September 2024

  ***

  Hifumi Ebiko was a 19-year-old author, known for her breakout series ‘The Starfaring Maiden’, a novel series that was more a collection of short stories, telling of various strange places in a future galaxy from the point of view of its main character, a Starfarer called Felicia.

  Hifumi wrote this series to take a break from her other passion: writing femslash fanfiction for any series she could get her himejoshi hands on. Around late last year she just got done publishing her eighth chapter online, and owing to the longer length of each, since every single one of them was its own self-contained story, it was enough to fill a light novel. That was when she got a mail from someone called Hitoishi, representing a company called ‘Magic Collection Publishing’. Hifumi never heard of it. Apparently, they were publishing novels like ‘The Demon Lord’s Right Hand Woman is my Little Sister’, which was not her cup of tea, to put it diplomatically.

  Still, this was the only publisher showing interest in her work, so she decided that she should at least meet the editor who reached out to her.

  Oddly enough, their meeting wasn’t in an office building, but they went out to a nearby café. Hifumi’s mind was racing with the implications of this meeting spot – that was usually where dates happen, wasn’t it? And she had never met this person before! She’d have to prepare a proper rebuke for any unwanted advances if she was being played for a fool.

  He was probably a creepy man in his 50s, Hifumi thought. Some old dusty guy who read all the smut online and got excited and hired only the most perverted otaku with the most twisted fantasies.

  She kept thinking that without a moment spent to reflect on the fact that she was one of the people writing all that twisted smut.

  The bell of the café’s entrance rang, and Hifumi turned her head – who she saw there defied her expectations. It was a woman, from the looks of it a bit older than her, but certainly not some middle-aged smut isekai peddler. She was attractive, if one liked women in tights and office outfits with glasses, which just so happened to be one of Hifumi’s top fetishes. She probably wrote a dozen office yuri fictions featuring that kind of woman. Only her baggy eyes added some minus points to the overall look. After looking around a bit the woman’s eyes homed in on Hifumi and the manuscript that was placed in front of her.

  “Hifumi Ebiko? I am Seika Hitoishi from MagiColle.” the woman introduced herself.

  Well, maybe I should have read her given name at the end of the mail instead of making up a scenario in my head to get mad at.

  ***

  That’s how she was scouted for Magic Collection Publishing. Right now, she stood in a bookstore somewhere in Tokyo – it didn’t really matter which one, so she picked the first one she saw – wearing sunglasses and a surgical mask to hide her identity as she spied on the table that presented new releases.

  Not that it was at all necessary, since she was an anonymous author represented by a sketch of an anime-styled shrimp with googly eyes.

  The Starfaring Maiden Volume 2 was placed in a neat stack front and center, next to other promising releases of the month.

  Hiding herself behind a bookshelf, Hifumi stared at the stack displaying her novel. AKITO did perfect work on the cover, as always. Felicia was depicted on a comfortable sofa, sipping a hot beverage while looking out of her trusty spaceship’s observation port, from which a gas giant’s perpetual storm was visible. It was AKITO’s interpretation of the scene after Felicia and Tiana had sex – with Felicia pondering her little ‘mistake’ and how she would cope with her lonely future from here on out, after hopelessly falling in love.

  A customer entered, and Hifumi kept her eyes on him as he browsed the selection of new releases. He left with a copy of an isekai series’ twenty-fifth volume.

  Damn.

  She kept staring at the stack of books and the customers that came near it.

  Some picked up the novels besides her own, while others picked up hers. They flipped through, looking at AKITO’s illustrations and pondering if they should purchase it. Quite a few actually did, and Hifumi celebrated on the inside whenever it happened.

  Some picked up other novels and flipped through, but they seemed to be distressed by something. She could have sworn that she saw one of them look her way out of the corner of his eye.

  For some reason customers started to avoid this area when they came in. Why could that be? Hifumi pondered but couldn’t quite come up with a satisfactory answer.

