Chapter 179: Investigation in Progress
"I'll handle it," Haruto volunteered. "If they're truly scheming something, I can at least send back a message."
That being said, the rare injury actually reminded Haruto of a thought he once had.
He still hadn't obtained any powerful healing-type talents or skills. With so many fallen angels and their subordinates coming to Kuoh Town this time, perhaps that somewhat naive little blonde nun was among them.
The Sacred Gear "Twilight Healing" was considered a top-tier artifact in terms of healing capability alone. It was exceptionally convenient to use and provided remarkably fast recovery.
Moreover, that little nun possessed exceptionally high magical aptitude, making her perfectly suited to serve as the Bishop in Rias' peerage.
Haruto organizing Rias to notify Grayfia and voluntarily taking on the investigation mission were all to check whether Asia Argento had arrived in Kuoh Town.
If the little nun had indeed come, she needed to be made part of Rias' peerage before notifying Grayfia.
Having already accepted Amano and the other two, taking in one little nun abandoned by the church wouldn't be a problem at all.
The others exchanged silent glances. If anything unusual was discovered during reconnaissance and Azazel remained unaware, that would be fine. But once he noticed, they probably wouldn't even have time to react, let alone send back messages.
Thus, the investigation personnel were decided.
On March 9th, after resting for a day and adjusting his physical condition to peak state, Haruto began the investigation operation.
He was responsible for infiltrating the church for investigation, while simultaneously having Kasumi and Touko mobilize girls living nearby to constantly monitor whether any priests or nuns appeared in the town.
The cathedral didn't have living supplies - it was impossible for so many people to go without food and drink. The fallen angels wouldn't specifically bring worthless supplies all the way from headquarters to such a distant location.
With Azazel restraining the fallen angels from going out, the task of procuring daily necessities fell to their subordinates.
That afternoon, Haruto completed his investigation of the upper levels of the church, then cast a concealment spell and hid in the nearby forest.
To thoroughly investigate the underground areas, he either had to wait for Azazel to leave, or lie in wait for some restless fallen angel to emerge and capture them for interrogation.
Even for Haruto, at such close distances in the underground areas, it would be impossible to avoid detection by Azazel.
Taking out snacks and drinks from his personal space, Haruto lay on a sturdy thick branch, scrolling through his phone while observing the comings and goings in the church.
Under the observation of his Eye of Insight, even from over a kilometer away from the cathedral, he could clearly see the faces of people entering and exiting.
However, he couldn't determine what they were saying.
Since Haruto had never learned lip reading, even though he could clearly see the movement of speakers' lips, he couldn't interpret what they were saying.
Unable to investigate directly below and wanting to avoid missing important intelligence, he could only maintain twenty-four-hour surveillance of the cathedral from his position.
Fortunately, after reaching A-rank, sleep was no longer necessary. Otherwise, no matter how many time-killing snacks and gadgets he prepared in his personal space, Haruto alone wouldn't be able to accomplish this task.
Time came to March 12th.
Haruto had already spent three full days in the tree. All the snacks and drinks in his personal space had been consumed, yet he still hadn't discovered any particularly noteworthy clues.
Just as he was planning to return to replenish supplies and report to Rias, he received a LINE message from Touko.
[Located the blonde nun. She was carrying a suitcase and asking for directions, with the cathedral as her destination.]
When assigning the mission, Haruto had provided a general description of Asia's appearance and even sketched her likeness using his drawing skills. However, due to the long passage of time, he wasn't entirely sure how accurate it was.
But now it seemed identifying a person based on general features wouldn't be a problem.
Haruto cleaned up the trash he'd accumulated over the past few days and swiftly flew toward the location Touko had indicated.
When he arrived, he happened to see another somewhat familiar figure approaching Asia.
The white-haired fallen priest, Freed Sellzen, formerly a direct exorcist of the Vatican, had eliminated numerous monsters and devils one after another since the age of thirteen.
In reality, he was a fanatical battle maniac without faith, who wouldn't even spare his own comrades.
After being exposed, he was handed over by the Church to the fallen angels to serve as a tool.
"Asia Argento, come with me. Lord Azazel is waiting for you."
Freed spoke expressionlessly to the little blonde nun: "Later, Lord Azazel will study your Sacred Gear. He might even have you serve him in bed, so be prepared."
The little blonde nun showed no particular reaction to the first part of his statement. This innate Sacred Gear had initially brought her some benefits, but ever since she healed a devil, it had become the source of her tragedy.
Not long ago, the church in her village finally drove her out. Just as she was wondering where to go and how to make a living, the fallen angels sent someone to contact her, instructing her to come to this church in Japan and continue serving as a nun.
Inexperienced in the ways of the world, with no relatives or livelihood skills, Asia had no choice but to follow their instructions and come here.
She was perfectly willing to cooperate with research on her Sacred Gear, but the sudden mention of serving in bed left her flustered and at a loss.
Asia had grown up in the church, but with modern information dissemination and the open atmosphere abroad, she understood what serving in bed entailed.
"This priest…"
"Freed Sellzen." Freed replied indifferently, "Just call me Freed. Like you, I was expelled by the Church and joined the fallen angels as clergy."
"Father Freed, I'm only 16... Isn't it too early for serving in bed?"
Having been an orphan since birth, Asia was accustomed to complying with others, but when it came to a nun's purity, she couldn't help but care.
"Moreover, I'm a nun. I cannot do such things."
"Former nun. Lord Azazel is a fallen angel governor. Serving him would be your good fortune."
Freed said impatiently, "I only said it's possible. With your plain figure, Lord Azazel might not even be interested."
The little blonde nun wanted to say more, but Freed didn't give her the chance. He reached out to grab her and pull her toward the church.
Haruto watched all of this unfold. So Asia hadn't been in the cathedral all along—no wonder he hadn't seen her despite staking out for so many days, even though he'd spotted Freed and other subordinates multiple times.
The little blonde nun hurriedly stepped back, trying to avoid Freed's hand, but with combat ability practically zero, how could she possibly be a match for Freed?
Before Freed could make a move, Asia stumbled backward in panic, losing her balance and falling to the ground.
Her suitcase hit the bluestone pavement, scattering her clothes everywhere.
Haruto glanced at them—the underwear was pure and ordinary in style, with classic plain white panties, perfectly matching the nun's demeanor, not the least bit sexy.
Just as Freed was about to erupt in anger, Haruto suddenly appeared beside Asia and asked with concern, "Miss, are you alright? Should I take you to the hospital?"
"Hey, who are you? Get away from there right now!"
Freed glared fiercely at Haruto, his expression hostile. This girl was an important tool to curry favor with Lord Azazel—he couldn't let another man taint her.
Ignoring his shouts, Haruto deliberately let out a faint demonic aura.
Freed had never seen Haruto before, nor did he have any information about Rias. The moment he sensed the demonic aura, his barely maintained normal facade instantly crumbled.
His lips twisted into a grin that nearly split his face in two, his eyes widening maniacally as he laughed wildly, "So you're a devil! How dare you appear before this priest in broad daylight... Since you're asking for death, I'll grant your wish."
A pistol and a sword materialized in Freed's hands—his Sacred Gears, immensely powerful. Combined with his own skills, they made him nearly invincible against B-rank, or Low-class Devils.
Hmm, not bad Sacred Gears. Decent power and pretty cool-looking too.
Haruto muttered to himself inwardly, deliberately putting on a face of grave seriousness to lure Freed into making the first move.