Chapter 133: The Angel Who Prevents Terrorism (6)

Episode 133: The Angel Who Prevents Terrorism (6)

“The Superhuman Management Bureau? Why the Superhuman Management Bureau? No, that can’t be right. This is strange.”

The boy, looking at the card he had drawn, couldn’t believe it. The girl, called headmaster by some, looked at the boy with the same expression.

‘Even knowing the future where this world is doomed, he doesn’t waver at all.’

There was one rule for angels. Especially for those with a talent for handling karma, a rule that the stronger the angel, the more they had to abide by it.

‘Do not waver at the destruction foretold by karma, and never forsake your duty.’

The direction of the world, karma, could be described as a road sign. A road sign that doesn’t allow U-turns, a sign that only allows you to go forward.

So, those who can read that sign, inevitably realize what awaits at the end of that road.

A cliff.

An unimaginable hell.

A time when the word “salvation” becomes a joke.

A time when the word “despair” becomes commonplace.

The few angels, those powerful angels who knew such an era was coming, were in despair.

Yes.

That’s why Luciel had despaired.

Even that archangel, who soared the highest and shone the brightest, couldn’t bear to face this truth.

‘And I was the same.’

Headmaster Iriel recalled her past. The day she first learned to read karma. The depth of despair she felt that day.

And seduced by Luciel’s words, she abandoned her duty and joined the rebellion.

‘So, in the end, I died.’

That’s why she was so surprised.

That he, standing confidently in the face of a truth that even she couldn’t endure and had crumbled before, was moving to change the world.

“You, you. Do you even know what kind of future awaits us?”

“…Of course.”

No, that’s impossible. There’s no way he could have already seen it all.

The headmaster thought Leffrey was bluffing. There’s no way he could be this calm after seeing such a future. There’s no way he would still fight to protect humanity after knowing everything.

“This is how the world ends. First…”

The boy, not even looking at the girl, began to speak of the tragedies that would unfold in the future. How the superpowers would crumble, how people would die.

He spoke plainly, without exaggeration.

But his sorrow couldn’t be hidden.

Iriel knew that everything Leffrey was saying was true. It was a future she had read to some extent as well.

‘He saw even further than I did. He knows it all, as if he had witnessed the destruction firsthand. And yet, he’s not even shaken.’

Actually, he *had* witnessed it firsthand, but there was no way for Iriel to know that.

‘Knowing such a future and yet not forgetting his duty in the slightest, continuing to strive to protect this world.’

Even Iriel couldn’t help but acknowledge it. The fact that there are people who still fight, even though they know what the future holds. That even knowing what awaits them, some people won’t give up.

‘…To think that even among the angels, those heavenly puppets, there was someone like this…’

The boy’s words, like an inscription on a tombstone, were etched deep within her heart, refusing to fade.

Iriel silently shed a tear.

[Restoring faith to an angel who had lost it is a truly angelic act!]

[You have gained a large amount of Angelic Power.]

[Rekindling the emotion of hope in an angel whose heart had worn away is truly an angelic act!]

[You have gained a large amount of Angelic Power.]

Surprised by the sudden influx of tremendous angelic power, Leffrey looked at Iriel with slight shock.

‘W-Why am I getting so much Angelic Power?’

Leffrey had merely just spoken of things he knew. To think that he was getting this much Angelic Power from doing just that.

‘A large amount of Angelic Power, twice…’

Leffrey, his mood improving, murmured in an excited voice,

“Hmm, the Superhuman Management Bureau might be full of bad people… but they’re not crazy enough to massacre thousands of their own citizens.”

The angel pondered over the symbol he had read. Watching this, Iriel carefully opened her mouth.

“The Superhuman Management Bureau is the culprit?”

“…My intuition says so. According to the future I know, that shouldn’t be the case. Huh, Iriel, were you crying?”

“No, I haven’t. And your intuition is probably correct.”

The girl’s white finger pointed at Leffrey’s silver shoes.

“You have the Silver Shoes. It would have told you if your interpretation was wrong.”

Iriel said those words, as if to reassure Leffrey that he was right.

Leffrey, hearing that, started thinking hard.

Iriel smiled.

It wasn’t a smile to gain his favor. Nor was it a smile to make him lower his guard.

Because of Luciel’s betrayal, Iriel couldn’t trust angels. And the fact that even she herself had participated in that betrayal made her unable to even trust herself.

