"Where have you been?" Eunice frowned at me, her voice tight.

…That’s my line. Where did *you* disappear to?

"I woke up and couldn’t find you, so I wandered around a bit."

"Did you run into any danger?"

I shook my head. "Nothing dangerous. But I found something else."

Eunice’s frown deepened. "Inside. Now. Your clothes are soaked through."

She pulled me into the room, shoved me into a chair by the wooden table, and sat across from me.

"What did you find?"

I didn’t answer right away. My eyes darted to the wall with the hidden door—but the darker hexagonal panel was gone. Had it been left visible on purpose at first?

I met Eunice’s gaze. "Behind this house, I found those mercenaries we saw earlier today."

"Mercenaries? The ones Archibald led to stage the dragon ambush? We followed their trail here, wondering if we’d missed them. So they arrived before us."

Their real goal had been kidnapping the Princess Royal—we already knew that.

I nodded. "They’re all dead now."

"All dead?" A flicker of surprise crossed her face before she stilled. "What happened?"

"They tried to seize the cabin by force. The old lady… cleaned house."

"I see…"

"Eunice." I called her name softly.

"Hmm?" She lifted her eyes to mine.

"Don’t you think these mercenaries acted more like bandits?"

"What difference is there?" Eunice replied flatly.

"Exactly. They didn’t behave like real mercenaries. I think they were Chaos Cross Chapter imposters. If the old lady killed Chaos Cross members… won’t she be in trouble? Shouldn’t we warn her?"

Eunice gave me a strange look and shook her head. "You’re worried about *others* right now?"

"It just feels wrong… She let us stay here. If we don’t tell her, she might face retaliation."

"Don’t worry. That mage isn’t ordinary." Eunice’s gaze drifted toward the adjacent room. "At the very least, she’s a hidden Crowned Apex. And those men weren’t Chaos Cross."

"Not?"

"No. Chaos Cross is a top-tier criminal syndicate with countless enemies. That’s why their numbers are small—only survivors who evade constant manhunts. Even at their peak, they never had more than two hundred members. Those mercenaries? They’d never qualify. The lowest rank in Chaos Cross is Blazing Gold. Their hierarchy—Gray Cross, Blood Cross, Inverted Cross—matches Avaria’s Blazing Gold, Radiant Glory, and Crowned Apex tiers."

I swallowed hard. So *that* was the organization Archibald belonged to.

"Besides the mercenaries," Eunice pressed, "what else did you find?"

"I encountered magic inside the cabin."

"Magic?"

I nodded, recounting everything from the hidden chamber.

"You inherited a mage’s legacy?"

"That’s right."

"You want to learn magic?" Her brow furrowed.

"Yeah." I met her eyes. "I’ve decided to learn."

Eunice’s gaze turned icy, her expression shuttering. Her lips parted as if to speak, then closed. She turned away, staring past me.

"Do as you wish… Since you’re already the Demon King, adding ‘mage’ to your titles changes little."

I didn’t understand. "Eunice… what’s so special about being a mage? Why do you all react like this? Like it’s… wrong?"

Her eyes grew complex, unreadable. Candlelight danced in them, making them shimmer strangely.

"Mages are seen as evil across the world. They steal divine power, rejected by the gods. Wherever they go, disaster follows. They kidnap children for bloody experiments. Summon demons from hell. Beg for plagues. Slaughter innocents. Brew cursed potions with human lives—all for despair’s power. They’re dark sorcerers. The source of all misfortune."

My face went rigid with shock.

*Evil?* How could mages be seen as filthy monsters?

Weren’t they supposed to be revered? Honored above nobles? Building grand academies where brilliant stars shone?

Why were they tied to words like *uncanny*, *dark*, *ominous*, *evil*—all the things that made people tremble?

Eunice’s voice didn’t soften. She had more to say.

"If you become a mage, be ready to burn at the stake when the Church exposes you."

"Mages are heretics to the Holy Church. Any mage caught stealing divine power faces arrest by the Holy Judgment Knights. Purification by death."

"But you needn’t worry." Her tone turned glacial, like a death sentence. "Since you drew the Demonic Sword, being a mage changes nothing. The Demon King is already the Church’s most wanted. Beyond them, the entire Avaria Empire—and every Order Knight within it—is your enemy."

"From the moment you pulled that sword," she said, "your fate was sealed."

"*Ninth Seat of the Divine Punishment Sequence. Demon King of the Demon Race. Krein.*" Her eyes locked onto mine. "Are you prepared to stand against the Holy Church?"

My right hand jerked violently. Like lightning had struck my spine.

*This can’t be right!* Why this twist?!

I wanted an easygoing isekai life! How did I become the Church’s enemy overnight? I’ve never even *met* these holy people! Why am I dragged into this mess?!

My face stiffened. My thoughts scattered as I stared at Eunice.

"Uh… let’s not talk about that yet." I forced my voice steady. "Where were *you* just now? You left me alone all night. And you call this cooperation?"

*Why tell me this now?*

Eunice’s eyes flicked toward the rightmost cabin—the one farthest from the old lady’s room.

"That’s the old mage’s study. It holds records on alchemy and potions… but strangely, no magic texts. I read all night. Sadly, I found nothing about body-switching."