Kuroi Misato was wearing a well-fitted maid uniform, making it impossible to tell she was already in her thirties.
"Kuroi-san, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Okkotsu Renji from Tokyo." Renji nodded slightly.
"A pleasure to meet you, Okkotsu-san. Shall I take you back to the apartment? Riko-sama is still in class and won't be back until evening. Before then, I can show you around the area." Kuroi Misato said with a smile.
The Kuroi family had served the Star Plasma Vessel for generations, but Kuroi Misato disliked this fate, so she attended a junior college and took up an ordinary job. However, captivated by the adorable Amanai Riko, she chose to abandon her life in the human world. She had been taking care of Riko since the girl lost both parents at the age of four, and ten years had passed since then.
Following Kuroi Misato, Renji went to the apartment where they lived. It wasn't small, with even several guest rooms. The only drawback was that there was only one bathroom.
"We're here, Okkotsu-san. You can stay in that empty room for now. The room next door is Riko-sama's." Kuroi Misato placed Renji's single suitcase in the guest room.
With his keen perception of Cursed Energy, Renji instantly detected the barrier within this apartment. It was likely a Barrier Technique enhanced by Tengen to prevent Cursed Spirits from intruding. After all, Tengen had a so-called 'good friend' named Kenjaku keeping an eye on her from the outside.
"By the way, Kuroi-san, this is for you. If you encounter danger, just inject a little Cursed Energy into this and throw it at the enemy. Remember to run far away."
Renji took out a miniaturized panda Cursed Corpse from his pocket and gave it to Kuroi Misato.
"Ah! Thank you, Okkotsu-san. But shouldn't we give this to Riko-sama instead? After all..." Kuroi Misato hesitated.
"It's fine. I've already prepared her share as well." Renji waved his hand and flashed a reliable smile.
"Thank you again, Okkotsu-san."
...
Inside Tokyo Jujutsu High.
Underground, within the Tombs of the Star Corridor.
A tall, blonde woman pushed open the heavy palace doors.
The two guards on either side immediately extended their arms to block the intruder. "Restricted area ahead. No passage without permission."
The woman merely smiled. "Permission? That kind of thing, whether I have it or not, doesn't matter."
"Sorry, please leave..."
"Wait, you are... Special Grade Sorcerer Tsukumo Yuki."
One of the two guards recognized the woman's identity and immediately tugged his companion's arm, signaling to make way for Yuki.
The other guard, seeing this, immediately bowed. "Our deepest apologies."
"It's fine. You did well. You have great potential." Yuki flicked her hair, then winked and said with a smile.
Her boots made a tapping sound on the stone brick floor as Yuki's figure gradually disappeared into the intricate interior of the Tombs of the Star Corridor. This was a barrier directly controlled by Tengen, designed to protect her true form by shifting its structure to momentarily confuse the intruder's mind.
Approaching the giant tree in the center, Yuki's figure flickered, instantly appearing in a world surrounded by blazing white light.
In the distance, was a woman with disheveled hair wearing a kimono, her eyes revealing undisguised exhaustion and something unknown.
"Tsukumo Yuki, this is my first time meeting you, isn't it?"
The woman was none other than Tengen, who had not yet merged with the Star Plasma Vessel. She could still barely maintain this human form.
Yuki took off her sunglasses. "Tengen, why have you summoned me?"
Yuki didn't know why Tengen had recalled her to Jujutsu High. Generally, orders from the Jujutsu World's Higher-Ups were useless to her. She was a free-spirited sorcerer, dubbed by the entire Jujutsu World as 'the Special Grade Sorcerer who never does missions, just loafs around.'
Tengen turned around, slowly extending a withered arm, which was extremely mismatched with her face. Judging by the arm alone, she seemed eighty or ninety years old, yet her face still looked like that of a fifteen or sixteen-year-old.
"You must have heard the news about the Okkotsu clan in Akihabara being annihilated over a year ago." Tengen said, as streams of information flowed from her fingertips, floating quietly around her.
On them was written clearly: 'Annihilation of the Okkotsu Clan in Akihabara.'
"So...?" Yuki furrowed her eyebrows.
Then, a few more pieces of information floated out from behind Tengen.
"The entire Okkotsu clan in Akihabara only has one survivor left, Okkotsu Renji. He was brought back to Tokyo Jujutsu High by the current principal, Yaga Masamichi, and exceptionally admitted. Within just a few months, he was rated as a Special Grade Sorcerer." Tengen said calmly.
Yuki had heard of Renji. After all, he was publicly ranked alongside her, a twenty-five-year-old woman, as one of the two Special Grade Sorcerers. She even planned to ask him someday what kind of woman he liked.
"Please get to the point." Yuki nodded.
Seeing this, Tengen didn't drag it out further. "Your mission is to prevent others from killing Okkotsu Renji. The inherited Cursed Technique within him and the curse inside his body must not be known to others. If he dies, it will trigger a Cursed Energy rampage involving multiple Special Grade Cursed Spirits. When that happens... it will be a Night Parade of a Hundred Demons."
As Tengen's words sounded, two names floated from the information behind her.
Chief Jujutsu Sorcerer – Chouren (Already recruited by a Curse User organization)
Sakurai clan Special First-Grade Sorcerer – Sakurai Jūjirō (Stole the Okkotsu Clan's inherited Cursed Technique and attempted to seize another part within Okkotsu Renji's body. His goal is to kill Okkotsu Renji, usurp his place, and establish the fourth major Jujutsu clan)
Yuki was momentarily surprised, not by the impending disruption of the balance among The Big Three Families, but that the top Jujutsu Sorcerer had already become a Curse User.
"His becoming a Curse User was inevitable. After tasting the sweetness of power, no one can go back. He is no different. Perhaps he was once a qualified sorcerer, but now, he has been blinded by the so-called immortality technique."
"Don't be surprised. In Japan, wherever there is Cursed Energy, I can know everything. Also, next month's merger with the Star Plasma Vessel is a critical moment. Please stop these two from interfering with Okkotsu Renji and his classmates as they escort the Star Plasma Vessel. You know, after all, you once..."
Yuki clicked her tongue, cutting off Tengen's lengthy speech, then waved her hand. "I strongly oppose your act of sacrificing other living beings. After all, if I weren't a Special Grade Sorcerer, I probably would have merged with you long ago. But for the sake of the Jujutsu World, I'll help you this once."
Tap!
Her boots made a crisp tapping sound on the ground.
Yuki didn't want to hear Tengen continue, so she turned and walked toward the exit.
Tengen stood in place, her lips unmoving, yet an ethereal voice echoed from all directions.
"Thank you. But merging with the Star Plasma Vessel is not my wish. For humanity's sake... it can only be this way."