[You had not said, "I want to kill you." You had said, "I will kill you."]
[It was an utterly illogical boast. With your current reserves of Cursed Energy, facing Yuki Tsukumo as she was now was no different from throwing an egg against a rock.]
[But the will contained in that boast was like a cold blade, effortlessly slicing through the pressure of a Special Grade.]
["..."]
[Yuki Tsukumo froze for a moment. Then, as though she had discovered some rare treasure, the smile on her lips instantly widened into a dazzling, almost exaggerated grin.]
["Wow, how scary~"]
[She patted her chest theatrically, but there was not a trace of fear in her voice, only heartfelt admiration.]
["You'd bare your fangs even at me? That's quite a look in your eyes."]
["Since you're that resolved, I'll take back what I just said. Turning the world into such a boring hell isn't what I want, either."]
[Yuki Tsukumo silently reassessed you, Li Shunchen.]
[She had read Jujutsu High's files beforehand and assumed you were merely a support talent with a special simulation Cursed Technique.]
[But now it seemed those rotten higher-ups had completely misjudged you.]
[Facing a Special Grade who wielded absolute force, you neither flattered nor feared her, and even dared to draw your sword over conflicting ideals. That disposition, that arrogance called being "strong"...]
[A deep pang of regret crossed Yuki Tsukumo's mind.]
[What a shame. What a terrible shame.]
[If only this guy had more Cursed Energy... no, even just enough to reach the peak of an ordinary Grade 1 Sorcerer.]
[With that Cursed Technique capable of simulating any flow of Cursed Energy, coupled with the disposition to swing a blade even at a god, becoming the fourth "Special Grade" probably wouldn't be difficult.]
[Compared with the gifted but lost Suguru Geto, the boy before her, though weak, already possessed the core of the "strongest."]
["Well, it's about time I left."]
[Yuki Tsukumo withdrew her aura, straightened up, and stretched languidly.]
["Bye-bye. Honestly, I was planning to say hello to Gojo, too, but the timing didn't work out this time."]
["The three of us are all Special Grades, so I hope we'll get along. And you too, Shunchen, of course."]
[She walked over to her motorcycle and put on her helmet. But before climbing on, she seemed to remember something and turned toward Suguru Geto and Li, who had remained silent.]
["Oh, one more thing."]
["About that Star Plasma Vessel, Riko Amanai."]
[At that name, a flicker finally stirred in Suguru Geto's lifeless eyes: guilt, pain, and a certain humble longing to know whether her sacrifice had been worth anything.]
["You don't need to worry too much about Master Tengen."]
[Yuki Tsukumo's voice came through her helmet, carrying a hint of helplessness and irony.]
["Although Riko died and the assimilation failed..."]
["Master Tengen's condition is stable. There haven't been any signs of losing control or evolving into a hostile existence."]
[Suguru Geto froze, his voice dry.]
["...Why?"]
[Without assimilation, wouldn't Tengen lose all reason?]
[Then what had their desperate efforts to protect her that year, that moment of heart-rending agony, been for?]
["Probably because they already had another Star Plasma Vessel ready."]
["Or perhaps... a new Star Plasma Vessel was born at that very moment."]
[Yuki Tsukumo shrugged, her tone airy, as though discussing something trivial.]
["Anyway, the world didn't stop turning because that child died. Jujutsu Society's barriers are still stable."]
["So don't blame yourself too much, Geto. In terms of the outcome, that mission wasn't a failure."]
[The motorcycle's engine roared.]
[Leaving him with, "Give some thought to what you truly feel," Yuki Tsukumo sped away, leaving only a faint smell of exhaust.]
[Yet the words she left behind weighed more heavily than her earlier cursed pressure, utterly breaking the boy's back.]
[Only you and Suguru Geto remained in the corridor.]
["...Already had one ready?"]
["Another... Star Plasma Vessel?"]
[Suguru Geto stood there muttering to himself, his voice as fragile as a bubble that would burst at a touch.]
[Watching his back, you felt a helpless chill rise within you.]
[For Suguru Geto, Riko's death was an eternal wound in his heart, but perhaps he could still numb himself with thoughts of "the greater good" and "protecting the world."]
