Sakuradamon.
Metropolitan Police Department Headquarters, Communications Command Centre.
Ring ring ring!!
The phones kept ringing incessantly.
An operator picked up a call, saying:
"Hello, this is the Communications Command Centre. How may I assist you?"
The female operator's sweet voice sounded through the receiver.
Yet the next second, a panicked scream came from the other end:
"Taito Ward... the entire Taito Ward has turned into ice sculptures!"
"Hurry, send the Disaster Countermeasures Unit immediately!!"
Hearing the hysterical shouting, the operator instinctively held the phone away from her ear. Only after the screaming stopped did she continue politely:
"Understood, please hold while we contact the Disaster Countermeasures Unit. For immediate emergencies, you may dial 110 to be connected to the nearest police box."
The moment she finished speaking, a distraught male voice erupted:
"I AM the officer from Taito Ward's police box!!"
The operator's professional composure cracked.
As she stood dumbfounded, the command centre erupted with a cacophony of ringing phones.
...
Akihabara Town, Hidden Management Department Headquarters.
Drawn by the massive magical fluctuations, everyone had gathered on the rooftop, gazing toward Taito Ward.
Luo Shu stood at the edge, staring at the silver-white landscape beyond Akihabara, clicking his tongue:
"Serafall actually unleashed freezing magic on this scale... Who did she run into? Could she have cornered Aya?"
Sensing the enormous magical waves from across the way, Luo Shu realised things had escalated beyond his expectations.
He'd known Serafall would make waves, but this disturbance seemed to surpass even the demon viscount's appearance last time.
The last incident had affected only Akihabara Town, but now it seemed to be the entire Taito Ward.
Was Serafall really going this far?
Beside Luo Shu, Yukino Yukinoshita's expression showed subtle discomfort as she said: "The ice and snow stretch endlessly... Has the entire Taito Ward been frozen?"
Tokyo's Taito Ward borders Chiyoda Ward. To be precise, beyond Akihabara lies the area of Taito Ward.
Thus, standing atop the Hidden Management Department building, the numerous superhumans present could witness the scene unfolding in Taito Ward.
At that moment, one of Kurumi Tokisaki's clones emerged from Luo Shu's shadow, her face showing surprise as she remarked:
"My, my, this energy fluctuation... To sense it so clearly from such a distance is quite something..."
Meanwhile, Origami Tobiichi, now clad in her Spiritual Equipment resembling a white wedding dress, stated expressionlessly:
"The energy released just now was roughly more than twice my total Spiritual Power..."
"And it seems that level of power hasn't even reached her limits..."
Due to the evening's operation, Luo Shu had taken Origami to the Dream Simulation Chamber to familiarise herself with her abilities. She now knew her Spiritual Power reserves were among the higher end for Demigods.
Yet even so, Serafall's total energy reserves struck her as absurdly high.
"In terms of internal energy, that scale just now was likely only about thirty per cent of Miss Serafall's total demonic power."
Nia Honjo, also in her Spiritual Equipment, floated above the group while holding Raziel, clicking her tongue in amazement:
"How exaggerated. Her innate energy capacity is over fifty times that of an ordinary human. Even compared to an average Class Demigod, there's a fifteen to thirtyfold difference..."
"Is this the inherent advantage of a Satan's bloodline?"
Kotoko Iwanaga didn't fully agree with Nia's assessment:
"But a Demigod's strength isn't just about internal energy."
"Rather, it's their Spiritual Power - the extension of soul force that integrates their entire being - along with their major abilities that truly determine combat effectiveness."
"Pure energy alone can't defeat a properly trained Demigod. It's a matter of qualitative suppression."
Hearing this, Kurumi gave Kotoko a somewhat amused look:
"Yet, before reaching the Demigod level, the amount of internal energy still provides significant advantages. This holds true across all mystic side systems."
The real-world systems were complex. Below the Demigod level, there were Qi, spiritual energy, shamanic energy - various energies biased towards specific aspects, making unified terminology difficult. Only upon reaching Demigod or Top Tier Class Hero Rank, after attaining initial conceptual power, would energy unify materially and spiritually, collectively termed Spiritual Power.
As Serafall hadn't become a Demigod, she used her innate demonic magic power instead.
And this magical energy scale far surpassed the total Spiritual Power of some Demigods.
However, despite the massive quantity, Kurumi doubted a Satan would casually deploy such large-scale attacks:
"Moreover, I don't believe that Satan lady would use such widespread techniques without special significance."
Hearing this, Luo Shu turned to Kotoko Iwanaga and asked: "Kotoko, the intelligence you gave Serafall should only cover the movements of Truth Astronomy members with Classes, right?"
Upon hearing this, Kotoko Iwanaga made an awkward face:
"The locations were provided by you and Nia, Luo Shu! That Satan lady probably uncovered the Witch of the Notaria during her investigation!!"
"That complicates things." Luo Shu scratched his head slightly, speaking with some resignation: "The Four Great Satans of the Underworld confronting an orthodox Demigod is practically equivalent to two Demigods fighting to the death..."
"A battle of that scale..." Luo Shu's tone suddenly shifted: "Isn't that rather perfect~"
At this moment, Luo Shu revealed a smile brimming with mischief:
"Yukino!"
"If anyone contacts me, tell them I'm busy resuscitating Utaha! No availability for deployment."
As he spoke, Luo Shu shot a glance at Utaha Kasumigaoka beside him. Utaha blinked in surprise, then very obligingly began swaying unsteadily before collapsing into Luo Shu's arms within seconds.
This sudden performance left most people in the room momentarily stunned.
Luo Shu then addressed the dumbfounded Yukino Yukinoshita:
"See? This is the situation. So no matter who asks for me, say I'm unavailable."
"Understood." Yukino immediately grasped Luo Shu's intention, nodding before glancing at Kurumi Tokisaki, Origami Tobiichi, and the yawning Mukuro Hoshimiya nearby: "What about the others?"
Luo Shu replied with complete nonchalance:
"That's simple enough. If they ask about mobilising other Demigods, say our Demigods are needed to garrison various continents - whether it's Europe or America's headquarters, the point is they're not in Japan."
"Do they think the SDS has so many Demigods to spare that four or five would be stationed in one nation?"
These words prompted rather peculiar expressions from all the girls present.
Weren't all of the SDS Demigods currently in Japan, anyway?
Faced with Luo Shu's request, the truth-abiding Miss Yukino Yukinoshita maintained her impassive expression:
"I understand. Mobilisation requires time, Director. You're occupied with rescuing a comrade and unavailable. For specific matters, please await further notice."
Nodding at this, Luo Shu gently patted Yukino's shoulder and sighed:
"Welcome to the dirty world of adults, Yukino."
'That's not really something one should be welcomed with...'
Yukino's eyebrows lifted slightly as she thought with resignation.
...
Meanwhile, Union officials stationed in Japan finally received the report of abnormal activity from Taito Ward.