Grush suspected it was a Demon Hunter, not without reason.

Spies of this age, with this way of covering their tracks, it's hard not to associate them with Demon Hunters.

According to Grush's judgment, it resembles a Demon Hunter from either the Snake Faction or the Wolf Faction.

Demon Hunters mainly split into four factions: Snake, Wolf, Lion, and Eagle, each consuming different types of Magic Potions.

Snake Faction excels at reconnaissance and poisoning, Wolf Faction excels at tracking and camouflage, Lion Faction excels at endurance and direct confrontation, and Eagle Faction excels at ambushes and assassination.

Wolf Faction potions have the least toxicity, so they are the most plentiful, but the mortality rate is still not low.

The so-called Magic Potions are both the source of power for Demon Hunters and the source of their disdain.

Unlike ordinary potions, Magic Potions are alchemical concoctions.

In other words, any Magic Potion must be crafted by an Alchemist, inevitably leading to ties with the Secret Faction or Witch affiliates.

The moment one drinks the potion, the body undergoes a mutation.

In the Wolf Faction, three out of ten become malformed mutations, while the remaining four die.

The remaining three can achieve the correct mutation; after drinking the potion, they become immune to the Witch's disease and develop pseudo-spell physical abilities.

For example, enhanced sensitivity to smells, mana perception, stronger eyesight and dynamic vision, and increased reflexes.

At this point, their Knight's breathing technique is forever stuck at their current level.

Most Demon Hunters are orphans and juvenile offenders, or the children of criminals or even criminals themselves.

Sometimes, when lacking personnel, Demon Hunters resort to kidnapping, conscription, and purchasing slaves.

For instance, Jilo was born a slave, hailing from the Clove Corridor in Southern Falan.

When he was ten, his Armed Farmer parents were burned to death in a fire, and no one was willing to adopt him and his sister Niezko.

Both were eventually driven out of their home, becoming refugees.

On the third day after becoming refugees, he was caught by slave traders and sold to Demon Hunters at Black Snake Bay's Wolf Castle.

After seven and a half years of practice, the day before Jilo was to drink the life-risking wolf potion—the Witch came.

The Demon Hunter outpost he was at was breached by Witches, with only a few survivors escaping.

Sitting beneath the thatched shelter, Jilo held hot tea, crossing his legs.

In front of him, in the rain curtain, about ten teenagers roughly the same age as he was back then were struggling to climb along the wall.

The rain ran paths across their muddy faces, their knees and palms were scraped, bleeding.

Yet they seemed insensitive to pain and continued climbing determinedly towards the top.

Watching these teenagers, Jilo couldn't help but recall the days of ten years ago.

But ten years ago, his goal in completing these training tasks was to avoid the whip.

Whereas these teenagers aim for revenge and to acquire the Little Scythe Medal awarded by His Holiness the Pope, the Black Scythe Medal, the Great Scythe Medal, and every Child Soldier's dream—the Flying Great Scythe Medal.

"Alright." Seeing the last Child Soldier climb over the high wall, Jilo stood up, "You did well. You can return to camp. Detailed scores will be announced tomorrow.

There's hot water in the camp, make sure you shower and expel the wet chill before resting, understand?"

"Understood."

Wrapping a short cloak, Jilo mounted his horse, galloping toward Joan of Arc Castle.

Looking at the farmers and Holy Hoe Peasants still patrolling the fields with cloaks amid the rain, Jilo's feelings were complicated.

How did a smuggler and swindler, a petty broker among the Secret Faction, become the instructor for the Pope Country's first espionage agency?

But having Demon Hunters as instructors for an espionage agency seems quite fitting.

After all, Demon Hunters' main methods to deal with Witches and Wizards are assassination.

If they can assassinate Witches, assassinating ordinary people should be no problem.

Some Demon Hunters, for their livelihood, sometimes accept Cardinal's employment for assassination, poisoning, and eavesdropping.

Sometimes Jilo even wonders if the Demon Hunters' poor reputation stems from this.

Among the various factions of Demon Hunters, the most popular are the Snake Faction and Eagle Faction, followed by the Lion Faction responsible for close protection of lords.

For someone like Jilo from the Wolf Faction, they can only become mercenaries.

Anywhere a Demon Hunting Hundred-man Squad is spotted, it's sure to be composed of Wolf Faction members.

For Demon Hunters who are doing well, their annual income typically does not exceed 20 gold pounds.

Those doing poorly earn merely three to five gold pounds annually, or sometimes get killed and robbed by drunk citizens.

According to this standard, Jilo is doing exceptionally well.

With a monthly salary of 2 gold pounds and an annual total of 24 gold pounds, plus an end-of-year bonus of 2-6 gold pounds if targets are met.

This income is comparable to that of a Knight.

Among the Demon Hunters who escaped from Wolf Castle with him, he could definitely ride on the faces of those old friends.

