The underground experimental area of the Institute of Eastern Folklore.
Eichi was listening to an old professor report on the latest research progress.
"Speak in plain language."
After listening to the old professor drone on for over ten minutes with incomprehensible jargon, Eichi finally couldn't take it anymore.
Interrupted, the old professor paused, subconsciously looking at Eichi's clear yet confused eyes.
"My apologies, I forgot you haven't even gone to university yet. I got a bit carried away and used too many technical terms."
The old professor scratched his head, slightly embarrassed. Not only was Eichi their research benefactor, but he had also been treating a child as an equal in an academic discussion.
When Satoru and Suguru weren't around, Eichi often displayed a maturity beyond his age. Combined with his rapid growth, if not for his still-youthful face, no one would have thought he was a child.
He opened his mouth, wanting to retort, "If you count my previous life, I might not be younger than you," but then thought, "Wouldn't that be even more embarrassing?"
Eichi reluctantly closed his mouth.
This sight made the old professor chuckle, clearly interpreting his reaction as childish stubbornness.
"Simply put, we've discovered a property of Cursed Energy: Cursed Energy is idealistic."
After saying this, the old professor's hands trembled slightly.
He had originally conducted research on energy weapons, but later, due to a directive from Japan's government, many projects were cut.
His research funding was drastically reduced, and disheartened, the old professor chose to retire and enjoy his later years.
When Eichi heard the news, a strange idea immediately came to mind.
Energy. Weapons.
Cursed Energy should also be considered a form of energy, energy meant for individual combat and Cursed Tools were weapons that utilized this energy.
This idea lingered in Eichi's mind. Later, he prepared a pair of glasses identical to Maki Zen'in's, which allowed ordinary people to see Cursed Spirits, and went to visit the professor.
The old man, bored and restless at home, was clearly unaccustomed to retirement. When cooking, he cut potatoes too thick or sliced his hand. When cleaning, he left watermarks everywhere and even broke a vase.
Under his wife's disapproving gaze, he could only drink tea and read newspapers all day.
Go out and have fun? Having spent his entire life in research, the professor didn't even know what "fun" was.
His children were busy with work, and he didn't want to disturb them.
Then, one day, a strange young man appeared, showing him a world he had never known.
The old professor's curiosity was immediately reignited.
After an in-depth conversation with Eichi, he agreed without hesitation to help with Cursed Energy research.
Initially, Eichi was thrilled—until he saw the equipment procurement list the professor handed him.
Trembling, he pulled out the bank card Gojo Satoru had given him. Looking at the balance, Eichi, who hadn't smoked since his Rebirth, suddenly wanted to light a cigarette to calm down.
That was also why he began taking on numerous Cursed Spirit exorcism requests.
Scientific research devoured money, but fortunately, exorcising Cursed Spirits earned money just as quickly.
After discussing the equipment with his subordinates, Eichi directly called Gojo Satoru.
There was no helping it; some items were restricted, and others required special connections.
Once the equipment arrived, several assistants were also recruited. Eichi didn't need to handle that, the professor found the people himself.
Several Grade 4 Cursed Spirits were captured for study, several sets of restraint devices were purchased, and two low-level Jujutsu Sorcerers were hired to manage the Cursed Spirits.
After all the procedures, the amount of money spent made Eichi want to throw up his hands and quit.
"Cursed Energy is inherently idealistic, isn't it? Otherwise, how would we control them?"
Eichi looked at the professor, speechless.
You spent all that money just to figure this out?
Hearing that, the old man sighed softly.
"Yes, Cursed Energy is inherently idealistic. How can someone like me, who's studied materialism his whole life, possibly handle this?"
After speaking, the old professor, a little dispirited, patted one of the Divine Dogs beside Eichi.
The worldview and values he had believed in for decades had been shattered. It had taken him a long time to adapt.
"You can see them now?"
Eichi was a bit surprised. The professor was wearing glasses, but they were ordinary ones for nearsightedness, not Cursed Tools for seeing Cursed Spirits.