Iriel couldn’t trust any angel.

‘No, it’s different now.’

Iriel smiled once again.

It was the smile of someone who had regained their faith.

“…Why would the Superhuman Management Bureau even do something like that? No, if the Superhuman Management Bureau is behind it, then there’s no way to stop them.”

Although Leffrey was loved by many, he had no backing. And even if he did have a decent backer, the Superhuman Management Bureau was too powerful of an organization.

“Don’t worry, I’ll help you.”

“…You, Headmaster?”

Iriel had suddenly changed her attitude. Iriel, who had always looked at Leffrey with suspicious eyes, those emotions were completely gone now.

“I will always be here to help you, from now on. My Archangel.”

Her eyes sparkled, as if she had regained her vitality. Leffrey, feeling a bit overwhelmed by that gaze, whistled and looked away.

‘W-what’s this? Why is she acting like that all of a sudden?’

That wasn’t a suspicious gaze.

That was a gaze filled with respect.

But why was Headmaster Iriel looking at him with such respect?

‘…Why?’

Leffrey didn’t know.

The headmaster draped a black satin coat, like a cape, over her white dress. The emblem of the Central Superhuman Academy was embroidered on the back of that satin coat with gold thread.

‘The coat that signifies her authority as the headmaster.’

Iriel tapped on her smartphone and said,

“Leffriel, why do you think people strive to get into good schools?”

A random question.

But Leffrey answered.

“Well, there are various reasons. To get a better education. Or because it helps their resume.”

“There’s another reason besides that.”

The headmaster continued.

And the girl’s eyes were filled with selfish mischief.

“It’s to build connections.”

Back in the early days of the Central Superhuman Academy. The headmaster had personally organized classes and raised the first and second generations of academy students.

And among the first and second generation students that the headmaster had personally raised, there were many who achieved high positions in society. For example…

…The deputy director of the Superhuman Management Bureau.

“Hello. Ah, it’s been a while.”

“…Master, it’s been a long time.”

The two continued the phone call in bright voices. The one who answered the phone seemed truly happy to hear their master’s voice after so long, and the headmaster also smiled, as if she was happy to hear her student’s voice.

A heartwarming scene.

‘Oh, Iriel, it seems you were a good teacher.’

In such a warm scene, Leffrey couldn’t help but smile warmly.

“So, Se-hwan, I have a favor to ask.”

“Please tell me anything.”

“My superior will be visiting the Superhuman Management Bureau soon. I’ll send you the details in a text message, so please look after him.”

“Your superior, Master? You’re the only angel from Heaven, and to think that you have a superior…”

The student’s voice suddenly turned serious.

“I will not fail you!”

Watching that, Leffrey tilted his head.

Superior? Who on earth could be Iriel’s superior?

“Who is it?”

“The deputy director of the Superhuman Management Bureau.”

“Gasp.”

The deputy director of the Superhuman Management Bureau is practically the second-in-command of the bureau. To think that she had such a powerful figure as her student…

Leffrey looked at Iriel enviously.

“Still, Leffriel, I don’t recommend you visit the Superhuman Management Bureau.”

“…Wait, the ‘superior’ you mentioned earlier is me?”

“Yes.”

Iriel smiled. A smile filled with admiration.

“To still fight, even after knowing about such a future…”

The girl whispered,

“You’ll always be my archangel.”

And the Revived Angel Iriel whispered with a wicked smile that was not at all angelic.

“In other words, it means that the power of our academy is with you.”

“Ooh…”

“Not bad. It was about time for us to show our true strength anyway.”

Leffrey, not quite understanding, just nodded.

The power of the Central Superhuman Academy.

Though he didn’t know what it was, it must be something incredibly powerful

“The Superhuman Management Bureau? They’re nothing before our true power. You don’t have to worry.”

“…?”

“Besides, with your skills, you won’t even get hurt…”

Ominous words. Leffrey couldn’t help but tilt his head at her last sentence.

* * *

“The true power of the Central Superhuman Academy….”

Leffrey, sitting on the bus, muttered as if he knew but didn’t know. The Central Superhuman Academy, the best superhuman training institution in the world, its importance was beyond imagination.

What ordinary people didn’t know was that the professors of the Central Superhuman Academy were humanity’s strongest in their respective fields, heroes who protected the world from the shadows.

