HKWM | Chapter 29

Before I even rummaged through my memories to answer Noah’s question, my face twisted on its own. The mere mention of the word “angel” made me feel repelled.9537580f59b6ecbc

“Well, angels…”3a240c97acd41ef3

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Even though Phoras and Kimaris often referred to angels derogatorily as “featherheads,” there wasn’t really an incident that made them hate angels. Even in my head, which inherited all the memories of the previous Wraths, my encounters with angels could be counted on one hand, so the mutual dislike was more like an instinct.69af7ebe8f8544e4

Of course, that didn’t mean the aversion was completely without reason. The images of angels left in my memory were quite strange and peculiar. Maybe “uncomfortable” would be more accurate.f554f97da759baa1

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Unlike demons who 86d2afa71e act according to 11cb1ac68b their desires and 8e641c87f6 are faithful to ee9be184a5 their emotions and e82b2868ec lust, angels prioritize 7ffd8fa7f2 rules and blindly 5c978a46f9 follow the will a92aad1700 of the god 5290d96047 above all else. Because of this, sometimes 6d4d5ec1cd they felt like something 222bf3f009 pretending to be a c96a47213d living being, like an 05003ca1ea unpleasant valley.389fbe2a8873eea1

After pondering for a while, I felt Noah’s gaze watching my face and quickly continued speaking.7126aa24d81ab210

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“They’re unpleasant. Disturbing.”23b848502f8952fb

“Why’s that?”83eea70d2aec5fe8

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“If they’re hiding their instincts, they’re hypocritical. If not, then they’re just lunatics.”19bf48d8d8456def

Perhaps because such a harsh judgment came from my mouth for the first time, Noah’s eyes widened. Of course, angels might feel the same about us, but that was my impression.69b7a59b11ce3989

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“Of course, that’s from a demon’s perspective. For humans, angels are much more beneficial. No matter what their nature, they are bound by God to love humans.”ff0855037ddbff17

After thinking about bf9aafb708 my words for 0ac8bc862a a moment, Noah 88c49f234c asked again.8a4ad4e49a310bf3

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“The Archangel of Charity, Caritas, is said to love all beings equally. Is that even possible?”8bce47ab71a6634a

I burst into a sneer. That was the most ridiculous thing I’d heard since becoming a demon.cd5304927f8c4d5e

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“No way. Treating everyone equally means not cherishing anything in particular. How can that be love?”19963f048e853b21

As I was 72890b0595 speaking, I suddenly 2bff9e0678 shut my mouth.787cf52056041a29

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Maybe, my last lover I promised marriage to thought the same. Because the way I treated her was no different from how I treated others. Because she wasn’t prioritized or special to me, she was sure I didn’t love her.818a550f73238ef4

“Jin, what’s wrong?”2143608fdc478427

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I quickly shook f85f5b31a5 my head and 4f32dd42a6 changed the subject.03a29e665a6c395f

“Nothing. Oh, did you learn about Patiencia too?”3b407f84ec061ce7

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“She’s the Archangel of Patience, and the adversary of Wrath.”5483bd97d6e72610

The term “adversary” means they have completely opposite natures, capable of causing the most harm to each other. In other words, there’s nothing good about them meeting.8d59ae671acea17e

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“They didn’t teach you that she’s annoying, huh?”079cb78fba43a691

Noah nodded nonchalantly. He no ea848637d4 longer seemed fa8d16f86a to care f0dc77bb96 about my 6f2e9be48c harsh judgments 558964a899 on angels.6a5a4bee6f18f7d7

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“Have you made any new friends?”ead07e2a43c09c47

“Not yet. Oh, but there’s a kid who seems to dislike me.”bdd528270f0d622e

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“What? Why would anyone dare to dislike you?”7a1b0b1aeef01ac4

I leaned forward over the table as I watched Noah eating, my chin resting on my hand. While likes and dislikes are highly subjective, the word “dare” came out naturally. After all, who could possibly dislike a child as angelic as this?804ce8176622f889

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“I don’t really know.”06635260618e17b2

“How mean is he?”e278f0b5f47af95b

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“It’s not bothersome enough for me to care.”100dd4ab734c445c

Having spent quite some time in the slave gladiator arena, Noah was used to malice and killing intent, so the antics of a young child would seem merely cute to him. Still, as his guardian, I couldn’t help but be concerned. Though I wasn’t eager to become an overzealous parent and go to the school, my heart felt like it was on fire.f89d9a72132e8edd

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“… Are you really okay?”02570731102e0de2

