Our story begins with a large, white walled construction, akin to a mansion, the roof bright red, sitting upon a rocky foundation with a golden gate beneath it. This was the famous Red Prison, the one and only school for magic, or... well, anything at all in the Crimson Demon Village, the setting from which young crimson demons grew to become renowned mages, adventurers and magical warriors peerless in all manner of things.
"I WIN! AGAIN!"
"Nooooo..."
This... is not a story focusing on that. No, move that stuff aside for people who actually care.
Instead, our story begins on a cloudy and rainy day, the many droplets of rain pouring down forming shiny puddles everywhere. Inside the school, a pair of students, both brown haired girls, were taking part in a small contest, the prize being the loser's lunch money. And currently...
The winner... was being a massive pain to the poor loser.
The two girls looked quite similar to one another, even though they had no relation to speak of. One was the crimson demon prodigy, Megumin. The other, an outcast and loner, hated and ostracized by all, Yunyun. The two were playing a game of chess, with Megumin being the victor.
Of course, she cheated and lied to become so.
But Yunyun didn't know that. As far as she knew, she'd lost fair and square, which made it even more painful as she handed her lunch money over to Megumin, the girl smugly seizing it right out of her hand and sticking her nose up proudly. "You should have expected no less than complete and total defeat against me, fool!"
"I win, I win, IwinIwinIwin! Haha, suck it Yunyun!"
"Yeah... I know..." Yunyun said with a small smile. "You're really smart... Good job on the win." Megumin... didn't even acknowledge the praise. Instead, she simply shoved Yunyun out of the way and onto the floor as she ran off to pay for her large meal with her freshly stolen money.
Yunyun watched her retreating form, then sighed and rose to her feet collecting the pieces and the board, closing it and carrying it under her arm. She heard her stomach groan, and sighed. "Well, I guess it's another day of going hungry..." Walking away, she heard the bell ringing. "...It's probably time to go home..." Grabbing her cloak from a hanger, she pulled it over herself and opened the door...
Before yelping when a thunderbolt struck the entrance, almost hitting her in the process. Blinking owlishly, she looked up to see the massive downpour that had begun, which made her wince sadly at just how rotten this day had been. Pulling her cloak over her head to protect her, she took a deep breath... before taking off at a speed equivalent to the lightning, moving as fast as she possibly could, the other students, including Megumin, chewing a bucket of breadsticks, not even getting to approach the door before she was outside the gate and running towards her home.
Splashing through the puddles, Yunyun groaned at the feeling of her shoes being soaked through the entire fabric and her socks getting soggy... And then she yelped when she stumbled on a rock in her path, stopping herself just in time to avoid meeting face to face with the rocky, hard ground that would have most certainly broken her nose. She continued running, and eventually, she reached the village, running through the streets with heavy breaths. A pair of people noticed her, and one smirked, sticking his leg out to trip her. Yunyun yelped, then fell down, landing facefirst in a puddle of mud. She heard the sound of laughter, and a voice saying "That look suits a freak like you!" Yunyun, however, was not deterred, pushing herself up and running a little more before finally, she reached her home. Rushing inside, she shut the door behind her, breathing heavily before sighing in relief and putting her hands on her hips with a proud smile. "All right! I only got hit by ONE accident out of three today! Finally, I broke my record!"
A long silence ensued, followed by a wet splosh. Yunyun looked down to see a stain of mud on the floor, no doubt going to leave a stain, courtesy of her unwillingly placed mud mask. With a yelp. Yunyun scrambled to clean it up, grabbing a rag and frantically rubbing away before running over to the sink and turning on the water to wash her face. She wiped it with the rag and looked in the mirror.
She was frozen. Her eyes were glued to the mirror, gazing at her reflection. Though she didn't realize it herself, she did have a beautiful, cute face with wide, innocent and lively eyes framed by a head of chocolate brown hair. To many, this would be something to swoon over.
But for the Crimson Demons, this face was nothing more than a disgrace. Belonging to the sole member of their group that did not conform to the... extravagant traditions and customs of the clan, being calmer and less flamboyant, outright considering it a bit embarrassing, being a loner and lacking social skills.
That was her. That was Yunyun. The daughter of the Crimson Demon village chief, and the most disliked member of the community.
With a sigh, Yunyun reminisced on the day she had had so far, walking away from the mirror and approaching a sofa in her living room. Her father had told her that she would be closer to school in this apartment, but she knew he was just making her move so she would be as far away from her old bullies' homes as possible... So now, she lived alone until the end of the school year, where she would return to her family.
Today was the same as any other. The morning started off with a breakfast of overcooked toast and eggs she accidentally boiled too hard, ending up with hardboiled eggs instead of the softboiled she'd wanted. On her way to school, she wound up running back and forth between her apartment and the school because she kept forgetting stuff and needing to run back and get it. In school, it was another day of hanging out with Yunyun, playing chess with Yunyun and talking over food with Yunyun during lunch break. Then, she challenged Megumin to a chess game and predictably lost to her rival's genius yet again, followed up with this little escapade during her run home from school, and... the day was not shaping up to be all that good.
Yunyun let out a groan. "It's not fair! It's NOT fair! IT'S NOT FAIR IT'S NOT FAIR IT'S NOT FAAAAAAAAAIR!" Yunyun shrieked, tugging at her hair. Tears began to stream down her face. "I was gonna make this a GOOD day! It was the same bad day as always! I didn't even get to make any new friends! Even after hyping myself up all night, it all! Turned out! The same! It always! DOES!"
She hugged her legs close, her sniffles getting muffled by her knees as she buried her face in them. "It's not fair... Why do I have to be hated just cause I'm a little different? So what if I'm not pretending to be all cool and mysterious and demonic like everyone else? So what if I'm not the best at talking to people?! I try my best, I really do! Why won't they care about me?! I even made a rival! Megumin!"
Megumin was...
Yunyun now gained a smile through her tears as she began to think of Megumin. The cool, awesome, dependable and wise Megumin who always succeeded at everything... She was so cool, so awesome, and she had so many friends throughout then clan... and Yunyun was all alone... She really wished she could be her friend too, but no way would an awesome, peerless mage like her ever consider a social outcast loser like her a friend...
Meanwhile, in a different house, Megumin leaned back in her rocking chair as she and her sister ate the breadsticks she bought from the cafeteria before it closed with Yunyun's money. "Thank you for the delicious gift you brought home for me, big sister!"