"Exactly. That's also why I said Cursed Energy is idealistic."
"Once I subjectively understood Cursed Energy, I gradually began to perceive it."
Eichi was skeptical. If truly understanding Cursed Spirits allowed one to see them, why did Maki Zen'in in the original story still need to wear glasses to observe them?
She'd been educated in Jujutsu and had slain numerous Cursed Spirits—would anyone dare claim Maki didn't understand them?
He summoned Round Deer from his shadow. Sure enough, the professor didn't notice the additional shikigami in front of him.
However, the Divine Dogs' reaction made the old man notice something was off.
"Judging by those little guys' reactions, you summoned a new shikigami?"
"Exactly. If, as you say, understanding Cursed Energy allows one to see Cursed Spirits and shikigami, then why can't you see Round Deer?"
"Because I don't know Round Deer's appearance, size, or the nature of its Cursed Energy. My mind cannot imagine what it looks like, so naturally, I can't perceive it. But as for the Divine Dogs, I knew their appearance from the first time we met."
Hearing this, Eichi recalled Nanami teaching Yuji how to observe residual Cursed Energy in the original story.
The residual Cursed Energy had always been there, but Yuji couldn't see it until Nanami explained it to him.
"Young man, do you know about Schrödinger's Cat?"
"I've heard of it."
"You should study that if you have the time. Now, let's look at my research results."
With that, the professor led Eichi to a laboratory.
Inside was a metal box, within which a Grade 4 Cursed Spirit radiating intense cold was confined.
"Matsushita-kun, begin."
"Yes, Professor."
The researcher named Matsushita flipped a switch.
The space inside the box seemed to fluctuate slightly, and Eichi noticed the air inside distort faintly.
The Cursed Spirit, radiating cold, began howling in pain.
"What is this?"
"A type of electromagnetic wave."
"Electromagnetic wave?"
"Exactly. You can think of it as us heating the experimental device with this electromagnetic wave."
"An induction cooker?"
"No, that thing inside is a box."
"A microwave oven?"
"…It's different, but if that helps you understand, it's close enough."
Seeing Eichi's confusion, the professor continued explaining.
"At first, we had a question: why can Cursed Spirits clearly pass through matter, yet also physically damage it?"
Eichi recalled the Cursed Spirit at the beginning of the story that phased through a ceiling and wall to attack Megumi Fushiguro, and another that appeared through a wall to grab a child and threaten Nobara.
"When a young researcher proposed the idealistic viewpoint, we quickly verified it and discovered that Cursed Spirits also perceive themselves through this 'idealistic' mechanism."
"They believe they can pass through walls, so they pass through walls. They believe they can touch, so they touch. Later, we even conducted a test: a researcher without cursed tool glasses fired a bullet through a Cursed Spirit, and it passed harmlessly. But when an observer wearing glasses fired, the bullet pierced the Cursed Spirit's head."
"This further confirmed that Cursed Spirits and Cursed Energy exist in an idealistic state."
"However, this idealism has limitations. It cannot exceed their perception, or the Cursed Spirit will be unable to maintain its form and collapse."
"Through studying the residual Cursed Energy left after a Cursed Spirit dissipates, we discovered the unique energy that constitutes Cursed Spirits."
"Later, we began researching this energy and found a way to interfere with it."
"For example, this Cursed Spirit."
The professor pointed to the one in the box, which had already begun to dissipate.
"According to the catalog you provided, this one was born from people's aversion to extreme cold. Through repeated research, we found that by observing it and subjecting it to electromagnetic heating, we could destabilize its energy structure and kill it."
After some thought, the professor decided against using technical terms and instead explained it in simpler terms.
"Basically, we're killing it with something like a microwave oven."
"Without using Cursed Energy?"
"Without using Cursed Energy."
Hearing the old man's confident reply, and seeing no trace of Cursed Energy in the large "microwave oven," Eichi believed him.
They had truly found a way to harm Cursed Spirits scientifically, without relying on Cursed Energy.
Regardless, it was a promising start.
(To be continued.)
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