<…Are you saying I’m lying?>
At the question of ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’, Madojin nodded.
A thin silence wrapped around the solid walls of the office. At first glance, Madojin’s expression appeared sharp, but ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ knew that deep inside, he was utterly innocent.
‘He didn’t see through it.’
That was why ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ was convinced.
Madojin had not predicted that the performance accompanied by Vanessa Bernstein was a project formed by an agreement with ‘The Star Hated by All’, nor that the true purpose of this project was to face the Demon God. And yet, calling this concealment a lie stemmed from…
‘…nothing else.’
‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ nodded.
Groundless suspicion. It was a profoundly human emotion. To fall into suspicion based on facial expressions, tones of voice, or other subtle discomforts was a privilege unique to humans. The basis for such suspicion was never proper evidence. It was suspicion without reasonable grounds.
‘That, too, isn’t bad.’
That child has also changed.
Thinking this, ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ smiled.
<Dojin, what kind of lie do you think I’m telling?>
“I don’t know.”
Madojin answered readily.
“I’ve thought about what kind of lie Master might be telling… but I couldn’t predict it. You were never someone who lied. However, I feel like you’re hiding something from me. And to hide it, you keep on lying. That’s my sense of it. Am I wrong?”
<No, you’re not.>
‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ sighed.
Then, he grabbed the cord of the blinds draped beside the office’s large window.
<You are correct, Dojin. I am lying.>
Click.
The sound of the blinds sliding.
<As the Archangel standing beside ‘The Savior Who Is One and All’, I believe in the meaning contained in a lie of goodwill.>
The tightly woven blinds blocked the outside view. Through the cracks, the twilight sunlight dimly streamed in, and ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ turned his gaze toward Madojin.<Some truths are better left unknown.>
“Why?”
Madojin tilted his head.
“Why are some truths better left unknown?”
Madojin found it hard to accept the Archangel’s words.
It wasn’t based on any value judgment but simple curiosity that drove his question.
This world was woven from facts, and therefore, everything was precious. Even tiny, invisible microorganisms lived as facts. These facts intertwined to create the world.
“…Even so, you say there are facts better left unknown?”
<Yes.>
‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ nodded.
<Your hands exist to grab something, but they also exist to cover your eyes, block your nose, cover your ears, or even shut your mouth. Those who have hands can seize things outside of themselves, but they can also block the external that tries to invade inward.>
“I don’t quite understand.”
This is too difficult for me, he murmured, tilting his head.
<That’s to be expected.>
‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ approached Madojin.
The sound of his shoes rubbing against the office floor echoed lightly. At the same time, pure white feathers fluttered around him. Before he knew it, wings had sprouted from the Archangel’s back.
<That’s why you need to study.>
Standing beside Madojin, ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ whispered.
<I’ve tried to teach you as much as possible as your constellation and as a senior angel. When we first met, you were just a child in a grown man’s body. I felt responsible. You deserved a life where you could be more like a child.>
‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ knew.
The young man standing before him lacked boyhood. Enoch had rapidly grown Madojin’s body, stealing away his boyhood. And so, beneath his hardened shell remained a clumsy purity in the shape of a young man.
<That’s why I thought I needed to help you grow as quickly as possible.>
Mind and body should not be separated. That was the Archangel’s belief. For a boy’s mind to linger in the shape of a grown man only led to existential discord, just as Madojin, manipulated by Enoch, was constantly engulfed in self-loathing.
“My height hasn’t changed.”
Madojin spoke with a blank face. Perhaps he thought growth referred to physical height. A faint smile spread on the Archangel’s lips.
“But… I do understand what you’re trying to say, Master.”
Strength entered Madojin’s previously hazy expression.
“You have taught me many things. Solving elementary-level workbooks was quite hard at first, but it got easier with the middle-level ones. I suppose it’s because the knowledge became drier and more systematic.”
<That’s likely. There are slight differences in each country’s curriculum, but humans seem to believe that the deeper one goes into education, the drier it must become.>
‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ shrugged.
