"That's right, Madoka-san. I am the magical girl who protects Mitakihara."
Hearing Madoka's exclamation, Mami Tomoe offered an elegant and friendly smile, extending her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I hope we'll have the chance to fight side-by-side one day."
"Eh?" Madoka subconsciously shook Mami's hand, looking a bit flustered and surprised. "Mami-senpai, you know my name? Do you know me?"
"Of course I do," Mami said with a beaming smile. "A kouhai as cute as you is a rarity in this school. Alright, jokes aside, I only vaguely recognized you before, Madoka-san. It was Kyubey who told me your name."
Hearing this, Homura's brow furrowed, her eyes turning cold. Mami noticed her gaze and met it head-on, her own look carrying a slight warning.
Madoka, oblivious to the undercurrents flowing between the two, was focused on Mami's words. "Kyubey told you my name, Mami-senpai?"
"That's right! You should have met it already, right? That cute little mascot," Mami said with a nod.
"I've met it, yes, but why would it mention my name?" Madoka was still a bit confused. Earlier that morning, Kyubey had been talking to Su Mo the whole time. It had only glanced at her; they hadn't communicated at all. "And Mami-senpai, what did you mean when you said you hoped we could fight side-by-side?" she asked, voicing all her doubts.
"That's because Kyubey told me you have the potential to become a magical girl too, Madoka!" Mami replied kindly. "So, what do you think? Want to consider it?"
Yearning for a companion, she knew how tempting the offer of becoming a magical girl was for a girl this age, so she didn't say much more, just posed the lighthearted question.
"Ah..." Hearing this, Madoka subconsciously turned to look at Su Mo. Seeing no reaction from him, she then glanced at Homura.
Instantly, Homura took a step forward, shielding Madoka like a mother hen protecting her chick. "Don't waste your breath. Madoka will never become a magical girl!" she answered, her voice firm as iron.
Homura's aura was chilling. Combined with her forceful presence, an ordinary person would never dare to question her words. But Mami was no ordinary person. Seeing this, she gave Homura a look of displeasure and spoke with a hint of sarcasm.
"Oh? I thought I was asking Madoka. Who might you be? What gives you the right to make decisions for her? Do you really think you're qualified to interfere in Madoka's life?"
In her eyes, Homura's actions were utterly baffling. Madoka hadn't even said anything. Who did this girl think she was?
Faced with this question, Homura faltered slightly. She knew Mami was right; she had no right to decide Madoka's fate. But if she didn't interfere, Madoka's life would inevitably be cut short by Walpurgisnacht in a few months.
Remembering Madoka's despair before her death, Homura glanced back at her and quickly made up her mind. "I think I do," she declared. "I won't interfere with her other choices, but becoming a magical girl is the one thing that is impossible!"
To arbitrarily strip someone of their freedom sounded terrible, but if it was stripping them of the freedom to walk to their own doom, that was a different story.
"Hah! Such big words!" Mami, naturally, was not buying Homura's bizarre statement. "I haven't even called you out for trespassing in my territory and attacking Kyubey, and now you dare to interfere with my kouhai's—my future junior's—choice right in front of me? Did no one teach you the etiquette of being a magical girl?"
As she spoke, bright yellow ribbons manifested around her. Though made of a silk-like substance, they coalesced into the form of flintlock muskets, connected by the ribbons and hovering in the air, aimed and ready to fire at Homura.
It was a warning.
Mami's combat power was top-tier among conventional magical girls; most magical girls and witches were no match for her. While she didn't truly want to fight this unknown magical girl, if a fight did break out, she was confident in her abilities.
Faced with Mami's intimidation, Homura's gaze grew even colder. "I have no intention of stealing your prey," she said first, her hand moving to the round shield on her left arm.
She understood magical girl etiquette, of course. In the first timeline, Mami and Madoka had explained it to her. For magical girls, witches were valuable prey. To avoid endless infighting over them, magical girls generally had their own territories, protecting their cities like the guardian deities of old.
For a magical girl to step into another's territory was in itself a provocation.
To attack a witch within that territory was considered a declaration of war. Although Homura had no such intentions, her actions had indeed violated the unwritten rules. That was why she needed to make her intentions clear to avoid a misunderstanding.
Of course, that alone was not enough. Not only would Mami be unsatisfied, but she herself wouldn't be satisfied either. Because the unwritten rules of magical girls didn't matter. What mattered was...
"When it comes to Big Brother Su Mo and Madoka, I will absolutely not allow any outsiders to interfere." As she spoke, she pulled out a massive rocket launcher, hoisting it onto her shoulder to face off against Mami.