  Are light novels not in vogue anymore? Have the youths of this age rediscovered their love for classic literature? Or is everyone merely reading manga these days?

  Her nails dug into the wood of the shelf as she cursed the authors of old for daring to be competition to her wholesome girl-on-girl novel.

  “Excuse me, miss?”

  The voice came from behind her and Ebiko tried to hide her face even more.

  “Ah? I- I guess someone recognized me after all. Haha, one can’t really help being so famous, right?”

  “We’ve been getting complaints about a weirdo who stares at the other customers. Would you please stop?”

  The clerk’s voice was less annoyed and more exasperated.

  Oh.

  Hifumi shuffled uncomfortably in place.

  “Look… you’re an author, right?” the employee asked with a tired grin, stepping closer. She was a young woman, probably in college, her brown hair neatly tied into a ponytail while the bookstore’s uniform snugly fit around her figure. Hifumi forced her eyes to stop wandering to react to the question.

  “Huh? Oh, you can tell? Hahaha, even while I’m wearing my disguise! Guess I really took off!” She rubbed the back of her head and let out an awkward laugh.

  “No, ma’am. It’s because you’re wearing a disguise and keep staring at the new releases. Every month there is a different author lurking in here, turning away customers while risking their face becoming public knowledge.”

  “Ah- “

  Hifumi turned red under her mask and sunglasses. Her eyes turned vacant as she pulled the pieces of her disguise off her face.

  “Right, right! Not like anyone would know me after just two volumes, ha-ha. I’ve been letting my head grow too big. Sorry for the trouble.”

  She started to shuffle out of the store, but the employee stopped her momentarily.

  “Before you leave, could you sign my book?”

  “Huh?”

  She looked at the clerk, who held out a copy of The Starfaring Maiden Volume 2.

  “How do you-?”

  “You made grinding noises with your teeth whenever someone picked up a book that wasn’t this one. And when someone picked it up you squealed. Quietly, but still noticeably so.”

  “It was that obvious, huh?”

  “Yep.”

  “…please don’t tell anyone.”

  “Your secret is safe with me, miss.”

  “And you’ve been reading my books?”

  “And the online stories. For four years, now.” The girl smiled and blushed a little as she looked to the side.

  Oh. Oh dear.

  Meeting a fan of her books was one thing – but this was the first time she met someone who straight up said she was a fan of Hifumi’s past in pornographic fan fiction.

  Leaving the store she grinned from ear to ear, no longer caring about whether she could spot someone who bought her book or not. To meet one of her true fans in the wild was inspiring! Today she would treat herself. Pancakes, boba, other sweets, she would get all of them and pig out a little! She walked down the street with a little spring to her step.

  Maybe I’ll visit Akihabara, too? It’s been a while since I bought yuri doujinshi that weren’t straight from Comiket. But afterwards… let’s get straight back to writing!

  Just as she finished her thought, her phone vibrated. She fished it out of her pocket and had to swipe away a notification about a Magical Girl battle in Kawaguchi before she could read the message – it was a LINE from Hitoishi.

  ‘Hifumi – congratulations on the release of volume 2. I have no doubt that we’ll soon have to order a reprint for this one, too.’

  Hifumi blinked and stared at the message for some time.

  She’s using my given name… well, my given pen name.

  Another message came in.

  ‘If you’d like, we could celebrate a little in private. Meet me at the office at 8pm when everyone else has left?’

  Hifumi’s mind went into overdrive. Celebrating the release of her volume? Privately with her editor, the attractive office lady? She had to blink and rub her eyes to make sure she was seeing the message correctly. All sorts of scenarios ran through her head at lightning speed, ranging from a mundane little party with a little cake to explicit workplace sex with an attractive lady in a pencil skirt.

  When I noticed she was self-inserting in the scene I wrote… was that with me?!

  She could feel her mouth dry out as she typed her answer with shaky hands.