[But Yuki Tsukumo's words had utterly invalidated all of that.]
[If there had been a spare Star Plasma Vessel...]
[Then what did Riko Amanai amount to?]
[What did Misato Kuroi's severe injuries amount to?]
[That year of their youth, that brutal battle, Satoru Gojo's brush with death, and the heavy guilt Suguru Geto carried...]
[Had all of it been unnecessary?]
[Had they all been nothing but parts the higher-ups could replace at any time?]
[You wanted to speak, but no sound came out.]
[Because you knew that was the truth. Jujutsu Society was precisely such a cold, meticulous, cruel machine.]
[Suguru Geto slowly turned around. He did not cry or roar in anger.]
[He merely gave you his usual gentle smile, yet it was utterly hollow.]
["I see... so Master Tengen is all right."]
["That's... wonderful."]
[At that moment, the cicadas' cries became unbearably shrill.]
[Looking at his smile, you felt chilled to the bone.]
[The Suguru Geto who always said, "The strong must protect the weak," shattered completely at that moment.]
[A few days later, in Jujutsu High's infirmary.]
[The air was thick with a stronger smell of blood than usual, even overpowering the scent of the cigarettes Shoko often smoked.]
[Kento Nanami lay pale on the hospital bed. His uniform was soaked in blood, stained a glaring dark red.]
[His right arm, which had held his bandage-wrapped Cleaver, had been severed clean off at the elbow, leaving a mangled stump.]
[Yu Haibara sat beside the bed, covered in blood, tears falling without end. He trembled uncontrollably like a terrified puppy.]
["Hold him down. I'm reconnecting the nerves."]
[You gave the order gravely, your hands covering the severed surface of Nanami's detached arm, which had been brought back preserved in ice packs. High-intensity Reverse Cursed Technique turned into a soft yet dazzling white light, forcibly piecing together and reconstructing the broken bones, blood vessels, and muscle fibers little by little.]
[Even under anesthesia, the excruciating pain of reattaching a severed limb made Kento Nanami clench his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead.]
[As the last bit of flesh healed, you removed your bloodstained medical gloves and let out a long breath.]
[Although he had paid the terrible price of losing an arm, after considerable effort, you had finally reattached it as good as new, leaving no disability.]
["I'm sorry... I'm sorry! It's because I'm too weak that Nanami had to protect me..."]
[Watching the color return to Nanami's arm, Yu Haibara finally lost control, covered his face, and sobbed aloud.]
[For the first time, the sunny boy who always declared he would "give it everything" had been ground to pieces by Jujutsu Society's meat grinder called "reality."]
["Shut up, Haibara. This isn't just your fault. It was a fatal intelligence error."]
[Kento Nanami spoke weakly, his voice hoarse, yet still retaining a composure and precision beyond his years.]
[He raised his newly reattached right hand, studied the fresh lines on his palm, then turned toward you with an extremely complicated look.]
["Li... I really owe you this time."]
[You froze for a moment.]
[Only as Kento Nanami recounted what happened did you piece together the full picture of this perilous mission.]
[That almost harsh warning you had given Yu Haibara in the corridor that day.]
["If you run into something you can't handle, even if you only feel that something is slightly off, run immediately."]
[Before the mission, Yu Haibara had repeated those words, which he took as "a senior's concern," verbatim to Kento Nanami, who was accompanying him.]
[Had someone else said it, Nanami might not have taken it so seriously. But those words had come from you.]
[Kento Nanami immediately recalled the scene in Okinawa when the Star Plasma Vessel Incident began.]
[Back then, you had suddenly approached him and forcibly borrowed his usual blunt-edged Cleaver, saying you had "a premonition of extreme danger."]
[And afterward, everyone at Jujutsu High had learned the outcome: you had encountered the Heavenly Tyrant, who had nearly killed even Satoru Gojo.]
[And it was with that borrowed Cleaver that you had achieved an unbelievable result in a hopeless situation.]
