Suguru Geto's Confusion

On the neon-lit streets of Tokyo, Suguru Geto moved alone through the crowd.

"Geto, I've noticed you've been restless lately. Don't push yourself too hard—take a rare break for once!"

Yaga's words echoed in his ears.

Geto sighed, rubbing his hair in irritation.

He suddenly stopped, turning his head toward a dark alley.

The scent of a curse.

Geto stepped into the alley, his figure gradually swallowed by darkness and shadow.

As he walked, the end of the alley revealed a man's curses and a woman's cries.

"You filthy bitch! When are you gonna pay back the money you owe me?"

"I'm sorry! Give me one more month, and I'll pay back the principal with interest!"

"Boss, junkies are full of shit. But this bitch has some looks—why not sell her to a brothel and recoup some losses?"

Clang—

The sound of a can rang out from the corner.

Geto emerged from the darkness, sweeping his gaze expressionlessly over the scene.

Three men and one woman. A scar-faced man with a knife, followed by two dyed-hair underlings. The woman being hounded for debt looked terrified and haggard.

Geto noticed the needle marks on her arm and her unconscious, habitual sniffing.

"Hey! Kid! Who the hell are you?"

Scarface pointed his knife at Geto, jerking his chin to signal his underlings forward.

The blond beside him grinned, pulling a butterfly knife from his pocket and twirling it in front of Geto.

"Hey, kid! Hand over all your cash!"

Geto took a deep breath, forcing patience. "Please leave quickly. It's dangerous here."

"Huh? You on something, kid?"

"This guy a rookie cop or something?"

"Hey hey hey! Shota! Show some respect to the officer!"

The group laughed carelessly, completely unaware of the shadow on the wall behind them twisting and deforming.

Geto muttered, eyes vacant. "We sorcerers risk our lives fighting—is it to protect people like this?"

"Hey! What the hell are you mumbling about?"

"Hand over the money now, or I'll—"

Shhk—

A creature with no skin or hair, its whole body pale white, limbs long and thin, its entire face just a single mouth blooming like a flower, lined with rows of sharp teeth.

At that moment, the curse leaped down from the wall and swallowed Scarface whole in one bite.

In their dying moments, ordinary people could also see curses.

Now, the two dyed-hair underlings and the drug-addicted woman scrambled away in terror.

"Monster! Monster!"

Before they could take two steps, the curse's sharp, slender claws pinned them to the ground instantly.

Throughout it all, Geto watched coldly.

Sorcerers protecting non-sorcerers—that was supposed to be his conviction.

But at this moment, he had no desire to protect these people.

Once the three had breathed their last, the curse lifted its head, its eyeless face seeming to fix its gaze on Geto.

Roooar!!!

"Annoying."

Geto said coldly, waving his hand. Blue flames seemed to ignite on the first-grade curse, its body turning to ash.

Cursed energy swirled in Geto's palm, forming a small glowing sphere.

A rift tore open in the space behind Geto, and a curse's hand reached out, holding a can of honey.

Geto reached for the honey, then paused, pulling the curse's hand back.

He looked at the cursed sphere in his hand, hesitated for a moment, then swallowed it in one gulp.

"Ugh..."

The familiar taste—like a rag used to wipe up vomit, nauseating.

Summer sunlight streamed through the window, falling on Geto's body.

Physically and mentally exhausted, he sat on the bench, enjoying the leisurely afternoon.

"Suguru-senpai!"

"Oh, it's Haibara!"

Facing this always warm and cheerful junior, Suguru Geto revealed a rare smile.

Although the other party had a carefree personality, it was precisely this passionate attitude toward life that made Geto feel the meaning of existence.

"Want something to drink?"

"To have the honor of being treated by senpai—then cola it is!"

Geto helplessly scratched his head. "What's this about 'honor'? I'm just a senior one year above you."

"No!"

Yu Haibara declared loudly, "Suguru Geto-senpai became a Special Grade sorcerer at a young age, earned the title of the 'Strongest Trio,' and is a benchmark for all sorcerers!"

Although Haibara also deeply respected Gojo Sawa and Gojo Satoru of the "Strongest Trio," the one he admired most was Geto, who came from a non-sorcerer family.

Hearing Haibara's praise, even Geto felt a bit embarrassed.

"I'm not that great..."

"By the way, senpai, tomorrow I'm heading to a faraway place for a mission!"

"Is that so? Then bring back some local specialties."

"What flavor does senpai like? Salty or sweet?"

Geto pinched his chin. "Hmm... Taku and Satoru might want some too. I prefer salty, so bring a bit of both!"

"Got it, senpai!"

"So, how's the sorcerer work going? Not too tough or anything?"

Haibara propped his chin on his hand. "Uh... with my simple brain, I'm not great at thinking about these things, but..."

He flashed a sunny smile and gave himself a thumbs-up. "Giving it my all and doing what I can—I feel great!"

As the two chatted, a voluptuous blonde woman suddenly appeared.

"Yo! Long time no see, Geto! What type of women do you like?"

Geto covered his face. "Please don't ask weird questions like that at Jujutsu High."

Haibara, however, was quite sincere, raising his hand seriously. "I like girls who can eat!"

"Uh... Haibara..."

"What's wrong, senpai?"

"...Nothing."

Geto looked speechlessly at this naive junior.

"Ah! I've got things to do, senpai—I'll take my leave!"

Haibara checked the time and hurried off.

"Hahaha! What a lively guy!"

Yuki Tsukumo nodded at Haibara's retreating figure. "What a straightforward fellow!"

"I think sorcerers ought to learn to be more suspicious of others."

Geto sighed, then turned to Tsukumo. "By the way, why are you back at the school this time?"

Tsukumo crossed her legs. "Official business, of course. I'm looking for Gojo Sawa."

"Official business?"

Geto's face twisted in disgust. "A waste of space who's a Special Grade sorcerer but never takes missions, just loafing around overseas—you have the right to say those two words?"

Tsukumo's face darkened. "Hey hey hey! You sure don't pull any punches!"

With that, she flopped back onto the bench, her art style shifting into chibi.

"I hate Jujutsu High the most!"

"Throwing a tantrum~"

"No! Just kidding! I just don't see eye-to-eye with the higher-ups. Compared to Jujutsu High's symptomatic treatment, what I do is treat the root cause—solving the source of the curse problem."

"Hm?"

Geto looked up, showing interest. "Treat the root cause? What do you mean?"

Tsukumo dropped a bombshell. "Not exorcising curses like you all do, but creating a world without curses!"