The blonde doctor looked over at Nishikino Maki beside her and greeted her with a cheerful smile.
"N-No thanks, I already made plans with someone tomorrow."
"What a shame. Bye, Maki-chan."
"Goodbye, Dr. Marikawa..."
Watching the beautiful blonde doctor, Marikawa Shizuka, happily leave the office without hiding her excitement over earning extra travel allowances on this work assignment, Nishikino Maki opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but held it back. Mainly because she didn't know what to say.
Doctors already earned high salaries, and her family's hospital paid among the best in the industry. Yet Dr. Marikawa seemed to love buying all kinds of luxury goods, so despite her high income, she had very little savings.
She was clearly a grown adult, yet she was less reliable than many high school students.
Could that be why Dr. Marikawa still hadn't gotten married, eventually becoming an older woman desperate to marry?
"Maki, while we're at the hospital, remember to call me Director."
Seeing Nishikino Maki staring blankly after Marikawa Shizuka, Nishikino Mizuki gave a light cough, got up to lock the office door, and reminded her that her earlier behavior had been improper.
"I know, Director... The whole hospital already knows you're my mom anyway..."
Maki couldn't help rolling her eyes at her mother's insistence on this formality.
This wasn't a government-run public hospital. Nishikino General Hospital was owned by their family. Her mother intended for her to inherit it someday, so pretending they weren't related was pointless.
Still, although her mother was strict about her education and Maki always followed her arrangements, the atmosphere between them in private wasn't tense or serious. It was actually quite harmonious. After making that complaint, Maki returned to the real reason she'd been called here.
"Director Mom, what couldn't you tell me over the phone or at home? Why did you specifically call me to the hospital?"
Today was the weekend. She had training scheduled, but had to skip it because of her mother's call.
"I don't object to the idol activities you're doing with Kotori and the others, but don't get too absorbed in them. Your studies still come first."
Looking at Maki, who had recently become immersed in idol activities, Nishikino Mizuki shook her head helplessly. After making that brief remark, she explained why she had called her here.
"There's a very important event. I wanted you to get ready first, and once you're prepared, I'll take you there."
"A party that I have to attend tonight? Why so suddenly?"
Maki blinked in surprise at her mother.
The Nishikino family operated a major private hospital with extensive connections. As her mother's only daughter and sole heir, it was perfectly normal for her to accompany her mother to social functions.
But those events were usually arranged well in advance so everyone could prepare. Why had this one been decided so suddenly?
"Well... Strictly speaking, it isn't really a party, but another kind of important event. It's being held at a hot spring inn."
After thinking it over, Nishikino Mizuki explained with a smile.
"But you don't need to be nervous. Just come soak in the hot springs with me and observe how everyone else participates."
"Aunt Hiyoko and Kotori should be there too. You can keep Kotori company."
"Mom, what kind of event is this? You're already taking me, so why won't you just tell me?"
Maki had already been surprised, and hearing that Minami Hiyoko and Minami Kotori would also be there only made her more confused.
She was an only child and had never had many friends. For a long time, she'd wished she had an older brother. Only recently had she finally made a few... friends... at Otonokizaka Academy.
Then, while chatting with them, she unexpectedly learned that upperclassman Minami Kotori's mother was Otonokizaka's chairwoman, Minami Hiyoko, who had been her own mother's longtime acquaintance.
Both of their mothers had studied at Otonokizaka Academy.
Now, as daughters, they had become friends because of the school's closure crisis. It really did feel like a strange twist of fate.
But that only made her more puzzled.
What was this important event? Even Aunt Hiyoko was attending, and she was bringing Kotori along.
Aunt Hiyoko was the chairwoman of Otonokizaka Academy. Her family was well-off, but not especially wealthy. She had never attended those kinds of social gatherings before. If she had, Maki would have met Kotori long ago.
After all, high society wasn't that large. Even if everyone couldn't become close friends, they at least knew the major families, their businesses, and looked for future opportunities to cooperate.
"Maki, do you want to become a magical girl?"
Seeing that her clever daughter had immediately sensed something was off, Nishikino Mizuki smiled instead of answering directly. She gently touched the black collar around her neck as she looked at Maki.
Although the Service Club offered an inconspicuous pink wristband as an alternative, she wasn't only the hospital director, she was also a doctor.
Compared to a wristband that might interfere during surgery, wearing a collar was much more convenient.
"A magical girl? You mean the ones from children's anime? What does that have to do with this important event?"