Megumin patted her head. "But of course... Now... Why don't you go and wash up, and I'll relay to you a great tale later, hmm?" Kommeko nodded and ran out of the room to wash up, while Megumin ate her last breadstick and threw it over her head, letting out a belch unbecoming of a slender young lady like herself. She leaned back and propped her legs up on the table, smirking triumphantly at another hard cheated victory. "I must commend Yunyun's skill... I was worried for but a moment that she would catch onto my tricks. But then, I AM the great Megumin, after all... No one could ever come close to besting me! ...Except... Yunyun..."
Megumin's smirk quickly became a pout. Yunyun was too GOOD, damn it! She was better than her in every possible aspect! She could barely cast an explosion spell before passing out while Yunyun could cast spells of various elements as easy as breathing! She was flat as a piece of cardboard while Yunyun, despite her youth, was already well built in all the right places! She needed to cheat in their competitions to win, while Yunyun put genuine earnest effort! She only won because Yunyun was too stupid to even notice her cheats! "Damn it, she's so annoyingly perfect!" She complained out loud. "Why does she wanna be my rival instead of a full on friend?! ...Wait, why DOESN'T she have any friends? I have tons of friends and she gets treated like garbage... Seems kinda backwards..."
She wasn't COMPLAINING, mind you, Yunyun was fun to tease and seeing her all miserable was a source of sweet amusement for her, whether it was because she knew she would be her usual, happy self in an instant afterward, or because she just liked getting some payback against her for being so damn perfect all the time.
But still! It was like half the clan was braindead or something! Yunyun was WAY more of a popular girl kind of person than she was! Even if it WAS fun to see her all gloomy, it didn't feel right!
Shrugging, Megumin looked up at the ceiling. Maybe it DID feel wrong, but... eh. Not like it mattered. She got all the fame and glory she could ever want, and she got to bring her sister some delicious food as a result! Who cared if the wonderful, gorgeous Yunyun whom she would totally like to be friends with gets no one as a result?!
...
...
She did. She cared...
And WOW did she hate that she cared.
Megumin pulled at her hair in frustration and let out an annoyed grunt, having no idea what to do! She was her biggest bully, so asking to be her friend out of the blue would be the STUPIDEST thing ever, no WAY she would accept!
Oh! Maybe she couldn't ask for her friendship, but she could totally subtly as hell goad her into asking her to be her friend! All it would take was some choice words and actions, and poof! Yunyun would want her as a friend in no time!
"Heheh... I am SUCH a genius..." She said to herself with a chuckle. She could already picture it. Yunyun fawning over her with hearts in her eyes, asking her to befriend her, and receiving a gracious and merciful acceptance from her former rival now best . They'd hang out together, play games and compete together, study together, they'd-
Megumin was suddenly snapped out of her thoughts by her sister tugging on her cloak. She looked down to see Kommeko looking up at her innocently. "I'm ready for the story, big sister."
"Ah. Yes, of course, the story!" Megumin remembered. "Very well then!" She quickly scooped the little girl into her arms and carried her off to their room to tell a most wondrous tale.
Back with Yunyun, she was still deep in thought about Megumin.
Yeah, no way she would want her as a friend. Megumin was just too perfect for someone like her...
And that's why she needed to surpass her! She wasn't her ultimate rival for nothing! She would prove herself to everyone! She would show them! Show that she was just like every other Crimson Demon! Just as larger than life and extravagant as everyone else! She just needed to grow! To be...less Yunyun. Less herself. More...more like Megumin! That's it!
Yunyun stood up and headed up to her room upstairs. She shut the door tightly as soon as she stepped in, making sure no one could hear her-no! No, that wasn't right! Everyone needed to hear her! She needed to be heard to have people believe in her authenticity. She opened the door, before walking over and stopping in front of a mirror. Clearing her throat, she struck a dramatic pose, one eye peeking through the fingers on the hand in front of it, and she spoke in a dramatic voice. "Behold my power...! Th-The brilliant magnificence of the heir to the Crimson Demon royal lineag-AGH I CAN'T DO IT! It's sooooo embarrassing just thinking of the lines!"
Yunyun pulled at her hair, hissing in frustration. "Just focus! Fight it! Keep practicing! You need to be perfect! You need to be like Megumin!"
She couldn't be Yunyun. Yunyun was not a Crimson Demon. Yunyun was an outcast. A failure. A disappointment.
She couldn't keep being herself. She needed to throw that away.
Focusing back on her performance, she continued her training, eventually passing out after 7 hours of non-stop rehearsals finally got to her.
The next day, as the sun climbed up in the state of dawn, Megumin trudged through the town, staff in hand, bag on back and witch hat on head, humming a tune as she headed to her destination. She placed a finger on her chin. "Hmm... I awoke bright and early to begin the first set of plans to achieve friendship with Yunyun. Step one: Pick her up and walk with her to school, as good friends should!" Walking along the path and ignoring the snoring of the other residents within their homes. She stopped outside Yunyun's home. A modest apartment and nothing else. So modest for the daughter of a chief! "Hmph... It's annoyingly cute and I hate it." Megumin huffed. Pouting, she waltzed right over, and she kicked the door open "YUNYUUUUUN! GET DOWN HERE!" She called out.
No response. "YUNYUUUUUUUUN! COME DOWN HERE NOW!"
No response. Eyes twitching, Megumin stomped through the house, up the stairs and towards Yunyun's room. "How very inconsiderate of you! How could you make me wait for your lazy backside?!"
Speaking of lazy butts, Megumin stopped to take a few steps back, turning to see that Yunyun was passed out on the floor, in her clothes from the day prior, face down on the floor, with her butt high up in the air. Megumin walked in and scoffed at her annoyingly nice looking rear. She gently raised a foot to rest it upon the upturned butt, lightly pushing against it a few times, before she gently pushed her over to fall on her side. Megumin's eyes twitched when she saw the OTHER two nice bits of hers. She frowned as she began prodding at them with her stick. "What do you eat to get these so huge?" She grumbled. "...Hey. Pancakes. ...Your house is on fire. ...Your dad came to visit. ...I love you, please marry me." None of her attempts to jolt her from her slumber worked. She was a HEAVY sleeper... Megumin gave Yunyun a flat stare. "...Explosioooooon." She said in a deadpan monotone. And that was enough to INSTANTLY wake Megumin up.
"NO! DON'T BLOW MY HOUSE UP, PLEASE!"
Yunyun began frantically running around. In her mind, the house was exploding, the searing heat enveloping her body as a loud, ear shattering kaboom erupted through the land, a tower of fiery light shooting through the sky.
It took her a solid five minutes to realize nothing was happening.
Cautiously, Yunyun lowered her arms and opened one eye, looking around and noticing Megumin staring at her blankly. "Hello." Megumin said casually.
"Um... Hi..." Yunyun said softly before her eyes widened. "You're here! In my house! MY! HOOOOOOOOUSE!"