But if you were talking about powerful organizations…

“That’s a bit ambiguous.”

No matter how highly you think of the Central Superhuman Academy, it was ultimately just a part of the Ministry of Education. How could a mere part of the Ministry of Education compete with the Superhuman Management Bureau, an organization that was practically equivalent to the combined forces of the Ministry of Defense, Administration, Land, and so on.

Plus, look at that colossal building.

Even though the sun was high in the sky, its shadow alone was enough to turn that entire area into dusk.

“…It’s cold.”

The weather was already getting colder, and with the sun blocked, the area was freezing. Leffrey, clutching his cheap padded jacket, exhaled a breath of white air as he walked towards the Superhuman Management Bureau.

‘Come to think of it, I’ve been wearing this jacket ever since I saved that cat.’

Once, this jacket had hidden a pink cat. A cat that was severely injured.

‘I’ve been wearing it since then…’

It was a jacket he had been wearing for quite some time.

But he couldn’t bring himself to throw it away.

Because it was one of the few belongings he had, on that night he awakened as Leffrey.

‘I wonder what kind of life Leffrey lived before I awakened as myself?

He didn’t know that either.

Leffrey’s past was pretty much erased.

An orphan with no connections.

Truly an invisible man.

He was lost in such idle thought, and before he knew it, he had arrived at the main gate of the Superhuman Management Bureau.

A massive gate tens of meters high. In front of it, several guards were standing watch.

“Hello.”

Leffrey greeted them kindly.

No matter how much he disliked the Superhuman Management Bureau, it wasn’t the low-ranking personnel’s fault, right? Angels should be merciful.

“State your business.”

The guard’s voice was cold. Leffrey, unfazed, spoke,

“I’m here on business. To be more precise, I’m here to meet someone.”

“Registration is done at the annex over there. Get lost.”

The guard, after quickly scanning Leffrey, dismissed him, seeing his worn-out and cheap padded jacket.

‘Even though I’m trying to be nice…’

And Leffrey became a little angry.

In this situation, Iriel’s voice came to mind.

[

“The true power of the Central Superhuman Academy? What’s that?”

Leffrey, who knew that there were many secrets hidden in the Central Academy, he couldn’t help but be curious. What kind of secret was she hiding? What did she mean by ‘true power’?

Just what kind of power could stand against the Superhuman Management Bureau, an organization that wielded power not just in this country, but even in other worlds?

‘Since she’s an angel, it must be some kind of holy power.’

Thump thump—As Leffrey’s heart began to race, Iriel declared with a serious expression,

“That power is…”

Iriel’s finger drew a circle.

“…Money and authority.”

]

Anyway, leaving Iriel’s words aside…

Leffrey, as a final act of mercy, tried to appeal to the guards with a desperate expression,

“Hey, I don’t want to cause any trouble here. If you just contact the people inside, they’ll let me through…”

“Stop talking nonsense. You really want to do this the hard way?”

If it were any other time, the guards would have already used their batons. They had become accustomed to violence against these low-class citizens, who were always protesting in front of the Superhuman Management Bureau after being wronged.

The only reason they were holding back was because Leffrey was too pretty to beat up. And besides, didn’t he look pitiful, begging them like this?

This was them being merciful already, twice.

“…Ha, I guess there’s no choice.”

“We’re the ones who have no choice.”

Crackle—Blue sparks flew from the guard’s baton. It was an electric baton. Leffrey, ignoring them, was sending a text message to someone.

And then the guard’s phone started ringing.

“I really don’t want to have to beat up a kid like this.”

“Take the call.”

Leffrey, without a word, pointed at the guard’s phone. The guard’s phone was indeed ringing.

The guard who answered the phone immediately straightened his body, and with a slightly trembling voice, loudly answered “Yes!” “Yes!”

And immediately, the group of guards parted.

“Please, proceed.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“A-And, VIP-nim.”

The head guard’s voice trembled.

“Please forgive our rudeness earlier. We beg you.”

“…I’ll think about it. You’ll have to show some sincerity, won’t you?”

Leffrey, the Bully Angel, smiled.

‘So this is the true power of the Central Superhuman Academy. Money and power.’

And to get money and power…

“Iriel, just what are you thinking?”

…Leffrey muttered in a quiet voice as he entered the Superhuman Management Bureau.