"Next, let's proceed with interrogation."
Charlie raised his hand, and the ice encasing the scar-faced man began to slowly melt, leaving only his head free from the frost.
"You—"
The scar-faced man's lips trembled, turning blue from the cold. But before he could beg for mercy, the glint in his eyes suddenly faded, his pupils becoming blank and hollow.
Clearly, he was now hypnotized by Charlie.
Although Charlie didn't possess the Sharingan, which could hypnotize others just by eye contact, he used Spirit Arts to create a similar effect.
"Who are you? What is your purpose?"
Charlie wasted no time, getting straight to the point. Beside him, Aishia stood calmly.
"My name is Arlo, executive of the Whiro Familia. Our goal was to kidnap the woman beside you." Arlo replied in a flat, emotionless voice.
"Whiro Familia? This is the first time I've heard that name. Well, there are hundreds of Familias in Orario—it's impossible for me to know them all."
Charlie paused in thought, then stopped dwelling on it. Even in the original work, not all Familia names in Orario were mentioned. It was only natural that he, as a newcomer, had never heard of the Whiro Familia.
"Whiro is a god representing darkness, death, disease, and evil. He originates from Polynesian mythology. Of course, the gods in this world differ from those in Charlie's previous life, so that information isn't accurate and can't be used as a reliable reference."
"Huh? How do you know that, Aishia?"
Charlie turned to the side, surprised that Aishia knew something he didn't.
Sensing his confusion, Aishia explained in her characteristic monotone voice.
"I have seen Charlie's memories. You may have forgotten, but I have not. Back in middle school, when you were obsessed with anime, you studied various mythologies at the school library after being inspired by watching Campione and High School DxD."
"Oh, right…" Charlie nodded, recalling the memory. Then he refocused on Arlo. "So, why did you want to kidnap Aishia?"
He couldn't remember provoking any Familia, let alone the Whiro Familia, which he had just heard about for the first time.
However, Arlo's next answer contradicted Charlie's assumption.
"In the Whiro Familia, our task is to kidnap beautiful women and sell them as slaves. We were searching for prey when we saw this woman. Her price would surely be extremely high—higher than any woman we've ever captured. So, without hesitation, we chose her as our target."
"..."
The atmosphere fell into a chilling silence.
*BUZZ!*
Suddenly, the air around Charlie vibrated. His magical essence surged, becoming tangible, revealing the intensity of his emotions. The old church walls began to tremble, and small cracks appeared in the stone floor.
"Calm down, Charlie." Aishia suddenly stepped forward and hugged him from behind. "If you don't, you'll destroy the orphanage. I'm right here with you. I'm fine. No one can hurt me as long as I'm with you. Your anger doesn't need to be directed at them."
Charlie's rage gradually subsided as he felt the warmth of Aishia's embrace. More noticeably, the soft sensation of Aishia's breasts pressing against his back helped bring him back to his senses.
"Huuu… I almost lost control." Charlie exhaled deeply, blaming himself. His emotional control was terrible whenever the people he cared about were involved in trouble.
"Thank you, Aishia."
"It's fine." Aishia tightened her hug. "I belong to Charlie. Charlie's desires are my desires. I will act only for Charlie's sake."
The absolute loyalty Aishia displayed made Charlie feel both helpless and deeply moved.
"You're starting to imitate Est, Aishia." he teased gently, patting Aishia's hands still wrapped around his waist.
"I'm not imitating. This is how I truly feel." Aishia replied innocently, making Charlie smile wryly.
"Slavery is banned in Orario. If caught, the Guild would punish the Whiro Familia, right?" Charlie asked after regaining his composure.
Arlo, still under hypnosis, answered in a flat voice, "The Whiro Familia's base isn't in Orario—it's in the Kaios Desert. The Guild can do nothing against our Familia."
"The Kaios Desert…"
The moment the name "Kaios Desert" was mentioned, Charlie vaguely guessed what kind of Familia Whiro was. To confirm, he asked.
"Is the Whiro Familia an Evilus?"
"Yes. The Whiro Familia is categorized as Evilus."
Arlo's confession confirmed Charlie's suspicions.
Orario stood as a city that hosted adventurers, gods, and Familias, its primary goal being to protect the city from monsters in the Dungeon. However, there was a group of beings who desired the opposite—uniting to form an organization known as Evilus.
Evilus was an organization that opposed the idea of peace—a coalition of many Familias that wanted nothing more than to sow terror and destroy the sanctity of Orario.
Where there is evil, there is also good.
When the gods descended to the Lower World, some came not to form bonds with humans, but to create chaos—and they found humans who shared their intentions.
As a member of the Hera Familia, Charlie knew far more about Evilus than the average adventurer.
The Zeus Familia and Hera Familia were essentially peacekeepers in their prime, making it impossible for Evilus to take bold actions—or they would be destroyed.
To circumvent this, Evilus embedded themselves throughout Orario's society. They had numerous members, including adventurers, merchants, and even civilians—a vast network of information and resources to fulfill their needs.
Taking advantage of the fall of the Zeus and Hera Familias after their battle with the One-Eyed Black Dragon, Evilus turned Orario upside down, fighting the Guild for control of the city.
Charlie's mind drifted to the history he had once read in the Hera Familia archives.
"From the archives I read, after the Familias that maintained Orario's peace vanished, Evilus was finally able to unleash their true strength, fighting the Guild for control of Orario for roughly ten years."
"Those ten years became one of the darkest periods in Orario's history. Even civilians weren't spared from Evilus' violence. They tried to conquer Orario from within, taking the most drastic actions for mere pleasure. The worst part was that they were everywhere—and they knew almost everything."
"During war, the general strategy is to eliminate the leader first to destabilize the enemy. But this weakness doesn't exist in Evilus."
"They have no true leader. Whoever causes the greatest chaos is considered their leader. At its peak, there were three core Familias: Thanatos Familia, Electo Familia, and Apate Familia."
"In the end, Evilus didn't emerge victorious. The Freya Familia launched a full-scale assault on the Electo and Apate Familias. These two core groups of Evilus suffered heavy casualties, unable to match the strength of the Freya Familia."
"Some members survived and went into hiding underground, hoping to recover and strike again. However, they were eventually wiped out by Finn, captain of the Loki Familia, who led a cleansing operation to ensure they would never rise again."
Recalling this historical information, this was why Charlie showed respect when he met Freya—even though her own private life was depraved, he respected the Freya Familia's role in defeating Evilus.