Chapter 60
The box wasn't particularly large, but it wasn't particularly small, either. It was roughly the size of a soccer ball.
The box's exterior was also quite flashy. It was the kind of thing that would stand out immediately if I carried it outside, making people think, 'They must be planning to give someone a gift,' but...
'How am I supposed to carry this...?'
Carrying it around as Alice was possible. I would have to steel myself for a little embarrassment, but it wouldn't be strange for Alice to carry something like this. People would assume a fan had given it to her.
Flying while holding something like this in my hand wasn't much of a problem for my balance, either. I could even transport people along with me using Stellar Shift, so unless it was something truly large, moving an object this size wouldn't be difficult.
But the biggest problem was...
'In the end, I'll have to switch back to Han Sejin...?'
To get home, I had to reveal my true form. The route I would take if I left as Alice was quite far from my home, and I tried to avoid being seen in Alice's form anywhere near my neighborhood whenever possible. Someone might figure out where I lived.
In the end, I had to deactivate my transformation and return to my true form to get home... but having such a conspicuous object in my hands complicated things.
It was practically impossible to reach home as Alice by using Stellar Shift only through blind spots where no one was around. No matter how efficient Stellar Shift was, I couldn't use it that recklessly, and this land wasn't overflowing with secluded spots, either. The country was too small and too crowded for that.
The most realistic method was... to wrap the box in something so it wouldn't be visible, deactivate my transformation somewhere no one could see me, and then go home...
'...This is too complicated.'
The first problem was deciding what to wrap it in. Finding something to wrap it in would be another problem.
An awkwardly sized shopping bag was out of the question... No, in the first place, what was inside to make a box for letters this big? There was no reason to use a box this size for about ten letters, was there?
"But is this all letters?"
"You weren't given just letters. Most people also sent simple candies and other food, or gifts like dolls they'd knitted themselves... We put everything together in one of the boxes the company keeps for delivering gifts, since it would at least be easier for you to carry. That's the smallest we could make the whole thing."
Ah. There were gifts, too.
Why had they sent gifts when they'd been asked to send letters? They were making things difficult for the recipient.
"Come to think of it, I understand that you don't use a vehicle... If it's difficult to carry, I can drive you home."
"No... It's all right."
Even so, I couldn't accept Sapphire's help.
Aside from the risk of exposing where I lived, it would be strange for Alice's concept to have her rely on someone else's car for a reason as minor as this.
'...If it had only been ten letters, I could have hidden them somehow and gone home.'
If they were just ten flat sheets of paper, I could hide them in my pockets or under my clothes and take them home.
But this size was a little...
"Thank you, Miss Sapphire. Alice will be going now."
"Yes. Have a safe trip home."
As I said that and turned toward the exit, Sapphire didn't move, as if she intended to watch until I left, so I had no choice but to carry the box outside with both hands.
'For now... I'll have no choice but to let people see it.'
There were probably people besides Sapphire at the company who had seen Alice receive the box. The company had many magical girls and people connected to them, and magical girls worked at all hours.
Once I was outside, I tucked the box under my arm, held my wand in one hand, and summoned starlight beneath my feet.
Flying while holding the box with both hands would look undignified. This at least looked a little better.
"Oh, over there!"
'Don't react, don't react, don't react, don't react.'
I ignored the voices from below, metaphorically closing my ears as I flew as quickly as possible toward somewhere people were unlikely to see me. Then I teleported to a place nearby where no one was around.
At least this way, the people who had been watching Alice had lost track of me, giving me time to think.
'Why did it have to be a box like this?'
It might have been different if the box had at least looked ordinary, but this one stood out far too much. From the side, from behind, even upside down, it was unmistakably a women's gift box.
I had to carry this thing home.
For an ordinary person, there wouldn't be any particular problem aside from being conscious of the looks from those around them. But so many people had seen Alice carrying this box, and if they noticed something strange when I de-transformed and took it home, I would be in serious trouble.
'Should I rummage through trash bags and look for something like plastic?'
Just as I began wondering whether I would really have to do something as pathetic as rummaging through the trash like an abandoned animal...
'...Should I just ask for help?'
Actually, there was a simple solution that didn't require all this deliberation.
I could contact Mia, who already knew my identity, and ask her to bring something like a large reusable shopping bag. Then I could hide the box inside it and take it home easily.
That was the simplest option, would save the most time, and wouldn't require me to overthink things, but...
If I didn't do that, the first method that came to mind was considerably more complicated.
I could leave the box in a secluded spot that was neither too far from home nor too close, go outside as Han Sejin to find something suitable to wrap it in, and then bring it home without making anyone suspicious.
