Chapter 1: New Day, New Monster Girl

I'll admit it, I love monster girls.

Ah, wait, that's not a polite way someone should introduce themselves. Can we get a take two on that? I'll do a proper introduction this time.

This is Yukihara Kenshin, reporting as part of the Rehabilitation Department of the Monster Girl Investigation Committee.

That's just one of my standard work greetings, but it does the job well enough. If it needs to be shortened, then calling me Ken is fine. Sometimes keeping things simple is the path to a solution.

Anyways, I, Ken, love monster girls. I was the typical type of anime and games fan you'd see in high school. I looked forward to certain releases, swooned over striking images of pretty 2D women, and all the usual stuff.

Though, when it came to my passions, I'd always love stories with monster girls in them. Aren't they just the greatest? Who else but monster girls have charm points like twitching ears, or flicking tails, or sneezing fire, or spreading slime by walking, or-

Well, you get the point. There are things only monster girls can do. They have that sweet, sacred spot of gap moe that comes only from having two separate halves to make the whole.

I was perfectly content to admire monster girls in only my delusions for all of my life… but then monster girls became real. On the day I graduated high school, they just… appeared. It was as if they had always existed in the first place.

Some people turned into them, others were born as them, and the rest all entered our world from an alternate one. You could never quite tell how they would appear, but eventually, seeing a monster girl walking down the street wasn't even a strange occurrence anymore.

Of course, the term “monster girls” is quite broad. Some people would consider a slime girl and a centauress two completely different things. Should a horse girl really be classified as a monster? There are these debates even today. For me, if there's even a slight anomaly, my trademarked and aptly self-named “monster girl sense” goes off. So animal girls, monster girls, and everything outside and in between are all fine by me.

It was exactly because of my love for monster girls that I got a job at the Monster Girl Investigation Committee, or MGIC for short. The Director of the MGIC insists that it's pronounced like “magic”, but only about half of the staff honor that wish.

In the Rehabilitation Department, we take newly discovered monster girls and help them acclimate to their new circumstances. This usually falls into one of four protocols.

For humans transformed into monster girls, we help them adjust to their new features through monster girl therapy. We call this Type 1 rehabilitation.

For monster girls entering from an alternate world, we assist them in learning language and acclimate them into society. Social norms, laws, and various skills are shared before they are confirmed to be released. This is Type 2 rehabilitation.

For newly born monster girls, we assist mothers with raising the child for a certain amount of time, depending on various circumstances. Some children are born monster girls despite having human parents, and some monster girl mothers might need guidance on raising such children. This is Type 3 rehabilitation.

For these three types of rehabilitation, there are various facilities, staff, and dormitories that help ensure positive growth and societal acclimation. I'm officially classified as a Monster Girl Rehabilitation Specialist, and so I help in all of these areas with a joyous and healed heart.

Monster girls are great, and the fact that I can use my knowledge to help them truly makes for a refreshing existence. Since these girls started appearing the day I graduated high school, I immediately switched my college career into something that would involve monster girls. It was out of my own interests, I will not deny that, but I think I was pretty smart in doing so.

Joining newly created training programs for monster girl management meant I was a pioneer in creating the first wave of monster girl policies, even with my young age. To think that in just 6 years, I've already been satisfied with my job and career, I truly am lucky. I never thought drooling over 2D women would make me money.

Of course it's a bit uncouth to actually think that way over actual monster girls, so I restrain myself and maintain a professional attitude at work. As someone who dodged social groups in both middle and high school, I know how to read the room.

In any case, my status as a Specialist allows me to take on the last type of rehabilitation case, which is Type S. These are one on one cases between a Specialist and a monster girl, and involve the two in close proximity to each other.

The MGIC provides a dormitory with special room plans that house a Specialist in one apartment and a monster girl in the apartment next door. Type S cases mimic cohabitation, but leave both the Specialists and monster girls with their own privacy. Usually, these cases take a few months to resolve. I have done 6 Type S cases myself, and completing them is quite fulfilling. Generous bonuses aside, it's always nice to see a monster girl, or really anyone, become more comfortable and confident with themselves.

I was pondering my schedule for the upcoming week while browsing through some specific monster girl fan sites. These online boards popped up almost as fast as the monster girls did, and once monster girls started commercializing themselves, such sites grew in number drastically.

On my days off, I browse these sites to keep track of updates on cases I managed. These sites are also great for catching rumors about unidentified monster girls, which the MGIC hopes to properly help. A particular coworker of mine complained saying I never spend time with them and instead work even on my days off, but doing this in my free time is how I relax. If I can relax while also staying prepared for my future work, why would I waste time with someone I already see every time I work?

I never understand their priorities, but I guess that's a two way street, because even after becoming familiar with each other, I can't understand them either.

“Knock knock! Heyyy!! Ken!! It's me!!!”

Speak of the devil, it's them. …Right, since there are demon and devil girls now, I can't really use that phrase. Let me correct myself.

Speak of the pixie, she's here. She's the only person I know who verbalizes the words “knock knock” while knocking. Well, I guess with her being a pixie, she's not really going to make a noticeable knocking sound unless she's deliberately forceful. I guess it's just her way of being respectful.

