As Ian twirled the skewer in his hand, he watched Miguel step back toward the fire.

"As expected of the Dark Prince, putting his own neck on the scale like that," Thesaya muttered as she looked down at the letter resting on Ian’s thigh, then turned to him.

As Ian’s gaze returned to the tightly packed lines of text, she curled her lips and continued. "It’s a decision worthy of admiration. It was probably a sincere offer, but at the same time, he’s secured justification for everything he’s done so far."

Ian gave a slight nod.

From his perspective as well, it was both noble and clever. It might even become the turning point where open praise for Hyked began to spread—especially among the noble families who had taken part in the Martyrdom Expedition.

—The Great Church immediately expressed its opposition, I hear.

Of course, it was never an offer that would be accepted.

—They claimed that accepting the survivors without any verification process would be irresponsible and dangerous. They even suggested that making such a request was itself proof that they had been corrupted.

As expected.

Ian’s lips twisted faintly.

Almost at the same time, Thesaya let out a quiet scoff, saying, "Even if that was his true intention, changing their stance quickly makes them look pathetic."

"They must’ve decided it’s more beneficial to quickly mend things with the Emperor now that it’s come to this," Ian muttered, biting into the grilled jerky.

Yog’s meaningful chuckle brushed through his mind.

Ian’s eyes narrowed as he stared at the letters fading into black, along with the faint smell of burning.

—But His Majesty did not respond to that request immediately. Only after the Great Church sent several more letters urging a decision, and rumors began to spread within the capital, did he finally give his answer.

The Emperor’s response was somewhat different from what Ian had expected. He had assumed the Emperor would immediately side with the Great Church and refuse.

Seemingly thinking the same, Thesaya frowned slightly, jerky still between her teeth.

—According to an informant within the Great Church, His Majesty stated that the empire’s true enemy lies beyond, in the corrupted Black Lands. He even cited what happened in the North as an example.

As the sentence finished forming, Thesaya looked back at Ian, her lips parting.

"Seems like the Emperor had a change of heart."

"He’s probably worried about the Eastern Front," Ian replied, swallowing the jerky before glancing at her and shrugging slightly. "Right now, they’ve likely left only minimal forces there and sent the rest to surround Plante, where the Dark Prince is."

"Yeah, makes sense. He might be worried about a similar invasion happening again." Thesaya nodded at last.

The next line that appeared only reinforced Ian’s assumption.

—He said this is not the time to deepen internal conflict. Instead, preparations should be made for a holy war to purge the darkness beyond.

If the Eastern Front collapsed, the central region would be next. Even while facing Hyked, the Emperor would feel that pressure on his back.

—To that end, he stated that the survivors must be accepted, and their knowledge of the Black Lands extracted. That alone would help prove their purity—

It became clear that it wasn’t all.

As Ian watched new lines of text etch themselves in, glowing as if heated, Lily, who had been quietly chewing beside Thesaya, suddenly shot to her feet.

"Uh, huh?" Miguel, who had been sitting by the fire and glancing over, flinched and raised his shoulders. Lily had suddenly started walking toward him.

"Ah, right, you want more?"

As he blinked and asked, Lily held out her skewer and nodded.

Miguel glanced briefly toward Ian, then tapped the ground beside him with his prosthetic hand. "Yeah. Actually, this works out. Sit here. Better than listening to all that scary talk over there."

Lily promptly sat down beside him.

Meanwhile, a faint crease formed between Ian’s brows as he stared at the letter. The faint sneer on Thesaya’s lips deepened as well.

—And intends to put my uncle in the lead in purging the darkness of the Black Lands, thereby atoning for the chaos he has brought upon the Empire. He is confident that he will do so willingly.

At last, Thesaya said, "The Emperor’s no fool either. He’s trying to use this as a chance to eliminate both the demons in the Black Lands and his troublesome elder brother at the same time."

"And he’s even using the people of the Black Lands as leverage," Ian added, taking another bite of jerky. He finally understood the Emperor’s true intentions.

Yog’s low whisper followed.

—He’s hoping the man dies there or gets devoured by chaos. He’ll see it as inevitable.

Ian glanced at Yog, coiled in Thesaya’s palm. He didn’t deny it—because he had come to the same conclusion.

Yog flicked its tongue and continued.

—If he knew there was a high chance of fully merging with chaos... I wonder how he’d react.

Thesaya’s eyes narrowed as she looked down at it. "You’re saying the Dark Prince could become an archdemon?"

"He’d become one in the truest sense," Ian answered.

It was enough to plunge the area into silence. Both Thesaya and Miguel turned to him with widened eyes, while Yog let out a chuckle.

—Exactly. He’d become something far beyond those half-baked creatures. You’ve seen it yourself, haven’t you, my friend? And given enough time...

Looking up at Ian, Yog flicked its violet tongue again.

—He might even become a complete transcendent being.

Ian’s gaze sank, heavy and deep.

If things truly unfolded that way, Hyked might become a final boss. After all, beings that accumulated enough causality to break free of their constraints—or descend—were said to no longer violate the laws of this world.

