Reliable Friends! The Three Rinjyuku-hime!
The peaceful everyday lives of everyone were suddenly shattered one day when a group calling itself Chaos Nightmare invaded from a parallel universe. They destroyed towns, stole anything they wanted and even harvested the lives of innocent people for their own evil needs. Suddenly rampaging around without any obvious goal, they were a symbol of nightmarish evil. People began living in terror since even national militaries couldn"t match up against them. That was when an ordinary girl, just another scared citizen, named Shuubou Sakura appeared.
This girl became a turning point. As Sakura was being evacuated during an attack from Chaos Nightmare, a light fell down towards her from the heavens. Before she even noticed, she was holding a small jewelled pendant in her hand. Trembling, the cherry blossom coloured gem suddenly burst with pink light that covered the girl and a warm force filled her body.
A stream of consciousness then flowed into her mind and she saw countless worlds that had fallen to Chaos Nightmare. When the torrent of memories and thought ceased and Sakura came back to herself, her body had completely changed. Her uniform had been replaced with a pink costume and the jewel in her hand had become a huge sword that she could use to slash down her enemies.
Her ability to understand what"s going on can"t catch up to the current events. Still, the girl strongly clasps the handle of the sword. She believes she can change herself with the power now in her grasp.
Like this, Shuubou Sakura is chosen by a miraculous power and changes to become the Rinjyuku-hime Spinel Rose, a enemy that will thwart the plans of Chaos Nightmare.
—the girl truly believed that by doing her best earnestly she could change herself.
"Spinel Rose! You, each and every time… how many times do I have to tell you!?"
A high pitched voice that rings like tinnitus echoes across the rooftop of a quiet office building. Originally damaged by a Chaos Nightmare attack, the building is currently under repairs. Despite its out of the way location, it is a convenient hideout for girls who have secrets to keep.
Currently the blue and pink Rinjyuku-hime are here along with another girl wearing a yellow costume who is yelling loudly.
"Please calm down Beryl Sonisan. You"re being too loud…"
"Shut up yourself! You don"t have to worry about a moron who won"t even listen to the advice of others despite her own stupidity!"
The girl"s name is Beryl Sonia and she too was chosen by the same miracle as the other two girls. She wears a yellow and white costume that is very open at the chest exposing a lot of cleavage. Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s are very large and they seem like they"ll spill from the costume any moment but the girl doesn"t seem to mind. Her skirt is also very short and the area between her boots and the skirt gleams dazzlingly. Like a gravure model, the costume emphasises and flaunts her beautiful body while oozing confidence and style.
She has blonde hair that she wears with two tails coming down from near the top of her head and has vibrantly blue eyes. Just looking at her she gives the impression of a haughty rich girl who looks down on others. Sadly, her att.i.tude perfectly matches her appearance. Right not she"s ranting and raving while telling Spinel Rose off for her actions earlier today.
These three girls are the Rinjyuku-hime, the hope of the people. The bright pink Rinjyuku-hime Spinel Rose, the deep azure Rinjyuku-hime Lapis Lily and the golden Rinjyuku-hime Beryl Sonia. These girls, all very different from one another, have survived numerous battles. However, despite having the same mission, the three don"t necessarily have a friendly relations.h.i.+p with one another.
"You"re such a useless small fry, you need to listen to us and retreat when you"re told to you idiot!"
"I… I"m… not useless…"
"Shut up! You got absolutely messed up by a single subordinate style minion from Chaos Nightmare! This time you tried to face off against Jack Grey, what were you thinking!?"
Being yelled at endlessly, Spinel Rose loses the will to argue and meekly looks down.
Spinel Rose is what you could call a misfit or drop out heroine. Her sword skills are subpar, her magic power is utterly useless and her only talent is her body"s powerful regenerative capability. Such a useless girl who can only get underfoot during battles infuriates the pragmatic and haughty Beryl Sonia.
"Did you want to die or something facing Jack Grey!? What were you thinking, come on!?"
"I didn"t know what to do, Beryl wasn"t there and she couldn"t beat Jack either…"
"What!? Are you making fun of me!?"
"Hiiii…!"
Having her collar grabbed by the angry Beryl, Spinel Rose tries to back away fearfully. While this dangerous mood spreads, Lapis Lily interrupts to defuse the situation.
"Beryl Sonisan, please calm down. There was a hostage this time and if Spinel Rose didn"t show up when she did, who knows what the enemy may have done."
"…tch."
"I understand that you"re worried about her, but if you yell so angrily, you"ll hurt Spinel Rose"s feelings."
"Huh? I don"t care about her or her d.a.m.n feelings, I just want her to stop being such a d.a.m.n burden!"
Turning to Lapis Lily, Beryl Sonia lets go of Spinel Rose"s collar. As if surprised by the words of her other companion, Beryl"s face is twisted into an ugly furious expression.
"I don"t care if this stupid moron dies, I just want her to stop making us Rinjyuku-hime look bad in front of the ma.s.ses. Having her around just makes me look worse. If you"re going to get yourself killed at least crawl away and die where no one can see you!"
"Beryl Sonisan! You"re taking this joke too far!"
"Hmph. Shouldn"t you be saying something too Lapis Lily. Even after this useless small fry got out of your way you still didn"t manage to defeat Jack Grey did you?"
"…that… no, that"s right. I"m sorry, I"m sorry my uselessness bothered you…"
Lapis Lily bows her head. Completely surprised, Spinel Rose can only stare at her in wide eyed shock when the blue Rinjyuku-hime doesn"t voice any objections.
