Chapter 20

“That’s what I want to ask. How far can you go?”

Of course, by how far I didn’t mean her power. What I meant was whether she could intervene without violating the Trial’s rules.

She shrugged lightly.

“If I push it, I could probably wipe out the baron and all his lackeys. Want me to?”

“Does that even need pushing?”

“…A little?”

“Then no. Just be my giant neon sign in the sky.

“…Neon?”

“Come down with as much flair as possible and cuss out the baron in front of everyone. Enough to make him panic and come running out.”

“Ooh…”

“And while you’re at it, maybe smash that pathetic wall for show. Biggest visual impact we could ask for.”

“Hm… You went through the trouble of summoning me, and that’s all you want?”

“Yeah. That’s plenty. Beating the bastard’s men is my job.”

Her lips curved with a faint smile.

“By yourself? Even for a dump like this, it’s still the frontlines. Knights, mages—their level won’t be low. Are you sure you can manage?”

“Wow. Look who’s talking tough. Weren’t you saying I was small fry just the other day?”

“Ehem. And you’re still small fry.”

“…Do you want me to undo the seal and prove you wrong?”

She snickered and waved it off.

“Kidding. So? Really planning to take them all yourself?”

“I’ll handle it. You just turn on the lights.”

-Therefore, consider it glory to sacrifice yourselves for Byung-Shin…

KWA-RANG!! KWA-KANG!!!

A blinding pillar of light tore the illusion of the baron’s phantom image to shreds.

“Urk!”

“Gah!”

“Wha—!!”

The peasants, slack-jawed as they stared at the projection above, flinched and stumbled back. Then, descending from the heavens in a storm of brilliance, came a figure cloaked in light.

FWOOSH!!

Against the pitch-black night sky, wings of radiant white unfurled. A woman in flowing peplos robes floated downward, her beauty so far removed from reality that not a soul could doubt she was something beyond human.

The scene was like a page out of scripture. Villagers dropped to their knees and clasped their hands.

“An… angel…”

“Th-the angel has descended…”

“An angel walks among us…”

The angel scattered pressure through the air, then slowly parted her lips.

-What the hell is wrong with you trash? I ought to just wipe you all out right now.

“…!”

“…!!”

“…!!!”

The crowd froze, their jaws dropping. They’d been expecting something elegant… Children of man, I am the angel who… …not this string of profanity.

-Because of this goddamn Trial, I’m working 24/7 without weekends, without sleep! And you pick now to pull this kind of crap!? Do you have any idea what it’s like to be dragged out of bed for this? Hah!? You paying me overtime!? I’m already working insane overtime with no weekends, and now you’re dumping even more work on me!?

“Wh-what is she saying…?”

“S-sounds like she’s scolding the baron…?”

“Can she do that? He’s still the lord…”

“Of course she can! She’s an angel—higher than any lord!”

Shia tugged hard at my hair from her perch.

“…Tell me that doesn’t sound like a hysterical spinster ranting. No structure, no point—just ranting herself into high blood pressure.”

“Yeah… she must’ve had a lot bottled up.”

At that exact moment, a thunderous shout roared from above.

-I am NOT a spinster!!!

“…She heard us. Sharp ears too.”

-This worthless lord thinks he can get away with this!?

-You know what hell is? Your dear dead father’s already a VIP member there!

The angel’s tirade echoed across the entire domain, shaking even the baron’s own castle.

Baron Gelrok Av Sinan, half-stupefied by her words, ground his teeth.

“An angel? An angel here? At this timing!?”

The mage Moben, who had been transmitting the baron’s image spell, stammered nervously.

“P-perhaps… because you called yourself God, my lord…”

“So you’re saying this is my fault!?”

“N-no, not exactly…”

“Enough! Muster the soldiers! Summon the knights! We march!!”

The mage paled.

“Y-you’re not thinking of fighting that angel, are you?”

“Of course I am.”

“But… but she’s an angel. An angel! The very kind out of myths.”

“So what!? You think being an angel makes her immune to a blade!?”