  ‘Sure, I’ll be there. Is there anything you’d like me to wear? LOL’

  Adding a ‘lol’ always helps to cut tension.

  The reply didn’t take long.

  ‘Maybe something that wouldn’t look out of place in a fantasy world.’

  Hifumi almost dropped her phone.

  Going straight for the kinky cosplay action, Hitoishi?!!

  Hifumi’s breathing accelerated, and her face was flushed. She hurried into a quiet corner to hide her embarrassment as she re-read that text a few more times. Her artistic mind raced, imagining all sorts of non-family friendly scenarios playing out –and how they would happen with all sorts of different ‘fantasy’ outfits.

  Maybe the Dragon Quest warrior? Stupid, how would I get to the office without dying of embarrassment?

  Or maybe a belly dancer outfit? And I hide it under a jacket? No, no…

  Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

  Priestess robes? Everyone loves fantasy nuns, right? Maybe an elven dress? Or dressed like a queen?

  Her phone vibrated again.

  ‘Just kidding – come in whatever feels comfortable.’

  Hifumi stared at the phone with cold eyes, gripping it so hard that she feared the screen might crack.

  I’ll punch her in the arm when I see her.

  Still, Hifumi didn’t give up on looking pretty for what may or may not be an illicit office romance. She took the next train to Harajuku to visit its many boutiques. She would work her way from the underwear up, meaning the first question was: what would she want Hitoishi to see once passions boil over and she rips her clothes from her body to reveal her ample…

  Woops, my writer brain is going crazy again.

  She cleared her throat to get her mind out of the gutter – as much as one would be able to when shopping for underwear with the intention of having someone else see it.

  She went through the various items on display, her cheeks reddening with each and every one of them she came across.

  Isn’t that too transparent? It hides nothing! The only thing that could be any lewder than this would be those pieces you order online with holes in them!

  Her red head figuratively steamed as she looked through the selection.

  “Ma’am, can I help you?” an employee innocently offered assistance, causing Hifumi to let out a squeak like she was caught doing something bad, jumping in place and turning around.

  “I-I-I’m f-f-fine!” she stammered.

  “Oh dear. Embarrassed by the selection? I know how that feels, it was the same for me my first time here.” The employee offered her a friendly smile as she looked at the pieces Hifumi held in her hands.

  “Oh, you can definitely pull off black. Want me to give you some recommendations?”

  ***

  Hifumi left the first store with lace lingerie – complete with garter belt and thigh-high stockings, while she possessed barely any recollection of how she ended up with these items. There were brief flashes of the employee’s fast talking, of brief words about what these items were for. Hifumi may have uttered the word ‘sex’. Maybe that explained why she left with the raciest translucent piece of black lace available.

  I’ve never worn anything like this! I’m scared!

  She felt so nervous that she might throw up, even though she wasn’t even wearing the underwear yet and her meeting with Hitoishi was still hours off.

  She kept the bag closed, as if worried that any passersby would look inside and think she was an immoral woman. Okay, maybe she was a little bit, when someone looked at her online history.

  The next store was way less nerve wracking. An apparel store for the fashionable young woman, or so she was told by the banners all around the store’s interior.

  She picked out a skirt – a stylish, black one. One that would show off the garter holding the thigh-high stockings she bought earlier.

  Oh, but if it flutters in a breeze everyone will see…

  Her face flushed again, and she debated whether to put the piece of clothing back or not. In the end she decided to buy it.

  Next was a low-cut shirt. She mentally compared the height of the gap it would leave with the size of the bra she bought. If she was correct, it would show off just a little bit of the lace. She couldn’t quite tell if that would be a good look or if it would make her appear sloppy.

  To her dismay the only way to find out would be to consult an employee at this store and tell them about the underwear – something she’d rather avoid. She simply bought the shirt, too.

  Afterwards, she visited another store. This time she needed shoes.