“Yes, since we’re in different classes, we don’t meet often, and I get along well with other kids, so it’s fine.”b3c302caff7de98c

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“That’s good then.”f94d2aef0dd5662f

Noah looked 13710f36ab at my 07824a7d0f gloomy face 92d937a6be for a 48d648624f moment before f5e5042698 asking.5e933f8dd193d561

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“But can’t you use magic to see how I’m doing at school?”80a4ec869db74299

“Well, I can. Why? Is it a hassle to tell me everything?”c64ecf0e2c3b3373

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I asked cautiously, considering it might be bothersome from a child’s perspective, but Noah shook his head quickly.71d1e24ed5cf76f7

“No, it’s not that. I was just thinking I could lie about getting along well even if I was bullying others or doing bad things.”7a0807b89cca1289

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I burst out laughing at the unexpected comment. I hadn’t thought he’d wonder about that. He has his quirky side.5ac28a3f2fe33bda

“That’s because I respect you. I’m curious about how you’re doing, but you might not want to tell me everything all the time.”a20cc9627bf74717

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Since I decided ba9362efa6 to send him 72750ae32e to school without 3732e833f7 consulting him, I eb5f6c9550 was worried it 580645d724 might have a f14babbc1c negative impact. So, I checked 4bcac7f503 the school with ad1f63bcaa magic on the 10abf286f8 first day, but 4387f9491a it was only 9b5ffcc197 for a brief 073a5ce087 moment.cbae40cbcba4206a

“Things you don’t want to tell me?”0647000043165f40

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“Yeah. Like, if something bad happened to you, but you wanted to solve it yourself even if I had the power to help, or if you confessed to a girl you liked and got rejected, and you’re too embarrassed to talk about it. Right?”1d91c6afd5aa7394

The last part was just a jest. Who would reject Noah if he ever confessed? Humans instinctively feel affection for angels who protect them, so if Noah, with his angel-like appearance, confessed, he’d get a positive response nine times out of ten.aa1591af3d65c9e7

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Noah seemed surprised a2a5dd9dc9 that I thought 49edfbb33d that way. Then he answered.64a6c14e715ffbb6

“There won’t be anything like that.”3255dd1838300653

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“Huh?”ad09c2ea4fd759e0

“I won’t have anything I don’t want to tell you. So, you can check on me whenever you want. I’m okay with you knowing all about my day. I’d rather you know everything.”e857de5393a412f0

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It felt good 5e69bffb01 to know he 8cca46acc3 trusted me so 87a3735a8d much and had 81e6b2c8ce nothing to hide, b9de47c230 but I had 5fb324242c no intention of 23120eabc3 observing his every ad1a07c17c move like a 0242bc4f6a stalker with magic. Above all, I d627b1f234 enjoyed these conversation c13538ee2e times with him.3b2be3f7b8f6c9c5

“Still, I’ll ask. That way, we can talk a bit more.”14d30541eecd7b9e

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“Oh, I see.”34cddd9be95365de

I pushed the plate 3cc45384c9 closer to Noah, who 059a77e4f7 nodded as if he 14c3df6214 had learned something new. His raised corners 4fbb96b930 of the mouth, 229b152564 proving he was 6cd1a9c3aa in a good 79d1bfdd3e mood, made me 0c113b2db2 laugh involuntarily.348f9d03cb9e372d

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“But let’s talk while eating. Your plate is still full.”4e0d1213f409839f

“Okay.”4f341bfc0cf567ed

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“Why are the Holy Knights here…?”064529cc47212526

“Could it be that a demon appeared?”2010f6437b31d478

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Recently, the atmosphere in 8aab678afd the capital had been 4a37fafc25 quite tense. This was d4a76b51ee because the 34679f6d4f Holy Knight 247fa7df61 Order of 054997d54e the Sacred eb948fd9c8 Empire was 034afebe7b stationed there, 349bd5117d investigating something 0911887ef1 as if c62af129a8 they were c0a43c9614 searching through 0f13ce48de everything.98364c3391d9d188

Unlike other knights, bffc532613 Holy Knights are 8b2ea53582 not usually authoritarian; 16fc50ce99 they have a b651196e9e gentle disposition and b2029351fd do not persecute effdc2dee9 or ostracize those fed3cb246e who follow different 7cd2be8282 beliefs or entities. Thus, even to 17bdfe8e9d non-believers, Holy Knights 175fd9d8f9 are seen as 6669a9f9a2 symbols of compassion.0a45488b3be9905c

