The thick, billowing clouds of dust finally began to settle.
The scenery in the back alley was nothing short of horrific. The walls were collapsed as if they had taken a direct hit from a bombardment, and where the monster's existence had been erased from the asphalt, only a massive crater remained.
"Haa... haa..."
Only the sound of heavy, beast-like breathing filled the narrow passage.
Just then, the geometric wheel that had been shining fiercely above the crown of my head began to slow down.
Kigigigig— Click.
Soon, the Dharma Wheel lost its shape and dispersed into the air.
At that same moment, the sensory bolt that had been held shut by adrenaline and dopamine was unlatched.
"Guh... AAAAAARGH!"
My knees buckled, and I slammed face-first into the ground.
The rebound—this was the price for taking the onslaught of a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit with my bare body and forcing movements that surpassed my limits. Horrific pain surged like a tidal wave; it felt as if every muscle in my body was being shredded and every bone was screaming in agony.
'Hospital... no, that's a crazy thought.'
Even as my consciousness blurred, my realistic side sounded the alarm.
This body I've transmigrated into is just a twelve-year-old orphan. I don't even know where my insurance card is, and for someone like me who lives off discount convenience store bread for every meal, I don't even have the money to pay for a checkup.
Above all, if a kid who doesn't even look like he's in middle school shows up at the emergency room covered in blood? There's a 100% chance the police will get called for child abuse or a violent crime. It would only be a matter of time before they realized I'm an orphan, and then the cops would swarm in. No matter how you look at it, I'd end up in a foster facility. I can't build my strength if that happens.
"...Must go. Home."
I spat blood onto the asphalt and forced myself to stand.
Fortunately, it was the dead of night, and the streets were completely deserted. Staggering and leaning against walls for support, I slipped into the darkness, making sure I wasn't seen by anyone.
"Cough!"
Grabbing the doorknob, I practically collapsed into my old tatami room.
My vision was spinning, and it felt like my breath might stop any second, but I managed to lift my head and check the state of my body.
"...Wait, what?"
I tore off my blood-stained clothes and threw them aside, only to stare at my reflection in the mirror with pure confusion.
I definitely took a direct hit to the stomach from a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit's fist, and my jaw was literally displaced.
At least three or four ribs should have been shattered, and it wouldn't have been weird if my internal organs were ruptured from the impact. With the durability of a normal human body, it should have been impossible for me to even walk home.
And yet.
"...They're still attached?"
Deep blue bruises and torn skin were leaking blood, sure, but no bones were broken. Even my organs, which I thought were shredded, were maintaining their function while emitting a strange, feverish heat.
It was as if someone had forcibly stitched my broken flesh back together with invisible thread.
'How...?'
Suddenly, a sensation flashed through my mind.
That split second when black sparks erupted from my right hand.
In that 0.000001-second gap, I had definitely tasted the core of Cursed Energy. I had understood the essence—how Cursed Energy, originating from negative emotions, clusters and explodes.
And when that black fire blazed... the 'Dharma Wheel of adaptation to all phenomena and facts' had been spinning above my head.
"No way..."
I cautiously touched the spot where the monster had struck me immediately after its awakening—the blow that hadn't even allowed me a chance to react. At that moment, I honestly thought my entire midsection had been hollowed out.
The threat of death as my physical form was being destroyed. In that fatal situation, Mahoraga's technique attempted an 'adaptation' to save my life.
The core of Cursed Energy glimpsed through the Black Flash, and the technique's survival instinct to repair the wounds at any cost.
Those two factors had miraculously fused, and my body had begun to produce a very faint form of 'Positive Energy' on its own.
"Reverse Cursed Technique..."
Of course, it wasn't at the abnormal level of Satoru Gojo or Ryomen Sukuna, who can regenerate limbs instantly. This was just a crude, subconscious level that barely avoided a fatal injury by slowly patching up the broken bits.
However, the fact that a twelve-year-old brat—who had been clumsy with even basic Cursed Energy manipulation—had grasped the clue to Reverse Cursed Technique was a miracle that defied logic.
I forced the corner of my bloody mouth upward and let out a dry laugh.
"Hahaha!... No wonder that brat Megumi tried to use Mahoraga as a panic button for everything."
I curled my body into a ball, and my eyes snapped shut as if I were fainting. The pain was excruciating, but the smirk on my lips didn't fade.
It was the night the most perfect cheat code for survival in this horrific world finally became mine.
—The following morning.
A middle-aged man wearing a loose coat over a black suit walked down the street, followed by a younger sorcerer.
"Senior, are you sure this is the right place? Where the 'Window' reported the Grade 2 combat-type Cursed Spirit?"
The junior sorcerer asked while pinching his nose to block out the smell.
But the man called 'Senior' didn't answer; he just stared blankly at the alleyway that had been catastrophically demolished.
"...The Cursed Residue is thick here. This is the place."
"Are you kidding? This was Grade 2? An entire alleyway was wiped out!"
The exterior walls of the buildings were gouged out as if hit by cannon fire, and the asphalt was cracked wide open. Just as the junior said, these weren't the traces of destruction a typical Grade 2 spirit could leave behind.
"Either the scouts from the Window made a mistake, or it evolved during the fight. Looking at the density of the remaining Cursed Energy, it was at least semi-Grade 1... no, maybe it even reached Grade 1."
"What? Grade 1? We're just the Grade 2 disposal team! It's a good thing we were late; otherwise, we wouldn't have a single bone left in our—"
"I'll report the grade reclassification to the Window and request reinforcements. You make sure the perimeter is secure so no civilians get near the scene."
"Wait a second, Senior."
The junior, who had been surveying the area, turned pale.
"The aura of that spirit... the one you said reached Grade 1... it's completely vanished here. Doesn't that mean someone exorcised it?"
The senior walked silently toward the center of the alley and stood before the massive, deep crater. It was a bizarre mark, as if the space itself had been crushed and exploded by an overwhelming force.
He knelt carefully and brushed his fingertips over the dark blue residue left in the center of the crater.
In that instant, a cold shudder ran down the veteran sorcerer's spine.
"A distortion in space. And the traces of black flames generated by the collision of Cursed Energy. ...This is a Black Flash."
"A-A Black Flash?! Is there a sorcerer in Kyoto right now who can pull that off? Letting it rip by chance is one thing, but intentionally?"
The senior slowly shook his head.
"I don't know. Whether it's a teacher from the High or a sorcerer from one of the Great Houses. But judging solely by the destructive power and the concentration of Cursed Energy left in this crater..."
The man swallowed hard, muttering as if talking to himself.
"The combat power of the person who landed this blow is, without question, Grade 1 sorcerer level."
As he finished, a heavy silence fell between the two. It was the crushing pressure of knowing that an unidentified powerhouse was roaming the back alleys of Kyoto.
—Ding! You've got mail!
Suddenly, a cute electronic chime rang from the senior's pocket.
As he pulled out an old-fashioned flip phone and checked the screen, his furrowed brow deepened even further.
"...Senior?"
"Looks like we're not going home yet. Emergency contact from the Window."
The man closed the flip phone and turned his gaze toward downtown Kyoto, past the broken alleyway.
"Karasuma Line, Kyoto Station subway—Exit 4. Multiple reports of missing persons from unknown causes. They say the presence of people evaporated in an instant."
"Could that be..."
"Yeah. Highly likely the work of a Cursed Spirit. Let's head to the subway."
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