The woman, who had still been trying to find an opening, was struck with sudden alarm upon sensing this aura.
Forgetting her attempt to test when the invisible barrier would vanish, she lunged directly in front of Gojo Satoru, launching a frantic assault with her twin blades. Although she didn't understand his specific ability, having wandered through the darkness for years and survived countless slaughters, she knew one thing with absolute certainty:
She could not let him continue!
Yet, no matter how she attacked, Gojo Satoru paid her no mind. He didn't even bother to spare her a glance. This disregard was a treatment far more chilling than mere contempt.
The woman could only watch helplessly as Gojo slowly folded his ring finger, and finally, his pinky. She could do nothing to stop it.
Until only his slender index finger remained pointing upward.
Hovering just above that fingertip was a small sphere, similar in size to the previous blue one. To the naked eye, the sphere itself appeared to be a void of pitch-black. And yet, paradoxically, it was incessantly releasing a blinding, brilliant crimson light.
By reversing the technique of [Blue], the original negative energy became positive energy, and the resulting effect naturally changed as well. What was once a force of attraction had become a force of repulsion—simply put, divergence.
The moment the technique was completed, the woman—despite having survived untold battles—felt an overwhelming sense of dread. The man before her possessed a power that could legitimately threaten her life.
It was a sensation she hadn't felt in years. Not since she had received that "blessing" and become a nearly immortal "Curse Doll."
But now...
Realizing she couldn't pierce Gojo's defense, she chose decisively. She leaped away from his side and bolted toward Felt and the others. If she couldn't break his shield, she would force him to drop it himself!
"I went through all the trouble of preparing this gift for you. If you leave just like that, I'll be heartbroken," Gojo Satoru's voice drifted from behind her.
However, even as the voice reached her ears, she felt a terrifying presence surging from beneath her. Subconsciously looking down, she saw Gojo Satoru's silhouette had appeared before her before she could even track his movement.
"This technique is called..."
"Cursed Technique Reversal: [Red]."
Gojo spoke softly. As the words left his lips, a gale like a Category 8 hurricane erupted within the warehouse, sending his silver hair whipping wildly.
Amidst this chaos, the searing red light exploded completely, engulfing everything in its path.
Subaru Natsuki and the others, watching from the sidelines, saw the world vanish into a brilliant, monochromatic wash of scarlet. Everything turned red!
BOOM!!!
Their vision failed them, replaced by a titanic roar. The wind shrieked. A cool night breeze swept through. The three of them huddled together, eyes clamped shut in terror. Listening to the thunderous boom and feeling the manic winds that threatened to blow them away, it felt as though they were experiencing the end of the world.
Old Man Rom reached out blindly, pulling Felt and Subaru close and using his massive frame to shield them.
After what felt like an eternity, the howling in their ears finally began to subside. The three of them tentatively opened their eyes. The red tint on their retinas hadn't quite faded, but that didn't stop them from being paralyzed by the sight before them.
the warehouse was gone.
Nothing remained. Not even a single wooden plank could be found.
Up in the pitch-black night, beneath the cold glow of the moon, a cylindrical pillar of crimson light stretched out toward the horizon, hanging across the sky. It looked as if a massive, jagged wound had been torn through the firmament itself. The display was so immense it was likely visible from the entire Royal Capital.
Standing amidst this soul-shaking scene, silhouetted against the moonlight, was a tall, upright figure. His black clothes were spotless, and his silver hair swayed gently in the night breeze. Those ice-blue eyes left an indelible mark on the hearts of the three witnesses, a memory they would never be able to erase.
As the three stood frozen like statues, staring blankly at Gojo, a sheepish voice broke the silence.
"Whoops. Looks like I went a bit overboard."
Gojo Satoru ruffled his hair and turned toward the trio with a bright, radiant smile.
"And I thought I'd dialed the power down to the minimum."
Hearing his words, the three finally snapped out of their shock.
"That... was the minimum power?" Subaru Natsuki's throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. "Then if it were maximum power..."
Subaru didn't dare finish that thought. He suddenly felt that his companion didn't look much like a "Hero" anymore—with strength this exaggerated, he could easily believe Gojo was the final Demon Lord boss.
Felt, however, didn't seem to care about the scale of the power. The moment she regained her senses, she sprinted toward Gojo.
"I know you're impressed and totally admire me right now, Felt. If you want an autograph, I suppose I can grant that small request..." Gojo said, tossing his hair with peak narcissism.
Felt ignored him completely. Her eyes scanned the ground anxiously, searching for something.
Seeing her behavior, Gojo leaned in, puzzled. "What are you looking for? If it's the body, that might be difficult. She's probably flown off to who-knows-where, or maybe she's just dust by now..."
"No... you've got to be kidding me." Felt looked like her entire world was crumbling.
"Hey, don't blame me for being so strong—"
Before Gojo could finish, Felt looked up at him with a deadpan expression.
"Did you forget she was carrying twenty Holy Gold coins on her?"
The smile on Gojo Satoru's face froze.
Right.
Now that she mentioned it... that did seem to be the case.
Seeing Gojo fall silent, Felt knew it was a lost cause. She slumped onto the ground and laid flat on her back. Staring up at the clear night sky, her expression was one of unutterable melancholy.
After everything that happened tonight, no one would be truly "happy." Being alive was something to be thankful for, and Gojo had saved not only her but Old Man Rom as well. She certainly wasn't going to ignore the debt of her life.
But the thought of those twenty Holy Gold coins...
Her heart still ached uncontrollably!