With Theresa and the dragon girl temporarily gone, the room, now occupied only by the priestess and Eudora, finally fell quiet.

 

Violet could once again focus her attention, starting to observe Eudora’s condition and the changes in her form.

 

Demonization, being a transformation at the racial level, is not a process that can be completed overnight.

 

Even though the girl’s symptoms had persisted for three days before being brought here, and it now seemed that most of her physical characteristics had already developed, the complete transformation of her inner race still required more time.

 

Exactly how long it would take, Violet couldn’t say for sure. It might be over by tomorrow morning, or it could take another three days, or even longer. After all, this was her first time treating a patient with such a condition.

 

As for the principle behind the phenomenon of demonization, which had been a source of curiosity for Violet, she now had some clues, thanks to the investigation using the cheat-like skill 【Information Detection】.

 

This girl named Eudora already had demonic factors within her body, or to put it more plainly—demonic blood.

 

If Violet’s guess was correct, Eudora was likely a child born from the union of a demon and a human. Although the fact that there was no reproductive isolation between these two races surprised the priestess, the existence of a child like Eudora explained a lot.

 

Of course, it’s also possible that certain individuals used some special means to create such offspring with a human female as the host. Therefore, a demon child like Eudora is actually different from a conventional hybrid.

 

Unlike Minchen, who comes from the game and has true half-demon blood, the offspring of demons and humans like Eudora seem to exhibit a distinct all-or-nothing characteristic in their bloodline.

 

That is, they are either entirely demonic or completely human. The other half of their bloodline remains completely hidden, rather than being mixed together like in the case of so-called half-demons.

 

No wonder there seem to be no other half-demons in this world besides Minchen and his descendants. It appears that true demon-human hybrids cannot be born through normal means.

 

So, there “is” reproductive isolation after all!

 

As for those like Eudora, who were born through special means, if they were born directly in a demonic form, they were either taken back to the demon realm, hidden in places outside the Holy Empire, or, more likely, “purified” on the spot. Only those who appear fully human were able to survive here temporarily.

 

Perhaps it is precisely because of the recessive demonic genes that Eudora couldn’t embrace the Light or use faith-based magic. Most importantly, this bloodline… has been brought to the surface recently due to some external catalyst.

 

It seems that the girl seen in Sacred Star City, along with the children protected by Clatius according to the intel, are likely in similar situations.

 

How interesting… Who exactly is deliberately doing this?

 

How is this person accurately finding these special children and extending their influence so far, spanning from Sacred Star City to Bright Light City?

 

Although this phenomenon has only been observed in these two cities so far, Violet isn’t naïve enough to believe that it’s only happening in these places.

 

It’s quite possible that this has become a widespread occurrence, and might even be the source of rumors about demons infiltrating the western part of the Holy Empire.

 

After using 【Information Detection】 to examine Eudora’s condition again and confirming that she wouldn’t wake up anytime soon, Violet decided to leave.

 

Even though the current situation in the Holy Empire seemed to have become as chaotic as a muddy pond with frogs jumping everywhere, where the three divine descendants each had their own agendas, and forces like the Spirit Veil Merchant Guild, demons, the possibly lurking Eternal Throne, the strange mask that attacked the Knight Templars last night, the 【Reaper’s Scythe】 that somehow arrived here from Demon Suppression City, the odd machinery beneath the 【Holy Spirit Trail】, and even a certain mouse sent from the Human United Kingdom to investigate. All contributed to a veritable mishmash of chaos.

 

However, unlike before, this time the priestess was not at the center of the storm but rather an observer, someone who could intervene at any moment. After all, she was now simply 【Dawn】.

 

In any case, one must eat a meal bite by bite. Those lurking in the shadows can’t stay hidden forever. As soon as they make a move, they’ll likely initiate new actions soon enough.

 

For now, staying aboard the Bright Light’s ship and adjusting her next steps as the situation develops might not be a bad choice.

 

After shifting her gaze away from the small succubus lying on the bed, the black-haired, white-robed girl glanced at the deep, boundless darkness outside the window. With a light sigh, she left a proxy node to continue casting spells, then put on her little fox mask and turned to leave the room.

