Cleo’s tail swished as she frowned at the greed angel standing across from her. The lizardman had her back facing a dead end in an alley, and Linda was at the entrance, staring at her with a creepy grin. Cleo’s eyes narrowed. “What do you want from me?” she asked as she eyed the open spaces beside Linda. Her tail thumped against the ground as she took a step back.

Linda smiled and took a step forward. She wet her lips with her tongue and cleared her throat. “I was just wondering about that power of yours that you demonstrated,” she said. Her voice sounded like an adult attempting to lure a child into a carriage with candy. “Why don’t you show Auntie Linda just how much stuff you have? I know you made some of my wares disappear. Shouldn’t you return them to me?”

Cleo inhaled through her mouth until her chest puffed up. She shouted, “Help! Murderer! Thief! Robber! I’m being mugged! Arson! There’s a fire! Someone save meeeee!”

Linda dove forward and attempted to grab Cleo, but the lizardman slipped around the angel before throwing a pile of skeletons and dirty bath water on top of the angel’s body. The angel burst through the pile of bones and chased after Cleo who was shouting at the top of her lungs while running through the streets of Ni’En. “I’m being chased by a kidnapper! She wants to skin me alive and sell my organs for a profit! Help!”

“Someone stop that lizard!” Linda shouted as she scrambled through the crowd, her clothes soaking wet and hair dripping water. Cleo was able to slip through the tiny spaces between the people due to her size while Linda collided against the crowd, attempting to force her way through.

“She’s a child abuser! She’s going to work me to death! I’m only six years old! She murdered my family, and ate my pet dog!” Cleo bit an angel’s hand that was trying to grab her and slipped underneath a stall. Her tail narrowly avoided the hands of the stall keeper as she scrambled along the ground. Cleo pouted as she ran around a corner. She was definitely going to get Palan to eat Linda when she saw him again. So what if she stole a few goods? Everything in her space belonged to her. Once Linda’s precious blankets entered her space, they automatically became her possessions.

Linda’s brow furrowed as she rounded the corner that Cleo escaped to. The lizardman was nowhere to be found, and it didn’t look like there were any witnesses who saw which way she went. Linda gritted her teeth and ran down the street, straining her ears to locate any presence of the tiny lizardman. All of her stones had been stolen by the orange creature, and her remaining wares had already been burnt to a crisp by Raea. If she lost track of that lizard now, then she really would have nothing left to her name. Just when she was about to lose hope, she saw a glimpse of orange rounding a bend, and she shouted, “Catch that lizard!”

“Ack!”

Linda smiled when she heard Cleo yelp. “Finally!” she said as she rounded the bend and saw three angels: Owen, Carmella, and Gerome. Owen was grabbing Cleo by her tail, holding her upside down as she hissed and clawed at his arms.

“Damnit, Owen,” Cleo said. “Why is it you? Hurry up and let me go or the crazy lady will—Ah! She’s already here.” She pointed at Linda. “Keep her away from me, Carmella and … her boy toy?”

“My name’s Gerome!” Gerome said as his eye twitched. He sighed and looked at Linda. “Hello.”

“You know her?” Linda asked and raised an eyebrow. She hesitated and took a step back while eyeing Carmella. Something in Linda’s gut told her that the frowning angel was the most dangerous of the three.

“Unfortunately,” Gerome said.

“Hey!” Cleo said and pouted.

He ignored Cleo. “Did she do something to you?” he asked. “We’re sorta … kinda … something like companions?”

“So you’re friends of Raea and Palan?” Linda asked.

“Yes!” Owen said as he dropped Cleo. “Do you know where Lady Raea is? We came to Ni’En to find her, but there seems to be a lot of chaos and confusion.” His face darkened as he recalled the spread of the black flames. The trio had arrived at Ni’En during the midst of the inferno and came to the conclusion that Raea was responsible. Despite knowing that, they hadn’t found any leads on her location or status—until they caught Cleo that is.

Carmella picked Cleo up and hugged the squirming lizardman to her chest. “Shouldn’t you just ask the lizardman?” Carmella asked Owen and rolled her eyes. She looked down at Cleo. “How’ve you been and why aren’t you with Palan?”

