The Angels' Betrayal
Michaela stared at the video before her with a graver expression than ever. It was a recording of the conversation between Luci and Einsl. The other angel leaders beside her wore the same grim faces as they watched.
"Is there proof this is fake?"
"Are you saying my ability is fake right now?"
"That's not what I meant!"
"Look at this halo! No matter how you slice it, it's Luci's!"
"Enough."
Luci's soul had been delivered right to Michaela. Using Raphael's ability, they had turned Luci's memories into a video. And its contents matched exactly the conversation between Luci and Einsl that they had just witnessed. The revelations were shocking. It was utterly different from the Einsl they had trusted and followed all this time.
To expand her angel forces, Einsl had ordered the murder of magical girls from other countries. She had sentenced high-ranking citizens who displeased her to death. She had framed hunters who obstructed her angel expansion as rapists, murderers, and terrorists, then killed them—information on crimes too numerous and horrific to recount easily. Creatures worse than human scum, and Einsl had commanded it all. Luci had diligently carried it out, truly believing it was for the sake of the angels.
"Does this mean everything we've done so far was wrong?"
Simiel, one of the angels, gazed at her trembling hands in despair, and the others nodded in agreement. All their actions—for the world, for the citizens, for peaceful days—had been merely the personal desires of one woman named Einsl.
"Everyone, pull yourselves together."
Click. In front of all the assembled angel leaders, Michaela pulled out a cigar, lit it, and took a drag.
"Suuup... Hooo..."
Smoke billowed from Michaela's mouth and dispersed.
"Sure, some of what we've done was undoubtedly bad. But we've also blocked gates, rescued citizens—we've done good deeds too."
"That wasn't wrong. But if there were wrongs, we correct them now."
"Luci being here means there's no angel left to carry out Einsl's orders. We need to gather all the angels immediately."
Michaela's halo shone brighter than ever. Even the gathered leaders couldn't help staring at it. It evoked the same emotion they had felt upon first seeing Einsl—the moment a new leader for the angels was decided.
Einsl gnawed at her nails until blood flowed. She couldn't reach Luci. The angels weren't dying. Luci's power should have wiped them out in a second. In other words, Luci had refused her command.
"You dare ignore my orders and run?"
Time was short, but she figured the angel leaders could quickly eliminate the angels if she asked. Excluding the dead Ouriel, she summoned the rest.
"...?"
"Huh?"
The leaders always responded instantly to her summons. Yet a full minute had passed, and not one contacted her. The leaders weren't dead. She could sense their life or death since she had granted their powers. Excluding Ouriel, they were all alive. So why weren't they answering her call?
That meant the angel leaders had betrayed her too.
"Why?"
"How?"
"For what reason?"
Einsl unraveled. The conversations in this place were sealed by prohibitions—no one could reveal them by any means. And this administrator space was inaccessible without her permission. No information from here could ever leak. That's why she had revealed everything to Luci without hesitation.
So why had the leaders betrayed her? Why betray the great Einsl?
"Hoo..."
Bam!!!
Einsl slammed her foot into the ground. If it had come to this...
"Haha...?"
Then she sensed something anomalous, and the corners of her mouth tore upward in a grin. All her angels were gathering in one place. The leaders had somehow learned of her plan, though she didn't know how.
But the leaders were mistaken about one thing. Why hadn't she killed the angels herself? To hide her identity from them. Now that it was exposed, there was no reason not to act.
"This'll have side effects, but the leaders are tough—they'll hold up~"
Einsl's hands glowed brilliantly as she clapped them together.
Pop!
"Done~"
The cathedral was in greater chaos than ever. Every available angel had been summoned there. Unsure of the situation, they had come at the leaders' call, filled with questions. The cathedral teemed with angels, all wondering why they had gathered.
When all had assembled, the leaders appeared, with Michaela at the center. Her explanations were shocking. Einsl had tried to kill them. She had used them like tools, like chess pieces. The angels were stunned.
But Michaela's leadership, her palpable aura, her resolute heart quickly pulled them from the shock. New faith bloomed—not in Einsl, but in Michaela.
As they discussed how to counter the next monster attack and comforted one another—
"Kyaaaaaaaah!!!"
One angel screamed. All eyes turned to her.
"What happened?!"
As Michaela rushed toward her—
Splurt!
Splat.
The angel exploded. Her body swelled grotesquely and burst. Blood sprayed, drenching nearby angels and Michaela.
"Ah...?"
"Kyaaaaak!!!"
Starting with her, surrounding angels burst one after another.
"What is this!?"
"We have to stop it! Hurry!"
"No! I can't block it!"
The leaders tried to intervene, but their powers couldn't halt the explosions.
"Nooooo!!!"
"Save me! I'm dying...!"
"Mommy! Moooooom!!"
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Every angel in the cathedral exploded like water balloons. In an instant, the pristine white sanctuary turned hellish. The pure white halls ran red, the sacred scene adorned with angel remains. In mere minutes, every gathered angel was dead.
"Aaaah..."
All the angel leaders despaired.
"Einsl...!"
Michaela knew only she could orchestrate such horror. Rage filled her voice as she cried the name. She wanted to curse her endlessly, but the angels came first. They were dead, yet their halos floated. Their souls remained. There was still hope to save them.
As they pondered what to do, the halos began moving.
"Huh? What the—?!"
In the leaders' panic, countless halos charged at them and were absorbed—distributed evenly among the leaders. In just one minute, they had taken in the masses.
"Th-this..."
"Aaaaaah!!!"
"No, what is this...!"
"Urk...!"
All the leaders dropped to their knees, clutching their heads—including Michaela. Voices echoed in their minds: the angels' souls from the halos, screaming relentlessly now that they were absorbed. Innumerable souls flooded their bodies. Their power had surged immensely, but their minds were chaos itself.
"Eiiiinsl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Michaela screamed, squeezing her head. Fortunately—or not—the leaders' strong wills allowed them to stand.
"I'm going insane."
"Same here. They're just cursing nonstop in my head."
They forced down dinner despite no appetite. The war with Overmind loomed; they had to eat.
"Even if we win this war, does it matter?"
"...Who knows."
"It does."
As gloom settled, all heads turned to Michaela.
"That monster handled our souls—the halos."
"Right...! He extracted them or turned them into tools."
"Extracted souls?"
"Does that mean...?"
"Yes. He can probably free the angels' souls trapped inside us by force."
"So we subdue the monster and get the info?"
"Exactly. I believe it's possible."
They saw the potential. Overmind had extracted angels' souls to forge weapons and armor—he was adept at soul manipulation. With a way to save the trapped angels, the leaders steeled their resolve more fiercely than ever.