  She only ever wore high heels for research purposes when she wrote a short story in which the deuteragonist used her heel to punish the protagonist. To summarize, it was BDSM smut. Hifumi needed to know just how much force one could generate with the concentrated weight on a heel before it would become unbearable or dangerous, so she stepped on pieces of cardboard, glass panes, cuts of meat, you name it.

  Now she held another pair in her hand and tried it on. Her legs were wobbly as she tried to walk with the heels on – no wonder, she only practiced how to step on people, not to actually use the shoes as intended.

  Sweat formed on her brow as she tried to keep her balance on the shoes. She had to try for good half an hour before she managed to walk straight.

  If I arrive and walk like a lame duck that will definitely ruin the mood.

  She bought the shoes as well and let out an exasperated sigh as she looked at her completed collection.

  I wonder if this is what Hitoishi is into.

  After going shopping it was of course time to prepare her body at home as well. She couldn’t arrive in Hitoishi’s presence dirty or smelly, after all.

  Hifumi started to fill her bathtub – grabbing her shower head and cleaning herself thoroughly. As she worked shampoo into her hair, she looked at herself in the mirror. Lithe, almost too thin, with a small chest. She had a passably pretty face, but she didn’t possess any of the alluring features that any of the characters she wrote possessed.

  Her most unique feature were probably the streaks of teal in her hair, but even that was something many girls her age wore these days. Nothing that would really make her stand out in front of a crowd of other women.

  “If only I had a bombshell body, I’d…”

  She let out a sigh, rinsing herself off before she climbed into the bath to relax. She grabbed a package she bought some time earlier, with a face mask, which she applied hastily.

  “…but I guess if I had it easy to get a girlfriend, I wouldn’t be writing as much. I would never have gotten published. Would have never met Hitoishi… hm…”

  Hifumi stared at the ceiling.

  “Girlfriend or book deal…”

  She shook her head and stood up, clenching her fists close to her chest.

  “What am I saying? I got the book deal! And I’ll get a girlfriend tonight! …right?”

  She was still not entirely certain what Hitoishi’s endgame was for their meeting at the office, if she even had any. But she’d do her best to be ready for it!

  ***

  It was time to transform into her sultriest self. She gulped heavily as she opened her shopping bags.

  First the underwear and the stockings…

  She put on the translucent panties and bra, then the garter belt. Even just pulling the thigh-high stockings up her legs felt like a sinful act of seduction, despite no one being here to watch her. She clasped the garter to the top of the stockings and let out a deep sigh.

  Moment of truth…

  She got up and approached her mirror with closed eyes. She couldn’t stop a slight tremble going through her limbs as she opened them – one after the other.

  “A-awawawawa!”

  Hifumi blushed up to her ears and cowered down, covering her breasts with her arms.

  Too much! Too much! Definitely too much! I could see my areolae and my… ahh, I really should shave down there before I go…

  She gulped and got up again, turning to face herself once more.

  “Ah… ahaha… women really wear this, huh?! It’s not just the pervy stuff I write that has it. Somewhere out there are women who wear this and…”

  She forced herself to prematurely end this thought before it could be fully conceived. She would only get jealous.

  “R-right… the rest!”

  She put on the short skirt and the low-cut shirt. As she assumed, the lace peeked a little past the low cut. She looked at herself in the mirror and turned from side to side.

  “Wow.” That was the only thing she had to say at the moment.

  It weirdly fit her. But at the same time – that wasn’t her anymore. Hifumi Ebiko was a slightly awkward girl wearing jeans and t-shirts or sweaters bearing the logos of her favorite bands. She didn’t wear high heels, she preferred sneakers. She had beautiful black hair with teal strands but usually put it up in a bun.

  She sat down on her bed and tried a few poses. One leg over the other while reclining. Hooking a finger into her cleavage and pulling it down while biting her lower lip. Slightly lifting her skirt to give a peek at those sinful panties.

  Even the mere sight of the garter peeking out from under the skirt made her heart flutter.

  I might actually count as a bombshell wearing this.

