"There's one thing I still don't get, though."
Subaru's expression darkened as he recalled the day's encounter with Elsa and the others. "Roswaal is Emilia's biggest supporter. Why would he pull something like this?"
Technically, Felt was now a Royal Candidate too, which made her Emilia's rival on paper. But their group was in it for the payday, nothing more. Grab the money and run. They posed no real competitive threat, so that wasn't worth worrying about.
Emilia's situation, though, was different. Roswaal was her pillar. If even he wasn't truly on her side, Subaru couldn't begin to imagine how she'd manage.
"Your guess is as good as mine." Gojo shook his head. "I figured he was working for a rival camp, trying to eliminate a candidate early. But after that negotiation, it doesn't add up."
"Probably no one knows what's going on in his head except himself."
Betty looked between them. "Every head of the Mathers family has been exactly the same. Each generation, the other nobles call them eccentric, unpredictable. Apart from that pink-haired maid at his side, nobody gets close enough to understand."
"Don't worry about it, Subaru." Gojo waved a hand. "Nothing to lose sleep over. Tell you what, if it really bothers you, when the rest of us are vacationing in another country, you can always stay behind and support Emilia."
"What?"
"Me? Alone?"
Subaru pointed at himself like he'd heard something absurd.
"Fighting with everything you've got for the girl you love, even if you lose in the end... there's something noble in that, don't you think?"
"But what could I even do for her?"
He frowned, genuinely thinking it through, but no matter how hard he racked his brain, nothing surfaced. He had no special abilities to speak of. His high school education wasn't exactly revolutionary in a world whose systems were already well-developed. Nothing he knew would make much of a difference.
The only card he held was Return by Death.
Hit an unsolvable problem, die, and rewind?
The thought made his stomach clench. That single ability was, in theory, enough. More than enough. Used properly, it could hand Emilia the entire competition. Enough deaths would make him effectively omniscient. He'd know every opponent's hand, every piece of intelligence, every danger and opportunity before it arrived.
But the price of admission was dying.
His two previous deaths had been painless. Both times, his Mana had drained while he slept, and he'd simply never woken up. No sensation, no suffering. About as peaceful a death as anyone could ask for.
If he were alone, though, without a Curse slowly draining his life... he'd have to face it head-on. The fear. The pain. Everything that came with choosing to die.
"Gojo, if it ever comes to that... leave Meili with me."
He'd been quiet for a long time. When he finally spoke, his eyes were earnest.
"You're actually considering it?"
Subaru's declaration pushed Gojo's understanding of lovesick devotion into new territory. Even counting the rewound timelines, Subaru and Emilia had spent less than a month together. And on the strength of that alone, he was prepared to endure death after death, carrying a loneliness he could never share with another living soul, all to help her.
Gojo couldn't quite wrap his head around it. He'd had friends and companions before crossing over. But those bonds had been forged over years of shared experiences, built slowly through hardship and trust. Nothing like this. Subaru had gone from zero to all-in almost overnight.
"Keeping Meili's not a problem." He shrugged. "But think it through. The only reason she stays in line for me is because Elsa can't beat me. For you... well, let's say Elsa might develop a real fondness for your intestines."
Subaru's mouth twitched. He'd forgotten that particular detail.
"On second thought... maybe we revisit this later."
He laughed weakly. The comfortable painless deaths were apparently off the table going forward.
"So what's our next move?" Felt was practically bouncing. Gojo's vision of wealth had filled her up, and she was raring to go.
"Nothing."
She stared at him. "Nothing?"
"Shouldn't we be reaching out to nobles or something?"
"You think this is easy? Until your identity is verified by the higher-ups, the only thing you'll get from approaching nobles is thrown out on your ear. Or arrested by Reinhard."
"So we sit tight, enjoy the hospitality, and let Roswaal handle the groundwork. The most we should do right now is brainstorm how to invest once the money starts coming in."
Felt deflated. "I thought we could start making money now."
"Relax. The money's sitting in those nobles' vaults. It's not going anywhere. When the time is right, we go collect. Sooner or later, it's all ours."
His tone carried an easy confidence that made it sound like a foregone conclusion.
"Besides, weren't you two dying to learn Jujutsu? Now that we've got free time, we start tomorrow."
"That Curse nonsense?" Betty wrinkled her nose. She couldn't fathom what was worth studying about it.
"Jujutsu and Curses aren't the same thing. If anything, it might be a power unique to me in this world." Gojo smiled at her. "You're welcome to try it too, Betty. If you're curious."
"So mysterious, talking about 'unique powers.'" She crossed her arms. "Fine. Betty will come and expose your fraud firsthand."
Laughter filled the room, the four of them trading jabs with an ease that had become second nature.
Meanwhile, in the parlor, Roswaal sat alone.
He stared at his teacup in silence, still turning over the conversation with Gojo. How long he remained like that was hard to say. Eventually, a smile crept across his face.
