Victory is an intoxicating draught, a sweetness that lingers on the tongue long after the deed is done. It's like the thrill of passing a high-stakes exam by copying your friend's answer sheet, a hollow triumph that you embrace without a shred of hesitation, even as you watch your friend fail.
It manifests as the cold, ruthless pursuit of profit in the cutthroat world of business, where you watch your competitors falter and fade into the past, remaining entirely indifferent to their plight, blinded by the golden shimmer of your own ascending success.
Yet, when you relentlessly stack victory upon victory, building a monument to your own ego, you may eventually glance over your shoulder only to find that those who once stood beside you have vanished into the ether, leaving you in a vacuum of your own making. Only in that crushing, silent realization do you finally grasp the bitter, stinging truth: some people are so devastatingly poor that the only thing they have left in this world is their money.
Knowing that, in this life, I was determined to always keep those I cherish within my sight. Yet, caught in the intoxicating rush of cutting down curses and feeling ecstasy in the victory of my physical power, I momentarily forgot that this world rarely unfolds as we intend.
What use is the foresight of the future if an opponent is clever enough to adapt to my every move, effectively dismantling my attempts to avert a tragic end?
The consequence of my arrogance stood before me now, wreathed in flames and agony. "MAKIIIIIII!!!!!!!" The name tore from my throat in a primal scream as I watched the girl I had cared for since childhood was burned crisps.
---
I was in the outskirts of the city, killing off all the curses I saw in my range. Since Gojo was in Kyoto, there also needed to be someone to clear off the special grade curse; otherwise, causality would be over the top.
Because of that, I was rather busy with killing and healing jujutsu sorcerers; it was then I noticed the slight temperature increase in the area and a pressure that was unlike anything I felt. In the fight till now, I have killed a lot of special grade curses, but the pressure I am currently feeling is unlike any.
It was only after I tracked where the pressure came from that I saw who it was.
"No Way, Jogo?" I have no idea why Jogo was present in the 'Night Parade of a Hundred Demons' incident; he was only supposed to make his first entrance in the main storyline, not here.
And Jogo was fighting Yuta. It was then I smelled something like burning hair and charred flesh. I looked at the surroundings to see Panda and Inumaki were already unconscious and there were what looked like burned...
"MAKIIIII!!!!!!"
The scream ripped from my throat. No, no, no—this couldn't be happening. I sprinted toward the spot where Maki lay, her body blackened by flames.
"He...lp... Me... pa...in..." she murmured, her voice barely a ghost of a sound.
"I am here, I am here," I choked out, reaching for her with trembling hands. "Don't worry, I'm right here." I quickly activated my reverse cursed technique to heal her blisters and injuries.
Why did this happen? How did they come to this? Where have I gone wrong? This is where the question that was spiraling in my mind as I started healing Maki. While doing that I also tried to heal Inumaki and Panda.
Jogo was not supposed to be here. He was not supposed to burn Maki like this. I left Maki alone with Yuta and other Because I am 100% sure that Yuta was ready and would awaken his full strength during this fight. And with the presence of Panda and Inumaki, she was safe.
My assumption that they would be protected by Yuta's potential had led to this catastrophe, and the weight of that miscalculation was suffocating.
"I told her to run away if it's powerful." I didn't even know why they started fighting Jogo in the first place; they should know how powerful Jogo was from his presence. Why did they fight? They should prioritize running away.
"Nao...ya," Maki slowly murmured, "If...I...die...Ma...ke...Mai...happy...and can...you...gi...ve...me...a...good...bye...kiss...I...am...afride...of...this...darkness."
"Shut up, women. Let me concentrate." Always blabbering about something, I let out a sigh as I calmed my raging heart.
"Your wound is already closing. So sleep tight; when you wake up, it will be a hospital ceiling you will see."
"You...have...to...be...kind...to...a...dying...patient."
~~~
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