"Sloth is the member I've seen least frequently at Sin Council meetings."
"She appears to be female, very petite, with messy, voluminous long hair that looks like it hasn't been groomed for ages."
"She hardly ever speaks, and on the rare occasions she attends, she just sits and observes."
"Apparently, she wasn't the previous Sloth's subordinate but was recruited into the organisation after killing the previous Sloth."
"I don't know much about her—I've only seen her attend twice, and even then, it seemed more like making an appearance to prove she's still alive."
"Sounds like a dangerous character." Sharon fiddled with her nails as she remarked coolly, "People who reveal nothing about themselves while quietly observing everything are the most troublesome threats."
Sharon didn't for a second believe the Sin Council members were upstanding citizens.
Even Luo Shu's supposedly kind, beautiful, and adorable sister-in-law, Momo, had only risen to her position by killing the previous Lust.
Expecting decent folk to emerge from the Hell Sect's environment—where killing a titled member meant taking their place—was laughably naive.
Luo Shu merely glanced at Sharon before turning back to Enigma.
"Is that all the intel you have?"
"Yes, that's everything about Sloth." Enigma sounded resigned. "She lives up to her codename—completely untraceable."
Luo Shu nodded. "Continue."
"Lastly, there's Wrath. This one's... special."
"Normally, attendees at Sin Council meetings disguise themselves when projecting their avatars, but Wrath gives the impression she isn't even trying."
Enigma hesitated, as if struggling to find the right words.
"Typically, Wrath appears with white hair and red eyes. Though the avatars conceal faces during meetings, her behaviour is... excessive."
"Excessive how?" Luo Shu asked curiously.
Enigma paused before deadpanning,
"She props her legs on the table, cradling a bowl of what looks like noodles, and just... eats."
"Technically, you can materialise objects during meetings, but they're illusions—they don't actually fill you up. Yet she..."
"Oh, and she wears an enormous bow on her head—so big it practically covers it."
Luo Shu couldn't help but wonder:
White hair, red eyes, a giant bow obscuring her head, eating noodles in a place where food doesn't satisfy hunger... What kind of weirdo was this?
The description was so bizarre, he couldn't even begin to guess who'd behave this outrageously.
Some comic relief character?
Beside him, Sharon couldn't hold back her complaints: "Between you, the deceased Jealousy... why does the Sin Council have so many women?"
"Aside from Pride, it's practically all female."
The unidentified Gluttony is female, Enigma of Greed is also female, Lust is Momo Deviluke, while Sloth and Wrath are also female.
Is this the Hell Sect or a kingdom of women?
Hearing Sharon's muttered complaint, Enigma said faintly:
"Most of the previous generation's Sin members who died were male."
"Hmm?" Sharon froze momentarily before her expression turned odd. "So they were completely wiped out..."
"While I've heard that male casualties dominate during Abyss fragment expeditions and various mystic side incidents... I never expected it to be this severe in the Hell Sect..."
Apart from Pride, it's total annihilation!
Considering Pride's true identity as the butler of an English earl's household—someone who barely needs to venture outside—this suggests... all male members of the Hell Sect worked themselves to death through relentless struggle?
As Sharon entertained these peculiar thoughts, Luo Shu remarked calmly:
"Isn't this perfectly normal?"
"In a dangerous organisation like the Hell Sect, too many people take risks to improve themselves and avoid being eliminated."
"Without proper logistical support, accidents during frequent ventures are inevitable."
"Conversely, female members survive more easily due to differing roles."
Sebastian, as Pride, never needed to struggle externally. Enigma has survived this long by working as a middleman, earning commissions.
Momo naturally possesses plant-manipulation abilities and has now become a Demigod, ensuring no shortage of resources.
After all, while farm owners may go bankrupt, you never hear of them starving to death.
Excluding these three, even the deceased Jealousy was a local power with numerous Hell Girls under her command—she merely hid in the gap between life and death, feeding on souls delivered to her.
From this perspective, the remaining Sloth and Wrath must have similarly low-risk operations enabling their survival.
Therefore...
"Staying away from frontline work seems wisest..." Luo Shu muttered under his breath.
In this world of impending Abyss Descent, where mysticism and the supernatural will surge like tidal waves, frontline ventures offer high rewards but terrifying mortality rates.
So... are production roles more viable?
But can the Calamity Class even engage in production? As doctors?
Luo Shu shook his head, dismissing these scattered thoughts before addressing Enigma:
"As a precaution, while investigating Pride, also look into the unidentified Sloth, Wrath and the new Gluttony to confirm their identities."
"Additionally, monitor movements of Deviluke Star inhabitants."
"Locating even one might enable directly recruiting Lust to our side..."
Though they've never met, Luo Shu strongly suspects Momo Deviluke could become his Familia too—an almost foregone conclusion.
Thus, allocating some focus to intelligence gathering becomes necessary...
After all, who knows how many familiar characters hide in this world?
They're all walking point treasuries—high-yield assets waiting to be leveraged.
When there's an opportunity to obtain something, one should certainly take it.
'So, perhaps I should conduct a population census in Japan... But the Union has been keeping a close eye on me lately... And I don't have the resources or manpower to pull it off...'
Luo Shu narrowed his eyes as a bold idea struck him.
"How about we start a virtual gaming company instead!!"
"I've even thought of the game's name—let's call it Sword Art Online!"
Hearing Luo Shu's sudden declaration, Sharon and Enigma both fell into deep thought.
Weren't we supposed to recruit Lust?
How did we suddenly jump to starting a gaming company, and a virtual one at that...
The two capable Familia members were utterly baffled...