After school, the campus was filled with the low hum of magnetic levitation commuter buses and the chatter of students.

With heavy steps, I climbed the stairs leading to the rooftop, gripping the handrail.

“…You’re really going, Shizuku?”

An uneasy yet faintly irritated voice came from behind.

When I turned around, Rin was clutching the hem of my uniform tightly, and behind her stood Aoi, holding up her hologram tablet with sparkling eyes that clearly said, “This smells like a scoop!”

“I said I would. And besides, I’m not thrilled about just letting her call me ‘musclehead.’”

“…You should just ignore a rude girl like that. If anything happens, I’ll step in immediately. I won’t let her lay a single finger on you.”

There were literal sparks in Rin’s eyes.

I gave a small, wry smile, gently pried her fingers loose, and pushed open the heavy rooftop door.

The moment the view opened up, violent orange light flooded my vision.

The highly developed city skyline was silhouetted black against the setting sun.

At its center—sitting on the edge of the fence, looking down over the city—was a girl.

Yumeno Meru.

Just as she declared earlier, she was waiting for me.

“…You came, musclehead.”

Without turning around, Meru let out a soft chuckle.

She stood and faced me.

With the sunset blazing behind her, she looked insolent and beautiful, like a perfectly staged performance.

“First, let me introduce myself. Might as well loosen that stiff expression of yours.”

She swiped her finger through the air.

A magical girl app status screen projected into my field of vision.

“Yumeno Meru. Third year. National Magical Girl Ranking, currently 113th. That’s my ‘business card.’”

The moment I saw that number, a small but poisonous whisper slipped from behind me—Rin, who was apparently hiding nearby.

“…113th? That’s barely different from Shizuku’s rank. Hardly worth boasting.”

Her cold assessment wasn’t entirely wrong.

Breaking into the top 100—the so-called ‘double-digit rankers’—was a major wall for magical girls.

113th and 158th.

To the public, both were just buried among the masses.

But the light in Meru’s eyes was unmistakably different from someone resigned to her position.

“…What does a 113th-ranked senior want with me? I don’t think we have much to discuss.”

When I asked coolly, she shrugged without the slightest offense.

“True, if you only look at numbers. But Himuro Shizuku, I analyzed your fights from yesterday through this morning... Your ‘raw material’ is top-tier.”

She took one step closer, then another.

“Your knuckles have abnormally high magical conductivity efficiency. No wasted motion, professional-level precision at striking the core. But that’s all. What you’re doing isn’t magical girl activity. It’s just ‘efficient labor.’”

“…Labor.”

“Yes. Like office work. You clear monsters methodically and completely ignore the audience behind the drone. Who would want to cheer for that? Magical girls sell dreams. You’re slamming premium ingredients straight onto a plate and telling people to ‘eat.’ Your presentation is catastrophic.”

I fell silent.

Makabe had praised me as reliable infrastructure.

I believed that was the correct way to do the job.

But in a world where rankings—where popularity—were everything, that could be a fatal flaw.

“…So what are you trying to say?”

“I have ‘buff’ aptitude. Support-specialized. Alone, my firepower’s too lacking to climb the rankings. But combined with you—the perfect ‘sword’—and my ‘direction,’ it’s a different story.”

Meru smiled boldly in front of me.

“You and I should form a unit. I’ll repaint your dull, punch-only battles into the most ‘visually striking’ magical fights imaginable. With my buffs, I’ll make you faster, higher, more dazzling than anyone else.”

“…A unit?”

“Yes. And not just any unit.”

Her voice dropped, growing deeper and heated.

She jabbed a finger lightly against my chest and spoke with merciless certainty.

“A strategy to reach double digits—or even the top tier—in the shortest time possible. Staged intimacy. Exaggerated relational performance. We’ll do ‘Business Yuri.’”

Business. Yuri.

The words cut through the rooftop’s stillness.

Behind me, I heard someone gasp—most likely Rin on the verge of bursting out, held back by Aoi.

“Do you know what kind of content makes fans the most frenzied? The most donations? The deepest obsession? A ‘special bond’ between magical girls. Even if it’s a carefully calculated lie.”

“…That’s deceiving people.”

“It’s not deception. We perform the ‘ideal duo’ and deliver the best entertainment possible. A win-win contract. You raise your rank. I use you—the perfect material—to realize my vision. It’s not a bad deal, is it?”

Her eyes burned in the sunset.

Insolent. Arrogant.

But more than anyone, serious about being a magical girl.

113th.

Maybe right now it was still just comparing small differences.

But her gaze was fixed somewhere far higher—on a dazzling stage above.

I looked at the white hand she extended toward me.

Her fingers seemed to tremble slightly, or perhaps they carried unwavering resolve.

Until now, I had punched monsters alone in dark warehouses and industrial districts.

Unknown to anyone. Just infrastructure.

“…You said you’d change my future.”

“Yes. I promise. I’ll turn that ‘musclehead’ fighting style of yours into the most beautiful art.”

A gust of wind swept across the rooftop.

Meru’s frills whipped violently as the sun fully sank below the horizon.

Slowly, but with certain intent, I extended my right hand toward hers.

Unaware of what kind of upheaval it might begin.