Chapter 55 - A Curse To Be Accepted

A/N: 14.4k words.

***

He was a Curse. There was no doubt about it, wherever he walked, tragedy and destruction followed just behind his trail. At the epicenter of the storm that devastated all in its wake was a bastion made only to be a calamity. Wherever his steps found itself, a billowing flood of flames would cook all flesh which had dared impede its path. At the soles of his foot was a heated anvil that crushed all that was beneath it. Wherever the route of his endless tread found himself, death followed.

There wasn't anything that Ryomen Sukuna found interesting in this world, not anymore. The endless fighting had bored him, for they could not even be called fights. Whether it was remnants of clans who he had once destroyed, or pitiful Sorcerers seeking vengeance against the hail of nature's fury, the King of Curses had always consumed them all. Just as he stepped across the confined country of Japan, so did those who did not know better step into the maw of his hungry stomach.

"Hmph," Ryomen Sukuna grabbed the back of his neck, staring at the horizon. It was an immense plaster of green fields, filled with tapestry dotted with colors of amethyst, emerald, and amber. The wind carried a dust in the air, nature's dust, "a fine scene, befitting for a seasonal Haiku perhaps?" One of his four hands moved contemplatively, placing it upon his chiseled chin.

Two pairs of eyes scanned the scenery, analyzing every single speck of dust which lined the wind. "The Sugawara Clan... Remnants of them have decided to grow a spine after a typhoon had struck them, haven't they?" The pink-haired man mused out loudly, "the Darkness Pacification Force, led by that 'Angel' and a Abe Clan Elite, the Sun, Moon, and Stars Squad along with the Five Void Generals spearheaded by the Fujiwara Clan... what a fantastic feast."

Though, it would have been much more preferable to face down Abe-no-Seimei, the current declared Strongest Sorcerer of Japan at the moment. Perhaps even his rival, Ashiya Doman would be much more of a delicacy. The former was stuck somewhere in an imperial palace of Japan, while the latter had been exiled to who knows where. Seemed like too much effort, maybe they would run into him some other day.

Back to the current combined squadron, their Cursed Energy levels were fluctuating from far away, combining together to form a pitch black pillar off in the distance. To see such prideful clans with sticks up their proverbial buttocks coming together was something that had Ryomen Sukuna huffing in amusement. There was always a saying amongst the Japanese populace, of how such a thing happening could only be told in legends.

Lo' and behold, the King of Curses could make such a tale a reality, merely by pushing a few strings. Too bad for them, because his means were not the slightest in their favor. He wanted nothing more than to paint the fields expanding across the pointed mountains a deep red, to spread it across the archipelago to make his fearsome name known even further. That way, even more fish would swim their way toward him.

His mouth split open into a wide berth, the pristine glittering whites peering out of it. The black haori draped over his shoulders were immediately flicked off, revealing all of his arms under the glistening sun. Out of all four, two were holding prized Special Grade Tools, "that Angel can disable Cursed Techniques eh?" A wider grin came across his face, having already possessed a countermeasure.

It was quite literally, already under his sleeve, now displayed for the entire world to see. "Let's make a Haiku to await their entrance, then..." his thoughts lingered elsewhere, before speaking "...the petalling flowers of the spring, turned as the clock does, to the burning heaps of the blistering summer..." Ryomen Sukuna stretched his muscles and craned his neck, watching as the amassed squadrons off in the distance were becoming much more clear before his sight... "hm, no, that seems too boring. It has the seasonal feel to it, but it's lacking..."

His thoughts lapsed for a brief moment, his two free hands forming a motion where his right elbow was placed over his left hand. Closing his lips and tilting his head slightly, Sukuna knew he could do better than that. "Then shall it be... the unbeckoned spring amongst a flowery field, cut as it would under a knife and above a board, goes unto the boiling pot of summer to shimmer?"

...Still, it felt like something was missing to it, like a final ingredient to spice up its flair as pepper would to a boiled monkey brain.

Ryomen Sukuna let out a huff. "I'll contemplate it later," his gaze turned back to his approaching enemies. The light of the sun had gotten brighter. A sigil of divinity had formed up above while spanning the entire distance of the field, before he let out a sigh. "Inspiration, paint this field as I would to gain it..." The adrenaline of his body mixed with Cursed Energy coursed through his veins, before his free arms spread out. "A pond has found its way to me, it seems!"

A sadistic smile followed after a million knives.

***

Arturia shivered in her room, in both excitement and fear. There it was, that leaking memory which bled into her mind, the sound produced of her analytical instrument having finally taken effect. It was strange, the effect had taken far longer to fully settle in than she could have expected, far longer than even back then. There was no doubt about it, Fushiguro Megumi had some sort of passive countermeasure toward it.

'That memory, it was at the forefront of your mind, above even those countless centuries of endless sequences of numbers, imaginary numbers, and irrational numbers...' The Sankta was sitting atop her bed, playing her cello in the deep silence '...I finally saw it, a glimpse which does not even belong to you. How... How utterly curious.' She closed her eyes, playing the scene over and over again in her head.

The accursed pink-haired demon which stood at an impressive height and deformed nearly beyond any recognition of a human being. It was in Fushiguro Megumi's memories, despite not belonging to him. How that could have been the case, she didn't know, but what she was more curious about, was the connection of the 'King of Curses' toward the solitary black-haired man.

He was somebody dedicated to an art, one of 'Haikus,' a very Higashinese terminology from the way it was pronounced. That was what she could peer from that memory, along with the deformed man being a hedonist who hungered for 'meals.' He was free, utterly free from any constraints which would tie him down. There was not a single worry about what consequences his actions would have, or what troubles would come his way. Ryomen Sukuna... would embrace it all.

Not as a human, but as a calamity.

Fushiguro Megumi was somebody who worried about many things, bottling it all in his chest to never let it burst out. For if he had done so, it would only serve to display his weakness and faulty actions in the limelight. There was fear in his body that restricted and constrained him to the barest minimum created by 'logic' in order to mitigate any potential backlash. His insecurities would always undulate when the pressure was on, if the troubled look dashed across his face was of any indicator.

"Mixed together, a solute and solvent, almost perfectly. How can this be? How can a body and soul co-exist together, despite one part having already rotted ages ago?" The memory of the corpse was ingrained deep within, like a burning sear etched into flesh—recovering into a scar left for the permanence of time to keep. "Shadows, slaughter, and a divine wheel. How intricately put," the Sankta sighed. "The body and soul are the same in his regard."

Arturia continued dashing her bow across the cello, letting the music continuously flow into her ears. "Well, it's an accurate assessment," the woman could hear... the screams of dying souls before they faded in the wind, as brittle as glass cracking under the pressure of unseen forces. "Is this how you feel at the moment?" The woman looked upwards feeling faint tremor pass through the walls despite the distance she was from it.

He really was angry.

***

"Boring~" Laurentina sighed out loud, glancing out the open window from her bedside. She glanced upwards, feeling the tremor up above, "a bunch of unruly specimens has walked onto your chopping board, hm?" She hadn't seen the man this angry ever since he had summoned Yamata-no-Orochi against those Ursus soldiers during their journey to the country. 'Took a bit of time to connect the dots on who they were.'

A few Spire Casters had walked their way into her room uninvited, but they were dealt with swiftly. By swiftly, all the Abyssal Hunter had to do was grab them by the hood and toss them out of her window, letting them fall to their deaths from such a height. Even if they were to cast those parlor tricks of theirs, she made sure to knock them upside the head to disorient them enough.

A calm wind blew into her room, along with the thick scent of blood. "The top layer's walls have been carved open," Laurentina glanced upwards, "how many have you put to rest so far, Princess?" She didn't have much of a clue what was happening, but enough context clues were present for her to make enough of an educated guess.

Something something politics.

'Unsightly.'

She would have sought to fight Seaborn over these ridiculous matters. For landwellers, the white-haired woman hadn't expected their lands to be fraught with such frivolous problems in large numbers, 'but here we are.' If only they were as pragmatic as Aegir, but any hint of a country possessing even a sliver of their skill had yet to be seen. How unfortunate that was, seeing how many looming threats persist in the world.

Namely the Seaborn. Goodness, she desired to tear those monsters apart even from the distance away, and the notion rang truer as the day passed by. Fushiguro Megumi wasn't somebody who was completely out of the list to be able to handle those threats, especially with his Divine General and his explosive growth over the past few months. Yes, she had kept a keen eye on his strength—it's almost as if he made a pact with the Devil to become stronger.

...Especially with how his accursed energy had grown tenfold in its potency. She hadn't seen him today as often with other days, with how many times he would leave the Spire on a short notice. So the Abyssal Hunter felt in the dark with exactly how he had grown so much despite having not had a little spar or 'lesson' for quite a lengthy time.

Anyways, he seemed almost ready for her to drag him to Aegir when the time came. Well, that was if they could find a path to the lost country.