“M-my lord… a transcendent like that won’t remain in the mortal realm for long. If we just wait quietly, she’ll eventually—”

“And if she doesn’t? What if she decides to stay and squat here!? Do you realize what happens if we leave this unchecked!?”

“At worst… perhaps the peasants may look down on your authority a little. But they’re livestock at best. With a few months of… harsher ‘discipline,’ they’ll forget the whole matter of an angel descending—”

CRASH!!

The baron hurled a crystal ashtray across the room. It smashed against the wall beside the mage’s face in a glittering explosion.

“Authority!? You idiot! If it were just about face I wouldn’t be this furious! It’s the rumor! The rumor will spread! That an angel descended and publicly condemned me and my barony! Then what!? What happens to my political standing!? Do you know how many central nobles in the capital are desperate for any fief of their own!? Even a frozen dump with nothing but snow and monsters—they’d come crawling in on their bellies if given half a chance! You think they’ll miss this opening!?”

“B-but… after everything we’ve done for the crown, after all the bribes we paid, surely the royal family will protect—”

“Fool! You think news like this will stay within the kingdom!? Within months, the entire Northern Continent will be talking about it! And who do you think they’ll blame? Me? This unheard-of backwater called Sinan? Wrong! They’ll blame the Salt Kingdom! And what will the royal family do then!? Protect me while the nation’s prestige crumbles!? Never! They’ll cut me off and throw me to the wolves, claiming it was all my ‘heresy,’ that I was some cultist of the Outer Gods! They’ll wash their hands and plead ignorance!”

The mage flinched at the raw fury. Whatever respect had been left was gone now.

“Th-then… what must we do?”

“We must strip her of being an angel! We must show everyone she is no angel at all!”

“H-how do you—”

“By killing her! How many times must I say it!?”

“……!!!”

“The people believe angels cannot be slain by mortal hands. So we kill her in front of them! Prove she is no angel, but a false spirit, a deceiver! Then it becomes a trick, not a miracle!”

“Ahh…”

The mage exhaled, half awe, half despair, finally grasping the baron’s intent.

One of the knights spoke hesitantly.

“M-my lord… are you certain? She spoke of hell. What if… we too…”

The baron’s eyes snapped toward him, blazing.

“Hell!? Lies!”

“Eh?”

“If that angel’s talk of hell were true, then she meant my father is suffering there as well! My father was a noble knight! He stood at the front whenever monsters came, protecting the kingdom! Such a man would never be in hell! Therefore hell does not exist!!”

“Y-yes… you are right, my lord.”

The knight bowed hastily. But before relief could spread, a voice rolled down from the heavens.

—Oh? Did I just hear you say there’s no hell?

Everyone in the chamber went pale.

“She… she’s listening!?”

—Listening? I’m watching. Do you think the title of Archangel is just for show?

“…Heavens above…”

—Worms. You should know this: making everyone happy is hard. But making everyone miserable? Easy. Even I could make hell, if I wanted. And maybe I should…

“Silence! Foul deceiver! I don’t believe a word!”

—Then don’t. You’ll see it for yourself soon enough.

“Prepare to march!! Gather every soldier in the inner city! Gordon! Go to the Splitting Flame Tower and fetch the Tower Master himself! Tell him he will not be forgotten if he lends me his aid!!”

“Y-yes, my lord!!”

“Move! Tonight we will show that wretch what the shield of Sinan truly is!!”

“Yes, my lord!!!”

DUDUDUDU…

The tremors underfoot told me the baron’s army was already on the move.

“…A thousand… no, maybe fifteen hundred. Impressive. Not even ten minutes since Yuribel descended, and he can rally that many.”

“Well, they do brawl with monsters daily. I guess this much is natural.”

“And the fact they’ll march against an angel without breaking ranks says a lot about their discipline.”

“So? A problem?”

I shrugged.

“Not really.”

With a grin, I drew my sword.

SHIING.

“It’s not like I’ll kill them all. If I thought this much was a problem, I wouldn’t have volunteered.”