Of course, quite apart from the corners of my mouth turning up, it was a bewildering situation.
Because several grown men much larger than me were surrounding me.
They were bowing at the waist, but I still felt a bit of pressure, so to speak.
“…What is the meaning of this, everyone…….”
Captain Kim came out of the room belatedly after hearing the commotion.
Captain Kim looked at the soldiers bowing their heads and let out a sigh.
“Come now, everyone stand up… How long are you going to keep bowing?”
The waists that had been bent for quite some time finally straightened.
Ahem, receiving words of gratitude was pleasant enough, but having over a dozen people do this was a bit burdensome.
‘…Now I can finally see their faces.’
Because they had bowed their heads the moment the door opened earlier, I couldn’t tell who was who.
‘So that’s who they were—the squad members I saved last time.’
Of course, I didn’t remember most of their faces, but I recognized them from that staff sergeant.
His face had rather distinct features, so he was easy to pick out.
Seeing how everyone was subtly glancing at him for cues, he had probably brought them here.
“Thanks to you, we were able to save our lives.”
His voice as he spoke held a hint of vitality.
Just earlier, when fighting the Head Grape, he had seemed to have lifeless eyes.
“No, it was nothing…….”
“Not at all. Everyone here survived thanks to you.”
It struck me all the more that he wasn’t saying this as an empty exaggeration.
After all, I had actually saved their lives at the brink of death.
What was I supposed to say at a time like this?
Receiving thanks was certainly pleasant, but I wasn’t very thick-skinned, so I was also flustered.
Captain Kim noticed my awkwardness and stepped forward.
“Alright, you’ve paid your respects, so everyone return to your posts now! The situation isn’t completely over yet. Everyone except those whose guard duty shift is changing, return to your original positions!”
At Captain Kim’s barked order, they finally withdrew reluctantly.
From their perspective, Captain Kim was inevitably someone to be wary of. The soldiers returned quickly.
Captain Kim let out a deep sigh and spoke.
“…I’m sorry for the trouble. I’ll make sure to give those fellows a firm talking-to…….”
“…No, it’s fine. They just came to express their thanks. It wasn’t a big deal, right?”
I answered with a shrug.
Captain Kim fell silent for a moment at my words, then nodded.
“Then, I’ll really be going now.”
Only after roughly waving my hand could I truly escape that spot.
Since it was late, I headed straight back to my barracks.
*
By the time I arrived at the barracks, the sun was beginning to rise.
The conversation with the demon had already dragged on, and with the raid and discussions on top of that, there was no way I had enough time.
“…Sigh.”
Looking at the sky turning azure, I felt a surge of frustration for no reason.
Even though I had become an Archangel, I couldn’t shake off the exhaustion; my body was wearing itself out, but…….
‘…Well, it can’t be helped.’
I had gained too much to simply complain.
Honestly, what I had accomplished in a single day was at a nonsensical level.
Although the raid had been unexpected… it was something that had to be done.
I had even tested the sacred art I had newly learned.
Aside from the fatigue, there was nothing bad about it at all.
Honestly, I had reached the level of Archangel, yet my stamina remained the same, which was really…….
“Haaaahm…….”
Yawning, I slowly opened the barracks door.
Squeak-.
I was certainly tired, but the sun hadn’t risen yet at this hour.
It was probably around 5 o’clock. Even by military standards, it was still far from wake-up time.
Of course, I didn’t know for sure since a commotion had just occurred… but they should be sleeping now.
I tiptoed, moving my feet inside the barracks…….
“Mmm… Unni, you’re back?”
I flinched at the voice calling out to me.
I turned my head to see Min Aji looking at me with bleary eyes.
“You were awake…?”
“Mm… Yes. After getting ready to fight once in the middle of it all, I couldn’t fall asleep……”
The raid itself ended quickly, but the entire garrison had probably been in an uproar.
Because this attack had been unusually large-scale.
It was fortunate that they had determined there was no possibility of a follow-up raid.
If there had been remaining Mimics nearby, I wouldn’t have been able to return to the barracks even as a civilian collaborator.
I probably would have been standing guard duty like the other soldiers.
“Still, get some sleep. It’s not like you can sleep during the day just because a raid happened.”
