The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　Moreover, its idea was destined to succeed.

　It was unaware of this.

　Once Dark and Professor Sylph are certain that its so-called notification is about another newly emerged demon king, their desire to find that comrade will likely be even more urgent than this second consciousness.

　The facts changed too quickly. In less than a year, this second consciousness transformed from a blank slate into a powerful mage capable of crafting nine-star magical spirits, which truly served as a wake-up call for Professor Sylph and the others.

　Finding its comrade as soon as possible will be something they will inevitably have to do after Principal Arte returns.

　The reason for not doing it immediately is not because of reasons such as Christmas being approaching.

　Of course, academy affairs are not as important as the task of finding that new Demon King as soon as possible. But at Christmas, there is something more important.

　Everything has its order, that's all.

　Before the gods, even a demon king who has not yet reached the realm of the gods can only postpone his ascension.

　……

　Finally, Professor Sylph asked the second consciousness, "Is there anything else you'd like to say?"

　After a long silence, the second consciousness finally shook its head.

　Professor Sylph then drew out a magic card and silently recited an incantation.

　Just as its first consciousness felt tense, a sudden wave of drowsiness surged forth, quickly dismantling its resistance and plunging its consciousness into a deep sleep.

　Professor Sylph waved her hand again, and the wind threads binding it suddenly increased, instantly turning into a huge cocoon that completely sealed it from head to toe.

　"Next, it's time for the meeting."

　Professor Sylph waved her hand and addressed the crowd.

　……

　The interrogation of Witt Gold was temporarily concluded at this point.

　Professor Lily flapped her wings and flew to Dark's side, squeezing herself between him and Eve, and then happily wiggled her little feet.

　Dak moved aside to the edge of the sofa and then bent down to pour her tea.

　After Professor Sylph announced the start of the meeting, Ophelia Brad was the first to speak: "Professor Sylph, are we really going to spare its life?"

　Professor Sylph was perhaps surprised that this was the first question she would ask, and said with some astonishment, "I thought you would ask about Witt's situation first."

　But Ophelia Brad simply shook her head and said, "There's nothing to ask. It's already very clear what Witt did and what he didn't do. His soul is now partially merged with that... well, the Demon King's soul, but with Professor Steven Harvey in the academy, I trust his abilities."

　Professor Steven Harvey, who was teaching sixth-year magic theory six months ago, is now not teaching the main course but has chosen the elective "Medicine" and is in a semi-rest state.

　His other identity is that of one of the few remaining necromancers in the world.

　After Ophelia Brad was turned into a magic card by Dark, it was Professor Steven Harvey who personally separated her soul from the "Vampire Heiress" magic card and then glued it back into her body.

　It could be said that Professor Steven Harvey was another savior of Ophelia Brad.

　Dark's basic "Death Curse" was also improved with the help of Professor Steven Harvey.

　It's understandable that Ophelia Brad has this trust in Professor Steven Harvey.

　But Professor Sylph shook her head and said, "This time, even Professor Steven Harvey might find it difficult. But we will do our best."

　"Wait!" At this point, Hephaestus Dragon, who had been watching the show in silence, finally managed to ask his question, "You mean that thing, is it the Demon King?"

　Quite obviously, Ollie and Eve's gazes also focused on Professor Sylph's face, presumably waiting for her answer.

　Professor Sylph sighed and then said something meaningful: "It's not the Demon King; the one to the west is the Demon King."

　……

　Professor Sylph quickly realized that she should obviously explain the cause and effect to the later participants before the meeting.

　Not wanting to waste any more words, she handed over this arduous task to Darko Dimon.

　Humble little Dak had no right to refuse at this time, and could only slowly recount what had happened since last Easter.

　The story is actually quite convoluted and bizarre, and it involves many things that are difficult for ordinary people to understand.

　Ollie and Eve knew a little about it, but Hephaestus was hearing about it for the first time and was also the first to know that the secret passage of St. Marian Academy was so special.

　Later, when they heard that Ophelia had actually been transformed into a magical spirit by Dark, they couldn't help but look at Ophelia herself and showed a rather strange expression.

　"Cough!" Even someone as gentle and soft-hearted as "Blood Princess" couldn't help but cough forcefully.

　When the conversation turned to Professor Steven Harvey piecing her soul back into her body, Hephaestus suddenly said, "So, Victoria from our class is your... well, is she a sister or a daughter?"

　Ophelia asked awkwardly, "Victoria... is that the vampire girl's name?"