Seeing that her mother seemed to be avoiding the question, Maki hesitated, her face full of confusion.
What was wrong with her mother? Was there really something the two of them couldn't discuss openly? Why was she being so vague?
"No. I mean real magical girls. There will be many magical girls attending tonight's event."
Nishikino Mizuki shook her head. Since Maki kept asking, she could only reveal a little.
"The chance... to become a magical girl... is also part of this event... As long as you seize it, you can become one."
"Real... magical girls... Seriously?"
Maki's pupils contracted as she listened, only half believing her.
She used to think magic was nothing but fantasy, but now an elf princess from another world had appeared in reality, and the internet was full of reports of supernatural and extraordinary phenomena. Things that had once seemed impossible had become real.
But how had her mother learned about all this? She was even taking her to an event where people could become magical girls.
Her mother hadn't been scammed, had she? A gathering called "Magical Girls" sounded more like a witches' meeting.
"I know you have a lot of questions, Maki. Once you've attended the event, you'll know whether I've been lying. Let's go home and get ready first."
As she spoke, Nishikino Mizuki walked to a drawer behind her desk, took out a black collar she had prepared in advance, and handed it to Maki.
"Put this on first. Once it's about time, we'll teleport there together."
"Teleport? I have to wear this now? It'll teleport us there later? Mom, tell me how much this thing cost."
Holding the finely crafted accessory, Maki examined it carefully, squeezed it a few times, and found nothing unusual. It seemed like an ordinary ornament, so she put it around her neck. As she touched the elegant collar, she continued questioning her mother.
She was now convinced her mother had been tricked. There was no way this ordinary collar could teleport someone to a "magical girl" event. It didn't even have a pinhole camera...
Fortunately, it didn't seem like her mother had joined some cult. She had probably just spent a lot of money buying this thing. As long as she could help her mother realize she'd been deceived, everything would be fine.
"Maki, your guess is wrong. It wasn't bought with money... Wait, don't press these buttons. These have special functions you won't be able to handle. There are also secondary functions like communication, requesting help..."
Watching the Empathy Collar, which couldn't easily be removed, settle around her daughter's neck, Nishikino Mizuki visibly relaxed. She stopped Maki's hand before it could touch the Empathy button, then explained how the collar worked while introducing the Service Club and magical girls.
"I know this all sounds unbelievable, Maki, but trust me. Once you visit the Service Club and take part in one of their service activities, all your questions will be answered."
"I'd never force you. If you're willing, then do it. If not, just treat it as wearing a collar while visiting some friends."
In truth, Nishikino Mizuki herself had struggled with this decision.
The Service Club's magical girl system could rapidly increase one's strength without side effects. It was obviously an extraordinarily powerful supernatural system that no faction could afford to ignore.
But the competition within the Service Club was far too fierce. Joining didn't necessarily mean things would go well. That was why she hadn't immediately given the Empathy Collar to her daughter after receiving it.
In the end, however, she chose to follow her heart and let Maki join the Service Club as well.
So many great families and major corporations had done the same, including many outstanding heirs. If they had the chance but chose not to follow, they might regret it for the rest of their lives.
The Service Club contained so many groups representing different factions. The fiercer the competition, the more it proved that enormous benefits lay hidden within.
"Ah? An Empathy Collar? The Service Club? A magical girl awakening ceremony?"
Maki stared blankly at Nishikino Mizuki, who was wearing an identical Empathy Collar, listening as her mother seriously explained everything about the Service Club.
A magical girl organization that grew stronger through aid. A remote empathy device that let people experience sensations without physical contact...
Had she been training too much lately? Was she hallucinating?
What in the world was her mother talking about?
———
Similar conversations were taking place in the Minami household as well.
However, Minami Hiyoko told her daughter Minami Kotori directly that it was a hot spring cosplay convention, without disguising it as some other kind of event.
"A hot spring cosplay convention? Everyone attending will dress up as their favorite characters? We can even perform little skits?"
Minami Kotori, with her soft flaxen hair, long side bangs, a side ponytail tied with a light green butterfly ribbon, and an elegant black collar around her slender neck, looked especially cute and beautiful. After hearing her mother explain the event, her amber eyes sparkled as she clasped her hands together and looked at Hiyoko.
"Can I bring Honoka and Umi too? I want to see them in cosplay!"
Kotori had loved cute clothes ever since she was little. She was fascinated by cosplay, idols, and anything that let people wear adorable outfits, and had even taught herself how to make clothes.
But until now, cosplay had only been a hobby. She had never actually attended a large event like this.
