Evening, 5:40 PM.
Hidden Management Department base near Fanglin Park.
In the third-floor office, Miss Yukino's meticulously polished desk had become a makeshift dining table.
Sitting on a newly unpacked office chair, Luo Shu stared at the marinated mantis shrimp, deep-fried king crab legs, braised beef noodles, and Shanxi knife-shaved noodles before him, his face twitching at the sight of other Chinese dishes covering the table.
"...Impressive."
Chisato Nishikigi's eyes widened as she gazed at the spread in disbelief, then turned to Kisara, who wore an expression of pure bliss, and exclaimed:
"This is a culinary level I'll never reach in my lifetime."
Takina Inoue frowned at the array of dishes, counting roughly twenty-two lunch boxes:
"Regardless, this is far too much for five people... Well, I suddenly feel full just looking at it."
"You'll manage to finish it all, won't you?"
Kisara, seated to Luo Shu's left, cheerfully placed chopsticks in his hand and tied a napkin around his neck.
Under Kisara's intense gaze, Luo Shu swept his eyes across the room with a weary expression.
Yukino Yukinoshita remained impassive when Luo Shu glanced her way, merely studying the dishes curiously before addressing Kisara:
"Um, are you certain I'm allowed to eat these?"
"You are..." Kisara turned to look at Yukino, tilting her head in thought before suddenly recalling, "Ah, you were that person at the sukiyaki restaurant last time, right?"
"Yukino, Yukino Yukinoshita." Yukino introduced herself hesitantly while studying Kisara.
'Does this woman have memory problems?'
After brief consideration, Yukino remembered that during the sukiyaki meal, Kisara's attention had been entirely fixed on Luo Shu.
'Well... While that explains why she didn't recognise me, isn't this Kisara person a bit... unusual?'
"Yukino Yukinoshita? Oh, that does ring a bell."
Kisara tilted her head again, then clasped her hands together with a smile:
"Of course you can eat! Everything on the table is available, but only one lunch box per person."
'I doubt I could even finish one lunch box...'
After surveying the extravagant spread, Yukino hesitantly selected the beef noodles and clasped her hands:
"Itadakimasu!"
Meanwhile, Chisato leaned excitedly against the table:
"Hey Kisara, can Takina and I share one dish?"
"Certainly!"
With Kisara's permission, Chisato immediately snatched the knife-shaved noodles Luo Shu had been eyeing, grinning mischievously as she pulled Takina along:
"I've got a feeling this will be amazing. Let's try it together, Takina."
'No, you only think that because you noticed Luo Shu looking at it...' Takina mentally sighed, shooting Luo Shu an apologetic glance.
Sighing, Luo Shu surveyed the overloaded table and muttered:
"Kisara."
"Yes?"
Luo Shu hesitated, ultimately withholding any comment about the extravagance. With so many dishes prepared, how long had Kisara been working? It was a number Luo Shu didn't dare imagine.
He even suspected Kisara had started preparing this dinner the moment he left home in the morning.
Under such circumstances, it would be inappropriate for Luo Shu to say anything that might spoil the mood, especially with Yukino and Chisato present.
After hesitating briefly, Luo Shu finally said:
"Would you like to eat together?"
He directly picked up a piece of fried king crab leg, supporting it with his hand to prevent crumbs from falling, and offered it to Kisara:
"Ah~"
Kisara blinked, subtly glancing at all the women present.
Noticing everyone except Yukinoshita Yukino (who was still recovering from the spiciness) was staring at her, she obediently opened her mouth.
"Ah~~"
After Kisara happily ate half the crab leg, Luo Shu took a bite himself and then remarked:
"By the way, in my hometown's customs, important matters are usually discussed over meals."
As he spoke, Luo Shu lifted his gaze, scanning across Yukinoshita Yukino, Nishikigi Chisato and Inoue Takina.
Chisato slurped up a large strand of noodles, chewing briefly before saying:
"I'm fine with that. What about you, Yukino?"
"I don't mind either."
Yukino quickly grabbed a nearby plastic bottle, rinsing her mouth to ease the sour-spicy aftertaste before responding:
"Though it seems not everyone's present yet, is it?"
Yukino remembered that during the gathering three days prior, there had been a black man named Mika, a bespectacled woman called Mizuki, and a quiet child named Kurumi who kept sneaking food.
Luo Shu casually explained:
"The others are from the Operations Division. Actually, Takina and Chisato still technically belong there, too."
"Hmm?" Yukino immediately noticed the discrepancy, looking between Luo Shu and Kisara beside him.
"You're right to question. Currently, the Hidden Management Department only consists of you and me."
Yukino turned to Kisara in confusion: "Then Miss Kisara is...?"
Kisara clapped her hands playfully and stuck out her tongue: "Well~ I'm actually the one being managed."
'Being managed?' Yukino stood frozen in shock.
Meanwhile, Luo Shu calmly continued:
"Basic occult knowledge - I believe we sent comprehensive materials to the Yukinoshita residence last weekend, so you should already understand about the Abyss and Abyss Artefacts. Is that correct?"
"That's correct." Yukino nodded.
The materials SDS sent to the Yukinoshita family had been thorough. When they reviewed them, the entire household had been thoroughly shocked.
Having just survived a demon-related kidnapping incident, their belated understanding naturally brought intense apprehension.
"If we don't need to cover basics, this will be simpler."
As he spoke, Luo Shu scooped some mapo tofu with a spoon, ate it, then explained:
"The Hidden Management Department's founding purpose and responsibility is to contain highly dangerous Abyss Artefacts with escape capabilities, as well as sentient lifeforms capable of causing mass casualty events."
"Wait, Director, are you saying..." Yukino stared at Kisara in astonishment.
At that moment, Kisara directly hugged Luo Shu's arm and said with a smile:
"Yes indeed, I'm the dangerous lifeform Shu has taken in~"
"A genuine demon, no less~"
Seeing Kisara open her demonic eyes that seemed to glow red, Yukino Yukinoshita had a bold thought.
'Miss Kisara...'
'Could she actually be a Succubus?'