'Nothing egregious could have happened to him, right?' Laurentina stepped upwards from her bed, before deciding to see what mess he had caused up above.

***

Megumi opened his eyes, checking the environment around him during his recovery period. It was the same room he was used to, returning him back to the world he was familiar with. 'What was that?' There was not a single tick of the clockfrom when he had closed his eyes and reopened them, 'urgh, forget it.' He clenched his hands, turning back to the main dish of seeping issues.

Political dilemmas, political situations, political issues, and political influences. There were many parts of politics that Gojo Satoru had lectured to him about. It was boring, so boring in fact that Fushiguro Megumi had actually found himself yelling at the white haired man to teach him something else other than such a sleep-inducing subject. Having experienced the shit-show that was Lungmen and having to handle Werner von Hochberg and whatever he wanted with him, he was starting to regret his actions from before.

His crimson eyes had already scanned across the room. There was nothing of note, such as traps or hidden mechanisms that could hold a hidden third party inside. With the enhancement he had received by the Binding Vow loophole he created, and having them be replaced with a certain King of Curses', they were increased in their analytical abilities, both in terms of Cursed Energy and everything else.

However, the pair was still boundlessly inferior to the Six Eyes, which could perceive all sorts of energy on the atomic level—while also providing a god-like control and efficiency over Cursed Energy. At best, the Sorcerer could get a better grasp of how his Cursed Energy operated and fluctuated by peering into his own soul with his new ocular capabilities.

Physical traits were something that he lacked. Ryomen Sukuna had an extra pair of eyes, an extra mouth, and two extra arms. Gojo Satoru had the Six Eyes, while he, Fushiguro Megumi, possessed absolutely nothing. His only saving grace was the Ten Shadows Cursed Technique, and even then, his Cursed Energy reserves would never be able to reach the level as the two with the rate he was going at.

Megumi cleared his throat as if to indicate the Kurfurst sitting in front of him to talk. He had been left alone in the vices of his own thoughts for too long, and he didn't believe such a duration was necessary for the scene they were in. Especially not when he was covered with blood from head-to-toe.

"Ah, yes?" Werner von Hochberg, slightly jolted from the action, the Gesatzwacher beside him also responding with a slight twitch of their finger. "Aha, my apologies. I'm gathering my thoughts upon the matters which had occurred in this Spire. Of course, cleaning up the mess caused and investigating what had exactly happened for a breach in security is the most crucial part, especially with..." he had paused.

"Go on," Megumi took the lead, telling the Kurfurst in front of him to follow his action. A surge of confidence brewed within the black-haired man's chest, as if nothing in the world could impede him from his path. "I'm curious what you will do next, especially with how many of those... 'Spire Casters' have actually been shown to be traitors."

Now that the Sorcerer thought about it, this was the first time he was seeing Werner von Hochberg in the flesh. Based on prior views he had on the man who only existed in his memories' interpretation, Megumi was glad that he was different from what he had expected. Still, he didn't know the full conception of the specimen in front of him.

"...You're spot on with that assessment," the Kurfurst of Sturmland nodded, "thank you for completing my thought. There's no need to linger on these matters, because I'm sure you're bright and intelligent enough to know what my next course of actions are, don't you Herr Fushiguro?"

"It's not a good idea to keep your guests constantly guessing," Megumi rolled his eyes abrasively, "it provides a bad image." At this point, even the Sorcerer had found himself internally baffled at the sheer spike in confidence that went unwarranted. He could see from his peripheral vision that the Gesatzwachter had breathed in by signs of their armor shifting and their head leaning back.

"It should be obvious enough and it isn't the topic I wish to verbalize, so there is no need to delve upon that swamp any longer." Werner von Hochberg's voice became more stern, the tension in his chest leaving at those words. "From the looks of it, those cloaked men outside acting as Spire Casters were the dubious group known as the 'Echoes of Herkunftshorn.' Are you aware of who they are?"

"Not a clue," Megumi bluntly replied, "but I can formulate that they must be related to the Witch King in some way. Of course, with his voice being written all across Leithanien's history books, that much is what I should know." He heard clacking sounds outside, armored boots moving across the rooms along with splashes of blood being audible. There were groans of disgust and mumbles which came through the door's closed locks.

"No need to pay them any heed, they are soldiers alerted to clean up the rest of the mess," the Kurfurst of Sturmland waved his hand in the air, "what I wish to speak upon is related to you in its entirety. It doesn't matter to me what unsightly dangers have reared their heads toward me, as I have already become used to being their prime target over the course of nearly two decades." Werner cleared his throat to fight off a developing cough, "do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Yes," Megumi nodded.

"You, yourself, have become a target for the Echoes of Herkunftshorn with what had occurred tonight. If they are aware it was you who had done it, and I'm sure amongst the Spire Casters, they must have had Arts communication across Sturmland to notify their accomplices from a wide distance. Not only that, but some are even well-versed with transportation Arts, if they had prepared that much for their plan today."

"...That much I already know, why are you telling me this?" Megumi raised an eyebrow, tapping his index finger against his shoulder

"You see," Werner took in a small breath, "you have no qualms with Leithanien, the Twin Empresses, or even the Kurfursten, do you?" He interlocked his fingers professionally, like a businessman speaking.

"I don't."

"Do you have qualms with the Witch King's Remnants?"

"I have no clue," Megumi replied honestly.

"Herr Fushiguro, I'm afraid you've already made an enemy of them," Werner von Hochberg declared once more, "but—I believe you should know that the Witch King's Remnants are unsavory people amongst the masses of Leithanien, with all the troubles, hysteria, and chaos they have caused ever since the dethroning of this country's previous Kaiser."

Megumi thinned his lips, troubles, hysteria, and chaos were completely apt descriptors to describe himself. It was to the point where the Sorcerer wondered if he belonged with those undelegated trash in this country which looked too good to be a place where only Originium Arts and its study flourished.

However, this opportunity presented itself in front of him... 'I've only caused trouble for the countries that I have visited, and I most likely can't show my face to them if anybody had even seen a sliver of my attire or face. However, here is an opportunity... I can set good relations with a country, and not have to fear being hunted by them for any chaos that had been created by my hands—because I haven't been the cause for any yet.'

Perfect... maybe he should stay in Leithanien for a small additional speck of time, in order to make sure he doesn't deteriorate his standing in this country.

"So, if I may ask—"

"What do you want?"

"...Hm?" Werner von Hochberg blinked a few times.

"We share the same enemies, don't we?" Megumi placed his hands in his pocket, moving the bottom parts of his black haori to the side, "The Witch King's Remnants, they're unsavory people just as you said, and what they've done today only makes that declaration truer. So, you as the Kurfurst of Sturmland want them rid of, am I correct?"

"...Precisely so," Werner nodded.

"Then I have a proposal..."

***

Megumi stared at the running water above his head, the warm liquid cascading off of his body and washing off all the dirt, grime, and gore that had built-up on it. His clothes had already been destroyed by Tiger Funeral's flames and then repaired with Reverse Cursed Technique by keeping a small fabric untouched.

If Cursed Energy could be used to destroy things of all kinds, then Reverse Cursed Technique can be used to repair things of all kinds. Especially if they possessed a soul, which made the process far easier than he could have imagined.

The entire process with Werner von Hochberg was nerve-wracking, or should have been nerve-wracking, but the black-haired man didn't feel such things. He honestly felt calm, far calmer than he could have imagined.

'This influence...' He clenched his fist, the clear droplets refracting light from the ceiling were immediately crushed. It was becoming more of a troubling sensation for himself, ever since he had fully accepted the influence of Ryomen Sukuna's corpse.

It felt like a second heart was pumping blood in his chest, and as if a second pair of lungs were expanding their pink tissue inside of his chest. When granted sight from an extra pair of eyes, the world around him looked to be completely alien, barren from all the familiar sparkles of color and shades of light that he was used to.

His fist and arm pressed against the shower wall, while the endless water continued to pour down on him. There wasn't anything much else to say or mull over his mind, he had already done such things over the span of his stay here. But there was still one thing that had gotten his attention.

'A spar... I need to remember that,' the black-haired man sighed. The Gesatzwachter from earlier in Werner von Hochberg's abode had requested a spar from him, to test out if he held the necessary skills to deal with the 'Echoes of Herkunftshorn.' As if his actions back then hadn't proved anything... 'no, it's more accurate to say he wishes to see where the extent of my skill lies.'

If that was so, then the Sorcerer wasn't complaining. There hadn't been much physical training via combat or difficulty imposed on him, not even when he faced down those Echoes from before. They were people who would have been dealt by the Gesatzwachter—named Brandt Reiner as he had learned—without much difficulty. His strength was impressive, to say the least, and he wanted to test himself against the Kurfursten's own Imperial Guards.

"Okay... let's get that over first thing in the morning then."

