the others. Yet she ended up saying what was on everyone's mind: "Have someone perhaps... marked you on the neck?"
In one swoop, the pleasant atmosphere died.