Chapter 201 – Change or Corruption (1)
‘I cannot lose. No, I cannot afford to lose.’
Michael gritted her teeth as she soared across the sky. What burned strongest in her heart was the instinct not to lose.
She had felt it the moment she arrived on Earth. She wanted this place and didn’t want it taken away. That was why she hated Takilas even more.
In a constrained state, he was her almost sole rival on this planet. Thus, unlike anything else, she absolutely could not afford to lose to Takilas.
“This insane… Magical Girl Michael! This is our airspace! You are currently invading our territory!”
Before long, fighter jets swooped in around her.
Her body was small enough to evade radar, but with three pairs of dazzling wings spread wide, radiating brilliant light as she flew through the clouds, there was no way they wouldn’t notice.
“Stop! Though we declared a ceasefire, this is still a country firmly at war! This means we can fire without warning!”
[Stop making a racket. Go ahead and shoot. If you wish to become the villain disturbing a holy crusade…]
With her divine light already gleaming, Michael completely ignored their urgent demands. Her mind was made up. If they declared war, she would accept it, and if slaughter was needed, she was willing to bear that.
“Fi… Fire! Fire!”
In the end, the fighter jets dispersed and began to shoot her with machine guns. The power of the machine guns was enough to shatter thick steel plates, yet the bullets hitting her magically charged body and wings crumpled and ricocheted off.
[Poor foot soldiers, hastening their demise.]
Simultaneously, a blazing storm of flames erupted from Michael’s wings and swept everywhere at an incredible speed.
It was as if a small sun had risen in the air; the continuous waves of flame pulsed several times a second, exploding with no place to escape.
“Ugh, Aaaah!”
“The fighter squadron…”
Naturally, the surrounding fighter jets exploded in a single strike and vanished into nothing.
Nevertheless, Michael flew boldly inland across the vast Siberia.
“Stop right there!”
Now, as if it were the natural order of things, other Magical Girls were blocking Michael’s path instead of the army.
“Sonia, Silvi, Natasha… All S and A-rank Magical Girls from Russia.”
[…How ridiculous.]
Those following her movements informed Michael of who the Magical Girls obstructing her were.
Of course, Michael barely listened. No matter who came, they wouldn’t be able to stop her anyway.
[Get out of my way. I am simply fulfilling my duty.]
“Duty? What duty allows you to invade borders and attack allies at will?!”
In response to Michael’s warning, a girl with blue hair, seeming to be the representative of the Magical Girls, stepped forward and aimed her weapon.
“That’s Sonia. A pro-government Magical Girl closely collaborating with the Russian government.”
[How absurd. A self-proclaimed hunting dog of villains.]
Michael scoffed at the information. No matter what they said, in her eyes, these were merely those protecting the villain and obeying his commands—obstacles in her path.
[Your leader started a war and caused countless… Anyway, it’s evil. Does it make sense for a Magical Girl to protect someone like that?]
“Ugh.”
Sonia stumbled, flustered by Michael’s words. The blind spot of Magical Girls cooperating closely with government agencies is that when their own group becomes an embodiment of evil, the duty to exterminate evil becomes glaring.
From their perspective, being part of that society, they had to choose between their duty as Magical Girls and their duty as citizens of their country.
[It wouldn’t matter, right? If you stand in my way and obstruct me, I’ll kill you, who have forsaken your duty.]
“We… we couldn’t help it! This is my country! This is where I live!”
[Excuses will not suffice. You, who have forsaken your duty, are consequently part of that evil.]
Summoning a massive inferno, Michael moved her nine blazing wings, unleashing a nine-part strike.
“Is… this… killing them too?!”
[Why should I spare my enemies?]
Until now, Michael hadn’t harmed any Magical Girls, but this time was different. The Magical Girls who were incinerated in an instant by her flames didn’t even manage to offer a meaningful resistance before turning to ash, disappearing without a trace.
[Nothing can stop me. Absolutely nothing.]
Michael did not cease her advance.
She paid no heed to whoever blocked her path. If they were opponents she could harm, it simply meant they were evil.
Thus, shedding numerous sacrifices, Michael arrived at her destination, breaking through the ground and daring to dig down to the underground nuclear bunker facility.
*
“I can’t believe this…”
“Hmm, it’s more extreme than I thought.”
The breaking news unfolding before them was about a country’s leader, who had drawn global attention long ago, being incinerated along with his bunker.
The military, as well as the assembled Magical Girls, didn’t manage to offer even the slightest resistance. This was all made possible by a single Magical Girl—Michael, the Archangel of Hellfire.
“If she comes out like that, Takilas is going to have a bit of a headache.”
“Are you seriously saying that right now?!”
Despite having transformed, Aria, who hadn’t even left her house, sighed while looking down.
However, Sandalphon, casually watching TV at her home, merely looked up as if questioning what the problem was.
“I’m just here for a visit.”
“You have to help us clean this up! We’re allies!”
“That’s outside of my jurisdiction. After all, I’ve done enough just helping with catching Razak.”
“Ugh…”
At Sandalphon’s mention of Razak, Aria fell silent. The reason why this battle hadn’t ended long ago and continued up to now was largely because he had overlooked a lot when catching Razak.
“Then there’s no way to stop her from running wild like that?!”
“Isn’t that the same for Takilas? You should know better than anyone how to face an unstoppable calamity as a human.”
“Run, hide, and conceal ourselves?”
Aria clenched her fists, gritting her teeth. It was an action she must take to survive. But she didn’t want to do that.
“…Do you wish to subdue Michael?”
At that moment, Sandalphon, seeing her distressed state, chuckled slightly and brought up a topic. Aria’s eyes widened in surprise at the story she didn’t expect.
“Of course, it’s not up to you. In fact, everything depends on Michael. Whether what she is experiencing now is merely a change or corruption, that will determine the choices she has.”
“What does that even mean?”
Filled with hope, Aria tried to calm her excitement to hear more, but Sandalphon’s expression was filled with a bittersweet grimace as he mentioned corruption.
“There is a duty for the Demon King, and just as he loses his position if he forsakes that duty, the same goes for an angel. If one disregards the will of the sky and commits a taboo, the angel will fall. They will no longer be an angel.”
“If Michael becomes a fallen angel… does that mean we can attack her?”
“That’s likely. But becoming a fallen angel means forsaking all one’s duties. It requires a strong desire to do so. It appears that Michael is standing at that crossroads. I believe there’s still a chance for positive change, but as for Michael…”
Sandalphon knew of Michael’s potential to fall, yet he didn’t voice it.
There was no obligation to warn her in the first place. Michael’s rampage was simply bothersome while she gradually learned about Earth.
“Make sure to inform Takilas and your allies. Whether she chooses to fall or change is purely Michael’s decision, and if she does fall, we won’t intervene, so let her do as she pleases.”
“Understood.”
“Of course, even if Michael handles it that way, you still have more trials ahead, don’t you? Uriel, that one won’t turn to corruption even if she’s not as obstinate as Michael, so overcoming her will fully rest on you.”
“Uriel…”
At Sandalphon’s teasing words, Aria bit her lip. The one she had been clashing with while working as a Magical Girl in Korea was none other than the beautiful blonde known as Uriel.
Before she could contemplate the Michael situation, there were still plenty of unfinished tasks that Aria needed to address.
And she instinctively knew that all of it rested solely on her shoulders.
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