Splash—
The tea spilled into the sink.
“…Haa.”
The woman leaned over the sink, letting out a long sigh.
Her breath trembled with a hint of sobbing.
Her son was no longer here. In the seat where he had sat, only Madojin remained.
Before vanishing, the woman’s son had said:
“Isn’t it strange, Mom?”
He had smiled as he asked.
“That some people can so easily make miracles out of what we call miracles. Even if we feel uncomfortable about it… in the end, we can’t help but feel grateful.”
He’d added that with a sorrowful expression.
And he was right. Seeing her dead son again must have been a miracle for the woman. But a miracle, by definition, is something impossible—once it happens, it’s no longer a miracle.
Madojin probably hadn’t intended to make a miracle happen. He simply believed he had to atone, and that belief brought the two together.
Maybe that’s why—
Now, as the miracle unfolded before her, and she struggled with her emotions, Madojin watched her with concern.
“I…”
Scrape—
Rising from his chair, Madojin approached the woman.
“Did I… did I reopen the wound of losing your son? I’m truly sorry. I still don’t know how to bring joy to others. If I had known you would be sad, I never would’ve…”
He gently laid a hand on her back and said,
“No, it’s not that…”
The woman suppressed a sob as she spoke.
“I’m just… so happy.”
She said she was crying because she was happy.
Madojin looked like he didn’t understand. In his mind, happiness equated to smiles, and sadness to tears. He recognized emotion through such simple formulas.
“Uh, um…”
I stood, feeling I should say something to the woman.
But the right words wouldn’t come. I had a strong feeling that anything I said would only interrupt her.
“Dojin.”
So I spoke to Madojin instead.
“Let’s just wait until she’s done crying.”
That felt like the right thing to do.
So we waited quietly until she calmed down.
The woman wept quietly. Being beside someone who’s crying in silence is hard.
Especially for ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’—he was clearly uncomfortable. His eyes wandered constantly, and his wings trembled slightly.
‘Maybe…’
He wasn’t used to this kind of patience. As a constellation who was used to granting salvation with ease, waiting for a person to recover must have been unfamiliar.
Occasionally, the woman dabbed at her eyes with tissues or took sharp breaths.
And finally—
“…Thank you. Truly.”
She broke the silence.
Madojin looked startled by her words.
“Thank you…? Why would you thank me?”
He must’ve expected resentment, no matter how much he apologized.
“Does everything need a reason to be thankful?”
She smiled gently, as if the tears had never been there.
“Trying to find reasons for emotions is a bad habit. Maybe you’re curious because… you haven’t been in this world for very long?”
Her words hit the mark.
His question had sounded oddly like a child asking why the sky is blue.
“You can set your heart down now. I don’t resent you. In fact, I’m thankful.”
“…Yes. Thank you.”
Madojin bowed his head slightly, almost shyly.
“And you, there…”
She looked toward ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’.
“Um… what should I call you? I know your sacred name, but it’s a little long…”<My human-world name is Michael Rodriguez.>
I nearly choked.
Of all things, he went with an American name.
But then again, Michael did originate from Mikael, and with his foreign appearance, it might have been hard for him to go by something like Kim Mika.
“Oh, okay… Mr. Michael.”
She nodded, then turned to Madojin.
“I don’t know if it’s my place to say this, but I don’t think what this child needs is a constellation.”
What he needed was—
“…I think this child needs a parent. So, please… watch over him as a father would.”
<A… father?>
Surprise flickered across ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’s’ face.
<…I see.>
He slowly nodded.
<I hadn’t thought of that. My father is the omnipotent ‘Savior Who Is One and All.’ I lack understanding of human family bonds. Thank you for teaching me. Now, young lamb—please call me ‘Papa’ from now on.>
“…No thank you.”
Madojin shot him a sharp glare.
<Why not? If you don’t, I can’t save you! Say it—‘Papa’!>
“…Please, I’m begging you. Stop.”
The two angels, both dressed in radiant ceremonial garb, stared each other down.
“Pfft!”
The woman chuckled.
And I couldn’t help but smile too.
…Just like that.
Madojin’s first mission as an angel had come to an end.
Then the weekend came.
I headed to YN Entertainment’s headquarters.
Today, a meeting was scheduled to set the direction for our project team.
Project groups formed through CYB were often made up of trainees from various agencies.
Naturally, the interests of each agency were involved, and the influence of CYB—who backed the team—couldn’t be ignored.
CYB, after all, was governed by constellations. They would directly judge next year’s world tournament. That meant—
‘…We’re really under a ridiculous number of watchful eyes.’