***

"You have a spar with a Gesatzwachter today?" Laurentina laid on Fushiguro Megumi's bed, watching the black-haired man stare outside the window. "My, and I had just been invited by a certain little angel to her little orchestral concert."

"I do, and so was I today," Megumi replied. Arturia had entered his room and told him about it. Werner von Hochberg was coming with the accompaniment of Brandt Reiner, the Gesatzwachter and his retainer, along with Cora Lowenstein, who was also a retainer. Not going to it would be in bad taste.

"What did you do this time? Ah, nevermind, I already know." She cut herself off, "the ruckus you caused up above was most likely heard by everybody. How was it?"

"Not much."

"Who would have known the Kurfurst of Sturmland would be targeted the moment he heads back, while the two of us were present?" Laurentina held a flipped open book in her hands, placed above her head.

"Truly."

"Who would have also known that you have gained new contact lenses, hm?" Laurentina coyly called out toward the black-haired man.

"Something happened." Megumi continued to stare outside.

"Exactly what happened?" The Abyssal Hunter looked away from her book to gauge the black-haired man's expression. There was no change, the only present one being the crimson eyes that gleamed, altering the very presence of his standing in this world. "You're... strange, as if something had shifted entirely off course."

"I guess it's because I got stronger," he dryly noted.

"Hmph," Laurentina harrumphed indignantly and crossed her arms, "ah, it's almost as if you're gotten more empty-headed recently. Like a certain somebody..." her memories flashed back to another white-haired woman aside from herself, the other aloof woman who wouldn't give much of a response other than a sound or small sentence. Really, the other squad's members were completely different from her own. 'A fond memory.'

"I guess so." Megumi raised his palm, covering the light that was blaring through the window. "Do you know Arturia...?"

"Of course I do, why are you asking that question?" Laurentina gave a curious glance, "oh, I understand. Has that little angel been the cause for such a catastrophic mess yesterday? I'd be sure to give her a piece of my mind—if I could right now." She smiled, showing off her shark teeth.

"I don't know." Really, he didn't. The pressure he applied to Arturia yesterday hadn't revealed much of her involvement, only that she agreed with their goals to a certain extent. She was more of a guest and probably an asset to Leithanien than he was, so the man known as Fushiguro Megumi couldn't stake any claims toward her to warrant an investigation.

"A shame," Laurentina let out a small breath, "maybe I should keep you closer, little Princess. So you don't stray away from me and have to face off such unruly invaders again."

"You stayed in your room for the entire duration," Megumi thinned his lips.

"Oh please, they were nothing you couldn't have handled," Laurentina waved her hand in the air, "besides, you really wished to fight them, am I correct? The moment you passed my room, I could have already felt such a manic pleasure and passion emanating from you. Really, it was a delightful experience—reminds me of myself during combat." She shivered, not from fear.

"I see..." Megumi had no reason to judge her, he was already a twisted man underneath the stoic expression he gave. All that had happened, all that had been included to make him who he was today... were the testament written upon a divine scripture.

"Well, I believe it's time to go now, right?" Laurentina hopped up from Megumi's bed, "I have to cheer on my Princess in his upcoming battle~."

"I'll take that to heart," Megumi's tone did not change, before he turned around.

The shark lady stared once more at his eyes as he passed through. The impassive expression on his face, the tired eyes... Was he still Fushiguro Megumi? Indeed, he was. That was far more obvious than she could have imagined, yet why did it feel like...

***

The late ebb of the morning showed off a clear sky, the canvas of blue having been plastered by various fluffy paints of dashing white. Such an empyreal heaven up above was graced with features, perhaps granted by some higher hand that had a hobby for art, decorating all that was to its wanted image.

There was an arena, and two combatants stood in it.

"Do you know how the Gesatzwachter are trained and disciplined?" Brandt Reiner paced across the arena, glancing across at the reinforced structures with a keen eye. They all gave off a minty shine, as pristine as the day he had first seen them having been finished constructed, "with how incessant the storms are in Sturmland, there are many swamps which form."

Megumi listened to his words while analyzing the scene of his own volition. There were countless Arts applications casted upon the structures to keep it stable, making what was essentially walls developed to handle entire sieges. He hadn't had this sort of clarity when making an analysis of Lungmen's border walls, namely because his eyes were far inferior before.

"We are tasked to last in such places fraught with dangers for days on end, with nothing but our Arts and blades. They are but one of the many conditions required to pass through the exam, after Arts Adaptability tests have been done for the more qualified folk," the armored man turned toward Megumi. "You look to be quite young, how would you assess your own Arts Adaptability?"

"Above average," Megumi responded, "for the people I was associated with." The black-haired man stared at the Caprinae for a brief moment, "for utility, they're good. For combat, they're effective."

"A vague assessment, Herr Fushiguro," Brandt's armored head turned away, "Frau Arturia said they were ones related to summoning. That object above your head must be an Arts Unit, a powerful one in fact. If I hadn't known better, I would take you to be a Higashinese noble granted a family heirloom." The Gesatzwachter continued on, "it seems rather effective, seeing how mobile it is, especially with its feature to float. However, I'm afraid it may paint a large target for enemies to spot you, just as any Sankta would be spotted first in a battlefield."

"Thank you for the compliment," Megumi said, "I take it you cycle your Arts through your weapon rather than a musical instrument?" His chin pointed toward the sword sheathed by the other man's side. "I would have expected a Zweihander instead."

"That is correct, the Gesatzwachter used to wield Zweihander during times of war," Brandt nodded his head, "you've done your history lessons, but you haven't dipped your feet far enough in. During times like these, a Zweihander is not needed as a standard weapon to be used. If there is a need to breach through large walls or heavy armor, then it will be distributed by the Kurfursten."

"I see..."

"Back on to other topics, you possess Summoning Arts."

"Yes, that's correct." Megumi nodded.

"I'm curious, how far does it stretch?" Brandt fiddled with the handle of his sword, watching as Fushiguro Megumi called from the shadows a sheathed Higashinese 'katana,' but more on the size of an 'O-katana,' as he remembered their classifications. "Shadows?" Shadows... they reminded him of a certain somebody's Arts. 'It doesn't feel like Arts at all... his aura, it is completely different from any opponent I have faced.'

"Shadows are used as a medium for my Arts," Megumi dully replied, before attaching the katana to the back of his sash. The ropes attached to it moved in the wind, producing a faint rustling sound, "that is how my summons come out." The Sorcerer removed his hand, letting the object sit under his black haori.

"So you require a shadow to call upon them?" Brandt asked.

"Not quite," Megumi shook his head, "I can call upon a shadow anytime, and then they can come out of it."

"I see," the armored man stood on the other side of the arena, gauging the distance between himself and Fushiguro Megumi. "Did you know? Mock battles like these occur every three years in the Kazimierz Major, where Knights clash blades in a controlled environment against each other." It wasn't an actual mock battle, or even a controlled environment at times, but for his standards—that was all that they were.

"So the contestants don't kill each other, right?" Megumi placed his left hand on his handle casually, moving it from the sash for a resting position, "seems pretty difficult. When you're fighting somebody, rage is easy to succumb to, so there must be a lot of regulations put in place." Unless the fighters heavily respected each other, then it was easy to lose oneself in the heat of battle.

"Sports and real combat are far different from each other. That much of a distinction can be made when standing between a battlefield and an arena. In our case, we are meant to clash blades in the latter environment," Brandt motioned his free hand toward the area around them, "if it weren't obvious enough. What I am attempting to articulate, Herr Fushiguro, is that real combat experience is what separates a soldier and a sportsman. What do you take yourself as?"

"...A soldier," Megumi replied with a thinning of his lips. There was no need to deny it, he was a child soldier at the age of fifteen, sent on missions covert to the public to essentially 'kill' the targets and enemies of Jujutsu Society. "Would you think the same, or not?" The Jujutsu Sorcerer asked this time.

"You are without a shadow of a doubt—a soldier." The Gesatzwachter already had a deep impression of the other man. "Walking into a room bathed in blood with an otherworldly eminence, while the scenery behind you was one only depicted by Ursus' tales of their Royal Guards. You must perceive my analytical skills as poor."

"Why do you say that?"

"There is no need to be humble about yourself. Sometimes, humility can be an insult to somebody else," Brandt pointed to himself with his thumb, "in this case, you are sorely insulting my degree of perception by hesitating to call yourself a soldier—when you are indeed—a soldier through thick and thin."

Megumi couldn't tell if the Gesatzwachter was attempting to compliment him or not. Or was it more of a backhanded compliment than a full compliment? He scratched his hair while looking elsewhere, trying to articulate the best possible answer he could in his head. It was useless, worthless even, because it brought him nowhere. This entire case was something he was overthinking.

"I haven't given it, by many thanks for dealing with the Spire Casters. There was an automatic barrier installed in the room, meant to act as a trap for them, as we had received an anonymous tip that Kurfurst Hochberg was the main target." Brandt tapped the pommel of their sheathed blade, turning toward the sky. "It was by the time that the ruckus outside had stopped that I had decided not to activate it the instant the door had opened."

