"Secret organizations possessing advanced technologies."
"Ability users who have awakened powers and use them to commit crimes."
"And beings known as 'Abyssal Lifeforms'—entities that suddenly descend into our world, possessing immense destructive power."
"These... are all our enemies. Or rather, it might be more accurate to say, they're subjects of study."
As Kirika stirred her half-finished coffee with a spoon, she casually explained the threats they faced.
"What do you mean by secret organizations?" Luo Shu asked curiously after hearing her overview.
Well, as the founder of a secret society himself—the Astronomy Club—he was naturally highly alert when it came to competitors in the same field.
"They're basically madmen wielding supernatural technology. If we exclude the semi-official groups operated by various nations, the most infamous ones would be 'True Celestial Astronomy,' which has been suspiciously active in recent years, and the 'Golden Dawn,' which repeatedly caused major incidents across modern Europe."
"By the way, True Celestial Astronomy is particularly notorious for its blood rituals. They worship demons, and they travel across countries committing crimes to conduct these sacrificial rites, summoning all kinds of bizarre demons. They've always been designated high-threat and are one of our top-priority transnational criminal targets."
"Compared to them, the Golden Dawn is relatively mild. But their founding principle seems to be the collection of all mysteries in the world, which makes them obsessively eager for rare powers and technologies. If an ability user falls into their hands, even the best-case scenario is ending up in a lab being dissected. Just imagine an organization of mad scientists."
"Of course, here in Japan, there are also a few bizarre cults that, after accidentally obtaining mysterious artifacts, stirred up their own share of chaos. But since all intel on them is blocked by the Metropolitan Police Department, I don't know much."
After hearing her detailed explanation, Luo Shu looked somewhat awkward. "Aren't you people part of the MPD?"
"That question is a bit... complicated." Kirika gave a charming smile. "Tell me, in this country, who do you think has more authority—the MPD, or the U.S. garrison?"
That question left Luo Shu speechless. "So, don't tell me you guys…"
"Yup. We're funded by the MPD, but we actually work for the garrison. That's the reality of the MPD's 7th Division—'Special Data Sorting Department.'"
Kirika took a sip of her coffee with a smug look. "The department goes by the code 'SDS.' Of course, if it's easier for you, you can just think of us as special agents collecting magical items. Just don't expect us to be loyal to this country's government."
"So, under normal circumstances, members of our division aren't encouraged to interfere with regular MPD work. We have to preserve their pride, after all. That is, unless there's significant gain in getting involved."
Luo Shu raised an eyebrow. "Are you even Japanese?"
"Used to be. But I gave up that nationality ten years ago. I'm American now. What about you?"
"Funny coincidence. I'm not either. I'm from China," Luo Shu replied calmly.
"Oh! No wonder." Kirika smirked, her voice full of teasing. "So it seems... neither of us has any moral baggage, huh?"
In other words, they didn't have to feel the slightest bit guilty about undermining the local government—after all, they weren't even citizens. As for the U.S. garrison, they didn't care who you were loyal to. As long as you paid them, they'd serve anyone.
Kirika, experienced as she was, had no intention of explaining the finer details of that dynamic. She simply waited to see when Luo Shu would figure things out for himself.
"True, I don't feel bad about it. But if I cause too much trouble, I'll probably get deported, right?" Luo Shu said, half-joking.
"Don't worry," Kirika replied in the same playful tone. "If you screw up, you can apply for garrison protection. Though I'll warn you—the food's awful. If you want to earn a little extra for better meals, you might want to consider investing in their arms dealing operations. If you're lucky, you could make enough in one go to retire."
"..."
Luo Shu's expression froze. The fact that she casually mentioned the garrison's black-market arms deals left him speechless. "With my nationality, there's no way I could get involved in that stuff, right?"
"Huh?" Kirika looked genuinely surprised for a second.
Meanwhile, from behind the bar, Mika chimed in calmly, "A lot of the dealers who do business with the garrison are from your country. Actually, they've pretty much monopolized that trade. Even our department has to rely on their channels to procure certain restricted items. I believe they're referred to as the Fujian Group."
Luo Shu's expression stiffened. As someone from Fujian himself, he let out a long sigh. "This world really is... something else."
So in this world, being from Fujian actually made him ideally suited to be an arms dealer?
Suppressing his inner complaints, Luo Shu lowered his gaze to the contract in front of him and asked, "I get the secret organizations. I understand what you mean by criminal ability users. But these so-called Abyssal Lifeforms that suddenly appear in this world... what's their deal?"
To his surprise, Kirika only replied with three words: "We don't know." Then she added, "Or more accurately, even among the world's nations, no one has a definitive answer. But there is one group that's been spreading their own version of the story."
