Su Mo took out a specially crafted quill and opened his notebook on the table, motioning for Index to come closer so she could watch as well.
After thinking for a moment, Su Mo began writing on the blank notebook.
[Urgent: Information on Saint Kanzaki Kaori requested]
As soon as he finished writing, the black ink seemed to dissolve into the pristine paper, disappearing as if it had been wiped clean. A few minutes later, the notebook began to respond, filling with dense lines of text, starting from Kanzaki Kaori's time as the leader of the Amakusa-Style Remix of Church, all the way to her joining the Neccessarius, the Church of Necessary Evil. Nearly half a page was covered in closely packed writing. At the very end, a black-and-white photograph slowly emerged on the page.
The moment Index saw the photo of the girl, her voice trembled. "It's her!" She immediately recognized the Saint, Kanzaki Kaori, a member of Neccessarius—the very magician who had been pursuing her all this time.
Now fully confirmed, Index found herself even more bewildered. They belonged to the same church. Why would someone from her own organization hunt her down? Had she somehow been branded a traitor to the Anglican Church without even realizing it?
Su Mo could clearly see the confusion written all over her face. After thinking for a moment, he once again lifted his pen and wrote:
[Urgent: Information on Index Librorum Prohibitorum requested]
This time, the reply came within seconds:
[Insufficient intelligence officer clearance. Unable to respond.]
Here, the "intelligence officer" did not refer to Su Mo, but rather to the clergy member responsible for preparing the response. His clearance wasn't high enough to access the classified information Su Mo was requesting.
Su Mo, however, was unfazed by this. He had seen such responses before.
[Escalate to superior intelligence officer.]
Very soon, another reply appeared:
[Superior intelligence officer clearance insufficient. Only the Pope or members of God's Right Seat possess the necessary clearance to access Index-related information.]
It was evident just how sensitive Index's information truly was. Even the highest-ranking personnel in the intelligence department lacked the authority to access her data.
Seeing this, Su Mo wrote directly:
[Wake up the Pope. That old man should be up for a bathroom break anyway.]
Seeing these words, Index couldn't help but cast a surprised look at Su Mo. "Su Mo, your clearance is that high? You can actually summon the Pope directly?"
She had already been amazed that his inquiries were being answered instantly. But to be able to summon the Pope himself—this was beyond extraordinary.
Su Mo simply smiled in response. "Although I am the only and highest-ranked undercover agent of the Roman Catholic Church inside Academy City, I normally don't have this kind of authority. If I woke the Pope for anything less than critical, I'd probably get punished too."
Index froze for a moment. "Then why are you doing it—" Halfway through, her voice softened, her eyes reflecting a hint of emotion. Su Mo was risking offending the Pope, just for her sake. That was... far too kind.
"Whatever you're thinking, you've misunderstood." Seeing the look on Index's face, Su Mo shook his head. "The reason I'm doing this is because of you. With news about you involved, the Pope will only be delighted, not angry. In fact, I might even take this chance to extort a few favors from these people."
A faint smile appeared on Su Mo's face, as though he had thought of some kind of scheme. Index, however, was thoroughly confused, completely unable to follow his train of thought.
After Su Mo finished speaking, the notebook fell silent again. About thirty minutes passed before it finally responded.
[Good evening, Su Mo!]
[Why do you suddenly require information on Index Librorum Prohibitorum?]
Just from the tone, Su Mo immediately recognized the Pope's writing—Matthai Reese. The elderly man was evidently well-cultivated. Despite being disturbed so late, he showed no hint of displeasure, only curiosity about Su Mo's unusual request. Of course, if Su Mo's answer didn't satisfy him, the Pope wouldn't grant access to the information.
Having anticipated this, Su Mo promptly replied:
[A suspected sighting of Index Librorum Prohibitorum within Academy City. She appears to be in a free-roaming state. The 103,000 original grimoires may hold value for the Roman Catholic Church, so I wish to verify the information and attempt to capture Index.]
