After the Stelleron Cat and the trash cans wrapped up their strange little adventure, in a shadowy corner outside the hospital's inpatient building—
The magical pet of the Pure White Magical Girl, Pela, arrived with her companion, the magical pet Ruir.
"I can already feel it, chirp… that child's presence. Not just outstanding talent, but such overwhelming magical power. That child might become the strongest magical girl ever, chirp."
Ruir, who looked like a chibi polar bear plush, spoke with its eyes closed as it sensed the aura.
"How does she compare to that brown bear?" Pela asked curiously. She looked like a chibi hybrid of cat and rabbit.
The brown bear, the monster leader.
The monster leader of the Far East Yokohama area was a human woman over two meters tall, with trapezius muscles so thick they were obscene, layered abs with absurd magic resistance, and thighs so solid they inspired fear.
Her entire vibe was straight out of a Hong Kong action manga. Even untransformed, she could barehandedly subdue tigers and leopards. A pure brawler-type monster leader.
The chibi polar bear considered carefully.
"If this kid becomes a magical girl, chirp, and grows a bit… when that bear gets taken down will probably just depend on how many subordinates she has standing in front of her as meat shields."
"Ha! Looks like we came to the right place this time!"
Pela's rabbit-like ears twitched. Her thinking was clearly being dominated by the rabbit half.
"No matter the cost, we have to sign a magical contract with this magical girl. As long as we get her, monsters, Stand users, vampires, none of that will be a problem, chirp!"
And so—
The two magical pets entered the hospital ward.
…
"This world… is truly beautiful."
The Pure Beauty Trash Can was in a great mood.
After all, this was a world where one could not even sense a Path, yet even a single cat knew of the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila. Clearly, the name of Pure Beauty had spread to every corner of the universe.
When he was summoned into this world,
The Memoirs of Jin Lajitzde told him that his free movement time was limited. Five minutes in combat state, thirty minutes in non-combat state.
If he behaved like a real trash can,
No arms, no legs, completely motionless,
That time could even be extended to two hours.
After sending away that miraculous gray cat, the Pure Beauty Trash Can rolled himself from the corner into the inpatient corridor.
"Please allow me to offer you my sincere praise."
"Forgive my abruptness. Out of habit, I must ask you. As a fellow being of the universe, are you familiar with the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila?"
The Pure Beauty Trash Can evangelized to everyone he met.
Unfortunately, at two or three in the morning, there really was not much foot traffic in the hospital. He could only preach the spirit of Pure Beauty to potted plants, or to other trash cans.
Then he saw it.
In the corridor facing the elevators, more than a dozen brown-gray trash cans were neatly lined up.
Without hesitation, he opened with "forgive my abruptness" and "are you familiar with the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila," trying to spread the gospel of Pure Beauty to them.
To his surprise, the trash can in the center moved.
Two eyeless trash cans stared at each other. The brown-gray one looked at the shiny, gleaming can and asked tentatively, "Are you… the guard of Tatalov and Jin Lajitzde, the Pure Beauty Trash Can?"
"Ah, what a splendid trash can. Since you know my name, you must also know the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila."
The Pure Beauty Trash Can said with emotion.
"Senior, please do not use such honorifics! I cannot bear it!" The brown-gray trash can cupped an imaginary fist in a very streetwise manner. "To be honest, we are your juniors from the Trash Kingdom!"
"?"
"After Tatalov fell, the original Trash Kingdom split apart. Garbage classification fell into chaos. Recyclable and non-recyclable waste were mixed together. Some people even started littering everywhere."
"Ah! Tatalov fell?"
"That's right! I was born in the slums of the Trash Kingdom. At one point, I was reduced to scavenging on the streets! Later, with guidance from a wise figure, I worked hard to build relationships with the neighborhood. With everyone's help, I established a new waste station and restored the sanitation standards of Tatalov's era!"
"This… what an act of Pure Beauty?"
The Pure Beauty Trash Can was stunned. It sounded so Pure Beauty.
He nodded silently. So that was it. He was not the only miraculous trash can summoned to this world. Others had been summoned too, even his own juniors.
Tatalov had fallen. The Trash Kingdom had fractured. Back in the era when he was active, Tatalov had still been a delinquent punk blazing with ghostly flames.