Opening the door, I find floating before me a pocket-sized woman in a gray blazer and matching pencil skirt. Her bright blonde hair and blue eyes contrast her gray attire, and with every flutter of her wings, she scatters blue pixie dust that falls to the floor.

“Hello again, Ken! My favorite human! Be glad that you can stand in my presence, even on your day off!”

“...Hello, Mivian. Why are you here?”

Mivian Limeberry was a Type 2 case that was escalated to a Type S case after some circumstances. She hails from a magic forest, hence her noticeable accent and somewhat peculiar way of speaking.

I was the Specialist responsible for handling her. Living with a tiny pixie who had once lost all confidence was certainly… interesting. Every day was practically a game of hide and seek, until eventually Mivian started becoming confident with herself. I was proud to finally ease her into becoming more comfortable, but now I worry that she's a little too confident.

Then again, such bravado got her the position above me at the MGIC, and now she's a Monster Girl Staff Coordinator. Why is she here on my day off?

“I've got a new case for you! Type S!”

“...You do realize it's my day off, right? Plus, if this is a Type S case, why have I not been notified in writing like usual?”

“Eh? W-Well, um, there were some… circumstances! Yes! Anyways, be grateful! I've got her right here! It shouldn't be a problem since you've been staying at the dormitory recently right? She'll be moving in next door!”

“She's here now?! Mivian what are you-”

The pixie woman snapped her fingers and a girl appeared in the air before face planting into the floor.

“Blehhh…”

…Bleh?

“Alright! So! Information! She's a partially transformed jiangshi, she's 2 years your junior, and as such is familiar with most things, but she's having trouble adjusting to her current self. She'll need help with comprehension and movement training!”

“Blehhh…”

“I’m pretty sure that's her saying hello. Also, she can feed on life force, so if she bites you, just let it happen. She isn't strong enough to pose any danger to you. All you'll feel is a wave of exhaustion at the most.”

I helped the girl sit up, who clearly wasn't expecting to be in her current situation. She's extremely pale, and is only wearing a loosely fitting button up shirt. Was she sleeping or something? Does she even have any belongings with her?

“Mivian, what's with this entirely contrived situation? You can’t just-”

“Oh, and one last thing! Whatever you do, NEVER let her talisman fall off her forehead, okay? It's super important, just like for other jiangshi. If it somehow comes off you need to put it back on right away. If you can't manage that, I'll have to fire you, and you wouldn't want that, would you Ken? I would hate to see my favorite person leave the MGIC.”

This woman, should I teach her a lesson by catching her with a bug net and bringing her to a kindergarten show and tell? What's with her completely irresponsible attitude right now?

“Ah, and I have no idea what her name or story is, so you can just figure that out yourself. Have fun! Ciao ciao!”

“Hey! Wait!!”

In a flash of pixie dust, Mivian runs around the corner, on the air mind you, and proceeds to teleport away once she's out of my sight. She can just teleport regularly, so why'd she include that extra spectacle of running away? Is she deliberately trying to annoy me?

And she did that all without a single ounce of remorse in her. I'm seriously going to have to teach her a lesson one day. Despite my grievances, I should take care of the girl in front of me first.

Jiangshi are a rare type of monster girl. They're what you'd expect from their name. With stiff, outstretched arms, blue skin, traditional mandarin clothing, and awkward hops, they're easily recognizable as a subspecies of the zombie monster girl archetype.

But Mivian was saying this girl is a “half-Jiangshi”? Only partially transformed? So she must have been a normal human before this.

The thing to note with rehabilitating jiangshi is the talisman on their foreheads. It usually has a command inscribed on them that helps the girls more easily integrate themselves into society. With special characters on these papers, specific workers are needed to prepare them.

The body of a jiangshi will take the command written on the talisman to heart, and follow its orders faithfully. There's a lot of careful ground to tread when it comes to such talismans, but that's the reason why we consult with both the monster girls and talisman experts.

With that in mind, looking at this girl's face again, there seems to be a grave issue.

On her forehead, instead of a traditional talisman, there lies a… sticky note. A small, bright yellow paper, with the words “Please take care of me” scribbled on it in messy writing.

“Please take care of me? On a sticky note?! What type of jiangshi command is this? This isn't a proper talisman at all!”

“Blehhh….”

Was it me, or did that bleh sound a little dejected? Well, I'll learn her quirks soon enough.

“Sorry, Miss, I was unprofessional, let's get you to your living space and settle things, alright?”

She doesn't move. Instead she shakes her head wildly and then drools. I quickly take out a handkerchief and wipe her face with it. This poor girl has no idea what's going on, does she? She must be frightened.

Ah wait! The sticky note on her forehead is… starting to peel off?! I quickly restick the lifting corner of the sticky note. My job right now is dependent on that thing not falling off.

“Woah woah woah, Miss, let's be careful with the active head movements for now, alright? We need to keep this… talisman on you for your own benefit. This will help you now that you're a jiangshi.”

“Blehh?”

“Yes, yes, it will help you.”

She stares at me with blank eyes. Her face is pale, but pretty. She's got shining silver eyes and long pink hair that almost seems white with how faded the color is. Looking at me like this, she seems clueless.

All I can do is sigh. It's no use complaining about this. A monster girl needs help and I'm someone who can help her. Time to get to work.