Chapter 36
Chapter 36
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter Title: Fellow Orphans
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On the table sat three bowls of jjajangmyeon and one bowl of sweet-and-sour pork that had been utterly ruined by the sauce soaking into it.
And surrounding the table were three figures.
But there was no sound of the usual chopstick slurping and noodles being sucked into mouths, like you'd hear in any Chinese restaurant.
Silence.
A quiet, serene word tinged with loneliness. It was a word that didn't belong at a dining table.
But at least in this situation right now, was there any word that fit better? Our table was that quiet.
Three people sitting at a corner table in the restaurant. They were different men and women, but they shared one clear commonality.
...They—we—had no parents.
To put it crudely, we were orphans without moms or dads.
Clack. I was the first to pick up my chopsticks, breaking the ice. The two others glanced at me and followed suit, starting on their jjajangmyeon.
Slurp. The sound of noodles sliding down throats shattered the silence that had filled the restaurant.
Silence. The word carried two meanings. It wasn't just about quietude.
The other meaning of silence was political opposition.
But that didn't fit the current situation either.
Three people bound by the commonality of being orphans, gathered around a table eating jjajangmyeon and sharing drinks. It was safe to say we'd formed a bond of deep trust, like the Oath of the Peach Garden.
Yeah. We weren't opposed; if anything, we were political comrades. People with the same goal, pursuing it together...
...What should we name our party? The Orphan Party?
...Nah, just kidding.
I was just having silly thoughts because the long silence was getting uncomfortable. I'd always been someone who stayed politically neutral.
"......"
The only sounds at the table were the clacking of chopsticks. I opened my mouth to break the awkward atmosphere.
"...Um, sorry."
It wasn't said with any bad intent. Betty, who had been face-planting into her bowl and inhaling noodles, lifted her head and replied.
"Huh? No! It's fine!"
Betty's bright, cheerful words thawed the frozen atmosphere a bit.
"I like it better now than when my parents were alive."
Betty's voice spread gently over the table.
...Oh. You too? Same here.
Parents like that are better off gone.
I thought to myself that Betty, just like me, must have some unhappy past.
It was proof that my misfortune-detection radar, which I prided myself on as a misfortune expert, had pinged slightly.
"What a coincidence. Me too."
"......"
Han U-sol, who had been quietly listening to me and Betty, made a slightly sad face.
...Come to think of it, how did you end up here? What an insane coincidence. Are you stalking me or something?
I asked Han U-sol.
"Did you come after training?"
"Ah, yeah. I was just gonna grab a quick bite, and when I walked in, there you were, Anis."
"...I see."
The greeting we'd exchanged when Han U-sol entered the restaurant flashed through my mind.
—Hey, hi. Anis... Um, uh... My parents are gone too.
—...Uh, um... Yeah. Hi.
I got the gist that we'd run into each other by chance. I still didn't know why he'd outed himself as an orphan during the greeting, but prying into someone's painful past would be rude.
I just nodded without pressing further.
"I'm Betty. What's your name?"
"...Han U-sol. Nice to meet you."
Betty spoke to Han U-sol. She had a way of being effortlessly friendly with everyone.
"You don't have parents either?"
Whoa, Betty. Isn't that too casual?
I shot a side glance at Han U-sol sitting next to me. His smiling face had frozen solid.
"Uh, yeah."
As Han U-sol managed his expression and answered awkwardly, Betty suddenly jumped up from her seat and shouted.
"Then you're my comrade too!"
I smacked my forehead.
"......?"
Han U-sol looked at me with eyes begging for an explanation.
"...She means let's be friends."
"...Got it."
Han U-sol gave a wry smile and nodded.
Watching the two of them chat naturally before I knew it, I muttered quietly to myself.
'...The Orphan Party is formed!'
...Nah, just kidding.
The cafe we frequented after supplementary classes ended, as always. Betty said while sipping her coffee.
"You know that angels lose their powers and slowly die if they fall in love with a human and have a child?"
"Really?"
It was the first I'd heard of it.
"And angels dream too."
"Dreams? Like dreams when you're asleep?"
"Yeah."
Slurp— Betty sucked up the last of the coffee in her cup through the straw. The ice inside clinked.
"Even transcendent beings like angels and demons aren't that different from humans in the end."
They fall in love.
They have nightmares from guilt.
They waver, indecisive, unable to make the right judgments.
