Tactical Girlfriend

The man led them down a narrow hallway branching off from the foyer. The walls were plain, offering no hint of what lay ahead. Their footsteps echoed against the hard floor until they reached a single door at the far end. He pushed it open and stepped inside, holding it for Braith and Yumie.

Braith froze once he entered.

Seven people filled the room - four humans and three humanoid Mahotonas. Three beings like Yumie.

A dog-girl with floppy ears.
A cat-boy with a long, restless tail.
A sheep-girl with soft, creamy curls.

Each stood behind their Mahoros - three foreigners lounging on sofas in what looked like a shared common room. The fourth human, wearing a black suit and dark glasses, occupied the center of the room, his posture radiating professional authority.

The man who’d guided them in stepped forward and gestured around.

“Braith. Yumie. Let me introduce you to every foreign humanoid Mahotona in the world.”

Braith’s heart lurched. Only four? He found himself wondering how many native humanoid Mahotona existed - but the room was already stirring.

The first Mahoro spoke, a broad-shouldered man with a dog-girl standing dutifully behind him.

“Would ya look at that, a fox-girl.”
He thumbed toward himself. “Name’s Julen, and this is Amane.”

Amane offered a polite wave just as the second Mahoro chimed in, his cat-boy Mahotona practically shimmering with twinkish energy beside him.

“Fadel. This is Baha.”

Braith nodded quickly.

The last Mahoro, a nervous girl with glasses, cleared her throat.

“I-I’m Eevi. And… and…”

Her sheep-girl Mahotona smiled warmly.
“I’m Kertu. It’s nice to meet you both.”

Before Braith could respond, Yumie tugged his sleeve and whispered:

“What’s going on?”

He opened his mouth, but Julen beat him to it.

“Yer seem awfully attached to your Mahotona, Braith. What’s the deal?”

Braith’s eyes sharpened as Yumie turned her blank gaze toward Julen’s voice. He decided to be direct - to head off every future question at once.

“She’s blind.”

Julen recoiled, regret flooding his features. Sympathy and pity flickered across the others. Even the suited man muttered under his breath:

“A blind Mahotona. Humanoid, no less. A curse. A sign of things to come.”

The guide from the foyer quickly waved a hand.

“Don’t mind him.”

He smiled warmly at them.
“I’m Sunata. And that’s Tamiya. Think of us as the overseers of this stronghold, though I’m more of a landlord. Tamiya here handles operations.”

Tamiya gave a brief nod. Braith mirrored it - then noticed both Sunata and Tamiya carried holstered handguns. A prickle ran up his neck, but he did his best to hide it behind the face he used when meeting strangers.

Yumie whispered again.

“What’s going on?”

He leaned closer, answering softly.

“We’re being introduced to other foreigners who have humanoid Mahotonas like you.”

She blinked up at him in surprise.

“I’m not normal?”

She said it too loudly. Eevi snorted, then covered her mouth in a panic. Sunata chuckled.

“Sorry, Yumie. You wouldn’t know. You’re one of the rarest types of Mahotona that exist.”

Yumie’s mouth opened… closed… then she smiled sweetly at absolutely no one.

“Uhm… question?”

Sunata nodded. “Ask anything.”

“Is marriage between a Mahotona and Mahoro legal?”

Tamiya choked and spat his drink all over the table. Sunata blinked, dumbfounded. Braith went motionless, unsure whether to laugh, cry, or evaporate.

The other Mahotonas reacted instantly - Amane and Kertu perking up with shy curiosity, while Baha remained completely expressionless. Their Mahoros mirrored them almost perfectly.

Kertu leaned forward, eyes wide.

“Are you saying… you two are in a relationship?”

Yumie nodded, sheepish but earnest.

Sunata sputtered, eyes jumping between them.

“Y-you’re dating yourself…”

Braith grimaced.

“She said she was her own person…”

Yumie frowned.

“And I am.”

Sunata opened his mouth, but Tamiya suddenly burst into loud, unrestrained laughter.

“Hah! That might be the solution to your problem!”

Braith stared.

