Chapter 121 (Patreon)

An unknown location.

Click.

The lock disengaged, and the heavy sealed door slowly opened.

“You are…”

Kokichi Muta raised his head from within the treatment tank, staring at the two figures who had entered the hidden chamber.

“Ultimate Mechamaru… No, I suppose I should call you Kokichi Muta.”

Kokichi’s expression darkened.

“Okkotsu Yuta… Rika Orimoto. What are the two of you doing here?”

Rika approached the tank and examined the countless tubes connected to Kokichi’s frail body.

“Why do you think? You should already know the answer.”

Yuta’s expression remained solemn.

“Kokichi Muta. You betrayed Jujutsu High and secretly cooperated with curse users and cursed spirits.”

Kokichi fell silent.

After a moment, he lowered his gaze.

“So they finally found out.”

“Then you admit it,” Rika said.

Kokichi let out a quiet sigh.

“You wouldn’t have come here without evidence. Besides, you managed to find this hidden base. There’s no point in denying it now.”

He paused before continuing.

“I’ll tell you everything I know… as long as I’m not sentenced to death.”

The Binding Vow between Kokichi, Mahito, and the others was still in effect. As long as Jujutsu High did not execute him, there was still a chance that the agreement could be fulfilled.

Yuta and Rika exchanged glances.

Then Yuta spoke.

“I think you’ve misunderstood the situation.”

Kokichi looked up in confusion.

“Misunderstood?”

“We didn’t come here on Jujutsu High’s behalf,” Rika explained. “The school still doesn’t know the identity of the mole working with the curse users.”

Kokichi stared at them in silence.

“The only people who know are the four of us,” Yuta continued. “Rika, me, Ragnar, and Gojo-sensei.”

Kokichi’s heart sank.

His actions had somehow attracted the attention of four Special Grade sorcerers.

At that point, being exposed to the higher-ups almost seemed preferable.

“Ragnar and Gojo-sensei are willing to keep your identity hidden,” Yuta said. “But in exchange, you’ll help us locate the curse users and cursed spirits you’ve been working with. You’ll also provide every piece of information you possess about them and the terms of your agreement.”

Kokichi’s head snapped upward, disbelief spreading across his face.

“I’ll talk.”

His answer came without hesitation.

“I’ll tell you everything.”

Kokichi had believed his life was already over. He had never expected two Special Grade sorcerers to appear before him with an offer to protect his identity.

A short while later, Rika folded her arms.

“So the Binding Vow prevents you from directly revealing their identities?”

“That’s right,” Kokichi replied. “But I can guide you to their location.”

Rika looked dissatisfied with the answer and turned toward Yuta.

“It’s fine,” Yuta said. “Ragnar-senpai already said he was almost certain of their identities.”

He looked back at Kokichi.

“As long as we can find their location, the rest will be simple.”

“If Yuta says so, then fine.” Rika narrowed her eyes at Kokichi. “But the deal you made had better not involve anything that violates your duty as a jujutsu sorcerer.”

“No,” Kokichi answered immediately. “It wasn’t anything like that. The agreement concerns my body.”

His fingers tightened beneath the water.

“I don’t want to spend the rest of my life trapped in this dark place.”

Rika looked over Kokichi’s ruined body.

She suddenly recalled the Special Grade cursed spirit they had encountered before—the one capable of reshaping human souls and altering their bodies.

“So it was him…”

Yuta blinked.

“Who?”

“A Special Grade cursed spirit I fought before.”

Once Yuta and Rika had gathered all the information Kokichi could safely provide, Yuta turned toward the exit.

“For now, continue behaving exactly as you have been. When they come to fulfill their side of the Binding Vow, contact us.”

“Understood.”

——————

After Eso had been exorcised, Ragnar Kagenou approached Yuji and Nobara.

“Well done. Defeating one of the Death Painting Wombs is no small achievement. The two of you are improving quickly.”

“Yeah.”

Yuji clenched his fists and looked at Ragnar with determination burning in his eyes.

“I’ll keep working hard.”

“Hey! What about me?” Nobara snapped.