[From that day onward, one impression had become deeply rooted in Kento Nanami's mind, a man who valued "reason" and "facts" so highly: his senior Li Shunchen's intuition was terrifyingly accurate. It was intuition that could save lives.]
[Precisely because of that, Nanami had been exceptionally vigilant during this Land God Extermination Mission, rated "Grade 2."]
[His caution saved both their lives. When they passed through the Torii and the so-called "Grade 2 Cursed Spirit" revealed its overwhelming, terrifying Grade 1 cursed pressure and rudimentary domain, Yu Haibara was still thinking of drawing his blade to fight.]
[But Kento Nanami did not hesitate in the slightest.]
[Your warning rang frantically in his mind. He seized Yu Haibara by the collar, abandoned any attempt to attack, and turned to flee.]
[The Land God's attack came in an instant. To cover Yu Haibara's retreat from the barrier, Kento Nanami blocked the fatal bite at the cost of his right arm, allowing both of them to scramble out alive.]
["That Land God wasn't Grade 2 at all... it was a Grade 1 monster."]
[Kento Nanami's body still trembled slightly against the pillow, deep lingering fear in his eyes.]
["If I'd hesitated for even a second, or hadn't taken your warning seriously..."]
[He glanced at Yu Haibara, who was still wiping away tears beside him.]
["I'm afraid... there wouldn't even be intact bodies left of us."]
[After hearing everything, you stood silently beside the bed, looking at the hands with which you had just used Reverse Cursed Technique.]
[Because of your words, Yu Haibara had not been cut in half, and Kento Nanami had not been left with permanent psychological scars here. They had survived.]
[Yet you felt not the slightest joy. All that rose in your heart was a suffocating sense of helplessness.]
[You turned and walked to the window, looking out at Jujutsu High's lush green woods.]
[You knew very well that as long as Yu Haibara and Kento Nanami continued working as Jujutsu Sorcerers, dangers like these would follow them constantly, like shadows.]
[Today it was a Grade 1 Land God. What about tomorrow? The day after?]
[The higher-ups' rotten intelligence system and their practice of treating lower-ranking sorcerers as expendable could send them to their deaths again at any moment, let alone the members of Window, who did not even qualify as expendable.]
[And what about you?]
[You lowered your eyes. Your system's "simulation" function had a cold, unforgiving cooldown: only one chance a year.]
[This time, you happened to know that Yu Haibara would face a fatal crisis at this point in the timeline, so you warned him in advance. And because of the "butterfly effect" left by the Star Plasma Vessel Incident, Kento Nanami had taken that warning to heart.]
[It was practically a miracle built from countless coincidences. But miracles could not happen every day.]
[You could not predict whether, next year or the year after, once your annual Simulation Count was exhausted, they would encounter another unexpected mission that could cost them their lives.]
[You could not guarantee that you would happen to run into them and give them a timely warning every time. You could not save them for the rest of their lives.]
[You raised your head toward the dazzling sun in the sky.]
[Of course you wished you could be as strong as Satoru Gojo.]
[The current Satoru Gojo could already fly through the sky, maintain an around-the-clock defense without blind spots, and handle every difficult Special Grade mission alone. He could shoulder half of Jujutsu Society's burden by himself.]
[If... if you possessed that kind of absolute power too, you could take on every danger. Before tragedy struck, you could crush every threat with absolute force.]
[But you were not a god, nor were you Satoru Gojo.]
[Even Satoru Gojo, as powerful as a god, still could not attend to everything. So ultimately, only by addressing curses and Cursed Spirits at their source could the problem be solved completely. That was what you firmly believed.]
["Li?"]
[Noticing your spirits sink, Kento Nanami called out with some concern.]
["...It's nothing."]
[You turned around, hiding every emotion behind your lenses, your voice returning to its reassuring calm.]
["Get some rest. As for the higher-ups... I'll have Mr. Yaga demand an explanation. Since they passed off a Grade 1 as a Grade 2 and assigned it to you, they'll have to pay the price."]
[A mortal (you) had a mortal's (your) methods.]
[Since you could not sweep everything away with force like a god, you could only begin by digging out, one by one, the "rats" hiding in the shadows and creating these tragedies.]
Before you continue