Meanwhile, in the reception room.
Seated side by side on the same sofa, Miko Yotsuya and Hana Yurikawa stared at each other, wide-eyed.
In truth, ever since signing the contract and receiving the information transmitted to their minds, the two had remained like this—locked in a silent, stunned face-off, unable to snap out of it.
In the end, it was Miko Yotsuya who couldn't hold back any longer and spoke first:
"Hana, can you pinch my cheek?"
Hana Yurikawa blinked, seemingly recalling the earlier cheek-pinching incident, and without hesitation extended her mischievous claws.
"Hey~ take this~"
"Ouch!"
Miko Yotsuya quickly shook off Hana Yurikawa's hand, tears welling in her eyes as she covered her face:
"You actually did it?"
"Hehe~" Hana Yurikawa grinned foolishly, playing dumb as she said, "Didn't you ask me to, Miko?"
At this, Miko Yotsuya was left speechless.
'I was just saying it, but you actually went and did it?'
Rubbing her face and waiting for the pain to subside slightly, Miko Yotsuya touched her cheek, still sounding incredulous:
"Anyway, this whole thing is just too unbelievable... becoming a god's Familia and all..."
"Who would've thought that just coming out for a trip to Akihabara to find that fortune-telling granny trending online lately would lead to meeting a god personally recruiting Familia members..."
"Not only that, but after becoming the god's Familia, we actually gained abilities..."
"And even Demigod Rank abilities at that..."
Thinking back to her chance encounter with Luo Shu at the alleyway, Miko Yotsuya still found it hard to believe.
'That was a god... even if in his infancy. Still a god... and we just happened to meet him like that.'
"But my ability seems to only be Elite Rank..." Hana Yurikawa tilted her head in confusion. "Only you got Demigod Rank, right?"
"Huh? Isn't it supposed to be the same for everyone?" Miko Yotsuya's eyes widened, her face full of astonishment. "Don't all members of a god's Familia receive Demigod Rank abilities?"
"That kind of thing is obviously impossible, isn't it?" Hana Yurikawa said blankly.
The two stared at each other, dumbfounded—Miko Yotsuya looking completely bewildered while Hana Yurikawa appeared utterly confused.
After nearly half a minute of this staring contest, Hana Yurikawa finally crossed her arms with exaggerated seriousness, nodding repeatedly:
"Wait a minute, so the reason Miko always sees weird things is because her ability is too strong?"
"And meeting Luo Shu—no, meeting the god—was because of that too?"
"This time is completely different."
Hearing this, Miko Yotsuya couldn't help but retort:
"Before coming to Akihabara, I never imagined that just taking a shortcut would lead to demons handing out flyers, let alone meeting Mr. Luo Shu."
"Besides, my eyes can only see Evil Spirits, not gods, right?"
"So this really isn't my fault at all."
"Who knows~" Hana Yurikawa shrugged, looking helpless.
Seeing this, Miko Yotsuya's expression darkened, but before she could say anything more, the reception room door clicked open on its own, followed by Luo Shu's warm, amused voice:
"It seems you've both grasped the situation."
Hearing the voice, Miko Yotsuya and Hana Yurikawa instinctively turned their heads. Upon seeing Luo Shu, they quickly stood up to greet him.
But as soon as their lips parted, they suddenly realised they didn't know what to call him.
Calling him "god" to his face felt a bit awkward—her mind just couldn't wrap around it. Yet continuing with "Mr Luo Shu" seemed too distant. Unable to voice either address, she could only stare at Luo Shu helplessly, at a complete loss.
Seeing their hesitation, Luo Shu chuckled and said:
"You can just call me Luo Shu. After all, we're family now, aren't we?"
As he spoke, he winked at Miko Yotsuya, his face brimming with amusement.
Hearing this, Miko let out a relieved sigh, though still somewhat awkwardly addressing him:
"Mr Luo Shu."
In contrast, Hana Yurikawa sweetly called out: "Luo Shu~"
"Have a seat."
Luo Shu walked to the single sofa on their right and sat down, gesturing for them to relax:
"No need to be so formal. As I said, we're all family here."
Miko's face flushed slightly at his words before she took her seat. Hana followed suit but couldn't help glancing curiously at Yukino Yukinoshita, who had just entered the reception room.
Meanwhile, Luo Shu's gaze fell on the stack of contracts still lying on the table. Picking them up, he skimmed the terms and remarked:
"Oh? This one's disguised as an employment contract on the surface?"
With a swipe of his hand over the first contract, the printed clauses vanished without a trace, replaced by intricate, textured patterns.
These patterns, in fact, were the true form of the contract—its contents only legible through mental intrusion, permitted solely by Luo Shu.
Of course, those qualified to sign would receive a far more comprehensive introduction via the Divine Pantheon Reconstruction System's infusion.
As for the authors of those explanations...
Luo Shu glanced up at Yukino Yukinoshita, who was approaching with a tea set:
"Well done, Yukino."
"I merely drafted some copies as requested."
Yukino set down the tea set with composed grace, meticulously cleaning the utensils before beginning the tea ceremony.
Whether it was the basic information currently infused by the Divine Pantheon System or the layers of dummy contracts masking the agreements, all had been prepared jointly by Yukino and Haruno.
For the Fairy of Knowledge, adept at information manipulation, such tasks were hardly challenging—more like exercises to hone her abilities.
"Don't downplay it. The fact that you painstakingly used different contract templates for each document proves you're on the right path."
The Class "Fairy of Knowledge" was precisely what it sounded like—a role specialising in manipulating knowledge and information.
That Yukino actively sought to learn and apply knowledge in diverse ways showed her constant effort to align with this conceptual framework—the very secret to advancing her abilities.
"Perhaps we'll soon be celebrating your promotion."
After dangling this carrot before Yukino, Luo Shu turned back to Miko and Hana with a smile:
"You've grasped the basics, so I'll skip the preamble. Let's focus on what concerns you both most—your abilities."
Miko immediately perked up, hanging on his every word.
At this point, Luo Shu gazed into Miko Yotsuya's golden eyes, his tone both admiring and regretful:
"Yin-Yang Insight degraded to Demigod Rank, is it?"
"What a pity..."
"To think that the ability was an Authority."
As he spoke, Luo Shu couldn't help recalling the Divine Pantheon's notification when Miko Yotsuya awakened her ability after signing the contract.
[Yin-Yang Insight (Demigod Rank)]
[The ultimate eyes that perceive all Three Realms, symbolising Yin and Yang, wielding the Authority over life and death — a variation of the Eyes of God.]
(Note: Due to the holder's insufficient foundational qualities, this ability has inevitably entered a self-sealing process, resulting in degradation from Authority to the Demigod level.)
Only after seeing this notification did Luo Shu understand the true profundity of Miko Yotsuya's ability — an Authority that only beings of Apostle Rank or above could wield.
The only shame was that the person possessing this ability was just an ordinary high school girl, unable to unleash even one ten-thousandth of these eyes' potential beyond their basic seeing function.
'Still, all was not lost...'
With this thought, Luo Shu looked at Miko Yotsuya meaningfully:
"Miko, would you be interested... in staying over tonight?"