Even after learning the specifics regarding Kasumigaoka Utaha, Yukinoshita Yukino, while understanding Leo's approach, still felt slightly disgruntled.
"Does Sacred Gear have a tendency to prefer choosing females? Or perhaps beautiful females?"
Yukinoshita Yukino was clearly still suspicious about the fact that all of Leo's Retainers were beautiful girls.
This made Leo's expression turn into a knowing, half-amused smile.
"So, you think it would be better if I took on some males as Retainers?"
Upon hearing this, Yukinoshita Yukino spoke without hesitation.
"Preferably not. I don't want this place to become a chaotic mess."
The implication of her words was that if males were allowed to join, they would definitely mess up relationships.
Yukinoshita Yukino inherently had a tendency toward mild narcissism in front of others, believing herself to be cute—which was indeed the case—so she had been confessed to by boys countless times since childhood, and had caused quite a few incidents because of it.
Yuuki Asuna, conversely, did not know if she had encountered similar situations, but even Yukinoshita Yukino had to admit that Asuna's level of cuteness was not inferior to her own, and she was certainly the ideal girlfriend candidate in the minds of many boys.
If they added Kasumigaoka Utaha, who was the most popular girl at Sobu High School and whose fan club was the largest, Yukinoshita Yukino could easily imagine what the future would look like if any boys joined.
Therefore, Yukinoshita Yukino belonged to the faction that opposed males joining the group.
"Then why are you still complaining?"
Leo rolled his eyes at Yukinoshita Yukino.
"It is excusable for me to think this way, but for you, the master, to only recruit beautiful female Retainers inherently makes one suspect you have ulterior motives."
Yukinoshita Yukino pointed this out unceremoniously, and then, as if something occurred to her, suddenly asked: "Speaking of which, I wanted to ask if there is a third Sacred Gear Holder at Sobu High School besides Kasumigaoka-senpai and me?"
"Do you think Sacred Gear Holders are as common as cabbages?" Leo curled his lips and said, "Humans who are chosen by Sacred Gear are inherently rare. For Sobu High School to produce two Sacred Gear Holders, you and Kasumigaoka, is already considered exceptional."
The implication was clear: Leo had not sensed the existence of Sacred Gear in anyone other than Yukinoshita Yukino and Kasumigaoka Utaha.
This either means that someone possesses a highly unusual Sacred Gear that is deeply concealed—to the extent that even Leo, with his outstanding detection abilities, failed to notice its presence—or that there truly is no third Sacred Gear Holder.
Of course, it is also possible that someone is deliberately concealing themselves, just as Leo, Yukinoshita Yukino, and Yuuki Asuna have all hidden their identities as Sacred Gear Holders after their internal Sacred Gear awakened, by controlling its power and fluctuations, making them difficult to detect.
However, this would mean that someone's Sacred Gear has already awakened without Leo's knowledge, and that person is already consciously able to control the Sacred Gear's power to achieve self-concealment.
Leo found this rather unlikely. After all, Sobu High School was his territory, and he had been paying close attention to this small area, constantly conducting secret detections. If a suspicious individual who had already stepped into the supernatural world truly appeared, he should have noticed their existence long ago.
Given this, Leo was more inclined to believe that there were no other Sacred Gear Holders at Sobu High School, and Yukinoshita Yukino and Kasumigaoka Utaha were the only two remaining Sacred Gear Holders.
"However, Sacred Gear is not entirely innate. Some Sacred Gear may search for a new host after the original host passes away, thereby taking residence in someone at Sobu High School."
Leo informed Yukinoshita Yukino of this, causing her to become thoughtful.
"In other words, there are no Sacred Gear Holders besides us right now, but there's no guarantee that won't change in the future, right?"
Yukinoshita Yukino sought confirmation.
"That's right." Leo nodded and said, "Or, a new Sacred Gear Holder might transfer in later, just like Asuna."
This would require luck.
Furthermore, even if he encountered one, Leo might not necessarily be interested.
Most Sacred Gear are ultimately unremarkable, possessing only minor special abilities. Only a small fraction of Sacred Gear are truly powerful, but the more powerful the Sacred Gear, the rarer it is, and the rarer the Sacred Gear, the harder it is for it to suddenly appear. Relying on this kind of luck is somewhat unreliable, and Leo does not count on it.
Last time, during a mission to eliminate a Rogue Demon, he encountered Yuuki Asuna, who possessed a rare and powerful Sacred Gear. Leo considered this to be a massive stroke of luck, and he did not expect to have such good fortune again anytime soon.
"In a word, excellent Retainers are still very rare. We should secure every one we can; letting one slip away would be a genuine loss."
Although Leo still could not confirm what Sacred Gear resided within Kasumigaoka Utaha, based on his investigations over the past two years, he could be certain that it was definitely not some common, run-of-the-mill item.
