"The problem is deciding where to start," Mark said, bringing a hand to his chin.

It was then that Rose stepped forward.

"On that subject, Master," she said in a tone that suggested she had been waiting for the right moment to speak. "I already have some suggestions about where we should head first."

"Go ahead, I’m all ears."

Then all eyes turned to Rose.

The vampire took a second before continuing, as if organizing what she was going to say.

"At first, I thought the best approach would be to take advantage of the information about the heroes that Alice has," Rose explained. "The records she mentioned earlier, the routes, the objects in custody... all of that is still valuable information and at some point we’re going to need it."

Rose paused for a second.

"But after thinking it through with a clear head, I don’t think it’s the best option anymore."

"Why?" Mark asked.

"Because all those records are in human territory, Master," Rose replied, crossing her arms.

Mark looked at her without saying anything, waiting for her to continue.

"So if you don’t want to draw any more attention," Rose said, gesturing vaguely toward those present with one hand, "we can’t risk anyone seeing either of those two, or rather, those three."

Rose raised one finger.

"Alice, the missing Grand Inquisitor, currently being searched for by an inquisition group led by none other than Aria’s cousin."

She raised a second finger.

"And Elyndra, the Knight of the Dawn, whose disappearance caused such a severe institutional crisis that the clergy came to a complete standstill."

Rose lowered her hand.

"I see..." Mark said thoughtfully. "So where do you suggest we go?"

"To the south of the continent," Rose replied without hesitation.

"Why?"

"The southern region is completely dominated by semi-humans, beastmen, and elves," Rose explained. "There’s no significant human presence, no inquisition, no clergy, and certainly no human settlements... it’s basically another world."

"And won’t we have problems for being human?"

"Some, probably," Rose admitted with a shrug. "But they’d be insignificant for a group that doesn’t lack for strength like ours."

Mark crossed his arms, thinking.

"I understand that nobody would recognize us there," he said slowly. "But... what does the south have to do with the reincarnated ones? Because we’re supposed to be looking for clues about them, not hiding."

"It has everything to do with it, Master," Rose replied with a faint smile. "You see, humans love to exaggerate their own achievements."

Hearing that, everyone present raised an eyebrow.

"When people talk about the heroes who defeated the Demon Lord three hundred years ago," Rose explained, "the human version of the story says it was a group of brave human warriors sent by the Goddess."

"And that’s not what happened?"

"Not entirely," Rose said with a smile. "The group was made up of six members, that part is correct. But of those six, only two were human."

"Is that so?"

"That’s right, the other four were of different races. There was an elf, a beastwomen, and two others whose exact race I don’t remember, but they were definitely not human."

Alice frowned slightly at hearing what Rose said.

"That doesn’t match what the inquisition teaches..." Alice said in a tone that wasn’t exactly disagreement but confusion.

"Because the clergy edited the story to make it sound better," Rose replied bluntly. "A group of six human heroes sent by the Goddess sounds a lot more inspiring than a multiracial group where humans were the minority."

"..."

Alice opened her mouth to say something but stopped, probably because she had no argument to contradict her.

"In any case, what matters is that all six were equally strong, regardless of their race. The two humans weren’t more powerful than the other four, and the other four weren’t weaker than the humans," Rose continued explaining.

Mark narrowed his eyes.

"And if they were all equally strong, then..." Mark began.

"Then it’s likely that all of them were also reincarnated," Rose completed with a smile.

"That makes sense..." Mark said, leaning back in the throne.

Rose’s logic was solid.

Going south killed two birds with one stone: staying under the radar and accessing information about the reincarnated ones.

"And how long would it take us to reach southern territory?" Mark asked.

Hearing her Master’s question, a smile spread across Rose’s face.

"We can get there today if you wish, Master."

"Right now?" Mark asked, frowning.

"That’s right, not all the way to southern territory directly, but to the outskirts of the Great Forest that divides human territory from the lands of the other races."

"And how would we get there?"

"Years ago, when I passed through that area, I left a magical circle engraved in the ground in case I ever needed to transport myself near there," Rose explained. "It’s an anchor spell, as long as the circle is still intact, I can use it as a destination point for a teleportation spell."

"And is it still intact after so many years?"

"Anchor circles are designed to last decades, Master," Rose replied. "As long as nobody has deliberately destroyed it, it should still be there."

"I see... how much time do you need to prepare the spell?"

"An hour or two at most," Rose replied. "I need to draw the departure circle, calibrate it with the arrival circle, and charge the spell with enough mana to teleport all of us."

Mark nodded slowly and then straightened in the throne.

"Then it’s settled," he said in a firm tone.

The five looked at him.

"We’re going south," Mark said, looking at all of them. "Rose, start preparing the teleportation spell right away."

"Understood, Master," Rose replied with a bow of her head before turning and heading toward the exit of the hall.

"The rest of you, get ready to depart," Mark ordered. "Gather what you need, let the others know we’re leaving, and be ready by the time Rose finishes preparing the teleport."

"Understood, Master!" Ely and Aria said at the same time.

"As you command, my lord," Alice said.

Yuki simply nodded.

The four began moving toward the exit, each at their own pace, Ely and Aria already arguing about who was going to be the one to tell Alpha.

Mark watched them go, and when the last of them disappeared through the door, he was left alone in the throne room.

Then Mark let out a long sigh and leaned back against the throne again, looking up at the ceiling.

’I just hope this trip doesn’t end like the last one...’