"The situation was extremely critical at the time, and then Shion senpai suddenly appeared in midair and defeated that cursed spirit with a single blow."
"Thank goodness Shion senpai was there, otherwise Nanami and I would have been in serious danger."
Haibara Yu vividly reenacted the scene for Geto Suguru, his gestures exaggerated and full of admiration.
"Hey, hey, Geto senpai, can you do that too?"
Geto touched the bridge of his nose. "More or less."
"As expected of Geto senpai. Oh right, this is the local specialty you asked me to bring back."
"Haibara, it is time to submit the mission report."
Nanami Kento called out to him. When he noticed Geto there, he stepped forward and greeted him politely.
"Geto senpai."
Geto smiled and waved, watching the two of them leave before his expression gradually fell into contemplation.
"I almost died this time. It was luck that saved me, but what about next time, or the time after that?"
"A sorcerer's path is like a marathon paved with the corpses of comrades. Even if we exorcise cursed spirits, they will continue to be born. Human greed and fear will never end."
As he sank deeper into thought, someone suddenly patted his shoulder.
Geto flinched and turned around, only to see Gojo Shion standing there with a lazy grin. He let out a quiet breath.
"Shion, do not sneak up on people like that. You nearly gave me a heart attack."
Shion chuckled. "You just let your guard down. What has you so distracted?"
Geto hesitated before asking, "Shion, do you really believe what we are doing is right?"
"In this world, greed and fear will never disappear. That means cursed spirits will never vanish either. In the end, all a sorcerer leaves behind is a trail of fallen companions."
"Well."
Shion dropped down beside him and stretched his long legs. "By that logic, the sun will explode in about five billion years and everything will return to dust."
"If everything is destined to end and nothing ultimately changes, should we just lie down and wait for extinction?"
Geto's lips twitched. "That is not what I meant. I am asking seriously. Why did you become a sorcerer?"
Shion paused for a fraction of a second.
For starters he was a Transmigrator, And being born into the Gojo family and inheriting the Six Eyes, he never had the option of walking away from this world. Still, after all these years, he had fully embraced this life.
"If I have to give reasons, convenience stores at midnight, movie theaters in Ginza, anime conventions in Akihabara, even idol concerts."
Geto stared at him. "You are joking, right? That cannot be your reason."
"You always talk about protecting non sorcerers, even at the cost of your life, as if it is some sacred obligation."
Shion tilted his head slightly, his tone still light but his gaze sharper.
"I fight cursed spirits for myself. I love this world. I enjoy living in it. So I refuse to let anything tear it apart."
He leaned back on his hands.
"Do you think Haibara became a sorcerer because he felt some grand duty to protect the weak? No. Protecting people makes him happy. It is what he wants. In the end, he is also living for himself."
The question of meaning was not unique to Geto.
Nanami Kento would one day wrestle with the same doubt. After graduation, he would leave Jujutsu High, abandon the role of protecting others, and become an office worker. Only after confronting his own dissatisfaction would he return to sorcery.
A sorcerer can choose whether to shoulder that responsibility.
Shion turned to Geto again. "So if you remove the idea of protecting the weak, what remains? What is your reason for being a sorcerer, Suguru?"
The question struck deeper than Geto expected.
Why had he become a sorcerer?
To protect the vulnerable?
That sounded more like doctrine drilled into him since childhood than a desire born from his own heart.
Confusion clouded his thoughts, followed by an inexplicable irritation.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
His phone rang.
Geto answered. The mission department's voice came through clearly. "Mr. Geto, we have an assignment for you. The location is a remote mountainous area..."
Shion's ears twitched slightly as he caught the name of the location.
"Understood. I will head there immediately."
Geto ended the call and forced a faint smile. "I have to go."
Shion nodded, watching his friend's retreating back before scratching his head.
"Should I tell Satoru?"
Hakone, on the outskirts of Tokyo.
"Monsters. Two monsters, just like their parents."
"I should have killed you when you were infants."
"My child almost died because of you. I will not allow you to keep bringing disaster to this village."
Geto ignored the villagers' accusations. His gaze was fixed on the two trembling girls locked inside a crude cage.
Their clothes were torn, their faces gaunt and pale. Bruises and dried blood marked their thin bodies.
Nanako Hasaba and Mimiko Hasaba.
The village chief pointed at them angrily. "Mr. Geto, those two are the monsters."
"They kept saying strange things, and after that, terrible incidents started happening. People died. Some lost their minds."
The villagers clung to superstition.
To them, the sisters' strange behavior was the cause of every misfortune.
But Geto could see the truth at a glance.
Two children born in a remote mountain village who had awakened the ability to perceive cursed spirits.
The details given by the villagers, along with the girls' fearful expressions and subtle reactions, made the situation painfully clear.
They had seen cursed spirits invisible to ordinary people. Perhaps they had even tried to warn the villagers or drive the spirits away. Their power, however, was too weak. Instead of gratitude, they were met with suspicion, fear, and violence.
Before him, the sisters huddled together, clinging to one another.
Around him, curses and threats filled the air.
Protect the weak?
Who exactly were the weak?
At this moment, Geto had no grand ideology about creating a world without cursed spirits.
There was only anger.
Pure, suffocating rage.
"Ah."
Geto turned to the village chief and smiled calmly.
"I have discovered something important. Let us step outside and discuss it."