Shizuka clenched her small hands tightly, as if she were trying to convince herself of something.
"Uhm… alright," I murmured softly.
I let out a slow breath, feeling something in my chest loosen and tighten at the same time. I knew it—starting from that very second, there was no turning back. Not for me. Not for them.
I began to tell them everything.
Slowly. Without rushing. From the very beginning.
About how they had almost been kidnapped. About that strange sensation that had stiffened their bodies, emptied their minds, and made their voices seem to disappear. About how this world was far more dangerous than it appeared on the surface—a world that existed alongside their everyday lives, unnoticed, unseen.
I explained the existence of a strange energy that not everyone could sense—Cursed Energy. An energy born from human negative emotions. From fear, hatred, regret, and despair.
Then I spoke about the beings born from those emotions—Cursed Spirits. Things that should not exist, yet continued to appear as long as humans still harbored darkness within their hearts.
I went on to talk about myself.
About how I had only recently become truly involved with the world of Jujutsu. About how, at first, I had simply wanted to go home as usual, walking along a familiar road, never imagining that anything would happen.
But in the middle of that walk, I saw something off—people moving stiffly, their steps out of sync, their eyes empty, until they finally stood still like puppets before an old man.
A Cursed User.
A Jujutsu Sorcerer who had chosen the wrong path.
I told them about my fight with that man. Not in excessive detail, but enough to make them understand just how real and how close the danger had been.
I said that the old man had been defeated. That I had made sure he would never hurt anyone again. And that after everything was over, I returned to them—to make sure they were safe.
As I spoke, their expressions kept changing.
Fear appeared first.
Then shock.
Then confusion.
But slowly, beneath all of that, something else began to surface… understanding. A bitter understanding that the world they knew was not as simple as they had believed.
"So that's how it is…" Rika finally spoke softly after I finished. She stared at the ground beneath her feet, her fingers unconsciously clenching, as if she were trying to grasp the reality she had just accepted. "So… this world has always been far more dangerous than we thought…"
"Does that mean you're like a sorcerer who protects the world from the shadows?" Shizuka's eyes immediately lit up. A clear glimmer of admiration reflected in her pupils, so bright it was almost excessive. Her face brightened instantly, as if I had just revealed the most amazing secret in the world. "Wow… that's so cool, Kenji!"
That gaze was too direct, too honest. Shizuka looked at me as if I had just turned into the protagonist of a fantasy story she often imagined before falling asleep. Her smile was wide, innocent, and genuinely happy, without the slightest trace of fear.
"What are you even saying!" Rika reacted immediately. Her face tightened, her brows knitting together in obvious irritation. With a quick motion, she lightly smacked Shizuka on the head. "What were you thinking! This world is extremely dangerous! And Kenji is risking his life to protect us! Don't treat that like it's something cool or fun!"
"Ugh!" Shizuka reflexively held her head. She pouted, her cheeks puffing slightly in annoyance.
"That hurt, you know! I was just impressed…" Her voice softened, and then she glanced at me again. "But still… it really is cool…"
Watching the two of them, I fell silent instead. There was a brief pause—one I didn't even realize myself. I had thought they would be terrified, panic, or at least cry after hearing everything I'd explained. This world was cruel, filled with dangers that made no sense, and had nearly taken our lives more than once.
But what happened was the opposite.
They looked… alive. Bickering lightly, reacting honestly, showing their emotions without restraint. As if what they had just heard was nothing more than a dangerous, thrilling story, not a reality that could kill them at any moment. Or perhaps… this was simply their way of covering up their own fear.
My thoughts drifted without warning. I stared at their faces a little longer than I should have. Something felt off, an odd sensation slowly creeping into my mind. A faint sense of familiarity, like an old memory nearly erased, yet not completely gone.
Wait a second.
Rika… Shizuka…
Have I seen them somewhere before?
"By the way," I finally spoke, doing my best to keep my tone calm. "What are your full names?"
"My name is Rika Minami," Rika replied shortly. Her voice was steadier than before, though the wariness in her eyes had not completely faded.
"And my name is Shizuka Marikawa!" Shizuka chimed in with a relaxed, easy smile, as if that name carried no special meaning at all.
But that was exactly the problem.
Those names began to spin inside my head, over and over again. Blonde hair. A clumsy yet cheerful demeanor. The Marikawa family name. Shizuka… don't tell me—no. That's impossible.
And yet, the more I thought about it, the more my head started to ache, as if something was being forcibly dragged out from the depths of my mind.
Shizuka. Blonde hair. Marikawa.
Could it be… Shizuka Marikawa? The sexy, airheaded woman from Highschool of the Dead?
I slowly shook my head. This made no sense. This world didn't have Tokonosu City. There were no signs of a zombie outbreak like in that story. No trace of that city at all, as if it had never existed from the beginning.
But… does the absence of a city truly mean the absence of a character who was supposed to come from there?
That thought made my chest feel heavy.
Damn it. If that's the case, then is it possible that characters from other anime exist in this world as well? Naruto? Ichigo? Luffy? Or something even more dangerous?
That can't be true… right?
My head throbbed painfully. This cursed world truly made no sense. Every time I felt like I was beginning to understand its rules, it slapped me in the face with a new, even crazier possibility.
Haah… If this really is a crossover world without clear limits, then my chances of surviving the next few years feel even slimmer. There are simply too many unpredictable possibilities. Too many variables beyond my control. One small mistake could easily lead to death.
"What's wrong, Kenji?" Rika looked at me with a confused expression. Her eyes narrowed slightly, clearly noticing the change in my expression that I couldn't completely hide.
"It's nothing," I replied quickly, forcing a faint smile onto my face.
"I'm just… surprised, that's all." I paused for a moment, then added, "You both have names as beautiful as your faces."
"Eh?" Shizuka immediately blushed. She raised both hands to cover part of her face, her shoulders trembling slightly as she held back a small laugh. "Hehehe…"
"You're still so young, yet you're already good at flirting with girls!" Rika snorted irritably, trying to hide her own embarrassment as she turned her face slightly away. "Hmph! Honestly!"
However, the faint red tint slowly creeping up to the tips of Rika's ears couldn't be completely concealed. The color stood in sharp contrast to her attempt to maintain a cool, composed expression, as if embarrassment were something she didn't feel at all. And yet, that was exactly what made her seem honest—and a little fragile.
I simply smiled softly at their reactions. There was a strange warmth in my chest, a simple feeling that rarely surfaced in a world filled with danger.
"Well then," I said as I took a small step forward, shifting the mood, "let's head home. If Yukina finds out we're late, she'll definitely get angry."
I glanced at them briefly, then added in a lighter tone, "As for the Jujutsu world and all this strange stuff… we'll talk about it tomorrow."
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