Chapter 96: Awakening

Chapter 96: Awakening

A black, silk-like curtain appeared at the edge of the bathroom. This was a barrier technique known as "The Curtain," which determined its strength based on the conditions set for entry and exit. The fewer the restrictions, the stronger the barrier.

Luk placed his hand on the curtain and effortlessly passed through it, clearly not within its restrictions.

The lights in the subway station returned to normal, and the sparse figures of a few people, along with their conversations and footsteps, once again filled his ears.

Luk let out a sigh of relief. It was the normal world. After safely escaping, his gaze turned inward. In a perspective invisible to ordinary people, dark cursed energy began to boil, and two figures were engaged in a fierce battle.

Seven Seas Kenji's body, enhanced by cursed energy, was no less formidable than the cursed spirit. In the cramped bathroom, he moved nimbly, his katana leaving several wounds on the cursed spirit's body.

The cursed spirit roared and unleashed a barrage of light beams, but Seven Seas Kenji dodged them all, leaving a few more cuts on the spirit's body. However, the cursed spirit's body seemed particularly tough, and its physical injuries healed quickly.

By the time the second strike landed, the first wound had already healed, and the blood that flowed out returned to its body.

"My technique is called the Ten-Line Curse."

Seven Seas, growing impatient with the delay, revealed his technique's information to the enemy. This was "Binding," a technique that became more effective when the enemy was informed of its details.

"Regardless of the opponent, this technique can forcibly create a weakness on the enemy's body. Specifically, it divides the target into segments and creates a weakness at the 7:3 point. Hitting this 'point' triggers a 'critical hit.'"

"Even against enemies stronger than me, it can cause significant damage. Any part of the body can be targeted, and it is also effective against non-living objects."

At that moment, everything in Seven Seas Kenji's eyes transformed into proportional segments, and the cursed spirit was no exception.

With a deep breath, the cursed energy rapidly circulated, and Seven Seas Kenji swiftly rushed to the cursed spirit, his katana striking the spirit's body at the 70% mark.

Crack—

A sound like shattering glass echoed, and the cursed spirit let out a piercing scream. Its limbs flailed like a dissected frog, and it finally fell lifelessly into a pool of blood. The abnormal state in the bathroom returned to normal.

"A cursed spirit with blood control abilities... it's perfect."

Seven Seas Kenji reached into his pocket and pulled out a small brown bottle. He then placed two fingers in front of his chest, and the cursed spirit's blood, as if drawn by an invisible force, slowly flowed into the bottle without expanding.

After a moment, the cursed spirit was drained of blood, and its body dissipated rapidly, like snow melting in intense sunlight.

At this point, "The Curtain" was lifted, and the black, curtain-like barrier disappeared.

Seven Seas Kenji calmly walked out, his steps steady and his expression calm, like any ordinary office worker.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Fujii Luk."

Luk shook his head. "No need for formalities or my full name. Just call me Luk."

"It's been a while, Seven Seas. You saved my life just now."

Seven Seas Kenji removed his green-lensed glasses and adjusted his collar. "I just happened to be nearby and was notified of your danger."

"Who?" Luk asked, a bit curious.

"Miss Mingming has a crow-shaped tattoo on your lower abdomen, right?"

The sudden revelation of a private matter caused Luk's face to twitch.

It felt as if he had been betrayed and the evidence shared with his colleagues.

Seven Seas Kenji continued, unperturbed. "That's a self-sensing engraving technique. When there's a strong cursed energy reaction near you, she will be alerted."

Hearing his ex-girlfriend's name again from someone else, Luk felt a sense of temporal disorientation, especially knowing that Seven Seas Kenji had been notified by her.

"Does she still not forget me?"

"No, I think it's just that the reward for exorcising a Level 1 cursed spirit is high, so she notified me. I need to give her 30% of the reward this time."

Seven Seas Kenji answered quite calmly.

Luk: (_)



That made sense, given that Mingming was the type of person who only thought about money.

The number of people around gradually increased as another rush hour began. A few minutes later, the subway arrived, and Luk invited Seven Seas Kenji to his home for a brief visit. Seven Seas Kenji did not refuse.

They had worked together at a bond company and got along well, often eating together and complaining about their jobs and incompetent bosses. They had both declared their disdain for their work.

However, one day, Seven Seas Kenji abruptly resigned.

"Since every place is a cesspool, I might as well stay somewhere that makes me feel a bit more comfortable."

With those words, Seven Seas Kenji disappeared from the company.

Later, Luk also grew tired of his job, where large sums of money flowed through his hands but didn't belong to him. After offending his boss, he also resigned without hesitation.

After exiting the station, it took about twenty minutes to reach home. Luk welcomed his guest inside, clearing a path through the mess of garbage, quickly tidying up the living room, and then taking out two cans of cold beer.

"Sorry, the house is a bit messy. I haven't had time to clean up. I hope you don't mind."

Seven Seas looked at the chaotic room and fell silent for a moment.

