"Don't get involved?"
Luo Shu immediately grew alert:
"She really said that?"
Yukino nodded, then hesitated before adding:
"There's one more thing... I'm not sure if I should mention it."
Luo Shu looked at Yukino and smiled:
"Go on. Since you already feel something's off, keeping it to yourself would only make you feel worse if something happens later, given your personality."
Yukino Yukinoshita considered this and agreed. If her concealment led to unforeseen consequences, especially casualties, the guilt and self-blame would likely devastate her.
What surprised her, though, was Luo Shu saying such a thing.
"You actually said the same thing as my sister."
"Hmm?" Luo Shu raised an eyebrow. Haruno Yukinoshita had echoed his words? When had she said that?
Oh, right. He'd almost forgotten—Haruno had recently been stubbornly insisting on living with Yukino. Waking up at dawn to work overtime last night must have dragged Haruno out of bed as well.
Had Nia Honjo outright warned the sisters in front of them?
At that thought, Luo Shu turned to Yukino Yukinoshita and asked,
"Alright, what exactly felt off to you?"
After a brief hesitation, Yukino replied,
"Miss Honjo's smile when she asked me to relay the warning... it was very unsettling."
"It was that kind of mischievous, teasing smile, almost like... when Miss Tokisaki grins."
As Yukino finished speaking, she suddenly froze, her gaze locking onto the twin-tailed head emerging from the shadows behind Luo Shu.
"Miss Tokisaki?!"
Yukino's face flushed crimson as she stared at Kurumi Tokisaki's shadow clone.
Being caught badmouthing someone to their face—this level of embarrassment was unbearable for Yukino.
"Ara ara~ Is this the 'bad smile' you meant, Yukino-chan?"
Kurumi tilted her head slightly, her lips curling into a mischievous smirk.
She even pointed helpfully at her own mouth, ensuring Yukino couldn't miss it.
"I-I sincerely apologise." Yukino bowed her head, her cheeks burning.
Kurumi responded with a light, amused chuckle.
"To think I'd coincidentally catch you activating a clone right at this moment..."
Luo Shu, witnessing Yukino's predicament, remarked with some surprise,
"Did something happen with Chisato?"
"No, I merely came to clarify something. The intelligence report about the Metropolitan Police Department official's attack omitted a detail—Senhime Rin Getsu and I were both present."
Kurumi floated up from Luo Shu's shadow, leaning against his back as she picked up the file on Yukino's lap and pointed out,
"One thing wasn't recorded: before dying, the assailant, disguised as a Metropolitan Police Department member, shouted at Hyoue Kuroda, 'For the glory of Phenex! Die, please!' Or something to that effect."
"'Glory of Phenex'? Phenex? The phoenix?" Luo Shu's brow twitched at the term.
The name carried profound implications.
Translated in the East as 'phoenix' or 'immortal bird', it originated as a mythical creature from ancient Egyptian and Greek lore—a divine bird reborn from flames.
In demonology, Phenex was one of the 72 Demon Gods of Solomon.
Ranked 37th, with the title of Marquis.
This identity inevitably reminded Luo Shu of the demons from True Hell.
If this Phenex refers to the Phenex of True Hell, then, according to demonology descriptions, the other party's rank would be Marquis?
Given that Counts in True Hell are basically at Angel Rank.
A major figure above Angel Rank?
"Nia told me not to get involved... was it because of this?"
Luo Shu pondered suspiciously before involuntarily retrieving the blank page transformed into Raziel from his possession.
Although forcibly arranging Enigma's future yesterday had drained this blank page considerably, performing some simple searches should still be possible now.
Yet the moment Luo Shu opened Raziel, he saw a line of pre-written text:
[Surprised? LOL.JPG]
Seeing this line, Luo Shu's pupils contracted slightly before he expressionlessly turned to the next page:
[I knew you'd look~ Snicker.JPG]
Luo Shu's eyebrow twitched as he flipped another page.
[Alright, alright, I know what you want to find out. Let me explain in advance.]
[The attackers come from a secret society called the Phenex Society, whose goal is to summon Phenex from Hell to the human world and obtain their gifts for immortality.]
[By now, you've probably realised.]
[This is an outright cult organisation, originally a faction that branched off from Truth Astronomy.]
[Their objective is to summon the phoenix hidden in Tokyo.]
[Now guess who might have tipped them off about the phoenix's presence in Tokyo?]
Upon reaching this line, Luo Shu immediately turned the page to find this single sentence:
[That's right, it's me!!]
[So please stop investigating, okay? If you keep digging, the mastermind behind the culprit, that great person, that big shot surnamed Luo, will be exposed!!! Panic.jpg]
Reading this, Luo Shu fell into deep contemplation.
So, the mastermind behind the attack on La Folia was... himself?
Had it really become a case of him orchestrating his own scheme?
Luo Shu looked at the description with an extremely unnatural expression. He took a deep breath, materialised a quill in his hand, and wrote on Raziel:
[The phoenix you used to deceive the Phenex Society into summoning—are you referring to Kotori Itsuka?]
As soon as he wrote this, Nia Honjo's reply came swiftly:
[Obviously?]
[A Spirit of Fire capable of rebirth from flames—who else could it possibly be?]
After these two lines appeared, Luo Shu's lips twitched. He immediately picked up the quill again and wrote:
[Why?]
Nia's response was:
[I'm guessing you're about to rush back now?]
Seeing this, Luo Shu raised his eyelids, gathered the documents on the desk, stacked them neatly, then picked up a folder and stuffed them inside.
"What's wrong?" Yukino Yukinoshita asked from beside him.
In response, Luo Shu simply picked up the folder, tucked it under his arm, and said to Yukino:
"We're returning to the garrison to settle a score!"
Hearing this, Yukino Yukinoshita gave a thoughtful glance at the Raziel Luo Shu had put away, then nodded and said:
"Understood. Should we use the system space for an emergency return?"
Luo Shu narrowed his eyes at the suggestion and replied:
"Exactly that."