Cleo pouted. “There were some really scary archangels, so I ran away first,” she said. “I think they were Raea’s parents.”

“Lord Caelum and Lady Caelum came to Ni’En?” Owen asked, his eyes widening. He didn’t believe it. They hadn’t left the capital in decades.

“They did,” Linda said while nodding. The best way to get her stuff back from Cleo would be to ingratiate herself with the lizardman’s friends. “They didn’t seem to be hostile towards Raea, but they didn’t seem very pleased either.”

“I don’t imagine they would be,” Owen said. “Do you know if … anyone died?”

“Well,” Linda said and scratched her head. Her hair was still damp from the water Cleo dumped on her. “Lots of people died while I traveled with Palan. But I don’t think that’s what you mean. The little thief”—she stared at Cleo—“and I left the area because we weren’t very welcome.” She watched Owen’s face fall into contemplation. “I can ask around if you’d like. My name does have some worth in these areas, and the officials of the city should have records of when Lord Caelum arrived and left. Speaking of names, I don’t believe I got yours.” One way or another, Linda planned on getting her stones back from Cleo.

Chapter 205

Raea stared out the window of a carriage with her lips drawn into a frown. A week had passed since she was separated from Palan, and her parents were still escorting her to Hailing Academy. The carriage ride was unbearable—neither her nor her parents spoke. At first, her mother tried to initiate conversation, but Raea maintained her silence. She was afraid of the words that threatened to come out of her mouth. The last thing she wanted to do was say something that would cause her parents to kill her. Only after thinking about it, she realized there were quite a few things she did that could warrant her death: she deserted the army, she slaughtered greater angels … and cannibalized them, she had a high level contract with a demon as an archangel and then had sex with said demon, her friends were a lizardman, a harpy, and a demon. The list went on and on.

Her lips pursed and she turned her head away from the window, causing the chains on her body to jangle. Red manacles and chains adorned her body, preventing her from using her powers and moving around. The material was the same as the one used to construct the checkpoint walls. She didn’t mind the feel of the chains on her body too much, but they did irritate her by weighing down her wings. Her gaze landed on her mother who was sitting across from her, reading a piece of paper. A frown was plastered on her mother’s face.

“Marossa is in dire straits,” her mother said to her father who was driving the carriage. Normally, they’d have a chauffeur, but the family wanted to keep Raea’s condition a secret. The less people that knew, the better. “The archangels of the council all went there, but they have not been winning back any of the cities that were lost.”

“Does that not mean they are just biding their time?” Raea’s father asked. “I find it hard to believe the rebel army is capable of defeating six archangels working in tandem. If six archangels wished to take back the cities we lost, then nothing could stop them. The council must have a reason for their inaction.”

Raea’s mother let out a hum as she placed the paper down on the seat beside her. Her eyes made contact with Raea’s, and Raea quickly shifted her gaze downwards, staring at her clawed fingers. Her mother had tried to trim and file them, but they grew back the next day even sharper than before. “Raea,” her mother said. Raea kept her head down. “We’re almost there. You really aren’t going to say anything to your own mother? I’m worried about you.”

“Then maybe you should’ve came to the borderlands with me if you were so damn worried,” Raea muttered. Her mother blinked, evidently not expecting an answer.

“You know I couldn’t have done that,” her mother said.

“No,” Raea said and raised her head. “I didn’t. I still don’t. Why couldn’t you?” She bit her lower lip, and cursed herself for speaking. She had a feeling things wouldn’t end up well if she continued. No matter how much she wanted to scream and yell at her parents, she had to keep her mouth shut for Palan. It really wouldn’t be fair to him if she got herself killed. Maybe she really should’ve formed a lower level contract with him. Her gaze lowered back to her hands, and she closed her eyes while taking in a deep breath.

“You will understand when you are older,” Raea’s mother said before sighing and staring out the window. There wasn’t a trace of green outside: buildings, brick roads, people, and carriages were all that could be seen. Elrith hadn’t been lying to Palan when he said the first sector was just one giant city. The carriage rattled along until it arrived in front of a castle-like structure with a giant stone wall surrounding it. From the outside, it looked like a prison.

