Monsters appear every day and at completely unscheduled times. To counter this, we have a dedicated police team whose job is reporting on the appearance of any new portals. Civilians can also call our centralized center if they spot a portal first.
My country, Esteria, is a sizable island, roughly one-third the size of Australia. Most of our cities and towns are nestled right against the forest line. We are one of the few nations that never saw an established monarchy; we adopted democracy the moment we gained independence from British colonization on September 15, 1954. After a few hundred years of colonization, English remains our main language, as our ancestral language was not successfully preserved.
Civilian Life and Earnings
After having breakfast, I settled down to play a video game, my main hobby.
My parents, of course, worry constantly about me being a Magical Girl, given how dangerous the work is. But since I have this power—and the pay is quite generous—I choose to stick with the job. We Magical Girls receive free healthcare and are fully insured against any damage we cause during a fight.
Esteria's economy depends on a lot of things. My town, Vineyard Town, is especially famous for its alcohol industry. We thrive on grapevine farming and still use our traditional methods for making wine and spirits, even if we lost the language used to describe the process centuries ago. Tourism is also huge; our country receives millions of tourists yearly.
Our forests are a major draw. We have some of the most beautiful beaches in the world, and there are many undiscovered underground caves scattered across the island. To my surprise, people still go caving and cave diving, even with the constant monster threat.
We rarely cut trees, prioritizing the maintenance of our forests. The only exception is when it's necessary—for instance, a big tree can cause a lot of damage when it falls, so we preemptively cut it down before it becomes dangerous.
Friends and the Future
Each city, town, or village has a quota of stationed Magical Girl authorities to protect them. In Vineyard Town, we only have me. But in a big city like Silver Harbour City, there are many more Magical Girls stationed, operating like a squad.
The strongest Magical Girl there is Frostbite. She's one of my closest friends; we've known each other since high school. Her civilian name is Michelle Smith, and she's married with two young sons, aged seven and five. If I recall correctly, her husband is a teacher at a high school in her city.
As for me, Arthur Hemlock, I don't have a wife or a girlfriend right now.
Seeing how dangerous my job is gives me enough reason to remain single. My partner would have to watch me go out to fight and understand the very real chance that I might not come home alive. I see how worried my parents are, and it's a heavy burden to put on someone else.
But I know I can't stay single forever. Despite how dangerous my life is, I know deep down I might still find someone I want to spend the rest of my life with.