The woman, who had still been looking for an opening, felt that overwhelming aura and her heart jolted.
She no longer dared to probe the invisible barrier, wondering when it might disappear.
Instead, she rushed straight at Satoru Gojo, swinging both blades in a frenzied assault.
She didn't understand his ability, but a woman who had lived in the shadows for years, soaked in blood and countless killings, knew one thing better than anyone.
She could not let him continue.
No matter how desperately she attacked, Gojo did not respond.
He did not even spare her a glance.
That kind of indifference was colder than contempt.
All she could do was watch as Gojo slowly folded down his ring finger.
Then his little finger.
There was nothing she could do to stop it.
In the end, only his long index finger remained raised.
Hovering above it was a small sphere, about the same size as the earlier blue one.
To the naked eye, it looked pitch-black.
And yet, it continuously radiated a dazzling red light.
When Blue was reversed, the original negative energy became positive energy, and the effect naturally changed with it.
Attraction turned into repulsion.
In short, repulsive force.
The instant the technique was completed, the woman felt an intense sense of danger.
This man possessed power that could truly threaten her life.
She had not felt something like this in years.
Ever since receiving that so-called blessing and becoming an almost immortal cursed doll, this sensation had disappeared from her world.
But now…
Unable to break through Gojo's defense, she made a split-second decision.
She leapt away from him and charged toward Felt and the others.
If she couldn't break his defense, then she would force him to drop it himself.
"I put a lot of thought into preparing this gift for you. Leaving so suddenly would hurt my feelings."
Gojo's voice sounded from behind her.
At the same time, a terrifying presence surged up from beneath her.
She instinctively looked down.
Gojo was already in front of her.
"I call this…"
"Cursed Technique Reversal Red."
Gojo spoke softly.
As his words fell, the warehouse seemed to be swept by a gale-force wind. His hair whipped wildly through the air.
In that instant, the blazing red light erupted completely, swallowing everything in its path.
To Subaru and the others watching from the side, their vision was consumed by nothing but brilliant crimson.
They could see nothing else.
The entire world turned red.
"BOOM!!!!"
Their sight vanished, but a thunderous roar slammed into their ears.
Howling winds.
The cool night air surged violently.
The group huddled together, eyes squeezed shut.
Listening to the deafening noise and feeling the raging force that seemed ready to tear them away, it felt like the end of the world itself.
Old Man Rom groped his way forward, pulling Felt and Subaru tightly to him, shielding them with his massive frame.
No one knew how much time passed before the roaring wind finally began to die down.
Only then did the three of them cautiously open their eyes.
The red light still lingered on their retinas, yet it did nothing to dull the shock of what they saw.
The warehouse was gone.
Completely gone.
There was nothing left. Not even a single plank of wood remained.
Under the bright moon in the pitch-black night sky, a massive pillar of crimson light stretched upward, its end nowhere in sight, cutting straight through the heavens.
It was as if the sky itself had been torn open.
Even the royal capital could clearly see it.
And within that awe-inspiring scene, a lone figure stood beneath the moonlight.
Black clothes, spotless.
Silver hair gently swaying in the night breeze.
Those ice-blue eyes burned themselves into the hearts of the three witnesses, impossible to forget.
As they stood frozen like statues, staring blankly at Satoru Gojo, an embarrassed voice broke the silence.
"Ah… I might've gone a little too far."
Gojo scratched his head, then turned to them with a bright, carefree smile.
"I really did keep the power as low as possible."
His words finally snapped the three of them out of their shock.
"That was the minimum?"
Subaru swallowed hard.
"Then what would the maximum even look like…"
He did not dare imagine it. For a moment, he felt like his companion was less a hero and more like a final boss demon king hiding behind the scenes.
Felt, on the other hand, could not care less about power levels.
The moment she recovered, she sprinted straight toward Gojo.
"I get it, Felt, you're impressed, totally in awe of me. If you want an autograph, I can make an exception and—"
Gojo flipped his hair, striking a shamelessly smug pose.
Felt ignored him completely.
Her eyes darted anxiously over the ground as she searched nonstop, clearly looking for something.
Seeing her like this, Gojo leaned closer, confused.
"What are you looking for?"
"If it's a body, that might be tough."
"It probably got blown who-knows-where… or turned into dust…"
"N-no way…"
Felt's face went pale.
"That's just how strong I am—"
Before he could finish, Felt turned and stared at him with a flat expression.
"Did you forget she had twenty Holy Gold Coins on her?"
The smile froze on Gojo's face.
Right.
That did sound familiar.
Seeing him fall silent, Felt knew it was truly hopeless.
She dropped down onto the ground and lay flat on her back.
Staring up at the clear night sky, her expression was full of melancholy.
After a night like this, no one would be in a good mood.
Just surviving was already something to be grateful for.
Gojo had not only saved her, but Old Man Rom as well.
She would never forget a debt like that.
But still…
Thinking about those twenty Holy Gold Coins made her heart ache all over again.