Kanzaki Kaori was completely stunned.
Her face was filled with confusion.
…What was going on?
That man—
He knew?
Beside her, Aiba Asagi looked equally curious.
What exactly had happened?
Why did Izumi say this Saint had been completely misled?
Meanwhile—
Izumi had already left with Index.
Watching his back disappear, Asagi turned her attention to Kanzaki.
"So… you're a Saint, right?"
"Care to explain what's going on?"
Kanzaki snapped out of her daze.
She hesitated for a moment—
But Izumi's words lingered heavily in her mind.
So she began to explain.
"That girl… has 103,000 grimoires stored in her memory."
"To ensure her brain doesn't exceed its capacity…"
"We erase her memories once a year…"
"…Wait. Hold it."
"Stop right there."
Asagi stared at her like she was looking at an illiterate child.
"…No wonder Izumi said you've been fooled."
Kanzaki frowned.
"…What do you mean? Is something wrong with what I said?"
Asagi covered her face with one hand.
"Are you serious right now?"
"…You've definitely been tricked."
"Do you really think 103,000 books can fill up a human brain?"
"Humans aren't computers, you know?"
She looked Kanzaki up and down.
"…Don't tell me you didn't even finish elementary school?"
"You've been lied to for this long… that's honestly impressive."
Kanzaki froze.
"…You're saying… I've been deceived?"
"That's impossible."
"The Church would never lie to me."
Asagi shot her a flat, unimpressed look.
"…Do you think people announce it when they lie to you?"
"If you don't believe me, go look it up."
"Oh—wait. Sorry."
"You probably don't even know how to use the internet."
"Then go to a library."
"You can read, right?"
"There are books here. Go check for yourself."
Her tone was merciless.
At this point, she had completely labeled Kanzaki as someone with no basic education.
Kanzaki's face flushed red.
Because—
It was true.
She didn't know how to use the internet.
In fact—
She was hopeless with electronics.
Without wasting any more time, Asagi led her to the facility's archive room.
"Go on. See for yourself."
"If you still don't believe it, that's your problem."
"You're not leaving this place anyway."
"Once you've figured things out… I'll come back and run some tests."
With that, she turned and left—
Leaving Kanzaki alone among the shelves.
"…Seriously…"
Asagi muttered as she walked away.
"A Saint… and a total idiot."
She didn't bother worrying about Kanzaki escaping.
Izumi had already placed a restriction on her.
If she tried anything—
She'd be caught immediately.
Besides…
It was only a matter of time.
Given Izumi's personality—
There was no way he'd let someone like her go.
Meanwhile—
The man in question was currently sitting across from Index—
Watching her devour food at an alarming rate.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
Her eating manners were… catastrophic.
Nearby—
The members of ITEM stared in shock.
"…She eats that much?"
After finishing an enormous amount of food—
Index let out a satisfied burp.
"Ahh… I'm alive again."
"Thank you! May God bless you!"
She even clasped her hands together in prayer.
Izumi's eyelid twitched.
"…Enough with that."
"Let's talk about payment."
Index blinked.
"…Wait, what?"
"You said you were treating me!"
"That's cheating!"
"And I don't have any money, okay?!"
Izumi smiled.
"That's fine."
"You can just stay here and work."
"The cafeteria happens to be short on cleaning staff."
A mischievous glint flashed in his eyes.
"…Work?"
Index was completely lost.
She had never done anything like that before.
But Izumi didn't give her time to object.
"And besides—if you stay here…"
"No one will chase you anymore."
"You don't want to keep wandering around, do you?"
Index hesitated.
"…But—"
"No 'buts.' It's decided."
"Food and lodging included. Easy work."
"You'll be fine."
Index fell silent.
This guy…
Was way too domineering!!
But—
Thinking about his overwhelming strength…
She backed down.
…Somehow, it felt like she had just escaped one trap—
Only to fall into another.
After settling things—
Izumi had Frenda and the others take Index away to arrange a room for her.
Meanwhile—
Back in the archive room—
Kanzaki finished reading.
And froze.
The books were clear.
The human brain did not have a fixed storage limit.
It wasn't something that could simply "fill up."
Which meant—
Everything she had believed…
Was a lie.
Her expression darkened.
"…So I was… deceived…"
Power began to surge within her.
But in the next instant—
A strange sensation overtook her body.
Her legs gave out.
She collapsed to her knees.
Her face flushed red instantly.
"…W-What is this?!"
Her voice trembled.
"That man… did something to me?!"
Gritting her teeth, she tried to use her power again.
But—
A surge of electricity ran through her body.
All her strength vanished.
She collapsed completely.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she bit her lip.
"…Damn it… hentai…!!"
Elsewhere—
Izumi sensed it.
His expression turned… amused.
"…Well, let's hope she doesn't get addicted."
"I did add a little extra to that seal, after all."
He let out a quiet chuckle.
Then took out his phone—
And sent a message to someone who had been away for quite some time.
There was something he needed them to do.