Since my Useless Working Sister and Other Troublemakers Became Magical Girls, I have no Choice but to Support Them. - Chapter 1-14: The Shopping Center in Front of the Station

Chapter 1-14: The Shopping Center in Front of the Station

Since it’s convenient for me to have Rafio cook, I took him to the shopping center as he requested.

The local supermarket would have been fine, but there’s a shopping center near the station. The grocery store on the first floor should meet Rafio’s needs better.

I took the bus after the one Haruka rode to the station where the Fear-Eater rampaged yesterday. It was a chaotic scene with some of the fatalities, but the trains wouldn’t just stop running from that one incident.

The police had cordoned off parts of the area, making some spots off-limits, but the station was still operational.

The shopping center is a few minutes’ walk from the bus stop, passing through the station. It has groceries, daily necessities, clothing, and even a small bookstore. You can find most of what you need in here.

There’s also a small arcade, making it a popular spot for families on weekends.

This shopping center isn’t very large compared to others of the same brand nationwide. Some larger ones even have movie theaters.

If you want to go to a movie theater in this town, there are several a few stations away by train, and the selection of stores is better there.

But this is the easiest place to go for shopping after school.

“To be honest, I’ve only done a bit of studying online. I can’t cook anything fancy, and I don’t know what ingredients or tools you have at home.”

“We have a frying pan and a ladle.”

“I know that much. Let’s start with something simple and build up from there.”

“I can cook simple things too.”

“Too simple, and Aina might cry.”

“Really?”

It’s irritating to be talked down to by Rafio.

We entered the shopping center while having this conversation. Rafio had taken on the appearance of a boy.

This would make shopping easier. Rafio would decide what to buy.

“So, Yuuma, where are the puddings sold?”

I began to doubt if it was really okay to leave this to him.

After filling the shopping basket with various puddings, Rafio finally headed to the produce section.

“Let’s start with stir-fried vegetables. Bean sprouts, cabbage, onions, and meat. Do you have salt and pepper at home?”

“I think so. We have noodle sauce.”

“…Noodle sauce is a good seasoning. But relying solely on that isn’t ideal.”

“If we’re just buying these ingredients, the local supermarket would be fine. It’s about a ten-minute walk.”

“Well, a small store wouldn’t have such a variety of puddings, would it?”

“Hey.”

“Just kidding. I thought it would be useful to see various ingredients now for future reference.”

“I can’t tell when you’re serious.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll do what needs to be—”

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

Rafio suddenly went silent.

His answer to my question was unexpected.

“A Fear-Eater has appeared.”

“What?”

“Very close by.”

Rafio could sense the Fear-Eater’s presence.

Sure enough, screams came from nearby. The surrounding shoppers started to panic as someone shouted “monster.”

“No way. Two days in a row, and so close?”

“This place must have a particularly strong magical energy flow. That’s why it dropped a core here. Contact Aina.”

“Yeah.”

Rafio, still holding the shopping basket, ran toward the screams. I quickly followed.

“Fiarrrr!”

A two-liter mineral water bottle had transformed into a Fear-Eater. It had grown large and sprouted limbs, all made of the same bottle material with visible water inside.

Its body and height were larger than an adult man, and its limbs were thick and heavy, suggesting significant weight and power. While it wasn’t armed, its water-filled body was substantial.

Being transparent, the core inside should be visible, but it wasn’t. It might have been hidden by the label showing the product name.

Its heavy body collided with a nearby display shelf, causing a loud cracking sound.

Luckily, there didn’t seem to be any injured people. But it was charging toward someone nearby.

A middle-aged woman, apparently there for dinner shopping, was fleeing. The Fear-Eater targeted her.

“Hey! Over here!”

Rafio called out to the Fear-Eater while transforming into his larger, four-legged form.

“Until Aina arrives, we need to reduce the casualties as much as possible!”

“Yeah!”

I quickly dialed Aina. She answered immediately.

“Sis, a Fear-Eater has appeared.”

“Really!? You’re kidding. If it showed up every day, I wouldn’t survive.”

“But it’s here! Are you still at work? It might be tough, but please come!”

“Oh, don’t worry. I took the day off today!”

“Hey, what?”

I could imagine my sister puffing out her flat chest proudly. She must have looked so smug.

“I decided it’s better to take a sick day than to get a bad evaluation for being late. Cough, cough. My chronic imaginary illness is terrible today, so I’m taking a day off, boss.”

“Don’t call it imaginary.”

“Oh, it’s so nice to have a day off! Watching celebrity news on TV without working is wonderful! Though, it’s embarrassing that they keep talking about me as a magical girl…”

“Shut up and get over here! It’s at the shopping center near yesterday’s station!”

“Alright, alright. I’ll be there.”

“By the way, Rafio says he’s cooking dinner.”

“Really!? Yay! Goodbye to Yuuma’s awful cooking! I’ll be there soon! Wait for me!”

She suddenly got excited. Is this really going to be okay?