"So strong!"
Outside the barrier, atop the Southern Building, Maki stared blankly at the scene displayed in the aerial projection, utterly shocked. The words slipped unconsciously from her lips.
Roy had entered the barrier one minute ago.
Half a minute was spent exchanging words with his opponent.
Then, in less than half a minute, he had already killed the first enemy head-on.
That pink-haired woman looked incredibly powerful, especially with her bizarre cursed technique that balanced offense and defense. Yet Roy had crushed her in less than thirty seconds.
Maki prided herself on the tremendous progress she'd made over the past few months—it was like night and day compared to her former self.
But if she had to kill that pink-haired woman in under thirty seconds, she knew she couldn't be certain of success.
She would definitely win.
But it would take her far longer than it took Roy.
"Roy-sensei's combat skills are truly astonishing!"
Yuji watched intently, enhancing his senses with cursed energy to clearly follow Roy's movements. Hearing Maki's admiration, he couldn't help but voice his own praise.
"If I'm not mistaken, he barely used any cursed energy when dealing with that woman. The key to his victory must have been that unique footwork... Though I could be wrong—I'm not a close-combat specialist, but that's how it seemed?"
"No one here could make a more accurate judgment than you, so you're probably right," said Yaga, though his expression wasn't as relaxed as theirs. Instead, visible concern lingered on his face.
He quickly shifted the topic.
"But things probably won't be so easy from here on out."
In the projection.
Jogo and Dagon arrived shortly after. After a brief exchange where they realized they were outmatched, they immediately split up and began attacking the nearby civilians.
"What despicable bastards!"
Yuji roared indignantly upon seeing this.
"That's just how curses operate."
"Better not expect too much from curses."
Nobara and Megumi exchanged glances, both seeing a hint of resignation in each other's eyes before warning Yuji.
"The best option here is to focus on killing one curse first."
Maki watched coldly as Jogo and Dagon attacked the humans, her tone flat and unreadable.
"...You're right. In this situation, we have to exorcise those two curses first before we can even think about rescuing the hostages. Otherwise, the deaths will snowball, and the sorcerers will be left scrambling, unable to act freely."
Yuta sighed inwardly.
From his perspective, he would naturally prefer to prioritize saving lives. With his shikigami Rika, he could hold off two Special Grade curses at once.
Did Roy have such means?
Yuta didn't know.
But even if he did, now wasn't the time to reveal them.
The mastermind behind this barrier trap still hadn't shown themselves. There might be even greater dangers lurking beneath the surface. They had to keep more cards up their sleeves to safely counter the hidden threats.
Even Yuji, furious as he was watching the scene unfold, had nothing to say after hearing their reasoning.
Although Yuji was an idealist, he wasn't foolish. His strength lay in not fighting against reality—he would save as many people as possible within the bounds of what reality allowed.
In the projected scene, Roy was relentlessly pummeling Jogo alone. The two cursed spirits had no choice but to abandon their hostage strategy.
Nearby, Bocchi-chan also tilted her head up to watch the images.
There wasn't just one projection in the sky—numerous bronze birds soared overhead, broadcasting the scene from various angles.
"...Huh?"
At one point, Bocchi-chan suddenly opened her mouth.
Had she just seen something wrong?
For a split second, she thought she spotted a blue-haired, a yellow-haired, and a red-haired figure?
They looked so familiar… Could they really be unlucky enough to be trapped inside?
"This is bad—it's a Domain…!"
Yaga Masamichi's expression abruptly darkened.
In the projection, the octopus cursed spirit, in an attempt to rescue the volcano-headed cursed spirit, formed hand seals and charged at Roy. In the blink of an eye, it expanded its Domain, engulfing Roy within.
"Is it really that bad?"
Yuta was taken aback by Yaga's tone and looked at him in confusion.
"Roy-sensei should know how to use a Domain too, right? Even if the opponent's Domain is strong, he should at least be able to neutralize it…"
"I've never heard of him using one."
Yaga's face was grim, his expression tinged with unease.
"...Seriously?"
Yuta's eyes widened slightly as he turned to Maki for confirmation, disbelief written all over his face.
"Roy-sensei even helped me refine my Domain. There's no way he doesn't know how to use one, right?"
From behind, Megumi couldn't help but interject into their conversation.
During training this month, Roy had helped him improve his incomplete Domain.
But now that he thought about it… had they ever actually confirmed whether Roy could use a Domain?
Had he ever mentioned it?
"I did ask him about it once."
Maki glanced at him, pausing briefly before speaking, her expression uncertain.
"Roy-sensei's answer was—he can, and he can't."
