Off Work, Then I Become a Magical Girl
Chapter 140: Questioning

Veronica’s arrival clearly didn’t surprise Mors. The bright smile still on her face made that obvious.

She could also tell Veronica wasn’t in the same state as before, but even faced with a sky full of Magic Threads and radiant magical light, her expression didn’t waver in the slightest.

In fact, she even began to clap—somewhat inexplicably.

“Our star has finally arrived after such a long wait,” Mors said with a flippant tone. “But it looks like you really enjoyed those little 'gifts' I left for you. You spent quite a bit of time with them. I never expected you’d be so fond of the little trinkets I made on a whim.”

“You call them... you call those people 'gifts'?”

Veronica looked at her calmly, not a trace of joy or sorrow on her face. “That’s not even remotely funny.”

“It’s not a joke,” Mors replied, shaking her head. “Didn’t you realize what I was showing you through them? A new possibility, one that’s never existed before—an existence that combines human obedience with Ravager magic. It’s the perfect foundation for mass-producing high-quality food sources. Weren’t you moved at all?”

“All I saw were pitiful lives being toyed with and defiled.”

Veronica’s fingers twitched slightly, but her expression remained calm as ever. “Now tell me—what did you do to Hong Siyu... no, what did you do to those ordinary agents of the Countermeasure Bureau?”

“What did I do? Isn’t it obvious?” Mors widened her eyes in mock surprise. “The fusion of Ravagers and humans, the overlay of biological traits—isn’t that plain to see?”

“Just stitching Ravagers onto human bodies can’t create that kind of abomination.”

Veronica stared coldly. “You embedded Ravager magic sources directly into human bodies, violently altering their physical and spiritual structure. That’s not a fusion of life—you were just creating downgraded Ravagers.”

“That’s only because mortals are too weak.”

Mors gave a soft smile. “What I granted them was a prototype of the Beast Core. Just... slightly uncontrollable. If they had magic and spirit stronger than Ravagers, they could’ve turned the power around—instead of being reshaped by it.”

“You know that’s impossible.”

Veronica’s voice turned colder. “Ordinary humans don’t have magic or spirit anywhere near the strength of a Ravager. What you did was kill them—just in a different way.”

“Isn’t that the truth?”

Mors remained composed. “But so what? Do you feel anything for the livestock on a farm?”

“See that little creature behind me? To feed it, even if we wiped out all wild Ravagers in Fangting City—and even the entire southern Donghua Province—it still wouldn’t be enough. And if we throw in all the useless Magical Girls? Still not enough.”

“To truly meet its nutritional needs, we have to manufacture magic sources and create those 'meat pigs.' Only artificial ones can satisfy its appetite.”

“I spent two whole years on this. Without this amazing technological leap, even with my authority and access to the province’s magic resources, I’d never have achieved it. Isn’t such a magnificent breakthrough worthy of admiration?”

As she finished speaking, several blue Magic Threads suddenly slashed toward her neck—but Mors blocked them with her magic-wrapped left hand.

“In a rush already?” she asked lazily.

“I don’t want to waste time listening to your bulls**t,” Veronica replied, her fingers twitching the Threads.

“What did you do to Hong Siyu? If all of this was just to feed your pet, why torture her for two whole years?”

“Torture? Are you talking about Miss Hong?” Mors seemed surprised. “You really think that was torture?”

Slash! Clang!

Veronica’s Magic Threads once again went for Mors’ vital points, but were blocked again.

“I told you, I don’t want to hear your nonsense,” Veronica said coldly.

“Then you’ve misunderstood me,” Mors replied, still smiling. “To me, this was an incredibly meaningful experiment.”

“I’ve always wondered—what’s the real difference between a retired Magical Girl and an ordinary person? If they regain a magic source, can they still reclaim their power?”

“Miss Hong was a highly valuable test subject. She helped me find the answer.”

“I replicated a Ravager magic source into a structure similar to a Heartstone, then implanted it into the spot her original source used to be—just to see if she could use Ravager magic to become a Magical Girl again, like those mongrels from Claw Mark.”

“But the results proved that a retired Magical Girl no longer possesses any of a Magical Girl’s traits. Not only did she survive the implantation, unlike most who die immediately—she even integrated it well and became a Ravager in the truest sense.”

“She retained a sliver of self-awareness, sure—but otherwise, she’s no different from the other meat pigs.”

“I should thank Miss Hong. Thanks to her, I finally resolved a long-standing mystery. You Magical Girls truly are beautiful... treasures.”

Clang!

Magic Threads condensed into a Masterpiece blade. Veronica wielded her Magical Armor and clashed with Mors—purple-black and blue magic bursting in all directions. Countless Magic Bullets collided in midair. Their movements were far beyond what ordinary eyes could track—locked in a battle too close to call.

“You really are absolute trash, Mors,” Veronica said, enunciating every word. “No, I’ve seen more than a few from Black Cinders Dawn by now. You’re all human scum.”

