"Have you decided who will be the third to die?"
Roy smiled as he surveyed his opponents one by one.
Jogo's formidable offensive capabilities went without saying.
The enormous slug-like creature beside him appeared to be a shikigami, yet the sorcerer controlling it was nowhere to be found—hidden away, leaving no trace of his presence.
The man with the pompadour hairstyle standing atop the high-rise building radiated cursed energy no less potent than Jogo's, his aura arguably even more imposing.
Recalling his previous encounter with Uro, Roy had already begun forming conjectures.
This pompadour-wearing man and the master of that slug shikigami were likely two of the Sendai Four Heavenly Kings from the original story—Ryu Ishigori and Dhruv Lakdawalla.
Both were experts on par with Uro, each capable of dominating an era in their prime. Their cursed techniques and energy stood at the pinnacle of power.
As for the final opponent—the one lurking in the shadows, launching blood-based sneak attacks—that would be the stolen Special Grade cursed object from Tokyo Jujutsu High: Choso, eldest of the Death Painting Wombs.
With his two younger brothers having perished at the hands of Yuji and Nobara after incarnation, he was undoubtedly single-mindedly focused on revenge against the school, though his strength fell slightly short compared to the other three.
"Four Special Grades... passable," Roy mused silently.
This battle promised to be marginally more interesting than his previous clash with Jogo, Hanami, and Mahito!
"He shattered my Piercing Blood... with his bare hands?"
Hidden behind a building, Choso trembled as he witnessed Roy dispersing the blood projectile effortlessly. The flames of vengeance burning in his eyes momentarily dimmed with shock.
His innate technique, Blood Manipulation, allowed him to control his own blood. Piercing Blood compressed his blood to its limits, firing it at bullet-like speeds with an initial velocity approaching supersonic!
Though the projectile slowed after firing, it remained an attack no ordinary person could block barehanded. Even sorcerers reinforcing themselves with cursed energy would suffer severe injuries.
This was his trump card—how could it possibly be swatted away like an insect?
Choso's mind reeled, pupils shaking with disbelief as hatred churned within him. He gritted his teeth.
"Eso, Kechizu... your brother won't give up. Even if it kills me, I'll slaughter those Jujutsu High sorcerers to avenge you. Lend me your strength!"
On the battlefield:
"I've no interest in exchanging words with you, Roy."
Jogo's single eye burned with icy determination, all grief and rage now transformed into power as cursed energy flickered around him like raging flames.
"From this moment forward, I'll stop at nothing to kill you!"
As his words faded,
He thrust his palm forward and clenched it viciously toward Roy.
Roy's gaze sharpened.
Instantly, dozens of volcanic vents erupted across the ground within a fifty-meter radius around him. Blinding flames surged upward as scorching heatwaves engulfed the atmosphere.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!"
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!"
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!"
Countless dazzling flames surged skyward before crashing down, their immense heat spreading out and instantly displacing the surrounding air. In an instant, the area was plunged into a boundless, scorching hell.
The sheer intensity of the heat was enough to vaporize steel and reduce human bodies to ashes. Even from a hundred meters away, one could feel the overwhelming, awe-inspiring wave of scorching air.
"A trap set while I was caught in the domain?"
Roy enveloped his entire body in cursed energy and darted out the moment the flames erupted.
Such a massive attack must have taken considerable time to prepare. Even someone like him would undoubtedly suffer burns if caught off guard.
Not entirely without improvement, huh!
"It's not over yet! Extreme Technique: Meteor!"
A furious roar echoed from the sky.
Jogo had somehow leaped into the air, holding aloft a massive boulder wreathed in flames before hurling it toward the ground with all his might.
In an instant, under the terrifying pressure of the descending meteor, violent gusts of wind whipped across the ground, sending debris and scrap metal flying in all directions. The sheer force of the impact felt like an actual meteor strike.
"All of you, attack together! Don't let him escape!"
Jogo barked an order at the three figures surrounding him.
"Don't you dare command me like that, you lowly cursed spirit!"
A disdainful sneer, sounding like that of an elderly man, came from an unknown source.
As the voice spoke, several small shikigami, swift and agile like swallows, darted out from various directions, charging at Roy with the precision of a well-trained military formation.
"Ganging up isn't my style, but I'm bound by the pact..."
On the rooftop of a nearby building, the man with a pompadour muttered under his breath, his tone tinged with frustration.
With a resigned sigh, he reached up and lightly brushed a hand over his meticulously styled pompadour.
"BOOM!!!"
A mighty beam of cursed energy erupted from the cannon-like protrusion at the front of his pompadour, firing with a deafening roar.
The sheer force of the cursed energy cannon was staggering, its overwhelming pressure rivaling even Jogo's meteor. It seemed capable of leveling entire city blocks in a single blast.
A direct collision with the meteor would only result in mutual destruction, violating their pact.
With a careless snap of his fingers, Ryu Ishigori caused the cursed energy cannon to explode mid-air like fireworks, splitting into dozens of smaller beams that homed in on the space beneath the meteor from all directions.
Meanwhile, Choso remained silent, his eyes dark and cold. Blood pooled in his palms before being launched outward.
This time, instead of firing the blood like arrows, he scattered it like buckshot, sending multiple clotted blood projectiles hurtling toward Roy.
"Supernova!"
Attacks from all three directions were unleashed almost simultaneously.
Each assault was a barrage, designed to pin Roy down at the intersection and ensure the meteor would crush him head-on.
The only flaw was their lack of coordination.