Not just the public and entertainment reporters, but even constellations would be following our every move.
‘Anyway…’
Han Iro, Madojin, Jeong Noeul, Min Heejae, and I—we would be on the same team from now on.
‘I’ve been with Dojin the past few days, but…’
I wondered if the others had rested well.
Had Han Iro mended things with his family?
Was Jeong Noeul still dealing with the aftermath of her clash with Enoch?
Had Min Heejae met with his old piano teacher—
In other words, the father of one of the ‘Ten Kings of the Underworld’?
Those thoughts swirled in my head, but there’s no point dwelling—answers would come soon enough.
I looked out the car window.
I saw the outer wall of the YN building, printed with photos of their stars.
At the far end, a barricade had been set up. Workers were busy adding my image to the wall.
I laughed.
I remembered when I used to stare at that same wall in despair after being kicked out of the sanctuary.
The video I had playing on YouTube at the moment was…
[FanCam] Rowen 4K ‘Goodbye Good Lighting’ @XCONCERT_20XX.5.21
Rowen’s performance was as mesmerizing as ever.
It felt like just yesterday when I came here seeking a constellation contract before entering CYB.
“…Hyung.”
I called out to Pilyeon-hyung, who was at the wheel.
“What is it, Eunyul?”
He asked, eyes on the road.
“It still doesn’t feel real. That I won first place.”
“Well, you don’t have to believe it right away.”
He smiled.
“You’ll come to believe it soon enough.”
“…I guess that’s true.”
I smiled wryly.
This title would follow me from now on like a name tag. Whether it felt real yet didn’t matter.
“Remember what I said before?”
I looked at him.
“I wanted you to be my personal manager when I debuted.”
“Ah…”
He seemed to recall it.
“…You did say that.”
He chuckled.
“I still want to work with you.”
Ever since I dropped out of middle school and became a trainee at YN Entertainment, Pilyeon-hyung had been by my side.
It was time to make good on that promise.
“Ah, but… the thing is…”
Screech—
The car rolled into YN’s underground parking lot.
“Eunyul.”
He looked at me, hands still on the wheel. His expression was…
‘…Oddly apologetic?’
He didn’t look pleased at all.
“Sorry for telling you just now, but…”
He scratched the back of his head.
“I’m only working until the end of this month.”
“What? Why? I mean… yeah, manager work is tough, but I thought you’d stay…”
“Ya punk.”
He tapped my shoulder.
“I’m not quitting because it’s hard! I just… got lucky.”
“What do you mean?”
It sounded like he won the lottery or something—
“…I did win the lottery.”
He actually won the lottery?!
“The new manager CYB assigned to you is waiting in the lobby. I heard he was hand-picked. Real handsome guy. Honestly, he looks more like a celebrity than a manager. I swear I’ve seen him on TV or something…”
Clunk—!
Even before he finished, I already knew.
I flung the car door open and ran.
The elevator didn’t come fast enough, so I bolted up the stairs.
By the time I reached the lobby, I was panting, hands on my knees.
And when I looked up—
<Ah, you’ve arrived.>
Golden hair like melted moonlight.
Eyes that sparkled gold with impossible beauty.
There was no mistaking it.
Star was walking toward me.
He wore a proper suit, which made him look even more ridiculous—but it was definitely him.
<I’ve been waiting, Ryu Eunyul. I look forward to working with you.>
Employees passing through the lobby were eyeing him curiously. Star offered an awkward smile as he looked around.
<People keep staring at me. Saying I look familiar from TV, or from a dream, or from the CYB final stage…>
“Well, you did show up on stage with me… and barged into people’s dreams…”
<What are you saying? In any case, I made sure they think it’s just TV déjà vu. I can’t have anyone knowing my real identity. I don’t even know who’s made things so complicated for me.>
“Seriously, what’s with the way you’re talking?”
<What way? And why are you speaking so informally? That’s rude.>
With that, Star extended a hand toward me.
<Shall we shake hands? My name is Shaytan Kim, and I’ll be working with you from now on.>
…Shaytan Kim? Really?
It sounded kind of cool, but…
“…Freeze to death, Shaytan Kim.”
I grabbed his hand.
“I missed you, Kim Star.”
As we shook hands, Star slowly leaned in toward my ear.
<Who’s that? I am Shaytan Kim.>
He clung to his weird act, but then—
<Still…>
He whispered softly in my ear—
<…I missed you a little, too, my creature.>
Little Pink Starfish 
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