"Hmph! Such a dramatic display, it really does make me wonder why everyone keeps pushing you away!" Megumin remarked.
"But... But... Wh-What are you doing here...?" Yunyun asked.
"Well, obviously I came to collect you so that we may go to school as a pair." Meguminsaid.
"...Why...?" Yunyun asked.
"Wh-Wh-Why?!" Megumin sputtered. "Well, I mean, why wouldn't-"
"We... We aren't... friends... We're... rivals..." Yunyun said softly. "So... Why do you wanna do something like that...?"
Megumin crossed her arms and looked away. "It's only natural to pay my rival respect, and treat her as an equal..."
"I... I understand what you mean..." Yunyun said softly. "I guess being rivals doesn't mean we have to be enemies..."
"Yes..." Megumin murmured. "And as my rival, you should follow along and come to school with me!" Yunyun squeaked and nodded, immediately running off to prepare. "And don't waste my time!" Megumin called after her. After a minute or so, Yunyun ran down the stairs, bag over her shoulder and Megumin at the door, nodding in satisfaction at the promptness before the two left. Megumin shut the door too hard, cracking it.
As the pair began to walk down the path towards the school, they began to exchange idle chatter. That is what Megumin would always read in those corny novels she'd snatch from the school library while no was looking. The problem was...
SHE HAD NO IDEA HOW TO CHAT!
She was so inexperienced with idle chatting that wasn't with her little sister! She'd never had a casual conversation with anyone! Ever! Not even once! She was too busy getting drunk on all the attention and praise she kept stealing from Yunyun! Groaning internally, she took a deep breath before looking at Yunyun.
"So! Nice weather, eh?"
Genius! She's a genius!
Yunyun tilted her head, a question mark appearing and floating into nothing as she looked up at the sky. Smiling widely, she enthusiastically nodded. "It's... MUCH better than it was yesterday...!"
Megumin nodded. "Of course! My magnificence can now fully shine without the dark clouds above obscuring me."
Yunyun dramatically pointed towards her, "I-It won't be true! N-Not if I outmatches you! There's only room for one supreme Crimson Demon, and that is..."
"Centipede on your sock."
"AAAH! NOT ME!"
Yunyun jumped straight into Megumin's arms, causing Megumin to experience two things.
One, a face full of Yunyun's ample bosom.
And two, a handful of Yunyun's soft rear.
The smaller girl's eye twitched. HOW did she get these without even doing anything!? What did she consume every day?! And why did she weirdly wanna keep this position longer!?
The centipede crawled just a little bit closer, and Yunyun squealed in terror. "NO! STAY AWAY!" She shrieked and latched onto Megumin, causing her to get her entire face buried in Yunyun's chest. In shock. Megumin stumbled around, staggering aimlessly, until she tripped over a rock and fell forward with a yelp, which caused both girls to tumble down a steep hill, screaming in fear and surprise as they slid down the slope before rolling... upwards. Upwards on a curve that lifted them up and launched them into the sky. The two finally stopped screaming when they realized they weren't rolling anymore... and then they looked down and hugged each other tightly, screaming once more as gravity forced them to crash down onto the stairs below, just outside the school. When the dust from the crash cleared...
Megumin was on top of Yunyun, her face in her chest, one hand under her rear while her other was grabbing at her side. Yunyun, meanwhile, was hugging Megumin close... with her hands on Megumin's back, under her shirt.
How this ended up being the case, no one would ever know...
Megumin was the first to get up, groaning and looking up at the school building.
...The school building.
They were already there.
Her casual conversation step was ruined.
Clenching her teeth, Megumin banged her fist in frustration, getting a yelp of pain from her companion. Groaning, she stood up and moved over to sit down...
Right on top of Yunyun's chest, crushing her breasts in the process. Yunyun yelped, beginning to wildly wave and catch Megumin's attention. Megumin didn't notice. She had one hand on her knee, while the other propped her face up, elbow on her leg in a thinking pose. 'What do I do now? My first step failed... The plan is at step two now, and that's...'
As Megumin was thinking, Yunyun was trying to catch her attention and push her off, this situation was so embarrassing! It was an immense relief when her pushing finally moved Megumin off of her...
Then she yelped in surprise when instead of getting off of her, Megumin's rear now rested itself on her face. This started yet another desperate struggle, the other girl frantically trying to get her head and air back. Megumin, meanwhile, finally remembered the second step.
Conversing at school. The important detail no one could miss. If she wanted to be her friend, she'd need to have Yunyun talk with her more, as conversations built relationships!
...
But what was she supposed to talk about though? Magic? Yunyun seemed to be really into studying that sort of crap... To Megumin, it came mostly naturally [and that's why she never studied and was therefore the best... after Yunyun, but Yunyun was really dedicated to the craft. She could already summon demons!
She needed to get her to teach her that spell... It would be SO FUN!
Anywho, what else...? Hmm...
...
...
Her mind was blank. She couldn't think of any other conversation topics beyond just studying magic.
Before she could mull it over any further, Megumin yelped when she found herself shoved to the ground, her butt sticking up embarrassingly as Yunyun gasped for breath, holding her neck and breathing huge gasps of air, before sighing in relief, glad to have finally regained her ability to breathe. She turned to Megumin...
It was a very nice view of her butt. Plus a bit of her back due to the shirt sliding a bit down.
Yunyun immediately blushed before desperately shoving away any and all dirty thoughts as she fought hard not to stare.
Megumin let out a very annoyed groan, angrily mumbling into the stone stair her face was planted on and banging a fist against it, grunting and shaking her hand when she accidentally hurt it. Pushing herself up, she staggered backwards from the disorientation, getting caught by Yunyun, looking up at her worried face. "Megumin! Are you okay?!"
"What the hell do you eat every day?" Megumin grumbled.
"Huh?" Yunyun asked, confused.
Megumin pulled her head off of her chest, patting herself off. "Ah, doesn't matter... The first stage was ruined, but the second one is now in motion!"
"I... don't know what you're talking about..." Yunyun murmured.
"Ah, don't worry about it." Yunyun brushed it off before taking her hand and dragging her up the stairs towards the school.
Entering the school, Yunyun observed her rival drag her through the hallways, which were obviously empty given they were very early to arrive. She then recognized the hallways she was leading her through, and before she knew it, they were in front of the magic studies classroom. "Wh-Why are we..." Yunyun tried to ask, before yelping when Megumin kicked her forward through the door, the girl hitting a table with her stomach and gasping for air. Megumin locked the door, and Yunyun turned around, seeing Megumin taking her hat off...and starting to approach her. Slowly. Each step was deliberate and powerful. Yunyun awkwardly laughed. "Uh... What's going on here...?" She asked, unconsciously backing away. Megumin didn't answer as she kept approaching, Yunyun growing increasingly unnerved and walking back more and more, eventually getting stuck at a table pushed against the wall as Megumin was now in her face, staring at her with the most beautiful face Yunyun had ever seen.