Of course, that required no one to become suspicious in the meantime, and no one to discover the box sitting there alone while I was out looking for something.
...The chance of such an unexpected situation occurring wasn't particularly high, but the risk would be far too great if it actually happened, so in the end, my heart leaned one way.
"...Sigh."
It was embarrassing to say I'd go alone and then do this.
Still, I had no choice. It was better than being discovered by someone else.
-Trill...
[Yes! S...]
"Hello, this is Alice."
[Yes! Senior! What is it?]
I wasn't sure whether she had been about to call me Senior or Sejin, but since the call had come from Alice's phone, I took the initiative and guided her toward the right form of address. Just in case.
"Um... Could you help Alice?"
[Of course! Where should I go?!]
...She didn't even ask what I wanted help with?
"Come to the area around XX Building carrying a large sack or shopping bag... It just needs to be big enough to wrap something about the size of a soccer ball and carry it without trouble. Nothing inside should be visible from the outside."
[Yes! I'll be right there!]
"And... come dressed normally, okay...? Try not to attract unnecessary attention."
[Huh. People sometimes stare even when I just go outside and walk around. What should I do? Should I wear a mask? Would that stand out even more?]
...Given Mia's distinctive appearance, it was probably unavoidable that she attracted attention just by walking around outside. Her looks were one thing, but her unique figure was particularly hard to overlook.
I understood what she meant. Whenever I went outside in my true form, I also pulled a hood or hat low over my face.
"...That should be fine. Just make sure no one follows you."
[Should I wear my school uniform? People don't talk to me when I do.]
"...No. That would attract even more attention, so just dress normally and come."
[Got it! I'll be there as fast as I can!]
...She was really difficult to deal with.
'A school uniform...'
That was clothing far removed from me. Mia had been a student until last year, so she might still have hers, but I had graduated from school more than ten years ago. Even if my build hadn't changed much, there was no way I could still fit into the clothes I wore back then, and in the first place, there was no chance I still had my school uniform.
"...Tokkaengi. Keep watch. Thinking too hard has worn me out."
[Okay. But you seem to trust Mia quite a bit? She doesn't seem like a bad person, but... If this were the old you, you'd have solved this somehow on your own.]
"...Shut up."
-Hiss
While Tokkaengi kept watch, I took out a cigarette with practiced ease, lit it, and inhaled the smoke.
Why was something this good supposed to be bad for me?
Delicious food was bad for the body, too. If cigarettes were bad for you as well, then wasn't the human body simply designed wrong?
Why did pleasant things harm the body? Shouldn't something that felt good also be good for you? Wouldn't that be more advantageous for survival? If something was bad for you, shouldn't it at least feel bad?
...I had been waiting for Mia for about twenty minutes while thinking things like that when...
[Senior! I've arrived near the building you mentioned. Where should I go?]
"Just a moment... Tokkaengi, guide her here."
[Okay.]
"I sent my mascot. Just follow it."
[Whoa! This is Senior Alice's mascot...! A rabbit as cute as you, Senior!]
For the record, I didn't like rabbits as animals in general. It wasn't because of Tokkaengi; I hadn't liked them much even before that.
Anyway, Mia followed Tokkaengi's directions and found her way to where I was. It was a dark back alley that people rarely passed through.
"Senior!! I'm here!"
"...But is it all right for you to call me 'Senior' like that when you haven't transformed?"
"Alice doesn't say 'I'!"
"...Is it all right if I call Alice that, too?"
"Well, it doesn't really matter. It would be stranger if I came transformed, wouldn't it? If I get found out, so be it. As long as my family doesn't know, it doesn't matter much. It's not as though many strangers would go out of their way to dig up a magical girl's identity and spread it around."
That was probably true. Even if a magical girl was seen by a citizen before transforming, the polite thing was usually to pretend not to notice.
In the first place, unlike in the old days, hardly anyone nowadays cared much about some complete stranger transforming into a magical girl and going into action.
...Of course, I was an exception because the matter of my identity was on an entirely different level.
"Anyway, is this big enough? It's the shopping bag I used today."
"It'll do. Please hide this inside and take it home."
"What's this cute gift box?"
"...They're letters and gifts from Alice's fans. It would be difficult for Alice to carry all this home."
"Aha. I understand."
It was a relief that we understood each other. Since I had already spent so much time, it would be best to return as quickly as possible.
I didn't want to run into anyone outside for no reason, and separately from that, I was exhausted and wanted to rest.
"Then I'll help you, but I have one favor to ask."
"No cosplay."
"Eek! I haven't even said it yet!"
"That request was obvious. Anyway, I'll leave it to you. I'll take a separate route home to avoid being seen."
"All right..."
She might agree to something reasonable, but cosplay was out of the question.