Chapter 60 (Patreon)

“It’s fine—Ragnar Kagenou is at Tokyo Jujutsu High. With him there, it doesn’t matter where he goes.”

Kiyotaka Ijichi blinked, relief loosening the tension in his shoulders. “I-I see… that’s good, then.”

Satoru Gojo glanced back at Panda and Toge Inumaki. “Ready? We’ll strike first.”

Panda bounced in place, throwing playful jabs. “No problem!”

Toge tugged his collar down, clearing his throat. “Salmon.” No problem.

High above on a rooftop, Sugata Manami frowned. “What? They’re moving first?”

Miguel clicked his tongue. “Trying to wipe us out early, huh?”

“Mimiko, Nanako!” Manami shouted.

Deep inside the towering Cursed Spirit, the twin girls answered in unison. “What is it?”

“The schedule’s moved up—prepare to engage!”

The Spirit’s maw split open. Mimiko and Nanako Hasaba leapt out, cursed energy crackling around them.

Nanako grinned. “Exactly what we were waiting for.”

Miguel strode onto the pedestrian bridge and called down to Gojo. “Your opponent… is me, Special Grade.”

He unfurled the Cursed Tool Black Rope.

Gojo slid his blindfold to his forehead, exposing cerulean Six Eyes. “All right—let’s have some fun.”

Boom!

The asphalt shattered as Rika Orimoto’s manifested form erupted from the smoke. Her claw, pulsing with cursed energy, slashed at Suguru Geto.

Splatter!

Geto conjured several bound Cursed Spirits to shield himself, yet Rika’s blow crushed them—and him—into the street.

“This power… intoxicating,” Geto murmured, rising from the crater without a scratch. “Honestly, Rika, I’d hoped to spare you… but for the future of the jujutsu world, you must die.”

A grotesque arachnid Spirit—its body crawling with human faces—crept up behind him.

Rika flicked her hair aside. “I’ll kill you here,” she snarled, unleashing her own constructs.

“Ragnar, shouldn’t we help Rika already?” Yuta Okkotsu asked, uneasy.

Ragnar Kagenou shook his head. “No rush. Neither side’s gone all-out yet.”

Maki Zen’in folded her arms. “We’ve got the numbers—why not jump him together?”

“Numbers mean nothing against a Special Grade,” Ragnar replied. “Rika’s listed as Grade 1, but you know she fights at Special-Grade level. She needs this chance.”

Beep, beep. A notification lit Ragnar’s phone. His gaze sharpened.

“Bad news?” Maki asked.

“Kyoto’s defense is collapsing,” he said. “Two Special-Grade Cursed Spirits just showed up in the Night Parade there. Kyoto has no Special-Grade sorcerers to stop them.”

“What?!” Maki yelped, drawing Yuta’s attention.

Ragnar continued, “So you two are going to kill them.”

“Ha?!” Maki nearly choked. Yuta pulled her back—Ragnar never spoke without a plan.

“Listen till I’m done,” Ragnar admonished.

Maki scowled. “Then talk faster.”

“Of course you can’t beat two Special Grades head-on. Your job is to lure them out of the city center into the empty outskirts.”

“Lure them?” Yuta echoed.

Maki’s eyes narrowed. “And how do we survive that?”

Thwack! Ragnar flicked her forehead. “Pay attention.”

“D-damn it…!”

Golden ripples blossomed behind him—the Gate of Babylon. He withdrew a rose-red, seven-layered shield and a sleek black-and-white katana.

“Maki, shield. Yuta, sword.”

Maki staggered under the shield’s weight. “Why is it so heavy?!”

Yuta admired the blade’s austere beauty.

“Those are Noble Phantasms,” Ragnar said. “The shield—Rho Aias, the Seven-Layered Shield of the Heavens—will keep you alive. The katana is your ride to Kyoto.”

“My… ride?” Maki echoed blankly.

“After you draw the Spirits to Daimonji Mountain, I’ll snipe them from long range with a high-output technique. Ten minutes after drop-off, I’ll pick you up.”

“Sniping… from Tokyo?” Yuta muttered, half in awe.

“Exactly. Stop fretting—it’ll work. If questions pop up, ask Yuta on the way.”

Maki huffed. “Sending us off this fast is crazy.”

“Trust the shield. Trust Yuta. Trust me,” Ragnar said, softening his tone. “Nakagyō Ward—departure in three… two…”

He whispered Rho Aias’s true-name release into Maki’s ear as golden light swallowed the trio.