Chapter 266
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 266
Chapter Title: The Archangel's Wrath
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The target of Remiel's extreme rage right now was neither a human, nor an ordinary angel, nor even an archangel.
It was fury directed at God—her very foundation, no different from her parents.
"To start with the facts, she was sealed away twice."
"Pardon?"
"This is from records that were erased, even unknown in the Holy Kingdom... After she destroyed the Kingdom of Lesion long ago, she received punishment. Luna, you know about that."
"I know it vanished."
"But afterward, she was released from her seal. Because the humans she wanted to kill were already dead."
Now it was time to return to normal. The world seemed to say.
But Remiel's anger didn't stop there.
"I don't know the exact details. But she apparently lost half her mind and caused another incident, leading to a second sealing. It was an event where the archangels descended... I don't know the full story, but she clearly caused a massive uproar."
"What, did she wave a rebel flag or something?"
"Even so, she was sealed without the Mark of Corruption..."
At this point, it was hard to tell who the truly fallen angel was.
Luna only looked fallen on the outside but still felt purely good, while Remiel—a perfect archangel—had become such a depraved being.
Of course, he knew the concept of "fall" itself differed from common knowledge.
Luna, sealed as a fallen angel, versus Remiel, an intact archangel who outdid fallen ones with her twisted nature, slapping both cheeks round-trip.
This led to a strange thought.
"Luna, from your perspective, Remiel could be your greatest ally—or your enemy. We need to confirm."
"Confirm?"
"Her revenge targets: Michael, Raguel, Uriel, and God?"
Or all the archangels?
In the latter case, Luna would become enemies with Remiel, the archangel she'd viewed most favorably.
"Haa..."
A bitter sigh escaped Luna's lips.
To Luna, Remiel might have been a somewhat special existence.
Before her ego awakened, Remiel was an incomprehensible freakish variable to Luna. But after awakening, Remiel stood out as the most proactive among the archangels.
Perhaps suggesting to unseal Remiel stemmed from feeling the strongest camaraderie toward her.
But...
As Diablo had said, if her anger targeted the archangels and God itself, there was no reason for her to harbor hostility toward Luna.
A dark shadow crossed her face.
The mad dog with three pairs of white wings smiled innocently and harmlessly, yet spat threats of tearing apart anyone connected to God.
Not mere love-hate or resentment, but pure, venomous hatred.
How an archangel ended up like that was a mystery, but thinking about it, maybe it was inevitable.
Purely in terms of power, Luna as one of the three great archangels held a significant edge over Remiel.
But now, Luna had lost much of her original strength as one of the three great archangels.
She was strong now, but infinitely weaker compared to her archangel days.
Remiel, on the other hand? Though weakened from long sealing, her maximum potential hadn't changed.
In other words, if she became an enemy, a full archangel-level foe would appear immediately.
Simply put...
Excluding outer gods, she was more dangerous than any enemy encountered so far.
"Can't even find the ring... And the one I thought might understand me is in that state..."
Seeing her dangling from chains, swaying while giggling over some amusing fantasy, she seemed like a clear-eyed lunatic.
"Isn't that her true nature? You didn't realize before because she lacked an ego."
I tried defending her to ease Luna's guilt, but she shook her head.
"Remiel wasn't like that. I just... can't bring myself to harm her."
Luna's sadness stemmed from the possibility of Remiel turning hostile toward her.
I understood, but experiencing it firsthand hurt.
So I told Luna to rest and requested a private talk with Remiel.
"Adam."
"Not Adam—Leon. Leon Cascadia."
"Hmm... Kinda feels right~ but also not~"
Truth be told, I'd requested privacy because I had specific questions for her.
But first things first.
"Do you hate God?"
"Yes."
An answer without the slightest hesitation.
"Not just dislike—hatred, or someone you want to tear apart someday?"
"Yes."
Again, no hesitation.
"Why?"
"Leon, have you ever lost someone precious?"
"Yes."
"Did it hurt?"
"It was agonizing."
She smiled brightly at my response.
"What if it was hundreds?"
"..."
This was getting heavy.
"What if thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands?"
Very heavy.
"Did you have that many precious people?"
"As you might have heard, I was actually an archangel with empathy. Even without an ego, I could empathize with their lives, their pains and joys. Whether I wanted to or not."
