Chapter 25: The Angel Who Drew the Holy Sword (2)

Episode 25: The Angel Who Drew the Holy Sword (2)

The Mooncat Tribe possesses many talents.

For example, their agility and flexibility surpasses that of any other race, along with their strong bodies. And their eyesight, comparable to an owl’s night vision, and their frightening jumping ability…

Among these numerous abilities, there is one that is classified as particularly special. The name of this ability is Cat Transformation, a secret technique of the tribe that allows them to transform into cats.

It’s a rather useful ability, often used by the tribe to infiltrate target locations when they receive requests for theft or assassination.

‘The elders say it’s good to use for infiltration… but in the end, it’s just turning into an animal, right?’

However, Hongwol disliked this ability.

There were already many people who mocked the Mooncat Tribe by comparing them to animals, so using this ability would be like acknowledging those words.

And today…

She learned the true way to use this transformation.

“What… what is this cuteness…”

“Nyaaa, meow…!”

The true way to use this transformation was…

Using it to receive affection from others.

Tickling her belly, rubbing her face, blowing raspberries on her tummy… these were all culture shocks for Hongwol, who had always been feared and respected as a thief and assassin. (‘blowing raspberries on her tummy’ Basically putting your face on a cat’s belly and blowing on it)

How dare he treat her like this.

How dare he treat her so affectionately.

All of it was a first for her…

No, she knew this feeling.

The warmth of the boy’s embrace on that night when she was betrayed within the tribe, when she thought there was no hope.

…It was truly warm.

So warm that she would never forget it.

“Meow-“

To think that being loved by someone, rather than dominating them, could be this happy. No one in the tribe had ever told her this.

Hongwol blocked the boy’s path as he tried to get up and go somewhere else, and slightly raised her paw, trying to appear as cute as possible. Her mother’s words suddenly flashed through her mind.

‘Make men submit. Rule them thoroughly as beasts with rewards and punishments.’

Right… I shouldn’t be doing this… think of the tribe’s pride… this is like an animal… the boy is someone I should steal… I shouldn’t be stolen… Even though she thought that, Hongwol couldn’t stop acting spoiled.

At that moment, a voice rang out.

“What’s with this annoyingly colored cat?”

It was the voice of the young witch who Hongwol knew well.

‘Oh no…!’

To think that she, who possessed exceptional senses even within the tribe, hadn’t noticed a mere mage entering the cathedral.

“This cat? Ah, I told you about it before, right? I saved a magical beast. This is Pinky…”

“A magical beast? Hmm… first of all, the fur color is black magic-hating. And the magical wavelength… it seems similar to that of a beast folk…?”

Damn it.

That annoying witch… she has good eyes…

Hongwol subtly slipped out of the boy’s arms and naturally made her way out of the cathedral.

Seeing the cat leave, Soya muttered,

“There are a few strands of fur left.”

“Cats shed a lot, so… I’ll clean it up soon.”

Leffrey was happy to hear those words. Why? Because he could clean the cathedral.

Cleaning the cathedral was an act that brought in Angelic Power with the message ‘Cleaning a holy place is an angelic act’. Therefore, Leffrey cleaned the cathedral meticulously every day.

‘If I could, I would love to make it dirty and clean it, make it dirty and clean it, over and over…’

Dirtying a holy place for his own benefit was truly a tremendous blasphemy… as expected of Leffrey, the angelic power grubbing angel, with his audacious way of thinking.

But that was impossible. Unless an angel fell, they couldn’t defile a holy place due to their racial traits.

‘Anyway, time for farming… I mean, cleaning.’

Leffrey had already prepared the cleaning tools. Now, his cleaning skills were good enough to be called Leffrey, the Clean Angel.

Just as he was about to start cleaning…

Soya stopped him.

“Wait.”

“Why?”

“These furs, could they be…?”

Soya tilted her head.

Of course, for Leffrey, these furs were just Angelic Power, so there was no need to worry.

*

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At night, after all the chores were done,

Leffrey looked at his status window and thought,

‘I can say that I’ve adapted to the classes to some extent now. My Angelic Power hasn’t been depleted even after attending three classes.’

That’s right. Even after attending three classes in a row – martial arts, swordsmanship, and magic – he still had some Angelic Power left.

It wasn’t a day where he had gained a lot of Angelic Power. Leffrey had simply realized how to use it efficiently in class.

It was fortunate. As he would have many things to use Angelic Power on from now on.

‘The Mooncats will come to steal the holy sword now.’

That was the first thing.

The Mooncat Tribe, cursed by the demon king, needed the holy sword to break free from the curse. So they planned to steal the holy sword located in the basement of the Central Academy’s main building.

‘As expected of the Mooncats… their way of thinking is different from ours…’

Their plan was like this.

With the help of a genius mage, they would open a Gate leading to the basement of the main building, infiltrate through the Gate, steal the holy sword, and escape.

‘But they failed.’

It couldn’t be helped. First, the professors at the Central Academy weren’t pushovers who would fall for such a flimsy plan, and second, as he had learned in swordsmanship class, the holy sword was powerful enough to cripple a person just by holding it.

That’s why the Mooncats all defected to the demon army. And the humans foolishly lost the Old Citadel.

‘If only the Old Citadel hadn’t fallen… the demon army wouldn’t have been able to act so boldly…’

So what did Leffrey have to do?

‘What else? I have to help the cats steal the holy sword.’

And use that to gain a large amount of Angelic Power. If everything went according to plan, he would be able to acquire a ton of Angelic Power.

‘I gained a considerable amount of Angelic Power just by saving the students during the entrance exam. So if I prevent the corruption of an entire tribe, how much Angelic Power will I get…?’

