Curse User

Meanwhile, on the street on the other side of the explosion's source.

Satoru Gojo, who had forcibly dragged Suguru Geto away moments earlier, had dropped every trace of his playful grin as soon as they were out of everyone's sight. His expression turned grave, and his Six Eyes scanned the Cursed Energy fluctuations throughout the neighborhood.

"Geto, something's wrong." Satoru Gojo's voice was low, stripped of its usual nonchalance.

Suguru Geto glanced sideways at him in surprise. "What is it?"

"That person from yesterday, the one whose Cursed Energy was so weak it was almost negligible-my Six Eyes picked up his presence again," Satoru Gojo said, a hint of wariness in his voice. "And this time, he's hiding in the crowd. His presence is concealed extremely well. He's deliberately hiding his movements."

At that, Suguru Geto quickly summoned several Cursed Spirits to guard his sides, including the one he had subdued just yesterday.

His brows abruptly knitted, and he asked in utter confusion, "If you noticed him ages ago, why didn't you tell Qingxiao so we could prepare?"

Satoru Gojo gave a low chuckle, sounding somewhat conceited. "He's just small fry. There's no need to go out of our way to alert him. Spoiling his rare chance to enjoy a date would be such a buzzkill."

He lifted his sunglasses slightly, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "Besides, I can easily handle something this minor myself.

"And anyway, this guy's almost certainly after me. After all, that bounty of several hundred million yen on my head is a juicy prize countless Curse Users have their eyes on."

Suguru Geto was just about to tell him not to underestimate the enemy and to proceed cautiously when, before he could speak, the ground beneath their feet suddenly shook violently!

BOOOOM-!!!

Towering flames instantly erupted from underground. Scorching waves of air swept in every direction, rocks and soil flew through the sky, and the entire ground collapsed and split apart with a thunderous crash!

The instant the crisis erupted, Satoru Gojo reacted with extraordinary speed, immediately activating his Limitless Cursed Technique. An invisible barrier unfolded at once, firmly shielding him.

But he was still a step too late. The explosion spread far faster than anticipated, its violent impact piling up in waves and continually penetrating his defenses. The incompletely deployed Limitless defense blocked part of it, but a powerful aftershock still pierced the barrier and struck Satoru Gojo. He staggered several steps backward, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

The enemy's sneak attack had come far too suddenly. The underground explosion had erupted without warning, swift and powerful. Even with a host of Cursed Spirits sharing the damage and blocking most of the impact for Suguru Geto, some of that savage force still penetrated his defenses and severely injured his body.

Pfft-

Suguru Geto swayed violently. A coppery sweetness surged into his throat, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. His body fell, his vision went black, and he lost consciousness completely.

The Cursed Spirits surrounding him instantly grew agitated. They gathered around him, forming layer upon layer at his sides, fiercely protecting the unconscious Suguru Geto.

Two figures suddenly appeared atop the shattered ruins, one tall and one short.

The scrawny Curse User suddenly burst into crazed laughter. He was hunched over, his disheveled hair plastered to his sweat-damp temples. His eyes bulged, their whites riddled with bloodshot veins, and his entire being exuded an almost pathological frenzy.

He paced back and forth on a broken wall, his hands constantly flailing, as though immersed in his own perfect plan. Trembling all over with excitement, he stared fixedly at Satoru Gojo below and roared his boast, his voice twisted and smug. "Hahaha! Satoru Gojo! Aren't you curious why you fell for it?!"

"My Cursed Technique is [Earth Manipulation]!" He abruptly spread his arms, clawing at the air, his expression fanatical and savage. "Everything beneath this neighborhood is under my control! Every inch of underground rock and soil, every crevice-I have the final say over all of it!"

He leaned forward slightly, his voice shrill and grating, filled with the sick pleasure of success as he poured out his plan. "Yesterday, I noticed you kept coming to these streets! I'd already set my sights on you! I spent all night manipulating the underground rock and soil, packing explosives beneath the entire neighborhood and under all those dessert shops you love visiting!"

The more he spoke, the more excited he became, his words tumbling out in a frantic rush. His mouth stretched into a wild grin, his smile twisted and bizarre. "Those Six Eyes you're so proud of consume a tremendous amount of energy, don't they? I bet you wouldn't waste your processing power constantly looking through the ground to inspect everything beneath the neighborhood!"

"And sure enough! I won that bet!" His voice abruptly rose, nearly hysterical. "These explosives have absolutely no Cursed Energy fluctuations! Unless your Six Eyes look through the ground, they can't detect a thing! I had you dancing to my tune from start to finish!"

His crazed laughter echoed through the ruined street, shrill and piercing. He stared fixedly at the injured Satoru Gojo, whose breathing was unsteady, his eyes filled with murderous intent. "The only pity is that you noticed me too soon! I couldn't wait until you reached the center of the blast before setting it off. What a shame I didn't blow you straight to pieces! But that's fine! That's perfectly fine!"

He clenched his fists, trembling all over, his voice vicious. "If the explosion can't kill you, I'll kill you myself!

"You're injured today, and your companion's unconscious too. You're going to die by my hand! Satoru Gojo, you're going to die today, without a doubt!"

Throughout that long, deranged one-man show, Satoru Gojo stood in silence.

His eyes were lowered, and he seemed to be listening to the man's ravings. In truth, he was using the opening provided by all that pointless chatter to quietly circulate his Cursed Energy, making adjustments little by little and healing his injuries without wasting a single moment of respite.

The tall Curse User beside him, whose demeanor was cold and somber, had watched his companion's crazed farce with indifference the entire time. His expression remained unchanged, as though he were used to it. Only when a sudden rush of air rapidly approached from the distance, and Qingxiao came racing through the smoke and dust, did his gaze darken. He warned in a low, solemn voice, "Sir, someone's coming."

That brief warning instantly interrupted the short man's crazed one-man show.