She immediately brought the side of her hand down against Yuji’s head.

“Don’t act like you did everything yourself!”

“If you’re mad at him, why are you hitting me?!”

Yuji swung his arms, attempting to retaliate, but Nobara had already darted out of reach.

“Idiot! Catch me first!”

“Get back here!”

Ragnar watched the two of them begin chasing each other around.

For a moment, he wondered whether praising them had been unnecessary.

“These two idiots…”

Yuji and Nobara suddenly stopped and turned toward him.

“You’re the idiot!”

They shouted in perfect unison.

The instant those words left their mouths, both of them froze.

Ragnar stood beneath a streetlamp, his face completely hidden by the shadows.

Yuji swallowed.

“Uh… I didn’t say anything. That was all Kugisaki.”

“What?! You bastard! You said it first!”

Despite desperately shifting the blame onto each other, neither of them stopped moving.

They immediately turned and ran.

By the time Ragnar took a single step forward, Yuji and Nobara had already fled several kilometres down the road—and they were still running.

“You two have gotten rather bold.”

Golden ripples spread through the air behind Ragnar.

The Chains of Heaven shot out from the portals and tore through the night, instantly wrapping around Yuji and Nobara before dragging them back.

“I knew we weren’t going to escape…”

Yuji hung helplessly in midair, completely bound by the chains.

“You knew that, but you still ran?” Nobara shouted while struggling against her restraints. “You’re an idiot! A complete idiot!”

“You ran too!”

Neither of them could break free.

Bound by the Chains of Heaven, they were pulled back until they floated directly in front of Ragnar.

“It seems the two of you require a small lesson.”

Ragnar smiled with the gentle expression of a kind and understanding teacher.

“Nooooo!”

Their screams echoed together.

Giant Swing!

A short while later, Yuji leaned against a wall, his face completely drained of colour.

“I can’t take it anymore…”

He covered his mouth as a stream of rainbow-coloured vomit poured out.

“I think I’m going to throw up again…”

Nobara sat beside the wall with vacant eyes, a pale white soul slowly drifting from her open mouth.

Ragnar looked at them calmly.

“Come now. It was only a little spinning.”

Nobara’s soul immediately snapped back into her body.

“What do you mean, ‘only a little’?! You idiot teacher! This is corporal punishment! Corporal punish—blegh!”

Before she could finish, another violent wave surged through her stomach.

A brilliant torrent of rainbow-coloured vomit erupted from her mouth.

Ragnar instinctively took a step back.

“That’s disgusting.”

“This is all your fault!”

Yuji, meanwhile, appeared to have reached a state of complete enlightenment.

His peaceful expression made it seem as though his soul was about to ascend directly into heaven.

Bonk!

“Ow!”

A large red bump appeared on Yuji’s forehead.

Ragnar lowered his fist.

“You aren’t allowed to leave yet. Remain among the living.”

Yuji suddenly remembered something.

An imaginary yellow exclamation mark practically appeared above his head.

“Wait. Where’s Fushiguro?”

“Fushiguro?”

Yuji and Nobara both looked toward Ragnar.

Ragnar placed a hand beneath his chin, his expression becoming unusually thoughtful.

“Now that you mention it…”

He drew in a quiet breath.

“I may have forgotten about him.”

“No way!” Yuji exclaimed. “How could you forget something that important?!”

“You’re completely unreliable!” Nobara shouted. “What kind of teacher forgets one of his students?!”

“Keep your voices down,” Ragnar said calmly. “You’ll disturb anyone who might be sleeping.”

“Who would be sleeping all the way out here in the middle of nowhere?!” Yuji and Nobara yelled.

“Regardless, standing here and assigning blame accomplishes nothing. We should find Megumi first.”

“This was your fault from the beginning, Sensei,” Yuji said.

“I did nothing wrong.”

“You bastard~”

Meanwhile, Megumi Fushiguro lay alone on the ground, shivering as the freezing night wind swept over him.

“Where…”

He slowly raised his trembling head and looked around the deserted area.

“Where did everyone go?!”

His voice echoed through the empty night.

“Did they seriously leave me behind?!”