After teasing Felt for a bit, Gojo turned his attention to a more interesting question: could his Reverse Cursed Technique invert his Yin Attribute magic the same way it inverted cursed energy?
If it worked, he'd have two fundamentally different schools of magic at his disposal. A meaningful upgrade, even if an indirect one.
A few experiments later, he had his answer.
It didn't work at all.
The Reverse Cursed Technique and this world's magic weren't even part of the same system. There was no interaction, no resonance. The technique simply had nothing to latch onto.
Unlike the Six Eyes, which had adapted to this world under the influence of that ridiculous Supporting Character System, still letting him perceive the flow of Mana with perfect clarity, the Reverse Cursed Technique offered no such flexibility.
A mild disappointment, but nothing more. These things were bonuses at best, ways to round out an already overwhelming toolkit. Nice to have. Not essential.
And compared to the absence of Yang Attribute magic, what he'd pulled from that spellbook in Betty's Forbidden Library was the real prize.
Going by the prices listed in the Popularity Points shop, the spells he'd memorized would've cost him a few hundred thousand points, easy.
Instead, he'd gotten them for free.
Sure, the shop was more convenient. Learning spells the old-fashioned way meant stockpiling Mana and grinding through practice until the movements became second nature. But there was something deeply satisfying about walking away with that much value and not spending a single point.
Shamak he'd already mastered. The next step up was its advanced form.
El Shamak.
Under its influence, a target's thoughts ground to a halt. They lost all control of their body, trapped in a prison of sensory void and mental paralysis.
Honestly, when he'd first seen it listed in the Popularity Points shop, he'd had to laugh. The effect was nearly identical to his Domain Expansion, Unlimited Void. Virtually no difference.
The only distinction worth mentioning was that the spell required slightly more preparation than expanding a Domain.
A single advanced-tier spell producing roughly the same result as his Domain. He wasn't sure whether to find that funny or insulting.
To cast El Shamak properly, though, my current Mana reserves aren't enough.
Dark fog, black as spilled ink, churned between his fingers.
Through the Six Eyes, he could see the Mana coiled inside his own body with perfect clarity. Practicing the other spells from the book wouldn't happen overnight either. He needed to accumulate more Mana first.
Otherwise, he'd be stuck with this watered-down version.
The effect was technically the same, but the range and coverage were laughable by comparison. The only practical use would be slapping it directly onto someone's skull during close combat. And if he was close enough for that, he could just kill them outright, making the whole exercise pointless.
"Not as simple as I thought."
He pushed his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose and gazed at the distant blue sky.
"Even someone like me needs two days to build up enough Mana."
If any of this world's mages had overheard that, they'd have wanted to strangle him.
Pure bragging dressed up as a complaint.
They'd spent years learning magic from scratch, enduring every frustration the craft could offer. Meanwhile, Gojo had picked up Shamak from Puck's verbal instructions alone. He didn't need to drill fine Mana manipulation to learn advanced spells. He just... learned them.
The only thing keeping him in check was his Mana pool.
"Sir, please refrain from muttering things that sound vaguely indecent in broad daylight."
Rem's voice came from behind him.
He didn't need to turn around. He could already see the blue-haired maid approaching.
"Oh no, I only said it because I saw you coming, Rem."
"So you're no longer even trying to hide your terrible intentions?"
"Well, if you'd just agree to elope with me, I wouldn't have to."
He dispersed the magic and turned to face her.
"Rem belongs to Lord Roswaal."
"That makes it more exciting, doesn't it?"
Rem gave up trying to engage and moved on as if he hadn't spoken.
"Lord Roswaal has invited you to join him for afternoon tea."
"Did the lovely Miss Rem make the pastries? If so, I wouldn't dream of missing it."
She pretended not to hear. Her gaze drifted briefly to his hands, and she added in a flat tone, "If you're interested in learning magic, you might consider asking Lord Roswaal."
"He's been thinking quite seriously about how to repay you, after all."
"How thoughtful of you, Miss Rem. But don't worry. I wouldn't waste something as valuable as a debt of gratitude on something so trivial."
"Compared to magic lessons, I'd rather have you, Miss Rem."
She turned on her heel without a moment's hesitation and started walking back toward the mansion.
"Lord Roswaal is waiting for you in the second-floor dining room."
That was all she said before leaving.
Her stride was steady, measured. But there was something about the pace that called to mind a woman fleeing a stranger's pickup line on a city sidewalk.
"Have I really reached that age already? I used to be popular, you know."
Gojo pressed a hand to his forehead in mock despair, then followed her toward the mansion.
In the second-floor dining room, Roswaal was waiting.
The afternoon tea invitation, it turned out, hadn't been for Gojo alone. Felt was already there.
"I'd originally intended to invite Subaru as well, but it seems there was an unfortunate incident. I must apologize. For something like that to happen under my roof is a failure on my part as a host."
Roswaal opened with the apology the moment Gojo sat down.
"Nothing to do with you. That idiot brought it on himself."
Gojo drizzled honey over the pancake in front of him, speared a piece, and said it like he was discussing the weather.
Felt glanced between him and Roswaal, thoroughly lost. She had no idea what they were talking about. Judging by their expressions, though, it didn't seem serious.
"What happened to Subaru?"
"The idiot tried to learn magic and overdid it. Burned through everything he had."
Gojo shrugged, savoring his pancake.
Felt's expression flattened. She'd been bracing for something dangerous.
"The reason I invited you both today," Roswaal continued, "is to ask whether there's anything you'd like to request."
"Consider it repayment for saving Lady Emilia..."
"We haven't decided on anything specific yet." Gojo cut in before Roswaal could finish. "Or is this your way of saying we've overstayed our welcome and you'd like us gone?"
The bluntness caught Roswaal off guard for a beat. Then a smile spread across his face.
...
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