...Beautiful...?
Wh-Where did that come from all of a sudden?! B-Beautiful?! Well, Megumin WAS quite pretty, but WHAT WAS SHE THINKING?!
"Teach me."
Yunyun blinked, looking down to see a red book in front of her face. The book was lowered, and Yunyun looked to see Megumin's face, looking expectant. "So can you teach me or what?"
"Wait... Wh...You... What... What do you mean...?" Yunyun asked.
"Ugh! Teach me how to summon demons, duh!" Megumin groaned, rolling her eyes.
Yunyun blinked owlishly. "Wh-Why? Why would you want that?"
"Because demons are AWESOME!" Megumin exclaimed. "I mean, think about it! If I summoned a demon, think about how popular I'd be!"
"You're already super popular..." Yunyun murmured.
"I don't care, I want a three headed dog demon as a pet!" Megumin insisted. "I don't care how hard it's gonna be!"
"You're... really serious about this..." Yunyun murmured. "You really want to summon a demon?" A book lightly bonked her upside the head before Megumin shoved it between her teeth.
"C'mon! Let's start NOW!" Megumin declared. Yunyun hastily complied with a soft yelp, taking the book out and opening it up to read...
How to sacrifice someone to a demon.
"...This is the wrong book..." She said softly.
Megumin tilted her head. "Impossible." She declared. "It was on the demon summoning shelf."
Yunyun nodded. "Yes, it was... Because you put it there."
Megumin crossed her arms with a huff. "Well, a book like that belongs there, not in... whatever the restricted closet is..."
"How the hell did you get into the restricted closet?!" Yunyun exclaimed.
"I just approached the teacher and asked for the key and she gave it to me." Megumin shrugged. "She didn't even look at me."
Yunyun quickly understood what happened. She chose to not bring it up, for the sake of not getting herself or Megumin in trouble. Putting the book off to the side, she approached the 'demon summoning' closet of books, opening it up and selecting a book about demon dogs. Closing the closet, she laid the book on the table, and pulled it open, Megumin joining her as she looked over the pages.
"Okay... here's how this works..." Yunyun began. "First we need to set up a summoning circle... and the best ingredients for that are either blood or powdered red chilli peppers. The circle needs to be drawn like a pentagram, with each star tip having a piece of bone, a small pile of ash, a cup of red wine, a red leaf, and a candle. Then, in the middle, a sacrifice should be placed. Mostly either a finger or a tooth. After that comes the actual ritual setup. The area should be dark, the summoners should have a skull mask on their faces, their eyes should be covered by blindfolds, and smoke from the candle should be permeating through the room."
She turned to Megumin. "Did you get all that-YIKE!" Megumin was holding a candle, the fire illuminating a skull attached to Megumin's body.
Megumin lifted the mask up. "What's with you? What's got you so freaked out?"
"Huh?" Yunyun blinked in confusion, then looked around her to see the entire room had been set up already. Everything was dark and smoky, the candle was lit, the circle was set up perfectly and flawlessly, and Megumin had already prepared blindfolds and skull masks, one of which she handed over to Yunyun.
"C'mon! Put it on and let's get this show on the road!" She insisted.
Yunyun nodded and took her mask and blindfold. "How did you set this all up so fast...?"
Megumin smirked. "I was ready for it for a long time now, actually. It's been something I've wanted to do."
"Okay, that makes sense..." Yunyun nodded. "I'm... glad you're so enthusiastic about this."
"Less yapping, more chanting!" Megumin said curtly as she put her mask on and tied the blindfold over it.
Yunyun did the same, and taking the book, she cleared her throat...before lifting her blindfold just a smidge to read the words. Once she'd memorized them, she took her candle and began reciting the words in a foreign language, but not before telling Megumin to speak alongside her. Megumin followed as Yunyun chanted, but unfortunately wound up stumbling on her words, occasionally saying something random in her head and occasionally not even saying anything at all.
Before Yunyun even finished chanting, the symbol on the ground began glowing. She yelped. "Why is it working?! We don't have a full chant!" A bright, colourful light engulfed them, and everything turned white. When it cleared, the two girls blinked and rubbed their eyes,
"Did... Did it work...?" Megumin asked. The two girls looked up...and saw a gigantic, imposing demonic figure with royal robes and a terrifying presence. After a period of silence, Megumin suddenly spoke. "You don't look like a three headed dog." The demon let out a roar that shook the entire country, before flying out of the roof, leaving a massive hole where it used to be. Outside, a crowd of students and teachers all looked upon the Demon as it flew off. They all stood in silence, until one teacher just sighed and turned around,
"Class dismissed..." She groaned Every student cheered and they all ran off home.
Back in the building, Megumin was currently standing with a deadpan expression on her face, arms around the legs of one Yunyun, who was currently perched on her shoulders...with her gigantic chest squishing against her head. With her arms wrapped around her forehead as Yuyun trembled in fear. Grunting, she hopped backwards into a makeshift piledriver that smacked Yunyun's skull against the floor, the other girl's eyes swirling as little yellow birds flew around her head. Megumin stood up, dusting herself off and cracking her back into position, looking up at the now nonexistent roof.
"Wow...what a hole."
Yunyun lets out a pained wheeze as she she tried to recuperate from the splitting headache of her skull smashing against the floor. Megumin scoffed and lightly nudged her with her foot. "C'mon, get up, we need to clean this place up before the teachers find out."
"It's too late for that, I'm afraid." An adult voice sounded out, and Megumin looked up to see the female teacher from earlier standing outside the door with a frown. "Well... Class will be dismissed for the next..." She looked up at the roof. "...three months."
Megumin's jaw dropped 'What the hell am I supposed to do now?! The whole plan is ruined, how am I supposed to become friends with the totally perfect yet completely inferior pretty girl in school if there's no classes to have regular meetups in?! This isn't fair at all, why?!'
Cutting to outside, the pair was walking down the street, Megumin's face darkened with shadows over her eyes, while Yunyun was nervously fidgeting and twiddling her fingers. "What's wrong?" She asked softly. Megumin did not answer. "Megumin? What's wrong?" No response. Inside her mind, Megumin was stewing in fury, grumbling about how her entire plan just went up in flames because Yunyun messed it all up! Now she needed to start all over again! She had to salvage this somehow! But how!? Yunyun meanwhile was staring with a small sweatdrop, looking at Megumin currently walking while pressing against a wooden pillar, essentially just walking in place while smushing her face against the pillar. "What's... going on...?" She asked, grabbing Megumin's shoulder...
