Luo Shu observed the girl before him.
Compared to Utaha, she lacked radiant maturity. Nor did she possess the performative cheerfulness of Eriri.
Where Utaha and Eriri made striking first impressions, Megumi exuded only a quiet elegance—a girl whose company was effortlessly pleasant, yet prone to drifting with the tide.
And now, Luo Shu was redirecting that current.
"Megumi, are you sure you still don't understand the reason?"
Luo Shu looked at Megumi Kato, who was frowning slightly with a hint of irritation, and said calmly:
"The reason I arranged for Yukino to give you cases of ordinary people encountering Abyss Artefacts—you must have realised the issue by now, right?"
Megumi remained silent for a moment before finally speaking:
"...The cases the Director wanted me to see are similar to my situation, aren't they?"
"Yes."
Luo Shu nodded, then gestured to the chair in front of the desk:
"Have a seat. You can ask anything you want."
Hearing this, Megumi slowly walked to the desk, pulled out the chair, and sat down. She then looked at Luo Shu and asked hesitantly:
"Is it because I've always been easily overlooked since childhood?"
Megumi believed she was just an ordinary girl, and that wasn't wrong—except that, beneath this ordinariness, there was another layer.
She was an ordinary girl who was easily overlooked.
It wasn't simply about being inconspicuous, but rather a strange state of being ignored, as if she had no presence at all.
Megumi fell silent for a moment before slowly recounting the things that had happened to her.
This state had started very early, even before primary school. Sometimes, her mother would prepare lunchboxes for her father and sister, but forget about her when she was in primary school.
Other times, the class duty roster, which was supposed to rotate among everyone, would inexplicably skip her, leaving her without any cleaning duties for an entire term.
Even when going out with friends, it would somehow end up with her alone.
She had always assumed this state of being overlooked was due to her being too inconspicuous—after all, it had been her daily reality since childhood. But after learning some mystic-side knowledge from Yukino Yukinoshita and Luo Shu's visit that evening, she began to realise the problem.
Could it be that it wasn't her being too inconspicuous, but rather, her being too special?
Moreover, apart from her family, who could remember her over long periods, others—like teachers and classmates—seemed to be forgetting her more and more easily.
Was this ability to be overlooked growing stronger?
"Theoretically, yes."
Luo Shu looked at the uneasy Megumi and reassured her:
"But it's nothing you need to worry too much about."
"Coming into contact with an Abyss Artefact, accidentally absorbing it, and having the effects deepen with age isn't uncommon."
"Many lineages within the Metropolitan Police Department's Bujin-shū unit cultivate new members this way."
"However, unlike their active enhancement of abilities, you're in a passive state."
According to SDS intelligence, some members of the Metropolitan Police Department Bujin-shū possessed 'qi'—similar to what Luo Shu recognised as qigong—but its origin traced back to their ancestors coming into contact with certain dangerous Abyss Artefacts, causing a mutation in their bloodline that allowed them and their descendants to convert life force into qi.
Similarly, those from the Church, like Sharon, were said to have been baptised by sacred relics, granting them holy power.
As for the Kannagi family, it was even simpler. Their ancestors were said to have formed a contract with the Spirit King of Fire, receiving the spirits' protection and endowing each generation with innate fire-control abilities.
Instances where individuals gained supernatural abilities after coming into contact with high-level Abyss Artefacts or entities were not uncommon.
And Megumi Kato seemed to be no exception.
'Passive mastery versus active mastery?' Megumi nodded thoughtfully, then said:
"So the reason the director used that example earlier to intimidate me was to demonstrate that you have the ability to help me resolve my power control issues?"
"Ahem!"
Luo Shu couldn't help but cough at her words, then looked at Megumi, whose expressionless face somehow resembled that of a Lesser Demon:
"While that's essentially the case, isn't 'intimidate' a bit too strong a word?"
"Then... warning?" Megumi tilted her head slightly, uncertain.
"Close enough."
Luo Shu brushed it off with a perfunctory reply, quickly steering the conversation elsewhere:
"My actual intention was to remind you that you've long been involved in incidents related to the mystic side. The reason you've remained unharmed so far is likely due to your ability to lower your presence."
Megumi suddenly understood: "Because my presence is so low that others don't notice me, I haven't run into trouble?"
She hadn't yet read the documents Luo Shu had prepared, but she grasped her situation from the dangers he described.
To certain malevolent organisations, those who had come into contact with Abyss Artefacts and accidentally gained abilities were essentially walking artefacts—valuable whether used to train new recruits or for personal gain.
Her situation was akin to a child walking down the street with a bar of gold, constantly at risk of being killed.
Except, until now, the gold in her hands had the function of reducing her presence, keeping her safe. But clearly, she couldn't rely on that safety forever.
"So, from the very beginning, my only option was to join the Hidden Management Department?"
"Not the only option," Luo Shu shook his head. "But joining us is the best choice for you."
'The best choice...' Megumi mulled over his words, then looked up at Luo Shu:
"Director Luo, do you know what Abyss Artefact I accidentally came into contact with as a child?"
Hearing this, Luo Shu paused before replying:
"That would require using a high-level Abyss Artefact with divination abilities. But once I use it, your secrets will no longer be secrets to me. Are you okay with that?"
He vaguely explained the capabilities of the Mysticism Encyclopaedia, leaving the decision to Megumi.
He could have divined her past directly, but prying into someone's privacy was hardly proper conduct. Naturally, he wouldn't say he had already investigated her.
Megumi seemed to sense something, nodding in response:
"I can accept that outcome."
At her words, Luo Shu fell silent for a moment. His dark eyes gradually lost their warmth, turning cold and detached, as if looking down from a great height.
He activated the Mysticism Encyclopaedia's divination once more. This time, with Megumi's permission and their prior interaction, he saw much more.
He saw it clearly—the infant Megumi lying in her crib, suddenly drenched in transparent flames.
According to the divination from the Mysticism Encyclopaedia, the transparent flames appeared to be the residual blood of a Crimson Lord who had fallen across dimensions.
Seeing this image, Luo Shu fell silent.
How the hell did a Crimson Lord pop up here?