"If only I could find my sister." As soon as he spoke, Jilo shook his head with a self-mocking smile.

He had investigated earlier and found that his sister Niezko had been sold to the Blood and Flesh Royal Court, likely never to be seen again in this lifetime.

Thus, the Kamad Family's lineage can only be carried on by him. Luckily, he didn't drink the magic potion, because that stuff makes one absolutely sterile.

In the Pope Country, he is considered mid-level and doesn't have to wander around. Getting married isn't difficult.

Recently, quite a few citizens have been camping at the entrance of his residence with their daughters, young ladies full of charm and enthusiasm, giving Jilo some thoughts of marriage.

As he was pondering, Jilo crossed the street through the rain and stopped in front of a house.

It was a large three-story estate covering over two acres.

In the shrine, Miseria hugs a sword, while rain creates a crackling sound against the mosaic stained glass windows.

This red-roofed mansion is located in the citizen's district of Joan of Arc Castle, less than a ten-minute walk from the City Hall.

Originally, this belonged to a rich merchant who provided weapons and warhorses for the command and colluded with the Monastery, thus he was hanged.

However, this place isn't just Jilo's residence.

Horn, adhering to the principle of maximizing utility, thought it wasteful to let one or two people occupy such a big house.

So he simply arranged for several higher-ups and elders of the Pope Country, all of whom were single, to live in this mansion.

As for those with families, Horn would allocate a smaller citizen's house for them.

In some sense, the place Jilo resides can be described as where the elite gather.

Greeting the guards at the entrance, Jilo stepped inside the house and handed his cloak to a maid.

Stretching lazily, he proceeded to the dining room on the first floor, where dinner was provided for free.

Just reaching the doorway, Jilo saw a priest with a red nose coming out.

"Bishop Chervis…" Jilo quickly smiled and nodded as a gesture. Despite him only being the Abbot of Saint Scythe Monastery, he was an established founding figure.

But unlike Madlan, Armand, and the others, Chervis's abilities gradually fell out of sync with Horn's pace.

Hence, he had retired to a secondary position, managing Saint Scythe Monastery as a Cardinal.

This was his most familiar food processing industry, making the most of his talents.

"Brother Jilo, you came at the right time." Chervis, somewhat drunk, said, "Tonight there's craft beer. If the maid hadn't stopped me, I could have finished a whole barrel."

Jilo forced a smile. After long interactions, he could vaguely understand why the old man had retired.

Passing by Chervis, Jilo took up a plate and grabbed two pieces of bread, then began choosing between pea soup, stewed meat, grilled fish, and berries.

Due to a food shortage, the Saint's Grandson called for strict frugality, ensuring every high-ranking official of the Pope Country could eat till full, though not necessarily eat well.

The emphasis was on quantity, and it had to be salty.

Seeing the stewed meat nearly scooped out, Jilo shook his head and prepared to ladle some pea soup.

"Don't eat, don't eat," Jeska, who was picking food beside him, warned, "Too much salt was added today, the pea soup is bitterly numbing."

"Instructor Jeska." Jilo smiled and nodded at him, "You returned quite early today."

"It started raining, switched to indoor culture classes, so I came back early. Who can endure eating leftover slops every day?"

As the Chief Instructor of Saint Dangji War Academy, Jeska was currently quite successful.

Not only did he redeem some humiliation from battles in Joan of Arc Castle and Pavia, but he also swiftly rose from being a mere refugee to a senior military officer of the Salvation Army within half a year.

"Mr. Jeska seems to be in a good mood lately; is it because good things are about to happen?" Jilo teased with envy.

The Pope Country circle is small, everyone knows each other's movements.

For instance, when Her Highness Jeanne changed into new clothes, she was teased by the Saint's Grandson with, "Why is the old woman acting innocent like a young girl?" leading to her storming out in embarrassment.

And how the famous female widow merchant of Joan of Arc Castle was proposing a marriage between her 15-year-old daughter and the 33-year-old Jeska.

"Are you talking about Ivanka's matter?" Jeska shook his head in frustration, "Just a little brat… sigh, but her mother Isolde is quite still charming."

Jilo couldn't hold back his laughter: "Well, her mother suggests marriage, not interested in the daughter but rather in herself."

"Need to consider; it requires caution." Jeska shook his head, "Have you seen this family's dossier?"

Jilo's contorted smile became more restrained.

This widow named Isolde was originally a mistress of a certain Abbot, and it was by relying on his support that she gained her wealth.

However, this support is now cleaning out manure in the Trinity Education Team, which is why she set her sights on Jeska as a new patron.

"This family's connection with the Church implies that if His Holiness holds any grudge against me because of this, not even triple the wealth can compensate for the loss."

Jeska dipped bread into the stew: "If she is wise, there might still be a chance for us; if not, I would rather marry a daughter of Armed Farmers, at least there's honesty."

Jilo's expression couldn't help but grow solemn.

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