"Interesting."
"What an unexpected development."
"Is this the change that power brings?"
He lifted the cup and drained the cold tea in one swallow.
"Though... this alone is far from enough."
Something cold and deep flickered through his narrow eyes before the expression vanished entirely.
The next morning, Emilia learned that Felt was the final Royal Candidate almost the moment she woke up. No one had planned to hide it from her.
Subaru, having grasped that their group was in it purely for the money, had gone to tell her first thing. Her initial reaction was complicated. The last candidate had been found, which meant the competition was about to begin in earnest. The quiet days they'd been enjoying would soon be over.
And Felt, someone she'd come to think of as a friend during their time together, had transformed overnight into a rival. The feeling was strange.
But after Subaru explained their actual intentions, the tension eased. Felt's group had no interest in the throne. They wanted to leverage the title for funds and then disappear to live comfortably somewhere else. No ambition, no conflict.
Relief washed through her. Not having to oppose a friend was the best possible outcome, and losing a competitor lightened the pressure besides.
Subaru and the others, by contrast, were buzzing with excitement. The long-awaited Jujutsu training was finally here.
Gojo stood before three students: Subaru, Felt, and Betty.
"First things first. Learning Jujutsu requires a specific aptitude. The most basic requirement is having the Yin Attribute. Subaru and Betty, I already know you qualify. Felt, let's check yours."
He placed a hand on her head.
"Go ahead."
Felt tensed but nodded.
Gojo probed her Mana for a moment. The result was disappointing. Her attribute wasn't Yin.
"Sorry. Looks like Yin isn't in the cards for you."
She'd braced herself for this, but the confirmation still stung.
"It's fine. I don't even like fighting."
"Don't feel bad. These two aren't guaranteed to pick it up either. Jujutsu has steep requirements." He turned to Subaru and Betty. "Beyond having Yin Attribute Cursed Energy, you need the right kind of brain. One that's wired to manipulate this power."
Becoming a Jujutsu Sorcerer meant more than generating Cursed Energy from negative emotions. That part was analogous to how mages drew Mana from the atmosphere. The real barrier was neurological: the brain had to possess a specific structure capable of channeling the energy innately.
Forget Innate Techniques, forget Cursed Energy reserves. Without the right brain, none of it mattered. There was no path forward.
Unless, of course, you had access to something special. Like the Innate Technique called Idle Transfiguration, which Gojo had spotted in the shop. That ability reshaped souls through physical contact, which in turn restructured the body. In theory, someone wielding it could mass-produce Jujutsu-compatible brains, churning out sorcerers at scale.
But that was irrelevant for now. As one of the highest-tier items available, the price tag was far beyond his reach.
"I'll guide you through sensing Cursed Energy. During the process, try to take control of it and channel it toward your fist. If you can do that, it proves you have what it takes."
"Betty, you're up first."
He beckoned her forward.
Gojo was genuinely curious about her. Betty looked like a little girl, but Spirits didn't truly have fixed physical forms. In their earliest, weakest stage as Lesser Spirits, they were nothing more than orbs of Mana, incapable of speech, able only to transmit and receive emotions. Only after growing into Great Spirits did they earn the ability to shape their own bodies.
The more he'd learned about Spirits, the more a certain thought had nagged at him.
A Great Spirit with the Yin Attribute.
Back in his old world, that was a Cursed Spirit. Plain and simple.
The parallels were uncanny. Beings born from emotional energy, lacking true physical form, growing stronger over time. It was the same framework wearing different clothes. And that was exactly why he wanted Betty to go first. In his estimation, her odds of mastering Jujutsu were extremely high.
"All this buildup. Even magic isn't this dramatic." Betty stepped forward, curiosity winning out over skepticism. From a magical standpoint, the power Gojo wielded was undeniably unusual. It resembled an Authority in some ways, yet was nothing like the Witches' powers either.
"Focus on what you feel. Don't let your mind wander."
He tapped her forehead lightly.
Betty huffed and closed her eyes.
An invisible energy gathered in Gojo's palm. Cursed Energy. He eased it into Betty's body, and almost immediately, he realized she was even more remarkable than he'd guessed. Buried deep within her was an enormous reservoir of Cursed Energy, dormant and untouched. All of it waiting to be awakened.
"Can you feel that current? Try guiding it..."
"Like this?"
He was still coaching her when her eyes snapped open. Her small fist was already wreathed in a familiar energy, unmistakable and vivid.
Cursed Energy.
"Not bad at all, Betty. Impressive."
"Hmph. Betty has many impressive qualities."
"But this is a strange kind of power." She studied her own fist, turning it over. "Mana is neutral, almost imperceptible. This feels like it's carrying something. An emotion, maybe."
Her sensitivity was razor-sharp. She'd identified the fundamental difference on her first attempt.
...
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