The Angel Forming a Club (9)
Suddenly, an oppressive atmosphere filled the cathedral, silencing the chattering two female students as they turned to look ahead. There sat a woman. Her name was...
"...Professor Hexi."
"What? A snake? Even if you suddenly act all serious, it won't fool me... Gasp, Professor Hexi."
Wipe— Wipe— Professor Hexi, who had been wiping her hands, turned her gaze toward the two students who had just insulted her.
"You two have such foul mouths."
But Hexi wasn't angry. She merely watched them with cold eyes.
The girl with the horns must be Yumari, and that pink cat subhuman is Hongwol.
Yumari, the despised illegitimate daughter of the Seocheon Yu family and the last descendant of a dragon remaining in the human world. She had the kind of potential that the angel would surely see as a hero candidate.
Grind— Unlike a fake like herself, a true hero. Grind—
Hexi, who hadn't been angered by the earlier insults, now gritted her teeth and twisted her face.
Are they the hero candidates chosen by the angel? Then what am I...?
If they were the hero candidates directly chosen by the angel, then what should she call herself? An artificially created fake. An inferior, discarded being. The angel would pour unlimited angel power into them... but as a fake not chosen by the angel, she didn't know when she'd be thrown away.
Inferiority complex and anxiety. These two emotions stabbed deeply into Hexi's chest like daggers.
In this atmosphere, Hexi spoke first.
"What on earth were you two bickering about?"
"I spoke out of turn, Professor."
"Me too."
Yumari nodded expressionlessly, while Hongwol, still perched on the windowsill, replied with a snide tone. Both were mocking Hexi in their own ways.
"Fine, so that's how you want to play it?"
But Hexi was a professor. If she invoked the academy's rules, there were endless ways to punish these insolent students.
However, Hexi couldn't punish them. Because Refri apologized on their behalf.
"Professor, I'm sorry. My kids have rough mouths..."
A boy like an angel apologized with a genuinely sorry expression. Seeing that look, Hexi bit her lip.
I can't fall for that face... This time, I have to firmly say no!
Twinkle— Refri's eyes sparkled like cut emeralds.
......
Staring into those eyes, Hexi forgot what she was going to say once again.
Ugh, I fell for it again...!
Finally shaking off her dazed expression, Hexi quickly averted her gaze from Refri.
"Hmph... Fine, be more careful next time."
"Yes."
"Heh, got it."
Seeing Hexi let it slide so easily, Yumari gave her a meaningful smile, while Hongwol wagged her tail and grinned with interest.
"Oh, right. Refri."
"Yes?"
"You stormed into the student council headquarters, right?"
Hongwol shouted. And her voice was quite serious. It was a bit funny seeing her pretend to be serious while stuck in the windowsill like a clown, but Refri couldn't just laugh it off.
"I didn't storm in. I went to submit paperwork, and things just... happened."
"So, Professor Hexi—no, Professor Hexi was about to smash the student council to pieces, but you idiotically stopped her!"
"Yeah. So why?"
Suddenly, Hongwol flailed around in frustration.
"No, why? I'm asking why! The student council has been picking fights with you forever—it's an enemy organization. Why didn't you let her crush them at that perfect moment?"
Crush them? That's some brutal talk.
Refri shook his head and continued.
"But fighting is bad, right? Plus, if Professor Hexi smashed the student council, what would happen to her reputation?"
"Refri."
The silent Yumari joined in.
"Professor Hexi storming into the student council was a strategic judgment. At that time, the student council mistakenly believed they held Professor Hexi's weakness, so they were completely off-guard against her. It was the perfect opportunity to strike and wipe them out in one go."
Yumari continued rapidly.
"Moreover, even if she had dismantled the student council's core at that moment, Professor Hexi's reputation wouldn't have suffered much. First, Professor Hexi doesn't have a reputation left to ruin anyway. Second, the student council went too far to grasp her weakness. If that overreach were exposed, they'd face even greater backlash."
And her conclusion.
"Refri, why did you stop her?"
"...They're not wrong."
Finally, Hexi attacked—or rather, tried to persuade—Refri.
"Refri, if I'd completely smashed the student council then, we wouldn't be wasting time on this weird club. And you wouldn't have to participate in the upcoming club wars."
Hexi bowed her head in frustration.
"Refri, that was your mistake."
"Exactly. A huge mistake. If it were me, I would've just..."
"Agreed."
The atmosphere shifted 180 degrees. They had been growling at each other just moments ago?
Suddenly uniting to criticize me?