 

“Well then, let’s see who loses their patience first~”

 

……………………….

 

The night had deepened, and strange figures once again moved through the empty streets.

 

“Doo doo doo~ doo doo loo doo doo~ doo doo loo doo loo doo doo~”

 

It hummed a tune of incomprehensible notes, casting a long shadow under the moonlight.

 

And so, in the corners of the shadows, more oddities began to appear once again.

 

“Hee hee…”

 

Their masks displayed a twisted, sinister grin.

 

“Hee hee hee hee…”

 

“Hee hee hee…”

 

“Hee hee hee hee hee…”

 

They moved, they searched.

 

And then, they once more merged into the shadows. Beneath the black-and-white masks, their hollow forms stumbled forward, spreading… new abnormalities.

 

……………………….

 

“Lockdown? Why?”

 

Early in the morning, Violet was startled by the sudden arrival of Leila, who was in a hurry.

 

At first, she thought it might be about the little succubus they were hiding in their room being discovered by some reckless fool, but after listening carefully, she realized that wasn’t the case.

 

Bright Light City had issued a new curfew and a wanted notice this morning, both personally decreed by Saintess Yuna Summerfield.

 

The wanted notice, which had quickly spread through every street and alley, featured a black-and-white mask with a grotesque, eerie grin that had already become the latest topic of conversation among the townspeople.

 

This image was, of course, brought to Violet by Leila, who had gone out early to gather information as usual.

 

The white-haired girl, who had only revealed half of her white wings to conceal her angelic identity, had a serious expression on her face.

 

“Miss Dawn, the situation is deteriorating too quickly. I’ve heard that last night, in more than half of the nine districts of Bright Light City, there were reports of sightings of figures wearing black-and-white masks. According to some rumors, the number of residents who were attacked, killed, or went missing overnight has already exceeded a hundred.”

 

“Now, all nine divisions of the Knight Templars have mobilized, beginning to set up surveillance and defenses in the streets and alleys. When my sister and I went out this morning, we encountered around seven or eight checkpoints, both overt and covert. It seems this situation is…”

 

“Hoh… It looks like these guys couldn’t hold back any longer. Are they planning to formally declare war on Bright Light City? Multiple simultaneous sighting reports…”

 

Leila, who had been quietly listening to Miss Fox’s muttering, didn’t say anything to disrupt the girl’s thoughts. She simply asked in a low voice, “Miss Dawn, should we intervene?”

 

Violet pondered for a moment.

 

“Well, since I’ve already promised the Bright Light Saintess that I would help her solve this problem, I can’t just make empty promises. I’ll personally go to the Bright Light Temple to investigate this matter. As for you…”

 

“Let’s do this: you and Rene should head to the Star Bear District today, and check out the place where we encountered that female Holy Knight yesterday. If… and I say if, there really is more than one of those black-and-white masks, the reason why it deliberately attracted the ‘souls’ before… will become clear.”

 

“For this mission, I permit you to act at your discretion. The goal is to uncover the secrets hidden there in one go. It might be dangerous, but there will definitely be considerable rewards… What do you think, can you handle it?”

 

Showing neither hesitation nor fear, the white-winged girl simply nodded solemnly.

 

“Yes! Leave it to us!”

 

After giving some additional instructions and watching Leila leave, Miss White Fox was suddenly joined by the tall figure of the dragon lady.

 

“Master, do you need me to accompany them?”

 

Violet shook her head.

 

“…No, since they have decided to truly involve themselves in our affairs, they need to be prepared to face danger. Let them act freely, I have already made some backup arrangements.”

 

“Xiao Guang, your task is simple. Just keep an eye on Eudora with Theresa, and make sure she doesn’t get into trouble or get exposed. If she wakes up, calm her down temporarily. Everything… will be discussed when I return.”

 

“Understood.”

 

The dragon girl nodded obediently, then quickly asked, “Where is Master going?”

 

“To the Bright Light Temple, of course.”

 

Miss White Fox’s masked face revealed a hint of amusement.

 

“Since someone couldn’t hold back and took action so quickly, the changes that will affect everything must be coming one after another. How could I possibly miss such a show?”