Unwritten rules were unwritten for a reason: they could be broken at any time. In the world of magical girls, the only true rule was survival of the fittest.
Don't invade another magical girl's city? No! As long as you were confident you could defeat them, you didn't have to care about such trivial rules. Etiquette was for avoiding conflict. When you were determined to have one, etiquette no longer mattered.
"Eh? Eh?!" Seeing the two magical girls about to fight at the drop of a hat, Madoka instinctively panicked. What happened to love, hope, and justice? How could our own side start fighting amongst themselves?!
"I didn't expect you to have such resolve. In that case, let's see if you have the power to back up your words." Although Homura's words surprised her, softening her hostility by half, she had no intention of backing down in front of her potential junior.
While manipulating her magic, she offered Madoka a friendly and reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Madoka. This will be over quickly." Even without knowing her opponent's special ability, the experienced Mami didn't think she would lose.
"Don't worry, Madoka. I'll make it quick too," Homura said likewise, her gaze towards Mami wary but not overly fearful.
Mami's strength was top-tier among conventional magical girls, but Homura was not a conventional magical girl. After a hundred loops, her experience in hunting witches even surpassed Mami's.
However, in a sense, Mami's ability was the ultimate counter to hers, making her a god of infighting.
Those life-linking ribbons, once they bound her, would allow Mami to share the same timeline, letting her move even within stopped time.
If she was careless and her ability was discovered, a time-stop-less Homura would be no match for Mami.
Therefore, the most crucial part of their battle would be the timing of the first strike. The one who struck first would almost certainly win.
As they faced off, the atmosphere grew heavy.
"Can't you two stop fighting? Please don't fight over me!" Seeing them at each other's throats, Madoka tried to mediate, but it was clearly useless.
The two had a major conflict of interest regarding both Kyubey and Madoka; there was no way they would stop now.
Seeing this, Madoka had no choice but to turn around and look pitifully at Su Mo. "Big Brother Su Mo, you have a way, right?"
Faced with their flintlock muskets and rocket launchers, she felt no fear at all, her greatest source of confidence being Su Mo beside her.
The Madoka of today had seen more than her fair share of grand spectacles. Right now, more than being nervous, she simply didn't want to see the two of them fight in front of her.
Although she had no solution herself, she believed that Su Mo definitely would.
Madoka's guess was, of course, correct.
Looking at the two girls facing off like cats trying to intimidate each other, Su Mo spoke calmly. "Miss Mami, you came here for another reason, didn't you? Not to fight Homura."
"..."
Initially, when she heard Madoka speak, Mami had been about to warn her that an ordinary person shouldn't get involved in a magical girl's dispute.
But after Su Mo spoke, she finally remembered that she had indeed come for another reason.
"That's right! Kyubey asked me to come and greet you, Mr. Su Mo, and Madoka-kouhai. I didn't expect to run into a witch's familiar attacking. Wait—" Halfway through her sentence, Mami looked at Su Mo in confusion. "Mr. Su Mo, how did you know?"
"If that weren't the case, you wouldn't have been able to appear so timely, would you?" Su Mo countered.
"Oh." Mami nodded instinctively. She felt a lingering doubt, but couldn't put her finger on it, so she let it go.
More importantly, she turned her gaze to Homura. "I don't know why Kyubey is looking for you, Mr. Su Mo, but this is the first time it has spoken with an adult male. I am quite curious, so I can agree to a temporary truce."
In the face of official business, Mami chose to compromise. "However, this isn't something I can decide on my own." Being cautious, Mami didn't withdraw her weapons and said as much.
She still didn't understand Homura's objective and naturally couldn't trust this incredibly cold-looking girl.
"Mm, that's simple." After convincing Mami with a single sentence, Su Mo glanced at Homura. "Homura, put your weapon down. We'll talk about Madoka's situation later."
Hearing such a simple and plain command, Mami didn't think it would solve anything. This ice-queen magical girl seemed like a stubborn character who did whatever she wanted.
How could she so easily listen to an ordinary person?
However, that thought had barely formed before it was shattered.
"Okay."
Hearing Su Mo's words, Homura, with an attitude that could only be described as docile, immediately chose to stand down.
She lowered her weapon with swift finality and stood behind Su Mo, unbelievably obedient.
"???"
Mami's eyes widened in surprise. This was the cold-hearted magical girl Kyubey had described, the one who had attacked it without a word of warning? It didn't seem like it!
She was ready to fight at the drop of a hat when facing her, a complete cold-faced brawler. So why was she so meek in front of Su Mo?
Was this that "gap moe" thing that's so popular these days?
Subconsciously, she found herself becoming interested in the relationship between Su Mo and Homura.