“We’re here,” Raea’s father said as the carriage ground to a halt. The metal gates to the academy swung open, and the family disembarked. Raea was covered with a sheet that hid her wings and the chains on her body. A blindfold was placed over her eyes, and her mother led her by the hand. A few angels gave them strange looks, but no one said a word. A few saluted and bowed their heads when they realized who Raea’s mother and father were.

Although the Caelum parents hadn’t left the capital in decades, Raea’s father seemed to know exactly where he wanted to go. They walked through winding corridors and stairwells until they reached a room near the top of the castle. Raea’s father knocked twice on the room’s door, causing a metallic sound to echo through the hall. “Come in,” a voice said.

Raea’s father pushed the door open and stepped inside, his wife and Raea following behind him. “Headmaster Hailing,” he said.

An old-looking angel was sitting on a wooden rocking chair with a cat resting in his lap. Beside him, there was a fireplace, and his feet were stretched out in front of it. There was a desk on the other side of the room with papers stacked in neat piles on its surface. “Lord Caelum,” Headmaster Hailing said. “I was wondering when you’d arrive. Your daughter left behind quite a lot of items.” He turned towards Raea’s mother and nodded. “Lady Caelum.” His brow furrowed when he saw Raea who looked like a disfigured mummy. “And this is?”

“My youngest daughter,” Raea’s father said. “She’s fallen, and I want you to convert her back.”

The headmaster’s brow furrowed. “So you really aren’t here because of Selena,” he said and clicked his tongue while wrinkling his nose. “Very well. A regular angel is easy enough to correct.”

“She’s an archangel,” Raea’s father said, taking a seat on a couch reserved for visitors.

The headmaster’s face darkened. “This is illegal,” he said. “Harboring a fallen angel is a crime punishable by death. You two do realize that, yes? Of course you do. You’re from the capital. It would be impossible for you to not know.” The cat in his lap raised its head and stared at the intruders. It hissed while its tail rose into the air. The headmaster ran his fingers over the cat’s head before narrowing his eyes at Raea’s father. “Are you upset with me because Selena died? Let me guess, after I receive your ‘request’, an unexpected quality check of my academy will occur because of an anonymous tip.”

“I assure you, that will not happen,” Raea’s father said.

“You are not afraid that I will turn her in?” the old angel asked. “I am a law-abiding citizen.”

“My daughter is special,” Raea’s father said.

“Everyone’s child is special to their parents,” Headmaster Hailing said and waved his hand dismissively.

Raea’s father reached over and tore the sheet off of Raea’s body while uncovering her eyes. The headmaster’s eyes widened when he saw Raea. “Oh,” he said as the cat in his lap started to yowl. He murmured as he placed the cat down. “Special indeed.”

“I know of your interest in legends,” Raea’s father said.

“Does the council know about this?” the headmaster asked, tearing his gaze away from Raea.

“Lady Sariel told me about my daughter, but she did not say anything about executing her,” Raea’s father said. “I assume she wanted to convert her back into a pure angel. The council’s numbers have been dwindling after all. I will personally report what I have done to Lady Sariel. You have my word.”

A slight smile appeared on the headmaster’s lips. “With your wife as a witness to your words, I will accept your request,” he said. “What virtue has your daughter fallen from?”

“Her patience and kindness turned into wrath,” Raea’s mother said.

“It’ll be difficult to bring them back since she’s an archangel,” the headmaster said. “Difficult, but not impossible. A long time may be needed.”

“That is acceptable,” Raea’s father said as he stood up. “Then I will leave her in your care.” Raea’s father walked out of the room without a second glance at his daughter. Raea’s mother’s brow furrowed as she stood up and followed after her husband, but not before brushing her hand against Raea’s.

“I just want the best for you,” Raea’s mother said. She faced the headmaster. “Please take care of my daughter. If possible, bring back her original appearance.” The headmaster waved his hand like he was shooing a fly away from a plate of food. The metal door closed as Raea’s mother left, leaving Raea alone in the room with the headmaster and his cat.

“Well, aren’t your parents pleasant?” the headmaster asked before chuckling. “Would you like something to eat?”