Megumi let out a sound of acknowledgement. He felt a little bit impatient at the moment, especially with the blaring sun up in the sky. Strange, it was always foggy during the afternoon or late afternoon, and most commonly storming during the night. In the mornings though... It was usually more sunny. But not this sunny.

...Ah, it was Arts.

"You've recognized it, haven't you?"

"An Arts barrier was set up," Megumi noted, "it's already started." The Sorcerer tilted his head, his lips clasping together to form a truly deadpan expression. 'This Arts barrier should make him much stronger, more durable, and faster as a result. In short, he already has the home field advantage—like a large Simple Domain regulated to increase one's Output instead of counterattacking or disrupting Domain Expansions.'

KLNK

That was something to recognize. Without any further notice, Megumi tensed his body, before shifting his body. His left hand grasped at the sheath of his katana, moving it into a suitable drawing position. Right after, his right hand was hovering over his handle, his knees bending along with his back.

Supreme Art: Noble Eightfold Path

A golden barrier of his own was formed, trailing near-instantaneously toward Brandt.

The Gesatzwachter placed his hand on his own bladed weapon, 'a Golden Barrier?' Perhaps this Higashinese man also dabbled in other Arts subjects, but this one was completely unexpected!

Megumi blurred with a boom, flashing in front of his opponent just as their blade had left their sheath. His own weapon also did, unleashing a flurry of strikes which splashed out water endlessly in the arcs of Ame-no-Habakiri's slashes.

A flash of gold met all of the strikes, evenly matching its power. During the clash, Megumi sheathed his blade and looped around the Gesatzwachter, turning into a black blur with water trailing behind him.

Brandt slightly widened his eyes in acknowledgement from under his mask, before turning and raising his blade to block the next slash.

Shadow Extension: Max Elephant

Fushiguro Megumi's strength was vastly increased, as the Shadow Extension and the water conduit that was Ame-no-Habakiri enhanced his bodily functions. Then, he unleashed a devastating slash, open that discreetly entered a vortex and nailed the Gesatzwachter on the chest.

SLASH

"Hmph!" Brandt was launched backwards a fair distance, his foot skidding across the ground. A golden aura encompassed where his chest plate was, reducing the damage, 'what was that?' The Gesatzwachter noticed the water trailing across the black-haired man as he resheathed his blade, 'what an unnatural weapon.'

Megumi placed the sheathed weapon back in its sheath, so the water manipulation effects continued to enhance his body. The heart was composed of 75%-80% water. Approximately 51% of blood was water. His flow of blood and pumping of blood had increased tremendously as a result, keeping himself at good physical conditioning.

His hands clasped together, burning up with black shadows.

"Divine Dogs."

Six Divine Dogs burst out from the blacks of his haori, charging toward Brandt like demons at the ready.

The Gesatzwachter narrowed his eyes at their appearances, before slashing his blade, sending a wave which tore across the ground casually.

The Shikigamis spread out, two of them being unlucky enough to be destroyed. With six heads at the ready, the other four who survived launched forward with an aggressive birth at all angles in front of their enemy.

Megumi slid into the shadows and made his way through, attempting to sneak and find an opening to strike Brandt at. Just as he saw the Caprinae man ready his blade for a strike did one make itself clear.

Bursting out of it while unsheathing his blade, Megumi struck with a vertical blow.

SLASH

CLANG

It had been intercepted, his blade. Megumi slightly widened his eyes when staring at the blank helmet, watching as he began to be pushed back. 'Tch, I hadn't accounted for him intercepting me fast enough...' so he hadn't gone for a vortex strike—and instead betted on a full physical blow.

The ground erupted, before the Sorcerer broke off in order to let his Divine Dogs distract the Gesatzwachter.

All three heads of the Shikigamis attempted to bite at him, but were immediately met with swift and steady sidesteps avoiding them. One, two, three, and four; it didn't matter how many had charged him or at which angle, his body was able to twist and turn just the correct amount to set the aggressive beasts off-course.

Megumi clapped his palms together after rounding around to Brandt's right, with Ame-no-Habakiri placed back in his sash. A torrent of black water fired out, producing a recoil and boom which barrelled toward him.

Brandt raised his blade, the weapon imbued with a golden aura and let the hyper-focused 'laser' clash against it, before moving his body to the side while ducking to avoid a Divine Dog. His sword rounded around to slice them in half, before thrusting it behind him to annihilate another.

Megumi turned the beam to catch the Caprinae man once again, but found it useless as the Gesatzwachter had backhanded one of his Divine Dogs and leapt out of the course of the beam, sending a beaming slash toward him.

The Sorcerer prepared to dodge it, but a faint melody playing had forced his body functions to stop.

KLNK

His body regained movement, just enough to barely dodge the slash which left a fissure across the ground.

The last Divine Dog roared out with all three of its mouths, before it charged at Brandt Reiner. The Gesatzwachter was ready to cleave it in half after having Fushiguro Megumi distracted, but found it passing through it instead.

It had been dispelled for something far greater.

"Divine Dog: Totality!"

Brandt felt something move at breakneck speeds, launching across the air and nearly landing a hit on his neck. It was a good move to leap to the side and let his body flicker across, as the claw felt like it had ripped through the air with no resistance.

Once he landed on his feet, he heard a loud stomping sound as the behemoth of a three-headed werewolf had landed on its feet, holding a Zweihander of all things in its right hand.

It turned around to growl at him, before charging again.

Megumi had taken the time to call upon Homusubisu while spinning the three-section staff around his body, and then charging. His leaps were quick yet heavy, bouncing left and right. It possessed a force palpable enough to leave the ground shattered in its wake.

The rattling of chains struck vertically at where Brandt should have been, golden flames pulsating from it and erupting upwards from the strike. The ground had shifted upwards, spiderweb cracks appearing.

Brandt had moved out of the way, before raising his blade to block a Zweihander strike from Divine Dog: Totality. His body fought against the immense blow, pushing back against the Shikigami and winning the contest of strength—if it hadn't attempted to bite him with three of its heads.

The summon dropped the Zweihander which was consumed by the shadows as Brand Reiner pushed off, feeling a flash of intense flames having just passed by where his position was. Suffice to say, anything in the direction of that three-section staff's strikes were utterly pulverized.

"Great Serpent!"

The Gesatzwachter heard the chant of the other man, and prepared himself while Divine Dog: Totality had been charging him. He noticed a large slithering pool of shadows start to encircle his position at a wide perimeter, as his blade deflected a blow from the three-headed werewolf.

Megumi charged forward with Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi this time, striking at where Brandt's head should have been with the blade, sending thundering red lightning across the scenery.

He had already ducked, before raising his palm to fire off a golden blast from it.

Megumi dispelled the Nodachi, before the Inverted Spear of Heaven was in his hands, lowering to where the palm had been placed.

Divine Dog Totality had already rebounded after its grazing strike, as Great Serpent fully manifested from the shadows.

'How many weapons...?!' Brandt felt genuinely shocked when witnessing the elementally charged weapons, along with the dagger which had negated his powerful Arts blast with a slight swing of its edge. 'Ferocious!' His body immediately jumped out of the way as Divine Dog: Totality slammed its claws at where he was, and he was then forced to dodge to the right as Great Serpent had bit at where his landed location was.

His blade was raised to block another stream of water attempting to nail him, as the Shikigamis charged him once more.

Megumi watched as his Shikigamis started to bombard the Gesatzwachter with attacks while he blurred forward with Ame-no-Habakiri now in his hands.

He appeared at an opening of Brandt's sides once his approach was completed, the Caprinae having travelled all across the battlefield in order to dodge and deflect all the attacks from his Shikigami.

SLASH

Brandt sidestepped as an eruptive splash of the void had shot upwards vertically, and then stepped back while deflecting the numerous advances from Great Serpent and Divine Dog: Totality.

Flashes of gold and black water immediately became the main spectacle. All four of the residents staying upon the battlefield blurred into motion, moving and weaving through each other in order to strike their enemy or defend an attack.

In the case of Fushiguro Megumi, he moved in a synergistic movement with Great Serpent and Divine Dog: Totality in order to land any strikes. He was wholly impressed when the Gesatzwacher had avoided and blocked everything so far, even though he was on the backpedalling end.

As if on cue, Divine Dog: Totality's claw struck at his open side, sending Brandt off balance and backwards. Great Serpent immediately widened all of its eyes, lashing forward to grasp him in its mouth and flying upwards.

"Nue!"

A shadow puppet was formed, and three Nues shot upwards with great speeds. They eventually reached where Great Serpent was, and encircled its mouth, each of them firing off lightning and crashing into Brandt who was restrained in its mouth.