Judging by the Sacred Gear fluctuations he was able to detect from time to time, at the very least, it was a Sacred Gear that could be utilized in actual combat, and it might even be a top-tier Sacred Gear, second only to a god-slaying tool, just like Yuuki Asuna's "Holy Sword Creation."
As for whether it was a god-slaying tool... Leo could not be certain, but he believed the possibility was slim.
Because the strongest recorded fluctuation of that Sacred Gear was only at the level of a top-tier Sacred Gear, still quite a distance from the level of a god-slaying tool.
Unless a significant portion of this Sacred Gear's fluctuation remains hidden and has not been detected by him, the possibility of Kasumigaoka Utaha being a god-slaying tool Wielder is close to zero.
Leo did not expect to win the special prize of a god-slaying tool Wielder; he only hoped to find a first prize that was not significantly worse than Yuuki Asuna.
This hope was much stronger, especially after Leo's devil chess piece reacted to Kasumigaoka Utaha.
"Which pieces reacted to Senpai?"
Yukinoshita Yukino seemed to have reached the same conclusion as Leo, and could not help but ask.
Leo did not conceal the information.
"'Rook', 'Bishop', 'Pawn', and... 'Queen'."
Upon hearing this, Yukinoshita Yukino's expression instantly shifted slightly.
"Even the 'Queen' piece reacted?"
Did that not imply that Kasumigaoka Utaha had the potential to become Leo's second-in-command and lead all of them?
"It was only a faint reaction." Leo looked at Yukinoshita Yukino's slightly changing expression and immediately chuckled, saying, "Didn't you also cause the 'Queen' piece to react back then?"
When it came to triggering a reaction from the devil chess piece, Yukinoshita Yukino was truly exceptional, as she had caused *all* the devil chess piece to react at that time.
"Then which one reacted the strongest?"
Yukinoshita Yukino relaxed her expression while continuing to inquire.
Leo uttered a single word.
"'Rook'."
After Kasumigaoka Utaha finished touring the manor, Yukinoshita Yukino stepped forward and took the senpai to carry out devil work.
Yuuki Asuna was still just a novice in this regard, so Leo had Yukinoshita Yukino take Kasumigaoka Utaha to observe her work.
Yukinoshita Yukino had previously acted as if she strongly objected to Kasumigaoka Utaha joining, but after understanding the full situation from Leo, she tacitly approved of his approach and was willing to cooperate with him.
Thus, under Yukinoshita Yukino's guidance, Kasumigaoka Utaha experienced a Magic Circle jump for the first time, traveled to the summoner's home, and observed Yukinoshita Yukino's devil work throughout the entire process.
This observation continued until the middle of the night.
By the time Yukinoshita Yukino brought Kasumigaoka Utaha back to the manor, Kasumigaoka Utaha's eyes were filled with exhaustion and fatigue, yet she also looked satisfied.
"Devil work is quite interesting."
As soon as Kasumigaoka Utaha returned, she shared her thoughts in front of Leo.
"I thought devil work would be more evil and terrifying, like what appears in movies and TV shows. But, in the end... it feels similar to the nature of an odd-jobs agency?"
Yukinoshita Yukino had taken Kasumigaoka Utaha to fulfill three wishes in total: helping someone repair a damaged roof, driving away harmful wild beasts, and treating the illness of the person's child.
This was indeed much more normal than Kasumigaoka Utaha had imagined, and at least not as terrifying as the general public believed, where making a deal with a devil seemed like committing heinous crimes, unforgivable.
"There are also those who complete the type of evil and terrifying wishes you mentioned, Senpai, without any hesitation."
Leo had Yuuki Asuna pour Kasumigaoka Utaha a cup of tea to refresh herself, then chuckled and said, "Devils and humans are essentially not much different. Some humans earnestly perform work that contributes to society, while others secretly commit heinous acts."
"The same goes for devils. Some do not care about the nature of the work for the sake of performance and status. As long as someone makes a wish and the person can pay the price, they will complete it without any scruples."
"But there are also those like us who are very selective about the content of the wish and the character of the person making the wish. If a morally bankrupt fellow summons us, we not only won't grant their wish, but we might even turn around and act on behalf of heaven to eliminate them."
"Of course, this kind of behavior is not highly advocated in the devil industry."
Leo explained the advantages and disadvantages, causing Kasumigaoka Utaha to give him a long, deep look.
"You are quite honest, Demon Lord."
Kasumigaoka Utaha wore a knowing half-smile.
"It is merely the truth; it has nothing to do with honesty."
Leo, on the other hand, looked unconcerned.
"Since that is the case, I have no reason to hesitate." Kasumigaoka Utaha seemed to have made up her mind, looking directly at Leo and saying, "Reincarnating as a devil—I agree to this."
Hearing this, Leo smiled and extended one hand towards Kasumigaoka Utaha.
"Welcome aboard."