Sitting down on his apartment bed, Seth deeply contemplated the day's events.

The experience of taking a person's life left him feeling quiet and thoughtful.

He truly did not know how to react emotionally.

But logically, he broke it down.

Reymond had betrayed them, sealed them in a demon's den, and was moments from killing him.

Had he been left alive, he would truly cause numerous life threatening problems to Seth.

Because of this, Seth did not feel like an irredeemable killer, even though the act itself was brutal.

A memory surfaced as he contemplated this..

'Of course, taking a life can never be truly justified... What was it that Monica used to always say? Ah, right... "You cannot honor the innocent by adopting the methods of the guilty."'

He acknowledged the truth in that.

But then his thinking became more practical.

'Of course, if I actually followed such a perfect moral code in this world, I'd be dead already. I'm not a saint who can afford total kindness. It's much better to offer kindness only to those who deserve it, and defend myself fiercely against those who don't.'

He let out a long, tired sigh and lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

His line of thought delved into his own safety.

He deeply thought about those who knew he was involved in the incident earlier...

Reymond was dead, and the other Iron Jackals—Arthur, Riko, Sophia—were also dead.

The only other person was Matthew, the boy.

Thinking of Matthew being chased by the powerful Priestess Putrescence, Seth felt a pang of sadness.

He knew the chance of the boy surviving was almost zero.

A part of him still hoped Matthew was safe, but another part felt wary.

His own sympathy for the boy were a product of manipulation by some unknown force.

He couldn't even trust his own feelings anymore...

This led him to his most important conclusion.

'I have to leave this apartment soon... that unknown manipulator might track me here...'

He contemplated the pros and cons.

Yes, he regretted wasting the money he had paid for rent.

However, the money wasn't even originally his, and his safety was far more important.

The best strategic move was to make the mysterious manipulator believe he had died in the explosion.

Disappearing from this apartment would reinforce that lie.

Furthermore, with his [Null Presence] ability, acquiring more resources later would not be a major problem.

He could always find a corrupt, wealthy target to rob if he needed funds.

His next chain of thought was about long-term planning.

'Later, I should tell Phoebe about my current situation and ask her mentor for advice.'

Of course, he would need a cover story.

He would not tell them about his resurrection ability.

Instead, he would say he managed to avoid the incident by hiding, and that the perpetrators likely assumed he died in the explosions.

His primary goal was to get reassurance that his fate was no longer being controlled and that he wasn't being watched.

After the fight with Reymond, Seth conducted a clear assessment of his capabilities.

He realized he was critically underprepared for combat.

His main issue was a lack of effective weapons.

For example, he did not have a reliable firearm... all he had now was a single gun with no bullets left.

'Perhaps I should ask Phoebe's mentor about where to acquire demonic weapons as well...'

He thought. His mouth twitched in frustration.

It was clear that Phoebe herself was still a bit unreliable, making her mentor his only current source of trustworthy information.

This sparked a final, crucial realization.

'Aside from this, I should also make my own connections with certain witches.'

He could not remain dependent on Phoebe forever.

It would be far better if Seth established his own channels to exchange knowledge, information, and potentially weaponry with other witches.

Thinking of this, he closed his eyes and dozed off to bed out of tiredness.

As the early morning came, Seth got up and readied himself before he began to pack his few belongings.

He included the clothes Phoebe had given him, which were mostly old clothes that her dead father used to wear.

At first he thought about leaving these clothes behind to somewhat convince the manipulator that he died and had not moved elsewhere to hide...

But robbery was often common and who knew if the landlord himself cleared out the entire place for the next tenant?

Still, this world was a place with magical means, so Seth could not make deductions based off of normal logic.

So, to be safe, he left a few clothes behind.

He did not own much of anything, as it had not been long since his arrival in this world.

The simplicity of his possessions made the decision to leave immediately an easy one to execute.

...

After packing his things into an old suitcase that Phoebe had let him borrow, Seth did not immediately go to her place.

Instead, he went into the city once more.

His goal was to collect the papers filled with information that he had asked Matilda to write down.

Walking along the city streets, he first headed towards the familiar bakery, intending to fill his stomach.

Though he had lost the suitcase full of cash, Seth had been smart enough to take out some money and hide it in advance.

He had tucked some under the sink, stuffed some into his pillow, and hidden more in his closet.

This was a basic precaution, and it had paid off.

Thus, as of now, he still had 12,000 Bathalas.

He did not intend to spend this money carelessly.

He knew from Reymond's dealings that the prices of demonic weapons were extremely high.

This mere 12,000 would probably not even be enough to buy the weakest one.

The money was for survival and necessary expenses, not luxuries.

"Oh, it's you, handsome fella," a familiar voice greeted him.

"Are you here for the loaf bread? Unfortunately, it won't be ready till around afternoon today."

It was Lady Glorina, the black and silver-haired lady with a protruding belly.

She wore an apron dusted with flour, and the sweet scent of fresh bread wafted from the shop.

"Lady Glorina, good morning. I'll take some stuffed meat buns, then."

Seeing Seth, Glorina smiled, but an odd thought popped into her head.

Before he walked in, it felt like it was her first time seeing him.

With his handsome looks, he should have been quite memorable.

She had even thought about introducing him to her niece, but for some reason, she had completely forgotten about him until he appeared.

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