Just how much time had passed?
"I am delighted to meet you, junior filled with the spirit of Pure Beauty! Forgive me, but how should I address you?"
"Senior, really, please stop with the honorifics. I am the vice leader of the Trash Gang. You can call me the Gang Trash Can!" The Gang Trash Can pulled him into the group. "Look, these are all members of the Trash Gang."
"Ah… what a marvelous encounter. How moving."
The Pure Beauty Trash Can gained sudden insight.
They had never met, yet felt an inexplicable familiarity. These trash cans were truly his juniors, and the time gap might span countless millennia.
Just as the senior and junior trash cans were earnestly reminiscing about the glorious deeds of Jin Lajitzde and Tatalov—
The two magical pets arrived at the same corridor. This was the mandatory route to Kiyono Inori's hospital room.
Ruir: wide-eyed.
Pela: wide-eyed.
"What is going on?" Pela asked uncertainly.
"Yah! Every one of these trash cans is emitting a strange aura. This must be the monster leader, that Square Gentleman, striking first and grooming that girl into the supreme leader of monsters! Pela, we cannot let the monsters succeed. I will buy time. You go get the Pure White Magical Girl!"
Ruir shouted loudly.
A bizarre transformation effect lit up the dim corridor. When it ended, a three-meter-tall white-furred bear stood there. Its arms were grotesquely thick as it shoved the nearest trash can.
The Gang Trash Can was knocked over.
"Boss!"
"Boss!"
The trash cans behind rushed forward, noisily propping him up. Trash cans had no faces, but the offended ones somehow radiated a furious expression.
"Brothers, this guy dares to provoke the Trash Gang right in front of our senior. He has no respect for us at all! Wake these two up properly. Trash Sorting Kick!"
Trash Sorting Kick.
The Gang Trash Can's signature skill.
After a short run-up, he leapt and kicked Ruir's white bear form. The bear raised its arms to block, but the force was overwhelming. The entire bear was sent flying.
It crashed straight into Pela, who was trying to contact the Pure White Magical Girl, interrupting her communication spell.
Ruir thought, wait, what is this?
It had assumed these trash cans were monsters disguised as ambushers. After all, low-level monsters were generally stupid, and hiding in inconvenient places like trash cans was totally normal.
But this strength was absurd. This was not a low-level monster at all. This was on the level of the brown bear monster leader.
What even was this? Trash cans turning into monsters did not look natural at all. What was going on?
Bucket Tempering.
A standard trash can's inherent skill.
Seeing their boss challenged, the Gang Trash Can's underlings immediately got fired up. Before the white bear even finished its recovery animation, the trash cans took turns delivering coordinated follow-up kicks.
Bang!
Ruir thought, whew, this one's weaker. Seems the average stats of trash can monsters are not that high.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
The white bear barely blocked a few hits before realizing something was wrong. At first, he could just barely withstand the attacks, but why was the force getting stronger and stronger?
Gang Bucket Tempering.
Normally, Bucket Tempering increased a trash can's attack power after each strike. Under the Gang Trash Can's leadership, the trash cans had learned the power of unity.
Each attack by a normal trash can increased the attack power of all allied trash cans, stacking with no upper limit.
Bang. Bang!
Unable to endure it, Ruir deployed a magic shield. It shattered after just two kicks.
"Shh! Can we talk this out!"
Ruir shouted again. The first time had been a heroic declaration. This time, it was pure begging.
The response was—
Gang Trash Sorting Kick.
The Gang Trash Can and several others leapt together. The corridor was narrow, but their teamwork was flawless. Midair, they constantly adjusted their positions, taking turns delivering flying kicks to the white bear who had provoked their vice leader.
Violent explosions rocked the bear's body as it tumbled miserably under the barrage.
Gang Trash Can Pyramid.
Four trash cans slammed down onto him. The white bear cried out in pain. Then three more stacked on top, followed by two more.
Finally came the Gang Trash Can himself.
He stood atop the stack, flexing his dark-brown, gleaming muscles in triumph.
"I… you… she…"
Among magical pets, Ruir was considered a combat specialist, well-suited to supporting magical girls in battle.
Yet against these perfectly coordinated trash cans, he was defeated by a systematic combo without any chance to fight back.
Seriously… what the hell was this?