  Hifumi looked at herself long and thoroughly in the mirror. Then she made her choice.

  ***

  Hifumi rang the bell of MagiColle’s office at the arranged time, and waited in awkward silence, fidgeting in place. Her hand ran through her shoulder-length hair which she wore loose for tonight.

  After a short while a figure could be seen on the other side of the frosted glass door, wearing a white shirt and a black skirt. With a click the door opened and Hitoishi gave Hifumi a smile.

  “You came! Oh, you’re wearing your hair down tod- ow! What in the world was that for?”

  She rubbed her arm and shot Hifumi a glare. The hopeless himejoshi author grinned and walked past her editor, dressed in her usual casual clothes.

  “That was for making me think about what kind of cosplay I should wear and then going ‘just kidding’. You had me all excited for nothing!”

  It's enough for today if I am myself… with the underwear as a little surprise...

  Hitoishi led Hifumi upstairs through the office area – strangely enough, all the work desks were pushed to the walls and the computers were gone.

  “What’s going on with the office?” she asked with some interest.

  “Oh, that? Just doing some rearrangements while the rest of the editorial is working from home. I thought I might surprise Watanabe when he has recovered from his illness.”

  Hifumi nodded, and was led into one of the meeting rooms. Inside her editor had hung a banner that read ‘Congratulations on the release of volume 2!”

  She spread out some snacks and drinks on the desk. As soon as Hifumi entered, she heard a ‘pop’ from the side and confetti landed on her head.

  Hitoishi stood next to her, wearing a dumb grin on her face, with a party popper in her hand. She must have pulled it out of the odd little chest she was wearing on her hip, fastened around her waist. How many more party items did she have in there?

  Suddenly Hifumi felt incredibly stupid for letting her thoughts race into raunchy territory. Hitoishi was a dork and Hifumi liked to tease her – yet at the first sign of possible attraction it was like she folded over for her and the roles reversed. And now she even hallucinated attractions where there were none.

  “Congratulations!” Hitoishi exclaimed and clapped for her. She was very sweet, in a way.

  “Thank you, Hitoishi.” Hifumi couldn’t stay mad at this woman or herself for long. In fact, she even laughed. “When you texted me using my given name, I thought you were getting overly familiar.”

  Hitoishi blinked and fished her phone out of her pocket. Realization showed on her face.

  “Oh. I… well, I’m sorry. I’ll make sure to address you properly in the future, Ebiko.” Her voice sounded a little panicked, like she made a really big blunder.

  “Hifumi is quite alright. If I may call you Seika?” Hifumi turned around towards Seika and smiled at her.

  “Oh! Sure thing, Hifumi.” Seika seemed to struggle a little with the adjustment. Suddenly, her head turned as if she heard something, and her disposition changed entirely.

  “Hifumi, listen.” She stepped closer to the young author, holding extended eye contact. It made the girl blush. Especially as Seika came close enough for a hug.

  Wait… I thought this was just a misunderstanding! Is this… is this the holy grail after all? Eleven-year age gap office yuri?! In the flesh?

  She could tell that she was hyperventilating. She closed her eyes and felt Seika embracing her.

  “I’m sorry, Hifumi…”

  Sorry for what? I’m having the time of my life!

  “…for using you as bait.”

  What?

  Hifumi opened her eyes – she was facing the door to the office and could see that the two of them were no longer alone.

  A woman with sickly green skin, with flesh that looked plant-like in nature stood in the door. Her eyes were like coals with small embers at the center.

  She had her arms crossed as she looked at the writer and her editor, and as their eyes met Hifumi felt a wave of nausea washing over her. She saw herself, bleeding out on the floor, with a hole in her heart – she saw plants growing around the bones of her own decomposed body and turning into this creature. Something was wrong with the two of them meeting like this. Very wrong.

  “Cheating on your darling Miori? Naughty, naughty, Seika…”

  The plant woman’s voice was sickly sweet and filled with malice. Just listening to her made the hair on the back of Hifumi’s neck stand up.

