“To think beings inhabited by angels would prefer women—virgins, even. It’s a bit shocking.”
“Seriously. For angels to possess someone who’s attracted to the same gender instead of the opposite… it’s odd.”
“Shouldn’t we clarify what we mean by ‘like’? It’s not just fondness—we’re talking love here.”
The three members of the special classes gathered in one room were discussing the truth about the angel who had possessed Lieze von Stein, only to destroy its own halo and self-destruct.
“What do you think, Senior Yurha?”
“Seeing how Phoenix acts, I feel like I understand why he always emphasized relationships between men and women.”
Yurha responded to Yunia’s question, her hands forming a gesture full of implication.
“If every woman in the world liked men, then angels would have no reason to possess anyone, right? Don’t you think, Seia?”
“…Hmph.”
Seia, sitting beside Yurha, snorted.
“Even if that wasn’t the case, I just don’t like angels.”
“Seia, that’s—”
“It’s not blasphemy. It’s just my personal opinion. You know that, sis.”
Sensing the subtle tension between Yurha and Seia, the three from the Vermilion Bird Class exchanged glances. But the mood changed as someone opened the door and entered.
“Um, Miss Shuri?”
“Ah, yes?! You don’t need to be so formal…”
Startled by Yurha’s casual tone, Shuri flinched.
“Do you mind telling us why Instructor Esta wanted to see you separately?”
“Uh, it’s nothing big. She looked through everything drawn on my magic pad…”
“What was on it?”
“Th-that… well…”
Shuri glanced nervously around the room but soon gripped the magic pad tightly and sat in an empty seat.
“Just… you know, romantic stuff that happens between men and women, that kind of thing?”
“Seriously?”
“Ah, yes. I’m a bit interested in that kind of thing… and I’ve been curious about it… and I was thinking maybe I could make a side career out of it someday…”
“Can I take a look?”
“!!”
Shuri jumped again at Yunia’s innocent question.
“U-um, so…!”
“If you’re not comfortable showing us, that’s okay.”
“Oh, it’s alright. Instructor Esta specifically said there wasn’t anything in there that couldn’t be shown. B-but—”
Swallowing hard, Shuri extended the magic pad.
“Just don’t be shocked, okay…?”
Rustle.
Mustered with courage, Shuri began flipping through the illustrations on the magic pad.
At first, there were still lifes and croquis, but soon the drawings shifted toward anatomical studies and explorations of the human form.
“From here on… it gets a little risqué.”
With considerable bravery, Shuri flipped to the next page.
“Gasp…!”
“Hmm.”
“M-my goodness. This is… pretty intense?”
The three from the Vermilion Bird Class turned red, shocked by what they saw.
“You probably can’t sell these publicly, but if you took on private commissions, it’d be enough to make a living. Don’t you think, Seia?”
“…Are you saying I’m one of those clients, Sister?”
“Well, don’t you have a specific image in mind? You could commission Shuri to draw it for you.”
Meanwhile, the other two from the Azure Dragon Class began a serious discussion about the commercial potential of the drawings.
“Shuri.”
“Y-yes, Miss Yunia? W-what is it?”
“Can you draw something like this?”
Yunia began scribbling in the air, quickly sketching out a phrase.
It read—
“W-wait?! That’s a crime!”
Shuri’s face turned bright red as she reacted to the content, but Yunia, completely serious, shook her head.
“What if the subject gave their permission?”
“H-huh…?”
“Phoenix said it was okay. So, it’s fine for you to draw something like this, Shuri.”
Yunia pointed at some of the more explicit illustrations in the magic pad—the ones that had long surpassed any notion of subtlety and were diving headfirst into full-blown risky territory.
“Me and Phoenix—”
“Then could you draw one for me, too?”
“Ludmila?”
“I think I want one as well.”
Even Evangeline joined in.
“How much is it?”
“Eh? I, um, haven’t thought about charging for this kind of thing…”
“You should. You’re selling art based on the skill you’ve honed. That’s worth money.”
Yurha tapped the pocket on her skirt seriously.
“Do you know how much it hurts the world when an artist has to resort to rough labor just to survive, and ends up injuring their hands?”
“W-well…”
“Everyone has different talents. And Miss Shuri, your hands are made for art. Besides, under the right conditions, you could even materialize these drawings into illusions…”
Yurha trailed off mid-sentence, a look of realization dawning on her.
“…Huh?”
Something like a new business idea had clearly just struck her—she froze.
“Senior Yurha…?”
“Let me ask you directly. Can these be turned into illusions?”
“E-eh?!”
At Yurha’s question, it was the artist herself, Shuri, who blushed even deeper and shouted back.