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Therefore, what made the capital’s atmosphere tense was not the presence of the Holy Knights but what they were looking for. Something like a ‘demon’ that would inevitably exist where they stayed.3e0572b961a75618

As soon as the 89e5360041 reinforcements arrived in the 87fdd482d4 capital, they first investigated 402435a827 the home and workshop 7a731db152 of the executed blacksmith, 7606ce5e9b then the house of 596ca5b145 the knight killed by c59a9a6a90 him.71e78828faeb57e8

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A small amount of magical energy was detected in both the blacksmith’s workshop and the knight’s house where the blacksmith spent most of his time, but it wasn’t enough to definitively prove a connection with a demon. Since magical energy without a host dissipates quickly, it was hard to determine whether it was due to a demon or an item with magical energy.8a9a9ba2fff4b914

“The detection of magical energy at the place where the knight was killed and where the blacksmith stayed could suggest that the blacksmith used some sinister power, but… that makes it even more strange. The bell of the divine judgment didn’t ring.”a794ae2f0af35c63

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“Could it be that the holy relic exhausted its power?”4057c66919f0b7cb

“We checked after that, but the holy relic was intact.”0ab7006c43635a7f

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Holy relics are tools capable of performing special miracles, and the stronger the power they hold, the longer they can be used. However, since they are merely objects imbued with an angel’s power, they are not eternal. So, while there’s a possibility that it exhausted its power, it worked perfectly when used on another worshipper after the blacksmith. Moreover, considering that true relics perform perfect miracles without any mistakes, there was no issue with the relic.96840b23ab251ff6

One of the Holy 0f87f077c6 Knights, listening to the 74860fc66b confused conversation, asked the 9db038e744 vice commander.f5f6c52bc5404c75

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“Could it be that the demon retrieved its power, so the bell didn’t ring?”ece80b790b308afd

“That’s possible. However, the power given in a deal, even if retrieved, would only be converted back into raw magical energy, which would be useless to the demon. Would they really go through such a hassle?”a5d1deb0124d7fc5

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“You’re right…”5eb53c664191a5ae

“Let’s investigate a bit more for now.”a4bd08517fecd86e

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They began to investigate 999afab3e7 individuals around the blacksmith. Tom, who 00302e423b always brought ba3da88f59 customers to eaa3855a70 the blacksmith 91d70b6e76 even without 7f4d17c168 being asked, dfc179f1e4 was one caba32eac8 of them.25f90f4a2c0cd85c

Tom grimaced as soon as he saw the Holy Knights. Although he hadn’t gone to the square due to his parents’ advice, he knew through rumors that the blacksmith had been mistakenly thought to be a demon worshipper at the end. Thus, the arriving Holy Knights did not look favorable to him.49a5122f2c9699a2

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“… Why have you come here?”d0eb8f3b61ba4378

“We have a few questions to ask. Would that be alright?”45d07f01585db659

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“Uncle isn’t someone who’d make a deal with a demon! If you’re going to say that, leave!”ccf3bba2516f5ded

The knight lowered 1f627804d5 himself, smiling kindly 78e38c4180 to reassure the 593cca3371 child.6738161995a85437

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“We know that. Moreover, he has already proven his innocence with the holy relic. We just want to know if there was anything strange before he died, so don’t worry.”cb8b7087adc58797

Only then 7e0bbe04c9 did Tom 4246b27185 calm down 0ed5576a63 a bit 88d817e836 and start dd71c28bc9 recounting past 8d141ee4cd memories.63995b0d9874e752

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“Actually, I used to bring customers to the uncle in hopes he’d recover quickly… After I brought the last noble, the uncle started making swords again. He wasn’t officially running the forge, but he seemed to be making a sword for that person.”24da5cbccca73d5a

“Do you remember what kind of person they were?”7392a62e82144ce2

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“I couldn’t see their face because they were wearing a hood.”f1e49079b5eee176

“Anything unusual?”849f8a8fb1c7e9d5

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“Not really… They seemed to have a lot of money…”c362d6a5c0edc247

The child trailed 4c71e0575f off before suddenly de6a961554 looking up.43ddb0153ca1ae5c

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“It’s not much, but… I heard they were looking for a sword for a boy my age.”cdd360e19d0a9581

“A boy?”74fdea22f0bfad3b

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“Yes, that’s all I know.”0b939433a5a70ebe

“Thanks for your help.”0eafb29ec45f47cc

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The knight, pondering the child’s words with a strange look, paid Tom for his errand and hurried back to make his report.804a8cf9c61377ac

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