Though knowing him, he might try to seal himself away in the void before that happens.

Clicking his tongue softly, Ian resumed chewing his jerky. Speculating like this wouldn’t help.

"But if it comes to that, the heavens won’t just sit back and watch, will they?" Thesaya murmured blankly just then.

Yog let out a quiet scoff and turned toward her.

—Of course your gods would intervene once he leaves the Black Lands. But for that to even become possible, a great many slaves would have to be sacrificed.

Thesaya finally let out a chuckle.

Yog then glanced back at Ian.

—So why not kill him before it comes to that, my friend?

The corner of Ian’s mouth twisted faintly. He immediately recognized that this had been Yog’s real intention all along.

Thesaya snapped her head toward him, and silence fell, broken only by the crackling fire and the horses’ breathing.

"You know why I’m going through all this trouble." Ian finally said, picking up the bottle beside him. "I might end up fighting him someday. But not now."

Even as he finished and took a drink, his gaze never left Yog’s obsidian-like eyes.

Yog flicked its tongue once more, then lowered its head.

—If that’s your will...

Acting obedient now, are you?

Snorting to himself, Ian turned to Thesaya. "Don’t get swayed by this thing’s whispers, Thesa. Besides, the Great Church hasn’t accepted the Emperor’s proposal anyway."

He tapped the letter resting on his leg with one hand. Only then did Thesaya blink and turn her gaze back to it.

"You’re right, Ian." She murmured as she read.

The letter stated that the Great Church opposed the Emperor’s decision, arguing that ignoring internal corruption under the pretext of a holy war would rot the empire at its roots.

—They say the conflict is still ongoing, with no clear conclusion. Father would find it difficult to act unilaterally. If the Great Church resists and deploys the Purification Squad, Uncle will surely see it as a broken promise.

Reading on with narrowed eyes, Thesaya said, "At this rate, neither side can make a move recklessly. If they do, the relationship will collapse beyond repair. Though I don’t know if the Dark Prince intended even this."

"Well, he probably doesn’t want to go down in history as the one who lit the fuse of the civil war," Ian replied casually, finishing the remaining jerky in one bite.

The princess seemed to be thinking along similar lines.

—We’ll have to wait and see how this unfolds. Until then, I’ll continue preparing as best I can. I’ll focus on my duties and look forward to the arrival of the supplies you sent.

As Ian read the continuing lines, he casually tossed aside the empty skewer. Even he had no idea how the civil war would begin. It wouldn’t be surprising if something trivial, completely unexpected, became the spark.

"Damn, this is nerve-wracking as hell." Miguel’s low voice broke the silence.

Noticing Ian’s gaze, he smacked his lips and added, "At this point, if it’s going to happen anyway, I almost wish they’d just get it over with and start fighting."

"Everyone’s probably thinking the same thing, Prosthetic," Thesaya replied, setting down her half-eaten skewer as if she’d lost her appetite.

Instead, she picked up the wine bottle. "But this kind of fight? The one who loses patience first loses legitimacy."

"Bloody nobles..." Shaking his head in exasperation, Miguel took a bite of jerky. Beside him, Lily chewed quietly, looking completely uninterested.

"Nothing changes for us. We just keep doing what we were going to do," Ian added calmly, pulling out the pen hidden in the handle of the letter.

—Once the supplies arrive or if there’s any new information, I’ll contact you again. If you receive this letter, please send a brief reply. It would be even better if you could share your situation. Not just me, others are curious as well.

The princess’s message continued at length.

After watching it for a moment, Ian finally brought the pen to the surface.

—Received.

The moment he wrote, the flowing text abruptly stopped.

—So you’re there, Agent of the Saint.

New letters began to appear immediately after.

—To respond this quickly... you must already be on your way to Racliffe, just as you mentioned before. I’ve given it some thought since then, and there are a few concerns—

—Like I said before.

Ian cut her off, his pen moving sharply.

—Please conserve space.

After a brief pause, a short reply came back.

—Understood, Agent of the Saint.

Even through the text, her embarrassment was palpable.

Ian was about to put the pen away, but then added one more line.

—I trust you with the North.

No further reply came. Suppressing a faint chuckle, Ian slid the pen back into the handle.

"That said, I still have my doubts, Ian," Thesaya said quietly, lowering the bottle from her lips. "It feels unpleasantly underhanded, but because of that, the Emperor’s argument actually seems more reasonable this time."

As Ian turned toward her, she continued, "He could eliminate the Dark Prince without direct conflict. Even if they don’t formally accuse him, the survivors will be plagued by suspicion and doubt from everyone around them."

She then held out the bottle with a shrug. "And after enough time passes, it’ll be easy to find another excuse to go after him again. If the Dark Prince refuses the Emperor’s conditions, that becomes justification too. No matter how rigid the Great Church is, opposing the Emperor’s will while ignoring such a perfect opportunity, that's—"

"It does feel contrived in more ways than one."