“What?”

Tamiya grinned.

“If you two are that close, you’ll sync better. Should, anyway. You might even be able to get around the blindness issue.”

Braith blinked.

“Huh?”

Sunata sighed.

“Unfortunately, you’ll have to hear him out. He knows what he’s talking about.”

Tamiya leaned back with a smirk.

“It’s not rocket science. It’s just about comfort. And if you have zero issues touching each other, you’ll have zero issues communicating and fighting at range.”

Braith opened his mouth - but Tamiya barreled on.

“In this group, you’re our sniper. We can’t put a blind Mahotona up close.”

He turned to Yumie.

“So, what can you do offensively? Aside from being adorable. Yumie, right?”

Yumie nodded, ignoring the flatter. Her voice was small.

“I can’t use normal offensive magic…”

The room froze. Even the air felt stunned.

Tamiya’s eyes widened.

“Y-you can’t use magic?”

She shook her head.

“Besides healing… I can’t use the normal kind.”

He frowned.

“You’re hiding something. Out with it. No one here’s gonna judge you.”

Yumie hesitated, swallowing hard.

“I… I can heal… and I can shoot…”

Tamiya rubbed his temple.

“Stop dancing around it. Shoot what?”

Her grip tightened around Braith’s arm.

“I… I can shoot bullets…”

Shock ricocheted across the room. Tamiya spluttered.

“B-bullets? What do you mean, bullets?!”

Yumie shuffled nervously, so Braith stepped in.

“She can shoot. Simple as that.”

Tamiya stared, completely lost for a moment. Then:

“Eevi, scan her. Now.”

Eevi nodded. Kertu was already forward, moving with gentle, springy steps. Standing before Yumie, she raised a hand. Her curls shifted as she tilted her head - then her eyes flew wide.

She turned back to the group, voice trembling with awe.

“She… she has audio replication…”

The room went utterly still.

Braith opened his mouth to ask what that meant, but Tamiya let out a sharp laugh, waving Kertu aside so he could see Braith and Yumie clearly.

“A curse and a blessing, that’s what you are! You two are simultaneously the weakest and strongest Mahoro-Mahotona pair ever born!”

Braith blinked. Yumie stared slightly off to the left, her face blank but tense.

Tamiya folded his arms, crossing one leg casually.

“Your role hasn’t changed, Braith. But if Yumie truly has replication, then she’s our strongest asset, by far.”

Braith finally found his voice.

“What exactly is audio replication?”

Tamiya pointed at Yumie.

“Your fox-girl can replicate the destructive output of any weapon she hears. Think about it. If she’s shooting already, you two must’ve been caught in that airport mess. Sorry about that, by the way.”

He leaned forward, eyes gleaming.

“But imagine if she heard an artillery shell. Or a tank firing. Or…”

His voice dropped to a near-whisper.

“A nuclear detonation?”

Braith shivered. He’d suspected - but hearing it confirmed was something else entirely.

Then Yumie’s voice drifted out, small and fragile enough to break the air.

“So… my entire existence… is to kill people?”

Tamiya shrugged.

“Sure seems that way.”

Tears began to spill from Yumie’s eyes, trailing down her cheeks as her lips trembled.

“But I don’t want to be a weapon…”

Silence swept through the room like a cold wind.

“I… don’t want to live my life as a walking gun…”

Tamiya sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“Sorry, hun. But that’s how the cards landed.”

He muttered under his breath:
“God always gives His greatest gifts to the most ungrateful. Such is life.”

Yumie shook her head and buried her face into Braith’s arm, going still.

Sunata finally stepped in.

“That’s enough for today. We’ll meet again tomorrow to discuss the team’s operations. Until then, everyone’s dismissed.”

He gestured to a side door.

“Braith, Yumie, your room’s this way.”

Braith followed, though progress was slow; Yumie refused to lift her head from his arm, clinging as though she might fall apart if she let go.

His thoughts spun. His eyes felt heavy. After eleven hours of flight, a firefight, a new country, and discovering his girlfriend was apparently a tactical weapon, his brain simply shut down.