Leveling up as an angel all by himself!

Leffrey smiled at the thought.

Of course, it was only possible if everything went according to plan.

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The first step of the plan was…

To help Soya.

Why was helping Soya related to the plan? Remember the genius mage I mentioned earlier, who opened the Gate to the basement of the main building? That genius mage was Soya.

‘The Mooncats used Soya’s debt to blackmail her into opening a Gate to the basement of the main building. They threatened to collect the debt from her family if she didn’t.’

There’s a saying that blood is thicker than water. No matter how much she was estranged from her family, Soya couldn’t completely abandon them.

So she opened the Gate…

‘It wouldn’t have mattered if Soya had failed the academy entrance exam. Then she would have just become a criminal.’

Becoming a criminal was a big enough problem, but… let’s move on for now.

‘However, Soya has now entered the academy. If she commits a serious crime like opening a Gate in this state… she’ll be expelled.’

Expulsion. As with all academies, once a student was expelled, there was no way for them to return. From Leffrey’s perspective, where he needed to raise Soya quickly, it was something he had to prevent.

‘And more importantly than that… I can’t get expelled while helping her with this…!’

Thinking of himself first.

A very angelic mindset.

‘To do that, I need to create a justification through Soya… ahem, no, I need to help her.’

After class, Leffrey called Soya to the central plaza separately.

“…Why did you call me?”

Soya looked at the boy, thinking, ‘Could it be? A date? No, Han Soya, don’t get your hopes up.’ However, the boy had no intention of talking about that.

“Soya, are you having a hard time lately?”

“A hard time?”

“Yeah, like being threatened by someone…”

There were days like that. Days when your mood was like crap but the sun was still shining brightly. Soya was enjoying such a day for the first time in a while.

“How did you know?”

“…I just found out.”

Soya was lightly despaired. Just as it was questionable whether the word ‘lightly’ could come before the word ‘despair,’ feeling lightly despaired didn’t mean it felt light.

It was just easy to hide.

“It has nothing to do with you anyway.”

The boy grabbed the hand of the girl who was trying to stand up as if nothing was wrong.

‘Nothing to do with me… it has so much to do with my survival, my Angelic Power!’

Soya’s white cheeks turned slightly red, but Leffrey didn’t notice.

“You’re always like that.”

“What?”

“During the entrance exam, when I said let’s form a party, you agreed and then ran away, and when I brought you lunch, you said you didn’t want to see me anymore. We even promised to be friends, but to say ‘it has nothing to do with you?’.”

Listing it all out one by one made it quite long.

Soya had nothing to say, so she closed her mouth and looked away. It was hard to face the disappointed expression of the boy.

“What are the Mooncat Tribe blackmailing you with?”

Naturally, it was her family.

He already knew, but he asked again.

Why? For justification.

‘The professors already know everything. About the Mooncats’ plan and Soya’s involvement in it. So Soya is already under close watch. But by asking this question…’

Leffrey proved that he wasn’t deeply involved in this plan.

“My old family. If I don’t do what they say… they’ll hurt my old parents.”

“What a bunch of bad guys.”

This was genuine.

What else would the Mooncats be but bad guys? He wanted to curse and call them bad bastards, but… unfortunately, having become a race that couldn’t even use the word ‘bastard’, Leffrey could only feel frustrated.

“…The Mooncat Tribe is a really scary group.”

Soya lowered the brim of her hat slightly to hide the tears welling up in her eyes.

“So don’t worry about it.”

“No.”

“No? You’re going to get expelled with me because of someone you’ve only known for about a month?”

“Yeah. I’ll get expelled.”

Of course, Leffrey had no intention of getting expelled. He was just putting on this act because the professors who reviewed disciplinary actions loved things like friendship, justice, and sacrifice…

At least that’s Leffrey’s personal guess was that they would love it.

‘I got involved in this mess to protect a friend… a good justification. With this kind of justification, I might get community service or suspension, but… I can at least avoid expulsion.’

It was going according to Leffrey’s plan.

The boy quietly added,

“It doesn’t matter if I get expelled. I’ll help you.”

“Idiot… fool…”

Soya finally burst into tears. With the brim of her hat completely covering her face, she looked a bit funny, but Leffrey didn’t care.

‘Even if I don’t get Angelic Power…’

He just hugged her.

[Soothing the emotional wounds of a lonely girl is an angelic act!]

[You have gained Angelic Power.]

[Staying by the side of a wounded girl is an angelic act!]

[You have gained Angelic Power.]

[Protecting a future hero, regardless of any disadvantages, is a truly angelic act!]

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

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“Yeah. I’ll get expelled.”

The boy in the monitor muttered as if he had made up his mind. To think that angelic face could become so serious… the professors thought.

“It doesn’t matter if I get expelled. I’ll help you.”

Clap clap clap- Park Jin-ho clapped his hands with a look of madness. And Lusa also smiled and took out a cigarette.

“That’s how a hero should be.”

“Right. Ah, if this were a test, I would have given him twenty merit points right away.”

But there was one professor who was filled with dissatisfaction.

“Don’t you feel sorry for that boy?”

“…Rebecca.”

“I understand that the boy is pure. And that he has strong convictions. Just like we once did.”

It was Rebecca, the divine power professor.

“That’s why I think I can see the future. That boy will be used by humans as a hero and… eventually despair and lose everything. Just like you and me.”

“…The academy exists to prevent that.”

Park Jin-ho said with authority. But Rebecca easily ignored his authority and muttered.

“I can’t see that happen… ever again.”

“Ah, this crazy b*tch… what are you planning to do?”

Lusa muttered in annoyance, but Rebecca didn’t answer her question and left the professors’ research room.