Chapter 17 (Patreon)

Bang!

Dracula’s Domain Expansion shattered from the inside.

“Impossible!!!”

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

His head, limbs, and heart were nailed to the wall by Noble Phantasms before he could even react.

“Not bad,” Ragnar Kagenou said, looking at him calmly. “A Domain Expansion, huh? You were better than I expected.”

He took a step forward, golden ripples still flickering behind him.

“Too bad you ran into me.”

Then, with hatred and disbelief still twisted across Dracula’s face, Rule Breaker pierced his heart.

In an instant, every Cursed Technique in his body collapsed.

His Cursed Energy spiraled out of control, his regeneration faltered, and his body began to crumble into ash.

“No... no! How can this be...?!”

Satoru Gojo let out a low whistle.

“Wow. Breaking a Domain from the inside like that... that’s seriously insane.”

【Killed First-Grade Curse User/Cursed Spirit, Cursed Energy increased by 500 points】

Cursed Energy: 600/1010

Ragnar glanced at the fading ashes and shrugged.

“His Domain was too weak. It broke after a few hits.”

Gojo looked at him for a moment, then said, “That’s not how this is supposed to work. Even a weak Domain Expansion isn’t something you just smash apart from the inside unless you counter it with a stronger Domain.”

Ragnar blinked.

“Really?”

“Yeah, really.”

Gojo gave him a long look, like he was trying to see through him.

“You still can’t use Domain Expansion, right? So now I’m even more curious.”

He smiled slightly.

“What exactly are you?”

Ragnar gave him a lazy look.

“What you see is what you get, Gojo.”

Gojo only shook his head and bent down to pick up the Inverted Spear of Heaven, which had fallen nearby.

Then—

Rumble—!

The ground shook violently.

The Inverted Spear of Heaven rolled away, coming to a stop beside the Special Grade Cursed Spirit below.

“What now?!”

The entire underground base began to tremble.

“Don’t tell me this place is collapsing—”

Gojo’s expression shifted as the Six Eyes activated.

“No. That’s not it.”

He turned sharply.

“Ragnar, the Special Grade Cursed Spirit ate Dracula’s corpse. It’s moving again.”

Ragnar clicked his tongue.

“One thing after another.”

Gojo didn’t waste another second.

“Let’s get out first.”

“Agreed.”

Gojo raised a hand.

“Cursed Technique Reversal: Red.”

A violent wave of repulsive force blasted upward, tearing through the building, soil, and stone above them in one shot.

“Move!”

The two of them kicked off the ground with reinforced Cursed Energy and shot upward.

A moment later, they broke through to the surface.

And right behind them—

The Special Grade Cursed Spirit burst out after them.

It was gripping the Inverted Spear of Heaven in one hand.

Ragnar stared at it, then smirked.

“A Special Grade Cursed Spirit wielding a special grade cursed tool.”

He exhaled.

“Now this is getting interesting.”

Gojo adjusted his stance.

“Yeah. But if we let it make the first move, we’re the idiots.”

Their eyes met for a split second.

That was enough.

“Go.”

Ragnar moved first.

Three hundred golden ripples bloomed behind him at once.

And then—

They fired.

At the same time, Gojo activated Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue.

A violent attractive force crashed toward the Special Grade Cursed Spirit.

RUMBLE—!

The surrounding earth shattered instantly under the force of Blue.

The dark sky was flooded with gold as Noble Phantasms poured down like a meteor shower.

The next moment, the Special Grade Cursed Spirit moved.

Fast.

Its body was pierced through again and again, but every time the damage appeared, it regenerated almost immediately.

And worse—

It was smart.

Every hit Ragnar landed was avoided just enough to keep away from anything fatal.

Even while being torn apart, it pushed forward and closed the distance with Gojo, raising the Inverted Spear of Heaven in an attempt to nullify his technique.

Gojo looked almost disappointed.

“Too naive.”

He raised his hand again.

“Cursed Technique Reversal: Red.”

The repulsive force exploded outward and launched the Special Grade Cursed Spirit hundreds of meters away.

Ragnar’s eyes sharpened.

Now he could finally let loose.

The instant the Noble Phantasms struck the ground around the curse, they detonated one after another.

The battlefield vanished beneath a storm of explosions.

The Special Grade Cursed Spirit had clearly never faced anything like this before.

It was less like a fight and more like being hit by an endless missile bombardment.

Gojo shouted over the destruction, “Kill it outright! Don’t give it time to recover!”

Ragnar fired another volley and called back, “What? Don’t want the Inverted Spear of Heaven anymore?”

“Forget it!”

Gojo clasped his hands together.

“Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue. Cursed Technique Reversal: Red.”

The air distorted.

Annihilation gathered between his palms.

“Hollow Technique: Purple.”

The Special Grade Cursed Spirit instinctively raised the Inverted Spear of Heaven to block.

