4:30 PM, Hidden Management Department, 3rd Floor.
After finalising the detailed point distribution guidelines, Luo Shu surveyed the now-empty office and pinched the bridge of his nose:
"Finally done."
As he spoke, Luo Shu checked and filed the documents neatly arranged on his desk into the drawers:
"According to the upcoming arrangements."
"After meeting with Kotoko Iwanaga tomorrow, Lacus will return to America to establish Hidden Management Zones in each branch there."
"Similarly, Kirika Tachibana will begin her assignment tomorrow, heading to Southeast Asia and Hong Kong to oversee the branches there."
"As for Meer, after completing the handover of intelligence operations in Japan, she will depart for Europe next Tuesday, the 28th, to reorganise the branches there."
The urgency stemmed from a loophole Luo Shu had discovered regarding the monthly dividend date.
According to God's Servant, the dividend date was the 1st of each month, with the points allocated based on the maximum points accumulated that month. This provided Luo Shu and his team with an opportunity to manipulate the system.
Accounting for time zone differences, all Abyss Artefacts in each region needed to be placed into the newly established Hidden Management Zones by March 30th at the latest.
Given the tight schedule, the setup of these zones would be rudimentary – most likely just designating a basement and establishing a portal to the Divine Kingdom.
Since establishing these portals required Luo Shu's personal approval and the presence of a Familia member, Lacus, Meer and Kirika Tachibana had to visit each major branch personally.
If everything proceeded smoothly, all Abyss Artefacts could be sealed within the Divine Kingdom by the 31st, securing the highest possible points available.
These points would serve as the initial funding for the SDS's upcoming research projects. With this in mind, Luo Shu naturally saw no reason to object.
Of course, the most crucial factor was that he wouldn't be the one travelling around the world, giving him even less reason to refuse.
As he filed the detailed guidelines for establishing Hidden Management Zones, a sudden realisation struck Luo Shu:
"Wait, if they all leave, does that mean I'll be the only Director-level officer remaining in Japan?"
The SDS Member Ranking System was relatively straightforward, consisting of six tiers from S to E.
The S-rank comprised founders such as Lacus Clyne and her father, Siegel Clyne, as well as several core members, along with some nominal former investors who held the title of Honorary Chairman – although these had already been excluded from the core leadership.
A-rank represented actual ministerial-level officers or council members responsible for specific SDS operations. Promotion to the ministerial level automatically grants a council seat.
B-rank included essential personnel at regional branches, such as branch directors, operational commanders, and similar roles. Mika from Café LycoReco's operations department held this rank.
C-rank denoted elite members – squad leaders and elite team members, such as Chisato Nishikigi and Takina Inoue, who formed the backbone of Abyss Artefact containment operations.
D-rank comprised regular members – those who formally joined SDS for grassroots work, clerical duties, or managing SDS-controlled enterprises, while being aware of the organisation's existence. The operational team members Luo Shu had encountered during Kisara's containment, who handled searches and lockdowns, belonged to this category.
As for E-rank, these were external personnel who had signed confidentiality agreements, as well as death row inmates used to test the side effects of Abyss Artefacts.
According to Kirika Tachibana, E-rank actually stood for 'END'.
The subtext was either 'your understanding ends here, don't probe further' or 'your life can end here'.
Realising this, Luo Shu thought back to his recent experiences and couldn't help pulling a strange face:
"Two and a half weeks in, and I'm already a Branch Director?"
"Transmigrators really are bizarre existences."
Of course, Luo Shu had to admit there were just a tiny bit too many transmigrators in this world.
Like that crowd currently surrounding the meeting room.
Thinking this, Luo Shu sighed helplessly: "Still not planning to come out?"
As he spoke, dark red shadows coalesced on the table before him, from which Kurumi Tokisaki's head slowly emerged.
Though a beautiful girl's head popping out of a table was rather horrifying, Luo Shu showed no surprise, merely saying:
"After watching all afternoon, aren't you bored?"
"Just curious about the SDS's situation." Kurumi offered this unconvincing excuse with a smile.
As a Demigod who controlled fragments of spacetime authority, Kurumi could hide with almost no one being the wiser.
Even Luo Shu couldn't detect her presence without using system functions.
Hearing Kurumi's words, Luo Shu chuckled:
"And? What do you think after observing?"
Kurumi sidestepped the question with playful teasing:
"Little Utaha must be feeling quite desperate."
At this, Luo Shu didn't know how to respond.
The disparity in strength and influence between Familia members was indeed glaring.
Members like Lacus and Kurumi either had powerful backing from major organisations that could greatly assist Luo Shu or possessed formidable personal strength that made them independent forces.
Compared to these, Familia like Utaha, Eriri or Yukino Yukinoshita, who needed training from scratch, were at a clear disadvantage.
Yet such members weren't unimportant - they served as foundational cornerstones in their own way.
To the Divine Pantheon Reconstruction System, low-strength, low-influence Familia were uncut gems with potential, constituting a significant source of Luo Shu's points income.
Once such members reached critical mass, their monthly points contribution would be staggeringly valuable.
Moreover, this income would grow in tandem with their strength— a crucial factor.
After all, points were the foundation for both Luo Shu and Familia members to grow stronger and thrive in this world.
While ordinary Familia members had prospects, nurturing remained vital.
Considering the points needed for his own advancement, Luo Shu calculated available funds after reserving that portion and said:
"I'll allocate 100,000 Points as advanceable funds. Find an opportunity to familiarise them with the Dream Simulation Chamber."
"If we can utilise the Dream Simulation Chamber effectively to create a Class that suits us, all our problems would be solved."
According to the Divine Pantheon Reconstruction System, Classes were something only considered by Hero Ranks preparing to advance to Demigod status.
Thus, in Luo Shu's view, being able to use the Dream Simulation Chamber to deduce a Class in advance would undoubtedly bring tremendous benefits to personal development.
Since the Familia had this resource available, he naturally hoped all members could make good use of it to develop their own Classes.
After all, Luo Shu understood better than anyone how much a Class could enhance one's strength.
To put it bluntly, as an Elite Rank with the Calamity Bringer Class, Luo Shu's fights against Yoshimura and Takatsuki Izumi, who were newly advanced Heroes without Classes, were more brutal than a father disciplining his son, bordering on outright slaughter.
Though part of this was due to Luo Shu's Class being special, the gap between having a Class and not having one was simply that vast.
Once Utaha and the others cultivated their own Classes, their ability to compete with external secret organisations for resources and earn points would naturally improve dramatically.
As the saying goes, in times of disaster, your chance of survival doesn't depend on how fast you can run, but how many people you can outrun.
And Classes were precisely the accelerators that would allow the Familia to outrun others.
At that moment, upon receiving Luo Shu's instructions, Kurumi Tokisaki gave him a meaningful look before disappearing into the shadows with a playful laugh:
"I'll go tell them the good news then. Oh, just in case, Luo Shu-san might want to leave his door unlocked tonight."
"After all, who knows if someone might be so moved they'd visit your room to express their gratitude in person."
Hearing this, Luo Shu rolled his eyes before retorting: "Should I leave it open for you, too?"
Kurumi didn't answer, merely winking at Luo Shu with her right eye before vanishing into a swirl of black-red shadows.
Luo Shu couldn't tell whether she wanted him to leave the door open or not, leaving him in an awkward limbo.
"That minx."
Luo Shu cursed under his breath and returned to organising documents. Just then, the landline on his desk rang.
"Hello, Hidden Management Department speaking... Hmm? Abyss Descent?"