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Carol Morales (10 years old) was a fourth-grade blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl who lived at the Tsukimori estate.
Until not too long ago, the Tsukimori estate had been crammed with many undocumented foreign residents (Strangers), but one by one they had found places to live and left. Now, only six people remained: Tsukimori Tsuyoshi, Miyama Kyousuke, Christina Najeen, Lonalia Linalia Baba-Nyan, Eileen Morales, and Carol Morales.
Carol’s mother, Eileen, often dressed up and went out with the boss of the Tsukimori household, and sometimes Carol went with them. The boss was kind, big, and felt just like a father to her, and she always secretly wished he would become her real dad.

Though she was only in fourth grade, Carol worked as a voice actress—going to the studio to record lines.
When her mother asked, “Want to give it a try?” she didn’t dislike the idea, so she tried it, got lots of praise, found it fun, and decided to keep doing it.
The anime Carol voiced, Magical Girl♡Carol-chan, was known to a few kids in her class. Since the anime’s Carol-chan looked just like her and had the same voice, it was an open secret that she was the one behind the character.
She felt a special thrill when she got to skip class to work, though the extra homework that came with it was a bit of a headache. Work had its ups and downs.

Carol wasn’t the only one in the business—she knew at least two others.

One was Lily, who voiced Underling Girl Lily-chan. A cute, short girl with chestnut hair, she had become Carol’s best friend ever since they first worked together two years ago at a department store rooftop show. They often went out in matching outfits or played games together at night over voice chat.
Lily was shy, but at work she could project an amazingly loud and gallant voice.
Unlike Carol, who was an undocumented immigrant, Lily was born to a couple who had gone through the proper procedures for an international marriage, and she had proper Japanese citizenship. Carol, on the other hand, also “technically” had Japanese citizenship thanks to some behind-the-scenes string-pulling by the boss, though the legitimacy of it was questionable.

The other was Kaori, who voiced Lackey Girl Abigail-chan. Tall, slim, with black hair, she always wore perfume despite school rules forbidding it. Carol had only met her after work began on the anime’s second season, so they weren’t very close yet. Despite Carol’s efforts to be friendly, Kaori always seemed to tease her, and it was starting to wear her down.
Still, Kaori had great diction and could produce a very mature voice.

That day, Carol had invited Kaori out to hang out in hopes of getting closer. For once, Kaori had agreed, so Carol waited for her outside the company’s automatic doors after work. Lily was with her.
Since that day’s recording had been a main episode for Abigail-chan, Carol and Lily’s parts had wrapped up quickly, and now they were waiting for Kaori to finish. They could have waited inside, but the front hall had just had new wallpaper put up, and they didn’t like the peculiar new smell, so they stayed outside in the cold instead.

Sharing one big scarf between them and snuggled together for warmth, they were waiting for Kaori when a woman in a sailor uniform approached. She stopped in front of them and greeted them cheerfully.

“Hello!”
“Hello.”
“…Hello.”
“Mm-hmm, you greeted me properly. Good job. You’re Carol-chan and Lily-chan, right?”

They nodded. She was a mysterious older girl who had suddenly spoken to them, but not a complete stranger—they had seen her in the front row at rooftop shows in the past, and more recently in the front row at anime preview events. She was a passionate fan.
Her face seemed a little different than usual, but this “Mystery Onee-san” changed her clothes and makeup drastically every time they met, so it was probably just that.
She crouched to their eye level and asked:

“Carol-chan, do you like Lily-chan?”
“Eh? Yeah, I like her.”
“Lily-chan, do you like Carol-chan?”
“…I like her.”
“Ughhhhhh!”

As soon as they answered, the woman clutched her face, looked up at the sky, and began to tremble—as if she were about to ascend to heaven on the spot.
Her vibe felt a bit different from the usual Onee-san, but they couldn’t quite figure out why.
After shaking and writhing for a bit, she asked them for an autograph. When they gave it, she bowed deeply to them in gratitude and walked away.

“That was kind of weird, huh?”
“…Yeah, even more than usual.”

The two tilted their heads, but the mystery of the mysterious Onee-san only deepened.

“Okay, ta-dah! Let’s go!”

A strong push came from behind. When they turned around, it was Kaori, looking stylish and warm in a white coat. She must have just finished work.

“Kaori-chan, you’re not wearing a scarf. Want to use the rest of ours?”
“No.”

Carol’s suggestion was shot down by Lily. Carol felt troubled—it seemed Lily didn’t like Kaori. She wished everyone could just get along.
The three started walking toward a nearby stationery store.

Because Carol had once been kidnapped by gangsters and was close to the head boss of the Tsukimori group, she always had a bodyguard when she went out. But that day, her bodyguard Chris had to cancel at the last minute because of a gang skirmish, so it was her first time going out without protection in a while.
That said, a replacement would probably be sent soon, so it was only a brief window.

Inside the stationery shop, they happily picked up trendy brand-name stationery that was popular among girls lately—giggling and fussing over them—when suddenly a shadow loomed over the three of them. Looking up, they saw a bear-like giant glaring down at them. His arms were as thick as logs, and looked like they could strangle three kids at once. Lily and Kaori froze in sudden fear.

