"90: The Trouble with the Search"

"So, this is Chiba, huh?"

Peering past Chisato Nishikigi's face, Luo Shu looked out through the car window and caught sight of Chiba Station in the city center, along with the pedestrians hurrying along the streets.

At that moment, a massive screen on a building façade was broadcasting news about a terrorist threat, urging citizens to stay indoors.

"Big Sis really went overboard this time. Isn't she going to get scolded by HQ for this?" Chisato muttered quietly to herself.

Hearing this from close by, Luo Shu gave it some thought and guessed, "Maybe HQ received some special intel, which is why they made such a drastic move."

"Like, for instance, that the sealed demon in question is actually a very high-ranking one."

From the driver's seat, Mika chimed in, supporting Luo Shu's speculation. "Luo Shu's right. If HQ is reacting this seriously, then there's a high chance that the demon's danger level is no less than that of a Level 3 Abyssal Artifact."

"Level 3... Prohibited from use in principle, requires strict containment, and is capable of causing city-level destruction..." Takina Inoue murmured the classification of Level 3 artifacts aloud, frowning as she did. "Chiba Prefecture has a population of about six million, right? And the central area of Chiba City alone has more than 900,000 people. That means... there's a real chance we could be facing a disaster with nearly a million casualties?"

Even if that was the worst-case scenario—if the demon was unsealed and rampaged freely—it was still enough to prove just how dangerous the target was.

"If that really happens, we'll be in the textbooks," Mizuki Nakahara said while gazing out the window, tone half-joking. "As textbook examples of complete failure."

The mood inside the SUV fell silent at her words.

"No matter how it turns out, our top priority right now is to regroup with the main unit," Mika said, glancing at the three quiet passengers in the rearview mirror. "Hold on tight."

Roughly ten minutes later, the SUV pulled into the underground parking lot of a hotel. The group of five got out and, guided by a concierge, took an internal elevator directly to a conference room rented by the hotel.

When Mika opened the conference room door, the sight inside immediately came into view.

"Well, well, if it isn't Mika. I thought you'd driven into the ocean or something—you're only getting here now?" a woman with slicked-back dark red hair, an eye patch over her right eye, and an imposing demeanor swaggered over and slapped Mika hard on the shoulder, making him wince.

"Maybe cut me a little slack. I was speeding on the expressway, Hilda."

Mika grumbled, then turned toward the group—especially toward Luo Shu—and introduced, "This is Hilda, the captain of HQ's Third Operations Unit."

After the introduction, Mika scanned the room and asked, "Where are Mars and Herbert?"

"Oh, them? They took a team to inspect the site."

Hilda laughed heartily and then turned to Chisato with a playful grin. "Yo, isn't this our ace shooter? Looks like you've gotten even prettier!"

"Hello, Hilda-senpai~" Chisato greeted her cheerfully.

Hilda nodded slightly, then turned to Mizuki with mockery in her voice. "Mizuki, still single, I see? Why don't you just settle for me already?"

"Shut up," Mizuki snapped, glaring at her with arms crossed and head turned away.

Then, Hilda's gaze shifted to Luo Shu. She looked him up and down before letting out a low whistle. "Whoa, so this is the new recruit I've heard so much about? Not bad~ Interested in transferring to the Third Unit?"

Before Luo Shu could answer, Takina cut in sternly, "Captain Hilda, have you confirmed the target's location yet?"

Hilda's brow twitched as she turned her attention to Takina, her tone filled with exaggerated distaste. "Still such a hothead, huh? You're such a cute girl too."

"Tch," Takina clicked her tongue, clearly annoyed by the description.

With a helpless shrug, Hilda said, "Fine, guess we'll have to cut the reunion short."

She walked over to an unused laptop and tapped on it a few times. The projector behind her lit up, revealing a detailed map of Chiba Prefecture.

Leaning one hand on the desk, Hilda addressed the group—and especially Mika. "Your little Ms. Walnut already helped us resolve the initial intel bottleneck. Using the surveillance footage she found and the artifact I brought with me, we've managed to identify several possible locations where the target might be hiding."

She pointed to the projection behind her. Luo Shu noticed that the surface wasn't a standard projector screen. It looked more like some kind of strange beast hide.

"What is that?" Luo Shu asked, puzzled.

Mizuki answered from beside him, "A Level 2 Abyssal Artifact—Electronic Map. It's a specialized item for detecting all supernatural reactions within a city."

She glanced at the rows of lab coat-clad researchers nearby. "They say the side effect is that it constantly needs road data to be entered manually according to a very strict logic. If there's even a single error, every person inputting the data dies. It's a seriously dangerous piece of tech, only HQ can afford to use stuff like that."

"Death upon a single mistake?" Luo Shu stared at the group of researchers seated around the oval, doughnut-shaped conference table and quickly counted them. "Thirty-two people?"

If a single input error meant all thirty-two would die... the thought alone made Luo Shu shudder.

While the researchers were busy inputting data, Mika turned to Hilda and asked, "So, how do you want us to assist?"

Hilda pointed at the red dots scattered across the projected map of Chiba. "Simple—go through each of these one by one, locate the target Katsuhiko Yakushiji, interrogate him about the demon's whereabouts, and then retrieve the demon."

She grinned and added, "Easy, right?"

The group looked at one another, then said in unison:

"No, this is way too hard."