41. Arcana Online

41. Arcana Online41. Arcana Online

"This is the place where angels receive their education. It's called the Academy."

The first place we arrived at, after being told I'd be shown around the celestial realm, was where apprentice angels study to be appointed as official angels.

In other words, a school.

Angels are born with two wings and can graduate from the Academy to gain four wings. By accumulating accomplishments, they can obtain six or eight wings.

And to become an Archangel, one must be chosen by God.

There are only 8 Archangels so far.

Would it be rude to ask an angel which god they serve?

No, there isn't just one or two gods, and even the gods I know number more than a dozen...

"You're not having impious thoughts right now, are you?"

"How did you know!?"

"You really were!?"

We exchanged bewildered looks, and then Archangel Michael burst into laughter, holding her stomach.

She allowed me to call her Michael-nim.

"It's the first time in my life that I've met such an interesting human as Yuna."

She says she's lived a very long life, but would it be rude to ask her age?

"No, you can't."

"Huh!? What do you mean!?"

She looks at me with a bright smile, but could it be that she can read my thoughts?

"It's been a while since I've met a human as transparent as Yuna, both inside and out."

Is that... a compliment?

As we enter the Academy, I can see angels receiving education in classrooms through the windows.

Among the angels sitting in the back, some are dozing off. The ones in front are studying diligently. Michael-nim's expression doesn't look good.

"May I excuse myself for a moment?" seaʀᴄh thё NôvelFire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"Huh? Sure."

She knocks and enters the classroom, causing a commotion.

Archangels are beings of which there are only 8 in the celestial realm.

They are objects of admiration.

Such an Archangel enters their classroom and heads to the back, then delivers a knuckle tap to the sleeping angel's head with a bright smile!?

"Ouch!"

The angel who got hit once jumps up.

Still not fully awake, with a dazed look, the moment their eyes meet Michael-nim's.

"Oh, unni!?"

"Did you sleep well?"

Michael-nim, who created several bumps on her sister's head with a bright smile, apologizes and leaves the classroom.

More importantly, unni... Is that angel Michael-nim's real sister?

"I'm sorry. Seeing my little sister dozing off instead of attending class, I just..."

"It's okay. These things happen."

"I'll introduce her properly later."

As the bell rings and numerous angels burst out into the corridor, greeting Michael-nim and chatting about various things, an angel approaches me.

Wasn't she Michael-nim's sister?

But her eyes are fierce.

"Who are you to be by our unni's side?"

"She's an invited guest. Please treat her well, okay?"

"Hmph! Do you know who our unni is to say such things?"

She's speaking irritably, but it's clear that she likes her sister.

I stare at her, finding her cute like a youngest sibling throwing a tantrum, but her gaze becomes even fiercer.

"Why are you looking at me like that!?"

"Because you're cute."

At my words, she stares blankly for a moment. Then, blushing, she runs far away.

What was that? She's cute.

"Kyuung."

"Huh? Stop seducing who?"

As I pat our Yong-yong, who's spouting nonsense, I look in Michael-nim's direction and see she's still surrounded by other angels.

Should I go for a short walk?

"Shall we go that way?"

"Kyuung."

Passing through the corridor and going outside, I see a quiet space.

Then, a bell rings.

Is it class time?

As I'm wandering around, I hear Michael-nim's voice.

"There you are."

"I was just looking around for a bit."

"Then let's move to the next location."

We leave the Academy and head to another place, but where is it this time?

"This is where angels who have graduated from the Academy and been appointed as official angels learn their first jobs."

In other words, a company.

When I ask what kind of work angels mainly do, she says they do all sorts of things.

From defense work to protect the human realm from the demon realm, to helping the reapers of the afterlife guide souls, their roles are diverse.

"Recently, the demon realm has been noisy, so an emergency order was issued for a while. And our Yuna was at the center of it."

She enters with a bright smile, but what does that mean...?

As we enter the building, a scene commonly seen in the real world unfolds.

More precisely, a scene you might see in a game company.

Angels walking around like zombies, exhausted and with sunken eyes.

As I'm looking at their appearance, I make eye contact with one angel.

Their eyes are filled with emptiness.

And then I hear voices.

"I can't remember the last time I went home..."

"I can't remember my wife's face..."

"My daughter asked me who I was..."

As I listen to their lament-filled stories, I almost shed tears.

Of course, that would be if I were an F.

No, couldn't they have used video calls or had their families visit the company, or found some other way...?

As I approach the exhausted angels, they look at me with expressionless faces.

"Oh my, who are you?"

"Isn't that a human?"

"Yeah? How are you here?"

They look at me, then glance beside me. Only then do they realize who's standing there and hurriedly bow their heads.

"We, we're sorry! We were so out of it that we didn't notice you had arrived, Michael-nim!"

"It's okay. You've been busy lately, right?"

"N-no, not at all!"

Passing by the angels who are showing the epitome of workplace etiquette, Michael-nim guides me here and there.

"This is the department in charge of the demon realm. They all have nasty personalities."

She curses with a bright smile, but is this okay?

As we open the door and enter, voices mixed with profanities echo from all around.

"What the hell are those demon bastards up to from the morning!?"

"Those bastards should be nailed to the holy cross!"

"Verbal abuse and violence are the only ways to save demons!! Amen!!!"

Have they lost their minds...?

Michael-nim shakes her head and asks me to understand that they're like this because it's hard work, then heads to another department.

"This time, we'll move to the department in charge of the middle world. The angels who came to escort you belong to this department."

As we open the door and enter, it's similarly chaotic.

"There's a report that dead monsters have come back to life and are attacking humans!"

"The afterlife is also demanding an explanation for what's going on!?"

"Why are they asking us!? Are they crazy!?"

Listening to the conversation, it seems like it might be related to me, but that must be my imagination, right?

Right, right. I know nothing about this.

"Shall we move to the next department!?"

"Should we? I thought you'd be curious about a lot of things since it's the department in charge of the middle world."

We need to escape quickly now.

The atmosphere is too tense.

"Let's see. We've checked the departments in charge of the demon realm and the middle world. Shall we visit the department in charge of the afterlife next?"

"Ah, before that, I have something I want to ask."

When I ask about where the afterlife is and what kind of work they do, she smiles and says I'll find out everything, extending her hand to me.

The moment I take Michael-nim's hand and enter the department in charge of the afterlife.

"Sinner! We grant you a final plea!"

"Damn it! I didn't do anything wrong! Why are you making a fuss over your own mistake!?"

"I'll pass judgment! You were in charge of the final inspection, you bastard!! Death sentence!!!"

Just as I was about to witness several angels surrounding someone and shouting "Holy Strike!" while beating them, the door closed.

"There's no one here. I guess they all went out on field work."

"Just now, several angels were beating one person..."

"You must have seen wrong. Nothing happened, okay?"

Michael-nim pushes me along, saying she'll show me other departments, practically dragging me away.

What department is left now?

"We've seen the demon realm, middle world, and afterlife departments, so shall we visit the department in charge of the celestial realm next?"

"There's a separate department for the celestial realm too?"

"Of course! It's the most important department."

As I check the department name written as 'Heaven', I wonder if we've come to heaven rather than the celestial realm.

Opening the door and entering, I see angels leisurely having tea time.

Unlike other departments that were fighting tooth and nail, seeing them drinking tea so comfortably and leisurely feels strange somehow.

As soon as I hear their conversation, Michael-nim takes me outside.

"Should I just reincarnate?"

"You can't. I heard they revive you and make you work even if you die."

"There's no escape even in death."

The last scene I saw was the enormous pile of documents stacked behind those leisurely drinking tea.

Several times more documents than in other departments, that is.