Grade-One Cursed Spirit, Miss Sadako!

"Hee hee hee, ha ha ha!"

"Can you find me? I'm right here!"

Holding the head of a Divine Dog in his hands, Megumi Fushiguro stared down the dim corridor ahead.

The strange laughter came from somewhere within, carrying a surging malice that made him deeply uncomfortable.

Megumi nervously backed up a few steps, then caught sight of Ronawa, who seemed utterly out of place amid the tense atmosphere.

While he stood in a tense standoff with the cursed spirit here,

Ronawa had somehow found a rice ball and was sitting on a somewhat worn sofa, eating it as she watched.

She did not look like she was here to fight. She looked more like she was here to experience a live-action horror movie up close.

At that moment, Megumi really could not hold it together anymore.

What are you doing, Ronawa?

The enemy is right in front of us. Pull yourself together, don't embarrass us!

Just as Megumi was about to tell Ronawa to get serious,

the nameless cursed spirit noticed her as well.

In its eyes, Ronawa's actions were clearly a provocation.

"You ugly thing, how dare you ignore me!"

"Go die!"

Accompanied by an enraged shriek, a pitch-black axe formed from cursed energy was hurled at Ronawa with terrifying speed.

The air let out a piercing shriek as it was violently sliced apart.

Ronawa was about to be struck head-on.

Megumi could only grit his teeth and swiftly step in front of Ronawa, throwing a punch with all his strength.

He tried to intercept the axe.

But he could not stop it at all.

Almost the instant they collided, the cursed-energy axe exploded, and the tremendous impact instantly shattered Megumi's defense.

It sent him flying backward.

Just as he was about to crash into Ronawa, she finally reached out her hand.

Her fair hand was as exquisite as a work of art, yet as fragile-looking as glazed glass.

Yet that very hand effortlessly caught Megumi as he flew toward her.

Looking at Megumi's injuries, Ronawa revealed an expression that said she had expected this.

She really should not have expected anything from Megumi's strength.

Still, she had to admit that Megumi truly had a noble character.

He might be weak, but he was brave.

And when something happened, he really stepped up.

He never abandoned his teammates.

So the question was,

who liked abandoning their teammates?

Ronawa said she had no idea.

Casually setting Megumi down on the sofa, Ronawa stood up.

"Although I don't want to lay a hand on one of my own kind,"

"who told you to be so rude?"

Ronawa had merely been watching the show. She had not done anything.

And she still got an axe thrown at her. That was far too much.

And it had actually called her ugly?

Unforgivable!

Only a death sentence would do!

But the only response she received was three sharp axes flying toward her in a triangular formation.

It showed absolutely no respect for Ronawa, the future King of Cursed Spirits.

If that was how it wanted to be, then fine.

As Ronawa's thought arose, crimson cursed energy, red as blood, rapidly condensed and gathered in her right hand.

It turned Ronawa's right hand into something resembling blood-jade glass.

Then, with a light tap forward, the three incoming axes directly shattered and vanished.

They were all killed.

Along with them, the incomplete domain covering the area also collapsed.

"Goodbye, Miss Sadako!"

Ronawa softly said to the cursed spirit that had remained hidden in the darkness without showing herself.

It was also as though she were pronouncing Sadako's fate.

As for why Ronawa knew her name,

it was simple. Ronawa had picked up a diary while wandering around earlier.

It was through that diary that Ronawa learned her name.

But it was no longer important.

Because as Ronawa activated her technique, silent death descended without a sound.

Grade-One Cursed Spirit Miss Sadako did not even let out a scream.

Every trace and concept of her being "alive" was erased.

And in Megumi's eyes as he watched from the side,

Ronawa's oppressive presence soared beyond the heavens, making him afraid to even breathe too hard.

Who could have imagined that Ronawa, who usually looked so soft and adorable, would be so terrifying when she fought?

She was simply like a grim reaper walking among the living.

Just looking at her felt like witnessing the end of all things.

As Ronawa bestowed and witnessed Miss Sadako's death, her cursed energy increased somewhat as a result.

The increase was considerable, equivalent to witnessing the deaths of hundreds or thousands of ordinary people.

But before Ronawa could carefully sense her newfound strength,

Satoru Gojo's voice rang out.

"That was genuinely terrifying, Miss Ronawa."

"Your technique is dangerous enough to make my skin crawl."

No matter how many times he saw it, Satoru Gojo always felt that Ronawa's technique was absurdly overpowered.

Even he felt a faint but unmistakable fear from the depths of his soul whenever he witnessed Ronawa wield her authority over death.

It was faint, but it was there.

If even Satoru Gojo was like that, there was no need to mention Megumi beside him.

The way Megumi looked at Ronawa now was practically the same as if he had seen a ghost.

Oh, in a sense, cursed spirits counted as ghosts too.

Then there was no problem.

"Sadako was an unfortunate woman."

"She thought she had found a man she could entrust with the rest of her life, but in reality, he was a violent brute with an explosive temper."

"After marriage, what awaited Sadako was not a blissful new life, but endless domestic violence, verbal abuse, and humiliation..."

"..."

"In the end, Sadako died beneath her husband's axe. Her resentment after death turned her into a cursed spirit, cursing every living thing!"

From Miss Sadako's diary, Satoru Gojo and the others learned about her past.

Honestly, it was truly miserable.

But as the strongest sorcerer, Satoru Gojo had seen more tragedies like this than he could count.

He put it out of his mind in an instant.

Only Megumi was affected by it.

"Let's go. The cursed spirit has been exorcised, so I'll take you two out for a big meal."

"Tell me what you want to eat in advance."

With the cursed spirit exorcised, Satoru Gojo's mission was complete.

There had been a minor mishap during the process, but it was not a big problem.

They had exorcised the cursed spirit and helped Ronawa form a bond.

Never mind what kind of bond it was, or whether it was good or bad.

The point was, a bond had been formed, right?

After this, Ronawa and Megumi would definitely remember each other.

Whether those memories were good or bad did not matter!

"Let's get barbecue. I want beef."

Ronawa made her suggestion.

Although she was now a cursed spirit, she still loved meat.

"And you?" Satoru Gojo looked at Megumi, who merely replied, "Sure!"

And so, the three of them headed toward a barbecue restaurant together.

Along the way, Megumi kept stealing glances at Ronawa.

Ronawa no longer had that overwhelming pressure she had displayed when she fought earlier.

Once she returned to normal, she was merely excessively cute.

But Megumi kept involuntarily recalling the Ronawa from before.

Then he compared her to the Ronawa currently bickering with Satoru Gojo.

The contrast felt immense.

Was this really the same person?