The night was as deep and heavy as a pool of stagnant water.
Tokyo Jujutsu High, the Cursed Warehouse.
It housed countless dangerous cursed objects sealed by the jujutsu world over the past millennium, each possessing enough cursed energy to level an entire city.
Yet tonight, the gate guarded by layers of barriers opened without a sound.
"Oh my, what a nostalgic scent."
A blue-haired young man with stitches across his face strolled through the long corridor of the warehouse as if wandering through his own backyard.
The Special Grade Cursed Spirit, Mahito.
His fingertips lightly brushed against the shelves covered in talismans before finally stopping in front of a wooden box sealed with charms.
However, when he opened the box, the smile on his face froze slightly.
The box that should have contained three embryos now held only one.
Death Painting Womb Number One—Choso.
As for Number Two, Eso, and Number Three, Kechizu, they had already vanished during the previous Yasohachi Bridge incident.
Or, according to the official statement from the jujutsu world, they had been exorcised.
"Is this the only one left?"
Mahito pursed his lips, looking somewhat dissatisfied.
"Well, even if it's just Number One, it's better than nothing."
"I hear he's the strongest of the Death Paintings, and he has an extraordinary obsession with those two dead brothers of his."
At that thought, the corners of Mahito's mouth curled into another malicious arc.
Such an obsession was the perfect tool to exploit.
Without hesitation, he grabbed the remaining embryo. His body instantly dissolved into a puddle of liquid, disappearing into the night through the ventilation ducts.
...
A certain abandoned basement in Tokyo.
The stench of decay hung heavy in the air.
An unlucky ordinary human was tied to a chair, staring in terror at the stitched monster before him.
"Don't be afraid. It'll all be over soon."
Mahito smiled as he forced the embryo down the man's throat.
Gulp.
As the embryo entered his stomach, the man's body began to convulse violently.
His skin began to fester and his veins bulged, as if something was tearing his flesh apart from the inside.
"AAAAAAAH—!"
A piercing scream echoed through the basement, but it was cut short abruptly.
All that remained was a massive, oppressive surge of cursed energy skyrocketing upward.
This cursed energy was several times more terrifying than Eso and Kechizu's combined!
The dust settled.
A tall man with a strange hairstyle and a horizontal bloodstain across the bridge of his nose slowly stood up.
The eldest of the Death Paintings—Choso!
"Who am I...?"
Choso stared at his hands in confusion, then suddenly clutched his chest.
There was a hollow sensation there.
It was the emptiness left behind by the disappearance of his brothers, linked to him by blood.
"Eso... Kechizu..."
He whispered those two names, the confusion in his eyes gradually replaced by a deep, profound grief.
"They're already dead."
A playful voice spoke from the side.
Mahito leaned against the wall, wearing a hypocritical smile.
"Not long ago, they were brutally killed by those sorcerers from Jujutsu High."
"Not even their bodies were left behind. They were burned to ashes by a guy named Yoru."
"How pitiful. They were just children who had only just awakened, yet they didn't even get a chance to see the world..."
"Dead...?"
Choso's pupils constricted sharply.
"Impossible!"
"If they were dead, I would be able to feel it!"
As the eldest of the Death Paintings, he possessed a special connection to his brothers.
Although that sensation was faint and intermittent right now, it had definitely not been severed entirely!
It felt more like it was being shielded by some powerful force—or hidden away.
"Oh? You don't believe me?"
Mahito raised an eyebrow, seemingly unsurprised.
"Then go see for yourself."
"That sorcerer named Yoru is at the high school right now."
"If your brothers are still alive, they must be in his hands."
"And of course, if they're dead..."
"Then he's the murderer."
BOOM!
As Mahito's words fell, an incredibly violent killing intent instantly filled the basement.
Choso snapped his head up.
His once-confused eyes were now bloodshot, burning with the rage of an older brother.
"Yo... ru..."
