The Heisei International Group had been breaking new performance records in recent years, becoming one of the top companies in its industry. As a result, it was met with jealousy and cold looks from its competitors.
However, no matter what methods or tactics other companies used, they couldn't cause any significant damage to Heisei International Group.
They could only stir up small disturbances, nothing major.
Some competitors even went as far as sending undercover agents into the Heisei International Group, but to their surprise, those they sent were quickly assimilated by the company.
The undercover agents became loyal to Heisei International, abandoning their original companies and diving into the endless cycle of overtime work.
This bizarre phenomenon occurred frequently, and as it became more widespread, rival companies stopped sending people. After all, these weren't amateurs they were sending—they were their top employees.
Due to these strange occurrences, Heisei International's position in the industry continued to rise, becoming unshakable.
Hayashi didn't take the elevator to the upper floors. He knew the moment he entered the building, the special-grade curse spirit should have sensed him. The elevator wasn't safe.
Even so, no curse spirits attacked him as he ascended. He walked all the way to the busiest office area, where the most diligent overtime workers were stationed.
When he arrived, he saw people with dark circles under their eyes, still hard at work. A familiar feeling welled up inside him.
Living like puppets on strings in this world—what a sorrowful existence. Hayashi had come here to put an end to it.
Suddenly, the atmosphere began to shift. From the floor, walls, and ceiling, black curse spirits emerged, baring their claws and fangs as they lunged at Hayashi.
Seeing this, Hayashi smiled with satisfaction. "Not bad, not bad. A little appetizer before the main course—this is good."
Most of the black curse spirits were Grade 4, low-level minions. As they rushed at Hayashi, they felt no fear or negative emotions from him, but instead, a burning sense of righteousness, like a blazing torch.
This feeling made all the curse spirits uncomfortable. They hated righteousness—they thrived on fear, dread, and negativity.
Hayashi didn't even bother to glance at the low-grade spirits. With a swift motion, he drew his cursed tool, Blacksteel, and swung it horizontally.
The powerful surge of cursed energy sliced through three of the charging curse spirits, splitting them in two. The next moment, they burst into purple flames and vanished.
More curse spirits surged toward Hayashi, mindlessly attacking, as if their only purpose was to kill the human before them.
But Hayashi's Blacksteel never stopped cutting them down, and the curse spirits continued to fall.
[Defeated Grade 4 Curse Spirit, gained 7 points.]
[Defeated Grade 4 Curse Spirit, gained 9 points.]
[Defeated Grade 4 Curse Spirit, gained 8 points.]
[Defeated Grade 4 Curse Spirit, gained 6 points.]
Hayashi lost count of how many curse spirits he'd killed. By the time he defeated the last one, not even his clothes were dirty. It had been a one-sided massacre.
In the end, Hayashi gained 123 points from these Grade 4 curses, the equivalent of a single special-grade curse spirit.
This was the power of sheer numbers—when enough low-level spirits gathered, the rewards were substantial. Hayashi wished for even more of these weaklings; they were an effortless way to gather points.
Of course, what he faced wasn't true volume. This was just a small example. When he encountered even larger hordes of curses, that's when the real harvest would begin.
The atmosphere in the building grew tense and eerie once more. After the curse spirits disappeared, no more came forward.
Hayashi glanced around and spoke aloud, "Stop sending your lackeys after me. You're not an unintelligent special-grade spirit—you know they can't hurt me, don't you?"
As his words echoed, the outline of a purple curse spirit slowly emerged from the floor in front of him. It had no eyes, so Hayashi couldn't tell where it was looking.
But because it had no eyes, Hayashi felt as if he was being watched constantly.
"Humans always repeat the same things, over and over," the purple curse spirit said as it fully revealed itself. The pressure in the air intensified to its peak.
The oppressive presence of a special-grade curse spirit was something no lower-level curse could match. It was an entirely different league.
Once a spirit crossed the threshold into the special-grade, it became a fundamental shift in power.
"The last time you almost died here. Instead of learning your lesson, you came back. And yet… I don't sense the presence of the one who saved you. So, what courage brought you here to die today?"
"Oh, by the way, I'm called Shingo."
After hearing this, Hayashi responded calmly, "I didn't expect you to actually show yourself. I thought you'd hide in this building forever. Hiding isn't a bad option for you, right? Curse spirits are immortal. As time passes, you'll only grow stronger."
"That's true," Shingo replied with a casual shrug. "But pests like you, curse users who don't know their place, keep coming to bother me. Even if I wanted to hide, I wouldn't get any peace."
Although Shingo could see that Hayashi's current state was different from before, he wasn't particularly worried. Curse spirits grew stronger faster than curse users.
And being inherently stronger than Hayashi to begin with, Shingo was confident.
"What difference does it make?" Shingo thought. "The last time he came, he looked this confident, too. But once I unfold my domain, that calm expression will disappear."
What puzzled Shingo was that Hayashi knew he could use Domain Expansion, yet he still dared to return. No matter how much a curse user grew in such a short time, they couldn't surpass a special-grade curse that could use a domain.
In Shingo's eyes, Hayashi had come seeking death.
"Shingo, huh? Not a bad name. It means 'cautious understanding,' right?" Hayashi raised an eyebrow and pointed his cursed tool, Blacksteel, at Shingo. "But you're not cautious at all. Even special-grade curses can misjudge."
"And you think you'll win because you brought a cursed tool?" Shingo remained calm. No matter how strong the tool, it would be useless once they entered his domain.
"Hahaha!" Hayashi laughed, his eyes suddenly turning cold. "This is more than enough to deal with you!"
In the next moment, Hayashi poured cursed energy into Blacksteel. Gripping it with both hands, he swung the blade toward Shingo.
As soon as the blade descended, Hayashi's Time Flash brought him right in front of Shingo, the whole move taking less than a second.
With overwhelming cursed energy and the sharp edge of Blacksteel, Hayashi struck Shingo's shoulder.
"Power multiplier!"