Kirika's thought processes short-circuited.
It had been Kurumi Tokisaki's invitation that prompted Luo Shu and Lacus to hold their secret discussion.
But herein lay the problem.
Why was it that after Kurumi Tokisaki initiated the secret discussion, Lacus returned wearing an engagement ring? Surely there'd been some mistake?
Noticing Kirika's gaze fixed on the ring, Lacus simply smiled at her without offering any explanation.
Watching this, Kirika's face twitched, her suspicions growing until she couldn't help stealing another glance at Luo Shu.
Could it be that he'd deliberately had Kurumi issue the invitation while actually being the mastermind, all to lure Lacus out for a proposal?
Since when did this kid play such tricks?
Meanwhile, seeing Lacus return, Meer excitedly rushed over, grabbing her hand:
"Lacus! Your hand?"
"Hey, hey, hey!" Kirika Tachibana was startled by Meer's behaviour.
'Was this crazy girl really about to bring up the ring situation? Didn't she realise that mentioning this would cause trouble for that brat Luo Shu?'
Highly suspicious of Luo Shu's supposed 'multiple relationships', Kirika immediately suspected Meer was about to betray him.
Wasn't she supposed to be a die-hard Luo Shu-Lacus faction member?
Yet at that moment, Meer suddenly exclaimed with shining eyes:
"Her skin changed!!"
"Sk-skin?" Kirika froze.
'Not the ring?'
"It's completely different from before."
Meer stared intently at Lacus's hand, even reaching out to touch it:
"And it's become so smooth. Strange, it wasn't like this when we took the car here earlier."
Hearing this, everyone present except Kirika and Meer felt their hearts skip a beat, turning astonished gazes towards Luo Shu.
"No way..." Eriri muttered under her breath. "Did he actually seduce his superior, too?"
Sudden improvements in skin texture and smoothness - Eriri had experienced this phenomenon herself.
Right after signing the Familia contract, she'd undergone the same changes, spending the next day being envied by Sayuri Sawamura. Moreover, these transformations were still ongoing.
This was proof of the body's gradual evolution after forming a Familia contract.
So... had that long-haired Lacus actually become Luo Shu's Familia member?
How had this guy managed to recruit the SDS's Supreme Chairwoman so quickly?
At this thought, Eriri's gaze towards Luo Shu became extremely peculiar.
Utaha sighed at this moment:
"I expected this might happen, but not so quickly."
"Truly... swift and precise as always, Luo Shu."
As the earliest Familia member, Utaha knew exactly what Luo Shu had been like at the beginning.
Yet from that day to now was barely half a month. What started as a two-person Familia had now grown into an organisation that even the SDS's Supreme Chairwoman had joined.
Never mind the changes Lacus's inclusion would bring - at this rate, Luo Shu was practically completing a backdoor listing.
And using the SDS's framework to develop his own Familia at that.
Honestly, if Utaha hadn't witnessed the entire process firsthand, she might have suspected Luo Shu had dirty ambitions of climbing the ladder through women from the very start.
"Mmm!!" Kisara, who also understood what had happened, looked thoroughly depressed.
First, an unguarded moment with Utaha, now Lacus Clyne, whom Luo Shu already favoured - her plans to monopolise Luo Shu were slipping further away.
Meanwhile, Yukino Yukinoshita, who had just taken her seat, sighed:
"So now even the Supreme Chairwoman is one of us?"
What situation? What 'us'?
Kirika looked utterly baffled.
Why did it feel like she was the only one here who didn't understand anything?
Even Yukino Yukinoshita - whom she'd watched being brought in by Luo Shu - seemed to know something she didn't?
What was going on?
Just as Kirika stood there completely bewildered, Luo Shu - now the focus of everyone's attention - suddenly smiled:
"Though I suspect you've already guessed, I should remind you that even though my relationship with Lacus has changed, it would be better to maintain the usual superior-subordinate formality in public."
Hearing this, no one present uttered a word. Only the utterly bewildered Kirika Tachibana spoke with a resigned expression:
"I think I understand now. You've turned this Hidden Management Department into an impenetrable fortress."
"And another thing, isn't it a bit inappropriate having someone completely in the dark like me sitting here?"
"Shall I take the initiative to step out and let you hold your private meeting?"
Hearing this, Luo Shu glanced at Kirika Tachibana and nodded:
"If you're willing, I don't really mind."
"Piss off, I mind, okay?"
Kirika couldn't help but laughingly scold Luo Shu:
"You've only just transferred departments for a few days, and you're already forcibly excluding me?"
"Besides, if we're really leaving, Lacus would be coming with me, alright?"
Hearing this, Lacus, who was being held by Meer nearby, suddenly spoke up:
"Kirika, I never said I was coming with you?"
Kirika's expression froze at that moment.
First, she was stunned for a second, then shot Lacus a look full of embarrassment and annoyance, before finally sitting awkwardly in place, throwing up her hands:
"Fine, you win, damn adulterous couple!!"
As Kirika muttered her curses under her breath, Meer also took the opportunity to confirm that Lacus showed no changes—in fact, her body seemed healthier and stronger than before, as if the side effects of the Kusanagi Sword had completely vanished.
Luo Shu vaguely noticed this but merely glanced at Meer before looking away.
Compared to Kirika, who did everything openly and straightforwardly, Meer was the truly cunning one, always working through indirect means in the shadows.
This was something Luo Shu had understood ever since he first interacted with them.
Similarly, Lacus was also well aware of Meer's ulterior motives for getting close.
After all, it was Lacus herself who had assigned Kirika to manage the Operations Department and Meer to handle the Intelligence Department—she knew their working styles all too well.
"Lacus, what skincare did Luo Shu use on you? Your hands are so smooth now."
Meer grinned as she interlaced her fingers with Lacus, tugging at her playfully.
"A secret."
Lacus smiled and hinted:
"But if Luo Shu agrees, I could always tell Meer."
As she spoke, she turned her gaze to Luo Shu and blinked.
Facing their veiled exchange, Luo Shu simply smiled and said:
"I agree to this."
"After all, I've been planning to recruit Meer from the start."
In truth, Luo Shu had known from the beginning that he couldn't hide things from Meer, and he had long harboured intentions to completely take over the SDS.
To some extent, Luo Shu did have plans to covertly absorb the SDS.
After all, building an organisation from scratch was far less convenient than taking over an existing one.
But Luo Shu was also aware that in his past life, he had been nothing more than a regular person—utterly lacking the ability to manage an organisation.
In that case, what he needed most for his Familia was perhaps a Hera—a queen with excellent organisational skills.
With that thought, Luo Shu couldn't help but look at Lacus.
'Could she be my Hera?'
Holding this thought, Luo Shu produced two contracts and gave Kirika a meaningful look:
"I have a contract here..."
Hearing this, even if Kirika didn't fully grasp the situation, she understood what Luo Shu was implying.
"I see. Do I need to sign it?" Kirika glanced at him. "Knowing your temper, if I don't sign, I won't get to know anything, right?"
"Director, you're as sharp as ever." Luo Shu replied cheerfully, his attitude reminiscent of the day he first joined the Operations Department.
Seeing this, Kirika Tachibana glanced at Lacus. After receiving a slight nod from her, she couldn't help but sigh and turned to Luo Shu:
"I'm starting to regret pulling you into the SDS that day on the street."
This wasn't recruiting a subordinate – it was reeling in a shark that ended up swallowing them whole.
Before signing the contract, Kirika Tachibana was filled with nothing but regret.