Chapter 36: The Ever-Positive Angel Is in Charge of the Magical Girl's Mental Care

Magical Girl Blue (Resolve)

After my final conversation with Cyclamen, I laid her to rest in a sunny spot.

It wasn’t metal or machine I was burying, but a partner who lived and died for her friend. This was the least I could do. It wouldn’t change anything, but I wanted her final moments to be somewhere warm.

If I brought her body to Soyu, maybe she could’ve fixed her somehow.

But that would’ve been cruel.

Cruel to Soyu, who had already torn her heart apart to stop her partner.

And cruel to Cyclamen, who had given everything to care for her partner until the very end.

So I chose to leave her body with the earth, and keep her final words buried in my heart.

“May you find rest… both in body and soul.”

I didn’t say “heaven.”

If what Cyclamen told me was true, then heaven would’ve been hell for her.

‘The Heaven Realm…’

What kind of place is that supposed to be?

Isn’t heaven usually described as warm and peaceful?

But if they’re the ones behind the monsters, and then just stood by after doing all that…

Thinking about Cyclamen’s words… and how Myoa reacted back then…

‘That’s just… an evil organization, isn’t it?’

[You are an angel! A noble being cannot interfere in human affairs!]

[An angel who forgets their role will fall from grace! (It hurts a lot!)]

If all of this is true, maybe those rules weren’t imposed by the author. Maybe they’re traits embedded in the race of angels themselves?

No, that’s still strange. I mean, I wasn’t even supposed to be this character. I got isekai’d into someone the author hadn’t even fully created, and now the angels are secretly the villains?

Are they just patching in lore now that the plot’s spiraled out of control?

Or… maybe the author had planned an angel arc from the beginning, and I just happened to possess this character too early to know?

“….”

The more I thought about it, the heavier my chest felt. I let out a sigh.

“…Whatever. What does it even matter?”

I didn’t come here to save the world.

I’m not some prophet here to awaken humanity.

What does it matter if heaven’s corrupt?

What does it matter what the author wants?

I’m not here to become something great and be revered, or to single-handedly defeat some secret evil organization and earn everyone’s praise.

‘I must not forget.’

No matter how big the crisis gets, my priority is the magical girls.

The reason I’m here is simply because I want the magical girls I love to be happy.

“Haaah…”

With a breath, I steadied my shaken heart, turned my back on the grave, and returned to Han Soyu’s house.

“I’m back…”

I slipped silently through the door, careful not to make a sound, and headed straight to Soyu’s room.

Flying all over to bury Cyclamen had taken a bit of time. I hoped nothing happened while I was gone.

“Ah.”

Still, I shouldn’t just barge into a girl’s room without knocking.

I pulled my hand away from the doorknob and put my ear to the door to listen.

I was worried she might still be crying, but thankfully, I didn't hear any sobs.

Actually… it was so quiet, I started wondering if she was even in the room at all.

But if she weren’t in the house, I would’ve noticed, so most likely, she was just asleep.

I carefully opened the door, doing my best not to wake her.

“Mm…”

As soon as I opened the door, a sleepy murmur made me flinch, but thankfully, it was just ordinary sleep talk.

“Phew…”

I’d nearly jumped, thinking I’d woken her up.

Relieved, I stepped quietly into the room and blinked at the sight before me.

Han Soyu had fallen asleep leaning against the bed, sitting on the floor, clearly exhausted from crying.

She’d definitely wake up sore all over if she stayed like that until morning.

“Excuse me for a moment…”

I carefully approached to help her lay on the bed.

But then I stopped.

‘How am I supposed to move her?’

Han Soyu was taller than me, and I couldn’t exactly picture myself just picking her up and carrying her over with ease.

If I tried to drag her up without thinking, she’d probably bump her legs on the edge of the bed.

How about princess carry? Yeah, no, that wasn’t happening either, not with the height difference.

In the end, my only real option was to just hug her and move her.

Even though I’m in a girl’s body now, I used to be a guy. So, I was a little reluctant, but I can't help it either…

Sure, you might ask, “Didn’t you already bathe with Yoo Seo-ah? What’s the big deal?”

But that was something we mutually agreed on, right? In this case, we are talking about a sleeping girl completely unaware of what was happening.

‘Sigh… Why am I even justifying myself right now?’

Resigned, I carefully hugged Soyu, gently lifted her up and laid her down in bed without waking her.

“…Mm, cold…”

Her body finally touched something warm and soft, but not once did my mind wander into anything indecent.

‘In moments like this, being an asexual angel is kind of nice.’

