Without hesitation, Luo Shu quickly drew four envelopes from the ten in Kirika's hands.
As the four were taken, Kirika unabashedly beamed and handed the remaining six to Natsuki Minamiya:
"Here you go, Superintendent Minamiya!"
"Now you can report back to your colleagues at the Metropolitan Police Department."
At this, Natsuki Minamiya glanced at Kirika, immediately grasping the insincerity behind her words:
"Behaviour like this will only make your position at the Metropolitan Police Department even more awkward."
It was both a reminder and a warning. As a friend, Natsuki Minamiya naturally didn't want Kirika to sour relations with the higher-ups.
Yet Kirika seemed uninterested in heeding the advice.
"Working with those vermin, do you really think we can stand against the Abyss?" Kirika sneered openly. "Maintaining peace doesn't mean compromising with those people, Natsuki Minamiya."
"Compromise? Perhaps..."
Natsuki Minamiya responded ambiguously and said nothing more, simply taking the six letters before standing up and glancing at Kirika Tachibana:
"Before you act, I'll advise you one last time—don't underestimate those shadowy organisations. They might not be willing to swallow such a huge loss."
Hearing this, Kirika Tachibana smiled and said, "Well, that depends on whether their claws are sharp enough."
At that, Natsuki Minamiya fell silent. She glanced at Luo Shu and left without another word.
Only when the café door creaked shut did Chisato Nishikigi finally exhale in relief, patting her chest as she said:
"Scared me to death. I thought Natsuki-sensei was going to wipe us all out."
"???"
Luo Shu, who had been puzzling over the meaning behind Natsuki Minamiya's glance, was now covered in question marks. "Is Natsuki Minamiya really that brutal?"
He had always thought her temper was quite good—just a bit sharp-tongued.
Beside him, Takina Inoue nodded in agreement. "Of course not. Chisato's exaggerating. At most, the instructor just hangs people up with chains."
'Hanging people up...' Luo Shu suddenly reconsidered whether Natsuki Minamiya might indeed be a little fierce.
"Phew~~"
Kirika Tachibana, sitting on the sofa, also let out a sigh of relief, stretching her arms lazily with a tone of relief:
"Thank goodness Natsuki-chan wasn't angry, or this would've been a real disaster."
"If you were scared, why did you do it?" Luo Shu couldn't help but retort.
"How could I let meat in my mouth slip away?"
Kirika picked up the four envelopes on the table, fanning herself with them as she said:
"These are all Grade 2, even one Grade 3 Demon Incantation. We still don't know why that Demon Warlock brought so many treasures to Japan, but since they've fallen into my hands, there's no way I'm letting them go."
At this, she glanced around at the three present and continued:
"Chisato, you and I will each take a group later. Mika, you and Mizuki will work together for one. Luo Shu, you'll pair with Takina. Takina, guide Luo Shu a bit more. Right, let's sweep all four addresses in one go."
"Hai hai~~" Chisato Nishikigi had no objections to the grouping. "So Kurumi's still on surveillance and comms, then?"
Kurumi referred to the absent SDS member, an exceptionally skilled hacker.
"She's monitoring all the locations now." Kirika didn't bother hiding it. "After all, we can occasionally make use of the Metropolitan Police Department's findings. In that case, we might as well figure out what goodies they've got, right?"
"Such shameless words." Luo Shu couldn't resist another jab.
'Scamming them and then exploiting their resources—Kirika Tachibana, you truly leave no evil undone!'
"It's rational resource allocation." Takina Inoue seemed firmly on Kirika's side. "The Metropolitan Police Department's higher-ups have always been inefficient in disaster response."
Chisato Nishikigi chuckled awkwardly, patting Takina's shoulder. "Don't say that, Takina. Our colleagues below the superintendent level are actually quite efficient."
"But they have no say," Mika remarked flatly as he polished a glass. "The higher-ups are the ones who call the shots at the Metropolitan Police Department."
"Alright, enough small talk. Let's move out!"
Kirika Tachibana slapped the table and stood up, addressing everyone: "Check your uniforms and weapons three times. Remember to attach pinhole cameras to your clothes and maintain constant contact with Kurumi. And if you encounter an enemy you can't handle, prioritise your own safety first. I don't want to be visiting temples to pay respects to you every year, understood?"
"Understood!" x4
Hearing this, Kirika waved her hand: "Move out."
At her command, everyone except Luo Shu headed into the back kitchen, preparing to enter the basement.
"Mika, where are the keys to the Ferrari?"
"Sixth cabinet. And for heaven's sake, take the armoured modified car this time."
"No way! I haven't even driven that thing once yet."
Meanwhile, Kirika took out a ladies' cigarette, but, noticing Luo Shu still lingering and remembering his student status, put it away. Instead, she unwrapped a fruit drop and popped it into her mouth before asking:
"Something else?"
Luo Shu then pulled out a driver's licence and the prepared 300,000 yen in cash from his pocket:
"Still haven't returned what was in the wallet."
"Oh! Almost forgot."
Kirika reached out to take them, but only kept the licence, pushing the 300,000 yen back towards him:
"This is the bounty for catching the Hound. Don't worry, I'll expense it to HQ."
"By the way, you might want to ask Mika about the bounty network later. Get him to give you a reliable fake identity to report the Hound's whereabouts. That intel should fetch about 1 million yen."
Hearing this, Luo Shu thought, 'There's actually such a method?' while asking curiously:
"I'm a bit puzzled – since I already killed the target, how exactly would I report their whereabouts?"
"Just take a post-mortem photo and have Mika post: 'Target neutralised by police'. Shame you didn't have credentials then – could've intercepted the corpse. The bounty for bodies goes much higher on the dark web, though that'd also raise more attention from Demon Hunters."
Luo Shu nearly choked hearing this.
He didn't know exactly how much a Demon Hunter's Hound was worth on the dark web, but they traded in US dollars there!
This really was a massive missed opportunity!
Mentally noting to always carry official credentials from now on to avoid such losses, Luo Shu nodded as Kirika pointed behind her:
"Right, go get ready. Takina's already suited up."
Turning, Luo Shu saw Takina Inoue in full uniform, her expression stern.
Offering an apologetic smile, he quickly headed to the basement to change.