Unlimited Ambition

"Honestly, you don't even know how to smoke properly." Seeing me like this, Kyoko turned around with a hint of sympathy and patted my back. Then she handed me an opened bottle of mineral water.

"Are you feeling better?" I finished the entire bottle of mineral water in one gulp. Afterwards, I finally felt a little better. That's what Kyoko asked.

"I'm saved. I almost died just now," I said as I lay down on the bed.

"Is it really that exaggerated?" Kyoko said. "Also, you don't smoke, do you?"

"I just read in a book that it's cool to do it like that, and then have one afterwards or something, so I wanted to try it out," I said with a wry smile.

"What an idiot," Kyoko rolled her eyes and muttered to herself.

"Perhaps," I replied with a wry smile.

"You're so stupid." Kyoko said this as she leaned closer, wrapped her arms around my neck, and then her hot lips pressed against mine...

"Alright, it's already daytime. If we don't leave soon, the hotel staff might come and kick us out." I gave him a light kiss and said this.

"It doesn't matter then." However, Kyoko was still unwilling to give up and leaned closer again. But she didn't make any further moves, just nestled in my arms.

"I'm feeling a little lonely. You feel the same way, don't you?" Kyoko asked.

I hummed in response but didn't reply.

"So, at least I still have you, right?"

I hummed in response again, but still didn't reply.

"...I'm leaving. Remember what you said." Kyoko sighed softly, then turned around, and immediately appeared in her magical girl outfit.

"Wait a minute," I called out to her. Then I said, "Come stay at my house from now on."

"Hmm." Kyoko turned around, revealing an unusually bright smile: "However, I'm still a little dissatisfied. You should go home first and wait for me a bit."

What do you want to do?

"I'll just help you a little bit—don't worry, it won't hurt the girl."

"...Is that so?" Yesterday, I explained Sayaka's situation to Kyoko in detail. Sure enough, Kyoko also felt quite sympathetic towards Sayaka. Or rather, the two of them instantly clicked.

"Goodbye." This time, Kyoko was truly leaving.

"Is everything alright? Should I follow them and check?" I thought to myself, then lit another cigarette.

"...cough cough cough cough."

At this moment, Sayaka sat listlessly in the school, completely ignoring the teacher who was working hard to teach, and just stared blankly at the seat that was originally mine.

Immediately following was intense unease.

"Wright isn't here... Is he alright?!" Although I have a telepathic connection with the magical girls I've signed contracts with, Sayaka can sense that I'm not in any danger. But she still feels uneasy when she doesn't see me. After another day in her old apartment, Sayaka realizes that she seems to have gotten used to living in my room and can no longer accept any other kind of life.

"You really are an idiot, Sayaka." Sayaka said with a wry smile as the lunch break bell rang. I still didn't come over, then shook my head and walked to the round-faced girl's side: "Round, let's go eat together."

Although she didn't know what had happened to her friend, seeing that her friend seemed to have recovered her spirits, the round-faced girl was in a good mood. She nodded and said "Mmm," then walked away hand in hand with Sayaka.

Completely ignoring the green-haired guy's appearance.

However, a small thing happened during that time—like, on the way to the restaurant, Sayaka completely ignored the second version of Kamijou. But that's all irrelevant now, really.

Of course, some minor incidents also occurred during this period...

"Hey, beautiful." A girl in denim shorts, a blue jacket, and a red ponytail appeared beside Sayaka at some point. Although she was a girl, she gave Sayaka a very flirtatious whistle, slightly diminishing Sayaka's "pretty girl" aura and drastically increasing her "thuggish" demeanor.

Of course, there might be some people who specifically like this.

"What are you doing here again?" Although yesterday's contest ended in Sayaka's complete defeat, she wouldn't back down. Sayaka stood up defiantly and pushed the round-faced girl behind her to protect her.

"Well, relax a little. I didn't come here to fight." Kyoko wagged her finger slightly, then grabbed a brown paper bag next to her and pulled out a very red, round, and appealing-looking apple. She then handed it to her: "Want some?"

Sayaka didn't speak, she just stared at her coldly.

"Tch." Anzu snorted softly, then took a big bite out of the apple. "Want to come over? There's a place I want you to see."

