Sol withdrew his foot.
The restrictions placed on the Cursed User were clearly severe. The moment he attempted to reveal critical information, the curse embedded within him had tried to erase him.
Still, the man was alive.
That meant there would be opportunities to extract information later. Even if nothing could be learned from him directly, the enemy's next move would reveal something on its own.
Only then did Sol turn toward Itadori, Megumi, and Nobara, who had finally managed to catch their breath and stand.
The three stared at the unconscious Cursed User on the ground before shifting their gaze to Sol.
Shock and confusion were written all over their faces.
"Sol... was that you?" Nobara asked, her voice still slightly unsteady.
"Yeah," Sol replied. "It was a trap. The targets were probably the two of you."
He glanced at Itadori and Megumi.
Megumi's face remained pale. His lips were pressed into a thin line, as though he had already reached a troubling conclusion.
Itadori scratched his head, still shaken by the experience.
"Good thing you're so strong, Sol. Otherwise, we'd have been in serious trouble."
Sol offered no further comment.
He took out his phone and immediately contacted Kiyotaka Ijichi.
"The mission target has been eliminated. We encountered an ambush. The attackers have been subdued."
Not long afterward, hurried footsteps echoed from outside.
Ijichi arrived alongside several assistant supervisors. The moment he saw the devastation and the unconscious captive, his face lost all color.
"I am terribly sorry! This was a failure in our intelligence gathering!" Ijichi said, bowing repeatedly.
"It's not your fault," Megumi said. "The setup was extremely elaborate."
Even as he spoke, his eyes remained fixed on Sol.
That barrier had been far beyond the capabilities of an ordinary Cursed Spirit, yet Sol had destroyed it effortlessly.
Sol had no intention of explaining anything.
The assistant supervisors quickly took over the cleanup and prisoner transport.
The drive back to Tokyo Jujutsu High was unusually quiet.
Itadori stared out the window at the passing scenery before speaking softly.
"Thanks, Sol. You saved us again."
Nobara turned toward him, looking slightly uncomfortable.
"Yeah... thanks."
Megumi remained silent, but the gratitude in his eyes was obvious.
"Mm."
Sol accepted their thanks with a simple nod.
The vehicle continued steadily toward Tokyo Jujutsu High.
Outside, the setting sun painted the sky in shades of orange and crimson.
Sol closed his eyes.
Trouble had finally begun to surface.
That suited him just fine.
He wanted to see what was lurking beneath the murky waters.
The silence returned, broken only by the steady hum of the engine.
After thanking him, Itadori and Nobara received little response beyond Sol's brief acknowledgment.
Leaning back against his seat, he rested with his eyes closed while shifting sunlight and shadows passed across his face.
Megumi studied him quietly.
His doubts only grew stronger.
That level of power was far beyond anything a normal first-year student should possess. It exceeded even what most Grade 1 sorcerers were capable of.
Effortlessly destroying a barrier bordering on special grade.
Instantly subduing and interrogating a dangerous Cursed User.
Remaining completely composed throughout the entire ordeal.
Who exactly was Sol?
And why had he come to Tokyo Jujutsu High?
Eventually, Megumi pushed those thoughts aside.
After all, Gojo Satoru was their teacher.
No matter how powerful Sol was, he couldn't possibly be stronger than Gojo... right?
Upon returning to Tokyo Jujutsu High, Ijichi once again offered a formal apology and promised a thorough investigation into the intelligence failure.
Afterward, he hurried away with the unconscious captive.
Having narrowly survived a life-or-death situation, Itadori, Megumi, and Nobara were exhausted and returned to their dormitories.
Sol returned to his room.
He did not rest.
Standing by the window, he expanded his perception across the entire campus like an invisible tide, carefully inspecting every corner of Tokyo Jujutsu High.
No traces of additional intruders remained.
The earlier incident had felt less like an assassination attempt and more like a probe.
Someone had been testing the school's defenses in Gojo's absence while simultaneously evaluating the abilities of the first-year students.
The objective was obvious.
Either Sukuna within Itadori.
Megumi's Ten Shadows Technique.
Or both.
Behind it all, the influence of the jujutsu world's higher-ups seemed faintly visible.
Sol was in no hurry to expose the mastermind.
Rotten roots required patience to remove.
The rats hiding in the dark would reveal themselves eventually.
The following days passed peacefully.
Training.
Classes.
Rest.
The routine became almost monotonous.
Itadori appeared to recover quickly from the attack and threw himself into training with even greater determination. He frequently challenged Sol to sparring matches.
Every time, he was defeated with ease.
Every time, he learned something new.
Megumi and Nobara also pushed themselves harder than before.
Their cursed energy control and technique usage improved noticeably.
Throughout it all, Sol remained a dependable presence.
His strength far surpassed that of his peers, yet he never flaunted it. Only when necessary did he reveal a fraction of what he could do.
That elusive strength only made Itadori and the others rely on him more.
One afternoon, training had just ended.
Itadori was wiping sweat from his face when his phone suddenly rang.
After listening for a moment, he looked both surprised and slightly puzzled.
"Huh? Right now? But training isn't over yet... Oh. Okay, I understand."
He ended the call and turned toward Nobara, Megumi, and Sol, who was quietly drinking water nearby.
"It was Mr. Ijichi," Itadori said. "There's a temporary support mission in a nearby city. A shopping mall is holding a grand opening event, and they're worried the large crowd might attract low-level Cursed Spirits. He wants us to patrol the area and gain some experience working around civilians."
"A mall opening?" Nobara raised an eyebrow. "That's going to be loud and packed with normal people. What kind of serious curse could even show up there?"
"Mr. Ijichi said it'll probably be Grade 3 or Grade 4 at most," Itadori replied. "It's mostly preventative patrol work. He said we should treat it like an extracurricular activity."
Megumi frowned.
"Only the three of us?"
His eyes instinctively shifted toward Sol.
After what had happened recently, he felt considerably safer whenever Sol was around.
Itadori followed his gaze.
"Sol, want to come with us? It sounds like it'll just be a quick patrol."
Sol set down his glass.
A crowded commercial district.
Low-level Cursed Spirits.
An ordinary assignment.
That was certainly how it sounded.
Yet he was almost certain this was another move by the same people who had orchestrated the previous incident.
Perhaps an attempt to separate Itadori and Megumi.
Perhaps the opening act of another trap.
"Sure," Sol replied with a nod.
There was no harm in taking a look.
"Great!" Itadori grinned. "Then let's get going. Mr. Ijichi said the car is already waiting outside."
The four quickly gathered their things and left Tokyo Jujutsu High in the assistant supervisor's vehicle.
===
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