As the sun set, the sky turned a fiery red, reflected in the river. A summer breeze blew, fluttering the long pink hair of a girl standing by the water.
Her face was still a bit childish, but you could already see the beauty she would become. She wasn't old, but she was a certified beauty-in-the-making. The boy next to her was dazed. Even though they were childhood friends and saw each other every day, it was as if he was noticing her charm for the first time. His heart skipped a beat.
"Kazuki, what is it? Why are you staring?"
"N-nothing..." Kazuki Okino blushed and looked away.
Otome tilted her head, seemingly oblivious to his reaction. "Kazuki, don't you think it's strange? I haven't seen Rinka much lately. Even though it's summer break, she seems so busy and mysterious."
"Is she?" Kazuki didn't usually pay attention to his sister. "I don't know what she's up to. I rarely see her. Do you care that much about her, Otome?"
"It's not that, it's just that we're friends, so..."
"I'll ask her when I get home."
"Kazuki, it's getting late. I should head back."
"Okay, Otome. Bye~"
Waving goodbye to her friend, the pink-haired girl turned to leave. Even as a primary schooler, she was elegant, possessing a mix of innocence and allure—a classic Yamato Nadeshiko type.
Walking along the river, she didn't notice several sketchy-looking men following her. She was just a kid and didn't sense the danger.
The men followed at a distance, acting like normal pedestrians. They looked serious, as if they were planning to kidnap a high-profile target.
Of course, what they had in mind was worse than just kidnapping.
Otome crossed the river, went over a bridge, and turned through a few residential streets. When she entered a small alley, the men suddenly sped up, their faces twisting into malicious grins.
Thud thud thud—
The sound of running footsteps made Otome turn around. In that instant, a large hand covered her mouth. She was faced with several middle-aged men staring at her with lecherous eyes. She froze, her pupils shrinking.
She tried to scream, but it was muffled.
"Mmph! Mmph!"
The struggling girl was held tightly. She could only fight back physically, her small face pale with terror. Fear spread as she saw the disgusting smiles surrounding her.
What... what were they going to do?
"Got her—!"
"Heh, that wasn't easy. Finally found an easy target. She looks like a real beauty too. She'll be a masterpiece when she grows up, but by then, she'll already be our exclusive toy! Hahaha!"
The leader of the group made no secret of his desires, making Otome shudder. She realized her grim fate, and tears began to well in her eyes.
These people... these perverts... they want to... No! No!
"But boss, that's years away. Right now she's just a kid..." one of the men argued. He clearly wasn't into young girls.
"Idiot! beggars can't be choosers! All the women out there are either smart enough to avoid us or have joined that damn organization. Some of them even have those freakish superpowers. It's like they're possessed! Finally found a soft target, so be grateful!"
The other men sighed in agreement. The world had changed. It was one thing for women to band together, but they also had weird powers that prevented men from getting close. These guys had learned the hard way.
They had tried to snatch beautiful women for their pleasure, only to be crushed by those mysterious abilities. Word was that these women had formed a group to "clean up" society. Now, men like them didn't even dare to look at women on the street for fear of a sudden disaster.
Compared to that, a little girl was much easier to handle.
"Mmph... wuuu..."
Otome was like a fish on a cutting board. Her eyes went vacant. Even though she didn't understand everything they were saying, she knew they were "Chikan"—perverts who targeted girls.
She never thought she'd be targeted. Despair filled her heart. She thought of her friend, Rinka Okino. Rinka had faced something like this before, but she was saved by a high school boy.
But now, would anyone save her? The boy Rinka mentioned... there couldn't be such a coincidence, could there? The light began to fade from her eyes.
She stopped fighting, seemingly losing her will. If nothing changed, she would soon become a victim. But then, a series of rapid footsteps startled the men.
"Boss! Someone's coming!"
Someone was here? The soul-less Otome felt a spark of hope. Was it the boy who saved Rinka? She looked up, but instead of a boy, she saw a group of older girls.
"Dammit! It's those women again! Fight them!"
"Good! We'll just take them all! I don't believe a bunch of brats can—OWWWWW!"
THUD— CRACK—!
The women pulled out tasers and batons, hitting the men far harder than the men could have hit them. They aimed for the heads. At the same time, silver crests on their bodies glowed, protecting them. The perverts were knocked down instantly.
Before they could even scream, high heels crushed their crotches. Blood-curdling screams echoed in the alley. Blood splattered. Within seconds, the perverts were barely clinging to life.
They were very experienced.
It was clear they had done this many times.
"Are you okay?" One of the girls walked over to Otome and helped her up. "Luckily I noticed something was wrong and called the others. I didn't think it would really be one of those scenes."
"These perverts... you can never kill them all."
"It's getting better. At least these incidents are happening less often, right?" the other girls said as they put away their weapons. "Even in public, men don't dare to stare anymore. That's our power! Hehe."
"It's because Master's power is protecting us. Without it, we would have been caught long ago." She was referring to the silver crests. Alex had given them to random girls on a whim, but they had become their ultimate shields.
Girls with these crests even held high-ranking positions in their organization. This was the change Alex had brought, even if he knew nothing about it.
"Thank you, big sisters..." The terrified Otome looked at them. "Who... who are you?"
"As long as you're okay. Just think of us as messengers of justice. But these guys are getting worse—targeting a primary schooler? Are they that desperate?"
"Yuko, don't we usually recruit them into the organization when we find them? Should we..."
"But she's just a primary schooler. Isn't that... and she doesn't have Master's protection."
"That's exactly why we should bring her in. To keep her safe."
The girls chirped and discussed, leaving Otome confused. Gradually, she gathered that these sisters were part of a mysterious organization? One that fought perverts?
Having just been saved, Otome was full of emotion. she wanted to join, but was too shy to ask. After what just happened, she felt the world was too dangerous. If she stayed oblivious, she wouldn't be so lucky next time.
In this moment, she completely forgot about her childhood friend.
"Let's ask the President. See what she says. Isn't the President a little squirt too~?"
"Right, I'll call her."
The mysterious "Savior's Support Group." An organization that appeared out of nowhere without Alex's knowledge, yet was tied to him in a thousand ways. Now, the mysterious President had finally appeared?
On the phone, the girl named Yuko explained the situation. A high-pitched, childish voice immediately came through. "A primary schooler? Is her name Otome? No way! I'm coming over right now!!"
The voice sounded young—definitely younger than the girls there. But they all obeyed this "President." It suggested her identity was special. But these girls didn't care about rank.
The women in this group had only one Master in their hearts.
They were more like partners. Besides, the President had been personally saved by the Master—she had lived through it. Among these girls, she was special, even if she was young.
Soon, Otome saw the "President." She was shocked to see a familiar face.
"Rinka?!!!" Otome gasped in disbelief.
"Otome, it really is you..."