Episode 258 Blessing (1)
An altar-like structure erected to pierce the gray-white stone sky and pitch-black sun. At the top, Kuarn rested his chin on the armrest and received reports from his subordinates.
“The human army fought the golems in the field, and Lord Permush fought an all-out war against the descendants of Aaron Nibelung, eventually falling to the hands of ‘that guy.’ In addition, it is said that that guy joined hands with the leader of the Hero Association and made the angels serve him as servants.”
The high elf servant did not dare to raise his head. He knelt down flat and reported what he had heard.
Kuarn, who was listening to the report, had no change in expression before or after receiving the report. He just looked down at all things with dull eyes like an inanimate object.
The high elf was sweating profusely. This report itself was a hardship for her. The 4th Legion Commander’s warrior. And considering Kuarn’s origins, the topic of ‘angels’ was bound to be a sensitive one.
“… That guy.”
Kuarn muttered quietly. In his white eyes, half-hidden by his pure white eyelashes, a emptiness darker than the abyss hovered.
For a moment, the suffocating silence rolled in, and the high elf’s long ears perked up. She raised her head without realizing it.
“ha ha ha!”
Kuarn was seen looking up at the black sun, bursting out in madness. A genuine madness flowed from his pure white pupils.
Kuarn’s two hands roughly gnawed at his cheeks. The flesh came off like skin from his fingernails.
“… Ku, Kuarn-sama?”
The high elf took a deep breath. The laughter stopped as if it had never happened. Kuarn slowly turned to look at her.
“… … .”
“… … !”
The high elf froze in surprise. She belatedly began to tap her forehead against the pavement repeatedly.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”
Kuarn came closer and crouched down at the foot of the stairs. The high elf could only see two beautiful white feet. She prayed and prayed on her long toes.
“Do you think I’m crazy right now?”
Kuarn made a dull voice. The high elf shook his head, his forehead still bruised.
“It is out of the question. How could anyone in the world have such a disrespectful thought? It is an honor for the clan to see this lowly young lady, Lady Kuarn, so happy.”
“… … .”
Instead of answering, Kuarn reached out. He held his jaw, his teeth chattering, and looked around at his pale face.
“Your face is hurt.”
“Oh, no. It’s okay.”
“I’m not okay when I see it. That’s why it’s not okay.”
Kuarn’s words and actions were incoherent. That was the kind of person he was. No one knew what schemes he was plotting in his head.
“Please, at least save my life… … .”
The high elf lowered his eyes as much as possible. Even so, Kuarn’s face was still visible on his retina. The corners of his mouth, scarred with scars, were raised high.
“Tell me. What color are my eyes and hair?”
“Your pure whiteness is more dazzling than snow.”
Kuarn slowly shook his head at the high elf’s flattery.
“No. I am as black as the sun from head to toe.”
What are you saying? The high elf’s nose was covered in cold sweat. A single stream of blood ran down his nose from his split forehead.
At first she smiled faintly.
“Yes, that’s right. Lord Kuarn is a splendid darkness like that firm sun.”
Kuarn wiped the bridge of her nose with his index finger and rolled it around in his mouth.
“This taste.”
He sucked his finger and made an evil expression.
“It tastes like lying.”
“Kwarn-nim… Keu-heuk!”
The scream of the last words was a testament. Kuarn distorted her beautiful face. Then, a small orb appeared in the high elf’s brow.
“The reason you are dying here is because you placed me next to him in order to live. And-”
Kuarn coldly glared at the high elf as he died, his bones splattering.
“You did not honor Him. Is the Almighty your friend? You insolent one, know your place.”
Kukugugugu.
“Your sins deserve to be remedied a billion times over and you deserve to die, but I highly value the fact that you truly regretted Permish’s death. Therefore, it is my mercy for you to die in one breath.”
Meanwhile, the high elf was spiraling in from the area closest to the hole, its skin twisted like a rag and its bones twisted into deformities.
The high elf tried to resist by casting his highest magic. However, even that was sucked away by the oil-colored orb, along with the magic.
After a while, a void engulfed the place where the high elf had been staying. The only trace of the high elf was a concentric circle of furrows.
“His second coming is not far away.”
Kuarn stood up on his knees.
“The academy will be on vacation soon. Call your nephew to the Demon Realm.”
“I will send someone right away.”
Mine, who was standing behind the throne with her back to her chest, nodded. She was Kuarn’s aide. With the legion commanders having passed away one after another, she became the second in line within Gehenna.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you.”
Kuarn nodded and raised his head.
“My beloved nephew, Leon van Reinhardt.”
The dark sun was setting in the middle of the sky. The hazy shadows cast by the black sunlight moved like a mass.
* * *
Horok.
The head of the academy, Media, took a sip of her black tea and raised her head. She looked at the woman across from her. She looked exactly like herself, so for a moment it was like looking in a mirror.
‘… But unlike me, your face is bright. Look at the shine flowing from your skin.’
Media sighed deeply. Her twin sister, Meaine, was almost lying down on the sofa, squirming.
“Don’t you know that sighing makes you age faster? Even ancient people need to take care of their skin. I think my face has lost a lot of its color since I started working as the academy director.”
The media was dumbfounded. It was even more dumbfounded to hear it from someone who was personally practicing the two letters ‘laziness’ as performance art.
“I don’t think that’s something the person who handed the position of principal to me should say, former principal? Or, do you want to be the principal again while you’re at it? Huh?!”
Mayain waved her hand.
“So many.”
Media crossed her arms three times in her head, fighting the urge to punch that snickering face.
“I’d rather receive a salary on time than someone who pays me. And honestly, the pay is low compared to the job of a school director.”
“… … .”
It wasn’t easy. The teacup in my hand vibrated. A quiet storm was swirling inside the teacup.
