Luo Shu couldn't help but chuckle at Matsumoto's explanation:
"So, stray dogs' noses become oversensitive during the spring mating season? That's certainly a novel theory."
Clearly, Kirika's whereabouts had been compromised, though the method remained unclear.
Recognising this, Luo Shu immediately activated the Mysticism Encyclopaedia derived from the Authority of Knowledge crystal, using its power for divination and information retrieval.
The results indicated that a newly appointed Divine General from the Onmyou Agency had predicted Kirika's intentions through divination and subsequently informed contacts within the Metropolitan Police Department.
'Suzuka Dairenji? One of the Twelve Divine Generals, representing the Lunar Aspect?'
Through the authority's power, Luo Shu quickly divined details about this new Divine General, even uncovering her birth chart. The divination methods of Onmyoji couldn't conceal any secrets when faced with higher-level techniques.
Luo Shu's precise divination was possible because the leak involved himself—with his own presence as a reference point, the authority's effects were amplified to their fullest potential.
However, the fact that the Onmyou Agency had informed the Metropolitan Police Department...
Because Suzuka Dairenji had preemptively notified the senior officials behind Matsumoto about SDS targeting Ghouls, the situation had become complicated.
Those senior officials were likely planning to let SDS and the Disaster Countermeasures Office fight while they reaped the benefits, hence their indirect approach through the Ministry of Environment rather than deploying their own Special Crimes Division.
Clearly, the Metropolitan Police Department's leadership wanted to avoid direct conflict with SDS over Ghouls, preferring to pit SDS against the Ministry of Environment instead.
Using the Mysticism Encyclopaedia's Authority of Knowledge for retrieval and analysis, Luo Shu quickly unravelled these convoluted schemes.
Many of the Encyclopaedia's insights were based on divination results and hypothetical scenario projections.
From Luo Shu's understanding, in the absence of interference from equivalent forces, the intelligence provided by the Mysticism Encyclopaedia—developed based on the Authority of Knowledge Fragment Crystal—could be regarded as entirely accurate.
Having uncovered yet another new application of the Authority of Knowledge, Luo Shu was in rather good spirits. At the very least, the petty schemes of the Metropolitan Police Department's higher-ups behind Kiyonaga Matsumoto hadn't managed to sour his mood. However, he also had no intention of letting Matsumoto remain too cheerful:
"I just wonder if the claim about wild dogs in heat was also relayed to Superintendent Matsumoto by that adorable Taiyin Divine General?"
Taiyin Divine General?
Those present who didn't understand the significance of this title—such as Juzo Megure and the others—were merely puzzled.
But Kirika Tachibana, who knew exactly what it meant, frowned briefly before quickly relaxing. She sat there with an air of serene composure, as if she had long anticipated Luo Shu's words.
This reaction instantly put Matsumoto on edge.
The leak about SDS's movements had been passed to him by a higher-ranking official—he hadn't even known it was one of the Onmyou Agency's Twelve Divine Generals secretly feeding him information. So how did Luo Shu know? And given how confidently he spoke, it didn't seem like he was lying.
Could it be that while the Onmyou Agency's Divine Generals were monitoring SDS, SDS had also been monitoring them in return?
Had SDS known from the very beginning that the Metropolitan Police Department would use the Ghoul incident to cause trouble for them through the Ministry of the Environment?
In that instant, Matsumoto's mind raced with possibilities, suspecting that SDS might have already dug a pit, just waiting for the Metropolitan Police Department to step into it.
This line of thought caused beads of sweat to form on his forehead.
Just as Matsumoto was growing increasingly tense, Luo Shu suddenly smiled and said:
"But since the Ministry of the Environment's people want to meet with Superintendent Matsumoto, why not have them join us together?"
"Coincidentally, I'm also quite curious about what they're after."
Seeing Luo Shu unhesitatingly choose to confront the Ministry of the Environment head-on, Matsumoto's heart sank.
As the saying goes, the dog that bites doesn't bark.
Though neither Luo Shu nor Kirika had explicitly stated it, the ease between them suggested a level of familiarity that made Matsumoto seriously suspect Luo Shu held a position within SDS equal to that of the madwoman Kirika.
Someone of that calibre, completely unbothered by the Metropolitan Police Department's little schemes—even playing along with their plans—was deeply unsettling. This abnormal behaviour only deepened Matsumoto's suspicion that the Ghoul incident might be hiding a massive trap for them.
He had underestimated Luo Shu. This was another individual who couldn't be judged by his youthful appearance.
Matsumoto gave Luo Shu a deep, inscrutable look. Though unease gnawed at him, he had no choice but to follow Luo Shu's lead:
"If Inspector Luo says so, then let's have the Ministry of the Environment's representatives come in."
"Indeed, I'm also curious about their purpose here."
Beside them, Juzo Megure, Miwako Sato, and Wataru Takagi all inwardly gasped.
'The atmosphere has gone completely wrong!!' x3
Even Takagi, who was usually terrible at reading the room, could practically see sparks flying in the locked gazes between Luo Shu and Matsumoto.
'High-level power struggles and pawns being sacrificed'—such phrases kept surfacing in Wataru Takagi's mind, making him involuntarily swallow hard.
He couldn't shake the feeling that their First Investigative Division was about to be dragged into something extremely troublesome.
Before long, the middle-aged police inspector led in the personnel from the Ministry of the Environment Disaster Countermeasures Office.
A man and a woman stepped forward, both appearing remarkably young.
The man had shoulder-length dishevelled hair, a somewhat gloomy face, and an arrogant gaze.
The woman had straight, black hair that reached past her waist, and wore a black sailor uniform with a white ribbon tie, looking every bit like a high school student.
As the pair entered the room, they immediately spotted Kiyonaga Matsumoto and Luo Shu seated on the sofa.
Their eyes instantly locked onto Kirika Tachibana's face. The woman's pupils contracted slightly, while the man let out a low whistle.
"Wow, seems we've stumbled upon someone truly impressive."
The man with shoulder-length hair smirked, brushing aside his bangs as he greeted them with feigned enthusiasm:
"Chief Kirika Tachibana of the SDS—your reputation precedes you."
"I'm Noriyuki Izuna, heir to the Izuna family."
Meanwhile, the aloof girl with long black hair introduced herself succinctly:
"Disaster Countermeasures Office, Yomi Isayama."
Kirika Tachibana glanced at the self-proclaimed Iwao Ijima and tilted her head:
"Izuna family? Never heard of it. Another minor clan, I suppose?"
Noriyuki's expression stiffened. The words he'd been about to say lodged in his throat, neither spoken nor swallowed.
Tachibana then shifted her gaze to Yomi Isayama, stroking her chin:
"But Yomi Isayama... now that's a name I recognise."
"The prodigy of the Isayama family's Kendo, master of the guardian beast Nue. How about it? Fancy joining our SDS as an investigator?"