I don't usually start my day with a kiss from a half-dressed magical girl, a sky battle, and an existential crisis.
But here we are.
I stumbled through the rest of the school day in a daze. My body was in class, but my brain was replaying the same moment on loop: her lips on mine, the glow of her transformation, the monster exploding in midair, and then… her vanishing like it was Tuesday.
I couldn't even tell anyone. Who would believe me?
"Hey, guys, a magical girl used me as a battery this morning. Yeah, I think I might be radioactive now."
Nope. Straight to the nurse's office—or worse, the school counselor.
So I did the only logical thing: I said nothing and hoped it was a dream.
Spoiler: it wasn't.
That night, I made it home, changed into my pajamas, and tried to clear my head. I even brushed my teeth twice, like that would erase the memory of her lips.
By 11:00 p.m., I was in bed, staring at the ceiling.
"Maybe it was just a hallucination," I mumbled. "Maybe I fell asleep on the roof and hit my head."
Then the window slammed open.
A gust of wind blew the curtains apart.
And there she was.
Again.
Floating outside my second-story window like it was no big deal.
"Yo," she said casually, legs crossed midair. "Hope I didn't interrupt anything."
"Wh—?! How are you here?! What are you doing?!"
She climbed in like she'd done it a hundred times. She was still wearing that ridiculous—not to mention revealing—battle outfit. Pink, sparkly, and practically glued to her body.
"You live alone?" she asked, glancing around my room.
"My parents work night shifts," I muttered. "They're barely home. But that's not the point! You can't just break into my room!"
"Relax. I knocked."
"That was the window!"
She shrugged. "Whatever. Listen, I need to talk to you. And we're short on time."
I sat up, pulling my blanket up to my chest like it could protect me from insanity.
"Okay. Let's start with your name."
She blinked, as if realizing she'd skipped that part.
"Oh. Right. I'm Rika. Mahō Shōjo rank A, third-year combat unit, currently stationed in this sector."
"...You're a student?"
She tilted her head. "What, you thought we were born like this?"
I opened my mouth to respond. Closed it. Opened it again.
"You kissed me."
"Correct."
"And then exploded into light."
"Also correct."
"And said I was... 'compatible'?"
She gave me a look like I'd just asked her to define the word 'oxygen'.
"Yes. Compatible. You're a rare source of LOVE energy—pure, potent, and absurdly dense."
"Okay," I said, pinching the bridge of my nose. "I need you to explain what the hell LOVE energy is and why I have it."
She nodded and—without asking—sat down on my bed.
Very close.
Like thigh-touching-close.
"Mahō Shōjo use emotional resonance to generate energy. LOVE, in this context, isn't just romantic. It's a kind of life-force—passion, care, connection, desire. It fuels our magic, our transformations, our weapons... everything."
"And normally, where do you get this... LOVE?"
"From the environment," she said. "Little bits from the people around us. Like emotional sunlight. But lately, it's been thinning. We can't generate enough to fight the Chaos Beasts."
She looked at me, dead serious.
"Until today."
I swallowed. "And I'm... different?"
"You're a walking, breathing LOVE reactor," she said. "Your output spiked the moment I touched you. The kiss? That was... off the charts. I've never felt a charge like that."
I was speechless.
A sentence that had never existed in human history was now directed at me:"You have off-the-charts kiss energy."
She leaned in slightly. "Tell me something. Have you ever had a girlfriend?"
"What? No!"
"Aha. Virgin LOVE. That explains the purity."
I choked on air. "Excuse me?!"
"I mean, it's not bad. It's cute," she added. "Unrefined. Powerful. It makes you a perfect anchor source."
"Anchor what?"
"Think of it like a plug-in station. A magical girl connects to you, draws LOVE, transforms, fights, and wins. Simple."
She clapped her hands. "Congratulations! You're now an official, if unofficial, LOVE battery."
"No, no, no. I didn't sign up for this!"
"You don't have to. You've already been activated."
She reached into thin air and pulled out what looked like a holographic ID. A spinning heart symbol flickered in the air next to it.
"Yuuta Aikawa. Compatibility: S-Class. Status: Open Source. Consent: Implied via first contact."
"Wait, WAIT! You kissed me without permission!"
"Emergency circumstances," she said with a grin. "Article 7 of the Magical Combat Clause allows immediate skinship for the sake of planetary defense."
"That's not a real law!"
"Tell that to the monster you watched explode."
I opened my mouth to argue.
I had nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
I was too busy trying to process the fact that I now apparently had a stat sheet somewhere in a government database under the title "Source of Virgin Love Energy."
She stood up and began pacing.
"Look, I wouldn't be here if this wasn't serious. Today was just a test. Tomorrow, there'll be more Chaos Beasts. Stronger ones. And if I'm going to survive, I need access to your energy."
"You mean... kisses?"
She gave me a sly smile.
"Kisses. Hugs. Hand-holding. Maybe some cuddling if you're okay with it."
I felt my face go nuclear.
She laughed.
"Oh relax. It's all magical protocol. Besides, it's not like I enjoy it or anything."
She turned her face slightly away, but her ears were red.
I swallowed. "So... what happens now?"
"Well," she said, hands on her hips, "you keep living your life. Go to school, do your homework, eat your vegetables."
"Seriously?"
"Yeah. I'll just pop in whenever I need a recharge."
"You mean you're going to keep breaking into my room?"
She tilted her head. "You want me to use the front door?"
"No! I mean—wait, yes—but—ugh."
She took a step toward me, and I instinctively backed up.
"Relax," she said softly. "You're not in danger. You're not a target. You're just a source."
I stared at her.
She was glowing again. Faint, but there.
A magical girl.
In my room.
Telling me I had something she needed.
Not because I was strong.
Not because I was brave.
Just... because I existed.
"Can I say no?" I asked finally.
She hesitated.
"You can," she said. "But... people could die."
That hit harder than I expected.
Silence.
She looked genuinely uncomfortable. "I don't want to guilt-trip you. I'm just being honest."
I sat back down, staring at the floor.
"This is insane," I muttered.
"Yup."
"Completely insane."
"Totally."
I looked up at her. She looked back.
"...Fine," I said.
Her face lit up.
"Really?"
I raised a finger. "Ground rules."
She nodded eagerly.
"No surprise kisses. No climbing into my bed. No public displays of—whatever this is."
She made a little salute. "Got it."
"And you owe me lunch. For the trauma."
She smirked. "I'll buy you a bento tomorrow."
"Make it two."
"Done."
She walked back toward the window, then paused.
"Oh, and Yuuta?"
"Yeah?"
She winked.
"I do enjoy it. A little."
And then she was gone.
I stared at the open window.
I was never sleeping again.