One, two, three, four, and five; he was hit that many times while ascending to the sky. He activated his Arts as he continued ascending, before a golden explosion flashed across, breaking Great Serpent's clenched maw against him and setting the Nues off course from the impact.

However, his victory was short-lived, as Fushiguro Megumi was already right behind him in the air, Homusubisu in hand. Before Brandt could react, the flaming armament bashed against his back, the Sorcerer having spun sideways in the air to deliver the blow.

BOOM

Like a meteorite falling, the Gesatzwacher slammed into the arena and left a sizable flaming crater.

"Max Elephant!"

Brandt heard another calling of the summon, before turning upwards to see a gigantic looming shadow above him. He had attempted to move out of the way, but found chains shooting outwards from shadow puddles having formed around him, restricting his arms and legs.

'...Goodness' sake.'

CRASH

A large dust cloud was formed, the pressure from Max Elephant's drop shooting them outwards and left them bashing against the arena's interior walls.

Megumi landed on his feet not soon after, beside Divine Dog: Totality. The Shikigami entered his shadows but wasn't dispelled, as did the other three disoriented Nues. Great Serpent had been dispelled by the blast, its internals having been far too damaged to continue fighting. Max Elephant had also been recalled after fulfilling its purpose.

His body tensed after, as his left hand pulled Ame-no-Habakiri from its sheath. The Gesatzwacher had already rounded around with a golden eminence, heaving a heavy blow across in a wide arc while twisting his body to increase the momentum. A golden arcing slash was sent out, before Megumi partially summoned Divine Dog: Totality.

The upper half of the Shikigami appeared behind him, covering him with its right arm protectively, while the lower half was peering over a shadow vortex in the air. Megumi felt himself being blown back despite the behemoth shielding him, while also having raised his Cursed Tool to lessen the blow.

KLNK

He hadn't drawn the blade when keeping his right hand on a reverse grip against the handle, while his left hand clenched normally against the sheath. A searing slash had appeared on Divine Dog: Totality's backhand, before Megumi took the momentum from being launched back to stamp his feet on the wall of the arena and stick to it.

Daiitoku was immediately called into his right hand right as it left the handle of Ame-no-Habakiri, before crackling with golden lightning. A mere flick was all that was needed to send off a streaming bolt, along with three vortexes forming behind him. The hidden Nues flew out from them, distorting the wind around them with their six wings while they charged Brandt.

Divine Dog: Totality fully exited from its position, charging alongside all the other summons.

Brandt raised a palm and evoked a transparent barrier which blocked the golden lightning, before slashing at the approaching Nues. The medium-ranged attack barely missed them, before the three thirds flew around him in a circle.

Divine Dog: Totality raised its claw, slamming it down against the Gesatzwachter's sword, and pushed him back.

Brandt felt something electric scratch against his back, despite the circling birds simply flying around the two, 'an sharp barrier?' That was what it felt like. Breaking out of the deadlock with the Shikigami, he clashed his blade against its claw a few times while circling it, waiting for the moment a certain somebody would join the fray.

"Rabbit Escape!"

A searing sound of burnt flesh was heard, and Brandt watched on as Divine Dog: Totality leapt back, before multiple purple thunder strikes converged upon himself from the three circling Nues. The damage taken from apoptosis no longer mattered after all the afflictions it had done to himself... because the Dharmachakra had already adapted.

Over extensive damage taken from apoptosis as per the Binding Vow would eventually deplete his Output, but the effects have been negated via a loophole—making the Sorcerer free to let loose.

Brandt planted his sword on the ground, before a spherical barrier was formed around him, bearing the brunt of the intense lightning. Right after though, a gigantic amalgamation of multi-eyed rabbits clustered together, reaching a height that towered over a skyscraper.

Brandt stared at the scene for a moment, and then decided to leap backwards to make distance from it. This time, he had been prepared for the inviolable Domain trajectories formed by the Nues, by applying a defense Arts barrier around his body to take the electric 'slashing' phenomenon that would occur when touching them.

The combined Rabbit Escapes raised its enlarged paw, before slamming it down at where Brandt had been. From its sheer force, the ground broke and started digging in.

Megumi's arms were still steaming, but he motioned for his Nues to fire off thunder strikes into the bodies of the multiple Rabbit Escapes, in order to conduct electricity through their body. The command was heard, and the circling Nues started doing just that, all the while they continued tracing a larger Domain.

The black-haired man continued running across the wall of the arena, firing off Daiitoku's lightning toward the Golden Barrier encompassing the perimeter of the arena. He needed it to adapt to the Arts and destroy it completely to remove the advantage Brandt Reiner had, and it would also provide to make it more effective in dealing with his Arts.

Dispelling it with the Inverted Spear of Heaven was counterproductive if he wanted a full measure against Brandt's Arts.

Just as the mountain of Rabbit Escapes had been stomping its paw at where their enemy was at, did a gigantic golden slash bisect the entire thing in half.

The Nues screeched, having finished their impromptu Domain. Instantly, circling arcs of purple lightning lit up, forming a lined sphere of crackling thunder which surrounded the arena.

Megumi lifted Daiitoku away from the Golden Barrier before directing it toward the Domain formed by Nue. The aureate streaks of manifested Cursed Energy fired off from the Vajra, before mixing in with Nue's own.

Brandt sent off another slash to cleave the Rabbit Escape amalgamation horizontally in two after having split it vertically, before watching the scene around him glow golden. "Hmph!" His breath was heard under the helmet, before he extended his left hand by his side, the one not holding his weapon.

He needed to dispel whatever lightning storm was being formed by those orbiting birds, but—

—Divine Dog: Totality burst from the shadows, claws imbued with Falling Blossom Emotion at the ready. They made their way through with a burst of speed, scratching at the shoulder plates of Brandt.

"These Arts..." the Gesatzwachter turned around and changed his application immediately into a piercing shot of pure gold "...cannot be called Arts at all!" An explosion occurred, enveloping the Shikigami which had raised its arms into a block. All three of its heads howled in pain while being pushed back. 'The professors and students at Ludwigs-Universitat would be clawing to understand it.'

He was honestly slightly impressed, and curious about what they even were.

But... now was not the time. Why? Because the dome of golden lightning was encroaching on him, and he needed to think fast. That was right, he could converge the Golden Barrier he had created in order to intercept it.

Raising his free hand upwards, Brandt clenched it, the entire dome starting to tamper with the golden barrier being formed by the Nues. After that, he leapt to the side after sensing an accursed attack from behind, a hole being dug by five strikes of thunderbolts converging to drill a hole into the ground.

Megumi was already by his side, a streak of his blipping body following the path he had made. A clicking sound was heard as he drew his katana.

SLASH

"Hrm," Brandt let out a grunt when he attempted to block it, a vortex having been formed again and passing through his weapon, letting a large coal-colored slash impact his chest.

Megumi stepped back a good distance, before stabbing Ame-no-Habakiri into a puddle and creating other vortexes around him, firing off Samyojana from them toward Brandt to restrict his movements.

The Gesatzwachter swung his blade to intercept the chains, before he found his right leg sinking into the ground, multiple other puddles of black water forming.

Sharp water fired off from them, while the main blade made its advance toward him.

Taking in a deep breath, Brandt moved his foot swiftly out of the sinkhole, deflecting the main blade that was thrust at him, before maneuvering out of the water projectiles being shot out from the ground and toward his direction.

Megumi resheathed his blade and seemingly blipped out of existence. His form reappeared in Brandt's path, unsheathing it with a click.

SLASH

Brandt took the initiative to dodge to the side instead of attempting to intercept the blade. The vertical slash sent by the Sorcerer lodged itself in the ground, sending off a black tar-like liquid which spanned across the arena.

The Caprinae man then lashed out with his sword, executing slashes, thrusts, and parrying movements in order to break his way through the other man's guard.

Megumi hurriedly sheathed his blade, before intercepting any strikes from the man by unsheathing a small portion of Ame-no-Habakiri to block them, and at times unleashing the full weapon to intercept any. Noble Eightfold Path was still being upheld strong, but the dampening of his reserves...

...Wouldn't matter either, since the Domain formed by Nue had already been completed ages ago, and was enhanced to a further degree with the time given to let it charge.

BZZT

Brandt heard it, the laughter and cackling of thunder from up above. The Heavens were filled with scorn, and were bearing their artillery down upon him. Deciding to break away from the engagement, the Gesatzwachter thought fast. If he could disable the main summoner with an effective offensive Arts application, the lightning sphere formed by his summons should be dispelled.

Utilizing his Golden Barrier to intercept the ones formed by those monstrous birds would take too much time, so he opted for the other solution by raising his left palm. Golden energy arced around it, intensifying to the point where the air around started to distort.

Megumi flattened his feet on the ground while narrowing his eyes. He could pull out the Inverted Spear of Heaven, but the blast might cover too much of a large distance. So, he decided to clasp his hands together into a deer shadow puppet.

"Round Deer."

