"86: Initial Arrangements"

"Ahahahaha!!"

Mizuki Nakahara clutched her stomach, roaring with laughter as she pointed at the bright red slap mark on Chisato Nishikigi's cheek. Her laughter was so intense, she began pounding the table, nearly out of breath from the hilarity.

On the other side, Takina Inoue, now dressed in a simple deep-purple kimono, was blushing furiously. She cast a vicious glare at Chisato, then glanced at Luo Shu, clearly holding back what she wanted to say.

Chisato, still kneeling on the tatami mat, awkwardly rubbed her stinging cheek with a sheepish grin and sucked in a sharp breath through her teeth. She didn't dare make any sudden moves under Takina's wrath.

Mika, the towering dark-skinned man and the only actual adult in the room, stood nearby with arms folded, massaging his temple with frustration. "Chisato barging into the room while Takina was changing... and having Luo Shu see everything... Honestly, I don't even know what to say anymore."

As for Luo Shu—the biggest beneficiary of the entire mess—he leaned casually against the doorframe, doing his best to act clueless and reduce his presence as much as possible.

But Mizuki Nakahara, the wild and rowdy big sister of the group, had no intention of letting him off the hook. With a mischievous smile, she teased, "So? How was it, Luo Shu? Takina's figure pretty nice, huh?"

One hand could probably… Luo Shu thought involuntarily, but outwardly he simply turned his head away, refusing to look at Mizuki's smug face.

"Tch!!" Takina growled, her eyes burning into Chisato like a wolf sizing up prey.

"I'm sorry!!" Chisato immediately raised her hands and pleaded for forgiveness, her voice rapid and desperate.

Seeing his foster daughter clearly shaken, Mika finally spoke up, "Mizuki, ease up a bit, will you?"

Then he turned to glare at Chisato and said sternly, "And you, Chisato—try to be more aware of your surroundings!"

"Yes, sir!!" Chisato quickly responded in a small, obedient voice.

Satisfied that Chisato had at least shown remorse, Mika glanced toward Takina, who was sneaking peeks at Luo Shu every so often, and let out a long sigh. Better not to stir up her memories any further.

Just then, a blond-haired girl with long sleeves dangling loosely from her sweater sleeves came jogging in with a pout on her face, lugging a medical kit.

"Brought the medical supplies!" she called out.

As she passed Luo Shu, the girl lazily greeted him, "Yo. Good afternoon, newbie."

It was Kurumi, the SDS's resident electronics and surveillance specialist.

Kurumi walked into the room with the kit and crouched down next to Chisato. "Heave-ho~~"

Opening the box, Kurumi took one look at the vivid handprint on Chisato's face and, while preparing antiseptic, asked with genuine curiosity, "Seriously though, how did Takina manage to land a hit on Chisato? Her evasion stat is practically maxed out."

"There was no way I could dodge in a moment like that," Chisato muttered under her breath, leaning in close to Kurumi. She snuck another glance at Takina and, seeing her still distractedly peeking at Luo Shu, finally relaxed a little.

Then, as Kurumi applied the medication, Chisato let out a sharp hiss of pain.

"Bear with it. This stuff is expensive," Kurumi said as she dabbed a specialized healing solution on Chisato's cheek with a cotton swab.

Before their eyes, the red slap mark visibly faded, and Chisato's skin even looked a little healthier and more radiant.

"All done."

Kurumi closed the kit and then turned toward Luo Shu. "By the way, I already secretly transmitted the documents you brought to the Chief during her meeting."

"Huh? We're actually talking business now?" Mizuki groaned, disappointed the show was over. She only shut up after getting a death glare from both Luo Shu and Mika.

Kurumi shot Mizuki a side-eye, then continued, "The Chief decided to forward the intelligence to the North American branch head and wait for a response. I've already completed that task and just received a reply."

"What'd they say? Are we deploying?" Takina asked eagerly.

Clearly, her current state of mind was itching for an outlet—and what better outlet than moving targets?

Luo Shu glanced at Takina just then, and Takina seemed to notice, turning to meet his eyes for a brief moment before both looked away in unison.

"Ah" Mizuki quietly snickered to herself as she observed the subtle exchange.

Kurumi's reply thankfully drowned out her laughter: "Headquarters has decided to dispatch the Third Special Operations Unit to capture the demon. As for us—the East Capital Division—we'll provide support and later be responsible for tracking down any criminals attempting to harness demonic power. If necessary, we're authorized to eliminate them."

She then looked at Mika and added, "If needed, we have clearance to use heavy weaponry…"

"So that means I might be deployed?" Mika mused, then nodded. "Got it."

"In short, we're to guide the Third Unit and maintain security on the perimeter to prevent any unforeseen developments."

"In that case, recon will be essential," he said, glancing between Kurumi and Luo Shu—Kurumi being the hacker capable of controlling public surveillance, and Luo Shu being a rare wind-element sorcerer capable of wide-area detection.

"Luo Shu, Kurumi—you two will be working together this time. Luo Shu on-site, Kurumi monitoring from HQ via surveillance feeds."

"Understood."

Luo Shu nodded. Given everything that had just happened, this clearly wasn't the time to ask about his bonus. But of course, he fully intended to bring it up with Kirika later—No pay, no work.

"Roger~" Kurumi replied lazily, lifting her overly long sleeve and playfully adding to Luo Shu, "Let's work together nicely, okay~?"

Luo Shu nodded again with a calm smile.

Mika then turned to Chisato. "Chisato, you'll team up with Mizuki on this one."

"Why!!" Chisato immediately shouted. "Takina and I are the ultimate golden duo!"

"Golden partner who got me exposed?" Takina narrowed her eyes and ground her teeth.

Chisato froze, her expression going blank for a second, then promptly bowed low to the floor. "Ah—sorry! I'll work hard with Mizuki-senpai!"

"Takina..." Mika looked at her thoughtfully, then exhaled and said, "You'll be with Luo Shu. Your job is to keep him safe."

"Yes, sir." Takina snapped to attention, responding like a proper soldier.

Luo Shu opened his mouth to protest, but in the end, said nothing.

Clap! Clap! Mika clapped his hands twice and declared, "That's the plan for now. We'll finalize the details once we reach Chiba."

"So, everyone, get your gear ready. Mizuki, put the 'Closed for Business' sign outside. We regroup here in thirty minutes."

"Understood!" xN