  Cold air hit Hifumi’s back all of a sudden, and Seika took a step away from her, both her hands on the girl’s shoulders. Only now the author noticed that her editor wore golden rings with varying gemstones on each of her fingers – and one of them was glowing like it had an LED built in.

  “I’ll make it up to you once this is over,” Seika promised – and gave Hifumi a push.

  ***

  She fell backwards and braced herself – she was pretty sure she would hit the hard edge of the office desk. Instead, she landed on something soft.

  Looking around she saw that she was on a large, red couch in front of a fireplace. The room she was placed in was spacious, with its walls hewn from large stone blocks, and the windows were taller than most apartment buildings she’s seen in Tokyo, bearing ornate iron decorations.

  “Ah. Another visitor.”

  The voice came from behind her, and Hifumi turned around to look at its origin. She saw an elegantly dressed lady with silver hair and red eyes – not cruel embers like the plant woman’s, but a mysterious crimson shade given to human eyes. She was beautiful – Hifumi felt herself almost blushing as she looked at her. She sat in an elegant armchair, legs crossed, and hands neatly folded on one of her knees.

  “I was just about to tell my other guest here a little story to lighten the mood. Would you like to join us?”

  What confused Hifumi more than her environment and the odd lady’s invitation was the third woman in the room, who sat on another couch, eyes downcast while she pulled her knees to her chest, hugging her legs close. Her eyes were swollen from crying, and she didn’t look like she’d be in the mood to talk to anyone, but Hifumi very clearly recognized her as Luna of the Celestial Sisters, the post-Kawaguchi Incident world’s number one celebrities.

  “I, uh… can anyone explain to me what’s going on here?”

  Moon of the Murdered Singer, 1067 AR

  ***

  Hifumi’s head hurt from the information dump she was just subjected to. Apparently, she was transported to another world, the one genre of light novel she swore she would never write – and her editor, Seika, was the Magical Girl Minerva Crimson, who was at this very moment locked in battle with a curse in human form, who already went after several of her acquaintances and friends. To lure said curse, Lethe, out of hiding, Hifumi was used as bait. Lethe liked to pick her victims when Seika was forced to watch, to torment her further with taunts, or by giving her a cruel choice, or so the story went.

  Hifumi sat on the couch right next to Luna, looking at her awkwardly – and the gesture was reciprocated.

  “Never imagined that Hit- Seika was a Magical Girl.”

  Luna let out a dry chuckle and she spoke in slang that Hifumi never heard the idol speak in.

  “Paisen’s, like, the oldest Magical Girl, even…”

  “Is she your Senpai because of that, or…?”

  Luna shook her head.

  “Paisen and Bellona were, like… our mentors. Bellona taught Sol to fight with a spear… I learned how to, like, make use of my magic from Paisen.”

  Hifumi’s eyes widened – she never heard of such a relationship between the idols and two other Magical Girls.

  “Wait, why did I never see…?”

  “The two are, like, blurs. People don’t really remember our co-operators. Lethe also, like, corrupted all video recordings when she ate their memories. Maybe she even messes with the witnesses’ ability to remember, hell if I know.”

  Hifumi looked at the floor in front of them, same as the idol sitting next to her.

  Another person joined on the couch – their host herself - looking at them with a concerned look.

  “Trust me, you two. Everything will be alright after today.”

  Luna looked at their host – to Hifumi’s shock she introduced herself as ‘Madame Bille’ earlier, one of the major villains regularly attacking Tokyo with remote-controlled dolls. But per her own explanation, it’s all part of a ‘performance’ to ‘guide’ the Magical Girls.

  “How? How would everything be alright? Sol… Miyu… Miyu is…”

  Madame Bille reached out and touched Luna’s shoulder as the girl buried her face in her hands again.

  “Trust in Minerva. Or rather… Seika. She will break Lethe’s curse and free those affected by it.”