She never imagined her mother would one day take her to a cosplay convention at a hot spring inn.
Well... holding a convention at a hot spring inn did seem a little unusual, but since her mother said almost everyone there would be girls, and she would be there too, it should be fine.
"We'll bring them next time. These events are held from time to time. This time, Kotori, you can experience it first."
Watching Kotori obediently put on the Empathy Collar, Minami Hiyoko gently stroked her smooth hair as she explained her plans.
"Tonight is just for enjoying the hot springs. The actual convention starts tomorrow. If you don't have time to make a cosplay costume, you can ask the maids in the club for help. I heard they have magical tools that can quickly create whatever outfit you want."
"But before that, I need to explain the Empathy function of the collar you're wearing..."
How could she not see the ill intentions Asou Miyuri held toward all of them?
But agreeing to this wasn't because she intended to surrender to Miyuri.
After joining the Service Club and learning many secrets of the hidden world that she had never known before, she couldn't help worrying about the future.
Since the competition within the Service Club was so intense that even serving Hachiman required careful planning, simply joining the club and enjoying its protection wasn't a bad option either.
If her daughter later felt she and Hachiman were truly compatible and genuinely liked him, then she could join the competition afterward.
Minami Hiyoko, Nishikino Mizuki, and perhaps all the others whom Asou Miyuri had set her sights on were probably thinking the same thing.
As the chairwoman of Otonokizaka Academy, Hiyoko had also begun to think differently about the school's closure crisis that had been troubling her daughter and her friends.
Becoming idols to save a school on the verge of closure was simply too difficult.
Kotori and the others were still amateurs. Competing against highly trained professional idols would require nothing short of a miracle.
But now that she had joined the Service Club, perhaps... her daughter wouldn't need to become an idol after all. Maybe she herself could answer her students' hopes and save the school from closing.
For now, though, the most important thing was figuring out what character she, Minami Hiyoko, should cosplay.
No special qualifications were needed to enjoy the hot springs. Any Service Club member could participate.
But to join tomorrow's cosplay convention, even she, or Yotsuba Maya, would have to follow the rules and cosplay.
What anime character would suit someone like her? Most characters were quite young. There probably weren't many suitable for someone her age.
If she really dressed up as a young character in front of girls her daughter's age, it would definitely look like she was trying to act younger... Just imagining it made her blush.
———
Deep within a quiet mountain with beautiful scenery stood a newly built hot spring inn that had yet to be named.
"Is tomorrow's convention area fully set up? More prospective members are coming than we expected. We can't afford any mistakes."
"The maids from the Rurikawa family have all come to help. We'll finish before Master wakes up tomorrow!"
"Minchi, you used to be a kitchen apprentice, right? Two more chefs will be arriving later. Once they get here, assist Miss Toka and the others in the kitchen."
"Yes, Lady Suzuka!"
"Okohana, you're new... Just help whoever needs it. Stay ready to welcome Master at any time."
"Ah? Understood!"
Standing before a group of girls dressed in kimonos and traditional inn uniforms, Kijou Suzuka repeatedly went over the work rules with employees gathered from different inns.
"The spaces of several hot spring inns have already been connected. You can move freely between them, but you're mainly responsible for your own inn. If anything comes up, use the collars around your neck to contact each other."
"In the future, new employees will also be assigned by inn. The better an inn performs, the greater the rewards. Poor performance will result in punishment. I don't need to explain the consequences of serious negligence, do I?"
"And of course, the most honored guest at these hot spring inns is Master. No matter what you're doing, if you encounter Master, set everything aside and fulfill all of his needs first. Make absolutely sure he is satisfied."
Among the crowd, which consisted almost entirely of girls with only a few older women, a brown-haired girl with naturally curly hair instinctively tensed when she heard her name.
But after responding to Kijou Suzuka and watching everyone finish reporting their progress before scattering to different inns with new assignments, she still felt completely lost about what she should do next.
Her name was Matsumae Ohana, an ordinary high school girl.
Compared to most high school students, though, her family situation was a little worse, and she was a bit more optimistic and positive by nature. Ever since she was little, she had loved imagining her future.
Although those fantasies were rather childish since she hadn't actually entered society or experienced the pressures of working life, if nothing unexpected happened, she would probably find a stable job after graduation, commute every day on crowded trains, get married around the age of twenty-six, and eventually buy herself a grave in the Third Block Cemetery with her savings.
Well... of course, at this point, there would be a "however."
Now, the unexpected had arrived.
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