Preparing the crime in advance might sound like a joke, but in reality, Luo Shu was being serious.
Although the core technologies of the SDS were mostly capital-intensive fields like space technology and intelligent machinery, as good as the technology was, it was far too expensive. Thus, the SDS developed virtual reality technology purely to make money. The internal staff almost unanimously believed that virtual reality technology was the future cash cow and a vital source of funding for the SDS.
Under these circumstances, if anyone dared to touch the core of virtual reality technology, the SDS would likely drop its peace-loving facade in an instant and pick up a butcher's knife. In such a situation, never mind the SDS's various existing action teams; if they truly encountered a leak of core technology, even Luo Shu's Hidden Management Department would probably resort to violence immediately.
Given this, for outsiders, if a technical expert like Akihiko Kayaba, who represented a key node in virtual reality technology and was Yggdrasil's public-facing developer, were exposed as controlled by an organisation, it could very well spark an incident on the scale of a war.
In this situation, if Luo Shu were to remotely control Akihiko Kayaba and have him identify a certain person or organisation as the mastermind, he could pin the blame on them completely. After all, such a major expert in virtual reality technology wasn't a fake, was he?
In the eyes of a normal person, no matter how much the SDS acted up, it was still a legitimate organisation. And as long as it was a legitimate organisation that respected human rights, it would never treat a top-tier researcher as a disposable pawn.
With only the SDS top brass and the Familia knowing that Akihiko Kayaba was a madman, Luo Shu could practically use him as a nuclear button, pointing it at whomever he pleased.
Under these circumstances, Luo Shu would naturally think about how to use Akihiko Kayaba to reap the greatest benefits. In any case, it was only a fanatic who would die, not a member of his Familia. If necessary, he could be a sacrifice.
Utaha Kasumigaoka could guess some of Luo Shu's thoughts. But it was precisely because she could guess that she felt particularly emotional. "I feel like your moral compass is constantly dropping. Is it just my imagination?"
"Just a few months ago, you were just a little man who only dared to sneak glances at my legs."
"Ahem, ahem!!" Hearing that typically explosive statement, Luo Shu couldn't help but cough dryly, forcibly changing the subject. "People grow, don't they?"
"But this is more like monstrous growth, isn't it?" Utaha Kasumigaoka glanced at Luo Shu, thinking of his current situation, and couldn't resist retorting, "Both in terms of experience and Class."
While she was still stuck at the Elite Rank, on the verge of advancing to Hero Rank, Luo Shu had already jumped to the level of a Demigod and even grasped an Authority Prototype, practically having one foot in the realm of Apostle. Although she had long known that the reincarnation of a god would be outrageous, this was a bit too much. At this rate, Utaha Kasumigaoka really didn't know how she was supposed to catch up.
Just then, Luo Shu asked Miss Utaha with great curiosity, "I can understand the Class part, but what do you mean by experience?"
Hearing this, Utaha Kasumigaoka said nothing, merely lowering her head in silence. Her gaze fell upon the hand that had, at some unknown point, been placed on her black-stockinged thigh, a hand that was just one step away from delving too deep. She couldn't help but let out a soft "heh".
Hearing that soft chuckle, Luo Shu's expression didn't waver in the slightest. Instead, he tried to press closer, only to be deftly dodged by Miss Utaha.
At that moment, Utaha Kasumigaoka looked at Luo Shu's unfazed face and remarked with a wealth of feeling, "So this is what you call experience—that completely unchanging face of yours."
In response to Miss Utaha's jab, Luo Shu just chuckled and said, "Well, thank you for the compliment~"
"Just take it as a compliment."
As she spoke, Utaha Kasumigaoka shifted her gaze to Akihiko Kayaba, whose five senses she had sealed off the moment Luo Shu started getting handsy, leaving him lying on the floor like a corpse. She said calmly, "So, what are you going to do with this fanatic now?"
Luo Shu didn't even glance at Akihiko Kayaba. "Plant a backdoor in his mind, then let him do what he considers normal."
"Heh, so he's a disposable backup bomb? I see what you mean."
Utaha Kasumigaoka gave a faint smile. As she began to manipulate Akihiko Kayaba's subconscious, she explained, "It's a bit cruel, but considering I'm a bad woman myself, it's only natural for me to do something so against human rights."
Knowing that Utaha Kasumigaoka was feeling a little reluctant, Luo Shu couldn't help but retort, "A real bad woman wouldn't have such a moral burden right now."
"Whatever~~"
Amidst her coquettish complaint, Utaha Kasumigaoka finished altering his subconscious. Then, she turned her head towards Luo Shu and said, "It's done. Is there anything else?"
"I've booked a hotel..."
Before Luo Shu could finish, he was met with Utaha Kasumigaoka's cold reply, "I have to review the action department personnel later. I don't have time to play around with you."
Seeing this, Luo Shu couldn't help but spread his hands. "Then I guess there's nothing else."
He had barely finished speaking when he heard Utaha Kasumigaoka say, "Where's the hotel you booked?"
Luo Shu was a little surprised. "Aren't you busy?"
"I am, but I can let the me who isn't busy go."
As Utaha Kasumigaoka spoke, she took out a new model of the Familia-exclusive mobile phone developed by Tabane Shinonono. After tapping on it for a few seconds, she said to Luo Shu, "I've already asked Eriri to come over. Oh, and she'll transform into me~"
With that, Utaha Kasumigaoka turned away, waving her hand. "Remember to have fun with me~"
Hearing this, Luo Shu froze for a moment, then couldn't resist asking, "So, will it actually be you later, or Eriri pretending to be you, or you pretending to be Eriri pretending to be you?"
Utaha Kasumigaoka tilted her head, pressing a finger to her lips. "Guess~"
To this, Luo Shu could only utter a single word: "Nice!"
If Luo Shu had to be blunt, the one whose experience had gone through some freakish development was clearly Utaha Kasumigaoka herself!