The LionHeart Kingdom was very strong as a force, not only in the Empire it served but in the southern border of the continent as a whole, with 1 great mage and two great knights, three grand knights, and two grand mages, and several dozen advanced mages and knights in its court.
And this was only for the court people knew about on the surface.
The old mage in front of Michael just happened to be one of the two public grand mages of the Kingdom.
A day ago, a strong mana wave that seemed corrupted, like that of the demonic cult members, was sensed by an adventure team who had entered deep into the Everlong Forest for monsters and natural treasures.
It's a rule in the kingdom that any sight of the demonic cult should be reported, and as there was a reward based on the significance of the report, most people loved reporting fast without hesitation.
This was what happened.