"Incredible..." the Curse said, its raspy voice echoing through the ruins. "A human capable of holding out this long against me..." It burst into laughter, its multiple mouths forming a terrifying chorus. "Don't disappoint me, don't die too quickly!"
Suddenly, without warning, the Curse raised its twisted arms. Wind blades shot from its body like invisible knives, cutting through everything in their path. The hospital walls and ceilings were torn apart, debris flying in all directions under the power of the attack.
The ground beneath Ryosuke's feet gave way, and the entire floor collapsed under the intensity of the windstorm.
Caught in the tempest, Ryosuke barely managed to block one of the blades with his metal bar, but the impact was so strong that he was hurled across the room, crashing violently through several walls before landing in a pile of rubble.
Now outside the ruined building, the Curse scanned the debris below. Its multiple eyes swept over the wreckage, searching for any signs of life.
A twisted smile stretched across its many faces. "Where did you go, human?" it shouted, its many voices reverberating through the air. "Did you survive that, or is that all you had to offer?"
For a moment, silence hung heavy in the air, oppressive and thick. Then, suddenly, a scream of pain shattered the quiet. The Curse turned its head to see a block of concrete slowly rising from the rubble.
Beneath it, Ryosuke emerged, his muscles straining as he pushed himself free. His face was streaked with sweat and blood, and his clothes were in tatters, revealing deep gashes across his body.
He stood up slowly, glancing down at his battered state. He wiped the blood from his forehead with the back of his hand and sighed, more out of fatigue than despair.
"I really felt that one..." he muttered, his voice rough and low. He took a deep breath, surveying the ruins around him. "Without cursed energy, I'd be in terrible shape right now..." He winced as he placed a hand on his side, where one of the wind blades had left a long cut. "Maybe even dead."
He paused, his lips curling into an unexpected smile. Despite the pain coursing through his body, he seemed... happy. He let out a soft, almost nervous laugh, as if he'd just realized something new.
"So that's it..." he murmured to himself, his eyes wide with surprise. "This is the thrill of shonen battles..."
"Still alive?" the Curse said, a strange gleam in its eyes. "Perfect! You seem to be a more interesting opponent than I thought. I hope you're ready for what's next... because the real fight is just beginning."
Ryosuke, brushing the dust off his tattered clothes, looked at the Curse with a smirk. "Sorry, but I'm going to decline your invitation. I'm not really into grueling battles." He stretched his arms, grimacing slightly. "If I get hurt any more, I'll have to experiment on myself, and honestly... it's still too early for that."
With an agile leap, he jumped through the breach left by the collapsed building and landed smoothly outside, the ground cracking beneath his feet. The Curse, hovering above the ruins, loomed over him.
Ryosuke glanced up at the creature and furrowed his brow slightly. "If I understand correctly, your power is to control or generate wind, right?" His voice was calm, almost nonchalant. "It's quite a destructive spell on its own. Terrible, even. And I don't doubt you haven't shown everything you can do yet. But... my cursed energy can infuse it."
Annoyed by Ryosuke's words, the Curse unleashed a blade of wind in his direction. But just as the blade was about to strike Ryosuke, it dissipated into the air as if it had never existed.
The Curse furrowed its many brows, confused. "What the...?" it murmured, incredulous.
Ryosuke shrugged. "I told you, didn't I? My cursed energy can infuse your spell." He paused to think for a moment. "Basically, your spell is ineffective against me."
Furious, the Curse sent another blade of wind, then another. But each time, the blades vanished before they could reach Ryosuke.
"How...?" growled the creature, disoriented.
It then unleashed dozens of wind blades, each more powerful than the last. But they all met the same fate: they dissipated before they could touch the human.
At his wit's end, the Curse tried to summon another gust. However, it suddenly felt incredibly heavy, its misshapen body sinking into the ground with a dull thud.
Ryosuke approached, crouching next to the Curse and looking down at it. "Honestly, I'm getting bored of these wind blades." He sighed in boredom. "Don't you have anything else to offer?"
The Curse growled in frustration, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
Ryosuke simply smiled, satisfied with his little demonstration. "Well, if you've got nothing else... we might as well move on to the second phase of the experiment, don't you think?"
The Curse desperately tried to get up, groaning with effort. But its body seemed to weigh tons, as if it were chained to the ground.
Ryosuke, calmly crouched a few steps away, smiled.
"There's no point in struggling," he said in a detached tone. "You belong to me now."
TO BE CONTINUED!
Next Chapter: Experimental Madness