2: Aftermath of a Skirmish

After the short yet brutal battle between Defolta and the Goblins, the Magical Girl reverted to her male form. Defolta, now Liam could not help but grin with excitement as he was all too giddy by the Magical Girl powers that he now possessed.

"That sure was one hell of an adrenaline experience. Keeps the blood rushing, I reckon." Liam said with glee.

"Most newly born Magical Girls felt the same way on their first transformation, so your reaction is not surprising." Nekowa replied, "Although, the way you handled the goblins mercilessly is certainly over the top, like a sugar rushed kid receiving a new toy and breaking it just a few moments later."

"Hahaha, yeah, sorry about that." Liam scratched his head sheepishly, "I just can't help it."

"Oh well, I suppose it's all fine, as long as you vent your sadistic tendencies on evil doers." Nekowa sighed, "Now unto business, we need to get out of this forest and look for civilization."

"Agreed." Liam nodded, "But if we find monsters along the path, may I go out of my way to kill them, you know, for grinding my experience."

"Of course." Nekowa said, finding no fault in his logic, "It is imperative for you to grow strong in this unknown world, for both our sakes."

***

Three days passed as the pair of man and cat traverse themselves throughout the forest. In this span of time, they encountered more goblins along the path and Liam… Defolta was all too happy to murder them in cold blood.

Because of her killing spree, it was inevitable that she would level up for all her bloody efforts.

"Now what to allocate my points at?" While the two were walking, Liam contemplated at which attributes he should increase, "Strength is good in my current build, since I got Heart Crusher and I believe that my damage with Defolta Blade strikes would also increase as a result."

"Perhaps the traditional Magical Girl, then?" Nekowa suggested, "You can never go wrong with Int build with Mind and Charisma in the mix."

"Maybe. Defolta is the Jack of all Trades. I guess the optimal way is to spread my attributes evenly?" Liam stroked his chin in thinking, "Question, are there other Magical Girl forms I can assume aside from Defolta?"

"Yes." Nekowa answered, "Normally, a Magical Girl evolves from her Defolta state based on her personality and how she fights. For instance, if she always uses magic, then Magical Girl Arcana is born, specializing solely in the magical arts. If she relies on brute strength, then Barbaria is personified that way. Such were only two of many examples, and there are a whole lot of Magical Girl evolutions to cover up in a single conversation."

"I see." Liam understood the principle regarding evolutions more or less, "But this is a new system, yes? There are so many factors here that are unknown, even for you, right Nekowa?"

"Correct." Nekowa said, "Who knows, perhaps evolution here is different from the normal one I'm accustomed to. Even as a Magical Girl guide and administrator, I still have so much to learn."

"Heh, maybe I can evolve into a Super Defolta or something?" Liam smirked at the notion, "From Master of None to Master of All? That would be dope. Wait, is that even possible?"

"Who knows? I never even heard of that type of evolution before." Nekowa shook her head in disappointment, "At any rate, we still have that issue regarding your attribute points."

"Oh, right!" Liam's eyes widened and still was in contemplation while staring at the Attribute screen, "Choices, choices. Should I specialize in magic to be Arcana? Or go all in at Strength to crush every foe who stands in my way? Or perhaps be a freaking Bard type manipulative Magical Girl and focus on Charisma."

"Hold that thought!!" Nekowa gestured him to stop with a panicked expression, "We have a problem!!"

Indeed, both now witnessed the aftermath of a battlefield before their very eyes. Corpses of mutilated armed men alike littered the area, with a destroyed carriage nearby.

Mind Check (10), succeed.

"This is sickening." Liam said with disgust, "A skirmish between both humans alike. I can only assume that that this was a bandits vs soldiers' scenario, with the latter most probably on the losing side since there were more of their dead bodies."

"This is horrible!!!" Nekowa was terrified and appalled by the scenery.

"Yup, horrible yes." Liam said with a look of grimace and approached the carriage to investigate. He then opened it and found two soldiers dead with a naked little girl sharing the same of death with them. Based on the girl's appearance, there were signs of struggle with clear hand marks located on her private parts.

Mind Check (10), succeed.

"W-what is it, what did you find?" Nekowa asked warily.

"Nothing for you to see, Nekowa." Liam said quietly while closing the door, but the cat could tell that there was cold rage behind his words.

"Are you okay, Liam?" Nekowa could not help but worry for her protégé. As a guide, she was also responsible for the welfare of her Magical Girl.

"Monsters, the lot of them." Liam gripped his fist in sheer anger, "Nekowa, I have a favor to ask."

"Ask away." The cat listened eagerly.

"Can you scout ahead to see if there are bandit camps of the sort located nearby? You can fly, so it's probably of no issue for you." Liam requested.

"O-okay, I can do that." Nekowa agreed and flew off in an instant.

"Now to at least give some respect to the dead." Liam said and transformed to Defolta. She then approached each corpse and buried them one by one, crafting multiple makeshift crosses from wood to serve them as their graves.

When he finally buried the last corpse, who was the girl… a child of all people, Defolta clapped her both hands and gave a silent prayer.

"I apologize if I was not quick enough to arrive here. Perhaps I could have prevented your traumatizing death." Defolta muttered with regret in her voice, "I swear by my blood that I shall avenge you, to at least provide you and your protectors a semblance of peace."

New Skill Unlocked: Avenger.

Avenger (B+) (Passive) – Fueled by vengeance, all attributes are doubled against targets who are the subject of the Magical Girl's hatred.

Quote: "While revenge can bring the worst out of oneself, it is also the driving point that pushes one to their very limits, especially against the person who they detest the most."