A monstrously divine deer was formed behind Fushiguro Megumi, his arm and hand cells undergoing a less crippling version of apoptosis. There was no need to flow Reverse Cursed Technique into it, as touching the neck of Round Deer immediately healed them to their normal state.

An eruptive blast barreled toward the Sorcerer, while he stood there casually. With the ground ripping apart, it would be a guarantee that such an attack would cause untold amounts of damage should it land on his undefended form.

However, it merely started dissipating once it reached where he was, a greenish-white barrier having been formed while the golden blast had reached him.

'What...?!' Brandt widened his eyes from under his helmet, 'what is this barrier, is it from the summon?' It felt like... a complete antithesis to Arts itself. A summon possessing such skill, along with all the other ones Fushiguro Megumi possessed, 'is he an elite soldier, what is his background?'

The Gesatzwachter abandoned attempting to attack the black-haired man while that deer was active. Instead, he put all of his efforts in creating a barrier for himself against the crashing thunder ready to eviscerate the arena.

BOOM

The Nues flew off of their predetermined trajectory, as the coalescing thunder gathered together and formed a dense golden beam which turned white at its epicenter. It fired down, toward the Gesatzwachter's body. Once it impacted, it drilled into the ground and ruptured the defensive Arts placed onto the arena walls, creating a shockwave which expanded into a mini-earthquake.

Megumi stood by the side, hovering his right hand over his eyes while Round Deer protected him from the shockwave. The damage he and his Shikigami would receive were reduced heavily because the nature of the Cursed Energy was his own.

The beam continued to hammer against the ground with an incessant force, the sound of thunder having been turned into a bass-boosted vaporizing laser. It echoed across the horizon, filling the entire place with a sound which bled into Sturmland.

Megumi was confident that all the residents had heard it somewhat, especially with some of the shockwave leaking out of the large arena.

Eventually, the beam fizzled out, leaving motes of golden light across the rise of smoke. Megumi narrowed his crimson eyes when assessing the scene, wondering if he had gone too far with the attack. However, his worries were completely dispelled when an outline could be seen inside the smoke, revealing Brandt Reiner.

The Caprinae man brushed his arm in an arc, resulting in the dust around being blown away. There he stood with smoldering armor which looked like it had seen better days.

Megumi tilted his head with muted satisfaction. Normally, an attack like that would have cost a lot of Cursed Energy if he were to use it from a Totality or Nue itself, and would be highly imprecise if he were to fire it willy-nilly. Thankfully, the trajectory formed Domain of his Shikigami saved his cost of Cursed Energy and provided an even stronger attack as a result.

"...You would make well for an upstanding Ludwigs-Universitat student," Brandt dryly commented, while shaking his wrist to get the stress out of it, "did you take a high educational course in Arts?" The Caprinae man started to pace around the arena slowly, while Fushiguro Megumi did the same—but in the opposite direction.

"I don't know if Higashi has any of those," Megumi shrugged. Round Deer was following his path, "but I could consider the highschool and college I went to as fulfilling that criteria. A high education, though? It's just about as standard as any other school, I would say."

"I take it you've already graduated, then?" Brandt scanned the plating of his armor. The finely crafted plates made for the elite troops of Leithanien had been singed, and so was his skin tingling underneath with a small but sharp pain. "It would only be fitting for somebody as talented as you." It was more accurate to say he was a monster.

"I dropped out."

"...Wie bitte?" The Gesatzwachter stopped in his steps to stare at the black-haired man. His luxurious black haori which flowed in the wind and pushed itself to his elbows was wide and malleable, unfitting for somebody who had dropped out of education, and for somebody who possessed such brilliant Arts mastery over summoning. "You dropped out?"

"Circumstances," Megumi reached his hand out to pat the deformed Round Deer, its terrifyingly altered visage not once repulsing him. "That's all there is to it, really." He knew that circumstances were the only excuses he could make. Circumstances for why he couldn't tame his Shikigamis, circumstances for why he couldn't save Tsumiki or stop Ryomen Sukuna from killing Gojo Satoru, circumstances for how he ended up in this world.

"Circumstances," Brandt repeated, "how unfortunate."

"I don't plan on going to a university or college, it's too much work." Especially when he could just steal money from those who deserve to be stolen from. That was his modus operandi as far as it came to money, "for the time needed to be sunk into them, I doubt it would do me any good." Besides, he didn't even use Arts, going to them for a more hands-on experience toward learning them was... counterproductive. He also did not wish to spend four years or above to learn about Arts and how to combat against them, considering he had two options to completely negate them.

"I understand," Brandt Reiner's voice echoed out of his helmet, before he brandished his blade once more. "Let's continue."

"Already way ahead of you," Megumi smirked, a puddle having formed behind his target while they were talking with each other. "Heads up." Divine Dog: Totality leaped out of it.

Brandt turned around to counterstrike the claw which had torn through the air, the three-headed wolf sending him slightly back before it landed on all fours. Then, the Shikigami lashed out with all three of its heads, attempting to bite at the Gesatzwachter.

Megumi had already advanced to their back, unsheathing Ame-no-Habakiri.

SLASH

Brandt felt something slash at his back, but powered through it to push Divine Dog: Totality out of the way with a golden strike of his blade. Then, he used the momentum from the attack dealt by Fushiguro Megumi to move further away from the black-haired man, and then raise his blade to deflect another slash.

They were powerful and heavy, but not enough to put the Gesatzwacher on the defensive. Before they knew it, sparks of gold and rivers of black water started to encompass the two of them in an endless parade.

The three Nues flying around the arena flew downwards in a divebomb while the bout happened.

Brandt pushed Megumi away and sidestepped Divine Dog: Totality caving in the already destroyed ground, while also ducking to avoid a Nue and then slicing another of the bird Shikigami down, dispelling it.

"Piercing Ox!"

Megumi clicked his tongue and clasped his hands together for a certain Shikigami while calling it out. It formed in front of him and then charged forward, while the black-haired man summoned out Daiitoku and flicked it.

Brandt moved his head to the side to dodge another divebomb from a Nue, before slashing Divine Dog: Totality away when it attempted to flank him. Suddenly, golden lightning crashed into him, provoking him enough to summon an automatic barrier to take it head on. The barrier would find itself enduring it, but then shattered when Piercing Ox slammed into it, and started pushing him back.

"Tiger Funeral!"

Just as Brandt had enough with Piercing Ox and bashed it to the side with an Arts blast, he looked upwards to see—

—An Apex Predator with its blazing amber eyes, a head covered with an ebony viscous paint, along with its toned muscles shaping into unnatural Higashinese flame patterns. It was a lean shape, but it still towered over him while raising a three-section staff above its head.

BANG

He had dodged to the side, but the destruction left was a gigantic chasm forming, along with a shimmering flame of wealth bursting upwards from it. A dazzling sight was presented before him, in the spectacle of a burnished sunray firing outwards and consuming everything in its vast expanse.

From within the trove, Tiger Funeral shot Homusubisu out, the celestial object forged from curses unspoken being weightless in its hands. The top two sections whipped out while its hand carried its other end, bashing with a force that could leave a skyscraper toppling from the blow. Flames curled around it and pulsated a burning fire of luxurious antiquity, the buttercup colors flashing more incandescently than the light of day.

Brandt Reiner found himself flying through the air, before a shift and turn of the shadows further made him anxious at where he was going to land. He was correct, as something had passed by him swiftly, when his body was making a journey across the arena uncontrollably.

A regal 'Cerberus,' but in the body and spirit of a werewolf had already dashed behind him with the singing zephyr of the wind accompanying it. Its sharpened claws of steel were stretched out and ready to tear apart even the gates of a well fortified castle, before its whistling advance was made.

BANG

The Gesatzwacher could hear the metals of his armor screech in pain, as the attack had landed squarely on the back of his neck. It was starting to peel, the solidified plates which shielded his body in its iron-willed presence were starting to peel at the coarse ripple of this werewolf's claws.

He was launched forward from the blow, before bright light covered his view. It was a tidal wave of flames rising up higher and higher, all being blown out of the gaping maw of Tiger Funeral. His body was impacted by it, the combustion sending him off into another direction from Divine Dog: Totality and Tiger Funeral.

The caressing feel of the gale did no good in quelling the rabid flames which had covered his armor and had shattered the decayed rocks of the ground. Many cubed debris flew into the sky as the force of a dragon's breath had fully settled in, while his body had almost turned into a ragdoll from the force of a reverend companion.

Suddenly, something impacted his helmet, digging into its structural integrity with a skeptical analysis of its make-up. It was a two pronged large dagger, attached to a chain which had been propelled forward. It disabled the Arts infused into it, and the automatic reflexive barrier of his own making had been eviscerated like it was never even there.

An ethereal shift happened with the object as it bounced off of his head, having nearly caused a concussion. It mingled with the air, dancing across just as the Caprinae man had recovered from the previous impacts.

