Residue referred to remnants of curses. Jujutsu Sorcerer, Cursed Spirit, cursed objects, and anything related to curses could leave it behind. This residue was exactly what Darkrai fed on.
This confirmed Akira's view that curses and nightmares were linked. What Darkrai liked most was the Cursed Energy released from Rika Orimoto. Without doing anything extra, just staying nearby and taking a few draws, Darkrai actually leveled up.
It leveled up. Akira could hardly believe his eyes. This was usually the biggest headache in raising Pokémon.
The ten mile slope method for Gardevoir went without saying, and even in Tokyo, raising Pancham was not easy. There were many Cursed Spirit here, but their strength was also higher. Those first few levels made Akira sweat, afraid the little one would be injured, so he ran through several commercial districts to find the weakest targets just to get it through the beginner stage.
In the Pokemon World, with its level system, even phantom beasts or divine beasts were weak if their levels were low. Right now, Darkrai was all show, scary to look at but unable to beat anyone at Tokyo Jujutsu High in a real fight. Still, with the ability to level up by eating nightmares, Akira had little to worry about.
This was the Tokyo Jujutsu High, a place to study and exorcise curses. If there was one thing in abundance here, it was curses. On top of that, there was Rika Orimoto, whose curse scale was so extreme that even Satoru Gojo found it troublesome, and any small leak was a full meal for Darkrai.
As a result, Akira had been spending much more time with Yuta Okkotsu lately. Panda's looks toward the two of them had grown strange. If that enthusiasm you showed to Yuta Okkotsu were used on Maki Zenin, I would have shipped it already.
Honestly, was there something wrong with the preferences of the men at Tokyo Jujutsu High? A biological father like Masamichi Yaga and a handsome man like Satoru Gojo had no known prospects with women. Their peers either cared more about non humans than humans, like Akira and Yuta Okkotsu, or could not even speak properly like Toge Inumaki.
Could you really rely on phones to date? What about before phones, did they hold up signs or just announce marriage directly? Panda seriously wanted to visit the Inumaki Clan and ask how Toge Inumaki's clan handled romance.
Enrollment last year had been poor, and they only got a delinquent student named Hakari. This year they finally filled a small class, but every one of them was strange. Was it really that much to ask to ship a normal pairing?
If this kept up, Panda was ready to look to the next class. Megumi Fushiguro looked good and was reliable, so he would probably be popular. Please, please, do not learn from your seniors.
Aside from Maki Zenin, no one knew what Panda was thinking. If they did, it would not be Maki Zenin challenging Panda alone, but everyone jumping him together. Akira might even return the favor and ask whether two Panda could not be shipped.
Panda thought smugly that he had never told anyone that Pancham could grow larger. Akira already had the most important core, he just lacked levels. Right, supreme Mythical Pokemon of the Dark type, Darkrai?
"Mm!" Darkrai floated forward along the residue.
"Come back, come back, that's enough. Following a girl around every day makes you look like a creep, and she is not your CP Cresselia."
Akira was considered reliable by Kento Nanami for a reason. Feeding on the curse released by Rika Orimoto was already delicate, and following her constantly would be too much. Hearing the command, Darkrai paused, but did not return.
"Mm, mmm."
Learning Darkrai's language was far harder than simple words like "sha" or "play." Thanks to the cultivation bonus, Akira still understood the meaning. "You are trying to enter Rika Orimoto's nightmare?"
"Mm!" Darkrai nodded. Entering dreams was not on its skill list, but it was a racial talent of the Nightmare God. "Are you confident?"
"Mm, mm!"
"Just absorb a bit more, fine, very strong. After entering the dream, what do you plan to do?"
"Mmmmmm."
"You want to find the real Rika Orimoto. You do not want her to stay trapped in nightmares forever. You are a surprisingly kind Nightmare God."
Akira felt conflicted. A being that could trap people in endless nightmares was instead thinking about freeing someone from them. Meanwhile, he himself was still hesitating over whether to let Rika Orimoto be released.
If this continued, he might someday walk the same path as a certain villain, losing his humanity even without studying law. He shook his head slightly. "Little Sha, what do you think?"
"Sha…" Gardevoir puffed out her cheeks in rare dissatisfaction. Akira laughed softly. "My fault. I have always understood your feelings. It is time to have a proper talk with Yuta Okkotsu."
"I want to remove the curse!"
It was hard to imagine the usually timid Yuta Okkotsu shouting words so firm and loud. There was no hesitation at all. He did not even care about the possible dangers Akira had summarized that could come after Curse Removal.
"You've thought it through? If things go wrong, you might have to start over from nothing." Even though he already knew the answer, Akira still asked one last time to be sure.
"I've thought it through." Yuta Okkotsu nodded heavily. "Actually, after entering Tokyo Jujutsu High, I started to feel it. It's not me being cursed by Rika Orimoto, it's me who cursed Rika Orimoto. Maybe after losing her, I won't be able to keep being a Jujutsu Sorcerer, but I don't want to keep binding Rika Orimoto and making her suffer."
"Rika Orimoto isn't suffering at all. Being together with Yuta makes Rika Orimoto very happy."
Cursed Spirit Rika manifested her upper body, which was the form she used most often. As soon as she moved, Akira's shadow also stirred, and the dream-eating Darkrai reacted by instinct. This time, before Akira could stop it, Gardevoir stepped down hard with one foot.
The message was obvious. Hungry thing, shut up, look at the situation, this is not time to eat. Darkrai immediately behaved.
Even a Mythical Pokemon knew who truly held Makoto's heart. No matter how the title of psychic queen sounded elsewhere, here with Akira it was completely deserved. Even if Arceus showed up, it would have to squat obediently.
Yuta Okkotsu only gently stroked the head of the Cursed Spirit. "Being together with Rika Orimoto makes me happy too, it's just that—"
"Just what? Rika Orimoto is happy, Yuta is happy, that's enough. We promised to always be together."
As she spoke, Rika Orimoto's form gradually expanded, showing signs of fully manifesting. Yuta Okkotsu scratched his head in distress and cast a pleading look toward Akira.
Cursed Spirit Rika's simple way of thinking could not understand Yuta Okkotsu's real feelings. To her, Curse Removal meant separation. If possible, Yuta Okkotsu wanted to talk to Akira alone about Curse Removal, but his connection with Rika Orimoto was far too tight, and even if Gardevoir dragged Cursed Spirit Rika away, Rika Orimoto would still sense every movement he made.
The moment separation was mentioned, Rika Orimoto would panic. That made things very awkward.
After signaling Gardevoir to go comfort her close friend, Akira seized the chance to pull Yuta Okkotsu aside. "Talking to her won't work. You need to talk to the real Rika Orimoto."
"The real Rika Orimoto? What do you mean?"