"GIFT!"
Yunyun yelped and stumbles back, falling over and landing on her butt. "Wh-What are you talking about?!" She asked as she looked up. Megumin didn't give her a moment to breathe as she yanked her back to her feet and Yunyun suddenly found herself flailing through the air as Megumin dashed at breakneck speed through the town. "AAAAAAAAHHHHH! WHAT'S HAPPENIIIIIIIING?!" She screamed. Outside their view, two men were carrying a large stack of bricks, only for a red and black blur to suddenly crash through the bricks without slowing down. A guy walked out of a shop, carrying a large wheel of cheese that promptly gets splattered everywhere as Megumin and Yunyun crashed through it. About a street away, a cabbage vendor was standing next to his stand, arms behind his back with a smile as he awaited buyers. Megumin and Yunyun crashed through the stand and threw the vegetables everywhere.
If you don't know the vendor's reaction, you've been living under a rock.
Soon, the blur came to a stop as Megumin looked up at a sign that said "Bakery."
Just that. "Bakery."
"All right, we're here now!" Megumin declared, looking to her left...to see no Yunyun. She looked down to see her lying on the ground, smoking and motionless. Blinking, she leaned down and grabbed her other hand, before pulling up and snapping her like a piece of laundry being hanged up to dry.
Yunyun stammered and staggered, trying to regain her bearings before shaking her head. "Ah! Can... Can we not do that again please...?"
"Pfft! Whatever!" Megumin waved her off. "Look where we are though!"
Yunyun tilted her head. "We're... at a bakery...? Um... How come...?" Was all she had time to say before Megumin pulled her into the building by hand. The bells above the door rand, and the lady behind the counter looked up with a smile. "Hello! What would you like?"
"The oven." Megumin answered.
Yunyun and the lady silently starde at her. "...And... what do you mean by that...?"
"I just told you. I want the oven." Megumin huffed.
"You want to... buy the oven...?" Yunyun asked.
"No, that's dumb!" Megumin exclaimed. "What do I need someone else's oven for? I got my own!"
"...Then why are you asking for the oven?!" Yunyun asked with desperate confusion.
"What's your favourite treat?" Megumin asked.
"...Chocolate cookies... With cream between them..." Yunyun replied. Megumin leapt over the counter, ripped off the woman's apron and tied it around herself before running off into the kitchen.
The two blinked, before the woman turned to Yunyun. "...What is HER deal!?"
Yunyun shrugged and shakes her head. "I don't know, she's been acting weird all morning for some reason..."
"Wait... Your voice... Aren't you that Crimson Demon nobody likes?" The woman asked, only to get hit on the head by a spoon that came flying out from the kitchen.
"Shaddup! I'm working in here!" Megumin shouted.
Soon, a variety of sounds erupted from the kitchen, including glass smashing, metal clattering, grains spilling, metal banging against metal, chicken calls, an elephant call, cats screeching, a golden glow inside the kitchen behind the door as Megumin screamed in an unusually deep voice, and a burst of flame from behind the door. After a few seconds, Megumin emerged, carrying two baskets of freshly baked and steaming hot cookies with cream of various colours. She threw a bag of coins at the cashier lady, which knocked her to the floor, and draped her apron over her before climbing over the counter and handing Yunyun one basket. "You're welcome." She said simply as she left. Yunyun stared, dumbfounded, at the basket in her hand.
'Wow, this is... weirdly nice of Megumin...
"Let's go!" Megumin called out.
"Ah! C-Coming!" Yunyun called back, hurrying after Megumin. "Um... Thank you!" She called out to the cashier on the way out.
Leaving the store, she ran up to catch up with Megumin, now walking side by side as she grabbed a cookie. "Um... Thanks... That was... really nice of you..."
Megumin smirked proudly. "Well, it's only natural you'd be rewarded! Though it ended poorly, few can summon the Demon King and live to tell the tale! Such impressive work demands proper reward!" Despite her words, Megumin was stewing with fury. 'AS IF!' She yelled in her head. 'Because of that whole mess, my friendship making plan is down the drain! Now I have to start from scratch! Agh! Stupid dumb Yunyun and her stupid dumb perfect spellcasting and her stupid dumb...stupid dumbness!'
A bright light suddenly erupted next to her, and Megumin lifted her arm to shield her eyes, looking over at Yunyun... wearing the sweetest, most beautiful smile she had ever seen in her life. "Agh! Are you casting some sort of light spell?! Why in the middle of the street?!" The flash soon died down, and multiple thuds were heard as several townspeople all collapsed to the floor with lovestruck and happy expressions. Megumin looked to see Yunyun still carrying that disgustingly beautiful and disobediently attractive smile still plastered on her face, making her beauty shine even more.
Yunyun bowed her head, tearing up slightly. "Thank you! Thank you from the bottom of my heart!" The sincerity was so palpable, Megumin could feel her heart pounding in her chest, and a warming sensation on her face. She was quick to shake it off and retain her dignity, however, flicking her nose up in the air haughtily.
"Well don't get used to it. This sort of thing is only for those who are worthy. Don't get your hopes up!"
"But I'm just so happy you finally acknowledged me as a worthy rival!" Yunyun insisted. "I did something you consider worthy! I'm another step closer to being your ultimate rival!"
'THAT'S NOT WHAT I WANT!' Megumin raged inwardly. 'I want a friend, not a rival!' With a strained smile, Megumin walked over to a nearby wall, and slammed her head on it hard enough to crack it. She walked back with no visible injuries."I don't want that."
Yunyun gasped and teared up slightly. "You... You don't...? You don't want me as your rival...? But... But I promise I can be a great rival, really, I just-"
"Wanna be friends?" Megumin asked abruptly. Yunyun froze, and before she could comprehend what she said, Megumin turned beet red. "I DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING! WHY DO YOU THINK I SAID ANYTHING?! YOU WERE WRONG! YOU'RE ALWAYS WRONG! THIS IS NO DIFFERENT, BYYYYYEEEE!" And with that, she smacked Yunyun upside the head with her basket hard enough to knock her out and ran off.
Of course she went back to retrieve her basket of cookies.
Hours later, Yunyun awakened with pain in her head. Hours later, She pushed herself up with a groan, rubbing her aching skull. She looked around. "What... happened...? Oh... Right... Megumin... Why'd she do that...?"
What had she said to make her upset?
She couldn't remember, but it must have been bad... Megumin wouldn't hurt her for no reason...