"What exactly are you planning to do?" Sayaka asked, rephrasing the question, but the meaning remained the same.

"How boring, why are you so nervous? At least for Wright's sake, I won't do anything to you—you don't trust me, but don't you trust him?" Kyoko asked.

“…” Sayaka hesitated for a moment, then turned around and said to the round-faced girl, “Wait a moment, Madoka. I’ll be right back.”

"Let's go then." Anzu said indistinctly, holding a paper bag in one hand and munching on an apple in the other.

"Hmm." Sayaka was slightly puzzled: "How...are you going to get here? And how did the school guards let you in wearing clothes like that?"

"Media assimilation, didn't Wright teach you this move?" Kyoko asked, sounding a bit exaggerated.

"That—it's just that there wasn't enough time, otherwise I would definitely have learned it." Sayaka still stubbornly insisted, even though she had never heard of the name of such a technique before.

“Oh. I almost forgot. You and Wright have only known each other for a few days.” Kyoko continued to show off her superiority in front of Sayaka: “Well then, as your senior, I’ll reluctantly teach you a thing or two.”

Chapter Twenty-Five: What is Religion to God?

After that, Sayaka followed the figure to a building that looked like it had been abandoned for a long time, with obvious burn marks on its surface. Although it looked messy, with many places overgrown with incredibly resilient weeds, and moss growing in the supermarket area, closer inspection still revealed its original state. For example, the cross, the tattered mosaic stained glass paintings, and the two rows of benches. They basically revealed the original appearance of this building.

It's a church.

Sayaka was a little confused as to why Kyoko would bring her to a place like this. To be honest, after Sayaka entered the world of magical girls and learned about the occult, she had seriously considered finding a god to worship. But as soon as she mentioned this idea to me, I, unusually, laughed at her.

“What? Instead of worshipping those high and mighty gods who don’t care about anything, it’s much faster to worship me.” Sayaka clearly remembers that’s what I said to her.

“This place, oh… used to be my home.” At this moment, Kyoko didn’t mind the dirt, casually patted it a couple of times, and sat on the back of the bench in front of Sayaka, eating an apple as she said, “I used to live with my father and sister. It was a little monotonous, but I was very happy.”

"What's the use of saying all this at a time like this?" Sayaka said with a hint of doubt and disdain.

"Let me finish speaking first, then you can comment, okay?" Kyoko said. "Ugh..."

"That's what he said to you back then, right? Rather than worshipping those high and mighty gods who don't care about anything, it's faster to worship me." Kyoko repeated Sayaka's imagined words.

"He's almost like a demon. Saying things like that... but for some reason, I was instantly captivated." Kyoko shook her head slightly, then continued, "Back then, my father was the priest in this church. He advocated that a new faith was needed to redeem humanity in the new century. Of course, those who go against the mainstream of the church usually don't have a good ending. Fortunately, this isn't the Middle Ages anymore, so we won't be burned at the stake. But that's about it."

Although it all sounded correct—the father lacked both eloquence and the ability to inspire. Therefore, it was completely ineffective. No one listened to him. Ultimately, for this reason, he lost the church's trust and his priesthood. He was driven out like a stray dog.

During that period, well, how should I put it, it seemed like we weren't even getting enough to eat. No matter how much my father took care of us, he was just a theologian who couldn't even lift a finger. He knew absolutely nothing about life skills. He couldn't even take care of himself.

That's when I met that guy.

Three years ago, on that day—I mean during the first cycle of reincarnation—I had another fight with Mami. Afterwards, I wandered aimlessly through the streets, watching the endless stream of people, not knowing where to go—it would be too embarrassing to sit on a swing in the park all day like an unemployed middle-aged man whenever something happened.

Therefore, he could only wander aimlessly on the streets.

"Hey! How many times do I have to tell you?! Don't come any closer! I'm not going to listen to your nonsense preaching!!" Immediately afterward, a large bucket of cold water was poured down from above.

Hey, hey, hey—if it were just a ragged old man, that would be one thing. But there are two adorable little girls standing next to her. Doesn't that seem a bit too cruel?

So, just as the two little girls closed their eyes, bracing themselves for being doused with cold water in the street, an umbrella suddenly appeared above their heads. And, incidentally, an older man was there too.