It didn’t matter.

Its upper half vanished.

Erased completely.

What remained was swallowed by Ragnar’s relentless bombardment from the Gate of Babylon, until nothing was left.

【Killed Special Grade Cursed Spirit, Cursed Energy increased by 1000 points】

【Gate of Babylon seal partially broken, Unsealed】

【Unlocked B-Grade Noble Phantasm】

Ragnar dropped to the ground and sat down heavily.

His Cursed Energy was nearly spent.

“That was easier than I expected.”

Gojo exhaled and looked over the ruined battlefield.

“Didn’t think a simple sealing mission would turn into ‘fight a Special Grade in Romania.’”

Ragnar gave a dry laugh.

“Yeah. Definitely worth the trip.”

Then he glanced toward the scorched remains of the battlefield.

“Though it’s a shame about the Inverted Spear of Heaven. That thing’s probably ash now.”

Gojo shoved his hands into his pockets.

“It’s just a special grade cursed tool. If it’s gone, it’s gone.”

A few moments later, the sound of rotors filled the air.

Armed helicopters were approaching fast, and military vehicles could already be seen in the distance.

Ragnar looked toward them and sighed.

“Right. That guy was still a general in this country.”

Without any hurry, he pulled out the Cloak of Invisibility.

The two of them casually disappeared from the ruined base before the troops arrived.

The next day, they returned to Jujutsu High by plane.

And the moment Ragnar stepped back onto campus—

Ieiri Shoko came straight at him.

“I heard you two took down a Special Grade Cursed Spirit in Romania?”

Ragnar raised a hand.

“Yeah, that happened.”

Then he looked at her with complete sincerity.

“Honestly, Shoko, good call on not coming. That kind of foresight deserves respect.”

Shoko snorted.

“Obviously. Missions with you two scumbags are never normal.”

She glanced between him and Gojo.

“Even if the briefing says the job is simple, it always turns into a disaster.”

Gojo immediately reacted.

“Wait. Did I just hear someone badmouthing me?”

Shoko looked off to the side with a perfectly straight face.

“Really? I didn’t hear anything.”

And just like that, the mission to seal the special grade cursed tool was successfully completed.

Probably.

A few days later.

Today was supposed to be peaceful.

It stopped being peaceful the moment Ieiri Shoko found him.

“Ah! Don’t even think about running! You promised we’d go out to eat together!”

After hiding from her for several days, Ragnar Kagenou was finally cornered.

He immediately put his hands together.

“Shoko. Please. Show mercy.”

“Absolutely not.”

Shoko grabbed him without hesitation.

“It’s already hard enough finding someone willing to go eat with me. You think I’m letting you escape now?”

Ragnar looked like a man staring into the abyss.

From his point of view, going out on a date was more terrifying than hunting a Special Grade Cursed Spirit.

Unfortunately for him—

Things only got worse.

Shoko dragged him along, bought the tickets herself, and before he knew it, they were already on the way to Kansai.

More specifically—

Kobe.

Osaka Prefecture—no, wait. Hyogo. Kobe City.

Ragnar stared into the distance.

This was already going badly.

Once they arrived, Shoko turned back and called out to him.

“What are you doing? Hurry up.”

There was no helping it now.

They had already flown all the way here. It wasn’t like he could just turn around and run back to Tokyo.

And if he actually tried, Shoko really might kill him.

Ragnar looked around the city streets for a moment, then muttered, “I don’t know why, but standing on a streetlamp suddenly feels like the right thing to do.”

Shoko’s mouth twitched.

“Don’t. That’s embarrassing.”

He gave her a sidelong glance.

“I was joking.”

Though honestly, even he wasn’t sure anymore.

Today, Shoko had actually dressed up a little.

It wasn’t flashy, just subtle enough to stand out.

Ragnar looked at her for a second and said, “Not bad. You look really good with makeup.”

The moment those words came out, he met her gaze—

And for some reason, that felt even more dangerous than facing a Special Grade.

He cleared his throat immediately.

“Ahem. I mean... you look even prettier.”

Shoko stared at him for a beat.

Then she turned away first.

“Too late. You already said the weird version.”

Ragnar sighed.

Meanwhile, he was still dressed exactly the same as always—black and white, no effort, no variation, like a man who had given up on fashion as a concept.

A few seconds later, Shoko grabbed him by the sleeve and dragged him forward again.

“Come on.”

Ragnar resisted with every step.

“Do we really have to eat this?”

Shoko didn’t even look back.

“Yes.”

“Can’t we pick literally anything else?”

“No.”

“This is harassment.”

“This is what happens when you dodge me for days.”

Ragnar looked up at the sky, as if silently questioning every decision that had brought him here.

Compared to cursed spirits, curse users, and life-or-death missions...

Somehow, this was worse.