Two sausages without sauce

Have you ever yearned to be a hero?

Even if it wasn’t about saving or helping others, but simply transforming and wielding immense power by holding an item.

Whether it was a colossal warrior of light, a colorful squad working in unison, a dashing belt-wielding fighter, or an adorable magical girl.

In today’s world, this was no longer an unattainable dream; even if fate didn’t choose you, for a mere 50,000, you could acquire a brand-new Lv1 transformation belt, instantly donning a custom-fitted battle suit.

And if you were willing to pay another 450,000 for an upgrade, an Lv2 belt would bestow upon you physical abilities several times greater than those of an ordinary person.

Heroes no longer seemed so distant. With advancing technology, the very definition of a hero appeared to be shifting, as more and more entered the public eye, and countless advertisements and products proudly bore the ‘Hero Recommended’ label.

“Magical girls are clearly way stronger! That’s the power of star stones from a magic kingdom, something only chosen children can possess. How could you stinky boys ever understand?”

“So what? How could a mere magical girl ever beat a belt-wielding fighter? Behold my Level 4 belt! Golden Thunder Flash Sword! Swoosh! Swoosh! Hrah! Ha, you’re done for, magical girl.”

“What do you mean ‘done for’? I have a shield!”

“Shields are useless!”

“Haha, magical girl minion~ So weak~”

“Take my ultimate move! Die!”

“You… you guys… Waaah…” Outnumbered and outmatched by the boys, the girl burst into tears and retreated.

‘Ah, children these days really haven’t changed at all.’

Gazing at the scene before him, the young office worker couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. His suit, somewhat old and faded, with a few smudges, lent him an air of weariness.

“Sir, your grilled sausage.”

“…”

“Hey! Sir! Your grilled sausage!!”

“Oh, oh! Ah, sorry about that.” Only after the vendor tapped his shoulder did he realize he was being addressed. The young man sheepishly accepted the grilled sausage.

“Honestly, we’re very busy here. Take it and move along quickly! Next customer! One set of soy milk and fried dough sticks!”

Despite his apologetic mumble, the stall owner paid him no mind, still bustling with their work. The young man could only take his grilled sausage and return to the park bench.

His name was Yu Wangxin, or Axin for short, a 26-year-old office worker who had traveled from a northern city to work in the City of the Sea. The train journey alone took two days, requiring transfers, and living here alone was far from easy.

More challenging than the loneliness of living far from home was the state of his wallet. His meager salary barely sustained a normal life; given the choice, he would have preferred a pancake over a single grilled sausage.

Forced to wake early by his neighbors’ daily noise, he now found himself on a park bench in front of the station, watching the children play to pass the time.

Looking back at the children, he saw the girl walk away. The three boys exchanged glances, then slipped to a corner, pulled card boxes from their backpacks, and began playing with Magical Girl trading cards.

Perhaps to save face, believing that liking magical girls was a ‘girly’ thing, they had ungracefully shooed the girl away, only to then play with Magical Girl cards themselves.

“I overlay Magical Girl Lumi and Magical Girl Sri! Come forth, Magical Girl Xin-chan!”

“What?! A powerful card that lets you retrieve a spell from your graveyard at the end of the turn! But this card art is so shiny!”

“Heh heh, not only are its effects powerful, but this card is also a limited edition signed by Magical Girl Xin-chan herself! A single one costs around 30,000 domestically!”

“Pfft!” Hearing the price, Axin involuntarily spat out the grilled sausage he had just bitten into.

‘30,000! How much do you like Magical Girl Xin-chan?! My monthly salary is only 3,000, for crying out loud!’

Axin couldn’t help but inwardly complain. This kid looked like a mere second or third grader, yet he could afford a card starting at 30,000!

‘Children in big cities really are something else.’

A chilly wind rustled, signaling the arrival of autumn. The lonely Axin watched the boy proudly display his sparkling signed card, contrasting it with the grilled sausage in his own hand, now missing a bite. A wave of sadness washed over him as he looked at the wasted sausage on the ground.

He thought of how, just to save money, his clothes at home were five or six years old, some even torn, patched up year after year. Yet these children before him never had to consider such things; they could even take advantage of their parents’ early shifts on Saturdays to come out and play early. Watching their smiles, Axin sighed, inadvertently drawing the children’s attention.

“That uncle is so weird, always staring at us.”

“He must be a card thief! The kind who steals kids’ cards to sell for money. Magical Girl Xin-jie said we must keep our important things safe and watch out for people like him! Let’s go!”

With that, the little rascals scowled, put away their precious cards, and left. Axin felt a pang in his heart at their words, almost unable to hold back a flood of tears.

‘W-well, that’s great, I guess I’ve become a role model for the children.’

‘Though your “idol” is practically starving to death right now!’

Indeed, as the title of this work might suggest, Axin was none other than the true form of Magical Girl Xin-chan. A commoner from the lower rungs of society, he also possessed another identity—Magical Girl Xin-chan!

Though his initial transformation had been out of necessity, he had been a magical girl for ten years now, and his cute appearance had garnered considerable popularity. Often, he would see all sorts of merchandise featuring himself, yet he hadn’t received a single penny for it, let alone for signed cards. Those were probably just signed by proxies anyway.

On that note, seeing the children use his own words to suspect him—how many people could truly understand that indescribable melancholy?

Perhaps anyone facing such a situation would probably feel numb, but what was even more numbing was… he had forgotten to ask the vendor to brush a layer of sauce on his grilled sausage.

The grilled sausage was soft, fragrant, and spicy, yet it lacked that crucial, soul-elevating element! Then, something even more shocking occurred: the money he’d used to buy the sausage appeared to be his bus fare.

“Damn.”

Numbness piled upon numbness. The thought of his company being over ten kilometers from the park shattered his composure even further. For a momentary indulgence, he had now sacrificed his bus fare. At this realization, the grilled sausage in his hand no longer tasted delicious; instead, it felt like a bitter gallstone lodged in his heart.