A few streets away, Megumin was pacing back and forth in the middle of the road. "Grrrrm... Stupid perfect girls and they're stupud adorable smiles!" She groused, before noticing a passerby giving her an odd look. "WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT?!" She snapped before grabbing a stick and giving chase as the screaming man ran away from her.
Yunyun nodded. "That's it... I was rude to her... And after she baked her cookies too... Oh, she needed to apologize... Grabbing her cookies, she ran off home to come up with a game plan to make it up to Megumin, not realizing she had done literally nothing wrong.
Bursting through the door, she quickly set the basket on the table, shutting the door and running over to a cupboard, Yunyun pulled out a cooking book, smiling as she stopped at a particular recipe. "Some of her favourite foods are in here! Since she made me cookies, I might as well repay in equal measure, right?" ...And she received no reply. "Oh yeah, I live alone..." Bopping herself on the head, she shook it and went to start cooking, spending the entire day retrying, perfecting and sharpening every single dish she cooked. She ended up running out of ingredients by the time she was done with all of them, but she didn't mind. She made everything perfectly. She stored all the food away so it wouldn't get spoiled...and promptly collapsed to the floor in exhaustion, falling asleep then and there.
The very next morning, at Megumin's house, the titular explosion mage yawned as she stretche, rubbing her eyes and looking out the window at the sunny land outside. Then, she promptly slammed the window shut and threw herself back on the bed, a bubble on her nose as Megumin returned right back to snoozing. However, a knock on the door the floor below caused her to snap awake and blink. Getting up, she grumbled, "Who the hell would be coming to MY house...?" She made her way down the stairs, to the door, and, grabbing the knob, she swung it open...and came face to pot with a massive assortment of pots and plates on a table.
She blinked, then her ears picked up the sound of plates shifting, and from behind the table peeked a familiarly adorable and beautiful face with the most genuinely, disgustingly heartmelting smile she had ever seen in her life. "Good morning, Megumin!" Yunyun greeted her cheerfully before pushing the table on wheels through the door. Megumin stepped to the side in confusion, observing her self proclaimed rival gingerly entering her home. Megumin shut the door behind her, then asked one simple question.
"What the hell are you doing here?"
"Oh, I cooked a whole bunch of food for you to pay back your gift from yesterday!" Yunyun explained.
Megumin stared at her flatly. "I just gave you some cookies..."
"You didn't GIVE me cookies, you went out of your way to MAKE me cookies! And my favourite kind at that!" Yunyun said happily. "You did a lot for me, and I'd feel really bad if I didn't give back in some way!" Megumin suddenly felt a bit sick to her stomach. 'Urgh... She's so sweet it's making my stomach ache, damn it! She's so nice it's STUPID! Doesn't she see what a bitch I am to her?! Yet one little present, and she cooks up a whole buffet?!'
She felt... bad. And she HATED it. She SHOULDN'T feel bad. Yunyun was an utter failure at living up to her status as a Crimson Demon, everyone treated her like trash despite her incredible skill in magic, and her genuine, sincere kindness, and she shouldn't feel bad for bullying some bleeding heart moron that couldn't do what she was literally BORN to do.
So why now, was the thought of doing anything against her after this, making her feel like the scum of the planet?!
Yunyun approached the table, grabbing a lid and lifting it... to reveal a shiny orange fish stew, the smell throwing Megumin into a state of pure bliss. "So... just something nice and light to start off..." Yunyun explained before grabbing another lid to reveal a tray of assorted pastries made from chocolate, cranberry and coconut. "And... this would be for dessert, but you can have a few right now if you want, that's okay! That's okay." She grabbed a third lid, and this time revealed a small tower of steaming eggs surrounded by garlic bread, topped with sprinkled rosemary. "And... this is the pre-dish. Before the stew. Um... Best eaten while it's hot!"
Yunyun carried on, lifting lid after lid after lid, and every lid showed a plate full of delicious food, made to perfection. And Megumin realized as she observed this... these weren't just any dishes, these were all of her favourites! Yunyun had spent who even knew how long making and perfecting all of these dishes JUST FOR HER. ALL SHE HAD DONE WAS GIVE HER A SMALL BAG FULL OF COOKIES. What did she do to deserve... THIS?! And as if the universe wanted to tear her heartstrings to pieces, Komekko walked down the steps from her room. "Something smells delicious..." She murmured softly. And when she saw the spread, she gained starts in her eyes at the sight and eagerly ran forward to get a closer look, drooling slightly.
"Hello, Komekko!" Yunyun greeted, gently picking the girl up. "Did you sleep well?"
"...You're the one who made this...!" Komekko breathed out.
"Yes! It's a gift for your big sister!" Yunyun giggled.
Komekko turned to look at Megumin. "...Marry her." She all but ordered.
Now, contrary to what you'd probably expect, Yunyun didn't blush or become flustered. Instead, she giggled and lightly booped Komekko's nose. "Oh, Megumin wouldn't do that, she deserves someone way better than me!"
'I wanna marry her, I wanna marry her, oh GOD I wanna marry her so bad, screw friendship, she is total wife material!' Megumin thought to herself. 'What is she even TALKING about?! Who could possibly be better than her?! Like HELL! A wife like that is worth anything!'
And then, a sadness welled up inside her. 'I'M the one that isn't worthy. SHE deserves better than ME.' ...She knew she couldn't do anything to her ever again. No more noogies, no more chearing... No more BULLYING. How could she do anything like that to Yunyun after this? That was what she thought on the inside. On the outside? "Damn right I deserve better than her!" And immediately, Komekko turned to give her a death glare that stabbed through her heart.
Yunyun gently set Komekko down. "Why don't you go get some chairs so we can sit down, okay?"
"Okay! We'll all eat together!" Komekko said cheerfully, skipping off and stopping to give her big sister a dirty look. "Stop acting stupid, don't be mean to her." She hissed before moving to grab the chairs, leaving the two teens alone.
Yunyun clapped her hands and grabbed one of the pastries, a doughnut sprinkled with chocolate and little flakes of coconut. "So do you think I made these right? Here! Have a bite!" She offered the pastry, and Megumin stared at it for a moment before shrugging.
"Whatever." She bit down on it... and immediately, her mouth was in heaven. She let out a hum, then gulped down the bite before coughing. "Um... A-Acceptable, yes!"
Yunyun slumped her shoulders. "Aww... I was hoping for a better score..."
Megumin groaned. "Look, you did good, okay?" She bopped Yunyun's head. "Quit being all mopey."
And as if a switch were flicked, Yunyun perked right up and clapped her hands as she bounced in place. She passed Megumin the doughnut and began tending to the other dishes. Megumin stared at all the food, and sighed. She'd meant to say far more than just 'You did good'. She had done WONDERFUL. The dough was baked JUST well enough to make it delightfully soft, yet with the slightest crunch. The chocolate melted in her mouth, and the coconut added a lovely little spike that made her mouth cheer. It was perfect.