He thought it was more than just a bit messy, but he politely refrained from commenting. After all, someone who only got home at eleven at night clearly had little energy to maintain tidiness.

"Is it convenient to ask about your work schedule?"

“Working from six in the morning until ten at night, with two hours of overtime, and occasionally even more,” Nakajima Kenshin fell silent again. “Have you considered changing jobs?”

“With my current job, the pay and bonuses are high,” Luk replied confidently. “Once I’ve earned enough, I won’t have to work anymore.”

“...That’s a simple and honest thought, but at this rate, you might not live to see old age,” Nakajima Kenshin sighed.

“Your line between the real world and the cursed world is becoming increasingly blurred, especially after today’s incident. If you continue like this, it won’t be long before you get killed by a curse spirit.”

“Is there a way to deal with it?”

Luk asked. Since Nakajima Kenshin brought it up, there must be a solution, and that was probably why he didn’t refuse to come over even at such a late hour.

Nakajima Kenshin pulled out a small brown bottle filled with cursed spirit blood from his pocket.

“This is the blood of a previous cursed spirit. Because it had the ability to control blood, the quality of this blood is quite good, even comparable to that of a high-ranking cursed spirit.”

“What does this have to do with me?” Luk asked, puzzled.

Nakajima Kenshin thought for a moment before explaining, “Rituals are passed down through bloodlines. In theory, unless someone has extremely poor talent or has awakened the ‘Heaven and Curse Bond,’ which converts all their curse energy into physical attributes, a ritualist will usually awaken their ritual.”

“It could be something they’re born with, something that awakens at a certain age, or something that requires specific conditions to be met.”

“From what Miss Mimi told me, your talent as a ritualist isn’t particularly poor, and you didn’t show any signs of the ‘Heaven and Curse Bond’ when you were alone with her in bed…”

“Wait, wait, stop.”

Luk took a deep breath and waited until his mood calmed down before gesturing for him to continue. “Alright, go on.”

“So, your ritual probably requires certain conditions to be met.”

Nakajima Kenshin shook the bottle. “After some investigation, your bloodline can be traced back to the Minamoto clan. Some of their ritualists need to slay demons and bathe in their blood to awaken their ritual.”

“Minamoto? But my surname is Fujiwara,” Luk took the bottle, a bit surprised.

“Centuries have passed, and many generations have gone by. It’s common for surnames to change. Your talent as a ritualist isn’t terrible, but according to someone, it’s not great either. Don’t worry about these details.”

Nakajima Kenshin stood up. “Pour the blood into the bathtub, bathe in it, and your ritual will awaken. After that, come to our side for some training, and you’ll have the means to protect yourself.”

“So, what’s the cost?” Luk asked in a serious tone.

“According to someone, it’s about ten million yen.”

Luk: “...”

“Are you talking about Mimi?”

“Seeing your reaction when she mentioned your performance in bed, I figured you wouldn’t want to hear her name, so I used a nickname,” Nakajima Kenshin replied thoughtfully.

That woman, trying to take back the money she left him!

“I’m pretty good for a regular person.”

Luk felt the need to defend his dignity.

“Luk, the more you explain, the guiltier you sound.”

A rare smile appeared on Nakajima’s lips. “Let’s start the ritual.”

Luk: “...”

A moment later, Luk looked at the thick, crimson liquid in the bathtub, hesitating.

“Nothing will go wrong, right?”

“No, at first, you might feel some pain and tingling, along with a sense of erosion. These are all normal. Just lie down and sleep.”

Nakajima Kenshin dipped his hand in to reassure him. “I’ll be here to watch over you.”

Luk took a deep breath, undressed, and stepped into the blood-filled tub, wearing only his shorts. Just as Nakajima Kenshin said, the pain and tingling sensation instantly spread through his entire body. The curse energy within him, which had been somewhat uncontrollable, began to resonate with the curse energy in the blood. The two seemed to repel each other, leading to a tug-of-war.

Gradually, the curse energy within him began to resist the blood’s curse energy in a more natural and pure way.

As the battle raged on, Luk’s consciousness grew hazy, and his soul seemed to drift upward. Suddenly, he saw a faint gray mist and several figures.

...

Seeing everything was normal, Nakajima Kenshin took out his phone. “The event has been successfully concluded. In a short while, the senior will awaken his ritual.”

“Thank you for your help. You can take a larger share this time,” a hoarse but sexy female voice said over the phone.

“Do you think he’ll reach what level after awakening his ritual?”

“Hmm, with proficient control of curse energy, he might reach level four. If his ritual is particularly outstanding, level three. If he doesn’t actively face danger as a ritualist, it’s enough to save his life.”

The air in the room began to change.

Nakajima’s voice wavered, a cold sweat sliding down his face. Feeling the oppressive force rising in the room, he licked his dry lips and spoke with difficulty.

“Mimi, are you sure?”

Diary of a Failure

Yesterday, all the failures in the group suddenly started smiling at me and groveling.

I immediately knew something was off. I pinched my face, but felt nothing.

It was a dream, of course!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end