The Struggles Of Miss Magical Girl O

The capital city of Helios was close to a thousand kilometers away from City O. If Moeka and Himeko had chosen to travel by bullet train, it would have taken them several hours. However, with Warp, that time was shortened to mere seconds.

The cutting-edge teleportation technology, borrowed and modified by the best magical engineers of the mascot race, was compacted into a single suitcase. Though the energy required to perform a leap was enormous, it was not too big a problem for high-ranking magical girls.

Saturday.

Moeka and Himeko met up with Ruri, who, upon encountering them, expressed her utter amusement at the 'Sea Queen' incident. After a while of laughing and bickering, the Beta pulled them into a secluded corner and activated the teleportation device.

''Stand still.'' Ruri said, ''It needs to read our exact positions."

Seeing signals shooting toward the sky, Moeka mused, ''...Does it use satellites for coordination?''

''Yeah.'' The blue-haired girl nodded, ''Remember the new wave of mascot-branded satellites launched two years ago?''

''The ones used for global wifi and telecom?''

''Mhm. I can't speak on the details, but our Warp does rely on some of their functions.''

Soon, a faint light descended on them, forming a barrier around the immediate area. A strange sensation enveloped their bodies. Amidst the girls' amusement, Himeko interjected, ''By the way, what happens if we move now?''

With a bright smile, Ruri replied, ''The atoms of your body will be misaligned when the magic activates. In most cases, you will die.''

''...!''

Both Moeka and Himeko tensed up. Their genuinely anxious appearance made Ruri feel somewhat mischievous, though in the end, she decided to calm them down, ''...No need to be so rigid. As long as you don't leave this barrier, it'll be fine.''

Only then did the two sigh in relief.

The Beta continued, ''Now then, we'll teleport straight to Helios's HQ, where the receiver is. Don't be startled if you see people.''

With a flicker, the trio's vision was compromised, then quickly recovered.

Accompanied by a slight dizziness, the first thing Moeka felt was a stark change in temperature across her body. The air she sucked in was somewhat more metallic in scent, and the ambient noises had disappeared. Before long, Moeka gradually took in the completely different scene—a vast, closed-off interior littered with monitoring equipment, sensors, and heavily armed guards.

She and the two Alphas arrived on a circular, glass pad, complete with transparent panels blocking the space into a chamber. While Moeka was busy looking around, Ruri had already approached a hologram panel, through which she established a call with the facility's administrator. Within a minute, they obtained clearance.

''Let's go.'' The Beta said, stepping past the glass door.

As Moeka watched Ruri handing over the Warp device to a guard, she could not help but stare at him. He stood tall and imposing, with almost every inch of his body clad in white armor, and the heavy rifles he was carrying... were they not the anti-material plasma handcannons infamous in the gun communities?

Allegedly, one of those cost as much as a mansion, and their shots were so powerful that even a competent magical girl would have trouble defending against them. Moreover, these guards could, though not as well as magical girls, seemingly handle magic on their own, which was quite impressive.

'As expected of Helios' HQ... their security is no joke.' Moeka thought.

Weaponry fascinations aside, Moeka and her companions exited the room. Hopping into an elevator at the end of the hallway, the Omega realized she was actually underground, now climbing. As it was, the destination was set to F99—the highest floor.

''Going straight to management?'' Himeko questioned.

''Mhm.'' Ruri nodded. ''As Helios' native magical girls, we need to report our arrivals first. In the meantime... Miss Kisaragi, you can rest in a lounge room or walk around freely. It should take around thirty minutes. Then we can head out to my lab.''

Himeko immediately objected, ''I can't leave Moeka's side.''

''Oh, it's fine.'' Ruri waved her hand dismissively, ''This is The Federation's primary branch in this country. If anything happens here, we're all doomed. Trust me, nothing will happen to Miss Kisaragi.''

''Well...''

Moeka was convinced as quickly as Himeko was. If anything could breach this place, it would not survive even a second against all those guards. Besides, Moeka's mascot, Cherry, was an intern at this base some years ago, so she did not lack a guide to show her around.

Ruri gently patted Moeka's shoulder, ''Take your time exploring. I'll hit you up when we're ready to go.''

Soon, they parted ways.

''Hmm... shall we go?'' Moeka turned to the little cat perched on her shoulder.

Truthfully, Moeka was quite excited to scour the area. As a magical girl herself, she could not help but be curious about the country's largest headquarters. Not to mention, when Moeka looked through the elevator's window earlier, the sight of the massive base, akin to a small city itself, was mesmerizing. Even against the impressive backdrop of Helios' central cityscape, The Federation truly made its facilities stand out.

With Cherry's enthusiastic guide, Moeka toured the headquarters' interior, experiencing various 'attractions' and learning about the history of what was essentially the magical girls' origin point in this country. That said, aside from a few aptitude tests and sightseeing, there was not much Moeka could 'enjoy.' After all, this was not an entertainment park.

Fortunately for the Omega, this place was brimming with people. Many were staff members; others were magical girls just like her, and they were all busy. So, although she received some stares, no one bothered her. For her, who was more than conscious about the 'Sea Queen' debacle, this development was actually reassuring.

'Not everyone is a drama addict,' She gloated inwardly, unaware that rumors of her appearance had already been circulating among the staff members.

Nevertheless, once Moeka was satisfied, she headed back to the main building, where the other two were. Intending to have lunch with them, she brought a few drinks and light snacks before heading indoors. Since the number of magical girls frequenting this branch daily was staggering, one could spot a lounge room just about everywhere. This was to ensure that magical girls could rest whenever they wanted and without disturbance.

Moeka was a little curious about these. Would they differ from what City O's headquarters provided?

In the end, she found an unoccupied lounge, indicated by the lack of a green LED on the doorknob. Moeka, without much thought, clicked open the door.

''...Mhm?''

What greeted the Omega was not the cold silence of an empty room. Instead, viscous waves of potent yet aggressive Alpha pheromones washed over, enough to make her body quiver instinctively. The scent was so thick and strong that Moeka could not help but take a step back.

Furrowing her brows, Moeka peered into the dimly lit interior and quickly spotted a figure, clearly female, lying on the sofa. However, her state was anything but normal. Even from afar, Moeka could see that she was in pain—hands clutching her chest, mouth agape, letting out dry heaves.

Realizing this, Moeka briskly approached the figure, weaving herself through the suffocating mist of pheromones. As she got closer, the person's struggles also became clearer. And... so did her body, which was heating up on its own.

''Huh...?''

Suddenly, Moeka thought she had seen this person somewhere. Covering her nose, the Omega tiptoed even closer. Strands of wavy blond hair flowed, flooding down the sofa, a pair of hazy azure eyes perking up at Moeka, and her face...

''Y-You...'' The unknown Alpha began speaking in a terribly hoarse voice, ''...Get out. Lock the door.''

''...''

Right. Moeka had definitely seen this person on television—numerous times at that. Ranked fifth nationally and frequently holding the top spot for female idols in the region, she was none other than Magical Daisy.

Was the chance of encountering a top-five magical girl this high? Moeka lamented.

But Daisy was clearly struggling to handle her heat, and with how severe her pheromone leak was, it seemed she had been holding it in for far too long. Whoever she was, this girl had become a potential calamity for everyone around her.

Within seconds, the decision was made.

''...Settle down. I'll help you.''

It was time for the relief-on-duty magical girl to work.