Over eons, she'd empathized with countless beings, willfully or not.
"When they wailed in desperate sorrow, calling to God. When villains who deserved tearing apart were left unpunished. How do you think I felt, forced to just watch?"
"That was before your ego, right?"
"No ego doesn't erase memories. Take Raphael—er, Luna—isn't she the same?"
She might not have felt it then, but with ego awakened, those memories were unbearable.
She was angry. 'If that's the case, don't give me empathy at all.'
"God isn't the fair, omnipotent being you imagine, Leon. It's a harmful outdated system that needs eradication."
Perhaps she had a point.
Even if choices were made for the world's flow and rules, no reason existed for victims to accept them.
Now it was time for my role.
"What about Luna?"
"Raphael, you mean?"
Depending on her answer, I'd erase her here.
No matter the immense power of an archangel.
She tilted her head thoughtfully.
"Yeah. Raphael. Back then, she was neck-and-neck with that obnoxious bitch Michael."
This bitch?
I instantly drew my ghost sword, and she beamed.
"Calm down, Adam."
"I'm Leon."
"Whatever. How much do you know about her?"
"..."
"Do you know what she did long ago in God's name?"
"No."
"That's why you say that. All archangels are the same."
"Aren't you one too?"
Why act like she's not?
"That's why I have to do it. Drag down the Main God, dismantle the archangels' system, so no one on this land plays God's dice game anymore."
But she showed no particular hostility toward Luna.
"Truthfully, the ones I most want to kill are Archangels Michael, Raguel, and Uriel."
"Why?"
"Because they killed my precious friend."
The story of the demon and the girl? The three archangels who descended to kill the demon in that tale were them.
"The demon and the girl's story?"
"Yes. Eligos and Melly."
As expected. I'd heard correctly back then.
She continued.
"Do you know the revelation God gave me?"
The smile vanished from her face.
"'Do nothing.' You know. As long as I live, I'll eternally torment myself."
To a child suffering from the tasks she assigned, that's what she says?
She fixed me with a cold gaze.
"The other archangels are ultimately the same. Hypocrites through and through. I'd love to cut them all down, but... Raphael's position is ambiguous."
"Why?"
I asked, ghost sword at her throat. Despite the threat, she smiled wistfully.
"Long ago, I received a request. Not foreseeing this situation, of course. Plus, when I broke free from my seal and rebelled against God again, the only archangel who didn't step up was..."
Luna.
It had to be. Luna was already sealed by then.
"Is that answer enough?"
"Vague, and no real answers."
"I'm conflicted too. Don't like her. Kinda hate her. But would I bite if she showed hostility? Not right now."
Then I felt a tug on my sleeve. Turning, Luna looked up with a gloomy face.
"Leon."
"What."
"Just a moment. I want to talk to her alone."
"...Alright."
Leaving her alone with Remiel was risky, but Luna wasn't weak enough to fall easily.
With Leon and Diablo gone, the quiet altar held only Luna and Rispa Elde Remielria—Remiel.
"Didn't you hear earlier? Even if your position's ambiguous, you're still an archangel."
"I've already been stripped of my archangel rank."
"You think that's an excuse?"
Despite Remiel's snide remark, Luna continued calmly.
"When my ego awakened, I thought no one else but you, Remiel, would be in the same position as me."
"Keep talking."
"Sharing the same pain, we'd get along well. Even if I hated all other archangels, I didn't hate you for that reason."
Unlike other archangels blindly loyal to God despite awakening egos, Luna and Remiel stood opposed.
So they could understand each other and have a good relationship.
Remiel giggled at that.
"Ahaha. Lady Raphael of the three great archangels. So naive."
"..."
"Luna Basil Raphaelria. You fucking bitch."
Luna didn't flinch.
"Understand and share pain? Why talk like a victim? No archangel's clean. You're the same, and so am I. Got it?"
Remiel spat curses openly.
"Think no good people were among those you killed under 'execution'?"
God prioritized fate's flow over good and evil from the start.
"Long ago, a child who wanted to stop a war used forbidden magic and vanished by your hand."
Luna flinched.
"Know that? That child cared for the sick, spent time with orphans, wished no one cried. A good kid."
"..."
"See reality now? You killed her for 'execution.' Because fate demanded her death, so irrational witch hunts wouldn't follow using her as a stepping stone."