My Magical Girl System-Chapter 43: Purification

Sarah nodded, her earlier exhaustion replaced by cautious interest. "Alright. Let’s go check it out. If it looks too dangerous, we run."

Sein was already moving, her crimson gauntlets flaring to life. "Then stop talking and follow me."

Andrey held up a hand. "Wait. Sein, you’re on point, but don’t charge ahead. We don’t know what’s down there. Stay close enough that we can support you."

Sein clicked her tongue but didn’t argue. "Fine. Just keep up."

They left the van behind and walked deeper into the industrial zone, past rusted machinery and crumbling walls. The air grew heavier with each step—thicker, colder. Andrey’s Ki senses prickled, warning him of something wrong.

Lisa stayed close to Andrey, her wand clutched in both hands. "This place feels... bad."

Sarah nodded, her own transformation flickering at the edges of her fingers. "Like the air is watching us."

Sein, at the front, said nothing. But her shoulders were tense, her gauntlets glowing brighter.

They searched for several minutes, weaving between abandoned warehouses and overgrown lots. The system’s direction pulsed in Andrey’s mind—a faint beacon drawing him forward.

Then Lisa stopped.

"Over here," she called softly. "I found something."

The others gathered around her. She was pointing at a section of wall between two buildings—brick, like everything else, but different. The mortar was darker, almost black, and faint symbols were carved into the stone. Symbols that seemed to shift when you looked at them directly.

Andrey stepped closer, studying the markings. "This isn’t normal construction. It’s... hidden."

Sein pressed her palm against the bricks. They didn’t feel like brick. They felt cold, smooth, like polished stone. "There’s something behind this."

She pushed harder. The wall didn’t move.

"Allow me." Sarah raised her wand. "Heartstorm Tempest—focused fire!"

A concentrated beam of pink hearts struck the wall. The bricks shuddered, cracked, and then—not crumbled. They slid apart, like a puzzle solving itself, revealing a dark opening and a staircase leading down.

The air that rushed out was cold. Ancient. It smelled of dust and something metallic, like old blood.

Lisa shivered. "That’s... not inviting."

Sein stepped onto the first stair without hesitation. "Scared? Stay here."

Andrey caught her arm. "We go together. No splitting up."

Sein looked at his hand on her arm, then at his face. She pulled free but waited for the others to gather.

They descended single-file—Sein first, then Andrey, then Lisa, with Sarah bringing up the rear. The stairs were narrow, the walls close, and the darkness swallowed the light from above within a few steps.

Andrey summoned a faint Ki glow to his palm, casting weak light on the stairs. It was barely enough to see the next step.

"Everyone okay?" he asked.

"Fine," Sein grunted.

"N-nervous," Lisa admitted.

"Just keep moving," Sarah said from behind.

They reached the bottom—a small landing, and then another door. This one was metal, rusted, but the handle was clean. Sein grabbed it and pulled. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

The door swung open with a groan.

Beyond was darkness. Complete, absolute darkness. Not even Andrey’s Ki light penetrated it.

"Can’t see anything," Sarah muttered.

Then—click.

A sound, like a mechanism engaging. They spun around.

The door behind them slammed shut with a deafening crash.

Andrey lunged for the door, pushing against it—but it didn’t budge. It was as if it had never been a door at all, just a solid wall.

"Seal," Sein said, her voice flat. "We’re trapped."

Andrey’s mind raced. ’System! What is this?’

But before the system could answer—light.

One by one, torches along the walls flickered to life. But their flames were not orange or yellow. They burned blue—cold, ethereal, casting eerie shadows that danced like living things.

The corridor stretched before them, long and straight, disappearing into distant darkness. The walls were lined with those blue-flamed torches, and between them, carved reliefs—figures of monsters, of battles, of a massive demonic shape looming over kneeling figures.

Andrey’s blood ran cold.

’The Primordial Demon,’ he thought. ’Laplace.’

Sein took a step forward, her gauntlets blazing brighter, casting red light against the blue.