They clearly hadn't practiced combined attacks—the three barrages didn't arrive at the same time but rather in succession beneath the meteor.
Jogo's Extreme Technique: Meteor was undeniably top-tier in terms of power.
Its sole drawback was its slow speed—it took at least three to five seconds to descend from launch to impact.
In an open area, even an ordinary sorcerer could dodge this attack. Even in a city filled with towering buildings, with Roy's supersonic speed, not just one, but even ten meteors wouldn't be able to hit him!
"Ahhh—!"
A desperate scream came from not far away.
Someone, for some reason, still hadn't fled.
Roy ignored the screams around him as over a dozen twisting cursed energy beams, like a hydra's heads, charged toward him first.
The cursed energy beams attacking from all directions were clearly trying to trap him beneath the meteor.
Roy remained unfazed. In the blink of an eye, he threw a punch, its ferocious might shattering the incoming cursed energy beam into pure cursed particles that dissipated into the air.
Immediately after, he used both fists and feet to smash all the incoming cursed energy beams in a few strikes.
Clotted blood bullets shot toward him, exploding like grenades around him. Roy glanced at them—the fragments from the explosions collided with the cursed energy coating his body, sending ripples across its surface.
And that was it.
Not even his cursed energy defense was breached.
His cursed energy possessed stellar properties, and stellar energy was far superior to cursed energy in defense, easily blocking bullets.
Roy paid no attention to the clotted blood bullets and leaped into the distance.
The small shikigami flying toward him like swallows were far too slow to keep up with his speed, so he simply ignored them.
Jogo's ultimate technique, "Meteor," though slow, was terrifyingly powerful. If struck head-on by such a meteor, even Roy would be severely injured.
Only two seconds had passed since Jogo dropped the meteor.
"Help!"
Screams erupted all around.
Who knew how many stubborn people remained, refusing to leave until disaster struck.
"Mr. Roy!"
Roy's steps faltered.
Calling for me?
Was it an illusion?
Could there be someone I know here?
The voice sounded somewhat familiar...
Roy picked out that voice from the countless screams around him and followed it with his gaze.
Not far away, inside a shop, a redhead, a bluehead, and a yellowhead were poking their heads out, looking at him with frantic expressions.
They really were familiar faces...
Roy rolled his eyes.
He stopped and pulled a pure-white initiator from the holster at his waist, pouring cursed energy into it without restraint. The initiator suddenly flashed with a dazzling crimson light.
In an instant, a pure-white energy blade extended from the initiator, transforming into a massive twenty-meter-long light saber. Black infernal flames merged into the blade, instantly dyeing it pitch-black.
"Whoosh!"
Roy turned around, raised the enormous blade, and slashed at the descending meteor!
An overwhelming heat erupted from the blade as dark-red light condensed along its edge, descending like the Sword of Damocles.
With a single slash, the blade cut through the massive meteor as if it were tofu, splitting it cleanly in two in the blink of an eye!
Roy swung several more times in rapid succession. As the blade flashed, the meteor shattered into over a dozen massive boulders that crashed in all directions. The deafening roar of impacts filled the air, flames surged skyward, and screams echoed endlessly.
Roy took several steps back, arriving in front of the shop. With a swift kick, he sent a stray boulder flying away. Only after confirming the danger wouldn't reach this area did he relax, shrinking the Sword of the Black Furnace to the size of an ordinary blade.
"Why are you all here?"
Roy turned around, looking at the three behind him with a helpless expression.
"Mr. Roy! Waaah—!"
Before he could finish speaking, Kita Ikuyo lunged forward and threw herself at him.
"Thank goodness you're here! That was so scary! I really thought we were gonna die this time!"
She buried herself in his arms, clinging tightly to his clothes, her whole body trembling uncontrollably—clearly terrified.
Iijichi Nijika and Yamada Ryo, who had just stepped out of the shop, also wore expressions of relief, their faces filled with gratitude toward Roy.
"We came out to enjoy Halloween… We never expected something like this to happen…"
Nijika managed to keep her composure, though her explanation came out in a stutter.
"We tried to escape and ended up here, but it felt like some kind of barrier was set up around us… We couldn't get out at all. Why do we always have such bad luck with these things?"
She bit her lip hard, her voice thick with frustration and helplessness.
Why had the world suddenly turned into something unrecognizable?
What had they ever done to deserve this?
Roy remained silent.
Though he had some guesses about the truth, it wasn't something he could easily explain to these girls.
Right now, they were merely caught up in a curse-related incident. Compared to the uncertain future ahead, this might even be considered fortunate.
"I'll get you out first."
Roy turned, scanning the buildings outside.
"That'd be great, but… isn't there a barrier here?"
Kita pulled back from Roy's embrace, wiping her tears and sniffling, her gaze slightly embarrassed as she looked at him.
"…I didn't want to use this now."
After a moment of hesitation, Roy nodded resolutely.
He raised his head toward the sky, his blood-red eyes vanishing in an instant, replaced by eerie demonic pupils entwined with black-and-white sigils. They gleamed like dazzling gemstones, exuding an uncanny, mystical aura.
His gaze locked onto the barrier in the sky, his demonic eyes instantly interfacing with its cursed technique.
In the blink of an eye, he grasped its principles and structure.
Crack!
The massive barrier covering the sky suddenly developed fissures, like the shell of a boiled egg.
Within a second, the cracks spread wildly, covering the entire barrier before shattering like glass—leaving not a single trace behind.
"The barrier… broke?"