　She was aware of Victoria's existence and had even secretly observed her. However, because she was still under house arrest, she had not had any concrete contact with Victoria.

　Hephaestus sighed again: "Why? She is from the same source as you, so why didn't she inherit even one of your strengths?"

　"Ahem, let's not get sidetracked yet." Dark decisively interrupted her rant and went on to make inferences about the Demon King's current situation.

　……

　Soon after, Hephaestus, Ollie, and Eve finally understood the whole story, and then the three of them fell silent.

　Although Dak downplayed the whole incident, a closer look reveals it to be a truly cataclysmic event.

　Someone else would probably yell at them, "Hey, that's the Demon King! The Demon King!"

　In short, this incident involves not only the Demon King, but also the Hero, the Holy Church, and the Academy.

　For the Holy Church, both the matter of "Blood Princess" Ophelia Brad and the new Demon King in the west are top secrets that cannot be told to outsiders.

　As for the academy, although the professors did not do it intentionally, they still personally caused the death and resurrection of the Demon King's true form, which is a top secret that cannot be revealed.

　Even Dark was closely involved in this. Although he played the good guy, it's hard to say for sure what really happened.

　In order to shift the blame, the Holy Church will definitely include him in their scheme.

　Because neither "Blood Princess" Ophelia Brad nor the other minor characters involved are enough to stand against the Holy Church.

　Ultimately, they can't take the blame!

　Only by involving St. Marian Academy and the "Valkyrie" faction can the world know that this is not the Church's fault!

　Even our Holy Church can't do anything about it!

　……

　But if we only consider the Easter incident, the Church's responsibility is simply for failing to adequately defend itself.

　Firstly, the defense of Basdia Prison was inadequate, allowing the "Blood Princess," who had been embraced by the Demon King, to escape from the prison, and they were not able to capture her in time.

　Secondly, the defenses against the Demon King were inadequate, and they failed to prevent the Blood Princess from "killing" him.

　But after that, the Holy Church held the "Demon King Execution Ritual"... which was basically putting oneself on a fire to be roasted, and it was lucky that one was not burned to death.

　So all things considered, the best method is to keep it a secret!

　As long as the Holy Church and the Academy reach an agreement, this secret can still be kept.

　The consequences of a leak are unpredictable.

　But what if the secret is actually leaked?

　Therefore, from the Academy's perspective, they must deny the Easter event, deny that Witt Gaudí's second consciousness is the Demon King, and let everyone know that the one in the west is the real Demon King, and that the Holy Church failed in its duties during the "Demon King Execution Ritual," allowing the Demon King to escape.

　The principle of choosing the lesser of two evils also applies to Christianity.

　In the current environment, what people find most unbearable is probably not the escape of the demon king, but being deceived.

　If it is revealed that the "Demon King's Execution Ritual" was a deception, then the Holy Church's towering structure will truly begin to crumble!

　As for the escaped demon king... he will eventually be caught and brought back.

　Even if some people initially criticize the Holy Church for allowing the Demon King to escape, as long as the secret is kept and the escaped Demon King is captured as soon as possible, the Holy Church can still clear its name.

　Even after they capture the escaped demon king, the vast majority of the people will forget the mistakes they made in the past!

　……

　"So, can I ask that question again now?" Ophelia brought up the question that had been weighing on her mind for so long, "Professor Sylph, are you really going to spare that Demon King's life?"

　Professor Sylph turned her head and calmly asked, "What are your thoughts on how you're handling it?"

　Ophelia immediately said fiercely, "I wish I could drink its blood and eat its flesh!"

　Hephaestus leaned close to her ear and whispered, "All you can drink and eat now is your son's blood and your son's flesh."

　Ophelia: "..."

　Her composure was clearly excellent, which is why Hephaestus escaped unharmed.

　"Pfft." Little Lily, with her pointed ears, puffed out her cheeks like a steamed bun, but eventually deflated.

　Dak also wanted to laugh, but his composure was clearly excellent, and he successfully held it in.

　The topic did not stray from the subject. Professor Sylph said with a stern face, "Blood can be drunk, and flesh can be eaten, but people are not easy to kill."

　Now that we know the Demon King's memories could potentially be restored, there's no way we can let him escape again.

　"We've finally walked right into their trap, how can we let them get away?" Darke shook his head.

　“Then…” Ophelia looked at Dark and said, “Let’s refine it into a magical spirit!”

　Dark repeated Professor Sylph's words in a serious tone: "Under normal circumstances, living things die during the process of being transformed into magical spirits."

