Standing behind Luo Shu was a blonde woman who looked like she belonged in a high-end office setting. Her golden hair was neatly pinned up, and though she stood at barely 160 cm, her legs—wrapped in sheer black stockings—were long, slender, and perfectly shaped. Her upper body had its charms too, but the most eye-catching part was undoubtedly those legs.
"It's considered sexual harassment to look at a woman like that the moment you meet her, you know?" she said playfully.
Her words pulled Luo Shu back to reality, and he turned his gaze away, a little embarrassed. Yet just as he did, the woman added casually, "Has anyone ever told you that your eyes are a little too sharp?"
"Sorry, can't say I've heard that before," Luo Shu replied, stepping to the side to make way, thinking she'd leave.
But the woman instead reached up and tugged down her sunglasses slightly, observing him for a few seconds before speaking again. "Aren't you forgetting something? Don't you think you should return my wallet?"
"…Ah." Luo Shu froze, wallet still in hand.
"There should be about 200,000 yen in there, plus my driver's license. The name's Tachibana Kirika. Oh, and two black bank cards."
Luo Shu played dumb and opened the wallet to check. Sure enough, the photo and name on the license matched the woman in front of him. Caught red-handed, he could only shake his head with a sheepish smile and hand the wallet back. "Apologies. I didn't realize it was yours…"
Kirika took the wallet, casually pulled out the cash that remained, and then handed it back to him. "Here, your reward for returning it."
Luo Shu looked at the bills in her hand with a rather complicated expression, briefly wondering if he'd somehow wandered into a host club and she was his customer placing an order.
Before he could finish the thought, Kirika grinned and said, "Surprised? According to government regulations, the person who finds lost property is entitled to a 10–20% reward. But this wallet's value was too high and I don't have enough on me, so is 200,000 acceptable?"
With that clarification, Luo Shu's instincts about "not accepting handouts" began to fade. "I'm just an ordinary student. I wouldn't dare violate any laws."
Saying that, he took the twenty crisp ¥10,000 bills and stuffed them directly into his pocket. Since she'd offered him an out, he figured he might as well take it—no point in being stupid about free money.
Kirika's smile remained as she eyed him up and down again. "Looks like money's a bit tight for you these days?"
"I doubt there's a person in this country who doesn't like cash," Luo Shu replied, half-joking but also completely honest.
Kirika's lips curled upward, clearly delighted with that response. "Then how about I introduce you to a well-paying job?"
"…Host club?" Luo Shu glanced at her again, trying to guess where this was going.
"No. It's a legitimate job—government work, in fact," Kirika said with a straight face. "Under joint jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Police Department and the US military stationed in Japan."
Luo Shu raised a brow, visibly skeptical. "You're kidding. The MPD and the US military? That's a weird mix."
Removing her sunglasses and resting a hand on her hip, Kirika replied, "Ordinarily, yes. But for someone like you, it's not so strange."
"…Are you implying I've broken the law somehow?" Luo Shu's tone hardened. He'd been on edge ever since she offered him a job.
"You haven't—not yet, anyway. But if I had seen it myself, I could pretend nothing happened. As long as it's before today."
Kirika spun her sunglasses around her fingers with a playful ease, then added in a light tone, "And that's assuming—you're working under me."
With that line, Luo Shu finally understood what was going on. He blinked, then let out a dry laugh. "Isn't that blatant favoritism?"
Recruiting people like this? Luo Shu wanted to complain. But since she was with an official agency, he didn't dare outright refuse. Not to mention, he had his system—if things went south, he could always teleport back to the base using points. That gave him the confidence to test the waters.
"How did you even notice me?" he asked.
In response, Kirika raised her hand, as if to touch his face. Luo Shu leaned back instinctively to avoid her fingers.
She stopped and instead pointed at his eyes. "When someone with strong spiritual energy stares at another, it causes a faint stinging sensation. It's a telltale sign of an untrained ability user, little brother."
With that, she pulled a small pack of herbal cigarettes from her pocket, flicked one loose, and placed it between her lips. "You must've just awakened your powers, right? No training, letting your energy leak out everywhere... That kind of thing's a rookie mistake. Easy to spot."
"Oh, and by the way—our side calls them sorcerers. The Onmyonji call themselves exorcists, the Americans use the term 'espers,' and in the East, they prefer taoist or mage."
She lit the cigarette, took a slow drag, then offered him the pack. "Pure herbal blend. Calms the mind. Just don't smoke too much."
"No thanks, I don't smoke," Luo Shu replied, waving his hand with a wry smile. "So what now? You stopped me just to recruit me?"
"Exactly." Kirika exhaled a smoke ring and smiled seductively. "Like I said—I belong to a special division under the joint jurisdiction of the MPD and US forces. We're really short-staffed lately. So, wanna join up?"
She leaned in slightly, voice warm and honeyed.
"Starting pay: 500,000 yen monthly, post-tax. Two bonuses per year, 1.5 million yen each. One day off per week, housing stipend, special leave, and... occasional company trips with our lovely female agents."
At that last part, she winked at him, clearly implying more than her words said.
But Luo Shu's reaction was far from what she'd expected.
Seriously? he thought. Just this afternoon I was recruiting Eriri with system benefits, and now I'm getting scouted with the exact same pitch? Is this karma or something?
"What if I say no?" he asked.
Kirika's answer came swiftly. "Nothing much. You'll probably end up on the MPD's 'persons of interest' list. Weekly check-ins, that sort of thing. And maybe get recruited by one of their formal departments. But... you do know how toxic the workplace culture is here, right?"
She smiled half-jokingly and added, "So what's it gonna be? Squeezed dry by a bunch of grumpy old men, or guided by a mature, sexy onee-san like me? Pretty easy choice, right?"
Luo Shu was silent for a beat, then pointedly asked, "We're just going to talk about this here?"
"Oh?" Kirika blinked, clearly surprised by his sudden tact. "Fair enough. Follow me."
Turning on her heel, she looked back over her shoulder and smiled. "There's a café I like just around the corner."