"These are the internal structure diagrams, the inferred distribution of Cursed Energy hotspots observed by the Window, and Emergency Contact Talismans."
Kiyotaka distributed several copies of the printed materials. He first handed them to Fushiguro Megumi, then Yuji, Nobara, Utaha, Eriri...
When he handed out the fifth copy and prepared to move on to the next explanation, his movement paused for a moment.
That calm voice spoke up again at the right time.
"Um... Ijichi-san, it seems you haven't given me my materials yet."
Kiyotaka: "!!!"
He then realized that he had subconsciously skipped Kato Megumi again. He hurriedly pulled another copy from the bottom of the folder and handed it over, apologizing repeatedly, "S-Sorry. Kato-san, here you go."
"It's fine, thank you." Kato Megumi took it without saying much else.
Kiyotaka wiped away non-existent sweat and quickly continued, "The entry and exit of the Curtain have been adjusted, you can enter directly through the main gate. I will maintain the entrance outside the Curtain and monitor Cursed Energy fluctuations at all times."
"Remember, keep the Communication Talismans activated at all times and report any situation immediately. Gojo-san has other important matters to attend to and cannot provide direct support for now, but he has authorized the use of emergency protocols if necessary. Everyone, please be careful."
The briefing ended.
Everyone felt a heavy, oppressive sensation coming from ahead.
A grayish-black, seemingly physical curtain hung like a giant inverted bowl, enveloping the entire detention center facility, causing even the light at its edges to warp.
Police lights flashed as officers and auxiliary personnel from Window maintained order and set up a cordon.
Just as Kiyotaka was preparing to lead the group through the preset entrance of the Curtain, a burst of heart-wrenching wailing caught their attention.
At the edge of the cordon, a middle-aged woman was being held back by two police officers. Her hair was a mess, tears and snot streamed down her face, and she desperately tried to rush toward the darkness-shrouded building, her voice shrill and distorted.
"Let me in! Please! My son is still inside! Tadashi! My Tadashi! He said he had a performance evaluation today and might be early... let me go in and find him! He must still be alive!"
The police struggled to restrain her, offering low-voiced comfort, but the woman's grief was like a physical needle, piercing the ears of everyone present.
"Tadashi..." Yuji stopped in his tracks, looking at the desperate mother, his fists involuntarily clenching.
He thought of his grandfather and of the innocent lives lost because of curses.
Nobara clicked her tongue and turned her head away, but her gaze also sharpened.
Fushiguro Megumi watched in silence, a flicker of emotion passing through the depths of his eyes.
Utaha felt her heart tighten. She thought of the feeling of helplessness she had when someone important to her was in danger.
Eriri shrank back in fear, but she couldn't help looking at the mother, her eyes showing sympathy.
Kato Megumi watched quietly, her expression remaining calm, but her gaze lingered for a moment between the mother and the detention center.
"Do you see?" Fushiguro Megumi said in a low voice, his words clearly reaching every team member's ears.
"There might still be people alive inside waiting for rescue. This is our mission: to save people and to exorcise the curse. Don't get distracted, but don't forget this."
Without needing more words, an invisible sense of responsibility and mission quietly coalesced in the hearts of the six. They looked at each other and nodded.
"Let's go." Fushiguro Megumi took the lead, being the first to step into the preset entrance of the Curtain.
Yuji followed closely, followed by Nobara. Utaha pulled Eriri along, and Kato Megumi walked at the very back.
One by one, their figures vanished into the murky darkness.
The moment they stepped inside the Curtain, light, sound, and even their sense of direction became distorted.
The clamor of the outside world was completely cut off, replaced by a viscous, malice-filled silence.
The air was damp and cold, carrying the scent of rust and a certain unspeakable rot.
What should have been the entrance hall of the detention center was now nothing but broken walls and ruins. Emergency lights flickered with a ghastly green glow, barely illuminating the crack-filled and stained floor.
Fushiguro Megumi immediately summoned his Divine Dogs, the black and white Shikigami alertly scouted the surroundings.
Yuji clenched his fists. Right now, he was just a freshman. Aside from physical strength far beyond normal people, his application of Cursed Energy was even inferior to Eriri and Kato Megumi's.
Nobara pulled nails from her waist pouch, holding them between her fingers.
Utaha forced herself to stay calm, mobilizing the newly born, faint blue Cursed Energy within her body to sense her surroundings.
Eriri gripped her talisman board tightly, her face pale.
Kato Megumi quietly observed the building structure and shadows, seemingly memorizing the route.
"Be careful, the aura of curses here is very thick, and..." Utaha frowned.
Her "eyes" could see more than ordinary people. The residual Cursed Energy permeating the air was like a murky stream, slowly converging toward a certain direction deep within the building.
As Sukuna's host, Utaha's physical body had long since been passively tainted by Sukuna's Cursed Energy, gaining certain changes.
"Furthermore, something is wrong." Fushiguro Megumi stopped and looked back with a grim expression.
The Curtain entrance they had entered through, which should have been an open passage about a dozen meters behind them, had now turned into a wall of slightly pulsating flesh covered in vein-like protrusions.
The way back had disappeared!
"Is it a Domain?" Utaha asked in surprise.
Fushiguro Megumi analyzed calmly, "We're trapped. We can only move forward."
Everyone's hearts sank.
Kiyotaka's information was clearly wrong, this was definitely not an effect an ordinary Cursed Womb could produce.
They continued to carefully explore deeper into the building along the dilapidated corridor.
The traces of residual Cursed Energy became more and more obvious. Eerie graffiti, seemingly smeared with blood and filth, began to appear on the walls, depicting distorted human figures and scenes of agony.
Oppression and unease spread through the group.
Rounding a corner, the flashlight's beam illuminated a small open area at the end of the corridor ahead.
A figure was curled up in a corner, motionless.
"Someone's there!" Yuji's eyes lit up, and he immediately wanted to step forward.
"Wait!" Fushiguro Megumi and Utaha shouted to stop him almost simultaneously.
Utaha's left eye grew slightly warm. She "saw" extremely thick, ominous black threads coiled around that figure, sharing the same source as the curses in the entire space, and... that figure itself had no aura of life.
Yuji stopped, also sensing something was wrong. He cautiously approached with Fushiguro.
***
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