Chapter 33: The First Archangel

I let out an audible gasp as I regain my consciousness. Ugh, I still feel pain everywhere in my body, even if I don’t feel any blood coming out of my mouth anymore. Either my injuries heal faster than I thought, or what happened only affected my mind and not my body. Either way, it looks like I’m not kicking the bucket just yet.

It still takes a bit of effort for me to actually stand upright again. After finally being on my feet, I take a glance at the area. Immediately, scenes of broken wood catch my attention and around are the whispering voices of the curious individuals. This is the real world alright. But how did I get out in the first place? And I can’t see Katsu or Petoro anywhere…

Suddenly, everyone around me gets quiet. Too quiet, for my comfort, so much that I can hear the sound of my own breath and heartbeat. However, the silence is only for a second, as immediately after, my ears are now filled with the flapping sounds of avian wings, and white feathers start to rain down on me, covering the ground in a snow-like white color.

Surrounding me is an army of angels, their number easily exceeds the hundredth mark. Each of them is, once again, armed with a weapon of their own, but none of them seem to have drawn them out, as if still waiting for a reaction from me, or maybe an order from someone else. And it doesn’t take a long time for me to find out which one is the real cause.

There he is. His long, silver hair flows like a snow stream, creating a beauty that enchants both males and females alike. His crimson eyes glimmer like the finest of gems, so clear that it feels like even your deepest, most hidden side would be exposed if you gazed at him for only a second. Although there’s nothing around him, one couldn’t help but feel like his body is surrounded by a ring of light that arises a sense of revere and respect within the people around him. And even though his height is only average compared to the other angels, one could not help but feel a suffocating sense of dread in front of him, as if he’s actually a giant that surpasses even the biggest of mountains.

The angel descends down in front of me, and, contrary to my expectations, utters in a warm, soothing voice, the kind that makes you feel at ease now that there’s someone reliable beside you:

“Miss Jeanne de Lorraine, isn’t it? I’m Michael, the Archangel in charge of this land. If you don’t mind, we would like to have a few words with you.”

“… That’s me, but what do you want me for?” I ask in a cautious tone, glancing towards the army of angels still waiting for any movement that I would make. Noticing my tension, Michael waves his hand back to signal for the rest of them to stand down, and, offering his hand to me, continues with a smile on his face:

“I just wish to discuss some matters regarding your current situation over some tea. There’s no need to be afraid.”

Easy for you to say. You’re the one with the army behind your back. I don’t know what this guy is planning, but every fiber of my being is telling me that nothing good can come out of this offer. I’m in no condition to fight now, so at least I have to find a way to weasel out of this.

“… I still need to find my friends first.” I try to think of a valid excuse. However, such flimsy reasoning is nowhere near enough to convince the man before me.

“No worries.” With a gentle smile on his face, Michael answers with a snap of the finger. “My men will do everything within their power to make sure we find your friends safe and sound.”

As soon as the sound of his fingers echoes in the air, the remaining angels have already left their position, flying away at top speed to cover as much ground as possible. In less than a minute, the angels have already returned with Katsu’s body on a stretcher. The lone archangel, meanwhile, still holds his hand forward, waiting for my acceptance:

“Shall we get going?”

It looks like I’m out of ideas. Do I just go with him right now? Or do I attempt to fight back? Either is a bad option right now… But who says that I’m the type to be scared of someone like him?

“What if I refused?” With a grin on my face, I ask. The answer I receive, however, proves to be as much of a surprise to me as when the angel appeared.

“It’s a shame, then. But unfortunately, I would have to make myself seem rude.” Michael then snaps his fingers once more, and this time, a giant blue circle appears under our feet, shining a mysterious light that blinds my eyes in a split second.

As I come to, what appears before me is no longer the same small town I was in, but inside a house, or rather, a beautiful garden filled with the smell of fresh flowers and the lovely singing voice of the birds nearby. However, the beautiful scenery is already ruined by the presence of the multitude of angels with their swords and lances all standing in the far ends of the grassy field. In front of me is a cup of still steaming tea and a basket of biscuits on a small table, and sitting in the opposite end is none other than the archangel Michael himself. After carefully sipping his cup, Michael gestures towards me:

“Please help yourself. It’s a lovely time for tea and biscuit.”

As I’m still trying to figure out what to do in front of the sudden offer, the archangel, as if having foreseen my doubt, continues to invite:

“Don’t worry. None of these are poisoned. Pick one for me and I’ll prove it.”

“No, thanks.” I shake my head in refusal. “I’m not afraid of poison. I’m just… confused.”

“Confused? How?”

“Well, normally people wouldn’t need to ensure their guest if their food is poisoned or not. This means that you must know who I am already, am I right?”

“Indeed… Miss Petra Romeé.” Michael’s face is stunned for a brief moment, but he soon regains his composure and answers. “How did you know so fast?”

“Don’t flatter me. Anyone with half a brain can see that in that kind of scene.” I answer, unamused by the angel’s attempt. “That’s why I’m confused. Why bother having tea with me? I thought you guys try to kill us on sight?”

