Chapter 210: The Angel Who Spreads Its Wings (5)

Episode 210: The Angel Who Spreads Its Wings (5)

I could have avoided it.

A ridiculous missile with a sword attached instead of a warhead. And on top of that, a tracking system clumsily made by human skills.

For someone like me who could read Karma, I could have avoided such an attack hundreds of times even with my eyes closed.

‘Why did I try to deflect it?’

Knowing that the True Demon Sword had been broken, why did I forget that fact and try to block the holy sword.

‘I could have easily dodged it. But what I truly wanted to avoid was…’

What the Demon King really wanted to avoid was something else.

This very situation.

The situation where two girls, biting their lips tightly, placed their hands on top of each other on the handle of the holy sword that no one could grasp.

‘Yes, I was trying to avoid the holy sword being given to the hero’s hand.’

It was clearly a situation where he had been overwhelming them. The heroes were being swept away, unable to resist the source of karma, and the angel who spread his wings was about to have his wings torn off.

Even in such an advantageous situation, the Demon King hadn’t allowed a hero to wield the holy sword. If he hadn’t been so wary and had allowed it, the holy sword would have ultimately been just a weapon. If he had let them wield the holy sword and then crushed them with the source of karma…

Then it would have been the Demon King’s victory.

But why had the Demon King been so wary of a hero wielding the holy sword?

“Fai… th.”

The Demon King looked at the winged angel with wavering eyes. A sad smile hung on his lips, stained with black blood.

“Yes, I… I had no faith.”

If the Demon King had faith, he wouldn’t have been shaken by the variable called the holy sword and would have firmly moved toward his goal. But the Demon King couldn’t do that.

The Demon King could not believe in this world.

Because he knew everything, or so he thought.

“Yes, Demon King, you have no faith.”

The angel with spread wings spoke.

The winged angel looked at the Demon King with sad eyes.

“You can’t trust humans, not even until the very end.”

“How can I trust humans? After what happened, after what I’ve been through!”

The Demon King spat out black blood as if vomiting. The way he reached out to Leffrey in a fit of rage was pitiful beyond words.

Leffrey could see tears flowing from the Demon King’s eyes. Why. The crying Demon King somehow looked too much like himself.

Long ago, in a forgotten and vanished times, Leffrey could guess what the Demon King had experienced.

‘…I see.’

Leffrey realized.

That that boy, stained in black and shedding tears, was so incredibly similar to himself who had once had nightmares.

“You were also living in a nightmare.”

“No.”

“Were you hoping that someone would wake you up?”

“I said no!”

The Demon King roughly pushed away the white hand reaching towards his cheek and muttered.

“I don’t have nightmares. I’ve realized the truth, the darkness.”

“I know, nightmares are so sad.”

“Since I have realized, I’m not sad at all!”

“Nightmares are painful.”

“Trials for the truth are naturally painful. Leffrey, are you pretending to know something when you know nothing?”

“And nightmares are incredibly lonely.”

And then the words stopped.

The Demon King’s eyes widened in surprise, then squinted again, and tears began to pour out drop by drop.

“No.”

The Demon King said.

“No, no. I don’t have nightmares.”

The boy stained in black struck Leffrey’s hand away again and cried out in a loud voice as if possessed

“I’ve never wished for someone to soothe my pain!”

But the boy stained in black was still shedding tears.

Leffrey watched the boy without saying a word.

Thus, a time that was longer than a moment and shorter than eternity passed.

I’ve never wished for it, really…”

However, the Demon King, or rather the boy called the Demon King, was already resting his face on Leffrey’s hand.

As Leffrey stroked his jet-black hair, he could feel the sobbing growing louder, little by little. And slowly, Leffrey’s embrace wrapped around his shoulders.

If only they could stay like this forever.

*Push*—

But the Demon King pushed Leffrey away. In the little time that remained, he had something he absolutely had to tell Leffrey.

*Crack, crack*—His soul crumbling from handling the source of karma, his body collapsing because it had been deeply pierced by the holy sword.