Way better than just 'good'.
So, she took another bite. And another. And another. She couldn't get enough of it. The doughnut didn't stand a chance, and was devoured in moments. And still, Megumin found herself licking her fingers to clean them of chocolate, almost giving in to temptation and biting down on her own fingers. Dammit how did she make this SO GOOD!? Komekko meanwhile dragged in three chairs, positioning them around the table. "Good job, Komekko, thank you!" Yunyun praised, which made the little girl beam with pride. "Come and sit, Megumin!" The mage complied, not noticing the attentive and focused look Komekko was giving her. And with that, the trio dug into the food Yunyun had prepared.
With every bite, Megumin had to fight harder and harder to force her tears back. She didn't WANT to cry over the heavenly taste her mouth was being assaulted with. Even as Komekko and Yunyun conversed, she paid no attention, too busy trying to not look like a bit stupid crybaby. She gave Yunyun a glace, eyes narrowed. 'AGH! DUMMY! STUPID! DUMMY! ANNOYING! DUMMY! BEAUTIFUL! ADORABLE! NUISANCE! DUMMY!' She was gonna get payback on her for making her so close to tears. In one swift motion, she impaled a piece of fish on a fork and... held it close to Yunyun's confused face. "...Say 'AAAHHH.'" She demanded.
Yunyun blinked and tilted her head. "Um... why..."
"Just DO it!" Megumin hissed. Yunyun still hesitated, confused and uncertain, and a very annoyed Megumin stood up and approached Yunyun, placing a hand on her cheek. "I said say 'aaah!' Why are you not saying 'aaaah'?!' Yunyun blinked owlishly, her face flushing at how close Megumin suddenly was. All she could do was open her mouth with a soft 'Aaaaahhh...' as Megumin gently pushed the fork into her mouth, waiting for Yunyun to chew for a moment before backing off. Yunyun put her hands on her cheeks, eyes a bit wide, and Megumin sat back down with a smug smirk, pleased at getting a win over her self proclaimed rival.
She returned to her fish, and was just about to stab another forkful, when a spoonful of soup was suddenly right in her line of sight. She blinked and looked to see Yunyun, red in the face and looking away in slight embarrassment. '...She's trying to embarrass me!' Megumin suspected.
'It felt nice when Megumin did it for me... I have to return the favour...' Yunyun thought.
'Oh, two can play at this game! You're not gonna make a monkey out of me, Yunyun!' Megumin bit down on the spoon and slurped down the soup, giving Yunyun a challenging glare.
Yunyun's eyes widened, and she felt a smile grace her features. At the sight, Megumin's eye twitched. 'Oh, she must be soooo happy, look at her, deluding herself into thinking I'm falling for her ploy... Does... Does she have any reason to try and embarrass me...? I don't... think so... Is she really just... being nice...?'
Komekko noticed the vastly differing moods between the two older girls and facepalmed in exasperation. She loved her big sister, but she was really dense and really stupid.
Yunyun tilted her head. "Is something wrong, Komekko?"
"Huh? N-No... Just a fly. Uh... Hey, what's that?!" She pointed behind Yunyun, and she turned to look.
While Yunyun was distracted, Komekko stabbed Megumin in the hand with her fork, the red mage just barely managing to stop herself from screaming. "Why did you do that...?" She squeaked out. Komekko gave her a flat look, then grabbed her by the shirt and yanked her down to eye level.
"What are you DOING?!" She hissed.
"What are you talking about?!" Megumin hissed back.
"Stop glaring at Yunyun!" Komekko whispered.
"I will as soon as she stops trying to embarrass me!" Megumin retorted.
Komekko slapped her, whipping her head to the side. "She isn't trying to embarrass you! She's just being a nice goody two shoes! What makes you think she's trying to embarrass you?!"
Megumin tried to answer, but... she didn't have an answer...
Komekko scoffed. "Quit acting so stupid!"
"I dunno what to do! How do I even start?! I'm a bully! She hates my guts!"
Komekko flatly pointed at the table. "Yeah, someone that hates you would totally cook all your favourite foods no strings attached."
Megumin... had no rebuttal for that. She looked down sadly. "She... doesn't hate me... It's weird, but... it's true... And... I don't know what to do about it..."
"Just be nice to her!" Komekko exclaimed.
"How?!" Megumin asked.
"Like... the cookie thing! That's how! Be nice to her like she is to you!"
"I don't see anything..." Yunyun murmured, turning just in time to witness Komekko attempting to yank her fork out of Megumin's hand. "Ah! What happened?!"
"Oh, uh, I was using Komekko's fork to stab a fly that landed on my hand!" Megumin lied badly.
Yunyun rushed over quickly and helped pull out the fork before she began to gently massage the wound and apply healing magic to fix it. When she was content it would heal, she smiled and gently kissed it, causing Megumin to let out a squeak, her face flushing red. "My dad always kissed the places I was hurt, so... I thought... it was the right thing to do!" Yunyun explained.
Megumin's heart began to beat faster, and her eyes widened, an inexplicable happiness welling up inside her.
Megumin looked away. "Th-Th-Thanks..." She stuttered out, too quiet to be heard.
Yunyun lifted her head. "Hmm? Did you say something?"
"No! Megiumin huffed. "...Yeah... Uh... Thanks for... y'know... healing me and... stuff..."
Yunyun smiled warmly. "It's all right, I'm always happy to help!" She stood and returned to her side of the table, taking Megumin's plate and spoon. "Want some soup?" She offered a spoonful.
"Wait, what are you doing?" Megumin asked.
"Oh, I just thought you'd feel better if I fed you, so you don't have to use your hand too much!" Yunyun chirped.
Megumin blinked. 'How is she so hated when she's this damn sweet...?' She pouted, but decided to relent. "All right, fine..." Her eyes shifted towards her little sister, who smiled and flashed her a thumbs up.
'Guess I'm on the right track then...' Megumin thought as she continued to accept Yunyun's help and food. And before long... she began to realize she was actually quite enjoying it. It reminded her of the old days, when she did the same with Komekko, and a warmth blossomed inside of her as she closed her eyes in bliss, before opening them when she felt her cheek suddenly dampen with a warm liquid.
"Ah! I'm so sorry!" Yunyun apologized as she leaned forward and licked the soup off of Megumin's cheek, leaving the red-clad mage sitting frozen in pure shock.
'Did... Did she just LICK me?! ...She HAS to be teasing me, even she isn't dumb enough to be completely blind to what the hell she just did!' Megumin thought.
