Tokyo Meeting

"I sensed that powerful cursed spirit aura long ago. I didn't want to come over at first, but since you lived nearby, I figured I should check on you. Hehe, if I'd been a step later, I would've lost a good student." Satoru Gojo stood up and pointed at the food and bandages on the table. "I bought you something to eat, and those bandages are for you too. Oh, and remember to pay me back when you have money."

Lin Ran had been deeply moved, but when he heard Gojo add that he should remember to pay him back, his gratitude instantly dropped by half.

"Though you can call me Mr. Gojo, I still prefer being called Teacher Gojo. All right, recover from your injuries. Come to Tokyo yourself in a few days." Gojo waved his hand, opened the door, and left.

"Thank you, Teacher Gojo!" Lin Ran called after him before finally resting his head back on the pillow.

Only then did he realize that his calves had already been wrapped in bandages. His entire body was covered in horrifying marks left by the steel bars that had constricted him.

"Surviving a disaster..." Lin Ran sighed. That Purple Cursed Spirit had truly been powerful—or rather, he was too weak right now, so he had been no match for it at all.

With Satoru Gojo involved, the Purple Cursed Spirit probably would not appear again anytime soon. It might even stop feeding on the employees' resentment and vitality.

"Once I've made it in Tokyo, I'll come back and deal with you," Lin Ran said through gritted teeth. Even the slightest movement made him hurt badly enough to cry out.

It was only after resting for three or four days that Lin Ran could get out of bed and walk. Of course, he had still gotten up during those days to eat and drink, but it hurt far too much, so he had spent almost all his time lying in bed scrolling through his phone.

Over the past few days, Lin Ran had also come across a great deal of information on his phone. There were plenty of supernatural incidents overseas as well, and China had an especially large number of them. He just did not know whether they were related to cursed spirits and cursed objects.

The next day, Lin Ran packed his luggage and set off for Tokyo. Although he was still wrapped in bandages, he had to leave. Today was the day they were gathering in Tokyo.

As Lin Ran sat on the high-speed train, quite a few people glanced at him. Though he was a handsome guy, most of their attention was focused on the bandages wrapped around him.

They were simply curious. Such a handsome young man—how had he become disabled?

Lin Ran did not care about their stares. None of them knew each other anyway, and once they got off the train, no one would remember anyone else.

Sendai City was not far from Tokyo, so Lin Ran soon arrived at his destination.

Once they reached the meeting place, they could head to Tokyo Metropolitan Jujutsu High School.

"The time's almost up. Why hasn't the person you mentioned arrived yet?" Fushiguro Megumi leaned against a wall as pedestrians flowed past around them, while Satoru Gojo stood nearby watching.

"Well, he is a patient, after all. Cut him some slack." Gojo smiled faintly, then suddenly pointed toward a spot in the crowd. "Isn't that him?"

Fushiguro Megumi looked over at his words. A tall, handsome boy was walking toward them. The main reason he recognized him at first glance was the eye-catching bandages wrapped around his body.

"Hello, everyone!" Lin Ran greeted them with the hand that had recovered relatively well once he approached.

"Go on, introduce yourself to your classmate." Gojo glanced at Lin Ran.

"Oh, okay. Hello, my name is Lin Ran. I'm fourteen years old. Please take care of me from now on." Lin Ran extended a bandaged hand toward Fushiguro Megumi, then thought better of it and switched to the other hand.

Fushiguro Megumi froze for a moment. "Lin Ran? You're that student from Sugisawa Third High School who died?"

"I see..." Fushiguro Megumi understood. Since Lin Ran was here, he must have cursed energy and know jujutsu. That explained how he had been able to escape when he encountered the cursed spirit a few days ago, even if he could not defeat it. Still, he found it strange that two people from the same school had become his classmates.

"Are you all right like that?" Fushiguro Megumi reached out and briefly shook Lin Ran's hand. He was not particularly good at dealing with people, but he still needed to show respect when meeting someone for the first time.

"Haha, I'm fine, I'm fine. It's just a minor injury." Lin Ran laughed awkwardly. A minor injury? He had nearly kicked the bucket.

Fushiguro Megumi, however, assumed that Lin Ran had suffered those injuries from the cursed object at Sugisawa Middle School. He himself had been badly injured then too, but after a week, he had mostly recovered.

This showed that Lin Ran's strength was probably average. Perhaps he had only just stepped through the threshold of becoming a Jujutsu Sorcerer.

Naturally, Lin Ran had no idea that Fushiguro Megumi thought this way, nor did he need to tell everyone about his strength. After all, he had just been humiliated by a Special Grade Cursed Spirit.

"Why isn't Itadori here yet?" Fushiguro Megumi realized that Lin Ran was not the last to arrive. Yuji Itadori was.

"I'm here, I'm here!"

As if they had planned it beforehand, Fushiguro Megumi had barely urged him on when Yuji Itadori arrived.

"Sorry, sorry, I'm late." Yuji Itadori scratched the back of his head apologetically.

But when he saw Lin Ran standing beside Satoru Gojo, he froze. "You... Lin Ran, you're not dead?"

"Hahaha, I'm not that easy to kill. I'm alive and well." Lin Ran had wanted to pat his chest, but remembered his injuries and wisely decided against it.

"You scared me to death. The school even put out a notice saying you died in an accident. I didn't expect you to be alive and well. That's great." Yuji Itadori walked up to Lin Ran and looked him over. Though they had only been classmates and had not talked much before, they saw each other every day. He was happy that Lin Ran was alive.

"But then again, why are you here?" Yuji Itadori looked curiously at Satoru Gojo and Fushiguro Megumi. With Lin Ran included among them, the situation seemed rather strange.

"Oh~ He's a student who'll be joining Jujutsu High School too, just like you. Since you already know each other, that saves me the trouble of introducing you." Gojo then looked at Lin Ran and added, "Also, Yuji Itadori is the vessel of Ryomen Sukuna, a Special Grade Cursed Spirit far, far stronger than the Special Grade Cursed Spirit you encountered before... Though a Special Grade Cursed Spirit that can use a domain is quite formidable too."

"I see." Lin Ran nodded as if he had not known, and Gojo waved a hand. "All right, everyone's here. Let's go."

"Everyone's here? Shouldn't there still be..." Lin Ran stopped halfway through. He had wanted to say that Nobara Kugisaki had not arrived yet, but then remembered that he should not know that, since he was supposed to be unaware.

"Is there a problem?" Gojo turned to glance at Lin Ran, then seemed to remember something. "Oh, right, there's one more, but she won't be here until tomorrow. Let's go first."

"Yes," Yuji Itadori and Lin Ran replied in unison.