As for Kawasaki Saki, there was a reason behind her cold demeanor.
Just as high school students weren't allowed to drink alcohol, even though schools didn't explicitly forbid students from working, certain jobs could cause trouble. Working in a place like this bar, for instance even if she wasn't doing anything wrong could still get her in trouble if people found out.
And Saki really needed this job now.
She thought Ryuji might use that knowledge to threaten her.
Realizing she had misunderstood him, Saki's expression returned to its usual stoicism.
"If you don't need anything else, I'll get back to work," she said, her voice cold but not unfriendly. It was just how she was. In the anime, she had the same distant attitude not because she was cold-hearted, but because working late nights made her exhausted, leaving her with little energy to socialize.
Ryuji didn't stop her. After watching Saki walk away, he turned back to Nanami.
"So, you still haven't told me why did you suddenly ask me out for dinner?"
Nanami thought for a moment before deciding not to hide anything. He knew that when dealing with someone like Ryuji, honesty was the best approach. Trying to be clever or manipulative would only backfire.
"Part of it is personal," Nanami began, "but mostly, it's because of Jujutsu High."
Ryuji raised an eyebrow. "Go on."
"Because of Gojo-san, the higher-ups at Jujutsu High are aware of a genius sorcerer like you. They want us to establish more connections with you at least to prevent you from joining the ranks of the curse users." Nanami explained, his tone serious.
Curse users. Ryuji understood the implication. Curse users were sorcerers who had chosen to use their powers for evil, disregarding human life entirely. They used curses for their own selfish purposes, earning them the label of curse users.
"That's it?" Ryuji asked, his expression neutral.
Nanami nodded. "We don't want you to fall into that category. You have too much potential for that."
Ryuji smirked. "Don't worry. The strong only seek out the stronger. Only the weak pick on the weak."
He wasn't interested in bullying the helpless. To him, people who abused their strength to crush those weaker than them were pathetic. Life had a way of coming back to bite those who lacked respect for it.
Nanami's eyes widened slightly at Ryuji's words. "The strong only seek out the stronger, huh?"
It was the first time he'd heard someone phrase it like that, but it made sense. Surprisingly so.
"I figured as much," Nanami said, his voice carrying a hint of respect. "I never doubted it."
Nanami had known from the moment Ryuji said that sorcerers were "trash" that he had no interest in associating with curse users.
"From a personal perspective, though," Nanami continued, "I just wanted someone to talk to."
Nanami had become withdrawn after his close friend, Haibara, died. That event had pushed him to leave behind the life of a sorcerer and try living as an ordinary person.
"If anyone could surpass Gojo-san, it might be you," Nanami said, raising his glass in a toast to Ryuji.
"Who knows?" Ryuji grinned and raised his own glass, though it was only filled with juice.
For hours, Ryuji and Nanami talked about everything from sorcery to mundane life. The serious atmosphere that Nanami usually carried had lightened considerably by the end of their conversation.
"It's getting late," Nanami said after checking his phone. "I have to work tomorrow."
There was a heaviness in his voice as he spoke, a familiar sadness returning to his eyes.
Ryuji laughed. "Seeing you like this makes me not want to graduate."
Nanami didn't respond to the joke, but his expression softened slightly. How nice it would be to stay young and carefree forever.
At that moment, Saki, who had just finished her shift, came out of the back of the bar, looking tired as she changed her clothes and prepared to leave.
"Huh?" Ryuji and Nanami turned their heads at the same time, both sensing something.
It wasn't because of anything Saki had done but because a cursed spirit had appeared, following her.
"Work… so annoying… so annoying…" the cursed spirit muttered. It was a low-level spirit, with limited intelligence, and it was attracted to Saki, drawn in by her exhaustion and frustration.
"I guess high school students are under a lot of pressure these days," Ryuji said, amused.
Cursed spirits feed on negative emotions, growing stronger as they absorb more. Saki's long hours and late-night exhaustion had made her a prime target for this one.
"This shitty society," Nanami muttered, disgusted.
It was a vicious cycle. Society's pressures created more negative emotions, which in turn created more powerful cursed spirits. And those cursed spirits would harm humans, further feeding the cycle.
Even as a first-grade sorcerer, Nanami couldn't solve the problem at its root.
Realizing his own frustration, Nanami exhaled slowly, regaining his composure.
"Level 4 cursed spirit?" Nanami assessed. The spirit following Saki was weak, a low-level curse that could be handled by an average person if they had a weapon. But if it continued feeding off her negative emotions, it wouldn't be long before it upgraded to a level 3.