Under the three women's warm glares, Refri whined and started making excuses.
"Then what was I supposed to do?"
"Not stop her. You think they'd thank you for saving them? No, they might feel humiliated and come for revenge."
"Exactly. Refri, you don't know the world."
Their points were similar. Refri, you don't know how cruel this world is. It's survival of the fittest—if you stay naive like that, you'll get eaten someday. Be ruthless to enemies; that's the warrior's virtue. In short, tic-tac-toe. And so on.
Okay, kids, I get the gist.
But Refri was an angel. If an angel didn't do angelic things, who in this world would?
Talk won't work here.
Refri sensed the situation was hopeless.
Guess I have no choice. Time to deploy the forbidden move.
Refri activated one of his divine abilities. Its name was King-Anointing Angel's Blessing.
Normally, it created heavenly oil in his hands. But with a special item, he could produce it elsewhere too. Like his tear glands, for instance...
Drip— Something like tears welled up in Refri's eyes.
Angel's Secret Technique Chapter 3: Tearful Angel Refri!
And that tear-like something trickled down Refri's cheek.
The boy muttered in a choked voice, as if barely holding back.
"I-I just..."
Refri's acting skills improved daily. If acting were a skill, it'd be over Lv.5 by now.
"I didn't want to see anyone get hurt..."
Sniff— Sniff— Refri wiped the oil... no, his tears with his sleeve.
In that instant, Hexi and the other three girls froze in confusion. Even Yumari muttered "R-Refri" helplessly, while the other two just stared at Refri in silence.
Hongwol couldn't hide her guilt and whispered, "Don't cry...", while Hexi fidgeted in shock.
"You... made Refri cry?"
Soya trembled as she pulled a strange magic book from her bosom. Well, whatever.
Hexi's reaction is weak.
In truth, Hexi had the strongest reaction—she was just too overwhelmed to move. But Refri didn't notice.
For Hexi's sake alone, Refri deployed the angel's secret technique once more.
"And I hated the thought of Professor Hexi getting insulted by other students, so I did it for you, Professor..."
Sniff— Sniff— He glanced subtly at Hexi.
Now Hexi was drowning in guilt too, on the verge of tears herself.
And then, a message appeared.
Convincing the heroes is an angelic deed!
You have acquired Angel Power.
Angel power for this?
It was a truly mysterious heavenly angel power distribution system.
Anyway...
With one shot of the angel's secret technique, Refri convinced the three women.
...It works great. I should use it more often. Even in front of other professors. Especially Professor Park Jinho.
A truly grand plan. A fallen angel? No, an unfallen one plotting to manipulate even professors.
* * *
Hongwol had slipped down from the windowsill and was licking her hand while watching Refri.
"I told you I was making a club, right?"
"Yeah, what was it? Volunteer club? That sounds pretty stup—"
"Yeah! Great name, huh?"
Refri beamed. Seeing that, Hongwol coughed awkwardly.
"W-Well?"
"A volunteer club. It wouldn't be bad at other academies."
"Why? A volunteer club could be great here too. There are so many students at our academy who need help."
Students who need help. But was Refri really making this club with pure intentions?
In truth, Refri had recently devised a formula.
Central Superhuman Academy student = future hero
Helping future heroes = angel power
Club helping Central Superhuman Academy students = infinite angel power enjoyment
It was the alchemy formula for producing angel power.
Correct. Alchemist angel...!
Refri applauded himself.
"A club to help poor students? Poor students... Refri, no student is as pitiful as an unrecognized black mage. Just make it a black magic club like I said!"
Soya tugged at Refri's sleeve in frustration.
"Students who need help. Why help them? They'll flunk the exams next semester anyway."
And Hexi casually said something a educator shouldn't.
"...Sigh."
Watching this, Refri let out a deep sigh.
The real reason I'm making this club... isn't just for angel power.
Refri's true reason for starting the club was for those four hero candidates with personality issues.
I want them to act a little more like heroes while volunteering with me.
Could he really protect humanity from the Demon King with them? Refri couldn't answer easily.
"You'll still do it with me, right?"
Still, Refri couldn't give up. Surely, these four would one day become true heroes and defeat the Demon King. In his place.
For that, personality reform was essential.
"Yes. But what about the club wars next week?"
The club wars, the Central Academy festival where clubs showcased their achievements. Performance there determined a club's survival.
But Refri had no plan for the club wars.
"Kids, what should we do?"
Then Yumari spoke up immediately.
"Refri, I have a plan."
Her eyes gleamed sharply.