Mai Kazuki is an eleven-year-old girl who comes from a family deeply involved in the world of stage magic. Her parents run a modest snack shop, while her grandparents are the leaders of a renowned magical troupe known as Magic Carat. She grew up surrounded by the troupe and dreams of one day becoming a great stage magician herself, with her idol being a famous legend named Emily Howell. However, her path is complicated by her natural clumsiness and a distinct lack of talent for the precision and sleight of hand that stage magic requires, which often leads to mishaps during practice and performances.

Mai’s life changes when she meets Topo, a mirror fairy residing in her favorite stuffed flying squirrel doll. Because she is the only one who can see him, Topo grants her a magical bracelet. By using this bracelet and a wand, along with the incantation "Pulitto! Pararin Ririkaru Parapora Magikaru!", Mai can transform into an older alter ego of about sixteen to eighteen years of age. This transformed persona, whom she names Magical Emi, has teal hair and exudes the grace, poise, and genuine magical power that Mai herself lacks. As Emi, she becomes the star of the Magic Carat show, dazzling audiences and gaining fame as a media phenomenon. While in her civilian form, Mai is a lively and energetic girl, prone to throwing tantrums and losing her temper, especially with her rival, Sho. As Emi, she is far more even-tempered and confident. The transformation sequence is a whimsical process involving swirling bubbles and a radiant flourish of her wand.

A key part of Mai’s motivation is her desire to prove herself. The magic she receives feels like a shortcut, and she is acutely aware that her success as Emi is due to supernatural artifice rather than her own hard-earned skill. This internal conflict is compounded by the presence of her younger brother, Misaki, who is a naturally gifted magician, contrasting sharply with her own clumsiness. At school, she is oblivious to the affections of her classmate Musashi, who has a crush on her. A significant relationship in her life is with Sho Yuki, a seventeen-year-old aspiring boxer who is also raised by her grandparents as a member of the Magic Carat troupe. The two share a bickering, sibling-like rivalry, though it is often implied that Mai might have a precocious crush on him.

Mai also struggles with the pressures of societal expectations regarding gender roles. After receiving a poor grade in home economics, she becomes furious about the hypocrisy of the men around her who expect women to be perfect housewives while doing nothing to help themselves, and she ultimately resents the idea that her destiny is tied solely to domesticity. Her journey of self-discovery forces her to confront whether relying on magic undermines her personal growth. Her mother, Yuko, was a talented magician who gave up her career to marry and start a family, and it is through this family dynamic that Mai learns she has the freedom to shape her own path. The turning point of her development occurs when she wins a magic contest while transformed as Emi. The victory feels hollow and empty because she realizes she won by cheating with her magical powers rather than through genuine talent or practice. This disillusionment leads her to the pivotal decision to renounce the bracelet's power. By the end of the story, Mai gives up her magical abilities willingly, choosing instead to become Brought Down to Normal so that she can learn to become a great stage magician the hard way, through discipline, patience, and perseverance. As Magical Emi, her notable abilities include genuine magical prowess, flight, and the power to create illusions. In contrast, as the civilian Mai, her only notable ability is her unwavering, though untrained, passion for the art of stage magic.