“You must have heard about the incident with Lady Otsuya, haven’t you?” Letting out a sigh, Michael asks. “I still regret it until this day.”

“What do you mean, ‘regret’? That you didn’t kill off her children as well?”

“Of course not.” Michael shakes his head, carrying an expression of deep sadness and remorse. “I never wanted to kill her. In fact, I was trying to convince her this whole time, to learn about the truth. But she didn’t listen and instead ran away with His Highness the Prince. Then, I had no choice but to hunt her down, only to find out that she had already murdered His Highness once we got to her. It’s truly sad indeed.”

“You mean the part where she murdered the prince was real?” I raise my eyebrows and ask, although deep down I’m breathing a sigh of relief because that means the angels still haven’t known about Katsu yet.

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“Otsuya told us that herself, and she even brought His Highness’ bloody kimono as proof.” Breathing out a sigh of disappointment, Michael answers. “But I digress. Because of what happened that day, I swore to find people like her, like you, again, and tell them the secrets of this war between us. Now, Petra Romeé, a chosen Peter of destiny. Will you be willing to listen to my story?”

“Don’t try to be courteous.” I let out a bitter laugh when faced with his horrid acting. “If you meant for a peaceful conversation, then you wouldn’t place angels guarding every centimeter of this place.”

“I can assure you that I really meant our conversation to be a peaceful one.” Michael, upon hearing these words, quickly snaps his fingers in response. “In fact, here.”

As soon as his fingers move, the angels all lower their weapons and walk back out of the door, or fly away from the garden, truly leaving only the two of us behind. After confirming that every other angel has left the scene, Michael gestures towards me once more with a smile on his face. “Is this to your liking, Miss Petra?”

Archangel Michael… I certainly wouldn’t imagine someone like him to be like this. Is he that confident in his abilities that he’s willing to retreat all of his men just to earn my trust? He can’t be the painfully naïve type that is too sincere for his own good, that’s for sure. But then something’s… off about him. His pressure is the real deal, but at the same time, he’s strangely harmless, as if he wouldn’t even hurt a fly. I can’t seem to put my finger around him, no matter how hard I try.

“Fine. Tell me your story.”

“With pleasure,” letting out a satisfying nod, Michael then takes another sip out of his tea and, to my surprise, asks. “But before we begin, I would like to start with a question: Miss Petra, what do you think that you’re fighting for?”

“What I’m fighting for? Of course, it’s for the sake of the people in this world, isn’t it?”

“And what makes you believe that? Take this land of Japan for instance: do you think that this land needs saving?”

“That’s obvious. The answer is yes.”

“And why is it that?”

“… I’ve met people who suffer because of you guys. Isn’t that enough reason already?” I ask, but in my head, a feeling of uneasiness arises, for I don’t know where he’s trying to go with this story of his.

“While I do not deny that there are people who suffer because of us, let’s think about it for a second, Miss Petra. Do you truly believe that there will be a world where everyone is happy?”

“I…” I fail to answer his question. Of course, I know that he’s correct. A world where everyone is happy is nothing but a child’s dream, an impossible utopia unable to achieve by regular means. Meanwhile, the angel, seeing my hesitation, continues:

“There is no world that can guarantee everyone’s happiness. The best we could do is to make it so that the number of happy people is at the maximum that is in our control.”

“Even so, then what? Are you trying to tell me that you’re in the right this whole time?” I ask, gritting my teeth in anger at the supposed claim. However, my guess turns out to be entirely wrong, as Michael only shakes his head and answers with a smile:

“Of course not. We’re not such hypocrites that we can boast that our way is in the right. However, we cannot say that the path you chose is also the right one. Do you see where I’m going here?”

“My point is: your journey is meaningless. Or rather, you’ve been deceived of its purpose from the start.” The angel ends up with a surprising conclusion, to say the least.

“Deceived? By who?” I ask with a confused look.

“By those who you call ‘partners’, of course. Those accursed Demons.” Michael answers with a calm and stoic expression on his face.

“And what are you basing that claim on?”

“To answer that question, I must first tell you a bit about us Archangels. You’ve met Uriel, correct?”

“Yeah, why?”

“You know that his real identity is Mordred, one of the Knights of the Round. Am I correct?” Michael continues to ask.

“… Yeah, I kind of remember that,” I answer in a skeptical tone, unsure of where he’s trying to lead this conversation.

“Didn’t you find it weird? How Uriel, one of the Archangels, was once a human?”

“Now that you mention it…” I mumble. It’s true; I’ve never thought of it until now, but it is indeed strange. God created the angels to supposedly “correct humans of their wrongdoings”, but if the archangels, the leaders of the bunch, were also once humans, then how could they “correct” human’s mistakes when they themselves are prone to the same thing?

“Now, I’m the same as him, but only a bit more special.” Michael, meanwhile, continues. “I was also once a part of the Round, and I used to go by the name Bedivere. However, that name was also just a title of mine, like Michael is now. My real name… is Peter Bedryant.”

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