Tiger Funeral and Divine Dog: Totality had already begun charging him from both sides, while the two remaining Nues fired off bolts of amethyst electricity toward him. The pressure was on, weighing down on both his soul and heart.

Megumi rebounded the Inverted Spear of Heaven extended by the chain to cover a large distance, watching as Brandt Reiner moved out of the way to dodge the lightning from Nue. However, the Gesatzwachter wasn't lucky enough to fully block the claw of Divine Dog: Totality as it forced him further backwards into another Shikigami.

Tiger Funeral dragged Homusubisu across the ground, before its final step fell. Its terrifying visage twisted like a spiral, its arms carrying the weapon of mass destruction with it. Flames billowed from where it dragged, before nailing its opponent straight on, launching him backwards even further.

An sonic boom was heard, as Megumi had dragged the extended Inverted Spear of Heaven across in order to lay on a further assaulting blow toward Brandt Reiner. The large dagger that could be mistaken for a shortsword impacted him, before his entire body was dragged by the Cursed Tool—unable to defend it with any application of Arts.

The Sorcerer dragged his opponent's body across the arena, before curving it upwards and sending it toward the rays of Heaven. A bursting sound of dilapidated air being malformed reverberated across the scene and tore through eardrums, as Brandt Reiner ascended upwards to the two Nues waiting.

The directionwas toward a densely formed Domain trajectory of the two Shikigamis, his body being caught into it like a net and electrocuted without mercy. His nerves locked in themselves, while his blood felt like they were boiling under the heated plates of his armor.

DISMANTLE

Megumi dispelled his Cursed Tool, before 'presenting' his fist and opening it, sending off a barrage of Dismantles toward the man still stuck in the sky. They twisted and churned while travelling, revealing an imbalance and warping of the world with their invisible advance, hellbent on deconstructing anything in its direction.

He motioned Divine Dog: Totality and Tiger Funeral back to his side. Round Deer had been sitting from the side casually, and watching the scene without much worry, but it also followed with the commands. The last to arrive were the two Nues, as the Sorcerer watched the Gesatzwacher slowly descend from the sky looking... far, far worse for wear than when the battle had begun.

A clicking sound was heard when Brandt landed on the ground with bent knees, huffing an exhausted breath from the damage accumulated. His armor was almost in tatters, and yet his body still persisted through the pain and damage sustained.

"You're quite durable," Megumi commented, hiding his right hand behind his back and clenching it. The action gave him a feel of how much of his Cursed Energy reserves were left, by seeing how tight his grip was from Cursed Energy Reinforcement. Suffice to say, it had taken a large blow, especially with the Binding Vow meant for training having been put in place.

It didn't help that he had to use double the amount of Cursed Energy to put his output back at normal levels, with the other Binding Vow halving his Output for double reserves in effect. To be honest, he only wanted this battle against a worthy opponent such as an elite Gesatzwachter to train himself even more.

"Hah? That's all you have to say?" Brandt clenched his fist, feeling his Arts channel once more. How... utterly strange, he hadn't been able to use it when that chained weapon had impacted his chest, must have been some sort of... "where did you gain all of those weapons?" He stared at the black-haired man, who had black markings lining his face and arms.

There were four eyes instead of two, and the 'aura' radiating off of him had turned utterly malevolent. The Gesatzwachter no longer felt as if the arena was one meant for a spar, but a battlefield lined with blades of the deceased, and corpses left rotting until rigor mortis. The many summons gathered around what looked to be a tyrannical Sovereign painted the scene of a man sitting upon a throne of ivory skulls.

"You..." Brandt's eyes narrowed under his helmet, gauging the neutral expression of Fushiguro Megumi. "What are you?" He had no connections, he had no motives, he had no natural form, he had no presence, and he had no emotion. There was something he was staring down, and he remembered the word clearly described to him by his drill instructors when first enlisting in this occupation, 'a monster.'

Was this what beings of legends were like, at such a ripe age? Firing off 'Arts' of all kinds, one that seemed to shake the foundation of how they really worked? Were they also able to change their form as they pleased, granting themselves extra pairs of eyes? Were they also able to control gigantic malformed beasts that would make even the most twisted of Originium rabid monsters churn in fear?

A Cursed King that stood upon mountains of corpses spanning across a red valley, bathed in the warmth of divine ichor split from beasts of an era long since past. There was a putrid stink wafting across the horizon, blown from a hideous power moving from west to east, all across to the feudal life of a land now long since altered through the course of times—left to rot in the paperweight of history wherein it would only be told in stories long debated in its validity.

The chiseled body of a four-armed apparition stood in the place of the black-haired man, the scraggly sea urchin hair having been turned to a slick-backed out. His entire body had turned from a clear image which could be seen by ocular lids, to a scribbled outline, as if a graphite pencil dashed with white and gray had been scribbled across a paper to depict his body. The scribbles continued to twist and swirl, creating a malignant aura ready to consume the entire world in its hungry mouth, only after stirring it all in a heated pot settled over a flaring flame.

Tiger Funeral

Divine Dogs

Piercing Ox

Round Deer

Nue

Rabbit Escape

There was no pain in his eyes, there was no vested anger or sneers of hurt amongst his face, and there was no fear for what he had envisioned. Across Fushiguro Megumi's face and dashed fingers forming multiple seals and shadow puppets needed for his next Totality, there had been only acceptance.

A burning, vengeful acceptance. To spit at the world, to spit at his vices, and to spit at what had been clawing at his heart for so long, twisting its strings and leaving nothing but a visceral retch across his chest, leading all the way to his stomach. It had all happened every waking moment of his life, tearing at his internal stability... until now.

Until this very day.

The melting organs of his own shall form something completely new!

Accept it! Embrace it! Call out his name!

The King of Curses shall manifest once more in this hollow world!

Tiger Funeral: Totality - Four-Armed Trishula Calamitous Samsara Disgraced King Ryomen Sukuna

(Tiger Funeral + Divine Dogs + Rabbit Escape + Piercing Ox + Round Deer + Nue + Toad)

A burst of pure strength and power erupted from behind, erupting with shades of black gracing it in all its entirety. Its body was outlined beneath as the wave had completely passed through, turning the world monotone for a brief second. It was then the new Totality's form was completely shown in its entirety and presented to the world.

A humanoid figure which stood over Fushiguro Megumi, the Sorcerer's body only reaching up to the Totality's lower chest. It had four arms, its skin pale and dotted with traditional Japanese fire painting lines just as Tiger Funeral's skin had been. Atop his head was orange hair, where four eyes laid beneath. On the right-half of his face were flames acting as some sort of half-mask, envisioned by its summoner to replicate a certain eye tumor of the King of Curses.

At Ryomen Sukuna's stomach was a mouth formed by the addition of Toad, his four arms coming from the work of Rabbit Escape, and its grizzly muscles adorned by Tiger Funeral and Divine Dogs' physical strength. Amongst the tufts of orange hair was a pair of ox horns being curled around by a deer's own.

Ryomen Sukuna's upper right hand held Ame-no-Sakahoko, the Positive Energy radiating off of his body providing enough of the substance to keep the weapon in its celestial state of an armament. Its lower right hand held Daiitoku, the Vajra which had split the seas of Primavera. On the other two hands on the left of his body, the upper left one was held out in a palm, crackling with golden electricity from Nue. The lower left one held a blazing aureate coalition of combusted fuel, given to it by Tiger Funeral's elemental capabilities.

All in all, all of its arms were spread out, standing behind its new Sovereign.

Megumi opened his mouth, "so, are you going to surrender? Or are you going to keep holding back your strength?" The Sorcerer boredly called out, "I doubt an elite soldier like you would have struggled this much against me." His voice was calm, as if chiding the other opponent for their results.

Brandt Reiner stood with a straight posture, his instincts screaming at him to act against the apparition of nature's malevolence in front of him. Those two... the black-haired man and the towering summon that looked like it came from Higashinese mythology... "I was told by Werner von Hochberg to relinquish some of my strength." The Gesatzwachter finally spoke out, calmly in fact.

However, he had attempted to apply his Arts in a higher output setting when put into a disadvantageous position. Namely when the pink elephant had been dropped on him, and when he was being pressured by that horrific humanoid tiger and three-headed werewolf. For the latter, that strange dagger had disrupted his Arts and cancelled them out completely. How such an artifact existed, or whether it could be countered or not... such a conception was terrifying.

"What is that?" Brandt Reiner couldn't care for taking the short end of the stick during battle, what mattered more was the unnatural summon behind Fushiguro Megumi. "Never once in my life have I ever read a factual or scientific book about Arts which told of a Caster or Summoner that could summon so many beasts, along with... what that is supposed to be."

"It's my Arts, they've been 'cursed' to become like this, along with affecting my physical body." Megumi responded with the same lie that he had told Reunion, "how it came to be, it's complicated to say. The process is not kind either, that much should be obvious from what you're feeling." The Sorcerer tilted his head.

