Chapter 162: The Angel Who Crossdresses (12)

Episode 162: The Angel Who Crossdresses (12)

A woman stood outside the infirmary.

To some, she was called a saint, and to others, a hero.

But she called herself a heretic.

‘This conversation.’

And as a heretic who had turned her back on Heaven, she couldn’t bring herself to interrupt the conversation between the young angel and the fallen girl.

Clumsy talk about truth.

But they were speaking of the essence of this world.

‘A conversation between an angel and a heretic.’

Saint Rebecca closed her eyes, she recalled the emotions she felt when Leffrey was revealed to be an angel.

‘He’s not an angel recorded in the Heavenly Host. It means he’s a newly created angel.’

‘Information about this child was created about a year ago. Hmm, no matter how much of an angel he is, we’ve been expecting too much from a mere one-year-old.’

‘But an angel, now of all times? Didn’t Heaven abandon Earth?’

‘Who can truly understand Heaven’s will?’

All they could do was speculate.

And Saint Rebecca dared to speculate about Heaven’s will.

‘Heaven is giving us false hope again.’

To tempt people with an unreachable light, that was Heaven’s nature. To become an oppressed slave by following Heaven’s words, that was reality.

To send a one-year-old angel who was far too weak compared to the Demon King, now of all times…

‘They’re torturing us with the tool called hope.’

That’s why Rebecca couldn’t look at Leffrey.

She knew that the child was innocent.

Yet she still hated Heaven.

This world was already moving according to the laws preached by a dark truth, and the laws that Heaven had spread were long forgotten.

That was why she couldn’t interrupt the conversation between the Fallen Hero and Leffrey. She wanted to know what excuses that young angel would say.

And his excuse were just as she had expected.

“Humans want to be loved. They want to be free from pain. They want their families to be happy. And they want this world to be a better place. It might be incredibly weak compared to darkness, but this is also a truth that humans have discovered.”

Truly, it was just as she had expected.

“So why are you only looking at the dark truth? Please, just give the light another chance…”

But…

“Please…”

…Rebecca couldn’t help but acknowledge it.

That even she, ultimately, also wanted to be loved, wished for her family’s happiness, and yearned for a better world.

Yes, it’s true that humanity darkens the world. But it is also a human truth to shine a light amidst that darkness.

Those who have truly pursued the truth would know what true truth really is.

“I’ve been thinking.”

A boy’s voice, choked with tears, was heard.

A voice that could be mistaken for a girl’s at first glance.

That voice was enough to make Rebecca’s eyes tremble.

“Perhaps, the true truth that we seek lies beyond both light and darkness.”

The boy continued.

“I’m not denying the existence of darkness. And I’m not denying that the light is weak. I’m not saying that the world isn’t cruel, and I’m not ignorant of the injustice the light can bring.”

He kept speaking.

“But surely, there must be something beyond it all. So please, don’t just look at the darkness.”

Rebecca’s hand touched the infirmary door,

And the door slowly began to open.

“Until we know what that is, we have no choice but to keep living…”

And she could see it. The blue-haired girl, opening her mouth to ask Leffrey something.

“Where did my sister go?”

“She went beyond. To a place even higher than Heaven. Not to light or darkness, but to the place beyond that.”

A place simply called infinity.

Ain Soph.

Although they were words without proof, Lisera believed it.

And so did Rebecca, who was standing outside the door.

“…..”

The blue-haired girl smiled. Though tears welled in her eyes, that smile was beautiful.

“I believe you.”

Leffrey tilted his head as if unsure whether she really believed it, but the Fallen Hero just smiled and murmured.

“I will believe… your words…”

Thus ended the conversation between an angel and a heretic.

The other heretic, who was standing outside the door, somehow managed to collect herself and left.

At that moment, with the sound of shattering glass from the sky above, the barrier that was cast for the sake of one girl, began to crumble.

* * *

Alone, looking at Lucera’s belongings that were left behind, Leffrey wondered if he had done the right thing.

‘Lucera, she’s gone.’

A literal pure girl without a single speck of stain. A girl who had taken good care of Leffrey.

‘Where did that child really go?’

It was a barrier meant to maintain Lucera’s purity in the first place. It was perhaps natural for her purity, her soul, to return to where it belonged the moment that barrier was lifted.

Did she go to hell?

Leffrey absolutely didn’t think so.

Then did she go to heaven?

He didn’t think so either.

‘There must be something beyond.’

[Demonic power is reacting.]

[Angelic Power is reacting.]

Two conflicting karmas flowed within him. One was the karma he had extracted from the demon king’s avatar, and the other was the karma he had accumulated as Leffrey.

One responded to Leffrey’s darkness, and the other resonated to Leffrey’s light.

‘But the darkness is also a part of me. The me who feels inferior, the me who has nightmares, the selfish me, and the me who can’t believe in this world.’

Leffrey had once tried to dispel that darkness, but now he had changed his mind.

How could there be a being in this world who only had light. Such a child cannot exist.

And could one claim that only darkness,

Or only light is the truth.

‘Surely there must be something beyond.’

Yes, Leffrey didn’t know what that ‘beyond’ was either.

But until he found it, he had no choice but to keep living.

Knock knock knock-

“Leffrey, are you ready? They say the ball is about to begin.”

