Chapter 2: Cursed Town
Ryo woke up, his hand instinctively rubbing his neck. "What happened?" he muttered, wincing at the ache. "How did she knock me out like that?"
As he sat up, he realized something was wrong. His clothes were gone, leaving him completely exposed.
Before he could process this, the door swung open, and Mikoto walked in, holding a bundle of clothes. "Oh, right. I forgot to bring these earlier," she said nonchalantly.
Ryo frowned, taking the clothes. "Who washed them?"
Mikoto's eyes widened before she pointed an accusing finger at him. "Forget about that! Why are you standing there naked like this is normal? Are you some kind of weirdo?"
"I'm not the one barging into rooms without knocking," Ryo replied flatly, pulling on his shirt.
Mikoto sputtered, clearly annoyed. "Whatever! Just get dressed and come outside." She stormed out, slamming the door behind her.
Once he was dressed, Ryo stepped into the hallway and found Mikoto leaning against the wall, still fuming. "Now that I'm ready, can we get to the point? What happened last night in that tunnel?"
Mikoto's irritation faded as she grinned. "Straight to business, huh? Fine. What you saw wasn't just some monster. It was an evil spirit."
"Evil spirit?" Ryo asked, his voice steady but curious.
"Yeah," Mikoto said, crossing her arms. "When people die with unresolved grudges or violent deaths, their souls don't move on. Over time, all that anger and regret festers until they turn into evil spirits. These spirits want to possess human bodies to live again."
"Why would it target me?" Ryo asked bluntly.
"Hold your horses. I'm getting there," Mikoto said with a smirk. "Possession isn't easy. There are rules. For a spirit to take over a human, three things need to align: their original body and the target body must look the same, their ages must match, and the human body has to be strong enough to handle the spirit's energy."
"That's oddly specific," Ryo said, his tone unamused.
"Yeah, but most spirits are too far gone to remember the rules. That's why they lash out randomly," Mikoto explained. "Anyway, thanks to you, I managed to exorcise that one."
"How did you kill it?"
"With talismans and my skills, obviously," Mikoto said, puffing up her chest.
Ryo didn't react to her boasting. "So, you fight these spirits regularly?"
"Yup. We're a group of people trained to exorcise spirits. Think of us as jujutsu sorcerers."
"Jujutsu sorcerers?" Ryo repeated, confused.
Mikoto stared at him, her jaw dropping. "Wait… you don't know what a jujutsu sorcerer is?!"
"No," Ryo said plainly.
She gasped dramatically, clutching her chest. "You've never heard of Jujutsu Kaisen? What rock have you been living under? Are you secretly some ancient old man?"
Ryo raised an eyebrow. "Is that important?"
Mikoto groaned. "You're impossible. How do you not know about one of the greatest anime of all time? Forget it. Let's just say we fight evil spirit and leave it at that."
"Fine," Ryo said, moving past her dramatics. "But why was that spirit targeting me?"
Mikoto narrowed her eyes. "Show me your finger."
Ryo didn't question her, extending his hand.
Without warning, Mikoto bit his finger lightly, drawing a drop of blood.
Ryo pulled back immediately. "What are you doing?"
Mikoto ignored his reaction, examining the blood. "I knew it. You're cursed."
"What does that mean?" Ryo asked, his tone sharp.
"It means someone in your family tree was cursed, and now it's passed down to you. You've probably had a rough life because of it, huh?"
"My suffering isn't because of a curse," Ryo said coldly.
Mikoto tilted her head. "Oh? Then what's the cause?"
"It doesn't matter," Ryo replied, brushing off her concern.
Before Mikoto could say more, a voice interrupted, "Mikoto-san, did you bring a guest?"
Ryo turned to see a man in a kimono with long hair covering one eye. His presence was unsettling.
Mikoto's expression darkened. "Kaito Kamizuki. What are you doing here? Leave. Now."
Kaito smirked. "Still as charming as ever, Mikoto-san. But if you insist, I'll be on my way." With a mock bow, he vanished into the shadows.
Ryo watched him go before turning back to Mikoto. "Who was that?"
"None of your business," she said quickly. "Now, back to your curse. If it's hereditary, we can't remove it. But we can seal it to cancel its effects."
"There's no need," Ryo said firmly. "Even if the curse is part of my suffering, it's not the main cause. My suffering is my fault. I deserve it."
Mikoto sighed dramatically. "Oh, great. Another self-loathing, guilt-ridden guy. Newsflash: not everything is about you."
Ryo didn't react to her sarcasm.
"But seriously," Mikoto continued, her tone softening. "This curse doesn't just hurt you. It affects the people around you — your classmates, strangers, anyone near you. Do you really want to be responsible for their suffering too?"
She turned to leave but paused. "Think about it. This is your chance to stop hurting yourself and others. Don't waste it."
Ryo stood in silence for a moment before calling out, "Mikoto. Can you help me seal the curse?"
Mikoto turned, a grin breaking across her face. "Of course, kiddo. Let's get started. Oh, and once we're done, I'm making you watch Jujutsu Kaisen. It's a crime you don't know about it.