"What does that mean?"
Yuta's face was full of question marks.
What kind of answer was "can and can't"?
Even he could use a Domain—there was no way Roy-sensei couldn't, right?
"That's what I asked too."
Maki rested her chin on her hand, recalling Roy's words at the time.
"He said—he doesn't like it."
...Doesn't like it?
Doesn't like what?
Domains?
And because of that, he doesn't use them?
"What the hell does that even mean…?"
Yuta scratched his head, utterly baffled by the explanation. His head itched from confusion.
"If he can't use a Domain, facing an opponent who can would be a huge problem!"
Completely unable to grasp Roy's reasoning, Yuta couldn't help but feel a twinge of anxiety.
"I've thought about it too—what he meant."
Maki raised her head, gazing at the projection in the sky, her words carrying a pointed implication.
"When he said he 'doesn't like it,' he probably meant dissatisfaction—he looks down on the current power of Domains!"
...
"We cursed spirits are not incomplete beings!"
Inside the Domain, on the tropical ocean beach, Dagon clenched his fists.
His eyes were locked onto Roy, his gaze eerily calm—as if he had already seen his own fate. There was no anger, no resentment, just acceptance.
But it was Roy's words that truly ignited a fierce rage from the depths of his heart.
"Are humans some kind of perfect creatures? Breeding everywhere, expanding endlessly, plundering everything in sight—the sky, the land, the sea, all bear the marks of your greed! The irony is, despite constantly taking, humans still boast of their greatness—just like you! As if everything in this world exists solely for your kind. But we cursed spirits don't act like that. At the very least, we only target humans. What right do you have to despise us?"
"Are you trying to debate primate rights with me now? How laughable!"
Roy curled his lips in disdain, his chin raised high as he looked down on the ocean cursed spirit before him.
"When humans stand as the unique primates, those races seeking to overthrow their status will attack with all sorts of excuses. Their arguments may seem reasonable on the surface, but in essence, they're just twisting cause and effect—attacking human flaws solely to justify usurping their position. In the end, isn't your goal simply to steal humanity's place as the dominant primates?"
Dagon fell silent, unable to respond.
This was indeed their ultimate objective.
Whether it was Mahito, Jogo, Hanami, or even himself—they were all striving for this very purpose.
Roy had seen right through their intentions, leaving him with no rebuttal.
"You're just stalling for time, aren't you?"
Seeing Dagon's silence, Roy scoffed and lowered his stance.
"Honestly, I don't care how many small fry there are. I could give you a chance to struggle, but I've already said—you're the second to die. So—you don't get to live!"
"The moment I dragged you in here, I was prepared to leave no trace of you behind!"
Sensing the malice reigniting in Roy, Dagon tensed.
Without hesitation, he clasped his hands together, and immense cursed energy surged forth in a violent explosion.
"Domain Expansion: Horizon of the Captivating Skandha!"
The moment his technique was unleashed, the sunlit beach was abruptly swallowed by overwhelming shadows.
Countless grotesque, fish-like monsters materialized around Dagon, surrounding him in an impenetrable formation.
"Even in death, I'll make my end meaningful! I'll buy every second I can—to give Jogo and the others time to regroup, and to drain your cursed energy as much as possible!"
Dagon steeled himself, resolved to fight to the last.
Each of the monstrous fish surrounding him was four to five meters long—shikigami he had summoned, every one a carnivorous deep-sea creature with real-world counterparts lurking in the ocean's depths.
The key to buying time? Overwhelm with numbers!
"This domain allows infinite shikigami summoning. Let's see how quickly you can break through it!"
With a single thought, Dagon sent the monstrous fish charging forward—ignoring water pressure, even flying through the air—as they lunged at Roy.
Though "attack" might not be the right word. After all, within a domain, all strikes are guaranteed to hit!
The instant the fish surged forth, they traversed the shoreline as if teleporting, engulfing Roy in an instant.
"Shikigami with guaranteed hits means all their attacks can teleport!"
Dagon floated mid-air, his gaze filled with deep apprehension as he looked down at the beach below.
The monstrous fish had completely submerged Roy, covering the entire coastline. Roy, standing less than two meters tall, seemed utterly insignificant amidst the horde of creatures, each towering four to five meters. His figure was nearly impossible to discern.
Even if one could defend against such an onslaught, avoiding injury would already be a monumental challenge.
Breaking free? That should be impossible, right?
"Thud!"
"Thud! Thud!"
"Thud thud thud!"
Just as Dagon entertained this thought, a rapid series of piercing sounds exploded in his ears like firecrackers.
"What's happening?"