　Ophelia immediately frowned, her face contorted in a pained expression, and said, "You can do it, right?"

　The process of creating a magic enchantment is a very meticulous one.

　Even seemingly simple basic experiments actually involve extremely complex internal reactions.

　Those so-called simplicitys are all based on the complexity of the transmutation array itself.

　Therefore, during the process of alchemy, the soul and will of any living being will be obliterated in that extremely complex reaction process.

　If it doesn't succeed, that's fine; but if it does succeed, it means that the creature must have already died.

　But on Easter night, one person defied common sense and made the impossible possible!

　During the magical alchemy that night, Dark added "Elysium" and successfully preserved Ophelia Brad's soul and will!

　But facing Ophelia's almost pleading gaze, Dark remained rational and said, "Auntie, it's not that I don't want to help, it's that I can't. Using the souls of the living as material for magical transmutation is not a field I can delve into. The reason it was successful last time was because of the entire ritual. I only provided some small assistance and changed the course of the ritual."

　After a long pause, he said again, "Perhaps I will be able to do it once I master the method of ritual consecration."

　Ophelia immediately complimented, "That should be quick, right? You're so smart! Witt always praises you in front of me."

　"Ha." Dak still chuckled. "Auntie, you look so clumsy when you pat your butt."

　Ophelia blushed instantly: "You child..."

　“Alright,” Professor Sylph reminded, “We still need to wait for Cynthia to return before deciding on the final course of the Demon King’s soul. My personal opinion is to seal it away, but Ophelia’s example tells me that simply sealing it isn’t enough. Transforming it into a magical spirit card is indeed a very good idea. However, magical transmutation is very risky; no one’s transmutation experiment is 100% successful, even ritual transmutation. Therefore, we need to carefully consider whether we should take this risk. As for what Dark said about not mastering the method of ritual transmutation… that’s not difficult to solve. We can have Kazel give him private lessons, or help him set up the ritual when he wants to transmutate. In short, these are not problems. As long as the Demon King’s soul can be successfully separated from Witt’s soul…”

　Hearing her say this, Ophelia became anxious again. But at this point, she had no other options.

　“We’re all on the same side, so let’s skip the formalities,” Professor Sylph changed the subject. “Let’s talk about secrecy now. You might not know this within the academy, but because of Angus Jeffrey, this incident has already caught our attention. Fortunately, Witt didn’t reveal too much during tonight’s duel, so luck is on our side. In short, we can’t tell anyone about tonight’s events, and we need a plausible explanation.”

　“That’s easy,” Dark said, raising his hand. “Just pin the blame for the whole mess involving Angus Jeffrey and Witt on ‘Netherfire.’”

　"The Fire of the Underworld?" The group exchanged glances, and they agreed with Dark's quick thinking of a solution.

　Professor Sylph couldn't help but sigh, "Let's call it 'Netherworld Fire.' Thinking about it carefully, there's no more fitting explanation. For the past six months, the Holy Church has been in a frenzy over what leaked from the Gates of the Underworld; they'll be extremely sensitive to it. But the signs displayed by Angus Jeffrey and Vittor God are quite similar to those of someone possessed by 'Netherworld Fire.'"

　Dark interlaced his fingers and slowly said, “Although few know it, Angus Jeffrey was possessed by the ‘Netherworld Fire’ a very early time ago. They can’t access Witt, but they can examine Angus Jeffrey. There have always been relatively obvious signs of possession by the ‘Netherworld Fire’ within Angus Jeffrey’s body. Unless their examination can pinpoint the exact time when those signs were detected, they will only be drawn into the trap. Of course, if their understanding of the ‘Netherworld Fire’ is truly that detailed, this explanation will not only be useless but will also expose them.”

　“It won’t be exposed.” Professor Sylph smiled and said, “If it were the Holy Church, they would understand.”

　The Holy Church also does not want anything related to the resurrection of the Demon King to be exposed.

　It's one thing if they don't investigate thoroughly, but once they find any clues, using "fire from the underworld" as an excuse will serve as a warning to them.

　We are not all stupid.

　In this matter, the Holy Church would even help cover it up.

　Professor Sylph said, "To understand the specifics, just look at Earl Jeffrey's reaction in the days that followed."

　……

　They continued to discuss the topic for a while, scrutinizing the details of the argument, and finally reached a consensus.

　As for the handling of Witt Gold, that will be put on hold for now.

　Professor Sylph and Sister Carlian will escort him to Professor Steven Harvey's dormitory.