Hearing that Enigma actually knew the leader of the Phenex Society, Luo Shu looked at her in surprise:
"I knew you were called the middleman, but I didn't expect you to be personally acquainted with their leader?"
"Acquainted might be too strong a word. Let's just say we've done business a few times."
Enigma turned around, untied her apron, folded it neatly in her hands while slowly walking towards Luo Shu:
"Though if you meet her in person, you might find it a bit disappointing."
"After all, Ravel strikes me as one of the rare mild-mannered leaders among those secretive organisations."
"Of course, that could just be an act. In our circles, revealing one's true personality is quite dangerous."
Hearing this, Luo Shu curled his lips slightly with an amused expression:
"Is that so? Just an acquaintance then? Still, that connection should be sufficient."
"Sufficient?"
Sharon gave Luo Shu a puzzled glance before asking:
"How so? Doesn't that Mysticism Encyclopaedia require used personal items or even DNA samples to divine detailed information?"
"That's true for the Encyclopaedia's divination, but our methods for tracking individuals have been upgraded."
Luo Shu wasn't surprised by Sharon's confusion. She hadn't returned to the garrison recently and rarely interacted with Familia members, so it was natural she wouldn't know his current capabilities:
"The latest method is this."
As he spoke, Luo Shu summoned Raziel, gripping the thick black-bound book with its cross-embossed cover before calmly explaining:
"Simply knowing someone's existence and name allows Raziel in my hands to map their entire network. Without interference, it can trace most of their past movements, even manifesting their spoken words and current activities!"
"So by tracking Ravel through Enigma's connections, then using Ravel as a breakthrough point, we can systematically uncover every Phenex Society member along that chain."
Nearby, Chisato Nishikigi gasped in astonishment: "No way! That book's abilities are that powerful?"
Meanwhile, Takina Inoue frowned slightly at Raziel in Luo Shu's hands:
"Such exaggerated capabilities must belong to a Demigod Rank or higher Abyss Artefact. What are its side effects?"
This question was promptly answered by La Folia, who had experience using an inferior imitation of Raziel:
"Side effects? Aside from Spiritual Power consumption, there basically aren't any."
Hearing there were no side effects, Sharon stared dumbfounded at Raziel:
"That's the only cost? This goes beyond convenience into outright cheating territory. Where did you get this?"
"From Nia Honjo. Ah, right, Sharon, you haven't met Nia yet. Like Kurumi, she's a recently recruited Spirit."
As Luo Shu spoke, he began searching through Enigma's social connections while explaining to Sharon:
"And this Raziel is the Angel wielded by Nia."
"An Angel belonging to a Spirit?"
Understanding dawned on Sharon's face:
"After abilities as exaggerated as space-time manipulation and conceptual sealing, now we have this almost cheat-like information retrieval capability?"
"The Spirit race truly is heaven's chosen!!"
Meanwhile, upon hearing the term 'Spirit', Enigma recalled the descriptions from the Familia intelligence briefings, her expression turning slightly odd:
"Spirits? The race those Demigods in the SDS belong to..."
"I think I've seen their messages in that chat group before."
If she remembered correctly, their names were Nia Honjo, Mukuro Hoshimiya and Kurumi Tokisaki... plus Luo Shu...
That meant nearly four Demigods were concentrated in just the Hidden Management Department alone. And her previous mission had been to steal the Abyss Artefact Star Gate from such a department.
Just thinking about that mission made Enigma, sitting on the sofa, feel nothing but resentment towards the Hell Sect's intelligence division.
If she hadn't accidentally become Luo Shu's ally through that incident, the likely outcome would have been her painstakingly breaking into the Hidden Management Department's garrison only to face interrogation from four Demigods!
How exactly was the Hell Sect's intelligence division doing its job, missing such crucial information?
Wait, perhaps it wasn't entirely their fault. Luo Shu himself was simply too good at hiding his capabilities...
Who could have guessed that the SDS's newly established department would contain more than four Demigods?
On the other side of the room, listening to their conversation, Chisato Nishikigi slumped over the dining table and muttered:
"Spirits, Demigods, chat groups... all things we know nothing about. Feels like we've been cruelly excluded from the circle, doesn't it, Takina?"
Takina Inoue didn't seem particularly bothered, calmly responding:
"Are you sure we're being excluded rather than hearing classified information we shouldn't?"
Chisato blinked: "Eh? Now that you mention it, does that mean we've been exposed to secrets?"
"Probably?" Takina said uncertainly.
"Heeey there~ you two~"
La Folia suddenly appeared, holding two brown scrolls, smiling cheerfully:
"Since Luo Shu is temporarily occupied and you've already been exposed to department secrets, would you mind signing these confidentiality contracts?"
"...By the way, signing these will let you understand our conversations properly!"
Chisato stared blankly at the scrolls in La Folia's hands:
"Put that way, this seems super suspicious, though?"
Meanwhile, Takina glanced at the scroll before looking towards Luo Shu:
"Director? Is this your intention?"
Luo Shu, who had been searching through information, turned his head at the question. After looking at them both, he said:
"Though it's a bit early, this is essentially the real contract for joining the Hidden Management Department."
"You can verify this with Director Tachibana."
"Verify..."
Chisato and Takina exchanged glances before silently accepting the contract scrolls, choosing not to sign immediately.
Clearly, they intended to consult Kirika Tachibana's opinion first before deciding anything further.
Luo Shu didn't seem particularly surprised by this reaction.
Compared to someone they've only known for just over a month, like himself, Chisato and Takina would naturally trust their long-time superior, Kirika Tachibana, whom they've known for years, far more.
'But girls... You might not have realised this yet. What if Kirika Tachibana is also one of my people?'
Luo Shu gave them an amused look before suddenly turning his attention to Raziel.
Just moments ago, Luo Shu had felt a sharp drain on his Spiritual Power.
Clearly, Raziel's information retrieval was nearing completion.
At that moment, Raziel automatically flipped its pages with a rustling sound before stopping midway, revealing two blank intelligence sheets.
Then, lines of text began forming across Raziel's pages.
Watching the emerging words, Luo Shu's expression gradually turned peculiar as he unconsciously read aloud:
"Ravel Phenex, descendant of one of the 72 Demon Gods, third daughter of the Phenex family, pureblood phoenix... elder brothers Ruval Phenex and Riser Phenex..."
"Accidentally fell through a dimensional rift while touring the Underworld, arriving in current world..."
Reading the contents, Luo Shu couldn't help making a strange face:
"Wait wait, these descriptions... could she be from High School DxD?"