Similar materials, a similar ritual, and it had been obtained by a common person with almost no attempt at concealment.
With so many conditions overlapping, not even a dog would believe this Class was problem-free.
Upon realising the issue with the Class, Luo Shu immediately looked up and exchanged a glance with Lacus.
The moment their eyes met, they both seemed to understand what the other was thinking.
Nodding slightly, Luo Shu shifted his gaze from Lacus to Echidna.
"The beginner you killed, where is his spirit body?"
"It's preserved in Laboratory Six." Echidna was not surprised by Luo Shu's question and answered directly. "Do you need me to transport it to the Hidden Management Zone?"
Luo Shu nodded and instructed, "Transport it. Kirika can investigate it at the same time."
"Just in case, have Miss Nia divine its origin as well," Lacus added, then looked at Echidna.
"Miss Echidna, regarding that simulated Top Tier Class, please make the data available to Miss Nia Honjo. She will be responsible for confirming its safety."
In response to their requests, Echidna, suspended in the nutrient tank, merely raised the corners of her mouth slightly.
"It seems you know the origin of this Necro Dominator Class."
"In that case, my deliberate choice to use the Dream Simulation Chamber to modify this Class and thereby avoid the risks was the right one."
Hearing Echidna say this, Luo Shu glanced up at her and scoffed.
"If you truly wanted to avoid risks, you should have notified me the moment you obtained the Class, not taken it to test the possibility of a dual Class."
After saying this, Luo Shu paid no more attention to Echidna, turning instead to Beatrice at his side.
"Betty, get ready. In twenty minutes, I'm taking the entire library with me."
"Eh?" Beatrice was startled and couldn't help but glance at Echidna. Seeing no reaction from her, she immediately nodded. "I understand. I'll go and prepare."
While Beatrice left to protect the library's books so Luo Shu could pack them up, Luo Shu turned his head, scanned the laboratory, and said to Lacus, "I plan to place the library in the underground area of the Hidden Management Department."
Through a series of secret construction projects, the Hidden Management Department's underground had been divided into nine floors. The first six had already been assigned functions, and the ninth floor housed the Hidden Management Zone.
The seventh and eighth floors were preliminarily completed but had not yet been assigned. Placing Echidna's library there would allow for constant surveillance and ensure the safety of her various experiments.
If Echidna herself were not so crazy, and if her research were not so outrageous, Luo Shu would have actually preferred to send her to Space Colony Copernicus, for an 'out of sight, out of mind' solution.
Unfortunately, Echidna's ample talent for courting disaster had put an end to that idea.
Hearing Luo Shu's plan, Lacus understood his meaning. After a moment's thought, she said, "The eighth floor has already been requested by Miss Aya for her research lab, so placing it in the seventh-floor area would be more suitable. The space there is also relatively larger and can be expanded to better accommodate the library."
"Let's arrange it that way, then."
Luo Shu nodded slightly, glanced at Echidna, and then said, "Contact the people at the garrison. Prepare to activate the Star Gate to transport the entire library."
Having set the tone, Luo Shu looked at Echidna, then said no more, quietly waiting for the moment of transport.
...
Chiyoda Ward, inside the Imperial Palace.
5 a.m.
Two Imperial Household Agency staff members, who had been busy for most of the night, were walking together, idly chatting about the major event that had just occurred yesterday.
"Has it been confirmed that Prince Tomohito was murdered?"
"Yes, I heard even his heart was dug out, and his blood was drained. He looked just like a dried corpse. His Majesty almost fainted from shock when he saw it."
"How could someone be so cruel? What is the Cabinet saying?"
"I heard the Cabinet wants the Imperial Family to announce Prince Tomohito's death as an accidental fall that caused a rib to puncture his heart."
"Heavens, aren't they going to investigate?"
"How could the Prime Minister have the energy to investigate? I heard the Chief Cabinet Secretary is currently contacting various media outlets, planning to blame the official financial deficit and the attack on Kasumigaseki entirely on the Prime Minister."
"My god, isn't Chief Cabinet Secretary Kobayashi a confidant of the Prime Minister? Why would he do that?"
"My uncle-in-law, who works in the Cabinet, said he heard that Secretary Kobayashi has long been dissatisfied with the Prime Minister's subservience to America. It might be because of that."
"So that means the Cabinet is probably going to be in chaos again. Then Prince Tomohito..."
"Yes, he probably died for nothing. After all, who in the Cabinet has the energy to seek justice for him now?"
As the two Cabinet staff members were speaking, they suddenly saw a young girl walking towards them. They stopped abruptly, composed their expressions, and greeted her with a mixture of contempt and formal courtesy.
"Greetings, Your Highness, Princess Kaguya."
In Japan, a princess of the direct imperial line is generally called an Imperial Princess, while the title Princess is used for a female member of the Imperial Family not in the direct line.
And the one these two staff members were seeing now was, naturally, a female member of the Imperial Family.
Amid the seemingly humble greetings of the two staff members, a green-eyed girl with a hime cut, dressed in a kimono, walked towards them. She gave them a slight bow before turning and walking away.
After the girl called Kaguya had left, the staff members began whispering again.
"Speaking of which, isn't Kaguya supposed to be Prince Tomohito's illegitimate daughter?"
"Yes, I heard no one has ever seen Kaguya's birth mother, but Prince Tomohito acknowledged her as his child."
"Doesn't that mean this Highness's days ahead will be very awkward?"
"With Prince Tomohito gone, the people in charge of disciplining Kaguya are in for a treat. They'll probably make a lot of money."
"Keep your voice down, be careful she doesn't hear you."
At that moment, Kaguya, who was walking ahead, paused her steps for a moment before resuming her normal pace and slowly walking away.
After turning a corner into an empty corridor, Kaguya frowned slightly and spoke in a somewhat unnatural tone.
"It seems my so-called father is already dead?"
After she spoke, a low whisper emerged from her shadow.
"It seems you are quite lost, Kaguya Sumeragi."