"Cursed... Arts?" Brandt Reiner found that hard to believe. However, the strange energy coming off of him from the other man could easily be taken for somebody who had committed genocide against multiple villages and cities, something that just... it didn't fit the demeanor of the black-haired man. Well, not before. How it came to being right now must have been when he unleashed those invisible slashes, that was the only sequence he remembered when Fushiguro Megumi was 'normal,' before turning like a light switch.

His 'Arts' did not feel like Arts at all, but it made sense on a certain line of reasoning. If his Arts had become cursed, then there could be the present fact that it had been altered beyond recognition by the curse. How it came to be... must have been something on the level of a Witch King's Voice being born within a vessel. However, the Gesatzwachter wasn't sure, and it further added on to the piling questions about the Higashinese Aegir in front of him.

"We're done here."

It wasn't Fushiguro Megumi who had spoken those words, or even Brandt Reiner. It was somebody else who had stepped into the battlefield, causing both of their heads to turn to it. Werner von Hochberg, the well-dressed man coughed into his closed fist before placing both of his hands behind his back.

Arturia and Laurentina followed behind him, the latter holding a look of... muted excitement?

Megumi blinked, why did both of them look excited?

"The sparring match was a spectacle to see... even if it were quite an uncontrolled one, might I say." The Kurfurst glanced at the two. Fushiguro Megumi hadn't looked like he was even injured, his black haori billowing in the wind just fine. The summon behind him... goodness, he hadn't seen something so malignant since the Septemeraufstand, also known as the Septemberrevolution. "You hold quite a talent in Arts, and even I believe that to be an understatement."

"...Thank you," Megumi clasped his lips together after hearing his words. He didn't turn around to gauge his Shikigami, as he didn't wish to, so he merely waved his right hand and dispelled it. The strain on his reserves when using the humanoid Totality was far less than Yamata-no-Orochi, even if it only lacked one Shikigami compared to the former one. However, its strength was only a quarter of a step below the eight-headed serpent, considering how it used Tiger Funeral as its base.

Interpretation and integration of a base were also deciding factors that dictated a Totality's strength, not merely the amount of combinations sploshed together.

"It was an excellent battle," Brandt Reiner spoke from the sidelines, taking off his helmet and placing it between his arm and side. "A skill such as that would immediately land you in a high ranking position in the Leithanien Militar in only a few years."

"Aha, a good suggestion I would say," Werner von Hochberg turned away slightly while speaking his piece.

"I'll keep that in mind," Megumi replied with a toneless voice. Really, he wouldn't.

He stares he was receiving... he didn't like it. At least the spar had alleviated some of his stress... strangely enough. Perhaps it was a venting method

***

Events... They were always a staple which made a day interesting. In the case of today, there were two events in which Fushiguro Megumi had been dragged—agreed into coming with his own volition. First was that tiring battle against a Gesatzwachter who was holding back (seriously, it made him disappointed how he practically walked out of the fight without at least getting a large gash across his chest), and the performance of a certain Sankta.

Megumi sat in the seat of the audience with Laurentina beside him, the place being more akin to a VIP seat that also held Brandt Reiner at the guard, and Cora Lowenstein sitting beside Werner von Hochberg. The latter seemed much more amicable, taking the time to catch up with the two. Seriously, his relationship with his retainers was far better than Fushiguro Megumi could have expected. From the gossip he had heard from the servants back at the Spire, the Kurfurst of Sturmland was a rather carefree man before he became a part of the Kurfursten, but that had changed to a certain degree.

It was... somewhat relieving to hear that some of those aspects hadn't changed. Aside from that, the outfit he was wearing was different from his black haori. It was the outfit that Laurentina had tailored for him with a drawing back in Primavera, made from the strange old man who seemed lost—yet aware of the world at the same time. It was weird and unnatural, just as the entire city had been with its misty air.

The journey here was awkward to say the least, aside from Laurentina who was all buddy with him. For Cora Lowenstein, Brandt Reiner, and Werner von Hochberg, it looked like his Shrine Cursed Technique had left a deep impression on them. While they conversed with each other, the shark lady continued to pester him with questions, such as when he had gained a new pair of eyes, and if his crimson eyes were of any relation to it.

He answered vaguely, as he always did. The Gesatzwachter named Reiner had also kept an eye on him through the entire journey... and the black-haired man already knew why

His elbow was pressed against the armrest, paying no mind to the other people around him. He tugged at the tie of his formal black attire to make it more comfortable, and then let out a sigh. The request from Arturia to attend her little performance in Sturmland made him realize that this woman was a rather popular cello player amongst the populace here... and maybe even across Leithanien. He wasn't completely sure, though, as he knew hardly anything about the country.

At best, he was only aware of small details in regards to the Septemberrevolution, the Witch King, the Twin Empresses, and the Kurfursten. For communal matters such as popular orchestral music and prominent musicians who wander around—which fits the descriptor of Arturia—the black-haired man was completely in the dark. The same went for the country's education, he only knew that the universities delved deep in matters regarding Arts. How they specifically functioned and the needs to enter them, Megumi did not know.

Zwillingsturme held most of the prestigious schools, where meritocracy spoke the loudest. Even then, the black-haired man was sure there would be inequality between the nobles and the common folk. For Jujutsu Tech, a discrepancy like that was never seen, considering just how small the highschool and college section of it was. Most of the people hailing from a Great Clan were also not that fussy over matters, seeing how Gojo Satoru, the Strongest Sorcerer and Head of the Gojo Clan never gave a rat's ass about them either.

Zen'in Maki was also somebody ostracized by the Clan she had belonged to, so there was no reason for her to be prideful or spoiled about them. In fact, Megumi believed her to be far above even her own clan to be constrained by them. Himself? The Sorcerer didn't think much of the Zen'in Clan, whether it be in a positive or negative connotation. They were never something that interested him, and he took many measures to make sure he wouldn't be bothered by them in his daily life—which had failed miserably in the future.

All in all, Jujutsu Tech never had a social class divide. The universities in Leithanien and its capital? He didn't wish to generalize them or make assumptions, but Fushiguro Megumi was sure there was some case of those happenings occurring. Seeing how the history books described it as a 'meritocratic' system which didn't discriminate between commoners and nobles, and mixed them together, sounded like a recipe for internal fighting and grudges. That wasn't even touching on the topic of competition.

Survival of the fittest, and Fushiguro Megumi knew that he would love being present in such an atmosphere.

'...Wait, what?' The black-haired man snapped out of his stupor, 'I would... enjoy it?' Megumi scrunched up his features and lifted his head from his closed fist, opening his hand to stare at his palm. 'I was never this competitive before...' no, he didn't like competition in the first place. The Sorcerer was also never one to indulge in such things, because it would only develop a toxic mindset for himself.

He would only compete with himself... but... but... 'Hah~ I'm really not just competing with myself, am I?' Of course he hadn't, the black-haired man had been competing with Ryomen Sukuna and Gojo Satoru ever since he had decided to tame Tiger Funeral. Even if he denied it, he intrinsically turned to their level of strength whenever he wished to grow stronger, for them to be the hurdle that he needed to leap over.

'There's many things to do after this, I've already discussed it with Werner von Hochberg on the way...' there was a request the Kurfurst had for him, and Megumi was willing to oblige with it. Even if it meant he would be sent as a messenger to another country before being sent back '...there's also the approach of the Kaiserinnenfest, and Mr. Reiner had said that is most likely when the echoes would become much more active.'

They were treating him more like a hired mercenary than anything, but that didn't matter much to the black-haired man. He was used to being treated like one, even if it was for a brief moment back in Lungmen—that city which he would love to forget about. Even if their views on him weren't the most positive, they still owed him for the favor he had done for the Spire and the patriarch. He wasn't do this work for nothing, it was gaining him more rapport with a very influential man

'Apparently, my next task is to deliver a letter to... Cora Lowenstein's daughter in Kazimierz?' Megumi remembered how the inflection of Werner's voice changed when he mentioned the recipient of the letter to be Cora Lowenstein's daughter, and the Caprinae woman seemed to have also shifted slightly. He didn't know why, but it really didn't matter. 'Because the messengers of House Hochberg have recently been targeted by the Witch King's Remnants, he placed the task on somebody skilled like me... It won't be much of a problem, since Laurentina is following me anyways, and there's somebody by the name of Ioleta Russel who should recognize the insignia of the letter.'

Speaking of Laurentina, the Aegir had gotten... How should he say this? More bored? More uninspired? Her recent stay in Leithanien hadn't had the same energy when she had been in Primavera, and when she had slaughtered those Seaborn back then. If anything, she looked more... restrained compared to the provocative passion of insanity she radiated when slaughtering Seaborn.

All the lights turned off, signaling the start of the orchestra. Megumi blinked a few times to get used to the lighting, before letting his nerves calm.