At this point, Index finally understood what Su Mo was really doing. She didn't believe for a second that he truly intended to capture her. If he wanted to, he would've done so long ago—there was no need to wait until now. Clearly, Su Mo was using this situation as a pretext to deceive the Roman Catholic Church into revealing information. Blinking in surprise, Index marveled—wasn't Su Mo an undercover agent for the Roman Catholic Church? Yet here he was, willing to lie to his own church for her sake.
Without Su Mo noticing, her trust in him quietly deepened once more.
While Su Mo and Index waited for the Pope's reply, far away in the Vatican, Pope Matthai Reese sat in his chair, his expression visibly conflicted as he studied the notebook in his hands.
"The Index Librorum Prohibitorum... 103,000 grimoires..." He hadn't expected Su Mo, stationed within the very heart of the Science Side, to bring him such an explosive piece of information related to the Magic Side—and about someone as special as Index herself.
As Pope, he was fully aware of Index's significance. She was one of the Anglican Church's trump cards. The collection of knowledge contained within the 103,000 grimoires was said to be so vast that, if fully mastered, it could even elevate one to the level of a Magic God.
Even for the mighty Roman Catholic Church, Index's knowledge was a priceless treasure. Normally, the Anglican Church kept her existence under the strictest secrecy. And even if they wanted to seize Index, they couldn't risk an all-out war with the Anglican Church to do so.
But now, according to Su Mo, Index was apparently wandering freely, and moreover, within Academy City—a place where the Anglican Church could not easily intervene. With Su Mo's Level 5 strength, the risk of failure seemed virtually nonexistent.
From every angle, this was a golden opportunity for the Roman Catholic Church to acquire immense magical power.
The only question was...
"Would this worsen tensions and push us into open hostility with the Anglican Church?"
This was what weighed on Matthai Reese's mind. As precious as Index was, provoking conflict between the two major magical powers over her might not be worth the cost—potentially even triggering war.
Unlike the more radical God's Right Seat, the Pope did not wish to see bloodshed, nor did he want innocent civilians dragged into a war between the magical factions. And so, he hesitated.
Should he allow Su Mo to move forward with capturing Index?
While Matthai Reese struggled with indecision—
A sudden boom rang out.
The door was suddenly kicked open. A man wearing a bright red suit with long, draped hair swaggered in without the slightest trace of decorum. Even in front of the Pope, he offered no greeting, his attitude full of arrogance and contempt.
"The Fiamma of the Right," Pope Matthai Reese muttered, his brows furrowing deeply.
The God's Right Seat was originally established to serve as the Pope's closest aides. However, this generation's Fiamma of the Right had grown too powerful, to the point of becoming the de facto leader of the God's Right Seat, effectively suppressing the Pope's authority and forcing him to weigh their opinions carefully on many matters. For someone like him to come barging in at such an hour, there could hardly be any good reason.
"What are you doing here?" the Pope asked coldly.
"I heard there's an interesting bit of intel," Fiamma of the Right replied with a sly grin, his sharp eyes locking onto the notebook in the Pope's hand. "Your agent in Academy City has discovered traces of Index Librorum Prohibitorum. Now, isn't that fascinating?"
Without waiting for a response, Fiamma of the Right snatched the notebook from the Pope's hands. "Originally, Index was supposed to be the final piece of my plan. But running into her a bit earlier than expected isn't a bad thing either. Even if she can't leave Academy City for now, as long as she stays in a fixed location, it'll be easy for me to seize her when the time comes. This is quite the opportunity."
For Fiamma of the Right, the 103,000 grimoires contained within Index indeed held valuable knowledge he needed. But compared to the other pieces of his grand plan, acquiring Index was relatively easy, so he hadn't been too concerned about her until now. He hadn't expected that news of her would come from Academy City, nor that capturing her might actually be feasible. Upon receiving this intelligence, he had immediately rushed over. While he didn't believe she could escape, it would save him the trouble of searching for her if she were already confined to a set location. Once his plan was fully activated, he could simply retrieve the remaining knowledge from her at his leisure. Therefore, he was fully in favor of Su Mo's so-called "capture operation."