“There isn’t much of a difference in salary between an instructor and a school principal? After taxes, I might make more. But the best part is that the work environment is the best in the world! If I want to take a break, I can just let the kids study on their own. Being an instructor is a total pay thief. Oh, of course, compared to being an academy principal.”
Maya put her glasses back on and slightly raised the left corner of her mouth.
“My name is Meain, and I am a salaryman named Lupin.”
From a young age, Meaine was a master of drugging her younger siblings, no, a divine being, even a parody of a serial killer disguised as a detective.
“Why didn’t our salaryman Lupin participate in the war to subdue Permish?”
Media pulled the corners of her lips together, applying force to her ears. Then she squeezed out the gentlest voice. But her heart was pounding.
“I wanted to go. But Cheongeom came to me separately and said that he would take care of the 4th Corps Commander, so he should focus on training the Cheon Class kids.”
“So, is Geomma doing a good job with her duties, you know? If she’s not doing well, we’ll have to fire her and replace her with someone else, you know. There are many other people who can do the job besides you, you know.”
Mayne gestured to the table with a glance.
“The report is over there. Read it, yo-yo-yo.”
Media immediately scanned the report in detail. Her double-lidded eyes were blazing with the intent to chew on the report.
“Please just one, just one.”
Her mint-colored eyes moved quickly up, down, left, and right. She had been the head of the academy for several decades. She was a media who had naturally acquired the ability to read quickly.
“Grades… personal records… individual personality types.”
The report was well organized and itemized. It was perfect. That made me even more annoyed. If I had failed at my work, I would have been scolded… Ugh!
Then, Media furrowed one eyebrow subtly. She took her gaze away from the letters and turned the paper over.
The media asked.
“Leon van Reinhardt. Isn’t his growth rate a bit too rapid?”
Maya slowly lowered her head, which had been leaning back against the back of the chair. She nodded heavily, as if she had been waiting for those words.
“That’s right. Even considering that he’s a warrior, that’s too fast.”
“Compared to the sword?”
“Cheongeom defeated three legion commanders by himself. Of course, he couldn’t even reach his knees. But.”
Mea’s upper body was thrown forward. She knocked on the back of the report.
“In terms of potential, he is in no way inferior to Kanggeomma. He is a natural born beggar, in terms of ‘vessel’.”
“I heard from Geomma before. Leon, he’s a Nephilim. Did you know that too?”
“Just a guess. The existence of the Nephilim itself only appears in legends. If you look at it that way, it’s the same for us ancient people, but anyway.”
As the Poison Sisters talked, the air in the principal’s office grew colder. The black tea also cooled and its scent became faint.
Media drank the cold tea to quench her thirst. Then she warmed up her cup again and spoke.
“It’s true that Leon’s hometown is the Demon Realm. But who are his biological father and mother? He probably didn’t eat Demon Realm food in vain, and I’m sure you’ve noticed it to some extent.”
“I don’t know who my biological mother is, but I think I know my biological father.”
Meaine also filled her own cup. She spoke, holding the cup to her lips.
“Do you know about the angels who fell from the heavens during the mythical era?”
“I know because I often heard it from my father when I was little.”
The Poison family were descendants of the ancient people who were massacred by angels. Of all the modern humans, they were the closest to mythology. That is why they knew the forbidden history well.
“Angels who were heavenly agents. The most brilliant of them all formed a group. That’s Grigori. Have you heard about him from your father?”
The younger sister was taken aback by her older sister’s question.
“Yeah. I heard about it.”
“Gregory’s goal was to carry out the Heavenly Gospel directly. In common parlance, it was a warm-hearted one. But he was very strong. But what is this? That Gregory betrayed Heaven? Their leader was Azazel. He is the old name of Kuarn, who is currently the leader of the Demon Realm.”
“I heard it from Geomma before. He said he heard it by chance when he went to the Nephilim temple.”
“I don’t know why Kuarn is acting as a priest there, but there are others like Samael, Lucifer, Sandalphon, etc… … Anyway, they planned a rebellion under the leadership of the strongest angels. In short, they staged a coup against the gods. The justification is unclear. In fact, it’s ridiculous to be specific. It’s literally a myth.”
Maya moistened her lips with tea and put it down with a clank. Her eyes settled into a calm tone as she continued to speak.
“Gregory’s rebellion ended in failure. A complete failure at that.”
“If you don’t know the cause, how do you know the result?”
“I told you earlier. Kuarn was Azazel. If the rebellion had been successful, would he be cowering in the Demon Realm like that? And that’s all? The reason Kuarn is doing that is because Gregory was practically annihilated, except for him. And that too by a single angel sent by the gods.”
“One angel took on all of them? Is that possible?”
Mayaine chuckled.
“Why? Even the gods who were close to infinity were practically annihilated by one being. Gregory went through the same process, you know. Even though Kuarn, who was the strongest among them, fought evenly, he still lost.”
“So… what is that angel, and what does it have to do with Leon’s birth?”
“Hey, stop rushing me. You’ve always been impatient when it comes to questions.”
“okay…….”
Media became sullen. Meaine found that sight cute and opened her mouth again.
“The name of the apostle of God, who had 36 wings, was Metatron (מטטרון), the brother of Kuarn, and the chief of all angels.”
After a brief pause, Mayain opened her mouth again.
“Metatron’s blood relative, that’s Leon.”
* * *
Ryozo and Abel shoot at me at the same time.
““It’s me, kid. Decide.””
Same lines, angry eyes, pouting lips. They even pressed their cheeks together and made sharp eye contact. Even if they were to plan it out, it would be impossible to do this.
anyhow.
… What happened right after I was discharged from the hospital?
The incident dates back to a day ago.
