...
The girl's body was soft and boneless, melting in Shun's arms like water.
He looked down at her left shoulder. A red black wound shaped like a spiderweb had already bloomed there.
"A curse, huh?"
Shun's expression darkened.
Dealing with curses was, of course, a jujutsu sorcerer's specialty. The problem was that this sort of thing was not something you could just snap your fingers and dispel. Especially when he still had not fully figured out that cursed spirit's technique.
Even with Six Eyes and the special grade "system" curse inside him, if she did not show her hand completely, there was only so much he could do.
"What kind of curse is this..."
He stretched out his hand and reached toward the wound.
"Ugh..."
Kurumi, who had been limp in his arms, let out a faint sound.
Her face had gone deathly pale, all color drained away. Her brows were tightly furrowed. For an ordinary person, being hit by a bullet from a cursed spirit like that, there was no way it would not be agony.
Shun felt a flicker of irritation at himself.
He should have kept this girl behind him from the start.
"Gojo san... am I going to die...?"
Kurumi forced the words out.
Shun began channeling his cursed energy, trying to slow the spread of the curse on her left shoulder.
"With me here, you will not," he replied.
"But I am already seeing things."
Kurumi managed a faint smile.
"I think I can see a tiny little Gojo san. He is so cute."
"That is just your messed up imagination, pervert."
Shun rolled his eyes.
"You are definitely into little boys."
As his cursed energy seeped in, the spiderweb like curse slowed its expansion. Shun's energy was very different from other people's. Maybe it was because of that special grade system like curse inside him. His cursed energy could directly negate the effect of other cursed energy.
And when it struck cursed objects or spirits head on, it was practically a poison.
The curse that had invaded Kurumi's body was wrapped by his energy, forced down until its spread was blunted. But this was still not a real solution. He could not keep maintaining this barrier forever.
"You are so mean, Gojo san, calling me a pervert."
Kurumi's gaze grew hazier, an unnatural flush rising in her cheeks. Her breath came quicker and heavier. It was not because of some strange drug, though. This was the body reacting to being invaded by a curse.
"you definitely do not have a girlfriend, right?"
Maybe because she thought she was dying, Kurumi started rambling.
Shun was speechless.
Were all high school girls this chatty on the verge of death?
Could she not give him a little confidence?
"Yeah."
He nodded.
He had had a few girlfriends before, but with his job and their studies, things had not lasted. At this age, love was often like that.
"I figured..." Kurumi's lips curved slightly. "But if you wanted to find one, it would be easy."
"Even that... woman who looks like me wanted to be your girlfriend."
She was clearly talking about the other Kurumi.
Shun nodded, completely accepting that.
"That is only natural. My features are so good. What girl would not be tempted?"
"Uh..."
For a moment Kurumi was at a loss for words, then she let out a soft laugh.
This man she had just met a few minutes ago really did leave a strong impression. Handsome, strong, reliable. He looked lazy, but when he actually did something, he was incredibly serious. His tongue was sharp, and he had a bit of a narcissistic streak.
She had never seen a guy quite like this.
If only...
There was a sharp crack.
The curse on her left shoulder suddenly reacted as if stimulated by something, and began to spread wildly.
"Damn it."
Shun tried to reach out and pour in more cursed energy, but his hand was knocked back as if repelled.
"Ah...!"
The pain made Kurumi's body jerk forward out of his arms, her whole frame arching. Cold sweat poured down her forehead.
What is going on?
Shun's brows drew together.
Honestly, this cursed spirit they had run into today was far too strange. That elusive, unreadable technique, and now this curse that could shrug off his energy completely. It made no sense.
Especially after he had used Six Eyes to analyze the curse's structure and effect, he was even more confused.
This thing looked like a curse, but it was not entirely a curse.
Feeling Shun's hand leave her shoulder, Kurumi slowly opened her eyes, despair swimming in their depths.
"Looks like I really am going to die."
She stared at his face.
So this was the last man she would see in this world.
He really was handsome.
"What a shame. I have never even... dated..."
Before she could finish, Shun calmly cut in.
"You have never dated? That is pathetic. Luckily I have."
"...!"
Kurumi stared at him, eyes wide.
Was this guy trying to make her die faster?
Shun spoke in the same flat tone.
"If you have never dated, then live properly and go date someone. Stop acting like you are about to die."
"You are making me lose face here."
Kurumi let out a small laugh.
"All right... then I will date you."
"Me? Hmph. We will see how you perform."