And sometimes, they break.
With infinite lifespans and just a bit stronger than humans,
they're not all that different from humans, in the end.
"...I see."
I was a little surprised. Betty, who seemed far from bookish, was surprisingly well-read.
Info. Betty's more knowledgeable than I thought.
I resolved not to show off my knowledge to her from now on.
...But if they have a kid, lose their powers, and die, does the child inherit the powers?
I voiced the question that crossed my mind straight to Betty.
"Yeah. But it gets weaker with each generation."
Betty answered.
"Even if the angel is the father and the wife has the kid, does he die?"
"Uh... probably?"
...What about twins? Do they split the powers?
What if they miscarry? Does he die without passing them on?
What if two angels fall in love, no human involved?
Do angels grab their husband's hair during childbirth too?
I bombarded Betty with all the questions popping into my head.
"Uh, um... I don't really know about that..."
Betty sweated bullets as she answered. What a fake know-it-all.
But if the angel dies like that, what happens to the surviving spouse? Poor them.
Does the baby become half an orphan just because one parent was an angel? Poor kid.
"St-stop...!"
Betty's eyes were spinning. This is fun.
As I kept peppering her with questions to tease her, Han U-sol walked into the cafe after finishing training.
"Sorry. Am I late?"
"Black U-sol!! Anis is bullying me!!"
"Haha... Black U-sol..."
Han U-sol gave a wry smile at Betty, who called him by his weird nickname and charged at him. For the record, I was the one who taught Betty that nickname. She said it had a punchier ring than plain U-sol and preferred Black U-sol.
I asked Han U-sol.
"Got the ice cream?"
"Here."
"Nice."
Han U-sol handed me the bag he was holding.
Before coming to the cafe, I'd suddenly craved ice cream and texted him to buy some. He didn't forget and got it perfectly.
Han U-sol sat down, and I opened the bag to check the contents.
[Mint Choco]
"......"
Crash! I flipped the cafe table right over.
Yeriel had a nightmare.
A nightmare where the people she had sacrificed—and would sacrifice—poured their resentment at her.
"Gasp!"
An empty, hollow room with nothing in it.
Yeriel, who had been sleeping on the room's only piece of furniture, the bed, shot up with a shrill cry.
"Haa..."
Yeriel wiped the cold sweat from her brow with her pale hand.
Again. The nightmare.
It was a nightmare that had repeated every single day for about twenty years.
Yeah. Ever since you left, Auriel.
Yeriel recalled what Han U-sol had said to her.
[Auriel's son...? What does that mean?]
Auriel. Your son doesn't even know he's of angelic blood.
I thought you'd at least told him something.
So when your son enrolled in the academy, I assumed you'd given him some hint.
But no.
Your son knew nothing.
Enrolling in the academy to become a hero was entirely his own choice.
...Auriel.
Why didn't you tell him?
Did you want him to know nothing?
Grit. The sound of teeth grinding echoed.
You, who abandoned your duty and ran away,
did you want your son safe and happy in a protected bubble?
Or did you want to give him the freedom to choose his own path in life?
...Probably the latter. You were always kind, respecting others' choices.
How could it be different with your own son? You just wanted him to live freely and be happy.
But.
What if his dream wasn't to be a hero?
What if he hadn't enrolled in the academy?
...What if I hadn't noticed his existence?
...Selfish bitch.
You fell in love with a human and ran away, eventually bearing a child and slowly losing your powers until you died.
You must have known, Auriel.
You, who oversaw protection, knew that if you died, the barrier would weaken.
That with only two angels left reduced to one, humanity's abilities would weaken even more.
"......"
Fortunately, your son wants to be a hero who saves people. It's a miracle he didn't stray elsewhere.
I'll teach your son. I'll train him into a hero who protects humanity.
You wouldn't object. It's the path he wants and pursues.
Whether from your diligent training or not, your son already knows how to use his powers faintly.
A little more polishing, and he could reinforce the weakened barrier.
Before Kahatel notices the barrier's weakness, I'll teach him as quickly as possible.
"......Hoo."
Yeriel let out a shallow sigh and rubbed her dry face.
...You wouldn't know, Auriel.
Because you left like that.
Because you abandoned everything and ran away.
You wouldn't know what I've done to protect humanity.
Yeriel prayed to God again today.
Even though that God had already departed, praying and repenting, offloading something onto it, eased her mind a little.