I used to worry I’d end up like a succubus or something thanks to this "Infinite Love" thing, but I guess I didn’t need to.

Smiling wryly, I carefully brushed Soyu’s bangs aside and turned to leave the room when…

“Mm… mmgh…”

She stirred restlessly, her expression troubled as she groaned in pain.

I stopped and looked back at Soyu.

“Don’t go… please…”

“…I’m not going anywhere. I’ll stay here.”

I sat by her bedside and gently stroked her hair.

Afraid she might wake up if I just kept petting her, I softly hummed a lullaby too.

Noticing she hadn’t even pulled up a blanket, I unfolded my wings and draped them over her like a blanket.

Now that I looked closer, the pillow seemed a bit low, so I slipped under her head and gave her a lap pillow.

And just like that, the painful expression on her face melted away as if it’d never existed. She breathed softly, peacefully in her sleep.

‘…Cute.’

What else could I do for her? Her clothes looked uncomfortable, should I change them for her?

Come to think of it, she didn’t even get a chance to wash up properly after we got back.

Maybe I could wipe her body with a warm towel?

I want to do this for her, and that for her…

I’d cook her breakfast in the morning, give her a good morning kiss, and a goodnight kiss, too.

I want to love her.

More, and more, so much more.

I was half out of my mind thinking about how else I could love her for a moment.

Then suddenly, I snapped back to my senses when I felt Soyu tossing and turning.

“…So warm…”

When I came to, I found a pacifier and a baby rattle in my hands.

Wait, did... did I make these?

‘I guess I’m not in my right mind either.’

I carefully tucked the pacifier and rattle away and went back to simply stroking her hair.

Somehow, something in my chest that had been knotted up all this time was finally starting to unravel, and I let myself smile faintly… before falling quiet again.

‘…Huh?’

Wait a second, could this be… frustration?

Maybe I’ve been so busy with everything else that I haven’t had the chance to express the love overflowing inside me, and now it’s all just bottling up.

Even when it’s more than enough, the love still keeps pouring out, leaking through the cracks.

But if this is what it looks like when it leaks a little… what happens if I keep bottling it up and it finally bursts?

‘…I might fall. In a different sense.’

To think I might become corrupted out of sheer frustration from not being able to give love… what even is this?

With a long sigh, I gave up resisting and just kept gently stroking Soyu’s hair until the frustration faded.

***

—♩

A song.

A soft, gentle tune that made my heart feel warm and safe, like everything was going to be okay.

The cozy warmth of the blanket, the soft pillow that smelled faintly of sweet milk… it was all just so comforting.

It made me want to stay like this forever.

But old habits die hard, and the routine trained into my body pushed the drowsiness away, telling me it was time to wake up.

When I slowly opened my eyes, I saw someone looking down at me.

The morning sun shone through the window, making it hard to see their face clearly.

But I could make out the long flowing hair and the gentle smile on their lips.

A familiar face overlapped in my mind.

“…Mom?”

“Hehe. Good morning.”

The voice was familiar, but not quite the one I remembered.

I blinked slowly, trying to adjust.

The blurry vision began to return to normal.

Soon after, I realized that what the one looking at me was not Cyclamen but a completely different person…

No, an angel.

“…Ah. Sarah.”

“Sorry, did I disappoint you?”

She gave a wry smile at my words, and I awkwardly averted my eyes, brushing the back of my neck.

“Sorry… I didn’t mean anything bad. I wasn’t disappointed either. It’s just… I’m home again after a long time, and I guess it hit me...”

“You don’t have to apologize! Missing someone you love and care about isn’t a bad thing.”

Even though it would’ve been completely reasonable for her to feel hurt, Sarah just smiled and gently patted my head as if it were nothing.

“And it’s not like you had any ill intent. You even apologized right away. I’m really not upset, so please don’t worry.”

Being comforted by someone who looked so much younger than me… was more embarrassing than I thought.

But her warmth and kindness went beyond that.

Even though I knew I shouldn’t, it made me want to lean on her and act spoiled, just a little.

If this were the old me, I would’ve clung to her without hesitation.

But I’m not that person anymore.

‘I can’t stay a child forever.’

Even if it’s hard right now, I have to start moving forward bit by bit.

I can’t stay stuck in place like a broken robot forever.

And… Cyclamen would want that too.

So, for starters, I’ll learn not to take the kindness of others for granted.

I’ll learn to be grateful.

“…Thank you.”

Now, it’s time to step out of the cradle and begin the journey toward becoming an adult.

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