The 30-Year-Old Magical Girl - Chapter 43
Before becoming a magical girl…
Raging Flame had been nothing more than an ordinary high school student.
She had never received any formal combat training.
Nor had she ever had a reason to learn swordsmanship.
So now…
She fought almost entirely on instinct.
Every swing of her greatsword imitated techniques she’d seen in manga, anime, or video games.
From the perspective of an experienced warrior…
Her style was crude.
Reckless.
Full of openings.
But…
Ordinary humans and magical girls couldn’t be judged by the same standards.
Boom!
The sheer force of one step shattered the concrete beneath her feet.
Spiderweb-like cracks spread rapidly across the floor.
Her eyes remained locked on the Fish Man Leader.
There was only one thought in her mind.
Cut it in half.
“Hyaah!”
She slashed diagonally downward.
From upper right…
To lower left.
If she remembered correctly…
Kendo called that technique—
Kesa-giri?
Raging Flame wasn’t entirely sure.
Honestly…
It didn’t matter.
The massive blade tore through the air with a deafening roar.
Against an ordinary person…
The pressure generated by that swing alone would have been enough to drive them to their knees.
Magical girls possessed such overwhelming physical ability…
That sheer power often compensated for imperfect technique.
Clang!
The Fish Man Leader skillfully redirected most of the impact with its spear.
But…
It hadn’t anticipated what came next.
The sword swing…
Had merely been a feint.
Without stopping her momentum…
Raging Flame drove her shoulder directly into the monster’s chest.
Boom!
The collision resembled a speeding dump truck smashing into a pedestrian.
The Fish Man Leader was launched backward.
It rolled more than ten meters before finally crashing to a halt.
“Now!”
“Shoot!”
Even before she had fully regained her own footing…
Raging Flame was already shouting toward Huangxing.
“Huh?”
“Ah—!”
But…
Those precious two or three seconds of hesitation…
Were enough.
The opportunity vanished.
By the time Huangxing reacted…
The Fish Man Leader had already climbed back to its feet.
Bone spear raised.
Defensive stance restored.
Watching the perfect opening disappear…
Raging Flame clenched her teeth in frustration.
She stomped the ground angrily.
“Forget it!”
“I’ll finish it myself!”
Without another word…
She rushed the enemy again.
Tidal silently watched their failed cooperation.
How should she put it…
Perhaps it was a little biased…
But inwardly…
She couldn’t help giving her niece a small pat on the back.
Although Raging Flame constantly insisted she didn’t want to work together with Huangxing…
Her actions told a different story.
She had intentionally created an opening for her teammate.
That awareness alone deserved praise.
Unfortunately…
Huangxing hadn’t been prepared.
Still…
It wasn’t entirely Huangxing’s fault either.
Right now…
The two girls had absolutely no teamwork.
They resembled random teammates thrown together in an online competitive game.
No communication.
No coordination.
Each person simply fought their own battle.
Mutual trust…
Couldn’t be built overnight.
It required conflict.
Interaction.
Time.
Fortunately…
Tidal possessed considerable experience guiding teams.
Granted…
Most of that experience came from corporate management rather than combat.
Well…
I’ll just teach them patiently.
Like a proud parent quietly watching children grow…
Tidal folded her arms and continued observing.
Below…
Raging Flame had once again engaged the Fish Man Leader in close combat.
The sound of rushing water gradually faded into the background.
Replacing it…
Was the relentless clash of steel against bone.
The primitive rhythm transformed the underground chamber into something resembling an ancient battlefield.
High above…
Huangxing continued aiming her bow.
Carefully tracking the movements of both fighters.
“W-What…”
“What should I do…?”
Sweat trickled down her forehead.
The memory of almost shooting Raging Flame with her previous arrow still lingered vividly in her mind.
Her hesitation proved…
She hadn’t recovered yet.
“It’s fine to worry about friendly fire.”
Tidal finally spoke.
“But if you keep hesitating…”
She nodded toward the battlefield.
“Look.”
“Raging Flame’s the one paying the price.”
Huangxing quickly looked down.
At first glance…
The battle appeared evenly matched.
Neither side had suffered visible injuries.
But…
Anyone paying close attention could see the difference.
Raging Flame was breathing noticeably harder.
“Her attacks contain no feints.”
“No deception.”
“Every strike is meant to end the battle immediately.”
“That means she’s burning through enormous amounts of magical power.”
“She can’t keep this up much longer.”
Tidal calmly analyzed.
“W-What should I do?”
Huangxing asked anxiously.
“Don’t ask me.”
Tidal pointed directly at her.
“You’re her teammate.”
A teammate…
Huangxing stared silently at her senior.
Then…
She lowered her eyes toward the battle below.
Raging Flame’s movements were visibly slowing.
Each swing grew heavier.
Slower.
More predictable.
Her rhythm was collapsing.
Realizing she no longer had the luxury to hesitate…
Huangxing slowly closed her eyes.
She took one deep breath.
Crap…
Raging Flame could clearly feel it.
Her greatsword seemed to grow heavier with every passing second.
She was reaching her limit.
And…
The Fish Man Leader noticed as well.
The monster instantly abandoned its defensive posture.
Its bone spear transformed into a blur of relentless thrusts.
Every attack blocked another possible escape route.
The first strike came.
Raging Flame barely managed to redirect it using the flat of her blade.
But before she could properly readjust her grip…
The second thrust was already upon her.
Too slow!
Without hesitation…
She released her sword.
Using the momentum…
She performed a clean backward flip to create distance.
Seeing the abandoned greatsword…
The Fish Man Leader lunged immediately.
It intended to finish her before she could recover.
Whoosh!
A glowing yellow arrow screamed through the air.
Straight toward the monster’s face.
Forced to defend itself…
The Fish Man Leader abandoned its pursuit.
Whoosh!
Another arrow followed.
Whoosh!
Then another.
After that first lifesaving shot…
Huangxing never stopped firing.
Somehow…
Each arrow released made the next one easier.
Faster.
The rhythm became almost intoxicating.
Arrow after arrow rained down relentlessly.
The Fish Man Leader struggled to block the increasingly dense barrage.
Eventually…
It had no choice but to retreat.
Seizing that precious opening…
Raging Flame dashed forward.
She reclaimed her fallen greatsword.
The instant her fingers wrapped around its hilt…
Relief flooded through her body.
She looked up.
Huangxing was already looking down at her.
Their eyes met.
No words were exchanged.
Both girls simply nodded.
Ready?
Yeah.
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