Seeing Luo Shu's dumbfounded expression, Kirika calmly stirred her empty cup. The rhythmic clink of the spoon echoed as she sighed and said, "According to them, the fundamental structure of this world is like a stack of Abysses—layer upon layer, endlessly stacked, like a mille-feuille."
"They believe that the deeper you go into the Abyss, the more powerful, the more otherworldly the forces become."
"Somewhere in the deepest layers, they say there's a world called 'Hell'—a place that mirrors the hell described in Christian mythology, Egyptian myth, and Greek legend."
"They claim that this world truly exists deep within the Abyss. That demons dwell there, immortal and undying, and possess the unique power to travel between Abyssal layers."
Luo Shu frowned. "That organization... is it True Celestial Astronomy?"
Kirika exhaled a puff of smoke and nodded. "Yes. True Celestial Astronomy's entire purpose for committing murder and conducting blood rituals is to summon such demons. They aim to forge a connection with Hell, bring forth those beings, and ultimately become them."
"That's the doctrine upon which True Celestial Astronomy was founded."
"To wield demonic power through a human vessel. That's why their ability users are often referred to as 'demon warlocks.'"
"So, the Abyss... is real?" Luo Shu asked, brows still furrowed.
"You're asking something that's out of scope," Kirika replied bluntly, once again repeating, "We don't know."
"In the last century, most countries thought True Celestial Astronomy were just lunatics. But over the past decade, an increasing number of mysterious creatures and artifacts have appeared. This has shaken the previously firm belief among world leaders that the Abyss is just fiction."
"Sure, there's some supporting evidence—some of these things seem to originate from entirely different worlds. But with each country hiding behind information firewalls, no one's managed to present conclusive proof."
"I see..." Luo Shu murmured.
As for the existence of the Abyss, he did believe in it. Just the giant rat that attacked him yesterday was enough proof—no normal rat was that vicious.
Still, both the Abyss and the mysterious organization studying it—True Celestial Astronomy—intrigued him deeply.
If he wanted to gather intel on them and elevate his Astronomy Society's international standing, Kirika's SDS seemed to hold a great advantage.
More importantly, he didn't have to pretend to be subservient to the locals. As for the Americans? Heh—who didn't know how to pay lip service while doing their own thing?
And just as a joke—immigrants to Japan were looked down upon by people back home. But immigrants to the U.S., while also mocked as traitors, somehow always seemed a tier above those who chose Japan.
Maybe it was that old sentiment: "Only America is truly worthy of being our rival."
With that thought in mind, Luo Shu finally said, "So... after telling me all this, I suppose I was never meant to refuse from the beginning, was I?"
Kirika smiled. "Personally, I hoped you'd join without resistance."
"Then I guess your wish has come true."
As soon as Luo Shu spoke, a pen was handed to him.
"Hehe~"
Chisato grinned as she held it out. Luo Shu gave a small smile, thanked her, and signed his name at the bottom of the contract.
"Oooh~~" Chisato cheered, clapping excitedly before slapping Luo Shu on the shoulder. "I'm Chisato Nishikigi. Looking forward to working with you, new teammate~~!"
"Luo Shu," he replied, extending his hand.
"Ah—" Chisato blinked, then wiped her hand on the cloth tied around her waist before giving him a firm handshake.
"Good." Kirika reached out to retrieve the signed contract and, while scanning it, told Chisato, "Chisato, show our new recruit around the branch. Get him set up with the necessary gear."
"Hi hi hi~~" Chisato nodded enthusiastically, then waved for Luo Shu to follow. "Come with me!"
Luo Shu gave Kirika a glance, then got up and followed Chisato into the back area.
Watching the two disappear into the kitchen, Mika at the bar chuckled. "So, we finally managed to rope in a superpowered one, huh."
"'Rope in' is a bit unfair," Kirika replied lightly. "We just left out the tiny detail that, while our department sounds important, we've only existed for less than two years. The MPD blocks our recruitment efforts, so we're severely understaffed."
She pulled another contract from her briefcase, quickly duplicated Luo Shu's signature, and then carefully filed away the original with utmost seriousness.
Once everything was done, she sighed. "No idea what this kid's abilities are yet, but at least we can say we've officially recruited our first warlock."
"Should we throw a party? A welcome dinner for the newcomer?" Mika asked with a grin.
"No need. I still have to register his contract with both the MPD and the garrison. Next time. If anything comes up, call me."
"Safe travels then!"
As the café door creaked shut behind her, Mika watched her retreating figure and shook his head with a sigh, murmuring like an old man: "That kid's got it rough too..."