Chapter 53 (Patreon)

Jujutsu High.

A black-and-white panda spoke up.

“Have you heard? Two students under the Special Grade Sorcerer Ragnar Kagenou are coming to join us.”

The girl with a black high ponytail and glasses, Maki Zen’in, said, “A Special Grade like Gojo-sensei?”

The spiky-haired boy wearing a scarf replied, “Salmon. (That’s right.)”

Maki kept walking as she said, “Apparently, the two of them are a couple.”

Panda continued, “Then we’ll have to let them know this isn’t a place for romance.”

The spiky-haired boy, Toge Inumaki, said, “Bonito flakes. (Let’s see them first, then decide.)”

Gojo Satoru stood on the podium, leaning back slightly, one hand on his hip while the other pointed toward the ceiling in an absurdly exaggerated pose.

Then he opened his mouth wide and shouted at the students below, “Attention, students! I’m going to introduce two new classmates!”

Right after that, he clapped his hands and raised his voice even louder.

“Come on, come on! Everyone, be on your best behavior!”

However, his carefree, scatterbrained attitude left the students below completely speechless.

At that moment, Maki Zen’in sat in her seat with her legs crossed and muttered disdainfully, “Hmph. I heard these two newcomers are pretty arrogant. Who needs self-important types like that to liven up the mood?”

Beside her, Toge Inumaki remained in his usual listless, dead-eyed state and replied weakly, “Bonito flakes... (I don’t like the sound of that.)”

Panda, by comparison, stayed silent and simply watched everything unfold.

Seeing his students’ reaction, Gojo Satoru shook his head helplessly, sighed, and said, “Oh well. Never mind. I’ll leave the rest to you.”

Then he turned toward the classroom door and raised his voice.

“Come on in, new students!”

Outside the door, Yuta Okkotsu looked somewhat uneasy and helpless.

Seeing that, Rika Orimoto gently tugged at his sleeve and comforted him.

“Don’t be afraid, Yuta.”

Hearing her voice, Yuta Okkotsu took a deep breath, trying his best to calm himself down.

“Alright. Let’s go in. Let’s see what our new classmates are like.”

Rika Orimoto smiled and nodded, encouraging him.

“Yes. That’s the spirit.”

And so, the two of them walked into the classroom together.

Click.

Yuta Okkotsu entered quietly.

Everyone glanced at him and found nothing particularly special.

He looked like an ordinary boy.

Until they saw Rika Orimoto following behind him.

In an instant, an invisible fear pressed down on their hearts.

It felt as though the one standing beside Yuta was not a cute girl, but a hideous and terrifying cursed spirit.

“My name is Rika Orimoto. Please take care of me from now on.”

“I’m Yuta Okkotsu. Please take care of me.”

Just as Yuta introduced himself, the girl with the high ponytail unzipped her bag.

Gojo Satoru stood to the side and asked Ragnar Kagenou, “What if they really start fighting?”

Ragnar Kagenou replied, “They’re just kids. At worst, they’ll spend a few days in the hospital. Rika won’t go for the kill.”

Gojo Satoru crossed his arms and said, “Sigh. You’re really lucky to have recruited those two.”

Ragnar Kagenou did not speak. He simply watched the classroom with a faint smile.

Maki Zen’in pulled out a spear-type cursed tool and thrust it straight at them.

Yuta Okkotsu, who had been in the middle of introducing himself, was startled.

Aren’t we all supposed to be classmates?

Why are they drawing weapons?

However, Rika Orimoto was no pushover. She caught the spear with one hand and smiled faintly.

“What?!”

Rika Orimoto tilted her head and said, “Aren’t we all classmates?”

“This... probably isn’t very nice.”

With that, dense cursed energy filled the classroom.

Toge Inumaki and Panda immediately watched Rika Orimoto with vigilance.

Needless to say, Maki Zen’in, who stood right in front of Rika, felt it even more clearly.

She was completely stunned.

Terrifying.

Far too terrifying.

She did not feel human at all.

She was like the Queen of Curses.

Dangerous.

Extremely dangerous.

Just as the atmosphere seemed to freeze, Yuta Okkotsu suddenly spoke up.

“Is this some kind of test?”

Rika Orimoto chimed in, “Is that so? Then we should take it seriously.”

Now they were in trouble.

Maki Zen’in said, “You... you’re cursed!”

Rika Orimoto tilted her head and thought for a moment before asking, “So... what are you trying to say?”

“This is a place to learn about curses. It’s not a place for cursed people to come.”

Swish!

Yuta Okkotsu drew the katana from his back and pointed it at them.

“Take that back.”

“...”

At that moment, the atmosphere felt as if it had been seized by an invisible hand, tightening little by little until the pressure became suffocating.

Outside the classroom, Ragnar Kagenou and Gojo Satoru quietly watched everything happening inside.

Inside the classroom, Rika Orimoto frowned slightly and put a little more strength into her arm, actually forcing back the spear Maki Zen’in was gripping with both hands.

At the same time, she whispered to Yuta beside her.

“Let’s play with them properly, Yuta.”

Hearing that, Yuta Okkotsu nodded firmly.

“Yes, Rika.”

However, at that moment, the situation suddenly took a turn for the worse.

For some reason, the pressure weighing on the three confronting one another increased several times over in an instant.

A massive sense of oppression crashed down like a mountain.

Fine sweat broke out across their foreheads and slid down their cheeks.

Seeing that the situation was getting more and more out of control, Ragnar Kagenou finally walked into the classroom and said, “Alright, alright. That’s enough, everyone.”

Strangely enough, the moment Ragnar Kagenou stepped into the classroom, the battle that had already reached its boiling point stopped abruptly, as though the air itself had frozen.

Immediately after, Yuta Okkotsu and Rika Orimoto restrained the cursed energy they had been releasing almost at the same time.

A moment later, Gojo Satoru also strolled into the classroom.

After the two Special Grade Sorcerers explained the situation in detail, everyone finally understood what was going on.

At last, Gojo Satoru clapped his hands and concluded, “That’s about it.”

Then he continued with a smile, “Yuta Okkotsu. Rika Orimoto. Everyone, please take care of these two from now on.”

Gojo Satoru turned to look at Yuta Okkotsu and Rika Orimoto, then continued, “They’re both in their rebellious phase, so I’ll handle the introductions.”

The group fell silent.

“...”