Spinel Rose knows that Lapis Lily had driven the wolf man into a corner during their duel. Despite being injured herself, the wolf man had lost an arm when she lopped it off with her rapier. However, Jack was able to slip away thanks to the interruption of another. Despite losing his arm, the wolf man showed no inclination to stopping their battle. However, a sparkling summoning circle had suddenly appeared below the wolf man"s feet and, wrapped in magic, he"d disappeared.
This was no mistake on the part of the blue girl. She should tell the ranting girl in front of her that it wasn"t her fault at all. However, Lapis Lily doesn"t and merely lowers her head.
The citizens had been saved, the monsters repulsed and yet, despite this, Lapis Lily"s actions hadn"t made the Rinjyuku-hime look good as a group so she takes the reprimand while Spinel Rose watches not understanding what"s going on.
"Hah… it"s fine. I know it"s a waste of time telling you two useless idiots off."
Having said that, Beryl Sonia heads towards the edge of the roof. The golden Rinjyuku-hime always acts alone and has never told the other two her real ident.i.ty. She only occasionally fights alongside them if they happen to meet on the battlefield.
"Beryl Sonisan!"
"Well then, see you. Next time try not to get in my way so much!"
The girl acting like a capricious princess ignores Lapis Lily"s call and steps off the roof of the building, disappearing over the edge.
"…Beryl Sonisan always says such nasty things, please don"t let it bother you."
"…Mm."
"We should head back now too. Spinel Rose-san was injured too, if anything happens please don"t hesitate to call me okay."
Lapis Lily gives a gentle smile despite having been badly injured herself in today"s battle. Despite this, she doesn"t get angry nor blame Spinel Rose. Instead she"s the sort of girl who worries about others even when hurt herself. With her gentle smile, caring mind and battle prowess she is the very epitome of what people imagine when they hear the term heroine of justice. Looking at the blue Rinjyuku-hime, she seems so radiant to Spinel Rose.
"…jealous."
From the very bottom of her heart, Spinel Rose thinks this.
There is a park that used to be filled with children every day until the strange forms of the people from Chaos Nightmare appeared in this world. Spinel Rose used to frequent this park before it fell from popularity thanks to the dangers of the otherworldly invaders. Today like many others, Spinel Rose uses it to hide in while she undoes her transformation. However, Sakura, having changed back, doesn"t immediately leave the park. Instead, she sits alone on a bench.
"Haaa…"
A heavy sigh leaks from the girl"s mouth. A sense of frustration fills Sakura"s heart. The other two princesses are amazing and she"s so useless. This frustrates her more than anything.
(Whatever I do, it always goes so wrong…)
Unable to stand out or succeed, the girl feels incredibly gloomy and down. People always say that if you do your best and keep trying you"ll eventually succeed and be noticed by the people around you. However, reality is much crueller than that and Sakura"s heart is being worn down.
(After all this, nothing"s changed…)
Sighing once again, Sakura"s heart feels heavy in her chest. At the same time, the girl notices something.
(Huh…?)
Sakura can feel magical power. Chaos Nightmare"s members are different from ordinary humans and they all have magical power so they can use their different abilities. This is how as a heroine the Rinjyuku-hime are able to sense Chaos Nightmare"s attacks even in the most remote of locations. Feeling this magical power faintly, Sakura knows there is a possibility that an enemy is attacking somewhere in the vicinity.
(But, what is this? This magical power is really weak…)
The reaction is so small that it"s hard to imagine that it could even be the most basic of soldiers for the enemy. Until now nothing like this has ever happened so Sakura isn"t sure what to do.
(Should I contact Lapis…)
When Sakura thinks that, the words from the rooftop come rising back up from her heavy heart. Useless, small fry, hindrance, they were words that she couldn"t even refute and reject. Hearing them had been so frustrating that she could never forgive them. This right now would be her chance to redeem herself and show that she wasn"t useless baggage.
(That right. I"m the same as they two!)
Sakura decides what she"s going to do and, making sure no one is around to see her, holds up a pendant while saying a quick prayer.
"Pure Rose! Crystallise!"
As if responding to the prayer, a bright pink light bursts forth from the pendant and in the blink of an eye the girl has transformed into a Rinjyuku-hime. The place she felt the magical power from was quite a distance away at the very edge of town. Hoping to arrive before the other two noticed it, Spinel Rose sprints off towards her target.
Spinel Rose arrives at the city"s port. The sun is dipping towards the horizon and a brilliant sunset s.h.i.+mmers across the water of the bay. In this bright orange landscape on the sound of the breeze and waves can be heard.
(There"s no one here?)
The magical reaction is still here. However it is so weak and ephemeral that its impossible to pin down its exact location. The pink coloured Princess looks around, but the shadows don"t contain enemies and she can"t find anyone. The only thing that stands out is a larger than normal warehouse.
(Inside there…?)
Staying vigilant, Spinel Rose moves towards the warehouse. Keeping her eyes peeled and listening with all her might, she does her best to a.s.sess the dangers that could be lurking in the warehouse before she even touches the door.
"Oh, are you looking for some~one in there?"
"Eh!?"
Hearing the sudden voice, Spinel Rose spins around without thinking. Looking up, there is the shadowy shape of someone standing on the roof. Backlit by the setting sun, the shadowy figure seems to s.h.i.+mmer strangely.
"h.e.l.lo Spinel Rose-chan. I"ve come to grant you your wish♥"