“Wait, are you being serious?!”
“Yes, I am. This is a serious matter.”
“B-but… even if you say that seriously… This is that kind of thing, you know?”
“Precisely because it’s that kind of thing, we should talk about it seriously. Phoenix even assisted in creating illusions based on this, knowing what it was. And Instructor Esta gave her approval, didn’t she? So then…”
“Perhaps she judged that spreading things like this would be more beneficial overall?”
Yunia stepped in, agreeing with Yurha.
“If this kind of artwork doesn’t just circulate casually but gets recreated as illusions—virtually lifelike and right before your eyes…?”
“For both men and women, it could serve as an excellent teaching tool when it comes to learning about love and intimacy as adults.”
“You say ‘teaching tool’, but let’s be honest, it’s basically p—”
“Mmph!”
Ludmila quickly covered Evangeline’s mouth before she could finish her blunt statement.
“That’s not the point, Evangeline. If people misuse this teaching tool, that’s on them. But this tool itself holds real meaning here at Esdinas Academy.”
“Senpai, I don’t really see how this connects with the Academy…”
“Not just the Academy—it’s also one potential method to counter the traits we’ve discovered in angels through possession cases.”
“…Honestly, I still don’t quite get it. I admit Shuri’s drawings could earn a lot of money, but how this ties into Esdinas students or suppressing angels—wait, don’t tell me…”
“That’s exactly it.”
Yurha clapped her hands softly.
“Romantic love between a man and a woman. That aligns perfectly with Esdinas Academy’s core educational values. And at the same time, it’s the key to preventing angels from possessing beautiful girls.”
“…Sister.”
Seia quietly raised her hand.
“So what you’re saying is we should stop girls from falling in love with each other so the angels won’t possess them?”
“No, Seia. Not ‘stop’—we guide them, naturally, toward love for the opposite s*x. Whether that starts with curiosity or something more, the important thing is direction.”
“……”
“Not that we’re doing it just for this, but… Shuri?”
“Y-yes!”
“Have you thought about who the models will be?”
“T-that, well… I can say one thing for certain…”
Despite all five sets of eyes on her, Shuri shook her head firmly, as though this was something she refused to compromise on.
“If we’re really going to distribute this as a teaching tool—or even if it somehow leaks—I don’t think we should ever use a real person like that.”
“…”
“I-if someone told me to draw a real person in that way without their permission, I’d rather snap my pen and find a different way to make a living. Even if it meant giving up a fortune—using real people like that is just…”
“Miss Shuri.”
Yunia reached out and gently held her hand.
“I respect that. Of course. Even for me—if I found out I was the subject of one of those drawings and it got leaked, I’d be furious.”
“It’s more than just being angry, though…”
“Which is why—”
Clench.
“—As long as it doesn’t leak, maybe it’s okay to share them freely within this group?”
“…Huh?”
“If everyone involved agrees, we can share our thoughts, study based on the drawings, observe, learn, and simulate safely in virtual space. Right?”
“I—I hadn’t thought about it that way…”
Shuri trailed off, caught off guard.
“Shuri.”
“Y-yes, Senior Yurha?”
“I’ll prepare a separate magic pad. For exclusive use by the Old School Building classes.”
“Eh, EHH…?”
“The commission fee per page will be—”
Whisper Whisper.
Yurha leaned in and whispered something into Shuri’s ear. Shuri shut her eyes tightly.
It was hard to say no—Yurha’s wealth and influence were simply overwhelming.
* * *
“So if you draw those kinds of Kyun Kyun pictures, who knows what the Old School Building team will do with you?”
“They may do as they please.”
“What if it involves a man—?”
“There won’t be any other men.”
Instructor Kadisha asked jokingly, but this was a question that needed to be answered seriously.
Instructor Kadisha joked, but his reply came with unusual seriousness.
“Because no matter what, every male character in Miss Shuri’s drawings from the Old School Building will be me.”
“…”
“And most importantly, Instructor Kadisha—do you think the team in the Old School Building would ever ask Shuri to draw them with a different man?”
“…Fair point.”
“Exactly. We need to focus on something else. Using Miss Shuri’s art as a foundation, how can we best cultivate genuine love between men and women?”
Because romantic love between men and women is humanity’s only true defense against the angels.
“Alright then. For this teaching tool—the illustration that could spread to all of humanity—who’ll be the model?”
“The male role is already decided, and the female role has been chosen too.”
“…Don’t tell me?”
“Yes.”
This would be—
“Fictional characters—ones who happen to look very much like angels.”
Hypocrisy at its finest.