"Leave it to me," Nanami began to say, but Ryuji, who had been watching Saki walk away, suddenly interrupted.
"I'll handle it," Ryuji said, his eyes focused on Saki's retreating figure.
Nanami paused, then smirked knowingly. "I see… you hate working overtime, don't you?"
Nanami wasn't stupid. He could tell that Ryuji wanted to help, and maybe impress Saki in the process. Besides, it wasn't a bad idea to let the younger sorcerer handle the situation.
"You're not thinking anything strange, are you?" Ryuji glanced at Nanami suspiciously, noticing the teasing smirk on his face.
"Of course not," Nanami replied, shaking his head. "Youth is a wonderful thing."
Ryuji rolled his eyes but didn't argue. He left the bar and followed Saki at a distance.
---
"Work… so annoying… so annoying…" The cursed spirit behind Saki continued muttering as it followed her, feeding on her exhaustion.
Saki walked down the darkened street, her head down, too tired to notice the presence lurking behind her.
Suddenly, the cursed spirit began to change. Its body swelled and twisted, growing in size as it absorbed enough negative energy to upgrade from level 4 to level 3.
Ryuji, watching from behind, narrowed his eyes. "It upgraded…"
Despite the cursed spirit's growth, Saki continued walking, completely unaware.
Ryuji considered the situation for a moment. Logically, if the cursed spirit had absorbed Saki's negative emotions, she should have felt a little better by now. But she still looked exhausted, weighed down by the same burdens.
"This doesn't make sense…" Ryuji muttered to himself. "It's like the law of conservation of energy doesn't apply."
He shook his head. "I've traveled through worlds, and I'm still thinking about science. My brain must be fried."
Deciding it was time to act, Ryuji prepared to take down the cursed spirit before it could grow any stronger.
But just as he was about to make his move, Saki stopped walking. She turned around and looked directly at him.
"...?"
Under Ryuji's confused gaze, Saki stared at him silently for a few moments, her eyes narrowing slightly.
After what felt like an eternity, she finally spoke.
"Are you… a pervert?"
"..."
Ryuji blinked in disbelief. Because he had been following her, she thought he was a stalker?
Rolling his eyes, Ryuji responded, "You do realize this is also the way to my house, right?"
It wasn't even a lie. He hadn't realized until he started following her that they lived in the same direction.
Saki looked like she was about to say something else, but at that moment, a sudden cry for help rang out from nearby.
"Help! Somebody help!"
Both Ryuji and Saki froze, turning toward the sound. Under a nearby streetlamp, they saw a man with a briefcase, trembling with fear as he stood facing something they couldn't yet see.
"What… what is that?" Saki asked, her voice shaky. She had walked this route many times, but this was the first time she'd encountered something like this.
Ryuji didn't answer immediately. Instead, he raised an eyebrow, sensing the dark energy in the air. There was something off about the situation.
"Strange energy…" he muttered. "Could it be?"
Without thinking, Saki started to walk toward the man, her natural kindness compelling her to help.
But as she approached, the man's body suddenly jerked.
A moment later, blood began to flow from him, staining the ground beneath his feet. The man's body collapsed backward, revealing the figure behind him.
A woman stood there, her face obscured by a mask, holding a pair of bloodstained scissors.
Saki's eyes widened in horror.
"Murder… murder!" she screamed, frozen in shock at the sight of the body.
But Ryuji remained calm, his eyes locked onto the masked woman.
Unlike Saki, who was frozen in fear, Ryuji's expression remained composed as he assessed the situation.
The woman wore a mask, and in her hand, she held a pair of large, bloodstained scissors. Her eyes were gleaming with a twisted sense of joy.
"This… is the Slit-Mouthed Woman," Ryuji said quietly, identifying the figure before them.
"Wh-what?" Saki stammered, disbelief clear in her voice. The Slit-Mouthed Woman? That urban legend?
The Slit-Mouthed Woman was infamous in urban myths. She was said to approach her victims and ask if they thought she was pretty. If they answered "no," she killed them. But if they answered "yes," she revealed the grotesque cuts that extended her mouth from ear to ear, then used her scissors to carve their faces in the same way.
Saki felt a cold sweat run down her back. "That… that can't be real. It's just a story!"
Ryuji didn't respond to her disbelief. Instead, his gaze remained fixed on the figure. He could sense the cursed energy swirling around her it was undeniable. She was real.
At that moment, the Slit-Mouthed Woman turned her attention toward them, locking eyes with Ryuji and Saki.
She began to walk toward them, her steps slow but deliberate, her bloodstained scissors glinting ominously under the streetlights.