“Please don’t use such crude terms,” Mors sneered. “Being born as an ordinary human is the greatest tragedy of all.”

“And without trash like you, there wouldn’t be a tragedy.”

Veronica’s Magical Armor shifted into a spear, which she swept across at Mors. “Violent thugs and villains mocking their victims’ suffering? Don’t make me laugh!”

“You think we’re the root of the problem?”

Mors parried the attack and countered. “Even without Black Cinders Dawn, beasts and Magical Girls still exist in this world. Civilians would still be slaughtered by wild Ravagers or caught in magical crossfire. Human lives are utterly meaningless before magic!”

“Magical Girls fight for the people! They hunt Ravagers and keep the world safe! Why are you blaming them?”

Veronica blocked Mors’ counter with her Masterpiece shield and sent more Threads to restrict her. “Your daughter was a Magical Girl too, wasn’t she? Every one of them was just a regular girl before gaining power. They gave up their youth—and even their lives—to protect others! How could you not understand that?”

“...Why is it that other people’s daughters give their youth, but my daughter had to give her life?”

Mors’ tone suddenly dropped cold. Her spell shifted—sawblade-like magic constructs replacing her earlier ripples, tearing toward Veronica.

“Why do others pay nothing, while my daughter had to give everything for an endless battle?”

“That’s a question I’ve never understood. Can you answer me, Veronica?”

“I worked in the Countermeasure Bureau for decades, climbing from the bottom to the top. I moved from a small Western town to Donghua Province, met countless Magical Girls.”

“So many of them began with good intentions, but grew arrogant with power—untouchable, never paying a price.”

“But my daughter—my only treasure—stayed true to her heart to the very end.”

“She told me to understand the arrogant Magical Girls. She told me to respect the lofty Royal Court. She built relationships with everyone in the Bureau. She sacrificed everything to save the innocent from Ravagers.”

“And yet, that Magical Girl, one you all consider so 'normal', died in the Great Disaster nineteen years ago—crushed by a wave of Ravagers. All I got back was a shattered Heartstone.”

“Her death wasn’t unique. Countless Magical Girls died in that disaster. I was heartbroken, but I respected her will.”

“But.”

Mors paused. She stared at Veronica, who was nimbly dodging her circular saws, drawing ever closer.

“The Magic Kingdom completely forgot her sacrifice.”

“No honor as a martyr. No posthumous recognition. Not even the basic subsidy for fallen Magical Girls was delivered to me.”

“Her death didn’t matter to anyone in your so-called 'colleagues' of the Kingdom.”

“I tried to contact the Court of Magic—no one answered. I tried to find the Royal Court—wasn’t even granted an audience. I found the Investigation Bureau, even convinced some of their Magical Girls to speak up—but still, nothing happened.”

“And those Magical Girls who hid from the Disaster—who didn’t fight at all—they paid nothing. Yet they live on with power, fame, and the adoration of the ignorant masses. They’re called heroes.”

“They stepped on everything I had—mocked, trampled on my daughter’s sacrifice. Even though I gave everything for ‘justice’ and ‘protection’!”

“I was a senior official in the Countermeasure Bureau—nearly twenty years of service. My daughter, a noble and pure Magical Girl, was both sweet and pitiful, giving up everything for the role.”

“But the Kingdom’s Royal Court never even glanced our way.”

“Hypocritical. Incompetent. Corrupt. Arrogant. The Kingdom sees none of us!”

The smile vanished from her face—only fury remained. She shouted at Veronica:

“Tell me, Veronica—what’s the point of Magical Girls existing at all?”

“Luring young girls in with dreams and hope, then using them coldly and throwing them away—what’s the point of the Magic Kingdom?”

“You say beasts represent savagery, destruction, slaughter—what about Magical Girls and the Kingdom? Aren’t you arrogance, oppression, and indifference incarnate?”

“I refuse to accept this! I won’t let those who stole my daughter’s honor insult her sacrifice! But I have no power—no strength to challenge the fake Royal Court, or the prideful Magical Girls!”

“Only through the Lord’s blessing, only with the Beast’s power, can mortals transcend and stand against the Magical Girls!”

“You ask why I can’t understand their sacrifice? Then let me ask you—why can’t you understand the suffering of ordinary people?”

“Did you not see the meaningless deaths of Magical Girls and civilians in the Great Disaster nineteen years ago? Didn’t you see the indifferent Royal Court pretending to care?”

“So many lives lost to stop that disaster. Even you—you sacrificed so much to save Fangting City.”

“Didn’t you see it? Didn’t you ever question it? Didn’t you ever feel anger?”

“If not, then tell me—why did you refuse QUEEN’s appointment?”

“Why were you the only one in the world to reject the Jewel Scepter, to give up the chance to wield the Sapphire Scepter and reap the rewards of your achievements?”

Staring at Veronica, who was now right in front of her, Mors' voice calmed—but her words were like knives:

“You, the one granted the final gem of the QUEEN’s Scepter—who voluntarily gave up everything... Lady Veronica?”