"Hey! That's going too far!" I shouted at the guy upstairs, closing my umbrella. He ignored me, just shook his head, turned around, closed the window, and drew the curtains.

"Would you... like to listen to my sermon?" The man then grabbed her wrist and said this.

Fine, for your daughter's sake. Anyway, I don't have anything else to do today.

So I nodded. Afterwards, the man seemed almost moved to tears. He took me back to his dilapidated church.

"It seems the church has abandoned me. Ordinary people don't like coming here..." The uncle explained to me, a little embarrassed, looking at the dilapidated state of the place.

Oh, I see.

Although I don't know exactly what your principles are, seeing that you can stick to them is admirable enough.

“But your daughter is innocent. Haven’t you thought about them at all?” I said.

"Indeed... if I had to say who I've wronged the most in this world, it would probably be them." The middle-aged man sighed, "But, but..."

"Alright, that's enough."

After that, the uncle very seriously told me about his beliefs, his insights and experiences regarding faith and theology.

"Indeed, quite impressive. Even the bishops in the Vatican might not have your insight." I remarked with a touch of admiration—and this wasn't just casual flattery. To be fair, this man was exceptional in both theoretical knowledge and ideas—if there was one shortcoming, it was probably his mental state. Perhaps it was due to too many failures. So, while he still clung to his beliefs, he had lost all confidence. He even stammered when he spoke.

Of course, none of that is the most important thing. The most important thing is—he stutters.

That's really a tragedy. Insufficient language skills and such.

For a while afterward, since I had nothing else to do, I would occasionally go to his church to listen to him tell stories. Sometimes, when I was in a good mood, I would even go out preaching with him—of course, I would bring an umbrella beforehand.

And because I always bring gifts when I visit—mostly food—the uncle's two daughters seem to enjoy seeing me. At least that way they won't go hungry.

The middle-aged man was slightly embarrassed: "I can't accept this..." But he ultimately accepted it. He himself wouldn't eat it. At least he still had the integrity of a theologian.

As a result, the man's health gradually deteriorated. He eventually collapsed during a sermon. When he was taken to the hospital, he was diagnosed with malnutrition…

Chapter Twenty-Six: An Unexpected Development

Around that time, I discovered that girl—I mean, Sakura Kyoko. She has great potential, even better than Asami. If she is properly nurtured, her power will be at least as great as that of a high-ranking god.

But it doesn't seem necessary. If she doesn't take the initiative to contact me.

My experience over this long period has taught me one thing: power isn't necessarily a good thing—it's not even a neutral term. Tragic things often happen because of power. Especially for a young girl like Kyoko, who doesn't even understand much. To abruptly change her life like this would be incredibly irresponsible.

But I did it anyway.

It wasn't because Kyoko looked pitiful when she begged me, nor because she cried and pleaded, "Please help my father." Or perhaps it was because of her talent.

That's not true at all.

If I had to give a reason, if I had to say the only reason that could move me, it would be something like, "Kyoko, you're so cute."

Or, to put it another way, to be more precise, it's this: I like Anzu. That's the reason. I like her, I want to possess her, I want to make every inch of her, from head to toe, from her appearance to her soul, mine. I want her to have nothing but me.

So, I agreed to her request.

"Make a contract with me and become a magical girl." That's what I said to her back then. After that, Sakura Kyoko's human part completely disappeared, and in her place, she became a half-construct, half-demon being called a magical girl.

However, despite all this, I still feel unsatisfied.

It's because of that old man, isn't it? And Kyoko's sister, it's all because of them, isn't it? That's why Kyoko signed the contract with me. That's why she fights so desperately against monsters every day. I'm so jealous, so jealous of those guys. Why can you all live happily because of Kyoko's hard work? Why does Kyoko have to suffer like this?

So, kill those guys. Of course, I'll do it perfectly. As long as Kyoko has me, that's enough.

"So, that's how it is. That idiot father of mine, after finding out that people were coming to listen to his sermons and preaching not because of their own efforts, but because of Kyubey's power, went hysterical and started cursing me, calling me a witch. Then he kicked me out of the church. And then... he took my sister and burned it down."

"Why are you telling me this?" Sayaka asked, a little puzzled.

"You signed the contract with Kyubey because of someone else, didn't you?" Kyoko countered.