In this world, monsters were usually sapient beings whose souls had grown despondent, their appearances mutating into animals. Rats, dogs, foxes, and the like.
Higher-tier ones, like the Square Gentleman, the Hero, or the Brown Bear, maintained a humanoid appearance while becoming monsters.
But no matter how despondent a soul became, it would not turn into a trash can, right?
What kind of soul even resonated with a trash can? Were trash cans even considered naturally formed?
"Aaaaargh!"
Crushed beneath ten metal trash cans, both mentally and physically, the damage exceeded what the magical pet race could endure.
The white bear lay on the floor, reaching out weakly. After a strained, pained sound, it dispersed into white magic particles and vanished.
"Ruiiiir!"
Pela screamed.
Damn it, damn it. You said you would buy time, not get instantly deleted by trash cans. What was she supposed to do now? Ruir was the best fighter among magical pets. She herself was terrible at combat. She had only ever coasted in Tokyo by clinging to the Pure White Magical Girl.
"Ah!"
As everyone knew, in a pyramid stack, the bottom layer bore immense pressure. With the bear gone, the four trash cans at the base lost their footing, and the whole pile collapsed with a clatter.
Pela stared, stunned.
Kids… I might still be alive.
Taking advantage of the chaos, the cat-and-rabbit-like magical pet began inching away.
Silent Movement, Cat Trait.
Burst Acceleration, Rabbit Trait.
With features of both cat and rabbit, Pela possessed aspects of each.
Trash cans… you are strong, I admit. But based on my observation as a magical pet, you are just a mob. Your speed and power are far inferior to the Pure White Magical Girl.
Besides, you cannot even use magic.
If I can just get there… just retreat for now and bring the Pure White Magical Girl back.
Click.
A sudden spotlight illuminated her as she crawled.
"Oh. Another beautiful being."
The gleaming trash can appeared before her. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am the Pure Beauty Trash Can, from the Trash Can Kingdom. First, please accept my apology on behalf of my disappointing juniors. Might I have the honor of knowing your true name, so that I may properly make amends?"
Pela froze.
Honestly, this night felt like a dream.
She had lost all sense of what was happening. Those earlier trash cans felt like street thugs. This one, however, carried himself like a refined gentleman.
Why could trash cans not just collect trash? Why did they have to become sentient?
"I… I am Pela, chirp."
Feeling an aura even stronger than the Pure White Magical Girl, the magical pet became extremely obedient.
"Ah, a pleasure to meet you, Pela." The Pure Beauty Trash Can bowed elegantly. "Forgive my abruptness. Before apologizing, out of habit, I must ask you a question. As a fellow being of the universe, are you familiar with the Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila?"
Pela reflexively made a confused expression, then quickly nodded. "Of course I know, chirp."
"Ah… how regrettable." The Pure Beauty Trash Can shook his head. "Allow me to speculate. I believe you may have accepted the ideals of Pure Beauty for some reason. However, forgive my bluntness. Deception is an act of ugliness."
"What?"
A chilling battle aura emanated from the trash can, making Pela sense danger.
"I respect differing ideals. However, since you do not truly know Pure Beauty, yet have inadvertently committed an act of ugliness, I must correct your error in the manner of a knight."
A blood-red spear appeared in the trash can's grasp. "I request a chivalric duel with you. Should you prevail and demonstrate sufficient Pure Beauty in battle, I shall forgive your recent act of ugliness."
"Dispel the illusion and reveal your true form," the Pure Beauty Trash Can shouted the mandatory phrase before a Pure Beauty knight's duel. "The Goddess of Pure Beauty, Idrila, is peerlessly beautiful!"
Immediately after—
The trash can's presence surged. Beyond stronger than the Pure White Magical Girl, it skyrocketed into an unprecedented realm, a level Pela had never witnessed.
More terrifying than stacking a dozen trash cans together.
Pela stood there, utterly shaken. This was already the level of a supreme monster leader, maybe even a Demon King. Kids, am I really fighting a Demon King?
…
A/N:
My god. I feel like I am turning into a trash can.
Why did I ever give Stelle this kind of abstract ability?
…
1 chapter per day. For more chapters/fics, goto ErbiumTL on Patreon.
Let me know if I got a name wrong. I know basically nothing about MyGO.