Furube Yurayura...

Kana Shizumi slowly rose to his feet.

Though the situation was unclear, this sudden change in the outside environment, coupled with the air saturated with cursed energy... without a doubt, this was a Domain in the literal sense.

Just as had been mentioned before.

A Domain was a fully formed construct combining Barrier Technique and an innate technique, and under normal circumstances, it came equipped with a Sure-Hit effect.

So almost immediately, Kana Shizumi activated his cursed energy for defense.

At the same time, he pressed his palms together and, following Kenjaku's deliberate guidance from some time ago, constructed a complete technique in a short span of time.

"Simple Domain!!!"

With Kana Shizumi's feet as its boundary, a circular vacuum zone roughly three meters wide abruptly appeared.

This was a simple application of Barrier Technique, a special measure constructed specifically to counter Domains... its effect could neutralize the Sure-Hit effect within a Domain, allowing the caster time to consider countermeasures and make further judgments.

Yet the anticipated attack never came.

Even after Kana Shizumi completed his movements, the surrounding environment showed no changes.

It was as though the other party had acted solely to achieve the result of pulling him "into the Domain"... but what was the point of that?

He did not know why, but there was even less reason to lower his guard over something like this.

Kana Shizumi simply continued maintaining his Simple Domain while swiftly surveying his surroundings.

All he could see was a plain-colored landscape. Aside from the grass, there were only sparse shrubs and trees.

Since the fog had thinned considerably, visibility extended to nearly thirty meters... Kana Shizumi looked around, but found nothing else worth using as a reference.

It was a Domain.

But it seemed the other side had yet to launch an attack?

Waiting to die had never been his style. Kana Shizumi quickly began to move.

First, he confirmed that he was halfway up the mountain. He looked toward the summit, but found nothing...

He tried making his way downhill.

The reason was simple. The mass of cursed energy was concentrated at the mountaintop. If his senses were not mistaken, the enemy was directly above him.

Then getting away from the enemy was his only goal, and going downhill was naturally the right choice.

Yet after taking only two steps, Kana Shizumi suddenly stopped...

Frowning, he looked down at the circle of light beneath his feet.

The area marking his Simple Domain was gradually being "eroded," slowly "dissolved."

The appearance of such a phenomenon plainly meant that the Simple Domain was contending against something.

In other words.

He was under attack...

I've been locked onto? No, if that were the case, the attacks should be much more frequent...

He knew his own limits well. As a Grade 2 Sorcerer, once the other party set their sights on him, there was only so much a Simple Domain could do.

Kenjaku's teachings proved crucial at this moment.

I must have triggered some sort of curse within the Domain, causing it to launch something like an automatic attack...

Kana Shizumi stopped walking, silently turned around, and looked toward the mountaintop.

Going downhill would trigger a curse—an automatic attack.

That meant he could only choose to go uphill.

What exactly was the other party trying to accomplish?

As his thoughts churned, Kana Shizumi heard faint rustling from nearby.

His expression changed slightly. By reflex, he put on the mask and hat he carried with him.

—After his encounter with Mai Zenin, Kana Shizumi had begun carrying items to conceal his identity whenever he went out.

It was to prevent exactly this sort of situation... he was not True Person. What if people remembered his face after seeing it too many times?

Before long, three overlapping figures appeared in the distance.

The sounds drew closer as well.

"A Domain?!"

"Pollock roe!!!"

"Toge says it looks like one, but it should be different! We haven't been attacked inside it, which means there's probably something wrong with the Domain itself... Huh? Wait, wait, wait."

A Panda poked his head out of the fog and met Kana Shizumi's eyes.

"There's someone hereeeeee!!!"

Kana Shizumi could not help but choke up.

—I was about to say that.

What normal person casually ran into a Panda on a mountain?!

But Kana Shizumi quickly calmed down.

After all, he had even met a thousand-year-old monster. Was one Panda really going to surprise him? Of course... more importantly, he had more or less realized why they were here.

"Panda, Toge... that's Inumaki's name, right? And there are three of you. You're from Tokyo Jujutsu High?"

Inumaki and Fushiguro broke through the mist alongside each other, briefly meeting Kana Shizumi's gaze.

"Fried chicken!"

Almost immediately, Inumaki lowered his stance, gripping the collar covering his mouth with his right hand, his face filled with caution.

Fushiguro beside him was still trying to process the situation, but Panda had already assumed a defensive stance.

"Fushiguro! Toge says this guy's a sorcerer... and that thing under his feet is a Simple Domain!!!"

This thing had exposed his identity...

But that was only to be expected. After all, it was never something he could hide for long.

Seeing Fushiguro Megumi belatedly assume the opening stance to summon the Divine Dogs, Kana Shizumi, who had been calmly contemplating the situation, reacted as if he had stepped on a mousetrap.

Hiss... fuck, don't!

If it were only Inumaki and Panda, they would be troublesome for Kana Shizumi, but not nearly enough to make escape impossible.

But adding a self-destructing kid to the mix was genuinely too much.

He was truly afraid this kid would suddenly lose it and start chanting Furube Yurayura, then smile and say, "I'll go die first," leaving him to solo Mahoraga...

Then what am I supposed to do? All I can do is die for you!

Retreating and raising both hands, Kana Shizumi opened his mouth.

"We're not enemies. Calm down."

"Salmon roe!"

"Toge says no good person would act this covertly. Anyone who does not even dare show their real face must be suspicious!"

—How do you two communicate so efficiently? How are you getting so much information out of two or three words?

Suppressing the urge to complain, Kana Shizumi racked his brain, intending to say something more.

Bzzzz...

A humming resonance came from above, making the three people and one cursed corpse all turn their heads at once.

Something was happening on the mountain... what was the one who had constructed this Domain about to do?