The Demon King wiped away the black blood and opened his mouth.

“There will surely be another demon king who will take my place.”

Because humans are bound to create nightmarish moments, and among the children trapped in those moments, there would surely be one who realizes the dark truth.

And among those children who have realized the truth of darkness, one will surely, surely become the being called the Demon King.

A single teardrop rolled down.

The demon king explained it all with a single tear.

Leffrey nodded at that explanation and said.

“Then, at that time, I will surely comfort the child before it’s too late.”

Hearing the answer, the Demon King smiled.

“Hmph, try it if you can.”

*Crack*—*Crack*—Even as his body and soul were turning into ash and dust, the Demon King was smiling. The meaning of that smile was something only the Demon King himself would know.

“It’s light.”

Immediately after the Demon King disappeared, bright cracks began to engrave the sky as if lightning was spreading. The cracks grew larger and began to illuminate the ground with white and blue light.

“It’s the light.”

“Fi-Finally, a bright sky.”

“The sky, the sky is brightening again.”

People reached out their hands towards the sky.

The angel with spread wings smiled at those people.

The blue sea, the splendid summer forest.

The sparkling cities of humans.

And the sun shining from afar, illuminating all of us.

Leffrey couldn’t help but say these words.

“Such… a beautiful world…”

* * *

And the world didn’t really change that much.

Even though the great event of the hero defeating the Demon King occurred, the way the world worked did not change significantly. Of course, there were many nations, powerful figures, and factions that were destroyed by the Demon King, but those who were the center of the cogwheel were still alive.

Those who turned the gears of the world said, ‘The Demon King’s invasion last time was all fabricated,’ or ‘Heroes are nothing more than a made-up legend,’ refusing to acknowledge the changes in the world.

“The black sky incident last time was caused by a collision between the Dark Realm and the human world. It had nothing to do with that imaginary being called the Demon King.”

“But there are many who claim to have seen the Demon King.”

“Ha, do you believe the description of the Demon King those people talk about? A beautiful boy stained in jet black? Who are you telling to believe that the being called the Demon King looks like that? And if the real Demon King had appeared, why are we still alive? We should all be dead!”

The ‘professors,’ another one of the gears that turn this world, were exhausted from their battle with the Demon King, unable to stop such runaway cogwheels.

“Klein, when will you be able to return to active duty?”

Looking at Klein, who was wrapped in bandages all over his body, Park Jin-ho said this in a reproachful voice, as if asking why he caught a cold at such a busy time.

“Vice Principal, are you still trying to make me work? This is driving me crazy.”

Of course, Klein was dumbfounded.

He didn’t even know if he would be able to use magic again due to the aftereffects of casting Ma-sal, and yet he was being asked about when he could return to active duty.

“Didn’t Leffrey say it. The demon king will surely return.”

“He will return, everyone knows that fact.”

Klein said.

“Especially when the world is still so dark.”

“That’s why I’m saying this! This professor needs you!”

“Ack! I’m a patient! Be quiet!”

After venting for a while, Klein buried himself in the bed again and muttered.

“But we still have those children, don’t we.”

“Yes, we still have those children.”

Park Jin-ho, who was peeling an apple, looked at the Central Superhuman Academy spread out beyond the window and said.

“For the sake of those children, you and the other professors are needed. So get better quickly. That’s an order!”

“D-don’t shove the apple into my mouth!”

In front of a small, humble cathedral located on the outskirts of the Central Superhuman Academy, a girl wearing a witch’s hat too big for her small stature, was shouting something in an excited voice.

“Should I enter the classroom while shouting, ‘Hero Soya has arrived!’? Or should I say, ‘I am the Hero Sage Soya, the one who will open new horizons for black magic, no, the magic world!’ and then enter?”

“So-Soya.”

“Ah, what if I become too famous? I still need to secure time for my magic research… Eek!”

The one who stopped Soya’s rampage was the beautiful girl with pink hair, Hongwol. Hongwol used her overwhelmingly height advantage to press Soya down firmly.

