"Hah… Hah... Hah…"
On an empty, silent, dark street, a figure was running. Her breathing was ragged, her face deathly pale, sweat pouring down her body.
She ran with all her strength, almost in despair. When she glanced back, she saw two blood-red eyes staring at her without blinking.
"What the hell… is that thing…?"
Terrified, she turned her gaze forward again and ran as fast as she could. For some reason, the road ahead felt endlessly long. No matter how far she ran, she couldn't shake off the horrifying creature chasing her from behind.
Yukino Yukinoshita was experiencing this terror for the first time.
She was on her way home from a convenience store. Since she didn't live with her parents, she stayed alone in her apartment.
But unexpectedly, she saw something terrifying.
Its form was unclear, like a mass of dark, black smoke manifesting into something that could only be called an evil spirit. A ghost. With two blood-red eyes staring at her like the depths of an abyss, and a wide mouth that looked as if it could swallow human souls.
Yukino didn't know what it was, but the moment she realized the ghost had noticed her, and was looking straight at her, it began to chase her. Even though fear nearly made her faint, she kept running.
She ran until her legs went numb. She ran until her lungs screamed in agony.
"What is that… what kind of creature is that…?" Gasping for air, Yukino felt her body give out, no longer able to run.
Meanwhile, the ghost chasing her drew closer and closer. Its mouth opened wide, its eyes gleaming as it shouted in a horrifying voice:
"You can see me! I'll eat you!"
Yukino couldn't run anymore. She stopped, feeling a cold presence behind her, as if the ghost were pouncing on her back.
Bzzt!
She heard a sound. Like electricity crackling, or lightning snapping. She didn't feel the pain she expected from being attacked and devoured, only the cold night wind, and the sense that someone was behind her.
Someone.
Not a ghost.
"Yukinoshita?"
"This voice…" Yukino turned around and was shocked to see Tetsuya standing behind her.
The ghost was gone, and Yukino saw red lightning crackling around Tetsuya's hand.
"Tetsuya Hiratsuji…"
Tetsuya had been on his way home after speaking with Gojo Satoru. He hadn't expected to run into Yukino Yukinoshita being chased by an evil spirit.
"Yukinoshita, are you okay? I didn't expect to meet you here."
Yukino snapped back to her senses. She looked at Tetsuya, then behind her.
There was no ghost there anymore.
She wondered if it had all been an illusion. No, it couldn't be. Everything had been real. She had been chased by that horrifying creature…
"Tetsuya-san… what… what was that thing?" Yukino gathered her courage, calmed herself, and asked.
"I call them Evil Spirits. You can call them ghosts or whatever you like. They're the souls of humans who have died and usually still have regrets tied to the physical world. Normally, ordinary people can't see them," Tetsuya explained calmly and briefly.
It felt as though a door to a new world had opened for Yukino. Not a pleasant one, but a terrifying world that had apparently existed alongside her own all this time.
Ghosts? Evil spirits? The souls of the dead…? Yukino had never believed in ghosts before, yet now they were real. One had even chased her.
"Then why… why can I see them?" Yukino trembled, clearly still afraid.
Tetsuya was curious as well. He observed her and faintly sensed cursed energy within Yukino's body, similar to the energy fluctuations he had felt earlier, though much weaker.
Cursed Energy was a form of spiritual energy that leaked from humans as a result of negative emotions. Fear, grief, anger, hatred, jealousy, these negative emotions were the foundation of Cursed Energy. It was this very energy that formed the bodies of Cursed Spirits. Over time, leaked Cursed Energy accumulated and fermented until a Cursed Spirit manifested.
Cursed Energy was also the primary resource used by Jujutsu Sorcerers to employ cursed techniques. Jujutsu Sorcerers controlled their Cursed Energy so it wouldn't leak out and manifest as Cursed Spirits.
Because it came from negative emotions, all humans possessed Cursed Energy, even if they weren't aware of it. However, ordinary people, non-Jujutsu Sorcerers, couldn't sense it, let alone use it.
If the amount of Cursed Energy exceeded the average, it could allow someone to see Cursed Spirits.
But Cursed Spirits and Evil Spirits were supposed to be different. So why could Yukino see an Evil Spirit? Were they considered the same?
Could Jujutsu Sorcerers also see Evil Spirits? And could Miko's Spirit Sight allow her to see Cursed Spirits as well? Tetsuya was curious.
"You shouldn't be seeing Evil Spirits. But whatever it is, for now, I should walk you home. Where do you live?" Tetsuya decided there was no need to explain Cursed Energy or Cursed Spirits to Yukino.
Yukino didn't care either. Right now, she just wanted to curl up in her bed and erase that horrifying memory with deep sleep.
So she allowed Tetsuya to escort her back to her apartment.
Yukino's apartment was part of a luxury apartment complex.
"As expected of the Yukinoshita family," Tetsuya thought to himself.
"Thank you, Tetsuya-san…" Yukino, still dazed, bowed slightly.
Tetsuya nodded and said, "Go inside and get some rest. From now on, try not to stress yourself too much."
"Mhm…" Yukino nodded, bowed once more, and entered her apartment.
After Yukino completely disappeared behind the apartment door, Tetsuya also headed home.
Sitting on the sofa, Tetsuya slowly closed his eyes. He wanted to try something.
Soon, he felt an energy around his body. Cursed Energy shimmered faintly from him, and the atmosphere in the room darkened instantly.
That's right, Cursed Energy. The most valuable resource in the world of Jujutsu.
There was nothing special about it. Tetsuya had simply unlocked a new type of energy.
"So this is Cursed Energy?" Tetsuya opened his eyes and looked at the dim-colored energy enveloping his hand.
It was the same type of energy he had felt from Yukino, though clearly far greater. Negative emotions… you didn't need to know which negative emotions allowed Tetsuya to possess Cursed Energy.
At this moment, Tetsuya had Cursed Energy. He wondered, if he drew the lottery now, would he obtain some cursed techniques?
Would it be the Six Eyes or Limitless? Or maybe even Sukuna's Domain Expansion, Malevolent Shrine?
[Ding! Ice General has joined the chat group late!]
At that moment, a notification from the chat group appeared.
"Oh? A new member? It's only been a few days since Erza and Shinobu joined," Tetsuya looked at the notification, slightly surprised. Reading the new member's name, his eyebrow twitched upward. "Ice General… I wonder who that is."