Usually, this was the kind of situation where Carol shined. She was a gutsy girl, especially when it came to dealing with the underworld—after all, she lived surrounded by yakuza. At the Tsukimori estate, she often interacted with dangerous people.
But this time, even Carol froze.
The scent of deodorant on the giant’s body was the same as the kidnapper’s smell from when she had been abducted before.
Lily was trembling, hiding behind her. Carol thought, I have to be strong, but her trauma surged back, her mind went blank, and tears welled up.
Then someone suddenly stepped forward to stand between her and Lily, raising her voice.
It was Kaori.

“Y-y-y-y-you! Move it! What the heck are you?! You’re in the way! Gross! Go away!”

Kaori’s shaking voice rang through the store, drawing the attention of other customers and the clerks to the giant man.
The man froze for a moment, then reached toward the shelf the girls were standing in front of, quickly picking up a pink character-themed pencil case. In an apologetic tone, he said:

“…Ah, sorry about that, girls.”

He lumbered toward the checkout counter and said:

“Excuse me, could you gift-wrap this?”
“Of course. Is it for a child?”
“It’s for my niece.”

So he wasn’t a scary thug after all. It had just been a complete misunderstanding.
Carol felt both relieved and embarrassed at the same time.

“U-um…”

She timidly called out to the bear-like man after he finished paying. He turned around, lowering his gaze to meet hers.

“Sorry about earlier.”

When she bowed her head, his stern face wrinkled into a warm smile.

“Ah, I’m sorry for scaring you too.”

The bear-guy spoke kindly, waved, and left.
After he disappeared from sight, Kaori puffed out her chest and smirked at the other two.

“See that? That’s how it’s done!”
“Uh, what is?”
“I chased him off! You heard it, right?”
“…That man was scary, but I don’t think he was a bad person.”
“Huh? What are you talking about? Were you even watching, Lily?”
“…Kaori, you’ve got a bad personality.”
“Ohh, so that’s what you’re gonna say? After I went out of my way to save you? Huh? Huhhh?”

Kaori and Lily started bickering, and Carol was left feeling troubled.
It seemed the day when all three would get along was still far off.
But someday, they definitely would.
Because all three of them were magical girls.

**[Magical Girl ♡ Carol-chan Series]**

A magical girl series that began as a rooftop stage show for young girls. Its unique premise reflects the times: a girl studying abroad in Japan becomes a magical girl and fights yakuza-themed monsters. It expanded to a manga and drama CDs, and was eventually adapted into an anime. The anime drew attention because the in-story character ages matched the ages of the voice actors, and its high quality earned it a devoted fanbase. There are even rumors that real yakuza are backing it.

**[Magical Girl Carol-chan]**
CV: Carol Morales

An eight-year-old girl who came to Japan as a foreign exchange student (at the start of the series). By the beginning of the second anime season, she’s ten years old. She works hard every day to protect Japan from the clutches of yakuza monsters. A tough girl—she won’t even flinch when a bullet grazes her cheek, and will simply whack the shooter down with her magical staff.
Her special move, Magical Chivalrious Straight, is an incredibly strong straight punch, but if she hits an innocent person with it, her own body will explode into pieces—a true double-edged sword.
The person behind the character was actually kidnapped by real yakuza in the past, which is said to be the secret behind her strength—and her vulnerabilities.

Note: “Magical Girl ♡ Carol-chan” is the title of the show and the series, while the protagonist’s name is “Magical Girl Carol-chan.” If you mix this up in front of the more pedantic fans, they’ll get mad.

**[Underling Girl Lily-chan]**
CV: Liliane Williams

Carol-chan’s rival in the rooftop show and the first anime season. She’s a scoundrel, but remained loyal to her yakuza savior “Sewer Rat-Aniki” to the very end, disappearing into a burning skyscraper in the season one finale. However, at the start of season two, she miraculously survives and, with her big brother dead, is freed from the yakuza’s chains. Having lost her yakuza powers, she’s no longer an “Underling Girl,” but still appears often as a good friend to Carol-chan.
Off-screen, the actress is close friends with Carol’s, and they’ve often been spotted going out in matching outfits, holding hands. Recently, a tweet hinted she might be jealous of Kaori “stealing” Carol, causing a small online uproar.

**[Lackey Girl Abigail-chan]**
CV: Aida Kaori

Carol-chan’s rival in the second anime season. Possessed by the soul of a legendary yakuza from the Heian period, she hides it by pretending to be a weak underling, secretly pulling strings behind the scenes to trouble Carol-chan.
Her casting sparked debate among fans, as it was the first time a main cast member was voiced by a Japanese actress.
Her mother is a famous actress, and she was pampered growing up. Though her voice acting skills are genuine, she has an arrogant streak.

**[Mysterious Onee-san]**

Real name unknown. Since the rooftop show days, she’s always supported the series from the front row in cosplay. She has a perfect attendance record for official events up to the season two anime preview screening.
In the industry, she’s famous as an “archangel” who invests huge sums exclusively into magical girl anime shows, never dictating how the money is spent—“putting up the cash but not interfering.” No matter how much the committee begs, she refuses to fund any anime outside the magical girl genre.