“You’re like a runaway train. What? You’re going to brag about being a hero? Who said you could.”

“Wh-What? That hurts!”

Press, press—Hongwol laughed as she pressed Soya down with both palms.

“How can someone so short be this loud?”

“W-what? Are you saying it’s ridiculous how someone with small breasts and because of that small lungs can have such a loud voice? Y-you black magic hater…!”

“No, I didn’t say that much. And wait, how is saying you’re small a black magic hating comment? They’re completely unrelated.”

“Nnngh! It’s, my feelings!”

Until a beautiful girl with small horns, who was holding back from raising the corners of her mouth as if finding this situation very funny, appeared, Soya and Hongwol continued to bicker.

Mari made an ‘Ahem, ahem’ sound before naturally greeting them.

“Miss Soya, Miss Hongwol.”

And as soon as Mari appeared, the two girls clung to her.

“Yumari.”

“Yumari?”

“Everyone, it’s been a while.”

There was no need for even a single word of conversation. Both Hongwol and Soya were karma users who could read karma, so they could easily discern what kind of karma was flowing through Mari.

Dark Karma flowed through Mari as before. But Light Karma was also flowing together with it.

Soya felt a slight sense of respect for Mari.

‘Having such a dark past, yet embracing the light.’

And, not wanting to acknowledge that feeling, she turned her head away with a “hmph!” But Mari continued speaking as if Soya’s attitude didn’t bother her.

“I happened to overhear a bit of the conversation earlier.”

“H-how much of the conversation did you hear?”

“I started hearing when Miss Soya said she was going to announce that she’s a hero.”

“What. You already heard everything then!”

Mari slowly approached Soya and shook her head as if to say that shouldn’t be done.

“Miss Soya, we must not reveal that we are heroes.”

“Why?”

“Think about the political implications.”

Political implications. Soya tilted her head at those words and took a step back.

“What, what political?”

“Heroes are beings who can topple the thrones of the powerful, no different from the demon king in that sense.”

“I know, I’m planning to do that. I’ll be recognized as a hero and change the world. Those superhuman guilds and families are still doing those kinds of evil deeds, and… u-uwaaa!”

Soya staggered as she stepped back and caught on the railing. Of course, it was the white boy standing behind Soya who caught her. The boy sighed, “Phew- thank goodness,” and continued.

“Soya, that’s why it’s not possible.”

“Why? With our power, we could easily overthrow them… and change this world…”

Leffrey looked into the distance for a moment, then opened his mouth again.

“Long ago, there was a hero who had the same thought as you.”

“The same thought as me? Who?”

“You know him too, the previous head of the Seocheon Yu family, Mari’s grandfather.”

The previous hero, the founder of the Seocheon Yu family. Soya, recalling the man’s face she had seen in a history textbook, closed her mouth.

“There’s still too much dark karma in this world. If we try to change the world in the world’s way, we’ll just end up becoming the world itself.”

“B-But I’m different from the head of the Seocheon Yu family…”

Is that really true.

Soya couldn’t bring herself to answer that question.

Still, if there was one difference between her and that family head…

“Alright. I won’t go around saying I’m a hero. As long as Leffrey is by my side, nothing else matters.”

…It was the fact that she had Leffrey.

Soya gently lowered the brim of her hat to hide her reddened face. Her fingers fidgeted in the air, then she gently took Leffrey’s hand.

Seeing that, Hongwol threw a remark.

“Ugh, maybe it would have been better to just let that brat brag about being a hero.”

“What did you say?”

“Nothing, nothing. And why are you only holding Soya’s hand? Hold mine too!”

It was a really warm hand.

Feeling the warmth of his friends, Leffrey said.

“You don’t necessarily have to be recognized as a hero to change the world. And there’s one important fact that we’ve forgotten.”

Leffrey spread his wings.

Although they were wings made of karma, so most people couldn’t see them, they were warm wings that someone in need would surely feel.

“We’re almost late! Mari! You too, hurry and hold my hand!”

And so once again, the angel who spread his wings took flight toward the world.