"This is no C-rank artifact," she said quietly. "This is something else."

Sarah raised her wand, pink light joining the mix. "Can we go back? I vote we go back."

The door behind them was still solid wall.

"We can’t," Lisa whispered. "We have to go forward."

Andrey steadied his breathing. ’System. What are we dealing with?’

System: Host, you have entered a sealed vault. The contaminated artifact is somewhere ahead. Threat level inside the vault is... unstable. Recommend extreme caution.

Andrey looked at his team, "Stay close," he said. "Watch each other’s backs. We find the artifact, we purify it, and we get out."

Sein started walking. The others followed.

The corridor seemed endless, the blue flames casting their strange light on faces that grew more grim with each step. The carvings on the walls grew more detailed—more disturbing. Figures writhing. Demons feasting. A massive heart, pierced by chains, bleeding into a void.

Lisa whispered, "What is this place...?"

Andrey didn’t have an answer.

They walked in silence, the only sounds their footsteps and the soft crackle of blue flames. The corridor stretched on, and on, and on—until finally, it opened into a chamber.

A round room, high-ceilinged, with more blue torches lining the walls. In the center, on a pedestal of black stone, rested an object.

It was a mirror.

But the glass was dark, swirling with shadows, and in its reflection—nothing. No reflection of the room. No reflection of them.

Just darkness. Moving darkness.

Sein stopped at the edge of the chamber. "That’s it? A mirror?"

Andrey stepped forward, his Ki senses screaming warnings. "Don’t touch it. Don’t look directly at it for too long."

But Lisa was already staring. Her eyes were fixed on the dark glass, her expression slowly going slack.

"Lisa!" Sarah grabbed her shoulder, shaking her. "Snap out of it!"

Lisa blinked, gasping. "I—I saw something. In the mirror. Faces. People I know. They were... screaming..."

Sein pushed past them, her gauntlet raised. "I’ll destroy it—"

"Wait!" Andrey caught her arm. "If you hit it with force, the dark mana might release all at once. We need to purify it, not break it."

Sein hesitated, then lowered her hand. "Then how?"

Andrey turned to the system. ’How do we purify it?’

System: Physical contact is required. A Magical Girl must touch the artifact while channeling their energy. The purification process will take several minutes. During that time, the artifact may defend itself.

Sarah stepped forward. "I’ll do it. I’m the most experienced—"

"No." Sein moved in front of her. "I’m the strongest. If something goes wrong, I have the best chance of surviving."

Andrey shook his head. "Sein, you’re still stabilizing. Your energy is unpredictable. Let Lisa—"

"I’ll do it."

Everyone turned.

Lisa stood with her wand lowered, her face pale but determined. "I’m support. My energy is the most stable. If anyone should touch it, it’s me."

Sein stared at her. "You’re the youngest. The least experienced."

"Which means my energy hasn’t been corrupted by years of fighting," Lisa said quietly. "I’m... stable. The system said purification requires that, didn’t it?"

Andrey looked at the system’s screen, floating in his peripheral vision. It pulsed once, in confirmation.

"Lisa," Sarah started, her voice cracking. "You don’t have to—"

"I want to." Lisa walked toward the pedestal. "Trust me."

Andrey’s hand shot out, catching her wrist. "If anything happens—if you feel the dark mana pulling at you—let go immediately. Promise me."

Lisa met his eyes. "I promise."

She pulled free and stepped up to the mirror.

Her reflection should have been there. But the dark glass showed nothing—just swirling shadows. Lisa raised her hand, palm flat, and pressed it against the cold surface.

The moment she touched it, the blue flames on the walls flared, turning white-hot. The room shuddered. And from the mirror, a voice emerged everywhere, echoing off the stone.

"Little light... so bright... so pure..."

Lisa’s arm trembled, but she didn’t pull back. Her mint-green energy flowed into the mirror, pushing against the darkness.

"Purification starting," she said through gritted teeth. "Don’t... interrupt..."