30 minutes later.
On the streets of Mihama-cho, a black Santana drove on the left side.
Wearing a Bluetooth headset, Takina Inoue asked with unnatural seriousness while driving:
"Confirm the exact address from the letter again."
She seemed unaccustomed to male company, having barely spoken to Luo Shu during the trip.
"3-Chome, 17-Banchi, Mihama-cho. According to Kurumi, it's a European-style villa. The owner recently took his family on business to Europe, so it's currently unoccupied."
"The female clerk at the jewellery shop seems to have some connection with the male owner of this household, so she sent over an item."
As Luo Shu said this, the muttering of a woman named Kurumi came through his earpiece.
"Hey, newbie, you'd better sign up for driving school. Not being able to drive is pretty inconvenient in our line of work."
"Thanks for the reminder. I'll enrol as soon as I get back." Luo Shu pressed his earpiece and replied with a smile.
No sooner had he spoken than Kurumi's languid voice piped up again:
"Oh? Surprisingly, the type who takes advice? Want me to sign you up for the internal course? You can get your licence in as little as 7 days."
"By the way, once you succeed, you'll be the first among us besides the section chief to have a driving licence."
"...The first? Then please sign me up."
After responding to Kurumi, Luo Shu glanced at Takina Inoue and noticed her deftly turning the steering wheel as they entered the boundaries of Mihama-cho District 3.
"Driving without a licence?" Luo Shu said with a peculiar tone.
"Work habit. Don't want to leave traffic records." Takina's face was tense, betraying a hint of guilt.
"Ah, understood."
Soon, amidst their conversation, the Santana came to a stop before a blue-and-white styled European villa with a spacious courtyard.
"We're here. Get out and stay alert."
Takina was a woman of few words, at least around Luo Shu—likely due to still being unfamiliar.
Hearing this, Luo Shu touched the SIG Sauer P226 holstered at his waist, drew it, then pushed the car door open to survey the surroundings.
After confirming the area was secure, Luo Shu eyed the villa's black railing gate, estimated the adjacent wall to be about 2.3 metres high, then closed the car door shut with a thud:
"Are we climbing over the wall?"
"Mm, you keep watch."
Takina, already out of the car, drew her pistol, took a few steps back, then sprinted forward. She leapt up from 30 centimetres away, used the wall for an extra push-off, and nimbly flipped over, landing on the lawn inside.
Witnessing this, Luo Shu let out an impressed sound, then suddenly glanced at the black railing gate. A possibility occurred to him, and he immediately walked over, reaching through the gaps in the railing to pull at the inner lock.
With a creak, Luo Shu pushed the gate open and stepped into the villa, just in time to lock eyes with Takina, who had just scaled the wall.
"..."
The atmosphere grew somewhat awkward.
Takina looked at Luo Shu as if wanting to say something, but ultimately refrained from asking why he hadn't mentioned it earlier. Instead, she crouched into a tactical stance and swiftly moved towards the front door.
"Pfft!"
Kurumi's stifled laughter came through the earpiece.
Flustered, Luo Shu adjusted his earpiece before following Takina towards the front door.
Takina, waiting by the door, said calmly, "I'll take the back. You take the front. Enter simultaneously in 30 seconds to search."
She pressed her earpiece and added:
"Kurumi, keep time."
"Roger that~~"
"Roger."
Luo Shu acknowledged, watching as Takina crept towards the back door while he waited at the front.
Suddenly.
A creak.
Luo Shu turned sharply towards the black railing gate, watching as it swayed slightly in the wind before relaxing.
At that moment, Kurumi's voice came through the earpiece:
"Adjust the camera on your chest a bit, it's a little unclear."
Hearing this, Luo Shu promptly adjusted the button on his uniform jacket—it was actually a miniature camera linked to Kurumi in Café LycoReco's underground monitoring room.
"Got it. By the way, in three seconds, breach the door."
With a loud bang, Luo Shu kicked the door open and stepped inside, gun raised.
Meanwhile, the villa's back door remained eerily silent—likely because Takina Inoue had chosen a quieter method of entry.
'So I'm the obvious distraction while the more experienced Takina operates in the shadows? Standard two-person tactic?'
Thinking this, Luo Shu raised his gun and glanced down the empty, unobstructed hallway before cautiously moving forward, sticking close to the wall.
Since it was already evening, the unlit corridor was dimly shadowed.
Being his first mission, Luo Shu felt a twinge of nervousness as he prepared to check the living room down the hall.
But after just two steps, his eyelid twitched involuntarily, drawing his attention back to the large shoe cabinet by the entrance.
His Hyper Intuition had activated silently, seemingly warning him not to overlook something.
"I'm checking the shoe cabinet."
After a brief pause, Luo Shu whispered to Kurumi and then stepped forward. He pulled out the top drawer, feeling inside—nothing.
Then the second.
When he reached the third drawer, his fingers brushed against the base, and he immediately sensed something amiss...
"Hmm?"
"Found something?" Kurumi's voice crackled through the earpiece.
"There's a hidden compartment."
As he spoke, Luo Shu removed the shoes inside—musty with age—and tossed them aside. He tapped the base of the drawer, the hollow sound confirming his suspicion.
Then, he traced the seams along the third drawer's base, using his nails to pry it open bit by bit.
Just as expected.
Beneath the false bottom lay a concealed layer.
And there, pressed flat against it, was a sheet of aged, brownish paper.
Luo Shu studied the black, pattern-like inscriptions on its surface, noting the uneven edges that hinted at its antiquity. This had to be their target—a demon-made Abyss Artefact inscribed with a Demon Incantation.
"Seems... we've found it."
The moment the words left his lips, a sharp click echoed through the hallway as the lights flickered on.
Without turning, Luo Shu instinctively aimed his gun sideways while snatching the paper and whirling around.
There, he saw a woman—no, a nun—striding into the corridor from the living room, her thick-soled shoes thudding against the floorboards before she leaned casually against the wall.
Luo Shu narrowed his eyes at the figure clad in deep blue nun's attire, her long golden curls framing a face with piercing green eyes that held a mocking glint.
"Though I knew you LycoReco types were experts," she began, her voice laced with amusement, "I didn't expect you'd find it there... You've saved me some trouble, at least."
Her lips curled into a smirk as she regarded Luo Shu.
"Well done, officer."
"So... would you hand over that Demon Incantation for me?"
Seeing the other party's confidence in the face of firearms, Luo Shu turned to face them fully while muttering, "This... is good luck?"
As he moved, the camera on his chest captured the nun opposite him within its field of view.
"Hiss!!"
Kurumi's sharp intake of breath echoed through the earpiece.
"How could this be? Sharon Holygrail, the Seven-Star Demon Hunter of the Demon Hunters—wasn't she deported?"
"Now that's a sight to pray over."
Hearing Kurumi's words, Luo Shu warily eyed the nun and her curves.