A magical girl's power is often related to her "wish." Nagisa Momoe's wish was for a unique cheesecake for her mother. It was an innocent wish, and the power she gained was equally unique.
By eating the small cakes she created, one could gain certain buffs and recover from injuries and exhaustion. Her ability was strictly support-oriented.
This also meant she was slightly weaker in direct combat. As for those "support" types who buff themselves to the max and crush enemies' skulls with metal-rimmed holy scriptures? Lancer would never admit they were support!
Meanwhile——
"Zero! Big Brother said these things aren't for eating!"
Although Nagisa was a loli, she looked a bit older than Zero. She was currently wagging her finger like an older sister scolding a younger one for picking up candy from the floor. The target, "Zero," simply tilted her head.
"Is it not edible?"
"Absolutely not!!"
Watching the interaction between the two young girls, Mami, who was still a bit dazed by Nagisa appearance, couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Mami?"
The laughter drew Nagisa curious gaze. But then, she was suddenly pulled into a hug as Mami began nuzzling her face against Nagisa cheek. Nagisa looked even more confused, but she didn't resist for the sake of her friend.
On the other side, once Nagisa was "captured," Zero went back to commanding the monster beneath her to continue feeding.
Because of Lancer, Zero had realized the meaning of "gourmet food." For her now, the idea of eating like a beast again would probably drive her mad. Her palate had been spoiled by Tiger; if it wasn't tasty, she'd rather not eat. These "Kyubeys" were easy to catch and contained a strange energy. She didn't even have to do it herself—she just let the "Owl" created by the gem do the hunting to recover her magic and strengthen herself. She wasn't going to let them go easily.
It took Mami a while to compose herself before she, Nagisa, and Zero headed for the shelter. After all, they hadn't forgotten their mission.
For ordinary people, the city—which had been like midnight under the "dark clouds"—was gradually returning to normal. But for those with special vision who could see the "other world," the city seemed to have become a ghost realm.
Countless bizarre yokai were flying or running, hunting down Kyubeys. As the Master of the Night Parade, Lancer stopped his attacks after eliminating a portion of them and began operating a "system panel" only he could see.
Side Mission: "Incubator" Extermination
Objective: Completely eliminate the "Incubators."
Progress:
Incubator Production Devices: 0/17Incubators: 86,751 / 176,534
Reward: Incubator Special Permissions
With Nagisa help, Lancer had triggered this mission upon entering the space containing the Kyubey-making machines. It was a huge help; at least he knew exactly whether he had cleared them all out.
The number representing Kyubey population was in a literal freefall. Lancer spirits, supercharged by his near-overload of demonic energy, could easily handle Kyubey even at their weakest. Higher-tier yokai like Oni, Kappa, and Tengu could clear an entire district with ease.
The six-digit number dropped to five digits in just over ten minutes. However, as time passed, the rate of decrease would slow down. The hardest part wouldn't be killing them, but finding them.
Lancer picked up a Kyubey corpse to study. He wasn't interested in their biological structure—he wasn't a druid or a biology enthusiast. He was purely looking for the place where they hid the "Grief Seeds."
In his memory, they usually dropped Grief Seeds into the ring on their backs. Unfortunately, even after a dissection, he found nothing.
'As expected, is it a special technique?'
Interrogation was pointless. A "thing" manufactured like Kyubey, much like its creators, possessed no emotions.
Fortunately, Lancer had other help.
"Olga, if you please."
"You're always dumping troublesome tasks on me..."
Because of the "Night Parade," Olga Marie had also reverted to her ghost form. Floating quietly behind Lancer, she rolled her eyes and adjusted her glasses at his request. But despite the complaining, her hands were fast. As multiple magic circles materialized, one Kyubey corpse and one living specimen were lifted into the air and covered in analytical arrays. She had begun her breakdown.
Lancer just smiled and let her work. He trusted Olga Marie ability; even if she couldn't fully crack it, she could find the critical clues.
Olga Marie did not disappoint. She soon found the anomaly.
"They transfer out the moment they are captured or die? Heh~ How 'loyal'~"
Looking at the Kyubey bound in the air, Lancer let out a cold laugh. The "Kyubey," which had been waiting for death, suddenly opened its eyes at Lancer words.
"You found out? Indeed. I don't know where these 'monsters' you control came from, but as long as even one of me escapes, then I have 'won'."
Kyubey had no emotions, so it wasn't talking tough. It was simply stating a fact. To this, Lancer only gave a mocking smile.
"If you want to play hide-and-seek, I'll play with you. You remember what I said earlier, right?"
"?"
"Found you!"
Snap—
Following Lancer words, the Kyubey held in the spell was killed once more.
Realizing that nothing short of cornering the very last Kyubey would matter, Lancer announced an increase in capture efforts.
By the end of the first hour, Lancer had successfully reduced the Kyubey count to four digits. From there, it truly became hide-and-seek. Some yokai were ordered to blockade the city perimeter to prevent escapes, while the rest began a floor-by-floor search of the entire city.
As time passed, people who felt the "disaster" was over began to leave the shelters. This added significant trouble to Lancer search.
Lancer noticed that quite a few young children could actually see the yokai.
'Are these the children Kyubey mentioned with "magical girl potential"?'
Fortunately, because most of them were very young, their families ignored their claims. Older lolis were dismissed by family and friends as having hallucinations due to stress. Even if it was suppressed for now, new urban legends would likely emerge in the future.