<But it cannot end with simply acquiring such knowledge. You need to explore advanced courses and apply the knowledge you’ve already mastered. And perhaps… realizing my lie wasn’t merely instinctual. It must have been thanks to the application of the knowledge embedded in your head.>
Therefore,
Placing his hand on Madojin’s shoulder, the Archangel spoke.
<I’ll tell you.>
What I’ve been hiding.
His whisper lingered in Madojin’s ear.
A continuing voice. Madojin’s eyes slowly widened.
<…Can you tell?>
The Archangel’s lips moved away from Madojin’s ear.
<What it is that I’ve been hiding?>
Walking away, ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ looked back at Madojin.
<In this situation, what choice will you make, Dojin?>
Will you condemn me, or will you follow me?
At the Archangel’s question, Madojin could not easily answer.
Only silent shadows were cast upon the dim office walls.
Inside a meeting room at YN Entertainment.
Min Heejae, sipping his drink, turned his gaze to Madojin.
“Where did you go, Dojin?”
Pulling out his chair, Madojin answered.
“…Nowhere.”
Min Heejae tilted his head. Madojin’s strangely drained voice pricked his nerves. Though Madojin often spaced out, he rarely seemed so listless. Thinking so, Min Heejae scanned his face.
Madojin, however, was staring at Ryu Eunyul.
‘He must know everything.’
Ryu Eunyul already knew the entire plan. That’s what ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’ had told Madojin. At the center of this plan was ‘The Star Hated by All’, and it made no sense for its contractor, Ryu Eunyul, not to know everything.
‘The Demon God…’
Madojin repeated the name in his mind.
What little he knew about the Demon God was just dry facts. By the time Enoch resurrected him, all the Gates had already been closed, and his brief life was unrelated to the world corrupted by them. At most, only the bleak scenes he saw on Jeju Island came to mind. He had no real understanding of the actual pain.
‘But Eunyul’s father…’
He had reportedly died due to contamination from the Gate. Surely, there must be countless others who had lost their lives that way, and just as many who mourned them. In such circumstances, what intention does ‘The Star Hated by All’ have in approaching the Demon God?
“Heejae.”
Just as he was about to speak, Madojin shook his head.
“…Heejae.”
“Yeah?”
With a faint smile, Min Heejae responded.
“What kind of being is the Demon God?”
“The Demon God?”
Min Heejae tilted his head.
“Ah… Well… Are you curious because of the upcoming performance with Vanessa Bernstein?”
A sly smile formed on Min Heejae’s lips.
“Since Vanessa Bernstein’s father was said to have killed the Demon God, it’s natural to be curious.”
Min Heejae nodded.
“But not much is known about the Demon God. Kids are taught about the Gate invasion in school, but the Demon God is different. Unlike the countless photos of high-ranking demons who manifested through S-class Gates that are all over the internet, no one knows what the Demon God looked like or how it died.”
Is that so.
Everything’s been covered up.
Letting out a sigh, Madojin thought.
According to ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’, the Demon God was nothing more than a low-ranking demon. It would be difficult to reveal that the one who opened the Gate was such a minor demon. Moreover, it wouldn’t make for a grand heroic tale.
“So you don’t know much about the Demon God either?”
At Madojin’s question, Min Heejae nodded.
“If there’s one thing I do know… it’s that the Demon God led the invasion into the human world, causing countless deaths.”
“Yes, I see.”
Madojin fell silent.
Then, forcing a smile, he looked at Ryu Eunyul, who was chatting with the other members. The problem was that his lies were painfully obvious. Unlike ‘The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell’, who concealed his feelings with a compassionate smile, Ryu Eunyul’s face was constantly tinged with awkwardness.
“One more question, can I?”
Still gazing at Ryu Eunyul, Madojin spoke.
“Could you… show mercy to the Demon God?”
“No.”
Min Heejae answered without hesitation.
A statement free of emotion.
No anger, no sorrow, no pain. Min Heejae answered as if listing a simple fact.
And thus, it felt all the heavier.
“No one could, really.”
Min Heejae shrugged.
“As long as they’re human.”
Little Pink Starfish 
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