“…I should. What about you, Unni?”
“I……”
I had considered sleeping even for an hour, but if I did, I felt like it would be hard to wake up.
Thinking it might be better not to sleep at all, I told her so.
“…Then I won’t sleep either.”
“…Well, do as you like. What about Inha?”
“Inha fell asleep as soon as she came back……”
Come to think of it, Yu Inha’s nerves were quite thick.
Even when we first encountered a Mimic, she had offered to go down into the sewer first.
To have such mental fortitude even without sacred power. I was a bit envious of that.
“Then I’ll, hup. Change my clothes.”
“Shall I help you?”
“…No need.”
In the early days, these girls used to help me change.
Since my body wasn’t particularly tall and wings got in the way, wearing things like a bra had been difficult.
Of course, that was just in the early stages of the mutation; now I could change just fine.
Right, just like this…….
“…Aji.”
“Yes, Unni.”
“…Could you help me a little?”
…the bra that normally fastened just fine wouldn’t close this time.
My limbs couldn’t have gotten scrawnier than they already were here, so probably…….
“Huh? The wings…? There are two now?”
“…Heh.”
It must be because of these wings.
Since I had gained another pair, the volume had increased too.
Moreover, they weren’t a body part I could move at will, so they were incredibly cumbersome.
Still, though they were inconvenient in many ways… I didn’t have much to complain about.
For now, just having two pairs made me happy.
‘Who am I?’
An Archangel with four wings despite being a Yawning Angel.
Since I was giggling to myself, Min Aji, who was fastening my bra, asked a question.
“What happened? For your wings to increase……”
“Well, you see……”
If I were to speak of these two wings, they were something one couldn’t even dream of in the lower grades—something only obtainable upon reaching at least the middle grades.
—I wanted to boast like that, but since it was a story hard to understand even if explained, I glossed over it.
Actually, the wings didn’t even have any special functions. I couldn’t fly with them.
“I suppose they signify my growth. A symbol meaning I’ve grown stronger.”
“Then does that mean the stories about stopping the raid are all……”
“Yes, yes. I’ve finally secured independent offensive and defensive capabilities.”
Hearing thanks from people I barely knew was nice, but hearing the admiration of a comrade was a different flavor altogether.
This feeling of being revered.
It might look a little arrogant, but it was quite addictive.
“Just where did you go during the day? What in the world did you do?”
“Well, that’s……”
It was a bit of a difficult story to tell.
The military didn’t hide the existence of demons, but they seemed to block information about them.
I had even signed a written pledge of silence right before entering the container.
Perhaps sensing my troubled expression, Min Aji smoothly changed the subject.
“You don’t have to tell me if it’s difficult. More importantly, if what you said is true, that’s a relief.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yes, because it means our chances of finding our families are higher.”
Min Aji said so and chuckled softly.
Family, family.
Through my conversation and contract with the demon, I had somewhat alleviated my anxiety about my younger sister.
I no longer had to worry about her coming to harm.
I had confirmed she was safe and was guaranteed that I would meet her safely.
But the other team members were different.
They were still waiting for an uncertain tomorrow.
Suddenly curious, I asked.
“Do you mind if I ask what kind of person your sister was?”
“Ah, my sister……”
Min Aji drew out her words.
It wasn’t a tone of difficulty; she seemed to be recollecting.
Come to think of it, I hadn’t heard much about Min Aji’s sister.
That they were from the same orphanage.
I had only heard that she was a similar type to me, but in truth, I couldn’t quite grasp what kind of person she was.
After a moment, Min Aji, having organized her thoughts, continued.
“She was a bold person. She studied well and became a police officer without much trouble. She was small in stature, but she was also good at sports. She didn’t lose out much even to men.”
It was a description like something out of a comic book protagonist.
…From what I’d heard so far, it seemed like we had almost nothing in common?
Honestly, the only thing that overlapped with me was being small in stature…….
‘Is this really a good thing?’
To the point where I wondered if it was an elaborate scheme to tease me.
Just as my brow began to furrow, Min Aji continued.
“Looking at the big picture, she was a good person. Someone who made you feel fulfilled and happy just by being beside them…….”
Min Aji buried her face.
Putting it into words like this seemed to make her miss her sister anew.