Soda’s voice came through. Leffrey sighed and looked down once more at the dress he was wearing.

‘…The darkness is deep. Too deep.’

A dress made of sky-blue fabric. A dress that made even Leffrey, who knew nothing about fashion, mutter ‘It looks like a dress from a romance fantasy novel’. It was the Rainmaker’s creation.

When Leffrey said he needed a dress for the ball, the Rainmaker had made a shocked face, then nodded as if he understood everything.

‘Even an angel have hobbies.’

Leffrey, blushing, had completely denied it, but…

‘They say a strong denial is an affirmation. Hmm hmm, you say you hate crossdressing, and yet you’re even wearing light makeup.’

That was Hongwol’s doing.

Hongwol always loved dressing up.

However, no matter what he said, Leffrey would be the one labeled a pervert. So, Leffrey had no choice but to just give up and ask the Rainmaker for a dress.

But this dress,

It was a bit strange.

It wasn’t so long that it dragged on the floor, but it was voluminous. And yet the top part was… lacking. It even revealed a bit of his chest area.

‘Just kill me.’

If he was just a girl who hadn’t gone through puberty, then it wouldn’t have been that strange.

‘Showing this appearance in front of girls is a matter of my dignity and ethics…’

Hawaawa- Hoeenng-

Leffrey, letting out a girlish shriek, adjusted his sapphire brooch and looked in the mirror once again.

[I’ll make you a dress that will suit you perfectly. The keyword is the sky, not the bright midday sky but the clear morning sky.]

That’s right. Not the authoritative sky, but the color of the sky that gently embraces the world. The color of the sky that he had seen when he once flew up.

That incredibly beautiful color.

[It will be perfect for Angel-nim. Trust me.]

And the dress made in that color truly suited Leffrey perfectly. It was mesmerizing, even to himself.

Space out—Leffrey stared blankly at his reflection.

“Leffrey! Are you! Ready?”

Beep—Leffrey, who had been spaced out, snapped out of it when Soya called out to him.

“Yes, I’ll be right out.”

Crossdressing would be over today anyway.

Leffrey, abandoning the lingering attachment he wouldn’t admit to, put on a bright smile and went to greet Soya.

And when Soya saw Leffrey.

“…You’re too beautiful. It’s like looking at the sky.”

Soya, who rarely complimented others, muttered those words as if she were mesmerized. Leffrey turned his head in embarrassment before calling out to Soya again.

“Soya, are you ready?”

Soya was wearing a confident, proud expression.

Leffrey had to admit it was warranted.

“You’re so cute.”

“C-Cute?”

Soya was wearing a black dress. And with a matching black bonnet on her head, she looked just like a doll.

It was what some would call gothic, and others, classic lolita fashion.

It was a style that suited Soya 120%, almost destined for her. Enough to make Leffrey think he should buy her more clothes in this style.

“Um, doesn’t it give off more of a black mage’s dignified look than cute?”

…Leffrey subtly avoided answering her question.

Then he asked again,

“Where are the others?”

“Busy. Death to all Inssa(social butterflies).”

(TL Note: 인싸 (inssa) extroverts, basically, Idk why I made this note again.)

Hongwol, with her cat-like energy, would have already made some friends, and Yumari, being the young lady of the Seocheon Yu, would be busy socializing with the nobles.

And Soya, being a black mage, wouldn’t easily fit in at a missionary school like this.

“Sorry.”

“Huh?”

After offering an apology,

Leffrey headed to the ballroom with Soya.

The last day of the exchange program. A ball, hosted by the students of the Central Superhuman Academy and the St. Lucia Academy. The Central Academy students, all dressed up, were hitting on the St. Lucia students, and the St. Lucia students didn’t really seem to mind.

After the Fallen Hero’s barrier was broken,

St. Lucia had also accepted darkness.

“Milady, may I have this dance?”

A male student from the Central Academy suddenly approached Leffrey. Although he was very flustered, he just said, “Sorry, I have a prior engagement,” and ran away.

“Didn’t he recognize me?”

“No, I think a few did.”

Leffrey looked around. One male student was rubbing his eyes, muttering, ‘This must be a dream,’ and another spat out the champagne he was drinking.

And a third-year senior was staring blankly at him.

“…Whether male or female, isn’t it fine as long as it tastes good?”

Leffrey gritted his teeth.

That person who just said that…

I’ll make sure to get my revenge.

“I agree with that.”

“Seconded.”

Including those two.

Thus, Leffrey’s fighting spirit burned.

As Leffrey and Soya were wandering around looking for a secluded spot in the ballroom, a woman came up behind Leffrey and murmured.

“Leffrey.”

“…Professor Rebecca?”

That woman’s name was Rebecca.

A theology professor at the Central Superhuman Academy and a saint.

And an unknown heretic.

Rebecca, without even greeting him, threw out a simple question.

“Is there really something ‘beyond’?”

Her expression no longer held resentment towards Heaven, nor did she seem to despair of this world after realizing its dark truth.

Rebecca was simply purely,

…Curious.

Leffrey answered.

“I have already found my answer.”

Thus, on the last day of the exchange program, on a spring night, as fireworks exploded and boys and girls met each other.

The saint regained her faith.