He gritted his teeth, forcing the name out from between them.
No matter the truth, he had to find this man!
If he had captured his brothers, he would make him hand them over. If he had killed them...
Then he would pay with his life!
"I'm going to the high school."
Choso threw out those cold words and, in a flash, vanished from the basement like a blood-red afterimage.
That speed, that explosive power—even Mahito's eyes widened slightly.
"What terrifying obsession."
Mahito watched Choso's departing back, the smile on his lips deepening.
"Go on, cause as much chaos as you want."
"Muddle the waters and draw out that troublesome wild card."
"That way..."
"I can prepare for the real show."
...
Meanwhile.
Jujutsu High, boys' dormitory.
Yoru sat cross-legged on his bed, polishing Shiranui.
Since the Yasohachi Bridge incident, he had secretly placed Eso and Kechizu in a safe house known only to him and Mei Mei.
After all, even though they had been purified, they were still Special Grade cursed objects that needed to be exorcised in the eyes of the higher-ups.
Bringing them back to the school recklessly would surely trigger a backlash from those rotten oranges.
'Calculating the time, that big guy should be waking up about now.'
Yoru looked out at the moonlight, lost in thought.
He knew Mahito's plan.
And he knew that the doting older brother, Choso, would eventually come knocking.
'I hope you aren't too impulsive.'
'Otherwise...'
'My newly replaced floor is going to suffer again.'
Yoru sighed and sheathed his sword.
Despite his complaints, the anticipation in his eyes was impossible to hide.
That was a thirst for strength.
And admiration for a man who could betray the world for the sake of his family.
Thud!
Just then.
A violent ripple suddenly surged through the high school's outer barrier.
Immediately after, a violent burst of cursed energy thick with the scent of blood shot straight toward the center of the school like a sharp arrow!
That direction...
It was heading right for Yoru's room!
"Are you here?"
The corners of Yoru's mouth curled upward.
He stood up, threw on his jacket, pushed open the window, and leaped down.
"Let's go, Shiranui."
"Let's go greet our new friend."
BOOM!!!
A loud explosion suddenly rang out across the school's training ground.
A blood-red figure descended from the sky like a cannonball, smashing a deep crater into the ground.
Amidst the rising dust, Choso slowly stood straight.
His eyes were crimson, and his body was wreathed in a nauseating, bloody cursed energy.
"Who's there?!"
Maki and Panda, who were out for a night run on the field, were startled by the sudden intrusion.
Maki reacted instantly. The long-handled cursed tool in her hand was unsheathed in a flash as she dropped into a combat stance.
Panda also lowered his center of gravity, warily eyeing the figure in the dust.
'This pressure...'
A bead of cold sweat formed on Maki's forehead.
'A Special Grade? And... this scent of blood, is it a Cursed Womb: Death Painting?'
"Give my brothers... back to me!!!"
Choso didn't even acknowledge the two small fry. His eyes scanned the campus frantically, searching for that familiar yet loathsome aura.
"Hey! I'm talking to you!"
Maki's brow furrowed. She was just about to step forward to test him.
BOOM!
A violent wave of cursed energy erupted with Choso at its center.
Maki and Panda felt a tightness in their chests as they were pushed back several steps by the sheer force of his aura.
"Out of my way."
Choso's voice was as cold as eternal ice.
He slowly raised his head, locking his gaze on the boys' dormitory.
There.
He could smell it.
The residual scent of Eso and Kechizu, and that... the scent of the murderer who killed them!
"Found you..."
Choso's mouth split open into a gruesome grin.
He slammed his hands together, blood compressing rapidly in his palms. The terrifying fluctuations in cursed energy began to warp the surrounding air.
"Yo... ru..."
Inside the dormitory.
Standing by the window, Yoru felt the blatant killing intent and sighed helplessly.
He glanced at the polished Shiranui in his hand and whispered to himself.
"What an impatient guest."
"Barging in without even taking off your shoes?"