"Ah, um... Sorry, you just looked really cute all happy like that, I kinda got... lost in thought...?" Megumin heard nothing past the word 'cute'. That one word rung in her head, over and over. Her brain shut down as the word kept repeating itself in her mind.
Komekko stared with her jaw slack in surprise at how bold Yunyun was before turning to her sister, mentally screaming at her not to screw this up.
Yunyun snapped her fingers in front of Megumin's face, deeply concerned as she tried to jolt her to attention. "M-Megumin...? Did I hurt your feelings?!"
Megumin eventually snapped out her her shock and slowly turned her head to look at Yunyun, who looked away nervously under her gaze. "I-I'm sorry, I... I didn't... I wasn't trying to... Please don't be..."
Megumin grabbed her collar, yanked her closer and kissed her on the cheek before pushing her off.
Silence reigned in the room. '...That went WAY better than I expected.' Komekko thought.
Megumin had her arms crossed , pouting with a blush on her face, and Yunyun was blushing as well, her face frozen in complete and utter shock.
And then, the slow sound of clapping was heard, and Megumin looked at Komekko, slowly clapping for her, face still in shock.
Komekko smiled and nodded her head rapidly.
Megumin... supposed that was right, but... she really didn't feel like thinking about that. Rather, her thoughts were currently focused on herself, mainly the fact that she had kissed Yunyun. KISSED YUNYUN! She had KISSED the single most beautiful, sweet, adorable, annoying, pitiful, pathetic, gorgeous, kind, loving girl in the entire town, a girl that no one but Megumin seemed to love, a girl who deserved FAR better than her.
Yunyun lifted her hand and touched the cheek she had been kissed on, blinking rapidly, before a warm smile graced her features. "...That felt nice..." She murmured softly to Megumin.
She rose up from her seat and approached Megumin before embracing her tightly, pulling her into a tight, close embrace. And of course, as was common with a Yunyun hug, Megumin received a faceful of her ample assets. "You're being really nice lately, and I don't know why you are, but I really like it! I always knew you were a nice person, and you're super cool in school, and everyone likes you for it! And... now you're nice to me too, and it makes me... happy. So... Thank you, Megumin."
Megumin, given she was trying to be good for her... her friend, simply crossed her arms grumpily and grunted out "You're welcome." Mentally? 'Now get AWAY from me and stop torturing me with your massive rack! I like it and the fact that I like it is freaking me out! ...Fine, I GUESS you can stay...' And then Yunyun backed off. 'What the hell?! I JUST said you could stay, you ungrateful little-' Her inner thoughts ground to a screeching halt when Yunyun returned the gesture and lightly pecked her on the cheek. '...Okay, that's fine then.' Yunyun merrily skipped back to her spot. "Okay! Time to stop playing and eat before the food gets too stale!"
"Uh-huh!"
"Right..." The two sisters agreed and returned to their meals, Megumin now enjoying the food much more, though she didn't want to admit it.
Of course, it couldn't just pass without something going down. Komekko simply sat and ate her portions, watching Megumin and Yunyun feeding each other. 'YES! Look at all those points you're scoring, sis! I wonder if Yunyun's hooked yet...' About an hour and a half later, the food was largely done. Or at least the first third was.
Yunyun put everything away to keep it fresh for lunch and dinner, then clapped her hands together. "I'm glad you both liked what I made!
"Marry my sister right now." Komekko replied. "I want more."
Megumin gave Yunyun a subtly hopeful glance, and the pink-clad girl smiled. "That would be nice, but she can do WAY better than me. Everyone loves her. Nobody likes me, I'm the laughing stock of the Crimson Demon race, she deserves someone WAY better than stupid me. That's why she's my rival! I wanna be better, and the only way I can do that is by matching Megumin!"
"But you're already awesome! You cook really good food and you're really nice and you care about Megumin even when she does stupid stuff and you're the nicest person in the whole town!"
"Aww, it's so nice that you think that, but I'm not good enough for Megumin. I can't do anything any of the other Crimson Demons can, I can't talk like them or act like them or look like them, they're all so extravagant, and I try my best, but I'm just a failure. A disgrace. I can't marry Megumin, she's everything a Crimson Dragon should be, she's perfect, and I'm... me." Yunyun replied almost casually.
Megumin felt like she was rotting inside. She had been making this girl's life miserable since day one with her bullying and cheating, all while she was genuinely just trying to have fun with her, always putting on that bright, sunny personality while feeling like absolute trash deep inside. How was she so optimistic?! Most people would have done something drastic from sheer depression! It truly did make Yunyun stunning, still keeping a smile despite all the pain she was going through every day of her life... She just seemed all the stronger and more beautiful for it. At least to Megumin.
And the worst part? She likely ruined any option for friendship or romance because she made her determined to surpass her as a rival! How was she supposed to befriend someone when all they wanted was to be better than her?! That was impossible! She'd reject her instantly! Or... Or would she...? It seemed... hard to imagine... Yunyun had all the purity of an angel, hell, she even looked the party, it was hard to imagine her rejecting a friendship offer... But then, just because she couldn't imagine it didn't mean that it was impossible! Before she could continue ruminating, Yunyun spoke again. "I'm going to go home and train now. Thank you so much for having me! Maybe I'll come back for lunch, if you want me to."
And with that, Yunyun left the house, leaving the two sisters alone. Komekko immediately turned to Megumin. "So... Any ideas?"
"...No..." Megumin denied. "Honestly, I'm pretty sure it's impossible."
"Don't be dumb!" Komekko shot that thought process down almost immediately. "I saw how good things were at the table, you just need to be nice enough that she drops the whole rival thing and wants to be your friend, then marry you! Easy!"
"Yeah. Easy. Easy for you to say." Megumin groaned. "Honestly, she'll probably tear me to shreds and shoot me down..."
"Oh, cut that out!" Komekko exclaimed. "Yunyun wouldn't do that, she's not a cheater, or a liar, or a bully, she's a really nice person and she deserves a nice person to be with her, so start being that nice person and stop being a grumpy jerk to her!" Megumin visibly flinched, as if she were being stabbed by every adjective.
Noticing her older sister's distress, Komekko sighed, running over and giving her a hug. "I'm sorry, I don't mean anything bad by it..."
Megumin smiled sadly and returned the hug. "It's all right... You're not wrong... I've been a jerk to the nicest, sweetest, most beautiful girl ever, and she just wanted to enjoy her life... So now I'm gonna fix it and be nice! I'm gonna bag the hottest bomb of a girl on the planet!" And with that, she ran out of the house after Yunyun, and Komekko shook her head.
"Well, good luck with that."